Page 62 of Tempt Her

I squeeze Mateo’s hand. “Can I ask you something?”

“Anything.”

“With all your hard work. And you’re thirty now, like me. Why don’t you have a place of your own? Why do you live with Ford?”

He casts his gaze across the ocean. The sunlight makes the green rimming his light brown eyes stunning. He’s such a mix of light and dark and more captivating than the waves rolling before us.

“I guess it’s time I tell you.”

“Tell me what?”

“How, one day, I made the biggest mistake of all.”

“I won’t judge.” I squeeze his hand again. “I’ve made big mistakes too.”

He nods, still watching the waves. “When I was eighteen, I was picking up my little brother, Felix, from marching band practice. That was my family job: chauffeur. But when I got there, Felix wasn’t where he usually waited for me. I parked and waited forever, then got worried, so I looked around the stadium for him. Everyone was gone, and I panicked until I heard something under the bleachers, and there they were….”

My heart starts pounding, watching pain bend Mateo’s beautiful face.

“Some older guys were beating Felix up. One, in particular, was on him, about to do a lot worse to him because Felix is gay. We all knew it. We loved him. It was never a problem in our family, but it was for Felix. He was only fifteen, and the poor kid couldn’t catch a break. He kept getting bullied.”

Mateo clenches his jaw so tight a knot forms at its hinge. “I fucking lost it. The other two guys ran, but I grabbed the boy on top of Felix and just whaled on him. I loved my little brother. I always protected him, and this other boy was about to rape him… so I saw red. I don’t remember much. Until there were flashing blue and red lights. Until I was thrown in the back of a patrol car with cuffs on and didn’t see the outside again without bars between me and freedom for eight years.”

When he turns my way, tears well in his eyes, making the ones I’m holding back burn. “I killed that boy. I didn’t mean to. Apparently, I punched him so hard in the skull….” He trails off. Not able to say it.

I whisper, “It’s okay.”

“No, it’s not,” he answers back. “It’s not okay what I did. I served eight years for manslaughter and still feel I should be punished more.”

“You were defending your little brother.”

“Explanation isn’t justification.”

I can’t debate him. We all make big mistakes. We all have burdens to bear, so how dare we judge another?

“So where does Ford fit into all this?” I ask, helping him move on.

“When I got released, no one would give me a job. Not one that paid enough for me to live independently like a man. I was twenty-six and living with my parents and hustling for minimum wages. Until I met Ford one day at the gym I worked at. He gave me a chance. He gave me this job. When I earned enough money, I was gonna buy a place, but around here? Shit’s too expensive. So Ford sold me an acre of his land. We built one of those cool tiny homes like you see on TV, together—me, him, and Luke—and here I am.”

Pride and humility swirl in Mateo’s eyes.

I know the feeling, trying to make it on your own, and you just need a chance. I’m looking for my chance too. I know I’ll find it. And this time, it’s on my own. I’m not taking another dollar from another man ever again.

“Were you afraid to tell me that?” I ask him.

“Nah.” His thumb caresses my hand. “I know you have a good heart. I know you don’t judge people. It’smyproblem. I judge myself because I hate hearing the truth from my mouth.”

I swallow the lump in my throat. “How’s Felix nowadays?”

That lifts Mateo’s face instantly. “Fucking amazing. He’s married. His husband, Neil, is incredible. They both play for the Boston Symphony Orchestra.”

“And the rest of your family?”

“My parents are still alive and married too. I have three older sisters: Paula, Beatriz, and Raquel. They still fuck with my hair, putting it in ponytails and shit to this day. And I got two younger brothers, Felix and Enzo.”

“God, I wish I had a big family.”

“Come to Sunday breakfast with me, and it may change your mind.”

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