Daddy's Boy (12 page)

“Listen to him Denny.” Mason said, “If you really thought you were Vinnie explain to us why you didn’t start thinking like this until after Vinnie’s death?” True I didn’t but Jack had seen it over half a year ago why else would he do what he did?

“You’re emotionally fucked right now Denny,” Jonah whispered. “I don’t think you know what to feel. And to prove my point do you think Rachel would leave Lucca with you if she thought you were at all like Vinnie?”

Goddamnit, they were both killing me. No way would Rachel ever put Lucca in harm’s way. So if I wasn’t Vinnie then what the fuck was wrong with me?

Stomping to the open door I got back into the driver’s seat. “I need to go get Lucca. Get in the car Jonah or I’m leaving you here.”

“I’m coming but this isn’t done Denny, we need to talk about these voices your hearing.”

Fuck me. “Fine,” I snapped, “But not now. Right now I need to think.

Chapter 10

“I don’t understand why I’m here. I don’t know Olivia’s parents nor do they know me.” Rachel complained for like the tenth time.

She was starting to drive me crazy but at least she was talking to me again. We hadn’t talked about what happened this morning but that was ok I could live with that until we found Jack. Jonah and Mason had also thankfully kept their mouths shut about my little breakdown outside Mason’s work. So far my thinking of that had been fruitless. Half of me wanted to call myself Vinnie, the other half knew I was nothing like that dickhead. So what was going on with me?

Olivia was telling her mother and father who everyone was but her parents were hardly paying attention. They were more interested in throwing disgusted looks mine and Jonah’s way, Olivia’s mother was also looking at Mason like she wished Olivia had chosen him not Jonah.

“Are you two married?” Olivia’s mother asked tilting her head towards Rachel and I after we had all ordered.

Rachel was trying to calm a fussing Lucca so I answered simply, “no.”

“Engaged?”

Rachel looked at me with a sheepish look, as Jonah rolled his eyes and downed his drink.

“Leave them alone Mother.” Olivia hissed

Shrugging I answered. “No we’re not engaged.”

“Dating?”

“Nope.”

“But you have a child.” Olivia’s mother screeched sounding completely outraged.

Jonah said this chick was a bitch but damn. “Would you like a play by play about how we made that child?” I asked seriously considering telling her. Olivia’s mother almost fell out of her chair, as her husband glared daggers at me.

Clearing her throat Olivia shot me a dirty look. “How about we talk about something else.” Olivia said giving her mother the same look.

“I hope you’re not following in their footsteps Olivia.” Olivia’s mother snapped, earning her a glare from Jonah.

Mason cleared his throat and gave my elbow a nudge, looking at him he gave me his ‘oh shit trouble’ look. And I couldn’t agree more. Olivia’s mother was just asking for Jonah to yell at her.

“So Jonah, Olivia says you have a new job?” Olivia’s father said changing the topic.

“A tattoo shop, yes.” Jonah said looking a little surprised that one of Olivia parents had actually talked to him.

“Oh God you’re working at a tattoo shop. Really Olivia could you have picked any worse?” Olivia mother hissed.

“Oh screw this.” Olivia shouted, throwing her napkin on the table as she stood up. “I wanted to have a nice dinner before we told everyone that we were engaged but no you couldn’t even give me that.”

“Olivia no.” Olivia’s mother gasped throwing her hand over her mouth.

“No I forbid this.” Olivia’s father said at the same time shaking his head.

“Forbid all you want I’m marrying him and there is nothing you can do about it. Now I’m going home to get drunk who’s coming with me?”

Standing up Jonah kissed Olivia hard on the mouth as we all made a move to leave the table. “It was lovely seeing you both again.” Jonah said giving Olivia’s parents an over the top smile.

“We are not done talking about this Olivia.” Mr. Rees yelled. “You go through with this and you will be cut off.”

“Cut her off, she doesn’t need your money she has mine now.” Jonah barked. “I wouldn’t go there with me old man. You’d be surprised at what I have and you don’t.” Turning around Jonah pointed to the door. “Let’s get the hell out of here.”

Well someone didn’t forget to grab their balls on the way out of the house tonight.

 Out on the side walk Olivia and Jonah started to laugh hysterically.

“You’re getting married!” Rachel yelled throwing her arms around Olivia.

“Congratulations Jonah.” Mason said slapping Jonah’s back.

