by Lena Hart
“What about this?” She pointed to a picture of something that looked something like a taco salad.
He followed the path to where she pointed on the menu then spoke to the older woman behind the counter in rapid Spanish. Hanging on the wall behind the woman was the name of the restaurant. Rosa’s Taquería. Just below it were the words “Dine-in/Take-out,” with what she assumed were a translated version right above it.
Judith glanced around the small restaurant. There was an older man in the corner, enjoying a hearty meal alone and another couple at the other end of the restaurant. On the drive there, Carlos had told her that Rosa’s Taquería was the best taco restaurant around and had once belonged to his aunt who had sold it a few years ago. But since the small restaurant was a neighborhood favorite, the new owners had kept everything pretty much the same, even the name.
“What do you want to drink, muñeca?”
Judith ignored the older woman’s knowing look and stared at the two large perspiring jars behind her.
“What are those?” she asked, pointing at the large containers. One was filled with a pale red liquid and the other held a pale yellow drink that was more than half empty.
He explained they were fresh juices and delicious. “One’s watermelon, the other’s passion fruit,” he added.
She chose the watermelon flavor and after they placed their order, Carlos led her to a small table by the window.
“Sorry, I keep telling them they should make the menus bilingual,” he muttered.
“It’s fine,” she said with a small smile. She liked the authenticity of the tiny Mexican restaurant, which added to its charm. “I need to work on my Spanish anyway.”
“I’ll be happy to tutor you,” he offered with a wink, taking the seat across from her. “Maybe even throw in some Portuguese in there.”
“You speak Portuguese?”
“A little bit. My uncle’s Brazilian and he taught us when we were kids, but I have to admit it could use some work.”
She stared at him intrigued. If she had the patience, she would have loved to learn another language. She wanted to ask him more about his multilingual family, but found it hard to concentrate. He’d fallen silent and just sat back in his seat, studying her.
His gaze was unnerving and she glanced away, unconsciously pushing the glasses up her face. She may not have been on a date in years, but she never remembered being this self-aware around a guy.
“What?” she finally asked when he continued his silent staring.
He smiled crookedly. “I didn’t know you wore glasses. I think you just gave me another fetish.”
Judith vaguely wondered what other fetish she had given him but didn’t dare ask. She didn’t particularly care for her wide glasses, and preferred to wear the contacts when her eyes weren’t tired. Since she only needed the glasses to see through her right eye, they felt cumbersome on her face. After the accident, no amount of surgery had been able to restore her vision in that eye, but she was just grateful she hadn’t completely lost her sight.
“So what was the situation you had to stay late for at the office?” she asked, hoping to change the subject.
His expression turned weary. “You’ve heard about what happened last night, right?”
She clasped her hands tightly on her lap and nodded. Just pretend… she reminded herself.
“The person we believe responsible was at the resort again tonight,” he continued. “I needed to confirm her identity before I got Carrone involved, which held me up.”
Judith stared at him, her heart thudding in her chest. Her? She realized she sat stiffly in her seat and forced herself to relax. But it was hard to do when she was eager to know more. Like, who was this woman they suspected? And what did they plan to do with her?
“What happened?” Judith asked casually, her heart still thumping in her chest.
He shrugged. “Carrone is taking care of it. I’ll find out more tomorrow.”
Judith fell silent. Right now would be a good time to come clean, to end the anxious churning in her belly.
But then what? Would he understand why she had done it? Would he even care? Things between them would change. He would hate her for what she’d done, and she didn’t want that.
She wouldn’t dwell on it. She just wanted to be normal again. To enjoy having a guy she liked take her out because he wanted to know more about her.
The woman behind the counter appeared at their table and silently placed down their drinks. Judith reached for the cold, tall glass, which only stiffened her already rigid hands, but she welcomed the icy distraction.
Carlos tilted the short, round bottle to his lips before asking, “So, besides looking so fine, what do you do for fun?”
His teasing helped draw her out of her anxious gloom and she thought about his question. Her Fridays after work consisted of movie nights with Prince, curled at her side, or Sundays working on a new puzzle. Saturdays she did all her chores and ran her errands. The rest of the week, she spent at work.
She took a sip of the sweet, rosy pink drink then rested her elbow on the small table and propped her chin on her hand. What could she say that wouldn’t make her sound like a recluse or lonely cat lady? There was no getting around it so he might as well know.
“I’m actually a very boring person,” she confessed. “I don’t really get out much.”
He raised a brow. “Really? I would ask about the guys who must ask you out all the time, but I don’t think I want to know.”
She smiled, though she was glad he didn’t ask either since there wasn’t much to tell. From the few guys who did approach her, and those she managed to dissuade, none of them were as persistent as Carlos.
“But you must have something you enjoy doing,” he added. Then his dark eyes gleamed with amusement. “Other than drive me crazy.”
She shrugged again. “I like putting together puzzles,” she murmured. His eyebrows rose and her face heated up with embarrassment.
“I wondered about those puzzle pieces in your living room,” he said, his tone filled with amusement. “Did I interrupt a session?”
