The Beautiful People (3 page)

Returning to class on
Monday was a harsh reality check. The number of projects that were due was
overwhelming and it didn’t help that I couldn’t get thoughts of Dominic out of
my head. I was in a permanent state of distraction. Mornings were difficult in
the first place, but I had to go back to my apartment three times in a row
because I kept forgetting things. This seriously amused Chelsea who laughed
harder and louder each time I came through the door.

When I did arrive at my
first class, a creaky hinge alerted the professor to my late entrance and he
glared at me. I crept to the back of the classroom. To make matters worse, the
teacher called on me and caught me mid-fantasy. I was too busy thinking about
the effect of Dominic’s body pressed against mine that I stammered out the
wrong answer. Usually I would have had the correct one. This earned me a
disapproving frown from my professor before he moved on to another student.

“You
were off your A-game today Miss Ross,” he commented as I tried to hurry past after
class.

“Yes,
I’m sorry.”

“Well,
must be something good because you’re always so focused.” He had no idea how
good; I thought to myself and suppressed a chuckle. “Since you’re here - have
you given any more consideration about pursuing your MFA? You mentioned you
were interested in the Art Institute of Chicago.”

“I
haven’t decided.”

“Well,
let me know. I would be more than happy to write you a letter of
recommendation.”

“Thanks,
I will. I have the application, but haven’t filled anything out yet.”

“You
shouldn’t waste any time. You are one of my best students and I think they
would accept you right away.”

 “Okay,
I’ll think about it more this week,” I promised before I left the classroom.
Great, now my mind was going to be really preoccupied. I needed to get my shit
together. Once back at my apartment, I dropped my backpack on the floor by my
desk and changed to go for a run.

As I settled into a
steady pace, my head began to clear. It felt good to do something positive with
my body after the long weekend of working and partying. Running gave me a sense
of clarity and by the time I rounded the corner of my block, I had put thoughts
of Dominic aside and focused on post-graduation plans.

I had been considering
getting a Masters in Art Therapy or Art Education so I could teach and support
my independent projects. The 400-level courses this semester were grueling and
I hadn’t had time to focus on those pursuits. Philadelphia was soon going to be
part of my past as I set out to create a future for myself. Sure I did a lot of
growing here, but the time had come to move away from the crutch Grant
provided. I needed to figure out the type of person I wanted to be. Getting
romantically involved with anyone now would be ridiculous. This was reason
enough to put any and all thoughts of Dominic aside.

Chelsea was home and
cooking dinner when I returned. “What did you forget this time?” she joked.

“God,
I’m lucky I even made it to class. The run helped and I’ll feel even better
after a shower.”

“Good
idea,” she said, wrinkling up her nose.

“Shut
up!” I laughed and chucked the dish towel at her. She was still laughing when I
stepped into the bathroom.

The shower worked
wonders and helped me get the last of my hormones in check. I felt better about
myself and in control of the situation. After slipping on pajamas, I checked
the messages on my cell phone. There were three; one from Chelsea to see if I
was home, the second from our friend Jillian to see if we were still on to
watch our Wednesday night shows and the last was from Dominic. My pulse
quickened the instant I heard his voice.

“Hey
Nat, it’s Dom. Sorry I had to leave Blue last night – my uncle needed me to
take care of something. Call me some time or I’ll see you at work.”

I jumped up and down
and did a little happy dance before I realized what I was doing.
Get a grip
girl, no emotional attachments, remember?
My calm, cool and rational self quickly
reminded me. It didn’t help. I took a couple of deep breaths and dialed his
number.

We spoke for over two
hours and it only felt like a few minutes. Chelsea kept peeking in to my room
and I had to wave her away. Turns out we had a lot in common. He was a huge
music fan, we both liked alternative rock. He loved horror movies and we shared
the same favorite movie – Silence of the Lambs. And like me, he considered
himself a foodie.

“Speaking
of food, I haven’t eaten dinner yet and I am starving,” I didn’t want to end
the call, but needed to eat.

“I
won’t keep you. I’m glad we had a chance to talk outside of work. Also, I’m
sorry we couldn’t hang out at Blue last night.”

“That’s
okay. It’s not like we were on a date or anything.”

“Yeah,
but it was turning out to be a very interesting night.” I laughed in response,
knowing he was referring to our kiss.

“That’s
a whole other conversation, Mister,” I joked. “This girl’s gotta eat!”  

He
laughed, “Alright, I’ll talk to you later. Are you working Thursday?”

