out at the round

Dutch walked into the Round like he had a literal thousand times before, this being one of the days when he wasn't in straight from the shop, but today's big exception? Not that Jesse would notice much, but he was clean, scrubbed down past a few layers of skin to try and get as much of his perpetual mechanic's grime off as possible.

He'd been out shopping for a suit, not that he was giving any hint of that with his usual worn and patched clothes and coat; and the new suit he'd picked up was safe back at his apartment on a hanger. But the reason why, that was what had him in the Round now seeking out the comfort of a drink. He'd needed a suit because some damned woman expected him to take her out, and every detail in that scenario was one that Dutch squirmed over. He dropped into his usual seat at the bar with a mix of a sigh and a grumble, nodding to the barkeep as he dug for his cigarettes.

"Three fingers of gin, straight up," he ordered, tapping a smoke free and looking down the bar. Dutch couldn't help his never-pleasant smile when he saw Jesse, lighting up and nodding in recognition. "Why is it I don't ever think I'd see you in here if you were havin' a good day, James?" he called in greeting.

Jesse looked over, then chuckled lightly. "Because if I'm ever in here, I'm not having a great day?" he suggested. He didn't imagine he looked overjoyed. "I have the money I owe you." he added, something he kept meaning to get to him, but his life had been crazy of late.

Nodding in acknowledgement, as if he hadn't been worried about it, Dutch didn't spare another word until his drink was in hand. "Hit me with a beerback too," he requested of the barkeep as he took his first sip of gin. "Find a way to get it to your sister, will ya? We'll be square," Dutch told Jesse easily, "She came by the shop a few days back, we talked for a spell. You lot are a stubborn bunch, I'm thinking, since she wouldn't go 'til I took the cash."

That had Jesse quriking a half smile. "yeah, we are." he agreed totally. They were all like that. It was just a family trait that occasionally worked for them, and sometimes against. "But I'll find a way to slip it into her things or something. She wouldn't take it from me either." he admitted. "What you been up to?" he asked. It was better than getting into what he'd been doing with his time lately. The wildly unintelligent decisions he'd made.

"No damn good, that's what," Dutch answered with a thin smirk, pulling heavily on his cigarette. "Maybe a little good, I guess. Offered Evie some steady work, she said yes, I'm waitin' to hear back on when she wants to start." Which was a good thing, right? Even if Dutch still did little favors for the DiGiovanni, he was far less sullied than the people at the Drake. "Got myself mixed up with some dame who must've had her senses rattled, since she's expectin' me to take her out proper-like. You?"

"Gave Evie a job? Thanks." Jesse said, relieved to hear that. "And that sounds like a story. What's her name?" he asked, flashing a grin for a moment. He could imagine Dutch was surprised to find himself on what could be considered a date. Taking a woman out 'proper-like' had to be that. Dutch wasn't the finest looking guy around. But then, everyone had their own tastes. Jesse couldn't say his own were all that stellar. "We'll get into what I've been up to after you tell me about the lady."

That got a coarse, rolling chuckle out of Dutch as Jesse deflected the inquiry and pressed for more details. Of course it was a story, given Dutch's mug, his demeanor, really almost everything about the man. "Her name's Ava, little redheaded temptress," he answered between drinks, "And she's a far damn cry from any lady I been around in a long while now." Grinding out his cigarette in an ashtray, Dutch washed down half of his gin easily and ordered another round for both himself and Jesse before he sighed, smiling with the exhale. "She was lookin' for a car, same as Evie? 'Cept when I found her one, she wanted to give it a spin with me, and I..." he trailed, brow lining in consideration before he spoke frankly. "You ever meet a dame where every rule you got goes sailin' out the window the moment they breach the door?"

"Yes I have." Jesse admitted, truth ringing in his tone. "In fact said woman is a good chunk of the reason I'm here." he added. "So...caution, man. Don't get into anything you can't get back out of." he warned. Though he knew how it went, clearly. It wasn't like he was king of great decisions. And so many of his bad ones had everything to do with Ronnie. And try as he might, he couldn't get her out of his system. He was hoping the move would take care of that for him.

