Endings & Beginnings (New Mafia Trilogy #3) (9 page)

The line moved up incrementally, but there was still
a long wait since the two bartenders behind the bar were in the weeds hard.
This wasn’t a temporary set-up either, but an actual real sized bar instead of
one not much bigger than a piano. I turned back around to watch my mom some
more and accidentally bumped into a man.

   “Oh, I’m sorry!” I said.

 “I’m not,” was his response and it caught me off
guard. Surprised I looked up at the man to find a smirk hiding behind a thick
layer of stubble. Dark blue eyes wandered over my body and I reflexively
crossed my arms over my chest. “Friend of the bride or groom?” he asked, once
again surprising me.

   “Uh, um groom. I’m Grant’s sister.” This time I
saw surprise register on his face, replacing the smirk.

   “What’s your name, Grant’s sister?”

   “Natalie and you are?” I asked, annoyed by his
cockiness.

   “Egan Malloy.” He held his hand out and I went to
shake it. His skin was rough and dry and fit with his personality. Egan lacked
the polish that Dominic, Dante and Grant had. He wore a nice suit, but he
didn’t look comfortable in it. With his unshaven jaw and long hair that hung in
his face and covered the collar of his jacket, it was like he worked a blue
collar job all day and changed into the suit after his shift was up.

   “So, Egan, are you a friend of the bride or
groom?”

   “Not a friend. I do business with your brother.”    

   “Right…”business”,” I said and used my fingers to
make quotation marks. Egan snorted and then let out a deep laugh. “Do you know
what’s going on over there? They’re looking entirely too serious for a
wedding.” I pointed at the table where Dom was still having an intense
discussion.

Egan turned in the direction I was pointing and
that’s when I saw a fading bruise around his eye. “Yeah, I know what’s up.” He
didn’t say anything more, just took a sip of what little alcohol remained in
his glass. The ice clinked forward when he tipped the glass back, draining the
last.

   “So, Natalie, how come I haven’t seen you
around?” His eyes, partially shrouded by his messy brown hair, scanned my body
again, lingering on my legs.

   “I used to live in Philly, but moved to L.A.”

   “L.A., huh? So you’re not here for long.” Egan
licked his lips and as a server breezed past with a tray in her hands, he set
his glass on it. He held his hand out to me again. “I’ve seen you watching the
dance floor, come dance with me.” It came out as more of a demand than an
invitation.

Egan didn’t strike me as a guy who was aching to bust
a move. Play a game of darts or beer pong, maybe. I shrugged and placed my hand
in his. Nobody else was asking me and hell yeah, I wanted to dance.

DOMINIC

Ji and Chan were bickering like two old ladies with
Demetrius egging them on. Was I dealing with gangsters or the fucking Golden
Girls? Dante and I exchanged a look across the table.

            “Guys, relax. We need to have a separate
meeting to discuss this as Miranda and Grant need to be filled in on the
distribution issues. It’s awesome the demand is so great and yes, we can get
more product. K&A might need more too.” The K&A Gang had the corner on
the Northeast market. Their leader, Egan, was conspicuously absent so I turned
around in my chair to survey the ballroom, looking for him. I almost fell out
of my chair when I saw him dancing with Natalie. Oh hell no.

Without a word, I got up and left the table. Dante
could handle setting up the meeting. As I was crossing the room, I caught
Grant’s eye and gestured toward the dance floor. I noticed his jaw tighten when
he saw his sister, but Nona was talking to him and Miranda so he couldn’t break
away. I had punched Egan before and wouldn’t mind kicking his teeth in this
time, especially when his hand drifted dangerously close to Natalie’s ass. Of
course one of the men out of the few I couldn’t warn away from Natalie was the
one dancing with her. Everyone in my family understood she was off-limits.

I was less than ten feet away from the dance floor
when my dad intercepted me.

   “Slow your roll, son,” he said. “I can tell
you’re about ready to get real stupid over Natalie. Is it worth it? You’d be
jeopardizing the business relationship you have with Egan’s gang and everything
you’ve established will go to shit fast. Think about it.” I was listening to my
dad, but kept my eyes on Natalie. “Trust me, Dom; you don’t want to make a
scene here either. It’s a wedding for Christ’s sake.”

I let my dad’s words sink in. This was one of those
moments where I did listen to him. Taking a few deep breaths to calm down, I
didn’t realize my hands were clenched into fists until I started to relax.
“You’re right, Dad. That could’ve been bad,” I said with a deep exhale and ran
a hand through my hair.

