stared at him. He had no idea what to say. Every word from Gavin's lips just made it all worse.
"So regardless of what you decide," Gavin said, shoving the plate aside as he dropped the fork. "There's always a chance Gabby could crack. So… good luck with that."
Doris approached. "You finished with that, sweetheart?"
"Absolutely." Gavin picked up his soda and sucked the rest of it down. "I'd love one of these Americanized Cokes to go, if you don't mind."
"Not a problem," Doris said, smiling, looking between them. "You two know each other?"
"Nope," Gavin said. "Never seen this shaggy-haired bastard before in my life."
Doris's eyes widened as Matty sighed, running a hand through his hair. He hadn't touched it since leaving New York, the ends curling around his ears, the top covering his forehead, falling into his eyes. "He's an old friend of mine."
"I was just passing through town and thought I'd stop in and remind him to cut his hair." Gavin looked at Matty. "You're starting to look like a girl. An ugly girl. With a beard. And a mustache. The bearded lady. Stop it."
Matty laughed, grabbing the discarded straw wrapper from the table and balling it up, flicking it right at Gavin's forehead. Doris walked away, carrying the plate of food, to retrieve Gavin's Coke. Before Matty could say anything to his cousin, the bell above the door jingled. His gaze darted that way.
Three o'clock on the dot.
Shift over. Shit.
Genna walked in, distracted, her attention fixed outside at something.
Genna turned to Doris. "Whose car is that out there? Do you know? The BMW?"
Matty glanced out the window, spotting the BMW parked in front of the diner. Black paint. Tinted windows. He knew what she was thinking. The people they grew up around steered toward that kind of car—discreet luxury.
Her guard was up.
"Oh, that would be mine," Gavin said, standing up.
If Gavin thought that would alleviate her worry, he was mistaken. Genna's eyes darted right at him, every inch of her tensing as Gavin approached. She was a block of ice with no expression. He veered to the register, pulling out his wallet to pay.
The second his back was to Genna, she swung toward Matty, panic melting her face as she mouthed, 'what the fuck?' and dramatically motioned his way. Matty walked over to her, grasping her elbow to pull her out of the diner.
"What the fuck?" she hissed. "What is Pennywise the Clown doing here?"
Before Matty could respond, the door to the diner opened and Gavin walked out, sipping a drink from a Styrofoam cup.
"Genna with a G!" Gavin grinned as his eyes scanned her. "You gained some weight."
"Amaro." She crossed her arms over her chest. "You can kiss my fat ass."
He tilted his head. "I wouldn't call it fat. Round, maybe. And those hips are getting wide... not to mention those thick thighs."
"I'm pregnant, asshole," she said. "And you're not supposed to say that shit to a woman. I thought your mother would've taught you better than that."
"My mother taught me that all women are beautiful and should be treated as so," he said. "But you're extra cute when you get angry, so I'm just doing my civic duty by pissing you off."
"Why are you even here?" she asked, not giving him time to respond before turning to Matty. "Why is he here?"
Matty paused, his gaze flickering to Gavin. "He was visiting Vegas on business."
"Oh, so he was just in the neighborhood? Thought he'd drop in for a piece of cake or something? Pie, maybe? Some milk and cookies? Thought I'd bake him a damn casserole? Fix up a guest room? Maybe I can read him a bedtime story and tuck him in while I'm at it."
"How very domestic," Gavin chimed in. "I'm starting to like Genna with a G becoming a mommy."
"Fuck off," she growled.
"There's that Galante spirit," Gavin said. "Or maybe it's the Barsanti in her, since she's got some of that now, too."
Genna spun around, darting forward, like she was about to swing on Gavin, but Matty wrapped his arms around her from behind, yanking her back to him. "Gavin, you're not helping."
"Okay, okay..." Gavin held his hands up in surrender. "I'll stop."
"You're lucky," Genna said, "because I was about to knock some teeth out and I know your mother taught you better than to hit a pregnant woman."
"Actually, any woman, period," Gavin admitted, "but you're right. And I meant no offense."