"Thanks for the warning, even if I guessed as much," Dutch offered in gruff appreciation. It was nice to hear his own concerns echoed back at him, that made them more than just paranoia that stemmed from being alone for so long now. "It's strange, I guess. My wife... there was a lady I got. No surprises, no traps." Just a smile like sunshine, Dutch thought as his expression creased with nostalgia. "But this one, Ava? She had me tearin' up the road from Hough Street all the way to the Drake, just for the thrill. Nearly crawled in my damn lap while I was drivin', which I'm sure you wanted to know," he said with a snort of laughter, "But if there's an angle she's playin'? Fuck if I can see it." He wasn't powerful or connected, no one but Roy knew he had money, and it certainly wasn't his looks.

Jesse paused, considering that. "...you want me to come up with angles? Or should I just let it ride?" he asked. Because the first thing that came to mind was that Dutch owned a business. And that right there meant more money than most people had, regardless. But he didn't want to rain on anyone's parade, and it didn't seem like Dutch was going in blind. He did think that any woman that aggressive about things for what amounted to possibly no reason was hella suspicious, though. He'd had women get aggressive on him before, but he was also aware he was what most women considered pretty handsome. When he'd go out with Eddie before he'd hooked up with Helena, anyone who hit on Eddie that hard had some ulterior motive. That much he very clearly remembered.

"Lay it on me," Dutch answered, shrugging unconcernedly. He was concerned if he was being played, of course, but it wasn't like hearing the possibilities was going to break him. He'd even considered it on his own time, staring off in the distance at the shop. Maybe she was a thrill-seeker, maybe she liked older men, or maybe she had a man already and was looking to rile him up. But Dutch wasn't the world's deepest thinker, and there hadn't been too many layers beyond that for him to delve into. So he knocked back the rest of his gin, switched to his beer, and watched Jesse with an expectant look as he tilted his bottle back.

"First thing that comes to mind off the bat is you own a business." Jesse said, taking another drink. "Which means you probably have more than most people do. Women that aggressive...either she wants something from you or wants to see what you'll give her." he said, making an assessment. "Not the nicest point of view, but I've seen it before. Had a friend back in the day, he's gone now." he said, and there was a little pained twitch in him just at mentioning it. "Not the best lookin guy on the block, right? And we'd go out, and the women who would be hitting on him hard sometimes walked out of the place with his wallet. Or at the very least the contents of it. The guy lost his watch a lot too. Just sayin. Unless there was some real cause there? Some natural chemistry that was overwhelming for some reason or something...I'd be thinkin real hard about what exactly she was up to."

He had to agree with the possible trap there, Jesse had it entirely right. Dutch's shop was in a bad neighborhood, sure, but he did a good amount of legit business. Enough to maintain the ten boys on his crew and then some. "She might be lookin' to see how generous I am," he agreed, "Though she dropped seven hundred on her car like it was cab fare. Still, doesn't mean she's not diggin' for gold in these rocks." And he'd liked to believe that there actually was some chemistry between them, but there had also been strange moments. "I dunno, it's clear she knows what she's workin' with. But truth told?" he said with a tight smile, "She's got no clue how much of a pain I am, so if she's plottin' something, I hope she's up for a fight."

Jesse chuckled a little, taking another drink. "Just watch your back." he said. "Find a girl who won't set off alarm bells." he added. "I know they exist somewhere..." he trailed off, making a joke of his own life there. He certainly didn't know where they hid. Most of the women in his life were trouble of one sort or another.

"Few and far between," Dutch agreed, smirking in kind. "Not that I'm lookin' at her like that, but your sister fits that type overall. Aside from the fake name and all." Which, maybe there was a light joke there, given how Jesse had suspected Dutch had ill intentions towards Evelyn at first. "Hell, far as someone I'd take out for a night on the town? Haven't met one in 'bout twenty years now. I think my wife gave me a shot there, since lord knows I had to set off some of those alarms back in the day."

"Maybe I'm just getting cynical. Or I've had a few too many women troubles of late." Jesse suggested, knocking back most of the last of his beer. "I don't have one problem in my life lately that's directly related to a man. It's all the girls I've got around." he said. "But I guess that's what I get for having so many of them around, huh?"

"I think plenty of fellas wouldn't mind havin' that problem," Dutch mused, shaking his head in wry amusement. "How many you got these days? Evie's one, you said you had a kid too, right?" That stood out in spite of how drunk Dutch had been the night they'd talked, it had echoed with him. "And the lady who aimed you in this direction today makes three... how am I doin'?"

