Page 149 of Face Off With Fate

She rolled her eyes, but her smile spread from ear to ear. “I haven’t seen her this happy in a long time, but she always is around you.”

“And I’m only happy around her.”

The sun dropped, turning the yard a golden hue, dim enough to see the string lights that had kicked on.

I moved toward the outdoor sectional, looking down to find Goldie’s head in Graciella’s lap. Her tiara had finally lost the battle and was strewn on a cushion beside her, one little hand still loosely gripping her candy bag, even in sleep.

“She went down about ten minutes ago,” Graciella said, keeping her voice low and stroking Goldie’s blonde strands. “I didn’t want to move her to bed yet.”

“She’s fine.”

I sat down beside them, close enough that my thigh pressed against hers, and laid my arm across the back of the couch. My fingers found the ends of her hair without thinking about it.

God, she was beautiful.

The way the light caught the side of her face, the way she was looking down at Goldie, had my heart aching.

It was soft. Unguarded.

Full of love.

A few people still moved through the kitchen and the sounds floated out to the patio. The low murmur of voices, someone laughing, the scrape of a dish. My mom and Graciella’s mom were at the sink, hand washing the pile of dishes I’d told them twice I would handle.

Everyone was talking with their whole bodies. Hands moving, heads tilting. My mom nodded along even though I was pretty sure she only caught half of it.

“Your mom’s a fast learner,” Graciella said, following my gaze.

“She told me she’s meeting up with yours soon.” I pulled a loose strand of her hair, gently, until she looked at me. “She’s teaching her to make something called—” I tried to remember how to pronounce it. “Albóndigas?”

Graciella laughed, her shoulders shaking as she tried to keep quiet. “That was…something.”

“Close?”

She shook her head, lips twisted to hold in her laugh. She glanced back toward where our moms stood.

“She asked how much salt she’s supposed to add for the tomatillo, and I told her I just feel how much salt I think is good, and go with that. She looked at me like I’d said something wild.”

“You did.” I smirked, knowing exactly what she was talking about because I’d watched her do it. She’d cup her hand, pour salt into the middle, twist her lip, and cock her head as if listening for something before finally adding it in.

“It is a feeling.” She looked down at Goldie, adjusting her hand slightly. “Think she had fun today?”

“You mean for the party you threw her for no reason?”

She clucked her tongue. “She asked me for a princess party. What was I supposed to do?”

“Say it’s a lot of work and to wait for her birthday.”

She made a tisking noise with her tongue. “Not that much work.”

I shot her a look. “You were on the kitchen floor at two in the morning.”

“I lost track of time.” She tipped her head against my shoulder, voice dropping. “I liked doing it. I like—” She paused, her fingers stilling in Goldie’s hair for a second before continuing. “I like that she asked me.”

I pressed my mouth to her temple.

“She’ll probably ask you for a lot more now that she knows you’ll do it,” I said.

“I know.” Her voice was quiet. “I want her to. Want her to trust me.” Graciella turned her face toward me. “Like you do.”