Orlando: Boyle Heights #4

by Elizabeth Reyes

  “I wouldn’t mind hanging out with Byron one day, you know.” This came out of left field, making Orlando sit up straight, and it wiped any trace of humor he’d begun to feel about sweet Dani running with a rough crowd. “He and I have a lot in common from what little you’ve told me about him.” As his mind raced to remember what he’d told her about the guy, another question begged an answer. Hang out with him? What the fuck did that mean?

  “Long story even longer, I was kind of a rebel in my late teens because I hated my stepdad.” Orlando nodded at the reminder of what he’d shared with her about Byron now. “I wasn’t happy to begin with when my mom remarried after my dad died. But her husband’s impatience with Dominic was not something I’d ever tolerate. He thought we babied him too much, and we probably did—still do—but it wasn’t his place to say anything about it. So, we bumped heads constantly, and it got ugly sometimes. You don’t—”She stopped pacing and pressed her lips together as if she had to think of what she was going to say next then turned to Orlando, her eyes glistening again. “Nobody fucks with my Boo Boo, and I had no idea up until that man did, how incensed it would make me. You spoke of Byron’s temper, and it just reminded me that it wasn’t until the first time he yelled at Dominic that I even had one, but it flared that day. He scared him, and I swear to God I wanted to take a bat to that asshole’s head. I knew I couldn’t, but I was absolutely disrespectful to him that day and each time he snapped at Dominic afterward. My mom sided with my stepdad, and in hindsight, rightfully so. I’m working on it, but my potty mouth can get pretty bad when I’m pissed. I know it sounds cliché, but I started lashing out. Getting into trouble for stupid stuff.” She started pacing again after taking a deep breath and turned her face away from him.

  “You don’t have to tell me about all that, Dani. It’s none of my business.”

  “No, it is,” she said, turning back to face him. “Because if you ever do decide to run a background check on me, the whole truth will come out, and I hate it hanging over my head. Bottom line is DUI’s are not automatic felonies. But they are when there’s injuries involved, and you’ve been previously arrested for a bunch of other stupid shit prior. Because of that, the district attorney went hard on me, and the judge agreed. I was slapped with a felony, did six months jail time, and let me tell you it was an eye-opener and life-changing for me.”

  Orlando smirked, despite the intensity of their conversation because this had him feeling unbelievably even more drawn to her. “Well, now you’re just preaching to the choir. Because, trust me, I know all about being arrested for doing stupid shit and serving time.”

  “I don’t know about you.” She breathed in deeply. “The bonds I made while in there were like none I’ve ever made on the outside. Everything was different once I was in there away from my friends and loved ones. I was terrified. All I could think was I was going to be surrounded by nothing but the lowest of low, and it was so not true. They’re people just like you and me who are also suffering and made stupid mistakes like the ones I had. The older women took me in like mother hens and all of them totally got it.

  “After the time I spent in jail, I felt like no one would ever understand what I’d been through the way they did. So, we made a pact, the two I’d made the closest bonds with anyway, to stay in touch when we got out and we did. Juanita was one of them.” She stopped as her face scrunched and brought her hand to her mouth. Inappropriate or not, Orlando was instantly on his feet and rushed to her, taking her in his arms. Looking up at him with those big pleading eyes, she shook her head. “She’s dead now, but she was a good person. She really was.” The tears streamed down her face as she got increasingly emotional. “Only she was an addict. No one understands that. Everyone thinks drugs are a choice and you can just quit if you really want to, but she tried so many times, and I tried to help her. In the end, there was nothing I could—”

  “Dani,” he said, bringing his hand down and slipping his fingers into hers. “I know all about good people with addictions. I lost my brother to it, okay?” He reached for his beanie and took it off. “This is his. He wore it the night they found him dead in a hotel room.” Feeling the emotion swell his throat, he squeezed his eyes shut. “His girlfriend found him with the needle still in his arm.” Closing his eyes, he took a quick deep breath because this was the last thing he thought they’d be talking about when he brought her up to the apartment. “It was his favorite and he was my hero.” Clearing his throat, he shook his head. “You don’t have to justify shit to me, okay? Not about a sibling you’d fight to the death for, nor good people falling into the hell of addiction. I get it.”

