Stella! –Chapter 1
"DANNO!" Steve hollered as he staggered back from the kitchen door, holding the side of his face that at the moment was in excruciating pain.
"What the hell is going on in here!" He could hear Danny's voice behind him, but couldn't see him yet through his tearing eyes.
"You tell me!" Steve replied. "I was just heading into the kitchen to find you and some half naked girl appears, screams, and bashes me in the face with an unopened can of soda. Am I bleeding?" he asked Danny, gingerly pressing on his upper cheak, which was already turning purple.
Danny rolled his eyes.
"No you're not bleeding. STELLA?"
"Stella? As in your sister, Stella?"
"The one and only." Danny replied. "Stella!"
"I'm right here! Stop yelling." Danny's sister insisted, re-emerging from the kitchen. She was wearing an oversized T-shirt that she was in the process of tying at her waist to reveal a pair of DKNY sweat shorts beneath. "And for the record…I'm not naked…Just wearing a really large t-shirt."
"My mistake." Steve replied. Bending down, he grabbed her can of soda off the floor and handed it to her. "Here's your coke."
"Thanks." She smiled apologetically. "Sorry!"
"Are you out of your mind?" Danny asked her, pointing at the soda in her hand. "It's eight o'clock in the morning and you're drinking coke?"
"Seriously!" Steve interrupted him. "That's what you're bumping on right now? She could've killed me!"
"Well what have I told you about knocking?" Danny countered.
"I did knock! No one answered!"
"Yeah…I had my headphones on. Sorry." Stella replied.
"And what about you?" Steve asked his partner.
"I couldn't hear anything. I was blow drying my hair. And not a word about it!" Danny exclaimed when Steve opened his mouth to make a wise remark.
"Well you could have told me your sister was going to be here." Steve insisted before turning his attention back to Stella. "I'm Steve by the way." He said, reaching out to shake her hand.
"Yeah I figured. It's nice to meet you finally." She shook his hand back, then turning to her brother she added. "Brig was right! He is yummy!"
"Inappropriate." Danny admonished her.
"Stella decided to just show up on my doorstep last night for a weeklong visit." He informed Steve.
"Is that right?" Steve said grinning like a cheshire cat.
"I wanted to surprise you!"
"Oh, I was surprised all right." Danny chuckled. "It would have been less surprising if she didn't have grown son who lives in the same city."
"He lives in a Studio. He has no room for me." She reasoned.
"Well, I am very glad you're here." Steve insisted. "I've been dying to meet the woman who gave us Eric Russo."
"Guilty as charged." She replied with a curtsey.
"And I gotta say…you look nothing like I envisioned."
"No?"
"No." Steve replied. "I was expecting someone a lot older and a lot…blonder" He said, gesturing to her short auburn hair.
"Well, I'm gonna let you in on a little family secret." She said, lowering her voice. "Danny is the only real blonde in the Williams family. But if you tell Brigette and Clara I told you that I will deny it!"
"Really?" Steve replied, sounding shocked. Whether he really was or not…Danny couldn't tell.
"It's true." Stella replied, shaking her head. "In fact, I used to tell Danny he was the milkman's kid!"
Steve laughed.
"You laugh." Danny huffed. "I believed her. It was traumatizing!"
"Oh Danny! You're so dramatic!"
"Thank you!" Steve exclaimed, throwing his hands up in the air for emphasis. "I've been telling him that for years!"
"Zip it you." Danny ordered, whacking Steve in the stomach for emphasis.
"Oh, he's always been that way. Always! Even as a little kid." Stella said, crossing the room to take a seat on the couch. "He cried like a baby when he found out I was pregnant with Eric. Thought Ma was gonna kill me!"
"You were fourteen!" Danny countered. "It' was a reasonable assumption!"
"Fourteen?" Steve shot back in disbelief.
"Well…fifteen when he was born. But…yeah."
"Wow!" Steve replied.
"Yeah…biggest scandal in the Williams family in years. Very Jerry Springer!"
"It's nothing to brag about." Danny insisted.
"I'm not bragging!" Stella replied. "But I'm not sorry either. Eric's the best thing that ever happened to me."
"He really is a great kid." Steve said
Stella nodded.
"Yeah, he is a great kid. And I have Danny to thank for that." She glanced over at her brother and winked at him.
"Eric's father wasn't around much. He had his issues." She continued.
"Understatement of the year." Danny mumbled under his breath.
"But Danny really stepped up and was great role model for my son. And I will always be grateful to him for that."
Danny smiled.
"I love you Bubba." She said to him.
"I love you too."
"Speaking of Eric." Steve cut in. "Does he even know you're here?"
"Nope. I wanted it to…"
"Be a surprise." Danny finished for her, rolling his eyes.
"Well, we need to head over to the forensic Lab to see him…we could give you a ride."
"Oh my God! That would be great!" She exclaimed. "I would love to see my baby at work. Just give me two seconds to change!"
She was halfway to the hallway when she turned back.
"Oh! Do you think I couldn't drive the Camaro?"
Danny and Steve exchanged before replying in unison…
"No!"
The End…or possibly to be continued…haven't decided.