Sean shrugs. “Not our problem.”
“We’re going to make it our problem. That’s the whole point of all of this. It’s not just about our family, or this town, not anymore.” I shove my hands in my pockets. “We’re going to do this in a way that will honor them.”
Sean produces and pops the cap off another beer. “This seems ambitious. I mean, come on, man. Look at where we’re at—bumfuck nowhere.”
“That’s exactly the point,” Dominic snaps. “You want to end up just another line cook at Daddy’s restaurant? What’s going to happen when they call in that bank loan?” He glances at Tyler. “Are you going to be a career soldier?”
“This is exactly why we’re here,” I interject, “to get our priorities straight.”
“My priorities are perfect,” Sean lifts his hands and begins to tick off his fingers. “Pussy, pussy, pussy, pussy, and…” he holds a finger on his thumb, “yup, I’m going to have to go with pussy.”
Tyler and Dom laugh, and I reel on the three of them. “This is another reason why I called this meeting. You want a girlfriend? Have one, but pillow talk and this fucking club are never to go hand in hand. What the other birds do is not my business, but as far as we are concerned, women don’t have a place at this fire, not yet. And not until they are vetted by me personally. End of.”
“I thought you said women are a sanctuary.” This comes from Sean, who tests me with the lift of another beer, a smirk in place.
“They are. Away from business. Personal attachments are the greatest liability. And the first one who fucks up on that front will pay dire consequences,” I give each one of them a pointed look, “no fucking exceptions.” I again snatch Sean’s beer, just as he lifts it. “I’m not dealing with another fucking alcoholic.”
Sean’s smile disappears. “Since when is a sense of humor a crime? I consider it a necessity. And who the hell do you think has been cleaning up the puke off your aunt’s fucking face for the last five years?”
Tyler snaps to, glaring at the side of Sean’s head. “You aren’t the only one looking after her.”
“No, we all are,” he nods toward me, “but he sure as hell isn’t.”
With that admission, I dart my gaze between the three of them and wrack my brain for the right words, but they would all sound like excuses. In this moment, I don’t have any good enough. I can’t make up for what I’ve missed and will continue to miss. In a blink, they’ve gone from kids to teenagers bordering men. But if I can come through for all of them, there may be a chance of redemption. A chance they might see my sacrifice as worth it. It’s all I’m working for. In the meantime, all they feel is my absence and a growing bitterness that comes with my arrival and the demands I make.
They need laughs, they need these stolen moments, they need to experience their youth in the way I couldn’t.
“You’re right,” I admit, handing Sean his beer. “Just, take it easy, okay?”
Sean nods, cautiously taking the beer from my hand, mild surprise on his face.
Tyler stands and grabs some of the logs from the ground, his posture hostile as he tosses them into the fire. Something is…off with him, and I’ll make it a point to take him aside and try to figure out what it is.
“So, if I’m getting this right,” Tyler drawls, “we need a wooden horse to recruit an army to hide inside of it and the opportunity to slip into the city.”
We all stare into the flames as he continues. “I’m going to be a third-generation Marine, it’s a given, and if there’s one thing I know how to do—it’s build an army.”
Sean speaks up next. “Me and Dom will cover the garage, and once it’s up and running, I’ll figure out a way to get us through the gate.” He ruffles Dom’s hair. “And we all know this asshole’s going to Harvard or Yale or some shit.”