A/N: Here's one more chapter. A bit sappy, but whatever... I like it. As always, leave comments about whatever you like or dislike. Love you hear from everyone.
Stevie twisted around Danny's side and locked his arms around him, pulling him along. "Little D, what's your deal?" They'd arrived at a bit of a stalemate, Danny stuck in a bit of a headlock and Stevie's legs were twisted around behind him. The pair lost their balance and stumbled to the ground, breaking apart.
Stevie glanced back in the direction of the house. "You can stop now anyway. They went inside."
Danny, panting on the ground, sat up and started dusting off his jacket. "What the hell are you talking about?"
Stevie sat up, resting his elbows on his knees. "Your lady. She went inside with your ma." He reached over and nudged Danny with his elbow. "Why do you think I grabbed her ass? To give you the opportunity to defend her honor and stuff."
Danny stared at him in disbelief. "I don't know what you're talking about. She's not… we're not… "
Stevie rose to his feet and reached down to help Danny up. "Sure man. Whatever you say. Maybe you're right. I think she kind of liked it anyway."
Danny glared across at him. "Watch it." They walked back over to Stevie's car and leaned back against it, facing the house. "How did you two end up here?"
Stevie reached in his pocket, pulling out a pack of cigarettes and a lighter, holding them out in offering. Danny took one and ran his fingers along it, looking back up at the house. He sighed. "You know what? I quit. So here." He handed it back.
"She showed up at ma's door, pounding it like she wanted to break it down." He took a drag off his own cigarette, punctuating his explanation. "When no one answered immediately she started hollering and whatnot. 'Mrs. Steven's Mom! Please. It's sort of an emergency.'" He pitched his voice in imitation of Mindy's.
Danny laughed at Stevie's surprisingly accurate impression in spite of his efforts to keep a scowl on his face. "And?"
"Well, you know how ma is. Couldn't exactly make it to the door in record time, so I answered it. She was pacing back and forth, talking to herself." He reached out in front of him, flicking ash onto the ground. "Before I could even say anything, she shoved past me into the house. 'Steven, I need a favor. Take me to Mr. Castellano's house.' Like I had nothin' better to do than chauffer her around the island."
Danny was confused. Mindy had come looking for him? After ignoring him for the past two days? "Why your ma think Mindy is your girlfriend?"
Stevie shrugged, flicking his cigarette to the ground, grinding it into the pavement with his heel. "You know how she is. Memory's terrible these days. I've been seeing Gabby Torres. Ma gets them all confused. Plus, Mindy really made an impression on her that one time."
Danny chuckled. "Gabby Torres, eh? That wouldn't be the same Gabby that made your life hell in middle school would it? The one who pinned you to the ground in a headlock until you handed over your lunch money?"
"What can I say? She's always had a thing for me." He tucked his hands into his jacket pockets. "Anyway, Mindy said something happened with you, and she thought you were upset and probably at your ma's. Blah blah blah. I told her, if it was about a woman, then you'd probably be at Cherry's. That strip club we used to try and sneak into when we were teenagers."
Danny dropped his face down into his palms, groaning. "What the hell, man?"
"Don't worry about it. She insisted you were at your ma's. She bet me ten bucks we'd find you here." Stevie shifted uncomfortably. "So… you got ten bucks I can borrow?"
Danny reached into his back pocket and dragged out his wallet, thumbing through the bills until he found a ten. He slipped it out, holding it just out of Stevie's reach. "I'll cover your bet with Mindy, if you promise to never grab her ass again."
"Not a problem. Gabby'd have my balls if she knew I did that." He shoved off from his car. "I'm gonna head back over to ma's. She always forgets to take her night meds if I'm not there." He circled around to the driver's side. Looking over the top of the vehicle at Danny one last time. "You know, I think that girl has a thing for you or something. She was kind of agitated when I suggested the strip club."
He ducked into the hatchback and took off. Danny was left standing at the curb, hands tucked into his pockets, his eyebrows raised slightly. He turned back to the house, making his way slowly up the walk.
Danny stepped into the house, quietly pushing the door closed behind him. He did the same thing he always did when entering his ma's house, wiping his feet on the welcome mat and tossing his coat on the hook. He headed to the kitchen. It was the nucleus of her home. It was safe to bet that's where the two women would be.
He remembered sitting at that kitchen table and doing homework while she washed dishes. Then later, when he was a little older, sitting there and helping Ritchie with his homework too. It's where he had been sitting when he opened his acceptance letter. It's where he'd sat down to ask his mother for the engagement ring she'd been saving for him, and later where he'd haltingly told her things had fallen apart.
Hearing voices drift out into the hall, he stopped just shy of the doorway into the kitchen. He fought the urge to eavesdrop, but ultimately gave in. He crept a forward a bit more, getting close enough to distinguish the words. Mindy's voice landed on his ears first.
