I follow Joseph deeper into the house with the little girls’ laughter behind us. “What’s their names?”
“Nora’s the oldest, and my youngest’s Dori.”
After washing our hands, we all take a seat at the dining table. When Adriel brings out a meal fit for a king, and Joseph patiently cuts his youngest daughter’s meat into smaller bites, I can’t help but smile.
Seeing Joseph with his family makes him more human and less criminal in my eyes, no matter how I try to remind myself he’s going down with all the rest. But it’s becoming hard because I actually like the damn man.
“Thank you, my love. The food looks amazing,” he praises his wife before pressing a kiss to the back of her hand.
Christ, watching them, it all seems so normal. Does Adriel know what Joseph does for a living, or is she in the dark?
“Danny, Joseph tells me you’re single.”
“He doesn’t need you to set him up on a blind date,” Joseph laughs. “He has his eye on his neighbor.”
‘Oh.” Adriel raises an eyebrow. “Are you dating?”
I shake my head. “She keeps to herself, so it’s hard getting to know her.”
“You got to know her floor pretty well after crashing there drunk as fu…,” he catches himself before cursing in front of the kids.
“Daddy, what’s drunk?” Dori asks.
“That’s when you spin in circles until you lose your balance,” Nora explains to her sister, looking proud that she was able to answer the question.
So cute.
Adriel points her fork at her husband. “Danny, don’t let this one teach you all his bad habits.”
Chuckling, I nod. “I won’t. Once was enough for me.”
“Once?” Joseph asks.
“I’m a control freak,” I explain.
“Right.” He grins at his wife. “And a neat freak. That’s why the car’s always clean.”
“God forbid you have to wash the car,” she teases him.
With the bantering, the atmosphere is pleasant, and enjoying the company, I lower my guard for the first time since I went undercover.
After dinner, Joseph and I head out back to have a cigarette. The nights are cooling down fast now, with winter just around the corner.
“Adriel likes you,” Joseph mentions while letting out a puff of smoke.
“She’s a good woman. You’re lucky,” I compliment him.
A warm smile curves his lips. “Yeah, I’m very lucky.” He gives me a look. “She thinks I only own the diner.”
“Got it.”
We take a couple of pulls, then he asks, “No luck with the neighbor?”
I shake my head. “I like the challenge, though.”
Gesturing at me, he almost looks offended. “What’s the problem? You’re a catch.”
“She’s withdrawn. It’s going to take time wearing her down.”
“What’s her name again?”
“Jenna.” Not wanting to slip up in the future, I add, “I call her JJ.”
“Ahh… already have a pet name for her. I think things are more serious than you’re letting on.”
“Only from my side,” I chuckle. With the growing friendship between Joseph and me, I admit, “I’d give anything to make her mine.”
“You will. Go after what you want. I have all the faith in you, my friend.” He kills the cigarette in an ashtray then pats me on the shoulder. “I gave you a raise. Buy the girl something nice.”
After saying goodbye and thanking Adriel for dinner, I head back to the apartment. When I knock on the door, and JJ doesn’t answer, a frown forms on my forehead. Glancing around me to make sure I’m not being watched, I pull out my keys and searching for hers, I quickly unlock the door and let myself in. When I don’t find her in the apartment, worry spikes through my veins like a bad shot of blow. Pulling the door shut behind me, I rush down the stairs and out of the building. Glancing up and down the street, I head toward the store on the corner.
I’m halfway when JJ comes walking toward me, carrying a bag. The second she spots me, she increases her pace. “Something wrong?”
“You weren’t in the apartment,” I say, my voice still tight from the short-lived worry.
“Had a craving for snacks, and I wasn’t expecting you.”
She holds up the bag for me to see. I take it from her and glance around us as I wrap my arm around her shoulders. “I don’t like you being out in the open.”
“I’m okay,” she mutters.
Once I have her back in the safety of her apartment, I say, “Have the store deliver, JJ. I don’t want you out there.”
“I’ll be okay walking to the store. It’s not even a mile.”
I pin her with an unyielding look. “Don’t leave the apartment.”
Concern flutters over her beautiful features. “Did something happen?”
“No, but we’re in their territory. Stay hidden.”
“Okay.” She gives me a cute expression. “But then you’ll have to get me snacks when I’m craving something.”
The corner of my mouth lifts. “As long as you stay inside, I’ll get you anything you want.”
Raising her eyebrows at me, she playfully jokes, “Mmh… I’m going to take advantage of that.” Taking pretzels from the bag, she asks, “How was your day? Anything to report?”
I shake my head. “Today was actually a good day. I met Joseph’s family. They don’t know he works for the syndicate.”
“What’s his family like?” JJ sits down on the couch, and opening the bag, she pops a pretzel into her mouth.
“Nice. Normal. I actually enjoyed dinner.” I take a couple of pretzels from JJ and drop down on the couch next to her. “Today was actually a breath of fresh air.”
JJ gets up and digs a pack of cards from one of the drawers in the kitchen. “Let’s keep it a good day. No talking about work. Poker for pretzels.”
Chapter 15
O'Brien
For the first time since I started working for Joseph, he’s tense as fuck, no smiles in sight, and it’s making me feel edgy.
I’m driving us to a warehouse where a meeting will go down with a rival gang who’s trying to move in on the syndicate’s territory.
Berisha’s taking the lead, with Sadiki and Idrizi behind us.
“You stay by my side, Danny,” Joseph says, his voice tight with worry. “We’ll let John handle the fuckers.”
“Are you expecting things to go bad?” I ask.
“I can’t see any way it will turn out good for both parties.” Instead of sitting in the back, Joseph’s in the passenger seat, and I watch as he takes two guns to check the clips.
When I stop our car behind Berisha’s, Joseph hands me one of the guns. “If they start shooting, you kill as many of them as you can.”
“Got it.” Handling this the same way I’d handle a bust, I double-check the gun and clip, making sure the safety’s off.
Climbing out of the car, we join Berisha, who’s already staring down the gang members. There are five of us against eight of them. I assess every man before focusing on the leader.