The Beautiful People (8 page)

“Wow,
where are you two going?”

“Dom’s
taking me to Butter for dinner.”

Chelsea’s
eyes grew huge. “I hear that place is incredible.”

“I’ll
let you know how it is.”

“I
promise to have her home at decent hour this time,” Dominic said in a serious
tone, like Chelsea was a parent and she laughed.

“Don’t
worry about me. You two have fun!” She was still giggling when we left the
apartment.

We pulled up in front
of Butter and the valet was quick to help when he recognized the black Mustang.
Dominic slipped him a twenty dollar bill then escorted me inside. A tan man about
Dom’s age greeted us as soon as we walked through the door. He wore a dark gray
suit that had to have been tailored made for his broad shoulders.

“Dom!”
He exclaimed, pulling my boyfriend into a hug.

“Dante,
good to see you! This is Natalie. Nat, this is my cousin Dante.”

“Nice
to meet you.” He shook my hand.”Wow Dom, you sure know how to pick them,” he
commented as he watched me take off my coat and place it on his waiting arm. Nice.
What did he mean by that?

“I
have a table reserved for you guys over here.” We followed him through the dining
area. I felt out of place in this restaurant that oozed opulence. The color
scheme consisted of rich creams and ivories with a very pale yellow as an
accent like, well, butter. These colors contrasted against the dark mahogany
furniture. Candles flickered everywhere with flames reflecting off of crystal
chandeliers. So this is what five star dining was all about, I thought to
myself, and tried to remember which fork to use and when. Several of the diners
watched as we walked by. This only added to my insecurity.

Dante sat us at a table
towards the back of the restaurant in a more secluded area. Dominic acted the
perfect gentleman and held the chair out. As I adjusted myself I noticed
someone was checking me out. I followed Dante’s gaze as he took in the low
neckline of my dress. Dominic noticed too and glared at his cousin who smiled
apologetically and quickly left us alone.

“God,
this place is amazing!” I said to Dominic, trying to keep my voice down.

“Wait
until you try the food. My Uncle Al, Dante’s dad, recruited the chefs from all
over the country.”

“I’m
noticing a trend here. Your family seems pretty serious about food,” I teased.

“You
haven’t seen anything yet. Wait until you attend a gathering that involves the
entire family. It’s like a cook off and can get pretty competitive.” I liked
how he said this, like I was already going to be included.

“It
sounds like you have a huge family.”

“Huge.
There is always something going on. Someone getting married, having a kid or
dying.”

“I
have no idea what that’s like. It’s always been Grant, my mom and I.”

“No
cousins or grandparents?”

“Nope…well,
not close. My mom was an only child and her parents died when I was young -
actually not too long after my Dad left us.”

“That
must have been pretty tough for your mom?”

I
nodded. “She didn’t handle things well.” I didn’t elaborate about how
depression swallowed her whole. Or how Grant had to step in and make sure I got
to school with breakfast in my stomach. I didn’t tell him how my mom would
berate me when I got home and accuse me of being selfish and lost in my head just
like my father. She might as well have accused me of being the devil.

“You
and Grant are close though.”

“I
guess so. I think he feels obligated to look out for me or it’s just become a
habit for him. He’s always been there. The flip side is that he can interfere.”

“Well,
at least you have some family around. I don’t know what I would do without
mine.”

“Probably
starve,” I joked. The trip down memory lane was bringing me down and I didn’t
want to ruin our date.

Dante made sure the
service was impeccable and it matched the food. We ate in silence, enjoying
every last bite. The portions here were reasonable and not falling over the
sides of the plates like at Franco’s. After I finished eating I sat back with
my glass of wine and watched Dominic. I really couldn’t believe that I had
agreed to be his girlfriend. When I started thinking about it, panic began to
creep up from the pit of my stomach. I took a sip of wine, hoping to wash the
fear back down.

The waiter came around
and cleared our plates. “Dante wanted me to tell you that the meal is on the
house,” he said.

“Tell
him thank you and this is for you.” Dominic handed the waiter a one hundred
dollar bill.

“Thank
you sir, enjoy the rest of your night,” he said before he left the table.

“Oh,
I plan on it,” Dom said and winked at me. I knew what he was implying.

After dinner Dominic
took me back to his place and I texted Chelsea that I wasn’t coming home. This
time we made it past the living room and christened his bedroom. We stayed up
exploring each other and fell asleep as the morning sky began to lighten.

I woke with a start and
glanced over Dominic’s shoulder at the alarm clock on his bedside table.

            “Shit!” I
exclaimed and jumped out of bed. Thursday morning had already come and gone.

            “What?”
Dominic murmured, still half asleep.

            “I’m late
for class!” I ran around the room and picked my clothes up that were strewn all
over the floor.