“I think this calls for a celebration at Risk very soon.” I said handing Lucca to Mason so I could hug Jonah. Wrapping my arms around Jonah I gave my brother a tight hug. “You did good Jonah.” I whispered.

“Yeah I did.” Jonah whispered back.

“Never thought we’d make it this far.”

“We still have a long way to go. Are you sticking around for that?” We had a long way to go because of what Olivia did for us. If Jonah had never met Olivia things could be very different today. Vinnie was dead and with Vinnie’s death Jonah and I got a second chance. Question was could I let go of Vinnie and the past long enough to grab that second chance and run with it? “I can’t do this without you Denny. Tell me you’re sticking around?” Jonah pleaded.

Jonah was so close to his happy ending I wasn’t going to let anything get in the way, somehow I would find a way to move past Vinnie. I would be sticking around, for Jonah and Olivia, for Lucca, Rachel and Mason. Squeezing Jonah tightly I whispered, “I’m sticking around brother.”

After another round of hugs we made our way to the cars. I had put my lip ring back in so I was trying to stop Lucca from pulling it off when Olivia yelling had me jumping about a foot in the air and reaching for a gun I no longer carried.

  “I knew it! He said we didn’t know each other but damnit I knew it!” Olivia shouted pointing towards a bar across the street.

Inside the bar, the light outlined Rachel’s boyfriend Ryan dressed in a Denver police uniform kissing a woman that was not Rachel.

Turning to Rachel I was about to offer to go kick Ryan’s ass when Olivia’s next words stopped me cold.

“Your father is the person who told us about Vinnie working with the Russian mob Rachel. When I took that information to a friend who is a DEA agent he was meeting with other DEA agents. Your boyfriend,” Olivia said pointing towards the bar “was at that meeting Rachel.”

Ryan was a DEA agent pretending to be a Denver cop. Well fuck me. “Are you sure Olivia?”

“Yes.” Olivia said hurt taking over her eyes, “Jack gave us the information about Vinnie and the Russians, Darcy who works for the Russians top drug lord is looking for Jack and now a DEA agent posing as a Denver cop is dating Rachel. All that adds up to a problem, a problem I caused by going to Jack in the first place.”

“Olivia this is not your fault.” Jonah said pulling Olivia into his arms.

“I need the secure phone Shark gave me.” Olivia said digging through her purse like a mad woman.

“Mason take Lucca and stay with the girls. Jonah and I are going to go have a little chat with Ryan.”

“Denny is that a good idea?” Rachel asked grabbing a hold of my arm.

“Probably not but I’m going to do it anyways.”

Pulling away from Rachel, Jonah and I made our way across the street. As soon as we entered the bar Ryan’s eyes locked onto mine and the little fuck took off, running like hell through the bar and out the back door.

Jonah and I chased after him for half a mile before we lost him in foot traffic.

“Goddamnit.” I yelled slowing down to a walk. “I can’t see him, you?”

“I’ve got nothing.” Jonah panted, bent over with his hands on his knees. “Fast little fucker.”

“Let’s get back to the car, Olivia needs to make a phone call to Shark.”

Back at the car with sweat soaking my body and Jonah complaining about wrecking his damn shoes I cussed Ryan for the millionth time, I opened Jonah’s car door to get Rachel and Lucca.”

“Did you catch him?” Olivia asked.

Shaking his head Jonah looked at me. “We’ll meet you at home.” He said sliding into the driver’s seat.

Taking Rachel’s arm I walked us to her car. “Don’t make that call until I get there.” I yelled over my shoulder.

“What the hell just happened?” Rachel asked as I started to put Lucca in his car seat.

“Start the car, I’ll explain while we’re driving.”

Rachel was out of the parking lot before I even had my seatbelt on.

“I’m driving which means you need to be talking.”

Turning in my seat I looked at her. “After Olivia found out about what Jonah and I were doing for Vinnie she went on a mission to get Jonah out from under Vinnie. One of the people who helped her was your father.”

“What does my father have to do with any of this?”

“Jack was working with Jonah’s father to take Vinnie’s business out about sixteen years ago.”

“My God.”

“Small word huh? Anyway, Jack and Jonah’s dad found out Vinnie and a person from the Russian mafia were working for the Russians but also stealing money from them. Before Jack could report what they’d found Jonah’s family turned up dead.”

“So now you think that someone from the Russian mafia has my dad because he knows something he shouldn’t?”

