8. Nixon

Chapter 8

Nixon

Pulling into the parking lot of Catalino's Italian restaurant, a sense of familiarity washes over me. Since I arrived back in town, I haven't left the house much. I've gone to the grocery store and dropped by to ask Carla for Savannah's number, but that's it.

I'm going to be spending the next few months renovating the house, since it's not quite what I need right now. A few walls need to be torn down and the kitchen and bathroom need to be gutted. It's going to take months, but I'm excited to turn it into the house of my dreams.

Pushing through the front door of Catalino's, I stand off to the side. I called in my order, planning to take it home and eat in front of the TV. The last thing I want to do is to eat dinner alone in the restaurant. I envy people who can do that without feeling weird about it.

"Nixon? Nixon Russo, is that you?" Donny comes from the kitchen, a big smile on his face.

"Hey, Donny. How have you been?"

"I'm good, son. Really good. How are you? Carla told me you're back in town for good."

"Yeah, I'm hoping so. I miss this place. I forgot how much until I got back here."

"Missed the place or the people?" He arches a brow.

A smile tugs on the corner of my lips, this man sees too much. He's always been like this and I think that's part of why I always felt like a son to him.

"The people a little more than the place."

"Any person in particular?" Donny folds his arms over his chest, a smug smile adorns his face.

"There's one I've been hoping to see."

"You always were in love with her. I never really understood what happened that ruined your relationship. I always hoped you'd officially be my son one day."

"Yeah… I'm not sure she'd ever allow that now. I screwed up, but I want to make it up to her."

"She has a boyfriend. He's coming home with her this weekend, as well as some friend of hers." He waves his hand through the air.

"Oh," I whisper, dread filling me. I never took into consideration that she could have someone in her life.

"What happened? I think I deserve to know after all these years." Donny stares me down, not giving me any wiggle room. And he's right. He does deserve to know.

"Can we go somewhere private?"

"Sure, let's go to my office."

Following Donny through the restaurant and into his office, I feel even more at home. Donny's always been more of a father to me than my own dad. I spent more time learning things from Donny than from anyone else.

I spill my guts the second the door is shut. Telling Donny exactly why I cut ties with everyone. He stares at me without saying a word the entire time. When I'm done, he leans forward in his chair, resting his elbows on the desk. His fingers form a steeple, where he rests his chin and stares at me.

"Listen, Nixon, I'm going to be straight with you. I'll always pick you, I'll always be on your side, but she's my daughter. I want what's best for Savannah."

"Me too, sir. She's all that matters to me. I want to fix things."

"I know you do and I want to help. I believe you could be what's best for her, but you need to prove yourself. This Chad guy… he doesn't sound fantastic to me. I've never met him so I could be wrong, but I think you deserve a fighting chance. So, here's what we're going to do…"

We spend the next half an hour talking about what's going to happen over the next week. Donny's understanding and helpful in ways I never expected. If I can convince Savvy to give me a shot, I'll owe Donny everything.

"Now, what are you doing with all your free time?" He asks, leading me out of the office and back into the restaurant.

"Well, I have an online business, but I like to work late at night. During the day I've been going through everything left in the house. Mom and Dad took what they wanted and told me to trash whatever I didn't want."

"You know… I could always use more help here. Give you a little bit of extra income."

I can't help but chuckle. Donny used to always talk about me helping Savannah with the restaurant when it was time for her to take over as the boss. It's always been a dream of mine, but I'm not sure that's a possibility any longer.

"I don't need the money, but I'm more than willing to help out."

"Great. We can talk about it more at Thanksgiving." He throws me a wink. "Here's your dinner. I threw in a few extra things for you so Carla won't yell at me. You know how Italian women are with feeding those they love." He chuckles.

"Thanks, Donny. I missed the food from Catalino's more than you'll ever know."

"That's because you won't find Italian food this good anywhere else." He smiles proudly as he hands over the overstuffed bag.

"Let me know when you need help. I can move around my schedule if I need to."

