Chapter 41
Joey
“W e should do this more often,” I say, looking out over the crowd from my comfy seat in the VIP area. “It’s nice to be out at a club and not working.”
Sal, Frankie, and I are at Neon Nights. It’s a nice club, and it’s in our territory, but we don’t have anything to do with it. We come here occasionally for a night off. Typically, I’m on the hunt for someone to take home with me, but not tonight. I’m not even sure if I’ll go dance; fending off women sounds exhausting. But it’s still nice to be out and having a drink without being on the clock.
“This trafficking thing has been a major timesuck,” Sal says. “I can’t even remember the last time we were here.”
“It was Enzo’s birthday.” Frankie takes a sip of his drink and then turns to Sal. “Remember? We fucked that redhead in the alley.”
Sal looks off into the distance as he searches his memories, and his eyes light up when he remembers. “Oh yeah! Damn, she was hot.”
“It’s too bad Elise isn’t here,” I muse. “I could use a dance partner. And a trip to the alley, if I’m being honest.”
“She’s just sitting at home with Enzo. Text him and see if they want to come.” Sal shrugs. “Worst case scenario, he tells you to fuck off.”
“He won’t come,” Frankie says. “He never comes. And he definitely won’t let her come.”
“Controlling asshole,” I mutter. “You know what? I’m going to try it. If he says no, at least we won’t have to wonder.”
I pull out my phone and shoot off a quick text and then set it on the table so I don’t miss his response. We go back to our conversation, and I lose track of how much time passes before my screen lights up with Enzo’s response.
Enzo : We’re on our way.
I turn to the other two with a triumphant look on my face. “They’re on their way.” I’m met with two shocked expressions, and I shrug. “There’s a first time for everything, I guess.”
Half an hour later, Enzo and Elise walk through the door and make their way to the VIP section to join us. Despite my hope that he would bring her, I can’t deny that I’m surprised he actually did. And I’m even more surprised that he let her out of the house looking like that. She’s wearing a skintight, black, strapless dress that barely covers her ass. There’s no way she won’t have eyes on her the entire time we’re here, which is exactly the kind of attention Enzo normally tries to avoid.
When they finally get to us, Sal pulls her down into his lap and plants a kiss on her neck. I glance at Enzo, not sure how he’s going to handle the public display of affection, but he seems fine.
Sal smiles and says, “Hey, pretty lady. Come here often?”
Frankie rolls his eyes, and I laugh. “You’re such a fucking cheeseball,” I tell Sal.
“And?” he says, unbothered. “Everyone likes cheese.”
He and Elise get up and walk over to the bar for drinks and then they stand in the little open area behind my chair and dance.
Frankie turns to Enzo, and I listen to their conversation while straining to hear what Sal and Elise are talking about behind me. “Are you sure about this?”
Enzo shakes his head. “No, but I can’t keep her locked in my house forever. She hasn’t complained so far, but it’s only a matter of time.”
“She might end up with a huge target on her back,” Frankie points out.
“Then we’ll just have to work harder to protect her,” I interject. “Unless you’re hoping for that to happen?”
Sal told me about their tryst in Enzo’s office, but none of us have heard Frankie say that he’s on board with Elise being part of the team—part of the Family.
He frowns. “I don’t want anything to happen to her,” he says. “I’m just not ready to trust her with every secret we have yet.”
I nod, accepting his answer. “Coming here was probably a better idea than taking her somewhere else, at least. There’s a possibility that no one of consequence will show up and we’ll fly under the radar.”
“It’s possible. Not likely though,” Enzo says, looking around in search of the enemies he thinks are hiding nearby. “Let’s just have fun. She deserves a night out. Go dance.”
He doesn’t have to tell me twice. I leave the two of them to keep worrying about everything that could go wrong tonight and join Sal and Elise where they’re still dancing and drinking. She’s facing him, so I slide in behind her and rest my hand on her waist, pressing against her scantily clad body and soaking in the warmth emanating from her while she dances.
The atmosphere in the VIP section isn’t quite as desperately horny as the lower level of the club, but dancing with Elise creates a bubble of sensuality for just the five of us. There are a handful of other people up here with us, but they’re minding their own business and staying by the bar.
Eventually, to my surprise, Frankie joins us. From the way he holds Elise close to him, I’d say he’s getting close to letting her in and accepting her for who she claims to be. Whether or not he’ll be able to admit it—to himself or to us—is an entirely different question. But tonight, it’s not a pressing issue. Our only focus is the music and enjoying this rare time out of the house with Elise while we’re not working.
The three of us crowd around her, dancing as a group while Enzo watches. He doesn’t look like he feels left out. In fact, I can almost see a smile attempting to break through on his perpetually grumpy face.
I wave my hand for him to join us, and he hesitates before rising from his seat and moving around the chairs to get to us.
“You don’t have to sit and watch, you know,” I say as we make room for him. Elise is in the middle, and it’s almost like we’ve formed a protective circle around her. As I say it, I realize that it applies to more than just dancing tonight.
“I like watching,” he replies. “But it’s still strange to me that this is happening. So… Thank you.”
I clap him on the back and smirk when Elise loops her arms around his neck, swinging her hips in time to the music and laughing in a way I haven’t seen before.
Sal notices too and leans closer to me. “We’ve got to let her out of the house more often.”
“I was just thinking the same thing,” I agree. “She’s a completely different person right now. Happier than I’ve ever seen her.”
“If tonight goes well, maybe we’ll be able to convince Enzo that it’s not too dangerous,” he muses.
But we all know how quickly things can change. At the drop of a hat, our evening could go from an innocent night out with our girl to one of a dozen different kinds of emergencies. I’m able to push those thoughts to the back of my mind, but they hover there like a warning, and I can’t ignore them the way I’d like to.
Luckily, the rest of the night goes smoothly. Despite the countless threats we’re facing, we’re able to enjoy an uninterrupted evening of dancing and drinking. It’s the first time we’ve felt like a cohesive unit, and I decide right then and there that we all need to get on the same page about our relationship. Nights like this should be a frequent occurrence, not a rarity.
After a couple of hours, when the club is about to close, we finally break apart. It hits me that we’re all about to go our separate ways, and Enzo is the only one going home with Elise. Sal and I make eye contact, and I can tell he’s thinking along the same lines as me. Some changes are long overdue, and it’s time to lay them all out in the open.
But tonight is not the time for a serious, life-altering conversation. It’s been a fun night so far, and I’m not going to ruin it. The image of the pure euphoria on Elise’s face as she dances and moves between us is imprinted in my mind and stays there until I get home, where it follows me into my dreams.
But the dream ends with us all going back to our shared home. In my dream, we are a real family, and I hope it’s a glimpse into our future.