   “If you don’t want anyone dancing with Natalie,
then you need to go dance with her.” My dad clapped me on the shoulder before
walking away.

Fuck it, he was right, business could wait, Nat was
only here for a few more days. With my temper in check, I pushed my way through
couples dancing.

   “I can take it from here, Egan.”

Natalie looked up at me and smiled. “I thought you
were going to be talking business all night.”

   “No way, this is a wedding, not a meeting,” I
said with a wink. Natalie stepped away from Egan and he didn’t look happy about
it.

   “Are you with him?” he asked.

   “Yeah, she is,” I answered before she could
respond. Slipping my arms around her waist, I pulled Natalie close and spun us
away from the scowling Egan.

   “That was rude,” Natalie said, but she didn’t
resist. Instead she wrapped her arms around my neck and moved with the sway of
my body.

   “He’ll get over it.”

I spent the rest of the night by Natalie’s side.
After a few failed attempts to dance with her again, Egan finally gave up and
found one of Miranda’s friends to hook up with. As the wedding ended, we split
up, Natalie going with her mom in a town car back to their hotel. I piled into
a limo with Dante, Joey D., Paulie, Anthony and Dante’s brother, Johnny. They
tried to get me to go to a strip club, but I wasn’t feeling it and had the limo
driver drop me off at home. I needed to get ready for the next day and my
proposal for Natalie.

Of course sleep didn’t come even though I was pretty
drunk. Thoughts of how to approach Natalie and how she would respond kept me
awake. As the sky began to lighten in the East, brightening my bedroom, I went
to make some coffee. I’d have my answer in a few hours.

Natalie

After trying on a fifth outfit, I was tempted to
call Chelsea and wake her up. She always knew what looked best on me and put
together stellar ensembles. As I stared at the piles of clothes on my bed, I
hated everything. Being hungover didn’t help with the decision making either. I
just wanted to fall onto the bed and go back to sleep.

It’s just Dom and it’s not a date, I reminded
myself, pissed that I was allowing myself to get worked up. Out of desperation,
I did the unthinkable.

   “Mom!” I called. “Can you help me?”

She was in the doorway to my room within seconds.
“What do you need?”

   “What does one wear to brunch?” I held up jeans
in one hand and pale green sundress in the other.

She smiled at me and entered my room, crossing over
to the bed and looking at all of the options.

   “Definitely the dress, that’s a gorgeous color on
you and wear this over it since it’s a little chilly outside.” She handed me a
cropped denim jacket.  Actually, paired together, it was a cute outfit.

   “Shoes?” I asked next, pulling out the suitcase
Chelsea had packed completely dedicated to footwear. The red stilettos she had
insisted I take were still tucked away unused.

My mom’s eyebrows went up when she saw the selection
to choose from. “Wow, I need to go shopping with you. These are adorable!” She
pulled out beige suede slides that had a pattern cut out of the leather. These
would offset the green nicely. Oh, and wear your hair down.”

I had to hand it to her, she had a good eye.
“Thanks, Mom!”

   “Any time. I like this girly stuff. It’s a shame
we didn’t do this when you were growing up.”

I could only imagine the horror show that would have
been. Pre-therapy mom and her criticism would have had me curled up in a ball
in the corner of the dressing room.

She left my room and I finished getting ready,
taking her advice by leaving my hair down. Minutes later I heard a knock on the
front door to our suite. The sound of Dom’s voice when he was talking to my mom
made my palms grow damp. I knew he wanted to talk about “us”, but the way he
left things the other day by alluding to something serious had my nerves on
edge.

Grabbing my bag, I walked out to meet him. He smiled
when he saw me, flashing his dimples. Dom was casually dressed in dark jeans
that hung low on his hips and a black t-shirt. Part of his tattoo trailed out
from below the sleeve on his right arm. He hadn’t bothered to shave and a dark
shadow of stubble covered his cheeks and chin. His eyes were slightly puffy,
which made me wonder if he had a hangover too.

   “Ready to go?” he asked.

   “Yup,” I turned to my mom. “See you later and
thanks for your help.”

   “No need to thank me. Now go, have fun. I’m going
to relax, my body hurts from all of that dancing last night.”

Dom and I walked side by side down the hallway in
silence. He had a pensive expression on his face, making me think he was just
as nervous as me, which did nothing to quell my nerves. Fortunately the
ibuprofen and coffee were kicking in, reducing my hangover headache to a dull
roar, so I wasn’t a total mess.

