It Had To Be You
Pairing: Danny/Mary
Disclaimer: I don't own Las Vegas. Things would be a lot different if I did. Also, I was not alive in the 60's so if anything is not historically accurate then I apologize.
Summary: This story takes place in 1962, immediately following the 60's portion of the episode Everything Old is You Again. It's a bit of fluff about a budding romance between Danny and Mary with some mobster drama thrown in for fun.
Rating: PG-13
-2-
Over the next few weeks Danny and Mary saw each other almost every single day. While their busy schedules forced them to postpone anymore official dates, they'd had four lunches and six dinners together in the casino so far and Danny always made a point to stop by the diner at least once a day for a cup of coffee and a chat.
Danny enjoyed the easy conversation and their meetings during the day, but his favorite time was driving Mary home every night after work. Even if he had to return to the Jubilee to finish his shift, Danny insisted on escorting her home just so he could kiss her goodnight.
"What's going on with you two?" Ed asked one morning over breakfast, noticing the sly smiles Danny and Mary had been giving each other across the diner.
"Nothing," Danny replied around a mouthful of pancakes.
"Don't talk with your mouth full and don't lie to me," Ed scolded the younger man.
Danny gulped his orange juice to help swallow the huge bite he'd just taken before responding, "Why would you think I was lying?"
"Because I've been watching you two make eyes at each other all morning," Ed gruffly replied before taking a swig of his coffee.
"We've been on a couple of dates, but things have been so busy around here this past week…"
"Cut her loose, Danny. That's not the kind of girl you get your kicks with," Ed's tone was stern.
Danny was stunned silent for a moment.
"It's not what you think, Ed. Mary's special," he finally said.
"Hasn't kept you from chasing every skirt between here and Reno since we blew into town."
"There's nothing wrong with that. Things between Mary and I aren't that serious yet. She's old-fashioned so we've been taking things slow. I really do like her, Ed. I think she might be the one. You know marriage, kids, white picket fence,"
"But until then you'll get your thrills elsewhere?"
"Would you keep it down? She might hear you."
"I thought you said you weren't doing anything wrong," Ed questioned with mock innocence.
"Why are you giving me such a hard time?"
"Because I know you, Danny. How can you even talk about settling down? I've seen you at the bar with three different girls just this week," Ed was beginning to lose his temper.
"That's not fair, Ed. Two of those girls were auditioning for the new show."
"And the third?"
Danny sighed and looked around the diner. When he noticed Mary a few tables away he leaned in close so he could keep his voice low.
"Look, Ed, those were just girls. It didn't mean anything. Mary's not like them."
"You're damn right she's not," Ed's voice was just as low, but no less menacing, "You're walking a thin line, kid, and that sweet little girl over there is the one who's gonna get hurt," Ed dropped a fifty on the table and headed out of the diner, leaving Danny speechless.
Mary noticed the older man's hasty exit and cautiously approached the table.
"Everything okay?"
"Sure—just business. We still on for tonight?" Danny asked cheerfully, trying to not let Mary see how affected he was by Ed's words.
"Absolutely! I can't wait, Danny. I've been looking forward to this all week," Mary responded, her face lighting up with a brilliant smile.
Danny returned her smile as he gave her a quick kiss on the cheek and headed towards the casino, "I'll see you at 8."
---
The Sands was buzzing. Everybody who was anybody was out and all of them were headed for the Copa.
"I can't believe you've never been here. This is supposed to be the hottest spot in Vegas," Danny spoke loudly over the music as they waited for their table.
Before Mary could reply a group of showgirls passed and a round of giggles followed by several of the girls saying, "Hi, Danny" floated through the crowd.
"Friends of yours?" Mary asked softly.
"Oh, um, they must remember me from the Jubilee. I had to sit in on some of the showgirl tryouts," Danny's reply was weak and he knew from her expression that Mary wasn't buying it.
He was saved from any further explanation by the maitre'd.
"Right this way, Mr. McCoy, your table is ready."
Danny followed Mary to their booth, being sure to slip the guy a few bills for his impeccable timing.
Once they were seated, Danny excused himself for a few minutes while Mary looked at the menu.
"Well, well, well. Little Mary Sunshine all grown up."
Mary's blood ran cold as she recognized the voice. She looked up from her menu and straight into the cold eyes of Bobby Beals. She quickly scanned the room for Danny, but his back was to her. She weighed her options carefully. There was no way she could get out of the booth and past Bobby without causing a scene. She'd just have to stay put and pray that Danny returned soon.
"It's been a long time, Mary. I bet you thought I was gone for good."
"Hoped is more like it. What do you want, Bobby?" Mary spoke with more bravado than she felt.
Bobby's answer was cut off by Danny's sudden return to the table.
"Mary, honey, I want you to meet Lou Segaretti. He's one of Ed's associates from Chicago."
"It's a pleasure to meet you, Mr. Segaretti," Mary turned to Danny and the older gentleman, grateful for the distraction.
"Believe me, the pleasure is all mine," Mr. Segaretti's voice was deep and carried a heavy Italian accent as he placed a gentle kiss on her hand.
"And I see you've met my associate Mr. Beals," he gestured towards Bobby who had yet to take his eyes off Mary.
"Oh, yeah. Me and Mary go way back—all the way back to Frankie Fingers—ain't that right, Mare?" Bobby's face contorted with a sneer.
Danny immediately noticed how uncomfortable Mary was and slid into the booth beside her. She reached out for his hand under the table—grasping it tightly in her own.
Before anyone could say anything else the lights began to dim.
