Chapter 13
Letty's POV
Dom came crashing in around midnight.
I half expected him to be drunk off his ass, but he was sober.
"How's baby sister?" He asked, crawling into bed.
"I'd say she's doing better now," I answered, "but you still need to talk to her."
"I will."
"When?"
"When I figure out what I should do," he answered.
"You should let her grow up," I answered. "It won't hurt for her to go out with Payton."
"I just don't think she should, Let. He's too old for her and anytime I see him, he looks like he's high or something. I just don't trust him."
I laughed. "You just don't want to trust him, because he sees what you don't want to see."
"Oh? And what is that?" He replied, sarcastically.
"That Allie is a beautiful, sexy, young woman. She's not your little baby sister anymore."
He gave me a look I can't really describe, like he was trying not to believe what he knew was true. He shook his head and rolled his eyes. "You don't know what you are talking about."
"Don't I?" I laughed again. Sometimes Dom was so clueless when it came to Allie. "You think all those little high school boys come to the store because they like mine and Mia's crappy food or they like the black haired, brown eyed beauty serving it?"
"Can we just get off this subject?"
"Not yet. I have a solution that'll make both you and Allie happy," I replied. "Jesse'll be properly pissed with me for a few days, but you know Allie can talk him into anything."
"What is it?"
"You let her to a movie with Payton, IF she can talk Jesse into doubling with her. I am assuming you do still trust Jesse, right? I mean, he is eighteen and he does have a dick." I let sarcasm creep into my voice.
"HAHA." He replied. "Going on this date is all that is going to make her happy?"
"For the next week or two, or, if you don't let her go, she'll be hell to live with for the next month or more, take your pick."
He sighed. "Yeah, okay. If she can get Jesse to go she can go."
I smiled. Easy as pie. "Good. Now, go tell her. Apologize, hug, kiss her goodnight and tell her you still love her so she'll get some sleep."
"She's already asleep. I looked in on her when I got home." He pulled me closer.
"In the morning, then," I replied moving over him. "Talk to her, in the morning."
"I will," his deep voice rumbled. "I will."
I leaned down and kissed him. "You know, Allie is just two months younger than I was when I started dating you," I said grinding my hips against his. "Just two little months. And let's see, how old were you? Eighteen, wasn't it?"
"Nineteen," he rolled me underneath him. "And you aren't helping her case any, Leticia."
He kissed me.
"Besides," he continued. "It's not the same. Allie's too little for that."
See, why I think he's clueless? "No, she's not. Like I said, she is almost the same I was when I let you......"
I love teasing him.
"LETTY!" He growled, exsaperated. "If you want to do this tonight, or any other night for a long time, DO NOT talk about my baby and sex at the same time."
I laughed, again. Then I let the subject drop before I had him second guessing his decision to let her go. Besides, I really didn't want to talk about Allie either, at that moment. I was much more interested in Dom's hands.
Chapter 14
Allie's POV
I woke up about four the next morning. I couldn't go back to sleep. My arguement with Dom had left me with a funky mood. I hate fighting with him. Mia, I can handle her being mad at me, but not my brother.
I got up and went down to the kitchen. I wanted some milk, but we didn't have any. Typical. We own a freaking grocery store, yet we never have any milk. But, once again I am off subject. What was the subject?
Oh, yeah, that I was in a bad mood cause Dom and me were fighting.
There was a Corona, but I was already in enough trouble without adding drinking that to it. I sat down at the table, staring out the window over the sink.
A shiny silver key was hanging on a nail above it where no one but Dom and Vince could easily reach it. I smiled. That was exactly what I wanted.
I climbed up on the counter and grabbed it. Then, grabbing my Walkman, I headed out to the garage.
I walked around the back and got the key to the garage then went around and opened the heavy wooden door.
There it was. Papi's black beast.
A '69 Charger, with 900 horse of Detriot power. Midnight black with chrome trim. It's awesome. It's strong and powerful, and beautiful, and somehow, comforting. To me at least.
Papi and Dom built her, when Dom was a teenager. Papi was the greatest mechanic, ever. Even better than Dom, but don't tell him I said that.