  She shook her head, her wide eyes searching his anxiously. “I’m so sorry, Orlando. I had no idea—”

  The knock at the door had them both turning to it, and Dani dropping his hand. “Give me a sec.” Orlando started to the door.

  To his surprise, it was Felicia. She smiled, holding up a bag. “I was in the area and thought I’d bring you lunch—” She stopped mid-sentence as she glanced behind him. “Oh, I’m sorry. Alonso just said—”

  “No, no worries.” Trying to hide the annoyance of the interruption, he opened the door further for her and stepped back to let her in.

  “I can wait downstairs if—”

  “No,” Dani said quickly. “We’re all done here.” She smiled at Felicia, wiping away at lingering tears, then turned to Orlando. “If there’s anything else you need to know, by all means just ask. I’ll get back to work now.” She nodded at Felicia as she walked by them. “Enjoy your lunch.”

  Felicia continued to walk all the way into the kitchen. “You two having a work meeting?”

  “Something like that,” Orlando said, closing the door.

  “She seemed upset. Everything okay?”

  “She’s got some personal things going on at home,” he said but absolutely refused to offer more.

  Felicia glanced up from the bag she was pulling food out of, lifting a brow. “Nothing too bad, I hope?”

  “Nah, she’ll be okay.” He opened the fridge to pull out a couple of sodas since she didn’t walk in with drinks. “I’d skipped lunch, so thanks for this, but I don’t have too much time to hang out.”

  “I don’t either, but I’m getting my oil changed.” Explaining about her car needing to be serviced badly, Felicia said she picked up food for them from the taco truck up the street. “I know you like their tacos, and I figured it was lunchtime and I’d have to wait for my car anyway, so I thought we could eat while I waited.” They ate, and for the most part Orlando could hardly focus on anything they discussed. His mind kept going back to Dani. He hated that she rushed out and was possibly thinking he took Felicia way more seriously than he ever had. More than anything, he hated that she’d actually think he’d be mad at her for her past or the kinds of friends she hung out with. He needed to get her alone again and remind her about his friends. Orlando may’ve known of Beast and Nine before he’d done any time, but it was when he served time with them that they’d all bonded the way they had. So, he absolutely got what she was talking about when she spoke of bonding with good people making mistakes or being hopelessly addicted. He was only glad he’d at least been able to share about his brother. Ironically, Beast and Nine were the only people, aside from his mother, he’d ever shared with about his brother’s death.

  When they were done eating, Orlando escorted Felicia downstairs to get her car. “I love you too,” Dani said as Orlando and Felicia reached the bottom of the stairs. “Oh, you’re such a sweetheart, babe. So, what hotel did you book us at?”

  Orlando turned to look at Dani, feeling an instant and overwhelming heat inundate him. One he’d never felt before. She winced when she glanced up and saw them. “I gotta go. I’ll see you in a bit. No, I can’t right now, baby.” She lowered her voice but not low enough because Orlando still heard every fucking word, and it made him nauseous. “Okay, okay, love you. Bye.” She glanced back up at them but turned away from Orlan
do and addressed Felicia instead. “Are you leaving already?”

  “Yeah.” Felicia smiled. “I took an extended lunch so I could bring my car in for the oil change. But I gotta get back now. Your fiancé?” Felicia motioned to the phone, smiling, a bit too satisfied.

  Dani nodded with a sheepish smile. She turned to Orlando, the smile waning a bit, but held up the bag of chips in her hand. “I just took a quick break when he called. But I’m back to work now.” She dropped the phone in her purse on the counter. “No more phone until I finish my shift.”

  The shop phone rang, and Dani got back to business, answering and waving good-bye to Felicia. After walking Felicia out, Orlando thought about walking back into the shop, but there was no way. He needed to get a few more things straight with Dani. She was off the phone now, and he went straight to the counter instead.

