Page 50 of Dirty Deeds

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“I likethe subway tiles for the shower,” Danica says as she continues to squint and stare at the screen even with her glasses on—which by the way are hot as fuck.

I flip the iPad back to me and swipe through the pictures, when I find the one I want, I turn the screen back to face my phone.

“Moving on to shower heads.”

She grins at me through the phone, her eyes twinkling mischievously. “Oh, I love me a good shower head.”

Normally, I’d take that as my cue and follow it up with something dirty, but I’m too relieved to see her back to her normal self that I temporarily lose my ability to conjure up any words that would get her pussy wet.

“And I love it when you smile at me like that.”

Her cheeks instantly flush as she repositions the phone, giving me a better look at her as her face fills the screen of my phone.

After my father left, I took that shower I was meaning to take, but instead of braving the fridge, I ordered a pizza and called Danica against Ro’s advisement. She, like me and my father, saw Danica was struggling after her visit with Brent, but unlike us Scotto men, she knew how to handle her best. She said she needed time to process things, that Danica overreacts and tends to let Brent gaslight her.

Give me the night to talk her off the ledge.

I wanted to give that respect to Ro, but I wanted to be the one who helped her through whatever it was plaguing her more. So I FaceTimed her and she did look a lot better than when I saw her at Frankie’s House, but I could tell she was mentally drained.

“Are you spending the night at Ro’s?” I ask.

“Yeah, when I hang up with you, she and I are going to make a plan to go visit Derrick.” I was secretly hoping she’d say no. I would’ve jumped in my truck and headed straight to her house. “It’s a long drive so we usually spend the night in a hotel close to the prison. Between her schedule and mine we probably won’t get out there for at least a couple of weeks, though.”

I don’t know where I’ll be with my case in a couple of weeks from now, but I wouldn’t mind accompanying them. I’d like to meet Danica’s brother.

“Does he know what’s going on?” I ask, setting the iPad down on my bed. Picking hardware for a client’s bathroom can wait.

She shakes her head. “No, and Ro and I both agree it’s best. Although, if things continue to play out like they are, he may find out on the news.”

“Eh, television time is minimal and most of the time the inmates spend it fighting over what they’re going to watch.”

“You know an awful lot for someone with a clean record until now. Did your dad do time?”

“Yeah, me and Nico were young though. I don’t remember if Frankie was even born yet. But my Uncle Jack, his son-in-law, Blackie, Pipe, Riggs, Bishop, and Stryker—they’ve all been to prison. Plus, my stepbrother-in-law, Anthony, the one that owns the boxing gym, he did serious time.”

She tucks a strand of hair behind her ear. “He offers classes at Frankie’s House, right? I remember reading about his story on the back of one of the pamphlets.”

I nod. “That’s nothing. You should sit in on one of his classes, or you can even take one if you can. His class is designed for any experience level and before he starts, he shares his story. It gets people pumped and makes them realize that life isn’t defined by the wrong choices we make, but rather by how we redeem ourselves.”

Anthony made a beautiful life for himself when he got out of prison. He married the woman he loved more than anything, adopted her son, expanded their family by adding a daughter and he opened his gym. Not without struggle of course, but that’s the beauty of it. He could’ve easily gone back to the streets, climbed the ranks of the mob and sat at the throne of the Pastore crime family. But by now he’d be dead or in prison and his family would be heartbroken.

“If Derrick does his full sentence, he’ll be fifty-four when he gets out,” she says thoughtfully. “More than half his life will be gone. It’ll be so hard for him to start over.”

I don’t know how to respond to that. I don’t want to come off insensitive or give her any illusion that it won’t be hard for him.

“Don’t count him out, baby. It’ll be hard, but not impossible, and who’s to say life doesn’t start at fifty-four. A person doesn’t have to be in prison to still piss away years of his life.”

She cocks her head to the side, a small smile tugging at the corners of her lips.

“Derrick is going to love you,” she says softly.

A woman looking to run doesn’t give much thought to her brother welcoming her man with open arms.

It’s a win for Scotto.

“I’m a loveable guy,” I tease.

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