Holding Bruno’s hand, I walk into Chuck’s Bar and sit down on a stool with him. He claps his hand with excitement, looking up as Chuck walks in from the back.

“Well, well, if it isn’t Frank Romero.” He puts down a few new boxes of liquor on the floor and shoves them under the bar. “I didn’t expect to see you back here.”

“Yeah. For a minute, I didn’t either,” I jest, snorting.

“What happened? Got in a bar fight again?”

“Eh, something like that,” I answer, winking at Bruno who I know has many questions he can’t wait to ask.

“And who’s this young fella?” Chuck asks him.

“I’m Bruno.” He holds out his little hand, and when Chuck grabs it, he dramatically shakes it.

“Well, it’s nice to meet you, Bruno.” Chuck’s rumbling laugh fills the bar.

He puts down a glass in front of me. “The usual?”

“What’s the usual?” Bruno asks, curiously looking at the glass.

“It’s something for grown-ups,” I say. “You’ll get to try it out too, one day. But …” I clear my throat. “Let’s have a drink together.”

“Oh, yes! Something fizzy.” He grins. “Laura doesn’t let me have fizzy drinks.”

“Well, you can have them here,” Chuck says.

“Coke,” I say. “Two.”

“Two?” Chuck raises a brow.

I shrug. “No more alcohol for me.”

“Really?” He frowns, surprised.

“Yup.” I feel kind of proud about it, if I do say so myself.

Just as proud as I am of my son.

I pat him on the back and ask, “You like that, kid?”

“I don’t know. I’ve never had Coke, but I can’t wait to try it!” he says, a little too over the top, like kids always do.

I smile. “But you gotta promise me you’ll drink it fast. We have to be at the church soon.”

He nods, but his eyes are immediately distracted by Chuck pouring Coke into the glasses. It’s as if he can already imagine what it tastes like. His innocent excitement really makes it that much more fun.

Chuck dunks a decorated straw into Bruno’s drink and pushes it toward him. “There you go, kiddo.”

“Oh, look at all the bubbles!” Bruno squeals, leaning over to hear them burst in his ear.

I lean in and whisper, “If you blow into your Coke, you can make even more.”

He forms an O shape with his mouth and then immediately puts the straw against his lips, blowing hard. Half the Coke spills over his glass, but the giant bubbles that form make him giggle hard.

Chuck shakes his head and laughs as he gets a small towel and wipes off the bar. “You’re teaching him all the wrong things. Guess no one could expect anything less from you.”

“Damn right, he’s gotta be just as bold and brass as his dad.”

Chuck smacks down the bottle he was unpacking onto the counter, his jaw wide open. “Dad … wait, what?” His eyes flash back and forth between me and Bruno, and the more he seems flabbergasted, the more I’m starting to grin.

“He’s … your son?”

I take a big gulp of my Coke before I answer. “Yep.” I wrap my arm around Bruno’s shoulder, who’s happily slurping down his Coke.

“But I thought he was …”

“Lost,” I say, winking. “It’s a long story.”

“My God …” Chuck shakes his head like he still can’t believe it, and he leans over the counter. “Let me take a good look at you.” He eyeballs Bruno like he can’t believe what I’m saying, but the longer he stares, the more I see a smile. “He does look a little bit like you. Damn.”

Bruno sticks his finger into the air and yells out, “Damn!” Making us both laugh.

“He’s got your vocabulary all right.”

With a smug face, I lean back on my stool. “Told you. My son.”

“God … I still can’t believe it.” He shakes his head in disbelief.

“Well, it was a surprise, to say the least. I guess God really does care about me after all,” I joke.

“Maybe he saw how much of an ass you were making of yourself and decided enough was enough,” Chuck retorts, and I nod, smiling like an idiot.

“Damn straight, and we both deserved it, didn’t we?” I hug Bruno and rub his head, messing up his hair.

“My previous daddy wasn’t nice at all, but Frank is. He makes a lot of jokes and takes us out to the park and the zoo. Sometimes, he farts too, and they’re just as smelly as mine are.”

Chuck and I snigger.

“And he even cooks spaghetti!” Bruno adds cheerfully, sipping his Coke.

