Page 62 of Tito

Reggie

Sunday dinner at my father’s house was a tradition that started when I was a child. Regardless of where I was or what I was doing, I always made it home for dinner. Other days of the week could be spent with a friend, having a sleepover, or, later in life, just running around doing nothing.

Sunday evenings, however, were spoken for.

As a child, I looked at it as a burden. An unnecessary cog in my life’s wheel. When I became an adult, I realized the importance of spending quality time with my father.

“You don’t have to.” I put my coffee cup in the dishwasher and turned around. “It’s just. It might seem weird, but I go over there every Sunday for dinner. It’s kind of a tradition, or whatever.”

“Believe me, I understand about traditions,” Tito said with a smile. His look went serious. “You don’t think it’s too early?”

“What do you mean?”

“Too early in this…”

Seemingly at a loss for the words to continue, he paused. Apparently, I needed to finish his sentence for him.

“Relationship?” I asked.

He sipped his coffee. “Is that what we’re calling it?”

“What else would we call it?”

“I don’t know,” he said. “I’m new to this.”

I didn’t think placing a label on what we were doing was necessary, but for the sake of argument, I’d give it a try.

“Was it a one-night-stand?” I asked.

“No.”

“A booty call?”

“No.”

“Are we fuck buddies?”

He shot me a glare. “I’d like to think not.”

“Well. There’s only one thing left. A relationship.” I raised my brows. “Are you okay with that?”

“If you are.”

“I’m fine with it,” I admitted. “I’m not saying I’ve fallen in love with you or anything ridiculous. I’m just saying this can’t be perceived as anything but a relationship.”

He nodded. “I’ll agree with that.”

“I guess it’s settled. For what it’s worth, I don’t mess around outside the relationship.” I crossed my arms over my chest and waited for his response.

“Neither do I.”

The corners of my mouth tried to form a smile. “So, is that a yes? You’ll go over to my dad’s for dinner?”

“Sure.”

“It doesn’t bother you that he’s a cop?” I asked with a laugh. “You said cops were corrupt when we went on our first date. Remember?”

“He’s your father,” he replied. “How bad can it really be?”