9. JOEY
JOEY
P aul and I sat in a booth, the soft jazz filling the air as he swirled his drink, studying me intently. I took a slow drag from my cigarette, watching him over the smoke. “So, what’s the deal with the new broad in town?”
“What broad?” I asked, raising an eyebrow. I knew what he was talking about, but I played dumb, anyway.
He smirked. “Don’t play dumb, Joey. The one with the kid. Adriana, right? I’ve seen her around. Quiet, keeping her head low, but she’s got you acting like a damn bloodhound.”
I shrugged, taking another drag from my cigarette. “It’s nothing.”
He let out a soft chuckle. “Joey, I’ve known you long enough to know when you’re full of shit. You had Davidson dig up her license. And had Ben run a background check on her. That ain’t nothing.”
“Keep your voice down, Paul,” I snapped at him, looking around, hoping nobody had heard us.
He grinned. “Relax. No one’s listening. But seriously, what’s her story?”
“I don’t know yet,” I told him. I didn’t know yet, but I would soon. “I’m just trying to help her out. It’s not what you’re thinking. She’s… different . That’s all.”
“Different?” He laughed. “Come on, Joey. Every pretty face looks different when you’re bored with the one at home.”
My eyes narrowed, and he raised his hands up in mock surrender. “Alright, alright. But seriously, you’re playing with fire. As your friend, I’m just looking out for you. I think you should be worrying about avoiding Vincent and Renee’s wrath rather than getting involved with Adriana. You’re already skating on paper-thin ice.”
I leaned back slowly, exhaling the smoke into the air between us. He had a point. But I wasn’t getting involved with Adriana. I was helping her. “All I want to do is help her out,” I said out loud. Not only to Paul, but also a reminder to myself.
“Help her out?” he scoffed. “Joey, we don’t help people. Not unless there’s something in it for us. You want something from this woman. And I think what you want from her will be your demise.”
“It’s not like that,” I said. But I didn’t fully believe myself, either.
“Look, brother,” Paul said, shaking his head, “I’m saying this because I got your back. You’re already in deep with Renee and Vincent. If Vincent gets wind that you’re poking around some other woman, you’re a dead man walking.”
“Let me worry about Vincent,” I snapped.
“Fine.” He sighed. “Don’t say I didn’t warn you.”
“I’ll handle it, Paul.” My eyes narrowed on him. “I always do.”
“Yeah?” He grinned. “Well, I hope she’s worth the heat you’re about to bring down on yourself.”
Paul downed the rest of his drink, leaning back against the leather sofa while I sat there, trying to figure out what the hell I was going to do. Paul was onto something, and I knew all too well how complicated my life had become lately.
Antonio reminded me too much of myself—young, scared, and carrying more weight on his shoulders than any boy should. I knew that feeling. I had lived it. And maybe helping him, making sure he had something better, was my way of fixing what I couldn’t fix for myself.
And then there was Adriana. I wanted to help her because no one had ever helped my mother. No one had stepped in when we needed it most. I knew what it was like to watch someone you love struggle and to feel powerless to change it. Maybe this was my chance to do what no one ever did for us. To make things right—not just for them, but for the kid I used to be.
The background check I’d ordered on Adriana came back clean. “She’s married,” Ben told me as we sat at the bar, sipping our drinks.
“I figured as much,” I remarked, unsurprised by the news.
“You knew she was married?”
“Not entirely, but I wanted to be sure. I don’t like surprises.” I paused, swirling my drink in thought. “I need you to do something else for me.”
“Yeah?” Ben raised an eyebrow.
“I want you to find her husband. I don’t care how you do it, but track him down. Make sure he’s not trying to look for her. I need to know he’s not about to show up at the wrong time.” Not until I could come up with a plan to take care of him myself, without anyone ever knowing.
Ben nodded, his lips curling into a slight grin. “I can get that done for you. It’ll take a little time, but I’ll keep my eyes open. You sure about this?”
I leaned back, looking him square in the eye. “Yeah, I’m sure. And when you find him, I’ll take care of the rest.”
“You know I’ll get it done, Joey. ”
I reached into my jacket pocket, pulled out an envelope thick with cash, and slid it across the bar to him. “Here’s your payment upfront. Consider it a retainer. Get me what I need.”
Ben tucked the envelope into his jacket. “You’ll have your answers soon enough. Don’t worry, Joey. I’ve got this.”
I nodded, finishing my drink in one long gulp. “Good. Keep it quiet, though. No need for unnecessary attention.”
I barely had the front door of the house shut before I heard the sharp click of Renee’s heels against the floor. I exhaled through my nose, bracing myself.
“Where the hell have you been?”