            “Come back
to bed. You can miss today,” Dom beckoned as he patted the bed.

            “I can’t.
Midterms are coming up and I have so much to do!”

            “What’s one
day? You can catch up.”

Seeing him lying there
naked made me weigh my options. I was already late for my third class and by
the time I made it back to my apartment and got changed, my fourth and final
class would be over.  I sighed and let the clothes drop back onto the floor
before climbing back into bed. Dominic pulled me up close against him and
lightly kissed my neck and shoulders. Any stress about school dissipated with
his touch.

Dominic’s cell phone
pierced the silence and woke us from our slumber. He groaned and buried his head
underneath one of the down pillows.

            “Aren’t you
going to answer that?”

            “No, they
can leave a message,” he said, his voice muffled. “I’m not getting out of bed.”

The phone stopped
ringing, but seconds later started pealing again. I knew it wasn’t possible,
but it seemed more insistent this time. It was my turn to groan as I rolled away
from Dominic so he could get up.

            “Hello?” he
answered. “Hey Uncle Marco, what’s up?”

He walked out of the
bedroom to take the call. I stayed in bed with my eyes closed, half listening
to the one sided conversation.

            “I can be
there. It’ll take a few minutes though; I have to take Natalie home.”

     I frowned at the
thought of having to leave.

            “Yeah, she
spent the night,” he paused. “That’s none of your business!” he snapped,
sounding annoyed. “No. She doesn’t know.”

What didn’t I know? 

“Tell
Grant that everything is under control. I’ll be there as soon as I can.” I
heard him click his phone shut and imagined that if it were a real phone, he
would have slammed it down on the receiver.

I heard him walk back
into the room, but I kept my eyes shut, I didn’t want him to think I was
listening.

            “Natalie,”
he whispered and kissed my forehead.

            “Hmmm?” I
opened my eyes.

            “I have to
go. You can stay here or I can take you home?”

            “Who was
that?” I asked as I pushed the covers aside.

            “Uncle Marco.
He needs me to take care of some stuff.”

            “Oh. I’ll
go back to my apartment.”

            “Nat, you
might want to prepare for a shit storm – Grant was with Uncle Marco and he
heard me say you were here. He wasn’t too happy about it.”

            “Shit.
Well, he was bound to find out sooner or later. I’ll deal with him.”

            “Sorry.”

“You
have nothing to apologize for. Grant is the one being an ass.”

Dominic dropped me off
at my apartment and we had a quick kiss goodbye. He promised to call when he
was done and then he was gone. I watched him drive down the street and wondered
what he was up to and what he meant by “she doesn’t know.”

Miranda was waiting for
me at the front door again. A line had already started to form, even though
Crimson didn’t open for another hour, the line was just going to get longer.

“Hi
Miranda!”  I had been in a perpetual good mood since Dominic and I had come to
terms, even if I was exhausted from all the late nights. It had been a week
since we declared ourselves to each other and every moment spent with Dominic
was incredible.

“Hi
Nat. You’re working VIP again tonight.”

“Ok,
same drill?” She nodded and then looked at me funny.

“What?”
My tone was defensive.

“So
you and Dominic? Is this like an official thing?”

“Yes.”
I answered hesitantly, uncomfortable about discussing my personal life with my
boss, who was also my brother’s girlfriend and not to mention my boyfriend’s
cousin.

“Grant
doesn’t like it.” This was an understatement. I thought Grant was going to have
an aneurism when he found out about us. This was four days ago and he hadn’t
spoken to me since.

“He’ll
get over it,” I grumbled.

“Do
you know what you’re getting yourself into?”

“Why
does everyone keep asking me that?”  

“I’m
talking to you as a manager. Ordinarily I don’t care who my employees are
dating, except when they’re dating each other.”

“Oh.”
I wanted to respond by saying she was being a little hypocritical, but decided
it would be best not to push it. “I get it,” I said instead and turned to go.

“One
more thing…” I glanced over my shoulder at her and marveled at how similar her
eyes were to Dominic’s. “Grant told me that my dad has expressed an interest in
you.” My mouth went dry. “I told him that you were with Dominic, maybe he’ll
back off now.”

“Oh…thanks!
I hope so!” I liked the tips I earned in the VIP section, but I didn’t like the
looming presence of Uncle Marco. Miranda smiled at my reaction. Then she sent
me on my way to get set-up. I passed Grant on the way to the employee lounge
and he avoided me – again.