“Yup,
Thursday through Sunday.”

“Cool,
see you then.”

I hung up the phone and
fell back against the pile of pillows on my unmade bed. Chelsea must have been
waiting in the hall, eavesdropping, because she popped up in the doorway within
nanoseconds. Before she even sat down next to me, questions were flying out of
her mouth.

“Who
was that?”

            “Dom, the
guy from work I told you about.”

            “Really?”
she asked; her eyebrow arched high. “Wow, you had a two hour conversation with
a guy. When are you getting married?”

            “What?”

            “Geez Nat,
I’m just kidding. Two hours is like the longest commitment you’ve given a guy
since Toby – ha ha?”

            “Oh, I get
it. Not funny. Besides, I’ve already decided I’m not getting involved with
anyone because I’m leaving Philly after graduation.”

            “Wait a
second. So you actually considered getting involved? Wow, Nat, that’s
progress.” Chelsea sat back and looked at me. “I’m proud of you. I know Toby
really fucked you up and maybe now you’re beginning to realize you’re not
completely broken after all.”

            “I wouldn’t
go that far! Like I said, this isn’t going anywhere.”

            “Uh huh,” she
said and she stared at me like a parent whose baby just spoke her first word.  

I rolled off the bed and
Chelsea followed me down the hall into our small kitchen. I dropped a bagel in
the toaster then chopped an apple, smearing the slices with peanut butter.

            “Did Jillian
call you about watching our shows?” Chelsea asked. She knew me well enough to
stop discussing Dominic. 

            “She left
me a message, but I haven’t called her back.”

            “Well, the
girls and Danny are going to come over here tomorrow night to watch it.
Everybody’s going to bring a snack and a drink.”

            “Sweet, should
be fun,” I said and took a bite of my bagel.

            “So you’re
thinking about grad school again?”

            I nodded as
I chewed.

            “It’s going
to be weird not being roommates anymore. I’ll really miss you Nat.” Chelsea was
leaving for Italy for the summer after landing an internship. This was the
first time I really thought about how we were going to be so far apart. We had
been inseparable since fourth grade.

            “We still
have a few months,” I put down my bagel and pulled her into a hug. “And I’ll
miss you more than you know.”  My voice grew thick with unshed tears and she
was quick to return the hug, as usual.

I was running late for
work. Every pair of pantyhose I pulled out of the dresser had a run. Finally, I
found a new pair shoved in the back of a drawer and managed to put them on
without ruining them. I stepped into black high heels and threw my winter coat
over my work clothes, a tight black skirt and low cut top. The cab was waiting
at the curb and I caught the driver checking out my legs as I approached. I
made a mental note to buy a longer coat. 

“Club
Crimson, Columbus Ave. and Oregon, please,” I instructed the driver.

The closer we got, the
more nervous I became. I was excited to see Dominic and seriously annoyed with
myself for feeling that way. As the cab pulled up in front of Crimson, I
decided I wouldn’t go out of my way to seek Dominic out. It was better not to pursue
anything with him. At least Grant would be happy about this decision.

I didn’t see Dominic
when I walked past his bar on the way to the employee lounge. Brittany and
Allegra were sitting on one of the black leather loveseats smoking.

“Hey
Nat, ready for a busy night?” Brittany asked.

“Are
Thursdays busy here?”

“Definitely,
they’re crazy. Allegra and I are planning on going to Blue again after work, if
you want to come?”

“I
don’t know. I have school tomorrow.”

Brittany shrugged, put
out her cigarette and stood up. I was amazed her tiny frame could support such
giant breasts and wondered if her plastic surgeon had any ethics at all. “See
you on the floor,” she said and left the lounge.

Brittany was right,
Thursday nights were crazy. I was grateful though because it kept my mind off
of Dominic, although it didn’t keep my eyes from seeking him out.  I
purposefully avoided his bar, even if it meant a longer trip to fill my drink
orders. The other bartenders weren’t as captivating. At the end of the night, however
tempted I was to wind down at Blue after work, I knew I needed to behave and be
prepared for class. Grant dropped me off and seemed more at ease. I think he
was pleased I was being responsible.

Adrenaline from the
busy night still coursed through my veins and I wasn’t ready to sleep when I
got home, so I pulled out grad school applications for a couple of the schools
I was interested in attending. The Art Institute of Chicago, Cal Arts and the
Rhode Island School of Design rounded out the top three. I managed to fill out
all the necessary forms and made a list of what I needed to include from the
school such as a transcripts, recommendations and my digital portfolio. It felt
good to make progress and I slept peacefully.

