"Carmen, it's so good to see you again."

I had to smile as Daniel came across the patio around the pool to give me a hug. He was, as always, dressed to impress, or dressed to kill, knowing what he could do. Still, he looked relaxed that night, and I had to giggle as he pulled me close. "Careful. You hug me like that, and Adriana’s going to get jealous."

"Yeah, right," Daniel dismissed with a laugh. He squeezed me tight and lifted me a bit off the ground before setting me down and stepping back. "You look great though. Hey, Ade told me that you're going to start teaching Johnny?"

"Next week," I agreed, looking over at John "Johnny" Neiman. Partially named after his late grandfather, Gianni "Johnny" Bertoli, he'd inherited the best features of both of his parents in my opinion, with a tall, lean frame for his age as well as reddish-blond hair that you knew was going to be strawberry blond when he got older. With sparkling blue eyes and a charming grin, I felt bad for Adriana and Daniel when Johnny got old enough to become interested in girls. Then again, like father, like son, I guess. "Have you told him?"

"Oh, Johnny thinks it's the best thing to happen to him all year, at least until we bring out his grandmother's cake," Daniel said with a laugh. "Seriously, he spent the rest of the afternoon running around the house and saying he was going to become a famous dancer. He even tried to twirl, but he fell on his butt doing it."

I chuckled and looked up at his father. "And your son saying he wants to be a dancer doesn't worry you?"

"Why should it?" Daniel asked, giving me a raised eyebrow. “He's just excited to see you. It's been a while since you came by the house just to hang out."

"Yeah, I know," I said, reaching out and grabbing a glass of something from a server that was walking around. "Work's been busting my ass, that's all. You too, though. I mean, you've been out of state what, five times in the past two months?"

"Six," Daniel said. "Yeah, it kinda sucks, and I'm actually looking for someone to help me with the load. Unfortunately, Carlo is a little short on manpower right now, so he gets first pick of the best. And you know the problems I have recruiting outside the family."

"Actually, I don't, and I don't want to know either," I said. I knew that Carlo Bertoli was a Mafia man, but the fewer specifics I knew about the operations, the better it was for me. "What about bringing in a Girl Friday?"

"You? What are you going to do, charm the bad guys?" Daniel said, mock rubbing at his shoulder when I pretended to start punching him. "Okay, okay, I got it, you're the Littlest Hands of Stone."

"Kick his ass some more," Adriana said, joining her husband and laughing. "How're you doing, Carmen?"

"Just working on my jab. Hope you don't mind," I replied with a laugh. I took a drink of whatever it was that I'd grabbed off the server's platter and nodded in approval. "Nice mix. What is it?"

"Be careful. I think it's spiked," Adriana said, sipping her own drink. "It's subtle, but yeah, it's in there. Mom has a weakness for Mai Tais, so I'm going to keep myself limited to just a few, then join Johnny on the kiddie table."

"Thanks for the warning. So what's the agenda?"

Adriana tapped her chin, looking around. "You'd have to find Tommy. I'm just going with the flow. You know how it is."

I nodded, sipping at my drink. I could taste the underlying essence of alcohol and reminded myself to be careful. "Think I'll find Tomasso and Luisa and see what they're up to.”

I make my way around and bump into Margaret Bertoli first, still looking amazing even though she was now north of fifty years old. "Mrs. Bertoli, happy birthday. What is it, thirty-nine today?"

She laughed and shook my hand. "For the umpteenth time. But I think I'm holding together pretty well."

"You're a lucky woman. I hope I have the same luck as you."

"Thank you. I'm glad to see you. It gives my daughter and Luisa a dose of reality they don't get the rest of the time."

I laughed and shook my head. "If you think that having me around is showing them reality, then you need to stop whatever it is you're drinking now and switch to water or coffee. I'm just as strange as anyone else around here.”

"Oh, I don't know about that," Margaret said, pointing with her chin toward a group of Bertoli men who were standing around, laughing wildly while all wearing nearly identical suits. "I swear they would look more at home on a trading house floor or working mergers and acquisitions."

"No offense, Mrs. Bertoli, but their similarities with men on Wall Street end at the suits. Those are some hard men over there. By the way, where's Angelo?"

"He's up to no good somewhere or another," Margaret said dismissively. "Probably wrapping my present at the last minute since he most likely forgot to go shopping until today. You know how he is."

I nodded. “That I do. Well, good to see you, Mrs. Bertoli. I’m going to make my rounds and say hello.”

She smiled, and looking around, I felt a little thirsty myself, so I found the drink table and decided to go non-alcoholic this time, skipping the Mai Tai in favor of ginger ale. I was just starting to sip when I felt someone coming up behind me, and suddenly, a man was so close behind me that I could feel the warmth of his body. "I want to dance."