"It's like being given something that you never even knew was an option. I always thought he didn't think about me at all, or that when he did it was with so much disdain that he could only entertain thoughts of hiring someone to take me out. Then finally, we got to the point where we actually could stand each other, and now he wants more. It seems like such an amazing thing, but the thought of screwing it up makes me sick." She was rambling, a sure sign of nerves. There was a pause. Danny swallowed. She was talking about him? "I can't say I haven't thought about it once or twice, but he knows too much about me. He should be terrified, but he isn't. I don't know what that means."
Danny couldn't help but smile. The weight that had rested in the middle of his chest for the past two days vanished. He felt the corner of his mouth lift up involuntarily. He took a few steps back in the hallway and took a moment to reign in the idiotic grin spreading across his face. He called out to alert them of his presence. "Ma, where are you hiding?"
He poked his head into the kitchen, the sight of Mindy and his mother sitting across from one another at the table sent a flutter through his chest. She looked incredibly at ease, at home. She had shrugged off her coat and slung it across the back of her chair, her head bent over the plate in front of her, trying to keep biscotti crumbs from getting all over the place.
His mother rose from her seat and met him in the doorway, planting a big kiss on his cheek. "I'll be right back, dear. I told Mindy I'd show her something." She slipped out of the kitchen.
"Not exactly subtle is she?" He looked back to Mindy.
Mindy twisted around to look at Danny, the last bite still in her mouth, a surprised look on her face. She swallowed. "Danny?" She spoke his name tentatively, a hint of uncertainty tinging the inflection. "Did, uh, Stevie leave?"
He smiled a little, taking the chair beside her. "Yeah, he said to give you this." He plunged his hand into his pocket and pulled out the ten he'd tucked there. "Something about a bet."
She smiled and snatched the ten. "Now he'll know to never question my knowledge of one Daniel Castellano." She folded it up and tucked it into her bra. Danny arched his eyebrow. "What? I forgot my purse."
Danny stared at her. They were in close proximity in the small kitchen. Mindy swallowed, started to say something and stopped.
Danny reached across the small space dividing them, and placed his hand on top of hers, lightly caressing the back of her knuckles. "Why did you come out here?"
She looked down at his hand, watching his elegant fingers trace the lines of hers. She suddenly felt shy. It was a somewhat foreign feeling. Why be shy? Danny already knew everything. Danny wanted this. She was beginning to think she did too. Alright, she really did, but it was still scary.
She cleared the lump from her throat and took a deep breath. "I thought about… well, you." She turned her hand palm up and threaded her fingers through his. "When I got to work this morning there was a vibration of anticipation buzzing through me. I was eager to see your face. I still wasn't sure what I was going to say, but then you weren't even there."
Danny shifted closer, waiting to hear the rest. She looked away for a moment. "Danny, why? I don't get it. I'm selfish. I don't care about politics. I would sell my mother for front row tickets to a Rihanna concert. I'm vengeful, for real, I mean, I waited two years to get back at Gwen for buying that blue hermes scarf out from under me. And my insecurities sometimes send me into a tailspin trying to prove myself. I bought a framed picture of a dead bird because I wanted people to think I was edgy and hip. You know all this. Why would you want this?"
Danny laughed, pulling her hand up to him and planting a kiss on it. "Yes, you are all of those things, a lot." He squeezed her hand. "You also care about people, a ton. You pretend to be totally self-involved, but when push comes to shove, you actually care. You can find something to like about almost anyone. That's an amazing quality, one that I'm eternally grateful for, because you could have easily written me off. Yeah, you're vengeful, but that keeps me on my toes. And everyone has insecurities. The fact that I think you're the most confident woman I've ever met, I think counterbalances that."
Danny paused and took a shaky breath. "You fit perfectly in my arms. Your head rests just below my chin, your face tucks into my chest next to my heart, and even though I've only felt it one time, I know I'll never forget how right it is." He looked at her, seeing the pooled tears in her eyes. He worried that he'd said too much.
He pulled away, intending to release her hand, but she clung to it. Following his backward motion, leaning into him. "Danny. Maybe.. maybe you're just lonely. I'm always around, are you sure –" He leaned forward and stopped the flower of words with his lips, kissing her soundly.
Feeling her softly yielding lips beneath his, Danny forgot where he was. He reached up with his free hand and threaded his fingers through the mass of hair at her nape. She felt a shiver race up her spine, and reflexively wrapped her arms around his neck. She pulled back one last time and looked at him. His eyes glazed over with passion stared back. "Really, Danny?"
He nodded. "I stopped being lonely a while back. You've done more than befriend me. You've allowed me to open myself up to other people. For the first time in my life there's this circle of people around me. I feel like an idiot for fighting it." He pulled her close again, cupping her face in his hands. "So yeah, really."
She smiled and lunged forward, hugging him tightly, nearly knocking the breath out of him. He wrapped his arms around her, burying his face in her hair. He was home, in every sense of the word.