But instead, life gave me the one piece of relief I’d had in the past three years and I’d gladly opened my arms to him.
I had no idea if that was a good idea. I didn’t know if trusting him would lead to yet another tragedy in my life. I had no idea who he was, what he was about, or who this mysterious person was he wanted me to meet. But I knew two things for certain.
The love he had for Ana was unmistakable and I was attracted to him, now more than ever.
I was finally able to clock out of work and rush home to make myself a little more presentable. All night, last night, I’d worn nothing but my sweaty work uniform. Usually, my dinner dress was a loose-fitting t-shirt and yoga pants. The ensemble was cheap to purchase, easy to wash, and allowed me the comfort I sought in the evenings once everyone else had gone to bed.
But tonight, I wanted to dress a little nicer for my dark prince.
I barreled through the doors and brushed past Cassie and Kevin playing Minecraft. I rushed upstairs and peeked into Ana’s room, seeing her playing with her toys. I smiled and then I hopped into the shower and washed myself down quickly. I allowed my hair and body to dry while I shuffled through my measly closet. I didn’t have much. My paycheck didn’t afford me the ability to purchase nice clothes, but I did come across a dress I let myself purchase a couple of years ago.
A loose-fitting, dark green dress that cinched around my waist and fluttered just past my knees.
I threw it on and dried the rest of my hair just as I heard the doorbell ring. I heard Kevin get up to answer the door. I reached down and grabbed Ana off the floor and headed downstairs, coming around the corner just as Camillo walked through the door.
Only this time, he had a little boy in front of him.
I stared at the little boy and noted how he didn’t quite look like Camillo. They shared the same skin tone and sternness around the eyes, but that was about it. The boy looked to be around twelve, and I tried to keep my surprise at bay as the young man slowly backed up into Camillo.
“This is my nephew, Junior,” he said.
I looked up into Camillo’s eyes and I could see the way he was raking them over me. I buried my smirk and tried to tame the blush creeping up my skin. There was something inside of me that took a great deal of pride in being able to look presentable for him and I clung to Ana while she tried to wiggle from my grasp.
“Is that her?” Junior asked.
“It is,” Camillo said. “Would you like to go meet her?”
I bent down to the level of the boy as he walked toward me. His movements were tentative and restricted, like he was still feeling out the place. Junior studied Ana intensely.
But then the boy looked right into my eyes and nodded.
“She looks like you,” Junior said.
“I think she looks more like her father,” I said.
“That’s what I meant.”
The boy was guarded and I held up my hand to stop Camillo from reprimanding him. The walls this little boy had thrown up must’ve come from a massive blow to his life and I couldn’t help but wonder what had happened to bring him to live with his uncle.
But instead of questioning the boy about it, I made a mental note to talk with Camillo about it later. I saw Junior’s eyes flicker over to the television and, in an instant, I saw a familiar glow of happiness pour over his face.
“You play Minecraft?” he asked.
“Not me, but my brother does,” I said. “He’s been teaching your uncle how to play.”
“Uncle Camillo, playing video games?” he asked.
“Yep,” I said, grinning.
“Wanna play?” Kevin asked.
We all turned toward Kevin, who was now sitting on the couch. Camillo went over and sat down beside him as Ana finally wiggled out of my grasp. She ran over to him and he picked her up, smiles lighting up their faces. I watched with joy pouring into my chest.
And all the while, I could feel Junior’s eyes on me.
“Can I play?” he asked.
I turned my gaze back to the boy and saw a sorrow behind them that wrenched my soul. I wanted to reach out my arms and envelop him. I wanted to welcome him into this home like I had so many other lost souls. I wanted him to know that he was welcome here anytime to come play, no matter what time of the day it was.
But I settled for nodding at him before he dove onto the couch next to Kevin.