She was already in front of me, arms crossed tight over her chest, nails digging into her arms, red lips pressed into a thin line.
I dropped my keys onto the side table and ran a hand through my hair, loosening it as the pomade gave way. “I was working. What is it this time?”
“Working?” she retorted. “Are you sure you weren’t playing chauffeur?”
I debated on lying. But I knew there was no way out of this. I didn’t want to fight with her. But the thing about Renee was she liked to call the shots, and I had no choice but to bite my tongue and go along with it. “Her car is broken down. And she’s got a kid, Renee. No family. Nobody to help her and the kid get anywhere.”
Silence. Then a short, bitter laugh followed by the identical, sinister grin Vincent loved to plaster. It made my stomach turn. “You want me to believe you’re helping her because she's a single mother without a family? Do you think I’m an idiot? You never help anyone unless it’s a benefit for you!”
I clenched my jaw, and my nostrils flared. I had to hold back the urge to react. To bottle it up inside. “Are you saying I don’t help people? I help people all the damn time, Renee!”
“Oh, really?” She took a step closer, tilting her head. “Is that supposed to be directed to me? You haven’t helped me. I’ve helped you. You’ve used me.”
“If I’m using you, get rid of me.” I stepped closer, my eyes boring into hers.
She smirked, looking me dead in the eye. “Maybe I’ll just have to tell my father what you’re doing.”
I stood frozen, locked in a stare-off that neither of us dared to break. A choice sat in front of me, one I didn’t want to make. My jaw tightened as my hands moved on their own, reaching for her arms, gripping them just enough to steady the storm between us. It felt automatic—like muscle memory, like my body knew how to bandage the moment long enough for me to figure out my next move.
I let out a slow breath, forcing my voice to stay even. “I wasn’t sneaking around. I was helping her out. That’s all. ”
Renee scoffed, shaking her head. “I don’t believe you.”
My patience was running thin. I exhaled sharply, dragging a hand down my face. “Jesus, Renee, just drop it.”
For a second, I thought she might. Her lips parted, hesitation flickering in her eyes. But then she tossed her hair over her shoulder, her expression hardening. “You’re full of shit, Joey.”
I didn’t have the energy for this. Not tonight. Not ever.
I stepped past her and headed for the kitchen, ignoring how she stood there, fuming, waiting for me to turn back, to fight, to give her something to sink her teeth into.
She wanted a war. She lived for the fight. But there was nothing here worth fighting for. There never was.
I barely had time to enjoy the silence before I heard Renee’s footsteps. Heavy footsteps. The sharp click of heels. Coming straight for me. “You don’t get to just walk away from me, Joseph Romano!” Renee’s voice was sharp, cutting through the room like a blade.
I didn’t turn to face her just yet. Instead, I poured myself a drink. “Didn’t realize I had to stand here and get screamed at to keep you happy.”
She let out a cold, loud laugh, but there was nothing amusing about it. “You think I don’t have the right to be pissed when my boyfriend —” she spat the word out, just to remind me of the title she gave me and made public to others. The title that sickened me to my fucking core. “—is sneaking around with some woman and her kid behind my back.”
I turned, locking eyes with her finally. “I already told you—I was helping her. That’s it. You want to twist that into something else, go ahead. I don’t give a shit.”
“Oh, you don’t give a shit? Right. That’s real comforting, Joey. I just don’t get why you won’t admit it.”
I let out a humorless chuckle, shaking my head. “Admit what ? That I gave someone a ride? That I made sure a woman and her son didn’t have to walk home alone? That ain’t cheating. That’s basic decency. Something you wouldn’t understand if it smacked you dead in the face!”
Her lips parted in mock offense, but I saw the way her jaw clenched, the way her hands curled into fists. She wasn’t used to me pushing back. She wanted me to fold, to smooth things over. She wanted control . “You think I don’t see right through you? You wanna be a hero, Joey? You wanna go play house with some broken little damsel and her son?” She laughed, bitter and cruel. “Go ahead.”
The only house I was playing was with her. And I couldn’t wait to watch the whole damn house burn to the ground.
I should’ve known better than to get involved. But there was something about Adriana that made me throw all caution out the window, like I was playing a game I didn’t even understand. And I was a master chess player. Helping her—driving her around, taking care of her kid, all that shit—felt like a distraction. A way to escape from everything that was slowly suffocating me. But now? Now it felt like I’d walked right into a fucking trap.
Renee was right—well, partially. I wasn’t cheating on her, not in the way she thought. But this—whatever this was with Adriana—wasn’t just helping someone out. It was more. More than I wanted to admit. More than I should’ve let happen. And if I wasn’t careful, it was gonna ruin everything.
But the thing was, I was becoming careless.