The next night I wasn’t
as successful at avoiding Dominic. After the club closed, all of the other
employees gathered around Dominic’s bar to count out. It would have been too
obvious if I didn’t join them so I walked over. Dominic saw me approach and
smiled. “Hey you, it’s about time you came over. I thought you were avoiding me
or something.”

“No,
just busy. You were pretty busy tonight too.”

“I
would have made time for you,” he admitted. I smiled in response. Damn, he was
making it hard for me to resist him.

Grant walked up to us
with Miranda at his side. “Miranda is having a little after work gathering at
her place, Nat, care to join us?”

“Sure!”
I was still pretty wound up from the night and not ready for sleep, plus since
it was Friday night, I didn’t have to worry about classes the next day.

“I’m
in too,” Dominic announced. Grant glared at Dominic, but didn’t say anything.

Grant and Miranda
walked ahead to her car. Dominic and I followed close behind until he slowed to
a stop and I stopped with him.

“Did
you forget something?”

“No,
I wanted to talk to you while we’re alone.”

“Um,
ok?”

“Were
you avoiding me last night and tonight?

I looked into his eyes
prepared to lie, but found it impossible. “Sort of,” I laughed and stared down
at the tops of my shoes. He waited for me to continue. “I don’t want things to
get weird or complicated and –“

Placing a finger under
my chin, he raised my head, and silenced me with a kiss. The kiss was anything
but weird and it certainly complicated things. My knees went weak and I fell
against him. He held me up, pulling me closer. His lips on mine felt so natural
and way too good for me to try to stop.

He pulled away and I
caught my breath. “You were saying?” he prompted me.

“What
was I saying?” I joked. He smiled and moved in for another one. I put my hands
on his chest and pushed away. “Grant is probably watching and I’m really not in
the mood to deal with him. Besides, I need some time to think about this, about
us. Okay?”

He nodded. “That sounds
reasonable, but you don’t have to avoid me.” I was beginning to think I
wouldn’t be able to avoid him, especially if he kept kissing me like that.

Crimson was packed. The
celebrity NBA event drew a crowd. A line of people, desperate to get in,
wrapped around the building. They stood there patiently dressed like it was
summer, oblivious to the sub-zero temperatures. Inside the club felt tropical, the
air was thick, moist and uncomfortably warm. Bodies writhed together on the
dance floor and couples were entwined on large plush sofas that lined the
walls. Each of the three bars had crowds of people waiting to get drinks. I
didn’t have to wait. Dominic gave me priority when he filled my orders.

It only took me a week
to get used to making my way through the throngs of people, but I was not
getting used to being grabbed by strangers. If my brother had his way, he’d
throw out every guy who touched me. Fortunately, he was busy and distracted in
the VIP Section; otherwise I wouldn’t make any tips.

Weaving my way through
the crowd, I spotted Grant talking to a group sitting at a table in VIP. One of
the men in the group was staring at me. He was older and his beady, black eyes
were intense. His eyes combined with heavy jowls that hung off of his jaw
reminded me of a bulldog. His unwavering gaze made me uncomfortable. I looked
away, but couldn’t help but peer back to see if he was still staring. This time
the guy was talking to Grant and pointing at me. The fear on Grant’s face when
he saw me was terrifying. I’d rarely seen him afraid. He was always so sure of
himself. Shocked, I turned away and refused to hazard another glance.

It was too busy the
rest of the night and I had forgotten all about it until I was walking over to Dominic’s
bar to count out my tips. The creepy guy was sitting on one of the stools and
talking to Dominic. I stopped short and contemplated turning around, but it was
too late because Dominic spotted me and waved. The guy swiveled around on his
stool to see who Dominic was waving at. He watched me walk the rest of the way
to the bar, making every step an extremely uncomfortable one. I had no choice
but to go up to Dominic.

“Hi
Nat. Did you have a good night?”

“I
did. Thanks for helping me out with my drink orders,” I answered, trying to
ignore the penetrating gaze of Mr. Creepy.

“Natalie,
this is my uncle. Marco Grabano.” Dominic introduced me to Mr. Creepy. “Uncle Marco,
this is Natalie Ross, Grant’s sister.”

Not wanting to, but not
wanting to be rude, I held my hand out to shake his hand. “Nice to meet you Mr.
Cr – Mr. Grabano,” I said.

