Reckless Kiss

Not that I wasn’t ready to walk out that door if Deacon hadn’t stopped me. I guess Sofia was the one who stopped me, crying and asking me to hold her. I hadn’t expected to find my phone smashed to bits. I guess it happened when I tried to push past Mateo and we both hit the floor. My hip is still aching from that misstep.

A soft tap on my door makes me tense. “Who is it?” My voice is sharp.

It opens, and Lourdes steps inside. Her dark eyes are wide, and worry covers her face. “Holy… crap.” She glances down at Sofia hugged tight in my lap. “That was crazy. Did you know that was going to happen?”

“No.”

“Beto kept saying his name… What is it? Some kind of family feud? Are y’all the Hatfields and McCoys?”

“How would I know?” My brows are tight, and my jaw is set. “Mamá never talked about our family history.” I only know the little bit Valeria told me. “Clearly she sheltered me from stuff I ought to know. Some ugly stuff.”

“Hey, goober-nut, you okay?” Lourdes pokes Sofia on the leg, and my little sidekick shrugs at her.

“Carmie is like Ariel. King Triton doesn’t want her to fall in love with our enemies.”

“What do you know about enemies?” I reach down to goose her ribs. She makes a noise near a squeal, and I pull her up so I’m hugging her close. “Deacon isn’t your enemy. He’s a good guy.”

I look down at my demolished phone in my lap and over to Lourdes. “Can I borrow your phone to text him?” Her brows furrow, and I show her mine. “He’s going to worry.”

She smiles, reaching for her device when another tap starts on the door.

Valeria doesn’t wait for me to invite her in. “We need to talk.”

“Welcome to Grand Central.” Lourdes reaches for Sofia. My little cousin looks at me, and I give her a nudge before she walks across the bed into my bestie’s arms. “I’ll have peanut downstairs.” She pauses at the door. “And I’ll let Prince Eric know what happened.”

I’m confused for a moment, but then I remember. Ariel’s prince is Eric. “Thanks.”

Valeria watches them go before she walks over to where I’m sitting on the bed, nursing my wounds.

“I’m sorry things went this way, Carmie.” Her hand is heavy on my leg. “I thought we dealt with this a long time ago.”

“You said he was my enemy, but you didn’t even know him. You made me promise, but you didn’t ask how I felt about it.”

“Would it have mattered?” Valeria studies my eyes, and I know she knows.

It wouldn’t have mattered.

It was already too late.

I drop my head back against the headboard, doing my best not to be completely selfish. “Is Lo okay? Is she still having fun? Did we ruin the party?”

“She’s okay.” Valeria exhales a shaky laugh. “They think it’s very Quinten Tarantino to have a fight break out at Lo’s party. Apparently, that makes her cool.”

The way my cousin says cool is decidedly not cool. Still…

“I’m glad. I wouldn’t want to be the reason she had a bad time.” We’re quiet for what feels like a long time.

I listen to the wind outside my window. I think it’s starting to rain. I listen to the clock on my nightstand. After a while, I hear the cicadas scree, and I realize it isn’t raining. It’s only the never-ending wind. I look down at the shattered face of my phone and decide I’m tired of waiting.

“Are you going to tell me what really happened now? Why he’s our enemy?” It sounds so foolish to my ears.

Her eyes meet mine, and her shoulders drop. “It’s not something I like digging into…”

I’m not in the mood to beg. “Tell me what happened.”

Valeria settles back on the bed like she’s about to reveal a deep, dark truth. The air around her seems to still as I wait. I can’t decide if I’m impatient or annoyed.

“Back before you were born, our grandfathers worked together in the oil fields.” She speaks like she’s telling a bedtime story. “Rogers Western Dring and Manuel Luis Treviño, Papa Luis. They were best friends. Traveled together through the western territories. Both of them were committed to finding a better life, making it rich.”