Chapter 23
Evan
“Well, Lora is all settled in,” my dad said as he walked into the living room. “And everything seems to have quieted down. That was quite a situation we had, but I think most of it has been smoothed out.”
“Thanks for helping me out, Dad,” I said. “I appreciate it.”
I wondered how Lora was feeling now. Was she still angry with me? Would she be willing to speak with me later tonight, or was she feeling so upset that it would have to wait until the morning? I understood that I had hurt her, and all I wanted to do now was comfort her.
“I did what I could,” he said. “And you know what? I think things will be just fine for you and her, as long as you treat her right. Be a gentleman, treat her with kindness and patience, and she'll be willing to patch things up.”
“I'll do that.”
“Also,” he said, “there's someone else you need to patch things up with.”
I knew right away who he meant, but after our hot-headed exchange earlier, I didn't know if I was feeling up to making peace with JB. But I knew it was the right thing to do.
“Dad, maybe can you just let me and JB have some time to cool down before we talk again? And anyway, he's not even here, he's gone off to work at the jazz club.”
“I didn't mean right at this very moment,” he said. “But you should do it soon. You're both my boys, and I hate seeing you fight.”
A sharp impulse tore abruptly through me. I wanted to snap, “he's not my real brother,” but after everything I'd learned about him tonight, I was starting to see him in a different light. Maybe now was the time to finally make peace with JB, once and for all.
“Did Anne tell you about the idea Jackson has for the jazz club?” asked my father.
“She did,” I said. “I have to be honest, though. Given JB’s track record of mismanagement and poor choices, I don't know if it's such a good idea for me to partner with him on this.”
My father sighed. “Even after all of the hard work he's been doing at the bar? He's been doing a very good job. I think that with you alongside him, he could finally make a success of himself with this new project.”
I wondered if this was the right time to tell my father about JB taking a loan from the Borlotti family. If Dad was going to push me to do this, then I guessed he needed to know the truth of the matter, to know why I was so unwilling to work with JB.
“Listen,” I said. “There's something you need to know about JB. About where he got the money to upgrade the bar and get that karaoke setup going.”
He sighed and frowned. “I was wondering how long you were going to keep that secret from me.”
“What?” I asked, confused. “What do you mean?”
“About the money Jackson borrowed from the Borlotti family. Did you really think I wasn't going to find out about that?”
“You know about that?”
He chuckled and nodded. “This old fox is slyer than you boys think,” he said, tapping the side of his head. “Come on, did you really think I was naive enough to believe that Jackson got that money through a legitimate loan? I soon found out where the money came from, and believe me, I was not happy about it. My son, making deals with those kinds of people. He's just lucky that his gamble paid off, and that the bar is doing well. I helped him pay off the loan from the Borlottis, so he won't have to deal with them anymore. I'm making him pay back the money to me, however. I know he only did it because he was desperate, and too proud to ask for help from me—or you. Well, Anne and I have finally managed to convince him to accept help from us—and from you. And now that he has finally let common sense get the better of his foolish pride, he's on his way to making something of himself at last.”
I shook my head in disbelief. This night was getting weirder and weirder. So many secrets coming to light.
Dad smiled. “You know, I told you this before, but you were always the stronger one. Always the more mature one. I'm so very, very proud of you and what you've become. And now my other son is finally able to fly, just like you've been doing for years. It's just that he needs an extra pair of wings to help him get off the ground. What do you say? Are you willing to do this for him…for me?”
I stood in silence for a while. “You really think that he's going to make a success of this new project? Do you really think that he's turned over a new leaf, this time?”
He nodded. “I honestly do believe that. With all my heart I believe it.”
I sighed. “I won't make any promises yet, but I'll consider it, okay? I'll give you that much. I'll consider it.”
“And that's all I wanted to hear from you at this point. Thank you.” He stepped closer to me and hugged me tightly. “Now, I'm heading off to bed. I'll see you in the morning.”
“Good night,” I said.
“Good night, my boy.”
As I watched him walking away, I realized just how much I loved him, and a feeling of guilt came over me. I hadn’t been fair to him all these years. Deep down, I had felt as if he had chosen Jackson over me, that he had loved my step-brother more than he had loved me. Yet I realized now, with crystal clarity, that this had not been the case at all. Every decision he had made for me as a child had been done because he wanted the best for me. “Thank you, Dad,” I whispered. “Thank you for everything.”
I stood alone in the room, simply thinking about it all. Soon, however, my thoughts turned to Lora. I wondered whether she would be willing to speak to me. I was feeling such an intense gush of emotions flowing through me, and I didn't want to wait until morning to talk to her.
I could at least give it a shot. I walked up to the guest room and knocked on the door.
“Yes?” came her voice from within.
“It's me,” I said. “Could I come in?”
There was a long pause before she replied, and the seconds seemed to drag out to hours. Eventually, however, she responded.
“All right,” she said. “Come in.”