Mia

Power

The meal was amazing, I ate as much as my body would let me.

"Can I help?" I ask his father, standing next to the man at the sink.

"Of course," his heavy words lightened by the smile across his face. I grab a rag and start drying as he hands them over.

"Where did you meet the boy?" He asks, not looking away from the task at hand. I sigh and place the next dry plate on the counter

"Your store." He turns and nods appreciatively.

"He's a good kid, but you're such a nice girl..." he shakes his head, I wonder if he knows about Jimmy. I wonder if he was there when I came in dressed like a mongrel.

"You don't have to worry about me," I laugh. He just keeps washing the dishes before the last one passes my hands.

"That's my job," Lorenzo says, his arms wrapping around my waist. I set the pan down before I let him spin me in his arms.

His father smiles and excuses himself around the other end of the kitchen. He doesn't remind me of my father, but he has such a strong presence. My father was a tall blonde man with thin limbs and glasses. My father, Greg Milanna, one of the greatest lawyers in America, was the nicest guy alive. He won my mother over with kindness and grace. He was patient, waiting over ten years for her, but he always knew she'd pick him. He was the guy that opened doors, while other guys strode through without thinking. He was the guy who held back her hair at a party while the guy who got her drunk continued to another girl.

My mother, Regina Casoppi, on the other hand was crazy. She partied every night in college, still getting the best grades in her class at medical school. She slept with all the jocks that made it to a second date, always keeping my dad at her side as her bestfriend. Until she realized she'd never be able to land anyone as great as him.

They got married right after college and had Tom within the year. After that they sped through life, my mother gaining her spot as head of the local hospital, my father starting his own chain of law firms. Tom grew up in a smaller house than I did, and even as I grew up the houses got bigger and nicer. As the houses got bigger and my clothes got nicer, I seemed to have more friends, but McKenna was there from the beginning. And the end.

"Want to stay?" He asks and pulled me away from the thoughts. I nod,

"I need to go home and get some things though." I pull from his arms and head towards the door where my shoes are at the foot of the stairs.

"Want company?" He asks as he throws on a leather jacket. I look out at the ocean through the windows, the sun dangerously close to dipping behind the water.

"I guess," I shrug and tug awkwardly at the boxers and too big shirt.

We walk next to each other down the street, the wind wrapping its brisk arms around my bare legs. I let myself into the house and call for Tom and Marie, but the house is deadly silent. Lorenzo follows me up the stairs to my room, where I grab a bag and throw some random clothes into it. He picks through the suitcase, finding the most revealing clothes and throwing them in the bag.

"I don't need twelve outfits," I say and shut the bag before he slides in a pair of black underwear.

"But I think we need these," he hangs them on one finger in front of me. I yank them down and shove them into the bag.

"Only because I need a pair," I warn as he smirks. I blush and pull the bag over my shoulder.

"You don't wanna change here?" He sits on the edge of the bed,

"No?" I turn and watch him get comfortable.

"You probably should," he says, pulling a pair of the silk pajamas from behind his back. He had a look in his eye that made me want to melt into the floor. I shut the door reluctantly and pull away the hair tie at the boxers, letting them fall to my ankles. The satisfaction spreading across his face as I ripped the shorts from his grip. I narrowed my eyes at him before removing the shirt, the effect didn't take as the flash illuminated the room again. I threw the shirt at him and it wrapped around his face. It took him too long to tear away the shirt to catch a glimpse of me pulling on the other top.