I remember, sitting on a stool, watching them, as they put her together, piece by piece, wishing that I was old enough to do more than 'go tell Momma this... or hand me that...' type stuff.
It's almost as if, part of Papi is still here, in this car, in this room.
I opened the door and crawled in behind the wheel.
Dom never drives this thing, except out of the garage to wash it then back inside. I don't know why. If it was mine, I would never stay out of it.
He keeps it exactly the way it was when Papi was racing it.
I thought about that as I stretched my feet out towards the petals. They come nowhere near them. Goodness, Papi was big. Just like Dom.
A lot of Dom is just like Papi.
I put the key in the ignition.
I can't do it. Dom would kill me. But, then, maybe he wouldn't have to know, if I just started it up. No harm in that, right?
I mean, it's not like I can go anywhere, even if I could reach the accelerator and the clutch, Mia's car and Dom's car are blocking the drive.
I slid up, until I could touch the pedals, then, I pressed the clutch down and with shaking hands turned the key.
Dom was going to kill me.
The Beast roared to life. It had so much power, the wheel viberated beneath my hands. I longed to drive it, but even I'm not that brave.
Well, I had meant only to sit out here and listen to my headphones, and think about how to apologize to Dom for last night. Now, here I was giving him a reason to commit murder and go back to Lompoc.
I knew I should have switched it off, but I couldn't. I was mesmerized by it. By the hum of the engine, by the feel of the wheel in my hands. I moved one hand to the shift, imagining how Papi must have felt, sitting at the starting line in Palmdale, waiting to show the result of his and Dom's hardwork. I ran it through the five gears. It was a monster and it didn't even have NOS. Talk about a high, this was better than the buzz any drug could give me.
Chapter 15
Dom's POV
Something told me to get up. To go check on Allie.
I slipped out from under Letty and grabbed my jeans and pulled on a shirt going down the hall to her room.
It was empty.
Shit. Where had she gone? I walked down the stairs to the kitchen.
I heard a car start up. Not just any car, though. There was only one car sounded like that. I looked up to see the key to the Charger was gone. I couldn't believe her nerve. She knew better. She knows what that car means to me.
I was going to kill her. I really was, then I heard Papi's voice clear as day.
"Look, Dominic, our little Allie-cat is going to be a race car driver, just like her big brother. I know she tries your patience Son, but she just wants to be like you."
I smiled at the memory. At the time, I had been mad because, she had messed up the Holley I had been working on for four hours, in ten minutes, but it seemed to fit now, too.
"Let her grow up," Letty's words came floating back to me.
"You know you're something when you can drive one of these babies." Tony Toretto's voice seemed to be hanging in the air again.
Let her grow up, huh?
I grabbed Mia's keys off the counter and mine were still in my pocket. I was going to let her grow up, just a little bit.
I walked out to the garage. She was just sitting in the Charger. She didn't even see me.
I tapped on the window.
She jumped, and quickly shut the car off.
"Dominic!!" She exclaimed, looking truly terrified. Do I really scare her that much? "I'm sorry. I wasn't going to go anywhere. I....,I..."
I opened the door. "Get out."
"Dom..,"
"Get out."
She got out of the car and handed me the keys. "Dominic, I'm sorry, please don't be mad. I just wanted to sit out here because...,"
"Becuase?" I prompted, curious to hear her excuse.
"Nothing." She mumbled.
"No, why did you come out here at four in the morning?"
"Becuase, I feel close to Papi out here," she said, finally. "I know that's silly, but I do. I know I shouldn't have started the car, but I wasn't going anywhere, I promise!!"
I pulled her to me. "No, baby sister, that's not silly and how could you go anywhere, with mine and Mia's cars in the way?"
She looked up at me. "You're not mad?"
"Not anymore, Allie-cat. Go get your shoes and your driver's license. Get me some shoes too."
"Why?"
"You'll see. Now, just go do what I said."
She took off towards the house.
I ran the seat up, so she could reach the pedals without having to be up on the steering wheel, then moved Mia's car, then mine out of the drive.
She came back out of the house.
