Page 27 of A Dish Best Served Hot

He leaned in briefly before using his forearms to push himself back. He spun on his heels and put his head in both hands.

Once again, Lola let instinct rule over common sense and placed both hands on his back. When he didn’t react violently, she started rubbing soothing circles.

“Lola!” Yara’s voice came again.

“I’m fine,” Lola called back. “We’re just talking.” She had no idea why she lied, but she knew she didn’t want Yara to come investigate.

“You sure you’re good?” Yara asked.

“Positive. I’ll be back in a moment, but let’s pack it up. I think we made our point for now.”

“Okay, mi general.” Lola could practically hear the smart-ass salute in Yara’s voice.

The silence in the alley grew heavier.

“I don’t want to be a part of this,” Saint eventually said. He dropped his hands and turned to face her. “I hate all of this as much as you do, but I can’t do anything about it.”

So they were going to ignore his freak-out and stick to the problem at hand. Fine. She could do that. For now. “You can adhere to your principles and not take part in it.”

Saint shook his head. “My tío Luís is sick. It’s chronic.”

Lola paused.

“He hasn’t even started treatment and his medical bills are out of control. His medications are going to cost a fortune, his insurance is shit, and he doesn’t qualify for any programs.”

“Well, fuck.” How could she tell him to stick to his principles now? He was doing just that. Saint Vega did whatever he had to do for his family. He always had.

“This job goes against everything the company usually stands for, and I know it makes us sellouts, but renovating kitchens and sprucing up neighborhood businesses for free doesn’t get him the treatment he needs.”

Lola took a deep breath and let it out as she leaned against the wall. “God, this country’s health care system is the fucking worst.”

Saint nodded.

“I’m sorry your uncle is dealing with this, but, Saint, this is still wrong.”

“I know. I know it is and I know saying that the developer was going to find someone to do the job anyway makes me sound like a dick, but it’s true. There was no stopping this. Not when the owners were sneaking around to find the highest bidder.”

“But city planning—”

“City planning isn’t going to help, Lola. Their hands are tied just as much as ours.”

“I know that, Saint, but I won’t just give up. There are ten kids standing outside on that street who still need a safe place to sleep, food in their stomachs, help with their homework, and proof that their lives matter just as they are.”

“Let me help,” he said.

“Help how? You just said that there is no stopping this.”

“There is no stopping the renovation of this building,” Saint reiterated. “Not at this point, but there has to be another building out there. One that will suit all of El Hogar’s needs.”

“There are probably plenty that could work,” Lola said, “but they’re all too expensive to rent now. The ones that the nonprofit can afford would need too much work and would take too much time. These kids are in crisis now. We can’t wait for a miracle.” They’d already been dispersed among other shelters.

“It won’t take a miracle. It will just take the two of us being on the same team.” His eyes pleaded for her to understand and to accept his help.

She understood that he felt guilty. He was a good guy. He always had been. None of that meant anything. His guilt wasn’t going to get these kids back into a safe place with people they knew they could trust. “I won’t let this just be a way for you to assuage your guilt about selling out,” she said. “These kids deserve better.”

“They do deserve better. Just like Rosie deserved better than to be hurt by Ms. Kirkland’s need to bolster her own vanity. I’m trusting you to help make the situation better for her. I don’t think it’s too much to ask in return for you to trust in my genuine desire to help solve this problem.”

It wasn’t his desire to help that she questioned. It was her own ability to maintain objectivity around him. She’d already let him pull her away from her purpose. Quite literally. But she couldn’t deny that he was a good ally to have. She’d learned a lot of things about Saint and the Vega family from Yara. His uncle, Rico, was the alderman and his cousin was entrenched in another nonprofit that focused on housing and community planning. Not to mention that the mayor was a frequent visitor to his sister’s new restaurant.

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