“Previous daddy?” Chuck raises his brow. “Do I even wanna know?”

“No chance.” I chuckle. “Maybe another time, but not today. We’ve got somewhere to be.” I drink the whole glass and put it down then climb off the stool. “Ready, Bruno?”

He makes a few last bubble sounds with his straw before finishing up.

“Done!” he boasts, handing the glass back to Chuck with flair.

“See you next time, kid.” Chuck winks. “Pleasure to meet ya.”

“It was nice to meet you too, sir!”

“Such a gentleman, hmm.” Chuck nods, clearly impressed. “Must’ve gotten that from your mom because he sure as hell didn’t get it from his dad.”

I laugh as I help Bruno off the stool and grab his hand. “We’ll see you soon, okay?”

“Sure,” Chuck says as we turn around and walk for the door. “Oh, and tell Laura to buy some lights for tonight before she comes to work. I need to get them fixed, but I keep forgetting.”

I stick my hand in the air, yelling back, “Will do!”

* * *

An hour later, I’ve finished my sermon about hardships and how God will always help you find your way back to happiness.

For the first time in ages, people are smiling at me.

For the first time in forever, Mother didn’t interrupt my speech halfway through and demand I stop.

It went so well that even Laura came up to kiss me, embarrassing the boys to the point of them blushing and telling us to go find a room.

I’m still reeling with excitement as the people leave the church, thanking me for my help. It seems like ages ago that I last acted like a total douche even though it was only a few weeks. So much has changed between then and now. Looking back, I can only say … I’m so damn glad I went through everything I did.

Why?

Because it meant meeting my son again.

Because it meant falling in love all over again.

It’s not easy starting over.

But the people who love me definitely make it worth it.

Laura walks up to me and smacks me on the butt. “Well done, dude.”

“Thanks.” I grin. “You already said that.”

“I know,” she says with a mischievous grin. “But I want you to remember that.”

“Is that some kind of hint?” I muse, pulling her toward me and grabbing her butt.

“Maybe …”

“Eww,” Diego mutters.

“Guys, why don’t you go back home?” Laura tells the boys. “You can play the new game we bought …”

“Really?” Bruno’s eyes light up like there’s a fire behind us.

“Yes. But only if you and your brother behave.” She holds up a finger. “No fighting.”

“Yeah, yeah. I still need to write my résumé, so I don’t have much time anyway,” Diego says, grabbing Bruno’s hand. “C’mon.”

“Does that mean I go first?” Bruno asks as they walk to the door.

“Sure, why not,” Diego says casually, waving at us as they walk out.

“Résumé?” I mutter.

“Yeah, Diego’s looking for a job.” Laura winks. “Finally.”

“Good. I’m proud of him. He’s come far,” I say.

“Yeah …” she agrees.

Mother has already left to go get some groceries for the small refrigerator she has in her room, so now Laura and I are all alone in this big, empty church.

I wonder what will happen.

“So …” Laura fiddles with my shirt. “I’ve been thinking … It’s been too long since I last did a confession.”

“Oh, really now? Is there anything you need to tell me?” I ask, grabbing her fingers to kiss, one by one. “Anything … filthy? Raunchy? Wrong?”

She bites her lip. “All of it … and I think we should go discuss it in the confessional.”

“Hmm …” I nod, raising a brow while a devious smile appears on her face.

“One on one, you know … to get down to the core.” Her hands are all over my crotch, making my dick hard and my grin even bigger.

“I may have a little bit of time for that … After all, you never know when Margaret will come back,” I say, grabbing her ass and squeezing tight.

“It’ll only take a few minutes … Not a lot is going to come out of my mouth. Just in.” She grins.

I grab her chin, and our lips graze before I give her soft kisses, which quickly turn into rabid ones. We slowly stumble backward until we hit the confessional, and she squeals when we fall inside.

I sit down on the bench and pull her on my lap, rubbing my hard-on against her underwear. She’s only wearing a skirt, so I can easily slip my fingers underneath and touch her.

“Forgive me, God, for I’m about to sin like fuck,” Laura murmurs as she kisses me and rubs her tits all over my chest.

“Oh, yes …” I whisper, smiling as I brush my lips against hers. “Let’s sin like fuck together.”

* * *