Page 88 of Wishing for La Luna
Then her fingers flex as they rest on my back. “You know, some days I don’t think about him at all, and then something happens that brings him back. When I got drugged, I was dreaming about my grandma, and I heard him calling me. It’s like he was behind me, but she wouldn’t let me turn.”
“Those dreams are fucked up. It’s great to hear their voices, but it’s the worst waking up to a reality where they’re not here.”
She looks into my eyes. “Exactly. I missed him like crazy, but my mom is a warrior. She had a kid to feed, so one of my aunts got her a job as the housekeeper for the Belmonts. She didn’t clean for long. She became their house manager, and Bethany liked me playing with Adina, so she asked my mom to bring me over often.”
Her tone is wistful, like she didn’t just go through hell because of that family.
“You cared for them.”
“I did. I feel like I’ve known them all my life and thought it was a genuine friendship, but my mom says I was more like their employee. That hurts like hell but makes it so much easier to accept. You know?”
I nod. “Because it’s easier to think of it as losing a job…”
“Than losing someone I thought of as a sister,” she finishes.
We are at the edge of theCaño Frio,and she puts half heryaniquequein the bag and ties it. “For later. Come on. Show me where the river meets the sea.”
We lay our clothes aside, and I get in the water. She puts one foot in and jumps.
“It’s freezing.”
“Ven, yo te caliento.” I hold out my hand, and she pauses but takes it.
“God, it’s cold,” she gasps, wrapping herself around me.
I cup her ass and press her against me. “I think it’s hot.”
“Ni tu te lo crees.” She goes still with her eyes on mine. “This is almost as cold as the beaches in New York.”
I curl my lip. “That doesn’t even sound right. A beach in New York.”
She chuckles. “Listen, they’re the only ones we always have available.”
“Well, now you have a place with a beach where you can come anytime.”
She smiles at me. “How is this going to work, though? You are always traveling for work. And your tour starts in a couple of days.”
“You can come with me,” I say, half-jokingly but realizing I mean it.
“I have work too. Now that Morena & Miel is taking off, I want to stay close to it. Plus, I have a job interview coming up with Elevate PR,” she says. “But I would travel to meet you.”
“You better. I don’t want to be apart from you for long.” Then, I think of something I wanted to ask her. “Do you really want to go work for someone? I think M&M is a great business.”
She shrugs. “Eventually, I want to do that full-time, but I’m young. I want to use my degree and make money. I want to buy my mom a place and for her to quit her building manager job and do something else.”
I smile. It’s the dream. “It will be the best feeling in the world when you do it. It was the first thing I bought forMamiwhen I signed my first contract. I got it built as a surprise and when she saw it for the first time, her eyes lit up with such intensity. She burst into tears. I’ll never forget that… But you know, you don’t have to get a new job to do that. You’re with me now.”
She shakes her head. “Oh no, Mr. Castillo. I want my things, and publicity was my first dream. M&M is a side hustle to use what I learned at home. Plus,el mundo da muchas vuelta.Life changes quickly, and we have to be prepared for whatever comes…”
“In case this doesn’t work?” I ask, feeling the weight of the words she doesn’t say.
“We have to be realistic. I’ve never been in love like this, but a lot of people who love each other can’t be together.”
I think back at all the times I’ve been in love before. Thenoviecitasand then Perla who turned on me when I was already broken. I didn’t predict the end until I was almost there.
“You’re so proud and smart.”
“Let’s see what you say a year from now.” She brushes her lips against mine. “Come on, take me to the beach side. This is getting colder.”