Her face heated some more. “I know, I know. I’m a nerd.”
“Hey, I’m the one filled with a lifetime supply of bad pickup lines so I guess that makes me a corny nerd.” He winked. “See, we’re perfect for each other.”
An older, petite woman from the back of the kitchen came over to their table and brought their meal to them. Judith was surprised by the mountain of food that was set in front of her. She waited until the older woman left them before she said anything.
“I thought I ordered a taco salad,” Judith said, still staring down at the pile of lettuce, meat, beans, cheese, and tomatoes inside a large bowl of a tortilla. It could easily feed two or three people.
“That is the taco salad,” Carlos said, digging into his meal. Judith glanced over at his plate, which contained three simple tacos. She should have stuck with that.
“Why didn’t you tell me it would be this much?”
He shrugged. “I didn’t even think about it. Besides, I don’t mind feeding my woman.”
She rolled her eyes. “That’s good to know, but you’re going to have to help me finish this.”
“Yes, ma’am.” Then he grinned. “I think I like you bossy.”
They fell silent as they concentrated on their meals. She glanced over at him to find he had already wolfed down one taco and was already starting on the next. An apt word for him, too. Like everything else about him, even his appetite was voracious.
With his help, she managed to finish a little more than half of her meal. She laid her fork down and sat back, full and satisfied.
“You were right, that was great. Thank you.”
He looked up at her, his eyes holding a glint of mischief. “But you haven’t had me yet.”
She shook her head, a smile tugging at her lips. “So, besides being a big, corny flirt,” she teased, “what do you like to do for fun?”
He shrugged. “A lot of random stuff. Whatever I’m feeling up to that day. I’m usually hanging out with my cousin, though. He gets me into enough trouble, but he’s cool.”
Though she couldn’t complain about her childhood, there had been times when she’d wished she had siblings of her own. Even a few cousins would have been nice.
“You two must be close.”
He nodded. “We are. I grew up with my aunt and uncle, and three cousins. We were all like siblings, but Tristan and I are about the same age so we were always like each other’s shadow.”
“Where were your parents?” As soon as the question left her lips, she regretted it. It intrigued her to learn that he hadn’t mentioned his parents. Since she herself was adopted, she wondered about his life growing up without them. But asking questions like that would only give him the permission to ask the same of her. And the last thing she wanted to talk about was her past.
“Last I heard, my father was still living somewhere in Columbia,” Carlos said with a shrug. “And my mother passed away when I was about three or so. My aunt brought me over from Mexico soon after but I don’t really remember much about my mother. Everyone says she looked like my aunt so I guess I have that to go on.”
Judith’s brows pulled together in sympathy for him. Like herself, he was made an orphan at a young age, though in her case, she knew nothing about her parents. Still, they had more in common than she’d thought.
“I’m sorry to hear that.”
“Thanks, baby, but don’t be. My aunt and uncle have been great substitute parents. And they would love to meet you.”
“Oh?” was all Judith could say.
He smiled, though he looked a bit chagrined. “Yeah, they know about you,” he confessed. “I told my cousin who went and spilled it to the rest of my family. Now they all want to meet the girl who’s managed to resist my charm for so long.”
Judith was still getting over the shock. He had told his family about her? She was flattered and a bit unnerved by that. Then the reality of his words began to sink in and dread filled her. She could only imagine what kind of picture he had painted of her to his family. He believed her to be this sweet, innocent good girl when he didn’t really even know her. His contempt for her would be justifiable when he realized she wasn’t the girl he thought she was.
Her heart sank at the thought.
He finished the last bit of the taco salad before he asked her the same dreaded question. “So what about your parents? Do you have any brothers or sisters?”
She should have just kept it simple and lied. But she was tired of lying and she couldn’t bear to lie in his face again.
“I don’t really know my birth parents,” she began hesitantly, “but my adoptive mom was great. She never had kids of her own and got me late in her life.”
Her adoptive mother had been approaching fifty when she’d finally decided to start a family. Except her mother had never gotten married. It wasn’t until Judith got older and had witnessed the closeness between her mom and her mom’s “best friend” that Judith understood why. Her mother had not been completely comfortable or open with who she was and had never come out as a lesbian. It broke Judith’s heart to think that for all those years her mom had felt forced to hide who she was to her friends and family.
“Did you ever ask your adoptive mom about your birth parents?” he asked, watching her closely.
Judith nodded. “When I was in high school, my mom even tried to help me find them, but nothing came out of it.” She shrugged. “It didn’t matter though. It was just me and her and I was happy.”
“I didn’t know single parent adoptions were allowed,” he said, looking thoughtful.
She shrugged again. “I guess California is one of the more progressive states because now it’s pretty common.”
“California? I didn’t peg you for a Valley girl.”
She laughed at his exaggerated shock. “Because I’m not, I’m a San Francisco girl.”
“Ah, San Fran.”
She cringed. “Ugh, no. We don’t like that. Or Frisco. It’s just San Francisco.”