"Here." She handed me a pair of shoes. "Letty said you needed this, too." She held out my wallet. I had forgotten that wasn't in my pocket. "What are we doing?"
I opened the door to the Charger again. "Get in."
"What?" She looked at me, amazed.
"Get in. You want to drive it, right?"
She nodded.
"Then get in."
She slid in, and I shut the door and walked around to the other side and got in.
"Start her up." I handed her the key.
Her hands were shaking as she put the key in the ignition and turned it.
She flashed that ear to ear smile when it roared to life. No matter what else happened, it was worth it, just to see that smile.
Then her smile faded. "Dom, I can't."
"Yes, you can," I told her. "You can, and you are. You are a good driver. Everything is going to be fine. Give it just a little gas, then ease of the clutch. It's different from your little Viper, so you're going to have to really listen to it. It'll tell you what to do."
She nodded. "Okay, I can do this." She pulled slowly out of the garage and into the street.
"Good. You're doing just fine," I tried to reassure her. "Now pick up the speed. I'm not going ten miles an hour. I could walk there faster."
"Walk where?"
"You just worry about driving. I'll worry about where we are going."
She did wonderful. Better than I did the first time Papi let me drive it.
I directed her to a little all night diner, where Papi and I used to go after being up all night working on a car or at a race, I wondered if she was old enough to remember then.
That was another life ago.
"You did good, Allie-cat," I said, putting an arm around her shoulder and leading her inside. "Papi would be proud."
"Really?"
"Really."
We sat down in a back booth.
"Brother, didn't we used to come her with Papi?" She asked. "When I was really little, after he won a race?"
"Yeah," I smiled. "Yeah, we did. I'm surprised you remember that."
"I remember more about Papi then ya'll give me credit for."
"I know. Do you remember much about Momma?"
She nodded. "I remember she wanted me to be a little lady, like Mia. She didn't like me going to the races with you and Papi, and I remember her being sick. With lukemia. She was always busy, but she would stop whatever she was doing to tell me about Papi or about you, when you were away. I remember being sad when she died. I didn't think Momma's could die. I don't know why, I should have known, but I didn't."
"None of us did, Baby." I didn't mean to make her sad. I just wondered if she remembered. She was so little when they both died. Mia and I try to tell her things, but stories aren't like real memories. I should know. That's how I feel about them talking about the things they did while I was in Lompoc. I'm thrilled to hear them, but part me still wishes I could remember it for myself.
"Dom, I'm sorry. For what I said last night. I didn't mean it." She apologized.
"I know you didn't. I didn't mean to treat you like a baby, but I just don't want you to get hurt. Not if I can prevent it."
She nodded, "Yeah, I know that. Jesse and me talked about it last night."
"You and Jesse tell each other a lot, don't you?" I asked.
"He's my best friend," she shrugged. "I tell him everything. Like I do you."
I nodded. "Listen, Letty and me came up with a comprimise. I'll let you go to this movie with Payton, if you can get Jesse to agree to go along, like on a double date."
She sighed. "I don't he's going to agree to that."
"Why not?"
"Well, uh, he kissed me. Last night."
"You two kiss all the time," I replied. "Besides you can talk him into anything."
"You think so?" she asked.
"Yeah. I do."
"Cool." She looked at her watch. "We'd better be getting back, unless you're going to let me miss school again."
"Yeah sure," I replied. "You can skip today. There's two Chevy's at the shop, one needs new brakes and the other needs a new water pump. When you finish that, there's inventory to be done, and I know Mia would love to have your help at lunch."
"I'll take my chances with school," she smirked.
I laughed. "Let's get some breakfast, first. There's no reason for you to suffer through school and one of Letty's breakfasts too."
I don't think Jesse will go for the idea either, but I ain't gonna tell her that. Letty may think I'm stupid, where Allie and boys are concerned, but I see the way Jesse looks at Allie when she isn't watching him. It's the same way I look at Letty, and he wouldn't hurt Allie for all the world, just like I wouldn't hurt Letty.
A love like that isn't something I would stop her from having in a million years. No matter if he is eighteen years old and has a dick.