“For years now the Russians have been trying to take over the Denver underground. A couple of months ago the Russians stopped playing around and sent in their top drug lord Mika to take over some of Vinnie’s turf. Mika didn’t come himself but sent his top boy Nick. While trying to take over Vinnie’s turf Nick found out what Vinnie was doing. Vinnie had taken so much money and had been doing it for so long that the Russians shot first and killed anyone who asked questions.”

Stopping the car in the middle of the street Rachel turned to look at me, tears already in her eyes. “Do you think they killed my dad?”

Opening my mouth I closed it not sure what to say. I wanted to lie so bad but giving her hope that I knew was probably not on Jacks side seemed even crueler. “Please drive the car Rachel or get out and let me.” I said turning my face away from the tears falling down her face, unable to take Rachel’s tears without my heart breaking into a million pieces.

****

Jonah sat on the counter circling Olivia with his legs, while Olivia held the cell Shark had given her to her ear. Mason was sitting at the kitchen table, Rachel was hiding in my bedroom and Lucca and I were pacing.

“Shark, no. No I’m fine but I need your help. Thank you.” Pulling the phone away from her ear Olivia turned the phone off. “He’ll be here tomorrow night.” Olivia said putting the cell on the counter.

 “Just like that Shark jumps for you? You cool with that brother?” I asked stopping in front of Jonah.

“He saved her from Vinnie. I’ll be cool with him for just about anything.”

“You’re a bigger man than me. I’d be jealous.”

“If someone has to save Rachel you’ll feel for them the same way I feel for Shark. Without Shark, Olivia wouldn’t be here.”

“Stop trying to pick a fight because you’re pissed off about this Ryan guy and go see if Rachel is ok.” Olivia said pointing towards the stairs.

Walking up the stairs, Lucca and I entered the bedroom. Rachel was sitting in the middle of the bed, legs to her chest and dried tears on her cheeks. Handing her Lucca I sat behind her and pulled them both into my arms.

“I need to call Jace.” Rachel whispered into Lucca’s hair.

“Not yet sweetheart let’s wait until Shark gets here tomorrow.”

“What am I meant to say to him?”

“Nothing yet.”

“How am I meant to tell him that Dad is−”

“Rachel don’t.”

As if Lucca knew I was trying to distract his mom he wiggled out of our hold and flopped on the bed with a funny laugh. Crawling across the bed Lucca made a grab for my lip ring. The kid had a lip problem.

“I’m really glad Lucca has his dad now.”

“Me too. Because you’re Daddy’s boy aren’t you?” I said in a funny voice scooping Lucca up into my arms.

“My dad isn’t perfect Denny but he’s my dad.”

“We’re going to find him Rachel.” I said hoping I was right.

“I should go.” Rachel said kissing Lucca on the back of the head. “Are you ok to put him to bed?”

“Sleep here.”

“Denny.” Rachel whispered her eyes dropping to the bed. “What happened this morning, it can’t happen again.”

“Because you have a cheating boyfriend?”

“No because you left me.”

My heart felt like she’d taken a hammer to it, but really I had no right to feel that way because I did leave her. I left them both. Shaking my head I handed Lucca to Rachel. “Take the bed. I need to go to Risk anyway.” Rushing to the door I left as fast as I could.

Chapter 11

More apple sauce was on Denny than inside Lucca’s stomach.

“I told you he was a messy eater.”

“No you said he might make a mess. Not you should probably put down plastic if you don’t want to be sticking to the floor for the next month.”  

“You’re kind of grumpy today.” I said only half joking. All day Denny had been snapping at everyone.

Was it because I told him we couldn’t sleep together? He had to understand I wasn’t rejecting him. I just could not end up in bed with him when I know it would mean everything to me and nothing to him.

“Maybe if you stopped drinking so much you wouldn’t be so grumpy.” Jonah said coming into the room.

Denny snapped his head in Jonah’s direction so fast I’m surprised he didn’t give himself whiplash. “Shut the fuck up Jonah.” Denny growled.

“Watch your mouth.” I snapped.

“Stop drinking and I will shut the fuck up.” Jonah growled back.

“Language!” I screamed.

Five minutes of awkward silence later the doorbell ringing had Lucca spitting out even more apple sauce onto Denny so he could screech along with the bell. Denny looked down at his now ruined shirt not looking impressed at all. Mason however thought it was the funniest thing he had ever seen.