Completely caught off guard, Eva stammered at Roxanne's sudden and rather forward caress, and inquiry. 

"I...well...it's not that, exactly."

Eva's skin burned hot with a blush that was evident even on her deep Mediterranean skin. Roxanne was a highly inquisitive person, and not at all shy about it. 

"No, not anymore. At one time I...well, nevermind. I made a mistake, but that's all water under the bridge."

Recoiling ever so slightly, Eva reached for the as yet untouched glad of water on the table and cleared her throat. 

"Enough about me. I'd like to know more about you. Turnabout being fair play and all that."

Internally, Eva scolded herself for becoming so flustered at the whole exchange. Seeing Bunny and Aurora together wasn't the problem; it was not knowing where she stood with either of them. Clearly, by the displays of affection, they had smoothed things over between them. It was what remained to be seen that made Eva so uncertain. That, and this witty, beguiling woman across from her who seemed to take a curiously large amount of interest in her. What, exactly, motivated Roxanne to reach out to her? 

A tinge of rouge on the woman's cheeks, coupled with the stammer in her words and the unease in her eyes was all the evidence Roxanne needed. By sheer happenstance, she had found herself in the middle of this needlessly awkward affair. Annoyed though she was for having this influence their first encounter, admittedly she was reluctant to part from the circumstance without watching it unfold to its natural conclusion in due course of time, like the enthralled audience of a talkie.

As the subject turned to her own life, Roxanne's eyes turned cold. Shifting into auto-pilot, she began reciting the practised speech. "My mother was a sous chef at a restaurant in Provence and my father worked as a butcher in the nearby village of L’Isle sur la Sorgue. They loved each other almost as much as they loved food. I suppose, growing up in such a household, I would develop a love for the same. As I came of age, they sent me to Paris to earn my certification as a sommelier and a professional critic. They passed away, not long after l'obtention du diplôme, in their sleep, lying in each other's embrace in our cottage. I spent the next two years travelling through Europe, comforting myself with food and wine but ennui had set in. So I boarded a ship to le nouveau monde in search of a new adventure."

The story wasn't false by any means, but it omitted key details about the specifics of her past and the nature of the adventure she now sought. No longer having to worry about Interpol, Roxanne was free to continue her illicit activities with ease. But, she had learned from her past. She needed to be smarter this time and avoid reckless indiscretions. The woman in front of her, inebriated as she was might prove to be a delicious distraction, but her connections with the local mob might make things rather troublesome.

 Nodding to the waiter she summoned the cheque and began gathering her things. "Eva, mon cher. If I had let the tragédies of my past scare me off from la promesse de l'avenir, you and I would never have met for I would never have left Europe." Having paid the bill, she stood up and held Eva by the shoulders while staring into her eyes. "Do not be afraid. Embrace that which is within you, and you may just surprise yourself. The next time we meet, I look forward to hearing how you confronted that which you fear." Nodding indicatively, she leaned in close and kissed the woman on both cheeks before formally bidding her adieu. 

The Chef introduced himself to both Billy and Aurora and as expected he did prattle on and on about the dinner and what a great joy it was to cook off the menu for his distinguished guests.  He, of course, mentioned Bella and how he hoped she and Gavin would come by soon for dinner.  He missed having her in house.  Aurora assured him that her parents would no doubt come by in the next month or so as her mother had some reoccurring business in Michigan of late... though she did not give details on what that business was.

When the plates were uncovered, it was revealed that he'd brought out Swordfish with mushrooms, lemons and capers.  The fish was served with a generous portion of rice and spring salad that contained strawberries and walnuts as well as a citrus dressing poppyseed dressing.  For dessert he served a Tiramisu which Aurora delighted at the sight of.

When the chef finally left them alone Aurora looked to Billy, "So... are you a fan of fish?"  She hoped he was or there would definitely be a dinner part two in their future before bedtime.

Dom has just flown in on some drug business, and needs somewhere to eat. This seems to be the place to be, so in he goes. It is not the busiest night of the week, but there are still some kingpins, including fellow Ligambi member Billy Mastramoine. Dom finds an empty table, and sits down to study the menu. His bodyguard stands a few feet away, looking for enemies. Dom settles on grilled sirloin and whiskey, and places his order. Then he looks more closely at his surroundings, recognizing many f the folks present.