It wasn’t until we were on the elevator that Dom
broke the silence. “Are you hungry?”

   “Oh yeah, I want something greasy and bacon
definitely needs to be involved.”

Dom laughed at my answer. “Alright, I know just the
place.” We walked out of the front of the hotel and I was surprised when we
passed the valet desk and kept on going.

   “We’re walking?” I asked.

   “Yeah, it’s a beautiful day. Did you want to take
the car?”

   “No, let’s walk. It’s just that you tend to drive
everywhere.”

   “We’re only going a few blocks.”

I was happy we were going on foot. It was a perfect
Sunday morning in May and with a light breeze that filtered through bright
green leaves on the trees. A lot of people were out and about checking out the
museums and fountains on the parkway. We strolled down 17
^th
Street
at a leisurely pace, window shopping and chatting about random things. Dom
walked on the outside, closest the street, but kept by my side; not quite
touching, but occasionally brushing up against me.

   “Where are we going for brunch?” I asked.

   “It’s not a fancy place, but they definitely have
bacon.”

   “That’s fine, I don’t need fancy you know that.”

Dom smiled at me. “Yeah, I always liked that about
you.” I shook my head and laughed because when we first started dating last
year, Dom was always trying to impress me by taking me to upscale restaurants
where I at first felt underdressed and overwhelmed. I got used to being on his
arm and the respect he received, but he learned I was more content with him
cooking dinner for me at home or eating a kitchen-side prepared meal at
Franco’s.

We walked a couple more blocks until we reached a
small corner diner. Dom held the door open for me and I entered the unassuming
restaurant. The aroma of coffee, bacon and fried potatoes hung in the slightly
smoky air. A counter ran along the left side of the space and there were a few
unoccupied stools. There were about ten booths total in the place, two up by
the window and the remaining were along the right wall. One in the back corner
near the restrooms was the only one available. Streaks of sudsy water indicated
the tabletop had been recently wiped down and even the salt and pepper shakers,
plus assortment of condiments were clean, absent the usual sticky fingerprints.
Dom sat down across from me and stretched his legs out, forcing my feet apart
slightly to accommodate. He smirked up at me letting me know he was
deliberately in my space. The man was persistent, but I also think he knew
every time he touched me, I wanted to jump him. Instead of getting lost in his
green eyes, I focused on the menu.

An older woman with short salt and pepper hair came
over to take our drink orders. Her name was Irene, according to her name tag,
not because she introduced herself. Dom ordered coffee and I ordered a diet
coke and a glass of water. I resumed looking over the menu even though I
already knew what I wanted. Dom nudged a foot against mine causing me to glance
up.

   “Do you know what you want?” he asked.

   “You,” I wanted to say, but just nodded and
folded the laminated menu closed, placing it on the edge of our table.

Irene returned with our drinks and retrieved a small
note pad from the pocket of her half-apron to write down our order. Dom ordered
a ham and cheese omelet with a side of toast and hash browns. I ordered a
turkey club, which had the requisite bacon, and a side of French fries. Grease
was definitely called for this morning.

When were about halfway through our meal, I took a
sip of diet coke to wet my suddenly dry throat. “So, what did you want to talk
to me about?” I asked Dom.

Setting his fork down, he wiped his mouth with a
paper napkin before answering my question with a question. “Do you still have
an interest in teaching?”

That was not what I thought he was going to say and
it took me a few seconds to regroup. “Um, yeah, I still do, but haven’t really
thought about it much. Why?”

His leg bumped against mine a couple of times. One
of Dom’s “tells” when he was nervous was that with the ball of his foot on the
ground, he would bounce his leg. Dom placed a hand on his thigh to still his
movement.

   “I spoke to the principal at my old elementary
school and they’re hiring an art teacher. She’s willing to interview you before
she posts the position.”

   “You did what?” Was I mad? Not really. Surprised?
Definitely and not just because Dom went out of his way to set something like
this up, but because the usual anxiety I experienced whenever I thought about
moving back to Philadelphia didn’t take over. It was still a lot to process.
“Wow. Thank you?”

   “Don’t thank me yet, you still have to interview.
That’s all I could get.”

   “Dom, isn’t this rushing things? I know you want
me to come back and for us to pick up where we left off, but that’s not going
to happen. Besides, I like LA.”

   “Because of Jason?”

   “No,” I snapped.

   “Did he hurt you?”

   “No. We’re just too different and,” I paused. “I
didn’t love him.”

