Big Daddy Sinatra: There Was a Ruthless Man(64)
Thankfully, the first face she saw wasn’t Donald’s, but the very pleasant Tony. “Miss Jenay!” he said cheerfully as he came. “You look great without the shackles!”
Jenay laughed. “I agree!” she said, and extended her hand. “How are you, Tony?”
“I’m fab, can’t you tell? But I’m a hugger,” he said, ignoring her hand and hugging her instead.
“Don’t believe it,” Robert said as he rounded the foyer and entered too. “He’s more like a feeler. Watch that one.”
Jenay smiled as she and Tony released. “You must be Robert,” she said. She’d never met him, that was the only reason she knew who he had to be. “Very pleased to meet you.”
“You too,” Robert said as he and Jenay shook hands. Then he looked at his father, who was coming into the room with Brent. He nodded his head. “Very nice, Dad. A step up for a change.”
Charles playfully ruffled Robert’s blonde hair, causing him to smile, and then they all settled down in the living room. Charles sat Jenay beside him, and held her hand. Robert immediately took the seat beside his father. All of his boys, when they were younger, used to wrestle each other to be the one standing or sitting beside their father. Now Brent and Tony didn’t care. They each sat in the flanking chairs.
Jenay was pleased, as Charles held her hand. Because just like that, she felt completely comfortable with his sons. Although she noticed one glaring omission. “Where’s Donald?” she asked.
“Chasing his wife around Jericho,” Tony said. “He gives his regards.”
Jenay knew better than that, but she didn’t pursue it.
“The reason I called you guys together,” Charles said as he squeezed Jenay’s hand, “is to let you know the full extent of my relationship with my lady. Jenay Franklin.”
All three young men were now staring at her.
“Jenay and I first met at Donald’s reception.”
“Get out of here!” Tony said cheerfully.
“You sly fox you!” Robert added with equal cheer.
Brent, too, was surprised. “You were at the reception?” Although it seemed unlikely, given who Susan was, he asked anyway. “Are you a friend of Susan’s? Or her parents?”
“No, no, I don’t know her. I was on duty that day.”
“On duty?” Robert asked. “You mean like one of the waitresses?”
“She was interning,” Charles interjected.
“Interning?” Tony and Robert said this in unison. Now Jenay didn’t feel so great. Were they going to judge her because she got a late start in life?
“She was studying hotel management and doing her internship at that hotel,” Charles said. “That’s right.”
“So what are you,” Robert asked, “our age then, or what?”
“She’s thirty-two,” Charles said easily. “She was married, got divorced, and decided to go back to school.”
“Oh!” the sons said with varying degrees of relief.
“I’m glad you clarified that, Dad,” Tony added, “because, you look very beautiful and young, Miss Jenay, please don’t misunderstand me. But you don’t look our age. You don’t look that young.”
Jenay laughed. She appreciated his honesty.
“We’ve been dating officially for the past six weeks now. We’re still getting to know each other, as you can imagine, but we like what we see so far.” The sons laughed, which relaxed Jenay even more. “We want to take it further, much further, and I want you guys to understand that.”
“So what are you saying, Pop?” Robert asked. “You’re going to marry her?”
“No, that’s not what I’m saying,” Charles quickly responded. Jenay was equally relieved too. It was one thing to date and get to know. Marriage was taking it to another level. They weren’t there by a longshot. “What I’m saying---”
“What he’s saying,” Tony interrupted, “is that he’s fallen and he may not get up.” They all laughed. “He’s in love, you doofus! He’s saying he’s in love with this beautiful lady. But Dad, being Dad, is never going to admit such an unmanly thing, so he says phrases like they want to take it further, and he likes what he sees so far, and all of those technical, noncommittal kind of terms. But it’s love. Pure and simple.”
Jenay loved Tony. He had a way of cutting through the bullshit that was downright refreshing. But she waited for Charles’s response. She waited to see if he would knock down such a notion, the notion that he actually loved her.