Letty's POV
Dom came crashing in around midnight.
I half expected him to be drunk off his ass, but he was sober.
"How's baby sister?" He asked, crawling into bed.
"I'd say she's doing better now," I answered, "but you still need to talk to her."
"I will."
"When?"
"When I figure out what I should do," he answered.
"You should let her grow up," I answered. "It won't hurt for her to go out with Payton."
"I just don't think she should, Let. He's too old for her and anytime I see him, he looks like he's high or something. I just don't trust him."
I laughed. "You just don't want to trust him, because he sees what you don't want to see."
"Oh? And what is that?" He replied, sarcastically.
"That Allie is a beautiful, sexy, young woman. She's not your little baby sister anymore."
He gave me a look I can't really describe, like he was trying not to believe what he knew was true. He shook his head and rolled his eyes. "You don't know what you are talking about."
"Don't I?" I laughed again. Sometimes Dom was so clueless when it came to Allie. "You think all those little high school boys come to the store because they like mine and Mia's crappy food or they like the black haired, brown eyed beauty serving it?"
"Can we just get off this subject?"
"Not yet. I have a solution that'll make both you and Allie happy," I replied. "Jesse'll be properly pissed with me for a few days, but you know Allie can talk him into anything."
"What is it?"
"You let her to a movie with Payton, IF she can talk Jesse into doubling with her. I am assuming you do still trust Jesse, right? I mean, he is eighteen and he does have a dick." I let sarcasm creep into my voice.
"HAHA." He replied. "Going on this date is all that is going to make her happy?"
"For the next week or two, or, if you don't let her go, she'll be hell to live with for the next month or more, take your pick."
He sighed. "Yeah, okay. If she can get Jesse to go she can go."
I smiled. Easy as pie. "Good. Now, go tell her. Apologize, hug, kiss her goodnight and tell her you still love her so she'll get some sleep."
"She's already asleep. I looked in on her when I got home." He pulled me closer.
"In the morning, then," I replied moving over him. "Talk to her, in the morning."
"I will," his deep voice rumbled. "I will."
I leaned down and kissed him. "You know, Allie is just two months younger than I was when I started dating you," I said grinding my hips against his. "Just two little months. And let's see, how old were you? Eighteen, wasn't it?"
"Nineteen," he rolled me underneath him. "And you aren't helping her case any, Leticia."
He kissed me.
"Besides," he continued. "It's not the same. Allie's too little for that."
See, why I think he's clueless? "No, she's not. Like I said, she is almost the same I was when I let you......"
I love teasing him.
"LETTY!" He growled, exsaperated. "If you want to do this tonight, or any other night for a long time, DO NOT talk about my baby and sex at the same time."
I laughed, again. Then I let the subject drop before I had him second guessing his decision to let her go. Besides, I really didn't want to talk about Allie either, at that moment. I was much more interested in Dom's hands.
Chapter 14
Allie's POV
I woke up about four the next morning. I couldn't go back to sleep. My arguement with Dom had left me with a funky mood. I hate fighting with him. Mia, I can handle her being mad at me, but not my brother.
I got up and went down to the kitchen. I wanted some milk, but we didn't have any. Typical. We own a freaking grocery store, yet we never have any milk. But, once again I am off subject. What was the subject?
Oh, yeah, that I was in a bad mood cause Dom and me were fighting.
There was a Corona, but I was already in enough trouble without adding drinking that to it. I sat down at the table, staring out the window over the sink.
A shiny silver key was hanging on a nail above it where no one but Dom and Vince could easily reach it. I smiled. That was exactly what I wanted.
I climbed up on the counter and grabbed it. Then, grabbing my Walkman, I headed out to the garage.
I walked around the back and got the key to the garage then went around and opened the heavy wooden door.
There it was. Papi's black beast.
A '69 Charger, with 900 horse of Detriot power. Midnight black with chrome trim. It's awesome. It's strong and powerful, and beautiful, and somehow, comforting. To me at least.
Papi and Dom built her, when Dom was a teenager. Papi was the greatest mechanic, ever. Even better than Dom, but don't tell him I said that.
