Page 46 of What She Wants

“Someone needs to! Have you looked around? Like really looked around? No one wants you here but me and Abuela and this is how you act? Why do you do this? Can you just be my mom for once?”

“How dare you, I’m always your mother. I’ve been around for you while your dad was running around from country to country. Tour to tour.”

He holds up a finger. “Stop it. It’s a lie and you know it. That’s another thing you almost took from me. I visited him when I was about fourteen. You had me so mad at him I was ready to tell him I was never coming back. He thought I was asleep when you two argued on the phone and I heard you tell him that you had to suppress pictures of us again because he’s not allowed to claim me in the media and if it happened again you’d make sure he’d never see me again. This isn’t something I was told. I. Heard. You. The majority of the island don’t even know you’re my mother!”

She says something to him in Spanish but he holds up a hand. “ENOUGH!” The force of his growl makes me jump and I’m not near him. “This is the bottom line: I care about Esme and that’s not changing. It’ll only get stronger. I don’t want a mistress and I sure as hell don’t want you meddling in my private life. In fact, if I had to choose between you two right now, you’d lose.”

I move away because I don’t need to hear anymore. As much as I’d love for her to be put in her place, I hate that it has to be her son to do it. Despite our status, the LeClaires are a close knit family and it’s sad that Marín can’t have a moment of peace or just enjoy his parents like we could.

I don’t realize I’m tearing up until I’m face to face with Santí . He takes one look at my face and storms into the direction where Marín was arguing with Mireya. He had the same green eyed anger his son is sporting so I doubt her night is going to get any better.

Santí ’s been a happy soul every time I’ve seen him. He even chuckled when Mireya was being a bitch to him earlier but I think he just reached his limit. I disappear into the bridal private room that so many Founder kids have christened and I sit at the mirror to try to erase any hint of tears.

Karessa comes in shortly after with Xerxes and hands him to me before she takes over my efforts.

My sweet nephew makes me smile on the inside.

“I thought you’d need some baby squeezes. His mom had equally mortified and angered him when she suggested that he should take on Yasmin. How can someone report about us for so long and be so clueless?”

“Because she sees what she wants to see and prefers to think we’re soulless entities that she can use for clickbait. Based on their argument, I think she’s just dense. She keeps hurting her son and failing to see it.”

My heart flutters because he was serious when he told her he cared about me. He was also serious when he said he’d drop his own mother for me. If it were a regular mom, I’d think that statement was cold but she’s not. She’s the cold one who’s hurting my man.My man?Welp, there's no turning back.

“Don’t let her ruin this day. That is the biggest party any of us ever had and his family is loving it.”

I hug her as best as I can to thank her for being there for me, opting to tell her everything later. It takes a cold woman to keep an innocent boy from his father. Once we’re presentable, I give my nephew some more kisses and his dimpled giggle warms my heart. Karessa tells me she’s going to hang back to feed him so I slip out in time to hear the DJ beckon me.

“Esme Delgado? Your husband said to meet him on the dance floor.”

I laugh to myself and head back into the reception area as the first verse Miguel’s “Sure Thing” bumps into the speakers.

The dance floor is damn near clear like it’s our first dance again. I can still see the tension in his eyes and body but the smile he gives me is genuine. His tie is loose and his blazer is gone but he’s as sexy as ever.

Although it’s not planned, the chorus starts as I reach for him. I know it wasn’t his goal, but this song feels like it fits more than I would think. He pulls me close as his family whistles and catcalls like we didn’t Kizomba for our first dance. We start dancing to the song and people join us on the dance floor. After the second verse, he starts singing along to the chorus, it soothes the rest of my frayed nerves enough for me to be fully in the moment. I can get used to all of this intimacy.

The song fades out and the more upbeat dance music starts again. Marín drops another kiss on me.

“It’s time for the Karaoke you had to have,” he announces.

Santí intercepts him on the way to the stage while they speak to Desi, they seem to agree to a song they all know then move to the DJ.

“What are they about to do?” Imala asks when she walks up.

“Start the Karaoke,” I answer while wiggling my eyebrows.

“Oh, that means we need to move to the front.” We laugh as we make our way through the dancing couples.

Marín was serious when he said he had the music covered. I handled no part of this. There is a small screen in front of the microphones but a bigger screen in the back.

The screen readsDe Vuelta Pa' La Vuelta by Daddy Yankee and Marc Anthony.I don’t think I’ve ever heard that song but I’m about to watch it like I love it. The first set of lyrics pop up and I notice that they show in English and Spanish. Smart.

Marín starts singing Daddy Yankee’s part and I soon see that it’s a break up song but when Santí comes in on Marc Anthony’s part I know for sure who picked the song. His part is all about how the woman didn’t care about him and now she’s not welcome. It even suggests that she can tell people he was the bad guy. The part that would cut me the most is where he said she lost when she lost him but he lost when he met her.

They start dancing to the beat, both doing their own salsa moves. It’s amazing how much they are alike. Desi jumps in to do the rap portion of Daddy Yankee’s park and it gives me time to appreciate how attractive he is as well. I need to watch more baseball if all the professionals look like him. He has that do-you-want-a-thug low cut which tells me he’d look damn good bald. His suit looks tailored like the rest of the groomsmen and shows his definition. Maybe I should throw a pool party while the Delgados are in town.

I glance around to see if the wicked witch said and she’s at the table with her mother looking like she’s ready to go. Mireya stands only for her mother to put her hand on her arm to tell her to sit. I’m not sure what’s going on with them but there is some tension.

Once the song is over, Marín steps aside and leaves his dad alone. I’ve watched my dad long enough to know when a speech is coming.

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