I nodded. “I got the sense he wasn’t stupid. He may have an idea of who you are—not specifically—but that you’re a dangerous man. It might take time to convince him that you’re not dangerous to him.”
The server came by to take Sal’s drink order. “I’ll have what he’s having.”
“Do you want to try the stew?” I asked.
He shrugged. “Sure.”
When the server left, Sal leaned his arms on the table. “How can I honestly tell him that I’m not a danger to him? You know what I am and what this life brings to my doorstep. It feels wrong to drag an innocent into all this.”
I took a breath before I spoke, hoping I wasn’t taking my life in my hands. I leaned in and spoke softly. “Have you ever thought about going legit?”
To my surprise, he didn’t look angry, only resigned. “I’ve thought about it. You would think, since my father had only been at it for thirty years before he died, it would be easy to unravel.” He shook his head. “Not so much. I only have the barest inkling of where to start.”
I sat back in my chair when the server arrived with our food and Sal’s beer. She gave us a basket of rolls to go with our stew, and my stomach growled in anticipation. I pointed at Sal’s bowl of stew. “Eat up. I promise you’ll like it. And next time, you can pick the place.”
Sal’s brows rose in surprise. He gave me a quick smile. “It’s a deal.”
It occurred to me in that moment that my cousin must be pretty lonely. He didn’t have any siblings because his mother died when he was a baby and his father never remarried. And then my father forbade us from hanging out with my cousin after it became clear he would follow in his father’s footsteps. That must have sucked for Sal, who’d only been a teenager at the time.
I put down my spoon. “Hey, Sal. If you want help going legit, you can always ask me. I’ll do whatever I can.”
He set his fork down. “You’d do that for me?”
“Of course. You’re family.”
I might have imagined that his eyes got glassy. “Thanks, Tony. That means a lot to me.” His brow furrowed. “What about Uncle Santino?”
I shrugged. “Pops has mellowed as he’s gotten older. He’s a much better listener than he used to be.”
Sal lifted his glass. “To family.”
I touched mine to his. “To family.”
We chatted about less serious topics as we finished our stew. We both opted for a glass of Irish whiskey to top off the evening. While we were waiting for our drinks, Sal asked, “Why are you eating alone? I thought you had a boyfriend. Luke, wasn’t it?”
It was always a little scary how much my cousin knew about my personal life. “Yeah. I broke up with him a few weeks ago. He asked for an open relationship and apparently didn’t hear me say no.”
“Asshole,” Sal declared.
“Pretty much. Michael figured it out. He never liked Luke, and he suspected the man was cheating on me.”
He smiled wistfully. “I like that your brother takes care of you.”
“We take care of each other.” I looked him in the eye. “Family takes care of each other.”
Sal tilted his head in acknowledgment. “So you’re taking a break from dating?”
My sigh came all the way up from my toes. “Sort of.”
His brows rose. “That sigh has a long story behind it.”
“Yeah, it does,” I replied. I told him the whole complicated story, up to and including tonight’s dinner with Jeremy and company.
When I was done, Sal held my gaze in contemplative silence. “He’s scared.”
“Yes,” I agreed. “I think he’s afraid of getting trapped in another abusive relationship.”
“But he has to know you aren’t like that,” he objected.