I remember, sitting on a stool, watching them, as they put her together, piece by piece, wishing that I was old enough to do more than 'go tell Momma this... or hand me that...' type stuff.
It's almost as if, part of Papi is still here, in this car, in this room.
I opened the door and crawled in behind the wheel.
Dom never drives this thing, except out of the garage to wash it then back inside. I don't know why. If it was mine, I would never stay out of it.
He keeps it exactly the way it was when Papi was racing it.
I thought about that as I stretched my feet out towards the petals. They come nowhere near them. Goodness, Papi was big. Just like Dom.
A lot of Dom is just like Papi.
I put the key in the ignition.
I can't do it. Dom would kill me. But, then, maybe he wouldn't have to know, if I just started it up. No harm in that, right?
I mean, it's not like I can go anywhere, even if I could reach the accelerator and the clutch, Mia's car and Dom's car are blocking the drive.
I slid up, until I could touch the pedals, then, I pressed the clutch down and with shaking hands turned the key.
Dom was going to kill me.
The Beast roared to life. It had so much power, the wheel viberated beneath my hands. I longed to drive it, but even I'm not that brave.
Well, I had meant only to sit out here and listen to my headphones, and think about how to apologize to Dom for last night. Now, here I was giving him a reason to commit murder and go back to Lompoc.
I knew I should have switched it off, but I couldn't. I was mesmerized by it. By the hum of the engine, by the feel of the wheel in my hands. I moved one hand to the shift, imagining how Papi must have felt, sitting at the starting line in Palmdale, waiting to show the result of his and Dom's hardwork. I ran it through the five gears. It was a monster and it didn't even have NOS. Talk about a high, this was better than the buzz any drug could give me.
Chapter 15
Dom's POV
Something told me to get up. To go check on Allie.
I slipped out from under Letty and grabbed my jeans and pulled on a shirt going down the hall to her room.
It was empty.
Shit. Where had she gone? I walked down the stairs to the kitchen.
I heard a car start up. Not just any car, though. There was only one car sounded like that. I looked up to see the key to the Charger was gone. I couldn't believe her nerve. She knew better. She knows what that car means to me.
I was going to kill her. I really was, then I heard Papi's voice clear as day.
"Look, Dominic, our little Allie-cat is going to be a race car driver, just like her big brother. I know she tries your patience Son, but she just wants to be like you."
I smiled at the memory. At the time, I had been mad because, she had messed up the Holley I had been working on for four hours, in ten minutes, but it seemed to fit now, too.
"Let her grow up," Letty's words came floating back to me.
"You know you're something when you can drive one of these babies." Tony Toretto's voice seemed to be hanging in the air again.
Let her grow up, huh?
I grabbed Mia's keys off the counter and mine were still in my pocket. I was going to let her grow up, just a little bit.
I walked out to the garage. She was just sitting in the Charger. She didn't even see me.
I tapped on the window.
She jumped, and quickly shut the car off.
"Dominic!!" She exclaimed, looking truly terrified. Do I really scare her that much? "I'm sorry. I wasn't going to go anywhere. I....,I..."
I opened the door. "Get out."
"Dom..,"
"Get out."
She got out of the car and handed me the keys. "Dominic, I'm sorry, please don't be mad. I just wanted to sit out here because...,"
"Becuase?" I prompted, curious to hear her excuse.
"Nothing." She mumbled.
"No, why did you come out here at four in the morning?"
"Becuase, I feel close to Papi out here," she said, finally. "I know that's silly, but I do. I know I shouldn't have started the car, but I wasn't going anywhere, I promise!!"
I pulled her to me. "No, baby sister, that's not silly and how could you go anywhere, with mine and Mia's cars in the way?"
She looked up at me. "You're not mad?"
"Not anymore, Allie-cat. Go get your shoes and your driver's license. Get me some shoes too."
"Why?"
"You'll see. Now, just go do what I said."
She took off towards the house.
I ran the seat up, so she could reach the pedals without having to be up on the steering wheel, then moved Mia's car, then mine out of the drive.
She came back out of the house.