“You
can call me Uncle Marco, doll,” he said in a gravelly voice. Instead of shaking
my hand, he bent over and kissed the top. “I’ve been anxious to meet Grant’s
sister. Apparently you got all the looks.” He winked before his x-ray eyes
scanned me again.

I turned my head,
embarrassed, when I noticed Grant. He was sitting at the other end of the bar.
His jaws clenched and nostrils flared when he saw Marco’s kiss my hand. Concerned
Grant was going to do something ‘big brotherish”, I withdrew it and turned
towards Dominic. “Sorry, I have to go talk to Grant.” I nodded in Mr. Grabano’s
direction. I could feel his eyes on my ass as I turned and walked towards my
brother.

“What
is with you?” I hissed at Grant as I got closer to where he was sitting.

“I
don’t –I mean, I want…let’s talk about this later. I thought I told you to stay
away from Dominic.”

 I exhaled sharply. “Not
up for discussion, Grant.” There was a noticeable edge to my voice. “Now,
staying away from his uncle? That I can do,” I whispered this part, not wanting
‘Uncle Marco’ to overhear, “He weirds me out.”

I noticed Grant was clenching
his jaw again. “He’s the co-owner of Crimson, Nat. He’s a very powerful man
here in Philly.”

“Great,
so he’s my boss? Shit, I was kind of rude to him just now.”

Grant leaned in close
to me. “I don’t think you can be rude to him, Nat. The way he is looking at you
right now, you could flip him off and he’d be just as enthralled.”

            “What?” I
jerked my head up to see what he was talking about, but Grant prevented me.

            “Don’t.
Jesus…” Grant paused. “You seem to have caught Mr. Grabano’s eye.  He wanted me
to arrange a meeting. But, I told him you’re my sister and not available.”

            “Ewww. But
why would he want to meet me? I mean, all the other waitresses, they’re
gorgeous!”

            “Natalie
now is not the time to delve into your low self-esteem issues, just listen to
me. Try to limit your interaction with Marco. I know he’s our boss,
technically, but he is used to getting his way and abusing his power. Catch my
drift?”

            “Oh.” I
gasped as the realization hit me. “Is he dangerous?”

            “Very. And
he isn’t used to being denied anything he wants.”

            “And you
think he wants me?”

            “I know he
does,” Grant said. There was a shadow of sadness in his hazel eyes. “Nat, I
really wish I hadn’t gotten you a job here.”

            “Is Dominic
really his nephew?” I asked, anxious to change the direction of the
conversation.

            “Yes and
the apple didn’t fall far from the tree.”

I laughed finding that
hard to believe. Dominic was nothing but a sweetheart. He didn’t have a dark,
brooding presence like his Uncle.

            “If you
have such an issue with Dominic, why did you let me hang out with him at
Miranda’s again last night?”

            “Because he’s
Miranda’s cousin.”

            “Oh.”

            “Natalie,
will you please take me seriously?”

I could see the concern
on my brother’s face and didn’t want him to keep nagging me. “Yes Grant. I am
taking this seriously,” I reassured him.

He relaxed a bit after
that and let me finish counting out my tips in peace. I was shocked to discover
I had made over $400. There was a lot of money being spent at Crimson. Despite
having a creepy boss man, this was a great place to work.

Dominic walked down to
stand in front of me. “Hey Nat, do you have any plans for after work?”

I was just about to
answer when Grant butted in. “I’m her ride. We’re heading out in a few
minutes.”

After shooting death
rays at Grant I looked apologetically at Dominic. He was just being nice and
Grant was behaving like a giant ass.

            “I can give
her a ride Grant, if she wants to hang out?” He regarded me with his deep green
eyes. Thank God I was sitting because my legs probably wouldn’t have been able
to support me. It was utterly bizarre how Dominic’s mere presence affected me.  Before
Grant could speak for me again I answered, with exaggerated enthusiasm. “That
would be great! I’m not ready to go home yet.”

I turned towards Grant
with a big smile and batted my eyelashes. He frowned at me and shook his head.
“Yeah, sure you’re taking me seriously,” he muttered. I heard the defeat in his
voice and knew I had won, because Grant would have to physically pick me up and
carry me out of the club. I wasn’t going to budge.

***

Dominic and I were
flying down Broad Street, heading towards South Philly in his Mustang. The worn
leather seats smelled like a mixture of smoke, gasoline and Dominic’s cologne -
definitely a man’s car. It was just the two of us and I enjoyed being alone
with him. I found that once I got over my shyness, he was easy to talk to. I
had no idea where we were going. He said he was taking me to a special place not
too many people knew about. We could have driven around ‘til dawn, I didn’t
care, as long as I got to stay next to him.

