The Beautiful People (The New Mafia Trilogy)

by Fechenda, E. J.

  “Thanks, I’ll keep that in mind.”

  “It was cool hanging out with you.”

  “Same! Thanks for the ride.”

  Miranda waved and flashed a brilliant smile as she navigated away from the curb. Even Miranda was warming up to me. Maybe things were going to work out after all.

  Chapter 18

  Dominic really tried to help me adjust. He took things very slow with me and didn’t push me into the lifestyle. My initial reaction towards him when I found out the truth was caution. Starting a real relationship was a huge step for me. Factoring in that he came from a long line of criminals and was a Mob boss in training needed some serious consideration. I appreciated the fact that he understood and gave me time.

  Dom pulled up in front of my apartment building and parallel parked effortlessly. It was an unusually balmy night for early April and he had the convertible top down. I had been holding my hair up with my hands to keep it from whipping my face and it tumbled around my shoulders, down my back. Dominic brushed a few stray hairs off my cheek and kissed me, moving his lips down my jaw and neckline. I shivered in response and felt the now familiar pull in my stomach.

  “Are you sure you can’t spend the night?”

  “As much as I want to, I can’t. I have a big review tomorrow.” It was true, in a little over a month I would be graduating from the University of the Arts, as long as I pulled my grades up.

  “Are you sure?” He asked as he tweaked one of my nipples through my thin shirt. I groaned in response. He was going to make this difficult.

  “I’m positive.” I whispered in his ear before I nibbled on his lobe. It was a little salty; he must have worked up a sweat bartending that night. Now it was his turn to groan. I pulled away at that point and flashed a devilish grin. “Hold onto that thought until tomorrow night,” I said as I opened up the car door and got out.

  “You’re killing me woman!”

  “No, but I could have that arranged,” I joked back with some mafia humor. He burst out laughing and turned the key in the ignition. The Mustang roared to life. He looked so fine in his car. The black paint as shiny as his black hair and the tan leather interior complimented his skin.

  It was hard to see him pull away from the curb and I watched him drive down the street until he was out of sight. Feeling edgy from the pent up hormones I knew sleep wouldn’t come easy tonight. I looked up at my apartment and saw the living room light was on. Chelsea’s silhouette was in the window. I sighed and braced for another argument.

  Our neighbors probably thought we’re lesbians because we argue like an old married couple and we’d been arguing a lot lately. The hardest part about being keeping Grant and Dom’s life a secret was not being able to tell anyone, especially Chelsea. She was the most persistent in trying to get me to tell her what was going on. She blamed Dominic for my sudden emotional distance and the drop in my grades. Little did she know, shielding her from the truth was the best form of protection.

  I opened the door to our apartment with trepidation. Chelsea stood in the living room with her arms crossed in front of her, glowering. I didn’t even attempt to fake enthusiasm at seeing her.

  “You’re up late.”

  “I could say the same about you,” she snipped.

  “I’m home aren’t I?”

  “It’s a miracle you’re spending one night away from your Italian Stallion!”

  “You don’t have to wait up for me like some nervous den mother,” I retaliated.

  “I wanted to make sure you got home for your review in the morning,” she admitted shifting to a less defensive position.

  “That’s why I’m here.”

  “Good, because your priorities have been out of whack since you decided to take on a boyfriend.” She sounded resentful. “Remember my advice – don’t let it consume you?”

  I glared at her. She always took on this high and mighty tone, like she was some kind of relationship guru. I think she was just jealous. Dominic and I had a connection, despite both coming from very dysfunctional families, our relationship was tight. “Are you really going to start this again?”

  “I’ll keep bringing it up until you actually listen. By the way you got a letter from the Art Institute of Chicago.”

  I walked to the stack of mail sitting on the counter. The letter sat on top of the pile. Inhaling deeply, I tore the envelope open, silently praying it contained a rejection letter. It didn’t. I was accepted and that’s when I realized I wasn’t going to be able to go. I crumbled the paper up and threw it into the kitchen sink.