"Pretty good." Jesse said. "So yeah. Evie and my baby girl, who's getting old enough to have boys coming around. Snot nosed little pissants dressed like they're mafiosos, no less. Let's just say I didn't handle that well. Her mother, which was the one who's got me here, and the one who sets off every alarm there is. She shows up now and then just to kind of ruin my life for a little while, then she takes off again. There's a reason I raised our daughter." he admitted. "There's my old friend's woman who I'm pretty sure is just off the rails and I haven't seen her in ages. Last time I did we fought. And the other day Evie tells me that her best friend growing up, girl who was around the house enough that I think of her as a little sister, was in a bad spot with a man who's the kind I'd happily ditch in the river if I could get away with it. Brought her home to stay with me too."

That was five, which meant Jesse hadn't been exaggerating about so many women in his life. "If I were you?" he started, stopping before he got particularly nasty, "Well, I'd probably do worse with boys 'round my daughter. God rest her soul." He had to force out that last bit, because once he mentioned a daughter he needed to have his story straight about where she was, but Dutch could relate to a father's instinct to protect very well indeed. "And here's hopin' your daughter's ma gets her shit together or stays gone, no offense. But if you're raising her, helping Evie and her friend, and whatever else? Sounds like your plate's pretty full already."

Jesse reacted most to the 'god rest her soul' part of that. Lord. he couldn't even imagine what it would be like to lose his daughter. He knew for damn sure he'd never in a million years get over it. He'd never be okay again. "I am so sorry." he said, a gut reaction, nothing he thought out before he said it but the sentiment behind it was strong. Yeah, he really couldn't think past that for a moment. Jesus. It was enough that he didn't even address the last part, even if he could have said he knew full well Ronnie wasn't ever going to get her shit together. She hadn't in all the time he'd known her, it wasn't going to magically happen now.

"It's appreciated," Dutch said genuinely, figuring that Jesse was sincere there. He struck Dutch as a family man, someone who would fall apart if that was taken from him. Like Dutch himself had. In fact, this was a moment where he could look at the younger man with something like kinship, seeing how things could've been different if he hadn't stained his hands with blood for his Giacomo work. "Been a long time now, wish I could say it got easier. She's still here in a lot of ways, though." Like, say, literally.

Nodding, Jesse could understand that. Or imagine it. "Still, I'm sorry. I don't know what I'd do if anything happened to Baby J. Probably crash and burn." Worse than he usually did. Because he did that a lot, really. But he wouldn't bounce back from that.

He wanted to tell Jesse that there was no 'probably' to it, not in Dutch's experience. That encounter had ruined him, shattered his life and even after all these years he was still living on fragments. "Lord knows I did," he admitted, "No one ends up with a regular seat down here out of nowhere. Spent about a year, maybe a little more? Can't remember too much of it, don't know that I was sober for more than a few hours at a time." And bit by bit, he'd pulled himself back together. Never fully, of course, but enough to keep him going for all these years. "Here's wishing you and yours get the farthest thing possible from that sort of luck," Dutch offered, raising his beer in salute.

Jesse took that and nodded, and when he got his new beer, he raised his as well. "to better luck." he agreed. Yeah he didn't want to turn into Dutch. He liked the guy well enough and all, but he couldn't imagine his life without his daughter, or anyone else in his family. Hell, there was even part of him that couldn't quite imagine life without Ronnie, even if he was deliberately trying to get to a place where she couldn't find him anymore. But Jessie. She was most important, end of story.

"Think I'm gonna make history today, though," Dutch said as he dug out his wallet, "Keep myself to two drinks and all. I gotta go fumble through a phonecall, tend to some things in the shop." Really, he needed to call Ava, and some space that'd give him time to not think about Cheyenne, or how lucky Jesse was. Dutch was composed about it all right now, but he knew it was inevitable that he'd turn sour soon enough. "Here's hopin' you get some things sorted soon enough, and don't hesitate to call on down to the shop if there's a need."

"Thanks." Jesse said, nodding. "I should probably drag my ass home too." he added, sighing. He dropped some money on the bar to pay for his tab. "Good seeing you again." he said, before heading off. Enough wallowing for one night. He had some girls to get home to.