Billy shrugged.

"I'm a fan of food, and I'm a fan of you. I've got both right now, and I won't complain about either."

He flaked some of the fish off onto a fork and tasted it. It was well cooked, and even better, it tasted good. Better than good actually, it was the best fish he had had in, well, for as long as he could remember. He wondered then why he hand't come sooner to this place, and then realized. He'd never had a date to bring before. He smiled at Aurora then, even though he was the only one in on the joke.

"It's real good, what do you think?"

Aurora tilted her head from one side to the other, "It's not bad... though the company is far better."  She took a bite of fish.  

"And for the record," She said with a playful grin, clearly preparing to say something she found very funny, "I totally had that jerk handled.  I was just biding my time, you know... toying with him.  I would have put the hurt on him in a very real way had you not inserted yourself like you did.

She chuckled.

"Though there is something to be said about a man who isn't afraid to break property or people's faces to ensure his girl knows how much he likes her."  

She winked at Billy.

Billy put on a look of surprise and shock.

"Who did that? Man if I find that guy who was moving in on my gal by showing off, I swear he won't know what hit him."

He chuckled a bit and continued to eat. It was a nice evening tonight, it would be fun to dance with Aurora again, and it was definitely gonna happen. They hadn't danced in a while and they had nothing better to do tonight after all.

Then Billy noticed Di getting up from a table nearby and nudged Aurora.

"Looks like your mom still keeps up on the place when she isn't here, sending her closest people to look in on things. She's always got her folks everywhere doesn't she?"

Aurora noted the Left-Hand Man of Trust, giving Di the barest hint of a nod when they met eyes.  "My mom's greatest strength, beside her heart, is her ability to meddle everywhere she's not expected to be or necessarily wanted."

She looked back to Billy, "You seem to admire that about her though, don't you?  The way she's always trying to keep tabs on the people and things she feels are hers?  That's the real reason, in my opinion, they call her the Dragon.  She's always sitting on her hoard... watching, waiting for something to go wrong and the chance to protect what's hers."

She reached a hand over and put it on Billy's thigh under the table.  "You have different styles of leadership, my mom and you, but yours is no less effective."

She leaned over and kissed Billy's cheek.  "I wonder if people will give you a name one day too... like my father and mother have earned for themselves - and I wonder what it will be."  

Billy laughed out loud then.

"I do admire you mom, but I have no idea how she keeps up with it without it consuming her entirely. I would get lost and have no time for fun if I was that detailed about all of my shit. I just have too much crap under my belt."

He turned to Aurora.

"Do you know what my nickname was before I found Rebecca? I had one, it was appropriate then, but now? Now it seems like they should have waited."

He watched Aurora's eyes as they sparked with that curious flare they did when she wanted something. She always had that look, like her eyes were about to burst into flames. It was amazing to look at, and also could be real scary if you weren't three times her size. For Billy, it was less scary and more, well, made him want to reach out and grab her and take her home.

"They called me Billy 'The Bank' Mastrosimone. Funny right? Considering the amount that I had then was nothing comapred to what I do now."

Aurora looked at Billy and arched an eyebrow.  "The Bank, eh?"  

"Well... with a name like that I'd like to think at any point in time I should be able to reach into your pocket and find a little bit of spending cash to do with as I like." 

She leaned in closer to him speaking in a soft teasing voice.

"Shall I test the theory of you being my Bank?  Shall I slide my hands into your pockets until I find something worth keeping for my own pleasure?"

She looked down.

"Many men keep their wallets in their slacks... or at least some petty cash there... I'm tempted to check that first."  She bit the corner of her lip, "But if memory serves... you keep your cash a little higher?"

Billy puffed out his chest.

"Be my guest, I'm sure you'll be happy with what you find, and yes, I do keep at least this much on me at all times."

He leaned his head down.

"But if we are going to come to an arrangement, there will be a kissing fee for when you decide to take some of my money. I won't be upset if you ever decide to linger, but I demand at least a peck on the cheek."