Any jealousy Dom was displaying disappeared with
that admission and he gave me a knowing look.

   “Will you at least meet with her and see what she
has to say? No pressure. If anything, it will be good interview practice.” He
reached for my hand that was fidgeting with a wad of paper that used to be my
napkin. “I know I fucked up and you got hurt. I promise to protect you. Things
are different now with Marco gone.” His green eyes blazed and he laced his
fingers with mine.

Damn it, just looking at him and having his thumb
lightly stroke the inside of my palm, made me weak.

   “Fine, I’ll meet with her,” I agreed.

With a satisfied grin, Dom relaxed even further and
his leg stopped jumping. Picking up his fork, he resumed eating while I pulled
the bacon off of the remaining two sections of my towering club and ate them.

We finished and Dom paid the bill, leaving a hefty
tip, which caused our waitress to give us a genuine smile. Her brown eyes lit
up when she wished us a good day. We stepped out onto a busy sidewalk and I
slipped my sunglasses on. Dom led us up towards Rittenhouse Square, stopping in
front of a recently remodeled building. I stared up at the towering structure,
noting the for lease and sale signs.

   “More condominiums?” I asked.

   “Yeah and the first floor is all retail space.
Wanna check it out?” Dom held up a set of keys and I raised my eyebrow at him.
“This is a Grabano and Sons build,” he explained. I shrugged, not really caring
where we went as long as I got to hang out with him. He unlocked a glass door
and held it open for me. I stepped inside and my footsteps echoed in the empty,
cavernous lobby area.

   “That’s where the concierge will be,” Dom said,
pointing to a chest high counter situated between two sets of elevators. “Those
elevators go up to the condos and down here,” he turned to the right and we
walked down a hallway. The walls were still unfinished gray drywall and the
white tile floor was covered in a layer of dust at least a half inch thick that
held various impressions of treads, mainly from work boots. Dom unlocked a
single glass door and held it open for me. I entered an empty retail space. The
sunlight coming in from the windows didn’t reach this far back, but a light
automatically came on. Looking at the wall panel to my right, I noticed it was
activated by a motion sensor.

   “There’s an office here,”’ Dom opened a door on
the left and then opened the one on the right, “this is the bathroom.”  I
followed him further into the space. There was a lot of natural light since it
sat on the corner and looked out onto the intersection of Walnut and 18
^th
Street.

   “This is nice. Do you know what’s going to go in
here?”

   “I know the person who bought this space is
hoping it will be an art gallery.”

Yeah, I could see that. It was open enough and there
was a lot of wall space on one side and along the back. With floor to ceiling
windows, from the outside it would be like looking into a fishbowl. I wandered
close to the street entrance and observed all of the foot traffic. This was an
upscale residential building too, which meant insta-customers. “This would make
a great gallery and it’s not too far from UA, it would be cool to get some
students in here to help with installations.” A large pillar in the middle of
the space would be an ideal backdrop to showcase a sculpture. “Do you know who
bought it?” I wasn’t looking at Dom, but wandering around, picturing how I
would set things up. When he didn’t answer, I glanced over my shoulder at him.
He was leaning against the pillar, smiling at me.

   “I did,” he said.

This made me stop mid-step and I spun around to face
him. “You own this?”

  “Yeah, I uh,” he lowered his head and ran a hand
through his hair, looking at me almost sheepishly. “I bought this for you.”

I was honestly speechless.  “When?” I finally
managed to ask.

   “A few weeks ago, after I learned the wedding was
moved up and you were coming.”

When I impulse shopped it was for a pair of shoes, sunglasses
or Ben & Jerry’s ice cream. Leave it to Dom to impulse buy a commercial
space. I fingered the diamond pendant around my neck, the necklace he gave me
at my college graduation. I shouldn’t have been surprised at this recent
extravagant gesture, but I was because he wasn’t my boyfriend anymore.

Closing my eyes, I took a deep breath while choosing
my next words carefully. “Dom, setting up an interview is one thing, but
this…this is too much.” My voice betrayed me when it cracked. He pushed off of
the pillar and crossed the room quickly with his long strides.

   “Hey,” he placed his hands on my hips and pulled
me close, kissing my forehead. “I don’t want you to feel obligated or forced
into anything. I wanted to give you options. I know when we were together and
how things were with Marco; you sacrificed so much and gave up your dreams of
grad school. I feel horrible about that. I still want you to pursue your
dreams, Natalie. Yes, I’ve presented some options, what
you
choose to do
with them is up to you.”