Page 67 of The Complete Truth Duet
“All I’m saying is Cora’s different for you. I’ve seen it with my own eyes. She makes you happy, Penn. And I will not judge you for wanting to hold on to that.”
“I can’t. I made a promise.”
“And I’m letting you out of that promise. I’ll take care of this.”
In theory, it sounded like a great offer. But my heart, my soul—my conscience—wouldn’t allow it. Emotion rained down over me, slicing me from all angles.
“You’re right about Lisa,” I said. “She was a free spirit in so many ways. But she needed me once. And I wasn’t there. I can do both things. That would make Lisa happy. I’ll get the girls and Cora safe and then I’ll finish what we started.”
He stared at me before giving his attention back to the ceiling. “You sure about that, Shane?”
My whole body jolted. My heart stopped. And in my very next breath, I remembered why I was there.
One in. One out.
“Please, Shane.”
“Positive.”
Cora
I was waiting on Penn to come back from getting his tools when my phone started ringing.
“Oh my God, you actually saw the bat symbol!” I exclaimed, lifting it to my ear.
“Uhhhh,” Catalina drawled. “What?”
I glanced around my empty apartment. River and Savannah were locked in their room, hopefully sound asleep after the night’s emotional turmoil, but more than likely, they were watching TV or playing on their cell phones.
“I’ve been hoping you’d call. I need advice.”
“Yes. You should leave tonight.”
I rolled my eyes. “I have five classes left. I promise I have one foot out the door. But that’s not what this is about.”
“Five classes will take you a year at the speed you’ve been going.”
I stopped pacing. “Can we put a pin in the college discussion and talk about the fact that I met a guy?”
As I suspected it would, the line went silent.
“Yes, I’ll hold while you process that tidbit of information. And while you are wrapping your head around it, I feel the need to go ahead and tell you that he is unspeakably gorgeous. Like the Voldemort of gorgeousness.”
“He was pretty hideous in the movies, so I’m not sure that’s a fair comparison.”
With a giggle, I switched the phone to my other ear. “His name is Penn. He and his brother are the maintenance guys who took over for Hugo.”
More silence.
And then a lot of not silence. “Are you insane!”
I pulled the phone away from my ear to avoid losing my hearing, but she kept right on yelling.
“Cora, what the hell?”
“They aren’t Guerreros. They’re…Walkers. Drew served time with Manuel.”
“Oh my God!” she cried. “That’s worse!”
I sank back down on the couch. “Relax. They aren’t like that. They’re good people.”
“No one who associates with my father is good people.”
“Well, Penn’s never met him. But trust me, they are nothing alike.”
“Oh my God. Please tell me you didn’t mention me.”
I huffed. “Psh. Now, you’re the insane one. I’m insulted you’d even ask that.”
“Oh thank you, Lord.”
Without a bed set up for me to flop down on, I walked to the den and settled deep into the corner of the couch, pulling my knees up to my chest. “The Lord had nothing to do with this. I’d never risk you or Isabel for a man. Even if he is insanely gorgeous, and kind, and thoughtful, and—”
She made a gagging sound. “You done yet?”
“Don’t be jealous. One day, Prince Charming will come for you too. He’ll throw rocks at your window. Then, in a very regal British accent, he will ask you to let down your leg hair so he can climb up.”
“Ew!” She burst into laughter.
It was a stupid joke, but there wasn’t much I wouldn’t say to make Cat laugh. She did it so rarely that I sat there grinning like a maniac as she lost herself in humor.
When she finally sobered, she whispered, “God, I miss you.”
“I miss you too. But, assuming you didn’t see the bat symbol and weren’t calling to hear all the juicy details about he who shall remain nameless, to what do I owe the pleasure of this call?”
“Hmmm…poverty,” she replied.
I suddenly sat up, putting my bare feet to the floor. “What now?”
“My power’s been shut off. Which we both know is nothing new, but the lady whose house I usually clean decided last minute to spend the summer in Maine, visiting her grandson.”
“Why?” I whined.
“I have no idea. Apparently, she likes him or something. The problem is: This leaves me high and dry until I can find something else.”
Catalina had spent her life as the crowned princess of the Guerrero family. Sure, they’d treated her like shit, talking down to her and using her as a pawn for whatever they needed. But the shoes she’d walked in may as well have been encrusted in diamonds. She’d never worked, and when Manuel had convinced her to take one for the team and marry the district attorney, Thomas Lyons, she hadn’t moved down the food chain. Right up until the day she left it all behind, she drove a Jag, lived in a seven-thousand-square-foot mansion, and had all of her clothes delivered by her personal stylist. On the outside, it was my dream life. On the inside, it was the same hell I lived in only with slightly better decorating.
