Page 64 of Miguel

“What are you doing here?” Desiree demanded.

Mayan’s brows pulled together as he tried to figure out what she’d said. I gave him a moment, but he seemed to struggle.

I interpreted.

“I’m taking you to work.”

He did take his eyes off Desiree then, watching my hands move with rapt attention right before he mimicked my gestures with perfect clarity. He was a fast learner.

Desiree let out a breath. “No.”

“Yes.” He curled his fingers into his palm, lifting his pinky and moving it up and down in a gesture that meant ‘sí.’

“No.”

“Yes,” he insisted.

I rolled my eyes at both of them. I didn’t know Mayan at all, but if he was anything like Miguel, I figured Desi had a challenge on her hands. She was stubborn as a burro, and a look at Mayan’s obstinate expression, I knew she was in for a fight. “I’ll let the two of you hash this one out on your own. See you later, Desi.”

Her eyes pleaded with me to not leave her alone with him, though I knew it wasn’t out of fear of his stature, of the danger he presented. It was something deeper. Something I was sure not even Desiree realized yet.

I had a feeling shelikedhim and was fighting off that attraction as hard as she possibly could. Maybe she was confusing desire with irritation and didn’t know how to navigate that. But she was going to have to come to terms with it, and I didn’t want to be caught in the middle of that.

I arrived at work a short while later. My students started to arrive, and I received them at the door with a wide smile plastered on my face. And when I saw a particular student walk up, my heart beat faster and faster as my gaze trailed up to find his father behind him.

I averted my gaze quickly before I could allow myself to feel anything, even when it felt like my heart was about to jump out of my chest. Momentarily, I was distracted by the sight of Zeke, thrusting a bouquet of flowers in my direction.

“Oh, these are so beautiful, Zeke!” I took them from him and smiled. A smile which he returned almost timidly.

His hearing aids were in his ears, the little lights glowing. Then, I watched as he brought his fingers near his nose, and began to sign. “Flowers for you.”

If a heart could swell, I would’ve been floating in the air right then. “Zeke… gracias.” I made sure I spoke and signed, shuffling the flowers in my arms to do so.

He smiled and then turned around to look up at Miguel. I did the same. Seeing the proud, fatherly smile on his face made me forget all my anger and frustration I’d had.

Maybe I was weak, but there was nothing sweeter than this interaction, than that smile, than Zeke searching for his dad’s approval.

Miguel ran a hand through Zeke’s curls, his gesture of caring. “I’ll pick you up after school,” he said slowly. He fumbled through the signs, but Zeke paid rapt attention to them regardless before he nodded and swept past me into the school.

“Maestra Flores,” Miguel said coolly. There was no hint of the expression he’d last worn when we were together. No anger or hurt, though a familiar heat flared in his eyes as he took me in from head to toe.

I hadn’t dressed to impress, opting to wear comfortable jeans and boots and a loose, collared blouse, yet he stared at me as though I was naked. Like he could see beneath the material and the wet lust beneath.

“Señor Lopez…”

His lip twitched. “How are you? How was your weekend?”

“I’m good. My weekend was…” I looked around to make sure no one was paying attention to us before I turned my attention back to him. “There was some weird guy in a leather vest that said ‘Prospect’ outside my apartment following Desi and I around. You know anything about that?”

“Hmm, can’t say that I do, Maestra Flores.”

“Mhm…”

There was a moment of awkward pause in which we took each other in.

“Lorena,” Miguel finally broke the silence, “I’m sorry.”

“For what?”

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