  “Did something change?” Her brows furrowed in question. “With you and your boyfriend. You said you weren’t engaged.” This was not what he meant by getting things straight with her, but the words had just flown out without thought.

  “Oh.” She glanced out in the direction of the parking lot before turning back to Orlando again. “I figured it’s all the same to her. Doesn’t matter how she refers to him. Felt rude to correct her, so . . .” She shrugged then smiled. “Did you two have a nice lunch?”

  Orlando started to nod but then shook his head, frustrated. It was bad enough he’d already questioned something that wasn’t any of his damn business. As much as he’d wanted to know more about her relationship before, after hearing her cutesy conversation, the last thing he wanted was to encourage any more talk of her damn boyfriend. Sharing with her about him and Felicia might just elicit that. His reaction to just the snippet of the conversation he’d heard still had him reeling. “Listen. I just wanted to make sure we got something straight about what we discussed up there.” He motioned to the apartment upstairs as he went on quickly because her smile had immediately flattened at the mention. “Unless something in your past or your personal life directly or adversely affects your job here or your ability to care for the baby, you don’t have to feel guilty about keeping it to yourself, Dani. We all have pasts. I mean if you ever need or want to vent about anything, I’m here for you. Just don’t feel obligated to do so.”

  She smiled softly and nodded. “Thank you. I’m almost not.” Feeling his brows pinch, he shook his head confused. “A felon,” she said, lowering her voice. “I’m working on getting it reduced to a misdemeanor and then getting the whole thing expunged altogether. I guess I was hoping it would happen sooner than later, so I’d never have to disclose it to anyone I work for. But I guess after getting to know you better, it started to feel wrong not to.”

  Orlando smiled. “Well, I appreciate you wanting to be honest, but in this case it wasn’t necessary.” Her phone dinged, reminding Orlando of the infuriating conversation he’d inadvertently overheard.

  Dani glanced at her purse but shook her head. “I’m sure it’s nothing that can’t wait until I’m off the clock.”

  “You can answer your phone or read your texts, Dani. That’s not a problem. Maybe it’s your sister,” he offered. “Could be about your brother.”

  Pressing her lips together, she nodded and reached into her purse. Orlando watched as she pulled out her phone and read the screen then smiled. “No.” She shook her head. “It’s nothing important,” was all she offered, and Orlando could only imagine the kind of message her boyfriend must’ve sent her. A customer walked in, and Dani got busy tending to him. It wasn’t until Orlando walked out to the shop as he attempted to crack the kink he suddenly had in his neck that he realized just how tense his entire body had gotten.

  Chapter 17

  Orlando

  By the third week of being around Dani, the struggle to hide what Orlando was feeling for her now was nearly impossible. Thankfully, she seemed clueless about it. One thing he’d stopped doing was trying to hide the annoyance with anyone trying to get cute with her at the shop. At least from whomever was doing the flirting or trying-to-be-cute shit. So, he’d managed to blame his annoyance or the foul mood it’d put him in on something else to her. But he didn’t give a shit what anyone else thought. If the guys picked up on why it annoyed him, so be it. He owed no one but Dani any explanations, and she’d easily accepted any explanation he gave her—if she even questioned it—which most times she hadn’t. This week they introduced a new food to the baby’s solids. To Orlando’s surprise, it wasn’t banana or applesauce as he would’ve thought. “A lot of parents go for the easiest first, which is the sweet stuff,” she’d explained as she mashed the avocado, she brought with her. “Which is fine. But it makes introducing the not-so-sweet stuff harder. If we get him used to stuff like this and green beans and less fun stuff first, then getting back to them after introducing him to the bananas and such won’t be that big a challenge.”

