Mateo frowns at the table for a moment, then pushes back his chair to stand. He hesitates when he remembers Isabella is with him and he can’t leave her at the table, so I quickly push back my own chair.
“I’ll be right back, I’m gonna go make sure Mia doesn’t get lost,” I tell him.
His eyes move in my direction but he still doesn’t look completely satisfied. Since he’s mistrustful of everyone, I’m sure our concerns are different. I know Sal didn’t follow Mia for any nefarious purposes, but Mateo views the world through his own lens, so I’m sure the thought at least crossed his mind.
When I make it to the bathrooms, Sal is leaning against the wall with his phone out, standing guard outside the ladies’ room. It’s stupid that I feel even a trace of relief; I know I never have to worry about Sal betraying me, but 28 years of trust issues don’t just evaporate because you meet Prince Charming. Luckily my prince is incredibly patient and doesn’t even take offense when I show up to check on him.
“Miss me?” he jokes.
I nod, moving close and wrapping my arms around his neck. “You were gone so long.”
Sliding his phone back into his pocket, his sexy gray eyes meet mine and he wraps his arms around my waist. “I’m not complaining. You can follow me into a darkened hall anytime.”
I smile as he leans forward to give me a kiss, but I don’t linger long before pulling back and telling him lightly, “Well, it was me or Mateo. I thought you’d enjoy my company a little more.”
The mere mention of Mateo annoys him. Like all of us, Sal goes back and forth on liking him. One day he thinks he’s just fine, the next he’s sure he’s a massive asshole who needs to be set on fire. It looks like today is a “kill it with fire” day.
“Your brother is something else,” he says, leaning back against the wall, but still lightly holding my waist. “And Mia—that girl needs a fucking babysitter. Why’d she drink the wine?”
I smile. “Because he ordered it for her and she rarely disobeys him.”
“Well, she’s trashed. I think I’m gonna have Mark drive her car home.”
I shake my head. “No way, Mateo will never let her leave with Mark.”
“She’s not gonna leave with Mark, she’s gonna leave with Vince. I just texted him and told him to come pick her up.”
Surprise trickles through me with a dread chaser and I widen my eyes at him. “Why did you do that?”
Sal looks surprised as his eyebrows shoot up his forehead. “What do you mean, why? Because she’s wasted and there’s at least a 40 percent chance of her getting date-raped if your brother takes her home.”
“Sal, you can’t do that. I love how gallant you are, I do, but… we don’t get in Mateo’s way like that. Even Adrian doesn’t do that, and Mateo loves Adrian. It’s dangerous to cross my brother. He likes you now, but I promise you, he would turn on you on a dime. I know it’s uncomfortable watching and having no power to stop bad things as they happen, but that’s the way it is with my family.”
I understand why Sal is struggling with this—he’s the one with the clout in his own family now, and it’s well within his reach to make things happen or not happen. But he has no such influence in my family, and if he forgets that fact, especially in defense of Mia, he will swiftly find himself transferred over to Mateo’s bad side.
“Except I do have the power to stop it. I have fingers—they’re capable of texting Mia a safe ride home. I’m not interfering in his business or his life; I’m simply preventing him from potentially hurting your friend in a social situation. Maybe if he hadn’t laid out his fucking plan right in front of me I could’ve given him the benefit of the doubt here, but he did. Who he fucks isn’t my business, but I’m not gonna stand by like an asshole and let him hurt someone I like when I could very easily prevent it with a single text message.”
I shake my head at him. “But you can’t. I don’t know how much clearer I can be. We can judge and complain and try to cajole him, but we can’t actively interfere. He may be friendly right now, but Mateo is the boss; things only remain nice if he gets his way. I’ve told you before, Mateo does what he wants and we fall in line—that’s just how it is. You can’t protect Mia from Mateo. Vince is her boyfriend and our cousin, and he can’t even protect her from him. If you try, you’ll make him an enemy, and you do not want Mateo for an enemy.”