Svetlana running a fruit-delivery-with-benefits business in the South Side of Chicago wasn't really a problem in itself. Dexter didn't care about the morality of it.
What he cared about was that all the paperwork for the fruit stand was in his name.
This meant:
If Svetlana's "sisters" got busted, he would be the one in trouble.
More importantly...
If anyone wanted to mess with him, this little hustle of Svetlana's would be perfect leverage.
Dexter thought of that idiot Lip.
He was certain that if Lip found out about this, he would make his life annoying as hell.
So...
He needed to transfer the fruit stand to someone else's name and change the signage.
As for the escort business...
As long as it didn't trace back to him, he'd let Svetlana do whatever she wanted.
In fact, if he paired that business with some high-tech gadgets, like micro-cameras... who knows what kind of interesting leverage he could gather later on.
Dexter mulled this over until he found himself in front of the flower shop. He paused his train of thought, turned, and walked inside. He bought another bouquet for Bianca and, as usual, had the owner arrange the delivery.
"Mr. Ding, day three. Still no success?" the owner asked with a grin as she took the money.
"Boss, you should be praying for my failure, shouldn't you? If I succeed, I won't be buying flowers anymore," Dexter joked.
The owner paused, then laughed. "How could I do such a thing just for a little profit?"
After a few jokes.
Dexter left the flower shop with Dumb Nine.
Since parting ways the night before last, he hadn't contacted Bianca.
And the same went for her.
In the States, there was an unwritten rule about this sort of thing.
Three days.
Wait three days before contacting again. Otherwise, you look desperate and scare the other person off.
After all, everyone knows the game: sex first, love later. If you're desperate right out of the gate, game over.
Dexter didn't mind. He strolled leisurely back to the restaurant.
Veronica was wiping tables. Seeing Dexter arrive, she immediately greeted him with a beaming smile.
"Seeing you grin like that, I know it's gonna cost me," Dexter teased.
Having worked together for so long, Veronica knew Dexter well enough to know he was joking. She kept grinning. "Boss, watch your mouth. It's good news."
"I don't believe you. Spill it," Dexter smiled back.
"Kev and I set a date. Wedding is on the first of next month," Veronica said happily.
"I knew it wasn't good news," Dexter joked. "My wallet is about to bleed."
"Haha!" Veronica laughed loudly.
Dexter was genuinely happy for them. "Alright. Costa Rica. Ten days. How does that sound?"
Hearing this, Veronica nodded decisively. "Thanks, Boss."
"Don't mention it. Employee benefits," Dexter said, then looked at Mickey. "Mickey, same goes for you and Vivian. Whenever you get married, you get the same perk."
Mickey's eyes darted mischievously. "Does a fake marriage count?"
"Fuck off," Dexter laughed and cursed him, then asked Veronica, "Indoor or outdoor wedding?"
"Haven't decided yet," Veronica replied.
"Mmh. The weather next month should be perfect. An outdoor wedding would probably be nice," Dexter said casually. Truly casually, though an outdoor wedding was what he wanted. "Alright, I'm gonna get to work. If you need any help with the wedding, just holler. This is a personal favor."
"Okay," Veronica didn't act coy and agreed readily.
Inside Dex Restaurant, the four of them got busy.
---
Afternoon.
After nervously but successfully dealing with her parole officer, Fiona let out a long sigh of relief. She gave Lip and the others some instructions, grabbed her bag, and headed out immediately to find a job and support the family.
And then.
Once they found out Fiona had a criminal record...
"Okay, go back and wait for our call..."
"Sorry, you might not be suitable for this position..."
"We need to think about it..."
"Sorry, we've already filled the position..."
"Sorry, you don't meet the requirements."
One hour, two hours, three hours.
One ruthless rejection after another landed on Fiona's face like slaps. Slap, slap, slap. Beating her until her eyes were red and despair started to creep in.
In the blink of an eye, night fell.
Even the burger joint, which Fiona considered her safety net—minimum wage and all—rejected her without hesitation.
Fiona walked out of the burger place, looking like she had lost her soul. She walked home in a daze, crying uncontrollably as she went.
Before this afternoon, she had never imagined that a single criminal record would make it impossible for her to find even a normal job.
As she walked, she couldn't stop thinking about the confident promises she had made to Debbie and the others just this morning.
Those words echoed in her ears.
How ridiculous. How laughable.
Fiona was in despair, tears streaming down her face like rain.
Suddenly.
A police car pulled up beside Fiona. As soon as the car stopped, Tony—the simp—scrambled out and rushed over to her, asking with immense concern, "Fiona, what's wrong?"
Fiona was too desperate to be rational. Seeing Tony, she immediately started sobbing out her woes.
Before long.
Tony got Fiona into the car. Through her sobbing, he roughly understood the situation and hurriedly comforted her. "Don't cry, don't cry. I'll ask around for you tomorrow. I promise I'll help you find a job."
Hearing this, Fiona looked up with a glimmer of surprise. "Really?"
"Really," Tony nodded with a smile. "We've known each other for years, I've never lied to you. I promise I'll find you a job with decent pay so you can support Debbie and the others."
"Thank you..." Fiona was touched.
"Don't mention it. Let me take you home first," Tony said, preparing to drive. Suddenly, he remembered what a colleague had told him: With women like Fiona, you have to be direct. Don't beat around the bush...
Tony thought for a moment, stopped what he was doing, looked at Fiona, took a deep breath to gather his courage, and blurted out, "Fiona, I like you. You know that..."
Fiona did know. She looked at Tony but didn't speak.
Tony didn't know what else to say.
The two just stared at each other.
One second, two seconds, three seconds...
The atmosphere shifted.
Fiona leaned in and kissed Tony.
Tony was instantly ecstatic, his brain exploding with excitement.
They made out passionately for a moment.
The mood was right.
Fiona reached out hurriedly, unzipped Tony's pants, and started working enthusiastically.
After a few moments of "work," Fiona spoke, her voice muffled. "Drive. Somewhere private."
Tony felt like he was walking on clouds. Hearing this, he stomped on the gas pedal, flooring it.
Moments later.
In a very secluded alley.
Squeak, squeak, squeak~~
The police car rocked violently.
---