Page 56 of Love at First Ink

Her own composure was quite different. Despite the nice Californian breeze, Marisol felt hot all over. Her face flushed, and she couldn’t stop her leg from bouncing, a tell-tale sign she was nervous.

“How we met?” she repeated the question, earning another glare from her mother. She couldn’t tell them how they met because then she’d have to divulge that she got a tattoo, and Cisco was the one who gave it to her. Her mother would absolutely explode if she heard that.

“We met at therapy,” Cisco said before Marisol could come up with a lie. “Marisol was leaving a session, and mine was just starting. I thought she was beautiful, and, well, here we are.”

Not technically a lie, she realized. They did run into eachother at therapy. It just wasn’t what she thought of when thinking about their first meeting.

“I see,” Luciana said. “It’s just a shock to me.” She laughed, expecting the rest of the table to join in, but no one did. Still, it didn’t deter her. “Marisol is still married, you know. That’s why I’m confused.”

“Luciana,” her father chastised.

“What? Can I not be protective over my daughter?” she asked, feigning innocence.

Marisol wanted the earth to open up and swallow her whole. A warm hand settled on her thigh. She looked down to see Cisco gently squeezing her. The small touch provided more comfort than it should, and she relaxed slightly.

Oblivious to the discomfort around the room, her mother continued to speak. “You said you own a tattoo shop? Does that require schooling?”

“I graduated from Cornell University. Helped me start my shops.” He took a sip of wine and made an appreciative sound. “Is this yours?”

Her father’s face brightened. “It is. Our bestseller. What do you think?”

“Pretty damn good. I might be a frequent customer at your store once it opens. Dangerous to have me so close.” They laughed, but Marisol watched her mother tense.

“Close? What do you mean close?”

“Cisco here is going to be our neighbor. Another shop is opening up by the store,” her father said, taking a big bite out of his steak. Some of the juices ran down his cheek, staining the front of his shirt.

Her mother’s disapproval only grew. “Our clientele doesn’t match those who frequent tattoo shops. The last thing we need are thugs hanging outside our doors. No offenseto you, of course,” she said to Cisco, even though she definitely meant that to be insulting.

“Mother,” Marisol hissed, trying and failing to keep her voice level. She wasn’t used to standing up to her mother, and it scared her shitless. “Would you let it go? The only thing you are accomplishing right now is creating an awkward dinner. Cisco is my boyfriend?—”

“Oh, there is no need to be throwing out titles, Marisol,” her mother interrupted. “This is all so sudden, and you aren’t even divorced yet. Why throw someone else into the mix? Archie is doing his best to go about this civilly, and from what I understand, you have done nothing but drag your feet. Honestly, dear, I just worry about you. You’re not acting yourself. Maybe your therapy isn’t working as well as you think it is. That’s why I stopped going to mine. I found it didn’t help me. You may want to consider doing the same.”

Her earlier bravado slowly deflated. Her mother wasn’t even trying to listen to her or hide the fact that her preference was firmly in Archie’s favor. It was never about her happiness, only the image she wanted to uphold. More surprisingly, her mother’s revelation that she quit therapy was just another slap in the face that Luciana never really cared to mend the broken relationships she had with her daughters.

Stubborn tears stung her eyes, but she refused to let them fall. She heard her father and Lola whisper something to her mother, but she couldn’t make out what they were saying. She couldn’t hear anything but her own insecurities pounding in her skull.

“Did you know Archie harasses her?” Cisco’s voice cut above everyone else, even within her mind, and the whole table quieted, all looking at them. His jaw clenched as he stared down her mother, not wavering under her penetrating glare. “He’s the one dragging his feet about the divorce. He uses it to control her because he knows he has no power without her. But despite that, Marisol still thrives. She can still laugh and create the life she wants. If you cared enough to know anything about your daughter, you’d see just how wonderful she truly is, but how terrified she is to upset you. Maybe if you cared about your daughter and not some image you want to convey to god-knows-who, you’d realize just how much you are missing out.”

Silence followed.

Her mother opened and closed her mouth. A fish struggling out of water. Her cheeks flamed red with both anger and embarrassment.

“This is oddly familiar,” Javi muttered under his breath, earning a light smack from Lola, who tried to hide her smile from her husband.

“Luciana, you do this every time,” her father’s patronizing voice boomed around the table.

But Marisol’s eyes were fixed on the man beside her. The man who saw through the bullshit her mother spread. The man who defended her, even if that meant her family hated him for it. But how her family felt about him didn’t matter. Probably never did. He only cared about how Marisol saw him.

At that moment, she knew.

Knew Cisco would defend her from her family. Save her from herself, if she needed that.

Knew the feelings inside of her were strong. Stronger than anything else in her life.

Because Cisco was hers. And she loved the man. It fucking terrified her, but she had let fear hold her back for too long. She refused to lose a chance at happiness.

While the table argued, Marisol jumped out of her chair.All eyes turned to her once again, but this time she didn’t care. “I need a few minutes.”

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