"I appreciate that. Ask Carla what she needs. I know there are a bunch of orders with Thanksgiving in a few days."

"I'll stop by after I gorge myself on this food." I lift the bag and thank him again before I leave.

The second I sit down; I open every container to see what else Carla packed for me. The Catalino's make the best food I've ever had. I used to beg them to teach me to cook. They agreed, but said I had to be old enough to work. If they were going to teach me, they were going to use me in their restaurant. I never got to learn from them. It's another thing I'll always regret.

The first bite of lasagna has my eyes rolling back and the most erotic moan escaping from my lips. I swear, there should be at least one person in every family with the ability to cook like Carla.

Every woman I've ever dated has wanted to cook at least one special meal for me. They always chose Italian, thinking it was a safe choice for their Italian boyfriend. It wasn't. I compared each bite of it to Catalino's food. I had to choke down most of it and try not to gag. No one came close to making meals like this.

The next container has the world's best meatballs. I've avoided eating pasta and meatballs since I left Pebble Creek. I knew I'd be disappointed no matter how good it was, because nothing could ever compare to the homemade spaghetti and meatballs I grew up on.

Carla and Donny packed me way too much food. I make sure to take a few bites of everything before carefully packing them away in the fridge. My bare shelves from earlier are now bursting with dinners for at least the next few days.

As soon as I'm done, I head across the street to see Carla. Knocking on the door, I take a step back and wait.

"I swear I'm never going to get used to answering the door and seeing your handsome face on the other side?" Carla stares at me for a moment, and then a large smile breaks across her cheeks and lights up her face. "Come in, come in! It's so nice to see you!"

She motions for me to follow her inside, leading me right to the kitchen. I don't think I've ever seen her outside of the kitchen. She spins around, scanning me from head to toe. Shaking her head, she opens her arms wide for me. I step into them without a second thought. This woman was always a second mom to me.

"You look good, Nixon. So handsome!" We kiss one cheek and then the other. Warm hands frame my face as she stares up at me. "I can't believe you're back. Sit down, let me get you something to eat."

"No, no." My eyes light with amusement, this woman is always trying to feed everyone. "I just picked up food from Donny. He only gave me about four times what I ordered. It stocked my fridge for the next few days."

"How about a cannoli? Everyone always has room for one."

"Just one." Holding up a single finger, I raise a brow, trying to stare her down.

"One to start with. Who can have just one cannoli?" She rolls her eyes like I'm being ridiculous.

"Are you trying to fatten me up?" I tease her. I love being around this family and feeling so welcome in their home.

"Well… You could use a little meat on your bones." The corner of her lips twitch. "Now, what do I owe the pleasure of your company?"

"Donny asked me if I wanted to help out at the restaurant. I never cashed in those cooking lessons so I figured why not. He told me to check with you to see what needs to be done."

"Ahh, I finally get to teach my boy the ways of an Italian kitchen." She ties an apron around her waist, pulling out one ingredient after another from the cabinets. "Well, you're in luck. I have to make all the dessert orders for Thanksgiving. I'd love the extra help."

"Awesome. When do you want me to come over?"

"Any time you want. I'm going to be puttering around this kitchen most of my waking hours until Wednesday. Only to wake up on Thursday and make a big thanksgiving feast for my loved ones… You'll be here, correct?"

"Of course. I'd never turn down a chance to spend a holiday with the Catalino family."

"Always the suck up," she coos, patting my cheek. "I have a lot to make so I'd appreciate any help you're willing to give… You can read a recipe, right?"

"Damn, I made it all the way through college and never learned to read. Shucks, what ever will I do?" I give her a lopsided grin when she wags a finger at me. "Do you even write down your recipes?"

"Nope! I'll have to jot them down for you to follow. I keep all of them right in my head." She taps her temple a few times.

"Does Savvy have them?"

"Savvy," she chuckles and shakes her head. "I forgot you used to call her that. Sav knows every recipe as well as Donny and I. It's in her blood. We make food and we eat. All you need in life is good food and family. Nothing else really matters."