  “You didn’t get in?”

  “No. I was accepted.”

  “That’s awesome Nat!” Chelsea grew quiet, watching me. “Why aren’t you excited?”

  “Because I’ve changed my plans and I’m going to stay here.” I struggled to form the words.

  “Because of him?”

  “That’s part of the reason.”

  “Jesus Nat! Are you going to throw your dreams away for a guy? Come on, where’s your independence? Chicago was it for you and you’re just not going to go? Don’t do this because of Dominic.”

  This was the last straw. Every time I came home I was under attack. I would have loved to tell Chelsea the truth about Dominic and the gruesome crime I had witnessed – the crime that ate away at me 24/7, but I couldn’t. She didn’t accept any excuse I came up with, it always came back to being Dominic’s fault.

  “You know what Chelsea, I don’t have to take this.” My words might as well have physically slapped her because she flinched back. I pulled a wad of hundred dollar bills out of my purse and peeled off fifteen of them. Her eyes got huge when she saw how much cash I was carrying. “Here’s rent, plus extra for utilities for the rest of the lease. I’m moving out early.” I dropped the bills on the coffee table and marched to my room, slamming the door behind me. Yeah we’d probably get another call from the landlord in the morning. The second the door shut I let the tears fall.

  I called Dominic on his cell and he could barely understand me I was sobbing so hard. I managed to choke out “Come and get me.” I could hear tires squealing in the background and horns blaring.

  “I’m on my way,” he said and hung up the phone. I pulled my suitcase out from under the bed and started throwing clothes in. I already had toiletries at Dom’s. Next, I packed up my laptop, paints, portfolio and all the books I would need for the week. My cell phone rang as I was zipping up the bag. Dominic was out front already and the timing couldn’t have been more perfect.

  I walked out into the empty living room and could see the light on underneath Chelsea’s door. The cash was still on the coffee table. Moving as silently as possible, I grabbed my purse and left.

  Chapter 19

  Dominic held me as I cried. His gray shirt grew darker with tearstains the more I wept. He didn’t say anything and just let me be. We sat on his sofa in the living room. The only light filtering in came from the hallway where Dominic had dropped my bags.

  My breathing started to calm down, no longer hitching in ragged breaths. I sat up and wiped my eyes.

  “What happened?”

  I sniffed back snot and felt tears well up in my puffy eyes again. “Chelsea and I had a huge fight because I received an acceptance letter to this art school in Chicago. I was going to get my masters there. When I told her I decided not to go she flipped out.”

  “And you can’t go because of me?”

  “Well, kinda.” I looked down at my hands resting on my lap.

  Dominic was silent. I glanced over and he had his head in his hands. “Dom, what’s wrong?”

  “I wish I could take it back and never have let you see Grant in action. It was wrong of me. You deserve so much more! Your brother was right. It was a selfish move on my part.”

  “Dom, baby, please don’t beat yourself up. What’s done is done. I firmly believe everything happens for a reason.”

  “I’m sorry Nat.”

  “I know you are.” I k
issed his cheek and he smiled at me.

  “So, I take it you’re moving in?”

  “Um, I guess so. Is that okay?”

  “Are you kidding?” He moved suddenly and was leaning over me, his arms resting on the back of the sofa by my head. “I would love to have you move in with me.” Lowering himself down, his lips met mine and just like that I had a new place to live.

  Dominic jumped up and held his hand out for me. “Come on, let’s get you unpacked!”

  I took his hand and let him pull me up off of the couch. He picked up my suitcases and I followed him to the bedroom. Unzipping one of the bags, his eyes lit up. Reaching in, he pulled out a lacy bra and raised his eyebrows. “I get to unpack this one!” He said with a suggestive grin.

  He looked so wicked I couldn’t help but chuckle.

  “What is this?” He yanked out my favorite bathrobe. It was originally red, but had faded to a pinkish hue. I’d had it since high school and even though it was ratty looking, refused to part with it. “Sexy!”