I turned and saw a man whom I'd never spoken to before, but knew from a family photograph was Luisa's brother. "Eduardo, isn't it? Sorry, but I'm a bit tired. Another time, maybe.”

It wasn't that I was tired, actually. After all, my normal dance workouts would last an hour or more with few water breaks. But there was something about him that irked me. He was intense, but not in a sexy way. I turned and started to walk away, looking for my friends, but I didn't see anyone. The mass of people on the patio were seemingly faceless, or at least faces I didn't know.

"I know what you are," Eduardo said in a low voice, stopping me in my tracks. "How much did they pay to entertain the guests tonight?"

I turned back, anger and shame mixing in equal amounts. "What?"

"You’re a whore, and I’m in need of entertainment. So let’s start with a dance and see where it goes,” Eduardo said, reaching out and grabbing my arm. I tried to pull away, but his grip was like iron, and he pulled me closer, despite my struggles. "The more you fight, the more I like it, so please, keep going."

"Let me go!" I said, whimpering as his hand ground down on my forearm bones. I'd had grabby customers when I worked at the Starlight Club, but then I had a bouncer. Eduardo was strong, and I couldn't pull away. "Stop it!"

"I don't think so," Eduardo said, starting to turn away and pull me toward the house.

"Hey, asshole," a voice said behind us, and I turned to see a guy standing between us and the door. “The lady said to let her go."

I placed the guy as Eduardo let me go. He was the guy who'd parked cars earlier. I was worried for him. Eduardo isn’t exactly the kind of guy you’d want to mess with, which is probably why he has the reputation of being a huge asshole.

“You need to walk away before I change my idea on who I'm going to ass fuck tonight," Eduardo said, his voice low and seething. "Now go, before I make you bleed."

Eduardo reached to grab my arm again, when suddenly, the parking lot guy charged forward blindly, ramming himself into Eduardo, driving him the six or seven feet back until both of them flew into the pool. All motion at the party stopped as the two men went under, and I flinched when I saw Eduardo viciously elbow the other man in the back of the head.

"What the hell is going on here?" a voice boomed, and Carlo Bertoli appeared out of nowhere. Someone reached down and fished the man. "Who's starting a fight at Margaret's party?"

One of the Bertoli men, I didn't know who, laughed as they pulled the man out of the pool. "Looks like Degrassi got drunk and decided to start a fight," he said, setting the soaking wet man on the patio. "Luisa's brother ended it."

"Is that what happened?" Carlo asked, and I saw Tomasso, Luisa, Adriana and Daniel appear in the crowd, Luisa helping her brother out of the pool. "Did this idiot start a fight in my house?"

"Si, Senor Bertoli," Eduardo said, wiping his eyes. "This crazy man—"

“That isn't what happened at all!" I said. When nobody heard me, I raised my voice. “Wait! That man . . . Eduardo is lying."

Mr. Bertoli looked from me to Eduardo, then to the rest of his family. He came over, and while his voice was low, it was intense and brooked no disagreement. “Explain yourself.”

"I was getting a drink when Eduardo harassed me," I said softly, ashamed. Mr. Bertoli waved everyone else off and came closer, within whispering distance.

"What happened, Carmen?"

I took a deep breath and looked him in the eye. "Sir, I was getting a drink when Eduardo came up and sexually harassed me. He grabbed my arm," I said, showing him my forearm, which was already red with finger marks, "and tried to drag me inside. The other man . . . I don't know his name. He was just trying to stop Eduardo.”

Don Bertoli patted me on the shoulder. “I’ll handle it,” he said simply. “But let’s talk later."

He turned around and looked at Eduardo Mendosa, his kind features obliterated. "Luisa, take your brother to get dried off, then I want to see him in my study. Five minutes."

"Si, Don Bertoli," Luisa said. When Eduardo started to struggle, she grabbed his arm, with Tomasso taking the other side, where they walked him out of the party. Mr. Bertoli watched, then turned back to me.

“Enjoy the party. Don’t let him ruin the fun." He turned back around, all smiles again. "Come on, everyone, it isn't a Bertoli party without someone falling in the pool! Angelo, how about you join the DJ up front and see if you can give us something to dance to?"

I saw another two Bertoli men helping my savior to his feet, taking him over to a chair. Pausing, I went over to the man, who was still dripping on the concrete. "Thank you."

"It's okay. It was the right thing to do," the man mumbled, rubbing at his neck. "You're okay?"

"I will be," I said. Suddenly, I offered my hand to him. "Carmen Esperanza."

"Dante Degrassi," the wet man said, shaking his hand off before grabbing mine. "It's nice to meet you."