Brittany was in the
lounge and I ignored her. She still hadn’t gotten over that Dominic was my
boyfriend and that I had replaced her in the VIP section. Her pouting was
almost audible as I checked my hair in the mirror. It wasn’t big and poufy like
the other Crimson girls, but shiny and soft. Dominic said he liked it because
his hand didn’t get stuck in it when he ran his fingers through my hair. Like
last night, when I lay underneath him and ran my hands down the length of his
broad back to his firm…a toilet flushed behind me and snapped me out of my
reverie. Having lost a few minutes to daydreaming I rushed over to the VIP
section to get set up. Grant was leaning against the bar talking to the
bartender when I walked up.

“Hi
Grant,” I said softly.

“Natalie,”
he greeted me through pursed lips. This was progress – at least he acknowledged
my presence. I didn’t want to push my luck and went about my business.

This was the busiest
night I had worked at Crimson and that surprised me because it was a Sunday.
Didn’t people have to work in the morning? I ran around ragged trying to keep
up with everyone’s drink orders. Uncle Marco left me alone just as I had hoped.
Not having this anxiety helped me focus and get my job done. The night flew by
and soon the club had cleared out except for Uncle Marco and his boys. Marco
asked me to sit with them again and this time I didn’t mind.

“So,
you and Dominic?”

“Yes.”

“Huh.
Is he treatin’ you good doll?”

“Absolutely.”

“Good.
Let me know if my nephew misbehaves and I’ll smack some sense into him.” He
gesticulated a lot when he spoke and he emphasized the word smack by slamming
his hand down on the table. I couldn’t help but flinch.

“I’ll
keep that in mind.”

      Grant walked up
to the table and Marco shifted his attention away from me.

“Grant!”
Marco shook my brother’s hand. “Good job getting Stump to settle up on his
bill. He wasn’t any trouble?”

“Not
at all and I don’t think he will be any trouble in the future,” Grant answered.

“Excellent!
Now I have some more business to discuss with you. Natalie, you can leave.”
Grant visibly relaxed, his shoulders not as tense, once I had been dismissed.

Dominic saw me
descending the stairs from VIP and waved me over to his bar. “Hey babe,” he
said and leaned across the bar and we kissed. “How was your night?”

“Good.
Miranda told her dad that we were together and he left me alone tonight.”

Dominic
tightened his jaw. “Was Uncle Marco bothering you?”

I clamped my hand over
my mouth and my eyes got wide. “Oops.” I said through my hand and then lowered
it. “I’m sorry I didn’t tell you, but I didn’t want you to get upset. Grant
told Miranda and she handled it.”

Dominic’s face grew
dark with anger. “How was he bothering you?”

“I
don’t want to say, you’ll probably just get more upset. And he’s your uncle”

“What
about our agreement to be up front with each other?” Damn. He had to play that
card.

“OK,”
I caved. “I’ll tell you later; let’s finish work first.”

This seemed to appease Dominic,
but I knew he wouldn’t drop it. One of the things we had in common was our
persistence. I left him to finish cleaning up his bar and brought my tips to
Miranda, she took fifty percent for the bartender and handed back the rest. I quickly
counted the wad and was amazed at my take - $530. I had already paid my bills
for the month, so all this was spending money and it instantly started to burn
a hole in my pocket.

I bounced back to Dominic’s
bar and he handed me a gin and tonic, my preferred drink of late. I sucked it
dry in seconds and asked for another. He eyed me curiously. “I’m celebrating,”
I explained. “I made some good bank tonight.”

“We’ll
have to celebrate later.” He gave me a suggestive look which caused me to squirm
on the bar stool and gnaw on my straw. I hung out until he finished wiping down
his bar. He walked with me to the employee lounge where I grabbed my bag.

“What
would you like to do, besides discuss my uncle?” he asked.

“We
could go back to your place?” I pressed up against him, stood on my tiptoes and
nibbled his ear lobe. “We don’t have to talk about your uncle tonight,” I
whispered and lightly grabbed his crotch...

“I
do like your suggestion!” He held the exit door open for me and was almost out
behind me when Grant yelled his name. We turned to see him jogging across the
dance floor towards us. I prepared myself for a confrontation.

“Marco
needs us to take care of something tonight.”

“Can’t
it wait? Nat and I have plans.”

“It
has to be tonight. Marco said so.” Hearing footsteps approaching, I glanced towards
the VIP section and saw Marco heading in our direction.

“Dom,
what the fuck are you and Grant standing around bullshitting for? You have a
fucking job to do!” Marco bellowed.

“Yes,
Uncle Marco,” Dominic lowered his head in a submissive manner. This surprised
me as he was usually so assertive.

“What
do you guys have to do? It’s almost three in the morning.”

“Nothing
you need to worry your pretty little head about, doll,” Marco answered. “Come
on, I’ll take you home.” He grabbed my arm. I tensed up and saw Grant and
Dominic stiffen too.

“You
don’t have to go out of your way, I can take a cab.” I tried to maneuver out of
his grip.