  I snorted that time. “Yeah right!” Snatching it out of his hands I hung it up on the brass hook behind the bathroom door.

  Dominic’s cell phone rang, interrupting our banter.

  “Hello?” He looked at me before stepping out of the room. I heard him tell someone to come up.

  “Who was that?”

  “Dante, he needs to drop something off.”

  “Oh.” I went back to unpacking.

  Minutes later I heard Dante and Dominic talking. I went out to say hi and stopped when I saw what was on the dining room table.

  “Is that cocaine?” I asked, referring to three large white bricks that were wrapped in plastic.

  “Hey Natalie, I didn’t know you were here.”

  “Natalie lives here now. She’s just moving in.”

  “Really? Huh.”

  “Is that cocaine?”

  “Heroin,” Dominic answered. Dante shot him a warning look. “Be cool Dante. She won’t tell anyone, will you Nat?”

  “Uh, no…no I won’t.” I couldn’t take my eyes off of the drugs. There was enough there to put us away for a very long time.

  “Well, if you trust her…”

  “I do.” Dom emphasized this by coming over to stand next to me and wrapping his arm around my waist. “I’ll bring the stuff to Crimson for delivery. We should be able to turn a nice profit on this batch.”

  “Cool, I’ll leave you to it.” He picked up an empty backpack and slung it over his shoulder.

  After Dante left, Dominic placed the blocks of heroin into his black gym bag that was on the floor by the front door.

  “Dom, I know you’re involved with distributing drugs, but not on this scale.”

  “Nat, I’m sorry I didn’t tell you sooner, and I was going to tell you.”

  “Oh really?” I stalked back to the bedroom and started stuffing my stuff back in my bags.

  “What are you doing?”

  “It was bad enough learning that you were in the mafia, but then to find out you’re dealing dope too? I’m leaving before some other secret sneaks up and bites me in the ass.”

  “Are you going to go back to your apartment?”

  “No.”

  “Where are you going to go then?”

  “I can go to Grant’s place.”

  “He’s just as involved in this shit as I am, so what’s the difference between living there versus here? Well, I know what the difference would be.” He came up behind me, pulling my body to his. He moved my hair aside and started kissing my neck. I flinched and tried to move away. He held me tight, his lips persistent on my skin. My nerve endings began to respond despite my attempts at suppressing them.

  “If, I’m going to stay here, and that’s a big if, you need to fess up. “ I knew as I was saying these words, I was going to give in. “What else are you involved in?”

  “Do you really want to know?”

  I elbowed him in the ribs.

  “Alright, fine…besides the drugs, there are several illegal gambling houses in the city, some in South Jersey.”

  “I knew about the gambling houses. What about the firearms trafficking, I overheard Joey D. saying something about guns and I’m pretty sure he wasn’t talking about his biceps?”

  Dom laughed and ran his hands through his hair. “Yeah, I’m not too involved in it, only every once in a while when an extra man is needed. You know the gun check at work and at Blue?”

  “Yes.”

  “Most of those guns were our merchandise at some point.”

  “Jesus.”

  “I didn’t tell you that because I hardly do it anymore.” He kissed my neck again. “Am I forgiven?”

  “Maybe.” I turned around in his arms to face him. “I’m too tired to argue anymore and need to be ready for my review in a few hours. “

  Dominic held my gaze for a few seconds before releasing me. “I promise not to get you too involved. If I know when a delivery is being made, I’ll let you know so you don’t have to be here for it.”

  “Thank you, but I’m trying to be open minded about this whole thing. This is going to be what it’s like for me living with you, I might as well get used to it…just don’t ask me to deal for you.”

  “I never would have considered that!” He pulled me to him again. “You really are being amazing about everything. I don’t deserve you.”

  We went to bed a few minutes later, but I couldn’t sleep. Worries about my review ordinarily would have plagued me, but instead it was concern over my new living situation. Was Dominic honest with me about what all he was involved in?