He smiled then.

"So, do we have a deal?"

"Only if that deal works for you raiding the candy in my purse... kisses for candy Mister.  Don't think I didn't realize you were in that purse every five minutes after you learned that's what I keep there."  She chuckled and leaned in to kiss him, sliding her hand up his thigh towards his front pocket.  Liberally searching his pants pocket and finding nothing she kept kissing him and slid her hand northward, up under his jacket and down inside.

Finding the cash she paused, her hand not yet emerging from his coat, "Don't you think it's a bit risky to carry around something that large?"  She blushed as she loosed one bill from the roll and pulled it out.  Upon seeing the denomination her eyes went a little wide.

"Oh my..."  She breathed.  "It's bigger than I thought."

She giggled, it was a shameless innuendo but she couldn't help herself as she took the cash and put it into her own purse.  "I'll just keep this to pick up something fun for my next surprise visit."

The waiter came over and refilled their glasses and then slipped away without a word, though a rogueish smirk did start to pull on the corner of his mouth, as if he'd heard everything or THOUGHT he had.

"That poor young man can barely contain himself."  She said quietly for Billy's ears only.  "Can you imagine what he'd do if we did to him what we did to the waiter at my restaurant in New York?"

Billy shook his head.

"I don't think we could. He did watch me smash that guy's head into the bar remember? I don't think he would manage to stay longer than a bow and run."

Billy looked to Aurora.

"You don't have it in for the waiter already do you? Seemed like a nice guy. I guess, if you want though, I could..."

He trailed off, putting his napkin down and then cracking his knuckles.

Aurora put her hand over his cracking knuckles and laughed.  "NO!"  she shook her head emphatically and sighed, looking into his eyes.

"God!  I'm afraid I was ruined so long ago... one too many big strong men in my life with a willingness to assert themselves just for a smile from their favorite girl." 

Her smile faltered, her gaze got distant as if she was remembering something from a long time ago. 

"A hero in a white hat ... storming the gates of hell itself to carry out his lady love."

She swallowed and blinked, her gaze refocusing on him, "The foolish childhood fantasies of a little girl about what romance and love actually look like.  Fortunately for the waiter and every other man you ever cross paths with... I've matured and come to realize such stories are just that - stories."

She leaned her head on his shoulder a moment.

"We are going to dance tonight, yes?"

Billy nodded emphatically.

"We had better. I didn't learn how to do it so I could just be a wallflower you know."

He ate a little bit more fish. He didn't want to dance on an empty stomach.

"Let me ask you something though before we go have our fun. What do you think about Brigitte?"

Aurora narrowed her eyes, "The little French girl?"

She shrugged. 

"A sweet girl I suppose.  All the children are really.  What you did for them... I still say it was over the top, but..."  she smirked.  "I can hardly be angry at you for it.  You have the heart of an Angel in that massive chest of yours, Billy.  Warm and kind most of the time, loving and tender... and wrathful when needs be."

She touched his cheek with her fingertips.

"Why do you ask about the girl?"

Billy felt his cheeks getting hot, so in response he finished his wine.

"Uh, no reason. I just. I keep going to visit her a lot. Elle m'apprend le français."

He smiled. He knew for a fact that he butchered how the language was supposed to sound, but he knew what he was saying, and that's what mattered.

"I was uh, thinking a lot about what you said about kids is all. I understand a lot better about the adopting thing I think. Ever since Brigitte came along that is."

"Well, good.  I'm glad you understand."  She then added, "Et c'est merveilleux que vous appreniez le français! C'est une belle langue. Le langage de l'amour Peut-être devrais-je vous récompenser à chaque fois que vous me parlez correctement dans le langage?"

She knew he probably didn't catch most of what she said but she couldn't help herself.  She translated a touch, "I was asking if you'd like me to encourage you in your lessons by rewarding you every time you come to me speaking the language of love correctly?"

Billy got lost in her first sentence real quick.

"I think I would like that very much." 

He smiled and kissed her again before getting up from the table. He held out a hand for her.

"Shall we stop talking with our mouths and show these folks how to dance?"