"Here." She handed me a pair of shoes. "Letty said you needed this, too." She held out my wallet. I had forgotten that wasn't in my pocket. "What are we doing?"
I opened the door to the Charger again. "Get in."
"What?" She looked at me, amazed.
"Get in. You want to drive it, right?"
She nodded.
"Then get in."
She slid in, and I shut the door and walked around to the other side and got in.
"Start her up." I handed her the key.
Her hands were shaking as she put the key in the ignition and turned it.
She flashed that ear to ear smile when it roared to life. No matter what else happened, it was worth it, just to see that smile.
Then her smile faded. "Dom, I can't."
"Yes, you can," I told her. "You can, and you are. You are a good driver. Everything is going to be fine. Give it just a little gas, then ease of the clutch. It's different from your little Viper, so you're going to have to really listen to it. It'll tell you what to do."
She nodded. "Okay, I can do this." She pulled slowly out of the garage and into the street.
"Good. You're doing just fine," I tried to reassure her. "Now pick up the speed. I'm not going ten miles an hour. I could walk there faster."
"Walk where?"
"You just worry about driving. I'll worry about where we are going."
She did wonderful. Better than I did the first time Papi let me drive it.
I directed her to a little all night diner, where Papi and I used to go after being up all night working on a car or at a race, I wondered if she was old enough to remember then.
That was another life ago.
"You did good, Allie-cat," I said, putting an arm around her shoulder and leading her inside. "Papi would be proud."
"Really?"
"Really."
We sat down in a back booth.
"Brother, didn't we used to come her with Papi?" She asked. "When I was really little, after he won a race?"
"Yeah," I smiled. "Yeah, we did. I'm surprised you remember that."
"I remember more about Papi then ya'll give me credit for."
"I know. Do you remember much about Momma?"
She nodded. "I remember she wanted me to be a little lady, like Mia. She didn't like me going to the races with you and Papi, and I remember her being sick. With lukemia. She was always busy, but she would stop whatever she was doing to tell me about Papi or about you, when you were away. I remember being sad when she died. I didn't think Momma's could die. I don't know why, I should have known, but I didn't."
"None of us did, Baby." I didn't mean to make her sad. I just wondered if she remembered. She was so little when they both died. Mia and I try to tell her things, but stories aren't like real memories. I should know. That's how I feel about them talking about the things they did while I was in Lompoc. I'm thrilled to hear them, but part me still wishes I could remember it for myself.
"Dom, I'm sorry. For what I said last night. I didn't mean it." She apologized.
"I know you didn't. I didn't mean to treat you like a baby, but I just don't want you to get hurt. Not if I can prevent it."
She nodded, "Yeah, I know that. Jesse and me talked about it last night."
"You and Jesse tell each other a lot, don't you?" I asked.
"He's my best friend," she shrugged. "I tell him everything. Like I do you."
I nodded. "Listen, Letty and me came up with a comprimise. I'll let you go to this movie with Payton, if you can get Jesse to agree to go along, like on a double date."
She sighed. "I don't he's going to agree to that."
"Why not?"
"Well, uh, he kissed me. Last night."
"You two kiss all the time," I replied. "Besides you can talk him into anything."
"You think so?" she asked.
"Yeah. I do."
"Cool." She looked at her watch. "We'd better be getting back, unless you're going to let me miss school again."
"Yeah sure," I replied. "You can skip today. There's two Chevy's at the shop, one needs new brakes and the other needs a new water pump. When you finish that, there's inventory to be done, and I know Mia would love to have your help at lunch."
"I'll take my chances with school," she smirked.
I laughed. "Let's get some breakfast, first. There's no reason for you to suffer through school and one of Letty's breakfasts too."
I don't think Jesse will go for the idea either, but I ain't gonna tell her that. Letty may think I'm stupid, where Allie and boys are concerned, but I see the way Jesse looks at Allie when she isn't watching him. It's the same way I look at Letty, and he wouldn't hurt Allie for all the world, just like I wouldn't hurt Letty.
A love like that isn't something I would stop her from having in a million years. No matter if he is eighteen years old and has a dick.