  Chapter 20

  If I didn’t hurry I was going to be late for my review. I broke out into a jog and darted between traffic. Rushing through the front doors of the hall, I almost took Chelsea out. She stepped back and avoided eye contact. I didn’t have time to stop and talk to her. The slamming door echoed after me as I ran down the corridor.

  The review went better than I thought, much to my relief. Maybe I would graduate after all…at least I would have that accomplishment to my name. There were several items at my old apartment I had left behind in my haste. Knowing Chelsea would be on campus for at least another hour, I took advantage.

  Opening the front door, I was surprised to find Chelsea in the kitchen. She turned and looked at me and then turned away without any acknowledgement.

  “I’m just here to pick up some stuff,” I said to her back. She shrugged her shoulders in response.

  I hurried to my room and shoved the rest of my things into two large shopping bags. Chelsea was sitting on the futon when I walked out.

  “Well, that’s it. I’m going to post my furniture for sale on campus. If you know of anyone who needs –“

  “You’re not going to apologize?”

  “Me apologize?”

  “We’ve been friends forever Natalie and you can just pick up and move on… you couldn’t even talk to me on campus today.”

  “I was running late. Besides, there’s nothing to talk about. I’ve made my decision and have moved in with Dominic.”

  “Good, happy for you. See you around.” Chelsea shut me out and tuned back to the television.

  Choking on a fresh round of tears, I hurried down the stairs and out to the street. It hurt, like a part of me was amputated, but it was impossible to make Chelsea understand when I was unable to tell her the truth, so I let her think the worst. I was willing to sacrifice our friendship if it meant keeping her safe.

  Chapter 21

  When I got back to the condo, Grant was there. He and Dom were sitting at the breakfast bar and stopped whatever they were talking about when I walked in. One look at my tearstained face had Dom running over. He pulled me into a crushing hug and I wrapped my arms around him, breathing in his scent that had become so comforting to me.

  “What’s wrong, baby?” He whispered in my ear, dusting kisses along the top of my head.

  “Chelsea…it hurts,” I said before bur
ying my face in his chest again.

  “I know, baby. I’m so sorry.” His hold loosened and I stepped back to look up at him. Reaching up, he brushed an errant tear off my cheek and gave me a sad smile. He grabbed my hand and we walked over to Grant.

  “I know it’s hard, Nat,” he said. “Now you understand why I stopped hanging out with my friends from high school.”

  “Oh.” I paused to consider this information. “I wondered what happened.”

  “Yeah, it gets easier over time.” He finished his beer and stood up, pulling me into a hug. “I’m here for you, sis.”

  “I know.” This made me realize that somewhere along the way I started to lean on Dom for help and called him instead of Grant. I returned his hug with a little more fierceness.

  By some miracle I was able to graduate college. A feat my brother wasn’t able to accomplish since his job got in the way. My mom couldn’t have been more proud. Grant had always been the responsible one and perfection in her eyes. When he dropped out of college to work at Crimson full time, his halo became tarnished. Now I was finally living up to my mom’s high expectations.

  We had a huge graduation bash at Crimson, the private room was ours for the night and Uncle Marco spared no expense, giving Miranda free rein.

  “My goodness Natalie, this is something else!” My mom gushed as she took in the raw bar and top shelf liquor that was being served.

  “I know, Miranda really outdid herself.” I left her chatting with one of our neighbors from York. Dom was leaning against the bar talking to his parents. He stood up and smiled at me as I approached. He held his hand out and I quickly placed mine is his.

  “Having fun?” he asked.

  “Yes! This is amazing!”

  “You’re mom having fun too?”

  “I think so. I don’t know if she quite knows what to make of it all. She probably feels bad she didn’t throw the party for me. I know she can’t afford anything lavish like this.”

  “Your family is our family, Nat. Throwing you this party is the least we could do.” Rico, Dominic’s dad, said before giving me a hug.