Page 76 of Love at First Ink

Tiny shifted uncomfortably as Travis’s first few tears fell. It was awkward, and in a different situation, Cisco might comfort Travis. However, if this was a different situation, they wouldn’t be here. Patiently, he gave Travis a moment to compose himself.

After a few minutes, Travis straightened himself up. He ran a hand through his unkempt hair and sighed. “Listen, I’ve made Archie drop his charges. He’s going to be signing the divorce papers and cease all contact with my daughter. He’s also going to make sure the slander he spread about you is resolved. I’ve threatened him with legal action if he approaches anyone in my family or you. That includes my wife. As forLuciana…” Travis shook his head. For a moment, Cisco actually felt bad for him. It was evident the man loved his wife. Cisco didn’t think Luciana was capable of love, though.

“I’ve told my wife she has to stop interfering in Marisol’s life. I made her aware that she may have pushed her daughter out of her life entirely, and now she has to live with the consequence,” Travis continued.

“Why are you even still with her? She sounds awful,” Tiny blurted out. Teenagers gave no fucks.

“Tiny,” Cisco reprimanded, but she just shrugged.

“It’s a fair question.” Travis didn’t appear upset by the question, which was a small relief. “And I don’t have a good answer for that. I love her. She is deeply flawed and has hurt our girls. I think she’s lost her way, and I want to help her. Part of me knows she’s capable of loving her daughters. It just happens to be very toxic. I’m not willing to give up on my family though.”

“May that type of love never find me,” Tiny muttered under her breath. Cisco swore she saw Travis smirk.

Travis cleared his throat. “I just wanted to deeply apologize for everything that happened last night. Please allow me to drive you home.”

“I want to see Marisol,” Cisco said adamantly.

“No, you don’t. You smell like pee,” Tiny said. “And butts. Plus, you need some sleep.”

“She does have a point there, son,” Travis said. “Good thing the roof in the car goes down. We can air you out a bit.”

“I smell?” Cisco lifted the collar of his shirt to smell, but he wasn’t getting pee or butts—whatever the hell that smelled like.

“Do bears shit in the woods? Do fish live in water? Do eggplantslook like di?—”

“I get it,” Cisco interrupted Tiny, frowning. It got him a genuine smile from his cousin and a snort from Travis.

“Let the rich man drive us home so you can rest. I’m going to make sure you rest, or I’ll steal your phone so you won’t be able to talk to Marisol,” she threatened.

“Damn. You’re worse than the cops,” he muttered. Still, a few hours of sleep would do him well. He felt like he’d keel over if he didn’t get to bed. And apparently now he needed a shower.

Cisco walked to the passenger side, but Tiny scooted in the moment he opened the door. “I’m owed the front seat after what I’ve been through. I didn’t tell my parents, so you don’t have to explain this to any of the family. They think I went into the shop early.”

Thank god for that, at least.

Cisco got into the back seat. He wished he had his phone on him to text Marisol, but he had left it in his car. Another thing he would have to get back. Thinking of everything he needed to do stressed him out and made him mad all over again.

“Just let me know the address, and I’ll get you home,” Travis said, starting his car. Tiny told him where Cisco lived, and Travis nodded, setting off toward home.

Shower. Sleep—if he could. And then Marisol.

He wouldn’t truly know peace until his princesa was wrapped in his arms.

CHAPTER 34

Marisol

She hadn’t moved from her bed since getting home last night. She also hadn’t stopped crying. Both of these things she hated but didn’t know how to change. Hell, she didn’t have the energy to change. If it weren’t for Lola, she would still be wearing her outfit from last night and a face full of ruined makeup. While Marisol let herself go into a dark place, Lola was there to keep her head above water.

After getting her into pajamas and making sure she washed her face and brushed her teeth, Lola led Marisol to bed. Snowball had snuggled up to her side and purred. She hadn’t moved since, and Marisol appreciated the comfort her cat brought her.

She had expected Lola and Javi to leave last night. She heard them whispering in the other room, discussing what they needed to do. Lola stepped out to make a few calls, but they didn’t leave. When she woke after a night of restless sleep, Javi and Lola were still there, cooking something in the kitchen.

Marisol had wanted to leave first thing in the morning but received a call from her dad. It was vague and short, but ended with him promising he would handle everything. When shetried to protest, her father wouldn’t hear it. When she tried to push more, Lola had intercepted and somehow convinced Marisol it would be best to let their father handle this.

Maybe she could have pushed more, but she didn’t have the energy. If her father wanted to handle it, then he’d handle it. As long as Cisco came back—hopefully not upset with her. She felt like she was the reason he was in jail. It was her family and her problems that put him in there.

Lola’s soft voice filtered in from the other room. She was on the phone again, probably with their father. Marisol heard her name mentioned but couldn’t make out anything else her sister said or who she was speaking to. The conversation lasted for about five minutes before Lola said goodbye.

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