He asked all sorts of
questions about me. When we had spoken on the phone the other night, we didn’t
talk about our family. I told him Grant was three years older and my only sibling.
Our parents divorced when I was five and our Dad moved to Texas. I hardly knew him.
He was remarried and had another family. We stayed with our Mom in York and
Grant was forced to be the man of the house.  

            “He’s kind
of overbearing, but I don’t think he really has a choice,” I revealed to Dominic.

Dominic nodded his
head. “I can see that and I think it makes him good at his job. He’s always watching
out for everyone.”

            “Yeah, but
it’s not easy when you’re his younger sister, trust me!”

            “Does he hold
you back?”

            “He tries
to!” I laughed.

            “Like he
tried to keep you from going out with me tonight?”

            “Yes.”

            “But he
didn’t stop you.”he

            “I try not
to let things stand in my way of something I really want.” I closed my mouth
with a snap, completely mortified I let that slip. I turned my head and stared
out the window.

            “Am I
something you really want?” he teased. I ignored him, not ready for him to
know.

Dominic told me a
little bit about himself too. I finally got the answer to my questions about
the family business he would take over someday.

            “Ah, Uncle Marco,”
I said.

            “Yeah, I’m
learning all of the positions. They had me start out as bar back, now I’m
bartending.”

            “What’s
next?”

            “I think
I’m going to be working under your brother.”

 “That
should be interesting.” I said, imagining just how thrilled Grant must be at
the idea.  

Dominic slowed down as
he turned off of Broad onto a smaller side street. Most of the row homes were
dark, their occupants asleep. A few were boarded up. He parked in front of one
of the abandoned homes. I got out and followed him up steps which led to a
condemned building.

            “Dominic,
where are we?” I asked, recalling how the serial killer, Gary Heidnik lived in
a similar neighborhood. I mean, how well
did
I really know this guy?

            “You’ll see.”
He knocked three times on the door. It immediately opened from the inside and a
very large man peered through the crack. Dominic said something in what sounded
like Italian and the door widened to let him through. I gathered myself together
and quickly followed him in.

The large man eyeballed
me.  “Does she need to be searched?” he asked Dominic.

The thought of this man
searching me with his bear paw sized hands was very disconcerting and I was
relieved when Dominic told him I was cool and worked at Crimson. The man
relaxed even more when he heard I was Grant’s sister.

Once inside, I was able
to take in my new surroundings. The home wasn’t condemned at all. A long
hallway led to a back room, where a group of men were seated at a table playing
cards. The smoke from their cigars hung in a haze above their heads. To my left,
a steep staircase led to a dark second level. A living room or parlor, which had
been converted to a bar, was to my immediate right. Several people sat around the
bar counter and the bartender waved when he saw Dominic.

I followed him into
this room and saw the front windows were boarded up, but aside from that the
room was well maintained. The lighting was soft and jazz was playing quietly in
the background. I noticed how people paid attention to Dominic as he crossed
the room. They regarded him with respect. I quickly caught up so I was walking
next to him. I wanted these people to know who I was with.

Behind the bartender
and above the bottles of liquor there were three framed pictures. One was of
the Pope, one of Marlon Brando and the last one was – Frank Sinatra. Only Rocky
Balboa was missing. I felt like I had just walked into a scene from Goodfellas
or The Godfather. I never thought places like this existed.  This was
definitely a first for me and I was determined to memorize every detail because
my friends were not going to believe this shit. Dominic ordered us glasses of
red wine and we relocated to a private table tucked away in the back corner of
the room.

He took my coat and
hung it up on a hook behind our table. I sipped on my wine quickly, waiting for
the magical blanket to soothe and relax me. Dominic peered over the rim of his
glass at me and winked.

“What?”
I asked.

“You
seem very relaxed, that’s all. Don’t you find this place a little weird?”

I sipped some more wine
before answering. “Well, it’s better than a condemned building – I was having
some serious concerns there for a moment!”

He laughed. “I never
thought about how it must have appeared. You probably thought I was some serial
killer or something.”

            “Something
like that,” I admitted and smiled at him. “Where are we exactly?”

            “This is a
little after hours place my family has owned for generations. It dates back to
Prohibition – used to be a speakeasy. We call it ‘The Speak’.”

            “Your
family owns this too? What else do they own?”

            “Blue and
the other club Trance. Um, they own the restaurants, Butter, and Tiramisu, plus
some various real estate developments around the city.”