  He’d learned at least one new very important thing about his baby and how to care for him each day she’d been with him so far. Including how to deal with him each time he woke after she’d left, and he was clearly missing her. At least Orlando was sure that was the case. Dani insisted it was just the baby being fussy for other reasons and that Orlando was still a little insecure about his daddy skills. “Babies sense that kind of stuff, Orlando. If you’re nervous, it makes him nervous. I’m not always sure something I try is gonna work, but I speak and behave in a way that looks like I’m very confident about what I’m doing. Gives him a sense of ease and comfort, and he’s not even aware why.” As usual, she’d talked him down every time. She’d explained it’s the difference between crying out, “Oh my God!” when you witness toddlers take a tumble and calmly helping them up, inspecting them quickly and then saying in a very soothing tone, “You’re fine. Even if they do end up needing a Band-Aid or, worse, stitches, your instant assurance that they’ll be fine is all they need to stay calm.”

  Orlando could kiss Nine for being okay with Dani only putting two days in at the shop and half the morning on Fridays. “You need her more than we do here,” Nine had insisted. “As long as she comes in on Friday morning and fixes anything we managed to make a mess of in the two days she was gone, she can be out of here as soon as she’s done.”

  At first, Felicia had insisted she could still do Friday mornings so he wouldn’t have to go into the shop late after he and Dani tag-teamed. But just three weeks into this, Orlando couldn’t get enough of being around Dani. He wanted to be there whenever she arrived, so he’d insisted Felicia take her entire day off, assuring her the shop would be fine if he arrived a little late on Fridays.

  Orlando knew what a crush was, and at first, he’d been convinced that’s all this was. Oreo being so besotted with her only added to it. Who wouldn’t be charmed by someone who made their kid this happy, right? Even the scares she’d given him that first week and her lack of cooking skills had turned out to make her even more endearing. It’s why he knew better now. This was no crush. But it was also why he had to try his hardest to tread lightly. This was a very delicate situation and he did not want to blow it, if he did or said anything that might make her feel uncomfortable. Orlando was just beyond grateful he hadn’t been forced to listen to another one of her hair-raising conversations with her boyfriend.

  It was the third Friday that Dani would be taking over watching the baby. Orlando had been happily preparing his son’s morning cereal in the kitchen as they rocked out to Cri Cri playing on his phone before she got there. His phone ringing interrupted their music. Frowning when he saw who it was, he almost sent it to voicemail. Since the day Felicia had showed up at the shop unannounced, Orlando had all but ignored her ever since Dani had come into the picture, but he thought better of it. Felicia had been there for him when he’d really needed her, so he felt guilted into answering.

  Not just that, but he needed to get things straight with her sooner rather than later. Now that he’d gotten a taste of what it was like to really be into someo
ne, even if there was nothing he could do about it, he needed to make a clean break from Felicia, especially if she was feeling for him, anything close to what he’d begun to feel for Dani. It wasn’t cool to give her hope for something he knew now with all certainty wasn’t going to happen.

  Little Man was in his highchair, busy with his morning biscuit, so Orlando figured he had time to chat for a little before feeding him. “Hey, what’s up?”

  “Hey.” He could hear the smile in her voice, and he felt bad already. “I was just thinking about you, so I thought I’d call and see what you’re up to.”

  “Getting Oreo’s breakfast ready so he’ll be fed before Dani gets here.”

  She was quiet for a moment as Orlando walked over to the counter and stirred more cereal into the soggy mixture. “Oreo?”

  Orlando smiled. “Yeah, it’s what Dani calls him, and it’s starting to stick.”

  She didn’t say anything again for a moment. “Listen. About that, I thought of you yesterday when I overheard one of my professors on the phone. He was talking to a nanny agency, and I asked him about it when he got off. He said he’s been through three nannies this year.”

  Closing his eyes, Orlando pinched the bridge of his nose at the reminder. The only time he’d considered possibly following up with a background check on Dani was the morning he’d had the scare with Dani not answering his calls. But once he’d realized how worked up he’d gotten for nothing and especially after she’d come clean about her past, there was no way he felt the need. Felicia went on about what the professor told her: that in each instance with the nannies he hired after posting the job online, they all seemed fine at first and then he had to let them go for one reason or another. He said nanny agencies do stringent background checks on potential hires. They get lots of references and their interviews with both the potential nanny and her references are extensive. They ask very specific questions about how the nanny handled herself in many different scenarios, etc.