“It’s
not a bother.” He snapped his fingers at Grant and Dominic with his free hand.
“Get the fuck outta here!” They both jumped and hurried out the door. He turned
his attention to me. “So Grant’s sister is dating my nephew? Very interesting…how
does Grant feel about this?”

“He’s
not too pleased,” I admitted as Marco steered me out of the club and locked the
door behind him. He still had my arm in his iron grip.

“Yes,
Grant is very protective of you. He’s done a lot for me so he can take care of
his family. I respect that.” He led me to his black Cadillac and opened the
passenger door for me. He finally released my arm and I slid into the seat and
shivered. Not because of the cold, but because I was going to be stuck in a car
with this man who, quite honestly, scared the shit out of me.

Marco got in and
started the car, the engine purred to life. I could smell scotch emanating off
of him and remembered how many drinks he had been served. This didn’t help my
comfort level at all.

“Where
do you live?”

“9
^th
and Pine.”

 He navigated the
Cadillac out onto Delaware Ave. He seemed to have control of the car and didn’t
drive like he was drunk so I gradually eased off the ‘oh shit” handle that I
had in a death grip.

“Do
you like working at Crimson?” he broke the silence after a few blocks.

“Yeah,
it’s great!”

“Best
place in town,” he bragged. Marco blew through a red light without even tapping
on the brakes.  I resumed my grip on the handle. A cop was parked on the street
and saw Marco go through the light. I waited for the lights and siren, but
nothing happened; the cop let Marco keep on driving. Thankfully the fifteen
minute drive ended without incident and Marco pulled to a stop in front of my
apartment.

“Thanks
for the ride,” I said. As I turned to get out of the car, Marco grabbed my left
wrist and twisted me back to face him.

“What?”
I asked.

“Don’t
I at least get a kiss?” His beady eyes gleamed and his licked his lips before
they formed a malicious grin, his lips glistening with spittle. He started to
yank on my arm as if trying to drag me across the seat and closer to him. I
resisted and felt my wrist pop. “Just kidding,” he said and suddenly released
my arm. “Have a good night.”

“Um,
goodnight,” I said and struggled to open the door with my shaking hand. Finally
it opened and I practically tumbled out onto the sidewalk. I ran to my
apartment building. As soon as I was inside with the front door secure behind
me, my entire body started to tremble. It took a few minutes, and a few deep
breaths, to get myself under control. Dominic’s uncle had some serious issues
and I never wanted to be alone with him again.

I waited until I had
calmed down to go upstairs. Fortunately Chelsea was asleep because my face
probably would have indicated that something was wrong. With the apartment door
locked and my bedroom door closed, I finally began to relax. Lying in bed alone
was not what I had in mind for tonight. What could Marco possibly need Dominic
and Grant do? I thought about this as my eyelids grew heavy and sleep claimed
me.

My cell phone woke me
up. Disoriented, I felt around in the dark for it.

“Hello?”
I mumbled.

“Hey,
it’s  Dom.”

“Hi,”
I sat up. “What time is it?”

“It’s
a little after five. I just wanted to call and make sure you’re alright?”

“I’m
fine. I was sleeping.”

“Sorry
to wake you. I just wanted to make sure my uncle behaved himself.”

“For
the most part,” I yawned and could hear Dominic breathe a sigh of relief. “No
offense, but your uncle’s a little off.”

“Yeah,
I know. I’m just glad you’re ok. He can be unpredictable.” Unpredictable, that
was a good way to describe him. Other words like menacing, disturbed and crazy would
describe him well too.

“What
did you guys have to do anyway?”

“Just
stuff.”

“Oh.”
I yawned again and tried to focus on the conversation.

“I’ll
let you get back to sleep; I just wanted to check on you.”

“No,
don’t go, I’m awake now.” My phone beeped then and I quickly looked at the display.
“Ugh, I need to take this call, it’s Grant.”

“He’s
probably checking in on you too. I’ll call you later. Sweet dreams.”

“Goodnight,”
I whispered before I clicked over to receive Grant’s call.

“Nat,
how are you?”

“I’m
fine. Dom just called too.”

“I
really shouldn’t have gotten you a job at Crimson.” Grant’s comment woke me
right up.

“Grant,
shut up, I’m fine. Marco was a little creepy, but I handled it.” I said, downplaying
the incident. If Grant knew how tight Marco held onto my wrist, I probably would
have to get another job.

“What
did you guys have to do anyway?”

“Marco
needed us to do something for him. I can’t talk about it.” Big surprise, Grant
was being tightlipped. What did he and Dom do that they couldn’t talk about?

“What’s
the big secret? I won’t tell anyone.”

“Natalie,
it’s confidential. I can’t tell you,” Grant snapped. “I’m glad you’re alright.
I need to go get some sleep.” With that he hung up the phone.