Imola Read Free Page A

doorway, the only interior door in the studio apartment. “Most people recheck their own ways before mounting a defense against an outlier. Except for Republicans.”
    Jason moved again, but he couldn’t escape the pinch of the spring. “If you live long enough, you’ll become a Republican, too.”
    “Now, that’s something to look forward to.” Donnie wandered across the room and sat, cross-legged, four feet in front of the chair. “Will Dr. Leahy be at Imola?”
    “How do you know about her?”
    Donnie swung his arm and pointed at a large table piled high with computer equipment. “I’m an information merchant. Remember?”
    “You check up on me? Your only brother?”
    “Always have. You don’t stop by very often.”
    Jason raised the middle finger of his right hand and grinned. “Maybe because you always ask for money.”
    “Work is sporadic. And it doesn’t pay that well,” Donnie said.
    “With your talent for computers, you could get a real job. You could drive a Beemer.”
    Donnie snapped his fingers. “Oh, yeah. Me in a Beemer. Mom would have a heart attack.”
    Jason scowled. “Mom did have a heart attack. Two years ago. You were at the funeral. Remember? I swear. You need to lay off the weed.”
    “Relax, little brother. I remember. It was just a figure of speech. I like to think of her as still alive.”
    “Because she gave you money?”
    Donnie lowered his voice to a whisper. “She was a good mom.”
    Jason relaxed his stern look. “Did you ever stop tothink that you might have contributed to her heart attack?” The comment was a familiar refrain, about 90 percent joke and 10 percent probability.
    “What do you think the weed is for? Dad wrote me off a long time ago, both figuratively and in his will. Mom never did.”
    Jason turned his gaze out the adjacent window. “I know.” Were the smudges on the inside or outside? Probably both. He turned his focus loose. “She always spooned out the love based on who needed it most. For the longest time I thought she liked you best. But when Eugenia dumped me, Mom was there with a ladle. Before I even told her about it. Poor woman. Maturity isn’t a long suit in our family, and she had to put up with you, me, and Dad. Peter Pan cubed.”
    “I miss Eugenia,” Donnie said. “You screwed up big time to let her get away.”
    “Nice sarcasm.” Jason leaned forward in the chair and had to shift again to get away from the spring. “In case your mind is in some kind of drug-induced haze, she dumped me. After the wedding invitations were made out and stamped. She was seeing someone else. You do remember that, don’t you? All that salad hasn’t turned your brain to mush yet, has it?”
    “Relax, little brother. I’m just serving you a wad of goo.”
    “It’s all still pretty raw, asshole.”
    “Then I guess I shouldn’t tell you she came on to meonce, about a year ago.”
    “Yeah, right.”
    “I didn’t do anything. That’s not something I’d do to my brother.” Donnie cleared his throat. “Besides, she said she was on the rag. I’m not into earning my red wings.”
    Jason slumped back in the chair and covered his eyes with his open hand. “She’d rather screw a donkey. I think she used those very words to describe you once.”
    “Relax, Jason. More goo.”
    “Well, poke the open wound, why don’t you? Your humor sucks.”
    Donnie pulled his left leg up so the knee was close to his ear. “That reminds me. I have a new favorite quote. ‘You’re only young once, but you can be immature forever.’ I think some baseball player said it.”
    “That’s inspirational?”
    “Yeah. It is to me.” Donnie picked something from his big toenail. “So, is Dr. Leahy shaping up into something for you?”
    Jason leaned back farther and interlaced his fingers behind his neck. The spring didn’t counterattack. It was a good question. Was she shaping up into something? He was comfortable with her. But was there more? “Not