He laughed and sat back in his seat. “Okay, Ms. San Francisco, what brought you here to Vegas?”
That caught her off guard and it took her a moment to answer. “Um, work,” she said, which wasn’t a complete lie. After she’d completed her physical therapy, the Agency had moved her out of Los Angeles and it had taken another year before she had felt normal enough to begin working.
“I thought you’d only started working at Royal Courts three months ago?”
She frowned slightly. “How do you know that?”
He cocked his head to the side. “You didn’t tell me?”
She shook her head and almost laughed at the way he glanced away from her.
“Okay, maybe I did a little digging around,” he said with a small shrug. “I just wanted to know more about you. You’re not mad, are you?”
She shook her head hesitantly, but her heart was pounding. What else had he found out about her? Nothing. She didn’t know where the small, quiet voice had come from but she forced herself to relax. He couldn’t possibly have found out any more about her than what the Agency had arranged.
“No, I’m not mad,” she said quietly. “But next time, just ask.”
He inclined his head. “Fair enough.”
“Before Royal Courts, I worked a few temp jobs and waited tables at an Italian restaurant just outside the city. Thankfully, I only did that for a few months.” Working at Mia Bella’s had been brief but back breaking. She’d never met the owners, but the managers there had been slave drivers. Luckily, Mary had put her in contact with the staffing agency that had gotten her out of there.
“So what does your mom think about you living here alone in this great City of Sin?”
She shook her head, her throat tightening. It had been a little over eight years, yet the pain of losing her mother was fresh. Carlos sat forward, a frown marring his handsome features and she glanced down at the table. Didn’t he know how unnerving his intense gaze was?
“What happened?”
Judith released her breath, her gaze still on their now empty dishes. “She passed away about eight years ago. During my first year in college.” She didn’t elaborate and hoped he wouldn’t ask for more. There wasn’t more for her to give, anyway. Her mother had gone in for gallbladder removal surgery and had never come out, passing away right in the surgery room from complications and Judith had been left with no one.
Until Ken. It wasn’t long after her adoptive mother’s passing that she had started seriously dating the handsome college basketball star who would forever change her life.
“Do you have any other family?” Carlos asked, his dark eyes probing. “People you spend the holidays with?”
She shook her head but smiled to cover the overwhelming emotion that was washing over her, thinking about her holidays with her mom. “No. It’s just me and Prince.”
“Hey, don’t forget about me,” he teased, his expression softening with a tenderness that left her warm all over.
I could never forget about you.
“Do you have any pets,” she asked, trying to take the focus of the conversation away from her.
He shook his head. “My cousins and I had a dog growing up, but none now. I don’t really have the time.”
The old woman appeared at their table again and took away their empty plates. She smiled down at her but said something to Carlos in Spanish.
“No, gracias señora,” he said to the woman then turned to her. “Do you want anything else? More agua fresca?”
Judith shook her head. “No, I’m fine, thanks.”
The woman cleared their table and they were once again alone.
“Your aunt. Her name’s Rosa?” Judith asked, wanting to fill the awkward silence that had fallen between them and keep the conversation away from her. He nodded. “Why did she sell the restaurant?”
“A few yea
rs ago, she became sick and running the restaurant was too much. My uncle, Gil, tried to help out, but he has the gym and also wanted to be there for my aunt.”
She wondered if his aunt was okay now. She’d never seen Carlos become this guarded before and could tell the subject was still very sensitive for him. “I hope your aunt’s doing better,” was all she could think to say.
His lips quirked. “Yeah, she’s still ruling us with an iron fist. But she’s so gentle about it, we never see it coming.” He paused before adding, “I would love for you to meet her. She would love you. My whole family would. Though, my cousin Tristan tends to try too hard around beautiful women. He’s the ugly one in the family.”
She saw the affectionate teasing in his eyes and smiled.
“I hope it’s not with corny pickup lines.”
He laughed. “Where do you think I get it from?”
Judith shared in his humor. It was clear he loved his family and her heart skipped at the thought of meeting them. Carlos was a great guy and such a catch. She would have loved to meet his family, but didn’t see that happening. She truly didn’t understand what it was he saw in her—a socially awkward girl with intimacy issues. And it wasn’t like she had been encouraging to him or his early advances.
He continued nursing his beer and she realized he was trying to linger. She hid a smile.
“How is that?” she asked, nodding toward the dark bottle.
“This? It’s good. Why? You drink beer?”
She shrugged. His tone held a note of shocked disbelief, which for some reason annoyed her.
“Sometimes,” she offered, though she really never had anything stronger than hard cider.
His eyes widened a bit more, but he shook his head. “I don’t think you would like this, muñeca. It’s strong stuff.”
She read the challenge in his words and to both their surprise, reached for his bottle. She brought the nozzle to her lips, faintly tasting him on the cool glass. But the cold fizz went down harsher then she expected and she immediately began to sputter and cough.
He shook his head and grabbed the bottle from her hand. “Silly woman. That’s what you get for trying to show off.”