Inseparable

“Come and say hello, Lucas.” My father pushed.

“Hi.” I waved. “Glad to see everyone is enjoying helping themselves.” Sure it was a childish thing to say but why not. I was practically a prisoner in my room like any ten year old would be while the grown-ups have their party.

“He’s tired from his flight in late yesterday.” I heard my father say as I walked away.

“Yes, if he would have been rested he would have really given you all a piece of his mind.” Jenna chuckled making the other guests laugh out loud.

“We have two daughters that age.” Some woman said. “We know exactly what you’re talking about.” And they all continued to laugh.

Part of me wanted to dash back down there and tell the bitch to shut her mouth but I didn’t. For some reason I thought of Tilly and her Merry Christmas attitude. It made my insides feel like they were shriveling up.

What did Tilly know? What did she know about anything? She was just an easy lay a couple times of a year. That was it. I’d be willing to bet that if I ran into her again in the spring she’d have her panties around her ankles and her legs behind her ears in no time.

I stopped envisioning that as it made my pants uncomfortably tight. Once I was alone again in my room I flopped down on the bed.

My father and Jenna had bought me a pair of leather gloves, a set of Fonderie 47 cufflinks that run about thirty thousand dollars and a Ziffiro razor that I hate to admit I really like. It cost my father about one hundred thousand dollars. I’ll bet he got one for himself, too.

So I paced around my room listening to the party downstairs. Once again I grabbed my high school yearbook and began flipping through the pages stopping again on Tilly’s photo.

What would she think if I just showed up at her house, that tiny, cramped place with the tacky lights and crooked screen door? I’d have to leave my car out front and how the hell do I know what the neighbors will do to a Ferrari parked on their gravel driveway.

Finally, I decided to make a bold move. I picked up my phone, scrolled through a dozen numbers until I came to what I was looking for. I pressed the green dial button and waited.

“Merry Christmas, bud!” Henry Torrence answered cheerfully.

“Henry. You gotta do me a solid, man.” I blurted out. “You gotta tell me there’s a party going on somewhere that we can go to. Anywhere but I can’t stay here. I’m losing my mind.” I held my breath hoping he wasn’t planning on spending the whole evening at his house.

“Funny you should say that, Lucas. I was just about to call you.”

I breathed a huge sigh of relief.

“My cousin just bought a bar around Addison Avenue and Wells up north.” Henry boasted. “He said he was throwing a Christmas night bash. I think he expected to be the only place within a ten mile radius that would be open on Christmas. He might be right. I was going to get the hell out of this house and check it out. Want to come?”

“I’ll pick you up in twenty minutes.” I barked before he could change his mind.

I was showered and shaved in a new pair of jeans, Italian boots and a fresh shirt within ten minutes. I left through the kitchen escaping down into the garage without anyone noticing me. Not that anyone would have cared one bit where I was going or when I’d be back.

The Ferrari had a full tank of gas and as I sped to henry’s house, almost the only car on the road, I felt like finally I’d be able to shake Telula Grant from my mind.

Henry was out the front door as soon as I pulled up and we were on the expressway heading into the city at about ninety miles an hour. I didn’t feel the need to rush.

“What’s going on at your house?” Henry asked.

I told him about Jenna’s basically taking over the house.

“That sounds miserable.” Henry concurred. “You know, when my parents split and then each got remarried it was a real pain in the ass at first. But my stepmom isn’t all bad. She’s almost twenty years younger than my father but she doesn’t try to be my mom. In fact, we rarely speak to each other except to say hello and good-bye.”

“What about your step-dad?” I asked.

“He’s okay. He leaves everything to my mom to do. I mean, if I want to trade in my new truck that they bought me last year for a sports car he says its all right with him if it’s all right with her. I guess he and I don’t really have too much to talk about either. It works out that way.”

“But you didn’t have this bimbo just sweep in on your dad a few days after your mom died. You know what Jenna is.” I muttered.

“Yeah, she’s about a dozen routes to fuckable.”

“Come on.” I shook my head. “My dad could get that if that was all he wanted. But she’s got her claws in him. From what I could see she isn’t going anywhere, either.”

“That’s really too bad, man.” Henry clapped his hand on my shoulder. “But her. Tonight is about a party. Let’s have too many drinks, scope out the cuties and leave the wolf at the door.”