Page 62 of Fixed Up Ever After
Clearly seeing the panic and indecision on her face, Javi jumped in because of course he did. He was too damn good. “Lola is tired. I think she wants to go home.”
“Awe, but next time you’ll come, right Ms. Lola?” Camilia piped up, speaking to her for the first time.
Her rigid posture eased some at the sound of the little girl’s voice. She still thought back to the fun day they shared at the bookstore while her father was working. Camilia was sweet and a little Javi in so many ways. She was kind and inquisitive. Plus she was interested in reading and any kids who loved reading were perfect in her books.
“Next time,” she assured, earning a cheer from Camilia. Though when the next time would be, Lola had no idea.
“Hey, amore, can you go with tía for a moment so papá can say goodbye to Lola?” Javi asked, putting her back on the ground.
Ofelia jumped in, evidently understanding they needed a moment to say goodbye. “Let’s go look at the gift shop we passed on the way in. Maybe we can find something to bring back to abuelo.”
The idea of shopping sparked an interest in Camilia because she nodded and waved goodbye. “Bye, Ms. Lola. See you soon,” she said cutely before following Ofelia off to the gift shop, leaving her and Javi alone to deal with their mess.
When they were left alone, it took a moment for either of them to talk, but instead of letting Javi fill the silence, she took initiative. “Thank you for giving me an out. Your family is lovely and I wouldn’t have minded, but I just want to get home.”
“I know you do. You have a lot on your mind right now.”
It wasn’t a question and he didn’t say it as such, but she nodded anyway. “Right. So…” She had never had any problems talking to him before, but each time she opened her mouth, she felt like she was sliding a dagger a little bit deeper into his heart. “Can we meet at the shop on Monday? I can give you the last of your payment and we could…talk.”
“About the money, Lola, I’ve been thinking and—”
Before he could finish that sentence, Lola put her hand up to silence it. “Monday, please. We can talk about it then.”
Although he didn’t look happy, he tensed his jaw and nodded. “Fine. Monday.”
“Thank you.” Although it was cruel, she leaned up to press one last lingering kiss on his lips. She wanted to remember the taste of him now that she was sober and not trying to throw herself on him. Javi reciprocated and she felt the hope behind his kiss.
She just needed a little time to figure out her feelings. Archie said she jumped into things without thinking them through and that was partly true. Some time apart from Javi would hopefully give her the answers she needed.
When she finally pulled back, the hope instantly vanished from his eyes. Something in her expression must have given her away. “I’ll see you on Monday,” she murmured, licking her lips to taste the last bit of him. Then she grabbed her suitcase and headed to the car without looking back.
CHAPTER39
Lola
Monday brought with it a mix of emotions that felt like riding a seesaw up and down. The “up” was arriving at Phoenix for the first time since traveling and walking inside with Mona to see her built-ins. She invited her best friend along since they had so much to catch up on and Mona had been here throughout the process.
Which brought her to the “down.” In a little under an hour, she was going to be breaking the hearts of two people. Which seemed self-sabotaging and dramatic—she tried talking herself out of this numerous times—but she always fell back on the same conclusion. She couldn’t start a real relationship with Javi because, ironically enough, she didn’t want to hurt him. Or herself. Jumping into another big life decision without thinking it through was not what she needed at the moment. Her focus needed to be on opening Phoenix Books.
After all, what type of relationship started as a lie? A paid lie at that. A small part of her still could not wrap her head around the fact that Javi liked her for her and not the large check he was on his way to pick up. She didn’t know how she would survive the next few weeks seeing him work in her shop but not being able to have him.
Those were problems for future Lola. Current Lola was about to see her shop. Mona parked her car behind the store and cut the engine. “You ready, Lo-Lo? Because your mind is about to be blown.” Mona grinned and got out of the car.
Lola’s chest was abuzz with nervous energy. “So ready. I still can’t believe you didn’t send me any photos of the progress, you bitch.”
That only earned a laugh from her friend who took the spare key out of her pocket and unlocked the back of the door. “Yeah, yeah, I’m a bitch. At least I’m not the dumb-ass who is about to throw away a perfectly fine man for reasons I don’t quite understand.”
Ouch. She flinched at her words. Harsh…but accurate.
This morning, Mona had picked her up for breakfast. They went to her bakery and Mattea had a spread of various pastries and juices set out for them to eat. She knew the instant Mona shut the door behind her that both women were going to demand answers about her trip and the reason she came back early and cranky.
There was no hesitation as she sat down and subsequently poured her heart out to them. She told them about the disastrous encounters with her mother, the way Javi stood up for her, the amazing night they spent together, the final fight with her mother, and her reasons to leave early.
Mona, ever the inquisitive, still didn’t understand why she planned on ending her situationship with Javi if she felt this strongly about him. It was a fair question, but not one she could easily answer.
She was trying to figure out a lot of things. The relationship fallout with her mother and how it would affect her family. She was trying to sort through her feelings for Javi and it was hard enough when they were forced to spend so much time together in close proximity. And she was also desperately trying to heal from the jabs her mother had thrown at her over the years and unlearn them.
Like she had kept saying before, she needed time and space.
