Danielle Spellman is Juice Ortiz's older sister. She shows up at TM one day and quickly works her way into the family. One night, when she's out with a few of the old ladies, she meets the president of the Mayans, Marcus Alvarez. She's immediately i...
"Dani, have you seen my phone? I laid it somewhere and now I don't remember where."
Dani smirked as she held up Raven's phone and waved it in the air. "It was in the bathroom."
Raven shook her head as Pedro and Dani chuckled at her. "This is why you're here. I'm starting to think that Rane is right about me needing a keeper."
Dani snorted and nodded. "Yeah, that sounds about right." She looked at the computer screen in front of her. "You're next appointment is in ten minutes. Pedro, yours is in fifteen."
Raven nodded as she checked her phone before grinning and handing it back to Dani. "Maybe you should hold onto this. I'd hate to imagine where it will end up next if left up to me."
Dani snickered and took the phone, laying it on her desk. Pedro leaned a hip against the corner of her desk and leaned down, grinning at her. "When are you going to go out with me, Dani? I'm dying here."
She looked up at the young tattoo artist and rolled her eyes as Raven chuckled. "I have already told you, I'm not interested."
Pedro frowned, standing back up to cross his arms over his chest. "Yeah, but you won't tell me why."
Dani grinned as she shook her head. "Ok, fine. It's because you are a lot younger than me. If anything, I see you more like a little brother than a date."
Raven grinned at the insulted look on Pedro's face. "Dude, seriously, she's more interested in swarthy, good-looking Latinos."
Dani shot her a look, which made her snicker. "Really?" She pointed at both of the artists. "Don't you need to make sure your stations are ready for your clients?"
Pedro shook his head as he started for the back of the shop, mumbling to himself about lucky bastards while Raven plopped down in the chair beside the desk. She watched as Dani entered some information into the electronic schedule. "You know, since you've been here, this place is running like a well-oiled machine."
Dani grinned and winked at her. "That's what I do. I'm really good at organizing people and things."
Raven nodded, agreeing wholeheartedly. She wasn't even going to argue that point. Dani had turned her disorganized clutter into a working receptionist area. Where there used to be a couple of folding metal chairs for customers, she had partitioned off the front, bringing the desk out of the tiny back office and adding a few armchairs that they had found at the flea market. There were potted plants now in the corners, adding a comfortable feel to the room. She had even bought more tattoo design posters and hung them on the wall so people could look them over as they waited for their turn in the chair.
"You haven't said anything, but how is the apartment hunting going? I know it has to be crowded at Juice's place, with the new baby and all."
Dani sighed as she sat back in her chair. "Yeah, I haven't found anything yet. It's not bad at Juan and Savvy's place, but it is crowded and I feel like a vagrant flopping on their couch every night."
Raven grinned. "Well, something came to me this morning. There's a small space upstairs if you're interested. I think it might have been a studio apartment at one time. There's a kitchen and a bathroom. There's no bedroom, but it would do for you right now until you get your feet under you. I'm not using the space, but it is full of junk from the last owner. We could probably get some of the guys to come over and haul away anything that isn't useful."
Dani chuckled, nodding. "That would be great, actually. I can make do with that. How much would I owe you for rent?"
Raven waved a hand, dismissing the question. "Nothing. Seriously, it's just sitting up there empty. You would put it to use."
Dani shook her head. "I can at least give you some on the utilities."
Raven nodded as she stood up. "Sounds good. We'll go up and check it out later. I'm going to go make sure that my station's ready."
As Raven walked off into the back, Dani gave out a little squeal of excitement. It would be great to have her own space again. She loved Juan and she really adored Savvy and Charlie, but she wasn't used to sharing space with a lot of people. The last time that she had... she shook her head and frowned slightly. The last time didn't matter. Not anymore.
She started making a mental list of things that she would have to get, getting more excited the more she thought about it. She pulled up an empty doc on her computer and started making an actual list of what she thought she would need, so intent on her work that she didn't hear the bell over the door tinkle when it was opened.
She heard someone clear their throat and jumped, laying a hand over her heart for a moment as she chuckled at herself. She looked up and almost squealed. "Marcus."
Alvarez grinned and nodded his head as another man came to stand beside him. "Si. We meet again, pequeña." He motioned between himself and the other man, who was grinning at Dani as he looked back and forth between Marcus and herself. "Luis and I are here for our appointments."
Dani frowned slightly before clicking her mouse and pulling the schedule tab up on her computer. She knew that she would have noticed if Marcus was scheduled. She shook her head. "This says, Luis and Miguel Sanchez."
Marcus's smile deepened, showing off a dimple that Dani hadn't noticed before. "Si. Miguel is my cousin. I don't use my own name with a lot of things."
Dani nodded, grinning a little. "Well, that makes sense. Uh, I'll go see if Pedro and Raven are ready for you."
Marcus inclined his head, his smile widening. "We'll wait right here, pequeña."