"Come on, Bobby, let's let these two kids enjoy the show," Mr. Segaretti gave a slight nod to the couple and headed for his table. Bobby winked at Mary before following close behind.
Even in the darkness of the room, Danny could see that Mary was close to losing it. He quickly put his arm around her and noticed that she was shaking like a leaf.
"Mary, what's wrong? How do you know that guy?"
Mary's breathing was ragged and Danny could tell that she was barely keeping her tears in check.
"Ssshhh, it's okay baby," he whispered softly in her ear.
"I'm sorry, Danny. I can't stay here. I have to go," she tried to pull away from him, but he refused to let her go.
"We'll both go," he kissed the side of her head and then slowly slid out of the booth, helping her out after him.
Mary made a beeline for the exit while Danny collected their coats and her purse. She practically sprinted through the lobby and out into the crisp Vegas night.
Danny waved off the valet as he watched Mary walk down the sidewalk and head towards the strip. She walked for several blocks before finally stopping and turning to Danny—her eyes filled with tears.
"I'm sorry for just running out like that. I just… couldn't stay."
"How do you know that guy, Mary? And who the hell is Frankie Fingers?"
Mary knew she would have to tell Danny about her past sooner or later. She'd just wished it would have been later.
"Frankie Fingers was my father."
At Danny's confused look, Mary took a deep breath, "Maybe I should start from the beginning."
"My father was a small-time crook. That's how he got his nickname—Frankie Fingers. He was never around that much when I was little, but after my mother died… I guess having a ten year old to take care of can put a crimp in anyone's style. He started drinking pretty bad and gambling away what little money we had. He always said he could never catch a break in this town and when he was drinking—which was most of the time-- he'd find a way to blame everything on me."
"Did he hurt you?" Danny asked quietly, but Mary didn't answer. She was silent for a long time—the flashing lights of the strip reflecting in the watery depths of her eyes. Danny knew the story she was telling was difficult to begin with, but he suspected his question had touched upon an entirely different nightmare—one that Mary was not prepared to talk about yet. Noticing her shivering, Danny placed Mary's coat around her shoulders and rested a comforting hand on her back.
After what seemed like an eternity, Mary spoke again, but she still did not answer Danny's question.
"It seemed like he always owed somebody for something, but my father--he was crafty. Somehow he'd figure out a way to pay it back. He'd steal from one to pay another or he'd tell them about some big deal he had in the works so they'd extend his line of credit."
"That's a scary way to do business. His luck was bound to run out," Danny responded, not liking the direction this story was taking.
"Yeah. He got in real deep with Tony Delmoca—that's who Bobby worked for. He owed him almost 50 big ones."
As Danny let out a slow whistle, Mary walked towards a bench and took a seat.
"Tony wouldn't let him weasel his way out of it this time. He told my father there was only one thing that he would accept instead of money."
Danny's eyes met hers in the dim light from the street. He knew what she was going to say and the thought made him sick.
"Tony wanted me."
"How old were you?" Danny whispered in disbelief.
"Sixteen," Mary paused to let Danny recover. She'd never told this story to anyone, but somehow she felt the need to tell Danny everything.
"Being the louse that he was, my father jumped at the chance. He didn't even think twice about turning me over to Tony. Bobby was the one who came to pick me up—I screamed and tried to fight, but he was too strong."
Noticing how upset Mary was becoming, Danny sat on the bench and put his arm around her. She closed her eyes for a moment and let Danny hold her. Once her emotions were under control she went on.
"He tried some stuff with me in the car, but I somehow convinced him that Tony would kill him if he showed up with damaged goods."
"What happened when you got there?"
"I guess someone was looking down on me that day. When we got there the place was crawling with cops. Turned out Tony had messed with the wrong person—somebody from Kansas City wasn't too happy with Tony's Vegas operations so they took him out. They walked into his house and shot the place up--killed Tony and a couple of his guys. Bobby was worried he'd be next so he took me and headed out of town. I knew I had to get away from him. He'd already made his intentions clear and now with Tony out of the picture there was no doubt in my mind what he was going to do with me. When we got to the edge of town he stopped to make a phone call. I took off running and never looked back," the last part of the story poured out of Mary in a rush. She couldn't believe the huge relief she felt at finally getting it all out.
"Please tell me you didn't go back to your father."
"No! I couldn't. If he sold me out once, I knew he'd do it again. I'd been working at this diner downtown for awhile. This sweet old widow who'd been one of my customers took me in--Della. She didn't have much, but together we got by. I was so worried my father would find me so I switched jobs and schools--tried to fly under the radar. One day I heard some people at the diner talking about Frankie Fingers. Turns out he'd crossed the wrong person again, but this time he'd gotten himself killed," Mary shuddered as she remembered how she'd felt that day. She'd beaten herself up so many times about it. He was her father, she should have felt something—sadness, regret, guilt--but Mary could never bring herself to feel anything but relieved.
"What happened to Della?" Danny's voice brought her out of her reverie.
"She died the day I turned eighteen."
"And you've been on your own ever since?" Danny's voice was filled with awe.
"Yeah," Mary's voice was quiet, "But now that Bobby's back... Danny, what if he wants to collect on my father's old debt?"
"That's not going to happen, Mary," Danny assured her, "He's just trying to show off. I'll make sure he knows you're my girl now and to stay clear."
"Is that what I am?"
"Do you want to be?" Danny asked, hopeful.
"Yeah, I think I do," Mary responded with a small smile--a smile that matched Danny's as he leaned down and softly touched his lips to hers.