Page 85 of A Lot Like Adiós
“He doesn’t have a return ticket yet, but probably in a few days.” That was the plan, but Michelle was hoping against hope that he’d stay in New York until the new location was complete.
More time. That was all she wanted with him. A little more time.
But what happened when she got more time? She’d want more, and more, and more. It would never be enough.
She wanted all of him.
“Just be careful, okay?” Jasmine said.
“I will.” She was trying, but she had so few defenses left.
“And talk to us,” Ava added. “We’re here for you. No matter what.”
Michelle nodded. “I know. Thank you. Both of you.”
She would need them, she realized. After Gabe left, she’d need them to run interference with the family.
But more than that, she’d need their help to once again put all her pieces back together. Because the thing she hadn’t told them was that she was fairly certain she was head over heels in love with Gabe.
GABE HAD FORGOTTENhow exhausting Tío Duties could be. Since it was his first time visiting Nikki’s kids at their home, they’d taken it upon themselves to be good hosts. Seven-year-old Oliver had endeavored to show Gabe every single Lego set he owned, along with a detailed commentary on the “special features” of each one, and nine-year-old Lucy had insisted they play all the outdoor games she could think of, from tag to water guns to pony rides. That would’ve been okay, except Gabe was the pony, and the kids had taken turns leaping onto his back and screaming in his ear torun faster. After hours of this, Oliver and Lucy were wiped out, and Gabe figured he’d done more than his share of cardio for the day.
Once the kids retreated indoors for air-conditioning and video games, Gabe sat with his sister on the deck, drinking beer.
Nikki and Gabe had the same dimples and coloring, but her curly hair and petite stature came from their mom, while Gabe favored their dad. She sent Gabe a glare through eyes nearly identical to his own. “I’m still annoyed that you came to New York and didn’t even tell me. What if we’d been out of town?”
Gabe sighed and took a long pull from the bottle. He should pace himself. This was the only one he was having before he drove back to the Bronx.
“I’m sorry, Nik. Nothing about this trip has gone as expected.”
Total understatement.
“Man plans, God laughs,” Nikki muttered, and Gabe raised his beer in salute.
“Are you going back to California?” she asked.
“Yeah, in a few days.”
“Permanently?”
“Of course. That’s where I live.”
Nikki twisted in her deck chair and pinned him with that older-sister look, the one that reminded him all too much of their mother.
“So what the hell are you doing here?” she demanded.
Gabe frowned. He’d told her about launching an Agility location in Manhattan. “I’m here to open a—”
“No, I don’t mean what are you doing with the gym, I mean what are you doing in theBronxwithMichelle?”
“Oh.” Gabe looked down at his beer as if it held the answers, which he knew full well it did not. It was why he rarely drank. Alcohol never made him feel clearer on his problems and, ifanything, led him down the path of second-guessing his life choices. “We, um, we reconnected—”
“Don’t give me that bullshit story you told Mom. I don’t believe it for a second.”
Gabe let out a heavy sigh. It was almost a relief to be called out, because he needed to talk tosomeoneabout Michelle. Fabian was busy, and Gabe wasn’t in the mood forI told you soanyway. He’d explain to his friend later. For now, his sister was the next-best option.
“Michelle is actually helping us with the new gym,” he admitted, and then he told Nikki the whole story.
She listened, asking questions for clarification but offering no opinions. Until the end.
