Page 23 of The Sweet Spot

Dear Arlo,

I never considered the possibility of finding you or of you finding me. Don’t take this the wrong way but based on how I ended up with your DNA, it never occurred to me you’d be interested in pursuing a relationship.

I joined this site for the same reasons as you and your friend, to find out more about myself. I know that, through my mom, I’m mostly Greek with some Irish thrown in. That’s what they say, but I wanted more info, like did I have any African or Native American roots? (No African, but I’m 22% Cree through my maternal grandmother.)

All I know of you is what my mom told me, and that’s all she knows, too: you are tall, with green eyes and blond hair. My mom has brown eyes, so maybe I got mine from you.

I’m still trying to wrap my mind around all of this, but thanks for reaching out. I think I’d like to stay in touch. My email address is: [email protected]

Sincerely,

Wren

Luca

“Your father called this morning,” Mãe says, raising a perfectly manicured eyebrow at me. “Again.”

Swallowing my irritation, I brush past my mother and open the fridge. I’m unofficially back at my childhood home in Walnut Creek for the summer because commuting from Santa Cruz makes zero sense while I’m working in Berkeley. Only problem is the lack of privacy and Mãe’s borderline smothering-mothering.

And then there’s dear old dad, harassing me all the way from São Paulo. I still haven’t decided whether or not I want to go.

“What else are you going to do this summer?” he keeps saying. “Sleep? Surf? Get laid? Don’t be lazy.”

Don’t be lazy.He’s been saying that to me my entire life. I’m far from lazy. I’m just not the workaholic he is.

Mãe’s spoon clicks rhythmically as she stirs her coffee. “Youneed to stop avoiding him, baby.”

“I’m not avoiding him. I’m just busy.” I shove a bagel into the toaster and check my watch; I have barely a half hour before I need to be on the road.

“He’s a pain in the ass. I know,” she laments. “But he’s your dad and he loves you. He just wants you to be successful.”

I know she’s right. So, why does taking this internship feel like forcing a square peg through a round hole?

“Luca,” Mãe presses, warning lining her voice. She’s about respect just as much as she is about love, and she won’t hesitate to swat me if she thinks I’m ignoring her. It doesn’t matter that I’m almost twenty-one and have over a foot on her.

“I hear you, Mãe. I’ll call him while I’m driving in.”

“Hey.” Coming up beside me, she reaches up and strokes my cheek. “You don’t have to let him bully you into going if you don’t want to go. Just let him say his piece, okay?”

Forty minutes later, I’m heading through the tunnel on my way to Berkeley. The phone rings twice before Pai picks up, his voice as clear as if he was in the car beside me and not halfway across the planet.

“Luca. Hard man to catch.”

“Sorry, Pai.” I pause to take a sip of coffee. “Been a little busy.”

He chuckles. “Listen, it’s time to make a decision. Pereira’s a busy man. He has another prospect he can bring on board if you don’t accept, but I doubt they’d be as qualified.”

“I don’t know thatIam qualified,” I hedge. “I’ve been focusing on architecture and civil engineering for a while now.”

“I wouldn’t worry about it—you’ve always been a natural with software,” he says smoothly. When I fail to respond, he sighs. “Is this about being in São Paulo for the summer? I don’t understand why this is a problem—you love it here.”

“Yes, but I already have a jobhere.”

“A part-time job. As a secretary,” he says, the cordiality evaporating from his deep, mildly accented voice.

Gritting my teeth, I wait a beat before responding. This isn’t the first time we’ve had this discussion, and I don’t know what grates more: my father’s intentional obtuseness or my tendency to react to it. “As a paid intern for a research architect. I’ll be shadowing people who do what I might want to do.”

“Mightwant to do. When you get to be my age, you start to see that a career is a career. A dollar is a dollar. You’re good at coding, Luca. Get great at it. Make the money. Then you can do whatever the hell you want.”

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