See Me(69)

“Eleven.”

“I take it that we won’t be riding together.”

“That’s probably not a good idea. It’s going to be hard enough to prepare them for your visit. Because this time, they’re going to ask a lot of questions.”

“Okay.”

Maria put down her mascara wand and took his hand. “Does that bother you? Or scare you?”

“No.”

“Well, it sure scares me,” she admitted, returning to her makeup. “The whole thing is terrifying, in fact.”

He took a sip of coffee. “What are you going to tell them about me?”

“Hopefully, as little as possible. Any details will just spur more questions that you should answer, not me.”

“What are you hoping for today?”

“For my mom to get through it without tears, and my father not to demand that you leave the house.”

“That’s not a very high bar.”

“Trust me,” she said. “It’s higher than you think.”





CHAPTER 13





Colin





C

olin pulled up to Maria’s parents’ house just before eleven. He had no idea how the conversation with her parents had gone, and as he stepped out of the car, he figured there was no use in speculating, since he’d find out soon enough anyway.

Had Lily been around, he would have asked her what he should bring to a family brunch, but she and Evan were already at church when he got home, and in the end, it probably wouldn’t do much good anyway. Like everyone else, they were going to form their own opinions, and a basket of muffins wasn’t going to alter them.

Still, as he walked to the door, he hoped that Maria was all right. Earlier, on his way home, he’d thought about her virtually nonstop, one series of images giving way to the next, each more ravishing than the one before. That was a first for him, she was a first, and he took a deep breath, reminding himself that even though he wouldn’t shy away from any questions, his answers could be framed in a lot of different ways and still remain honest.

He knocked at the door and it swung open almost immediately, revealing Serena. He noticed again how much she resembled her older sister, though she seemed even more high-strung than usual, which probably wasn’t a good sign.

“Hey, Colin,” she said, stepping aside to let him in. “I saw you walking up. Come on in.”

“Thank you. How did your dinner go last night?”

“Awesome,” she answered. “But I should be the one asking you.”

“We had a good time.”

“I’m sure.” Serena winked. “Maria’s in the kitchen with Mom,” she said, closing the door behind him. “And I’m amazed you were able to get her to go dancing.”

“Why?”

“If you don’t know yet, I think you need to spend even more time with her,” she answered. “But here’s a word to the wise – I wouldn’t get too descriptive about last night, especially anything that might have happened after the dancing. It’s already a little tense around here. I have a hunch that my parents think you’re a terrorist.”

“Okay.”

“I might be exaggerating, but who really knows?” she babbled. “I didn’t get here until the three of them were finished talking, and my parents barely said hello to me. All I really know for sure is that my dad wasn’t smiling and my mom kept making the sign of the cross, despite how well last night’s dinner with the director of the foundation went… not that my little challenges matter right now. Anyway, I decided it was best if I just waited for you in the living room.”

By then, they’d reached the kitchen, where he saw Maria standing over a sizzling frying pan while her mom pulled a small baking pan from the oven. The air smelled of bacon and cinnamon.

“Colin’s here,” Serena called out.

Maria turned and he noticed she was wearing an apron. “Hi, Colin,” she said tightly. “You remember my mom, right?”

Carmen forced on a plastic smile, and though Colin might have been imagining it, she seemed paler than she’d been just a couple of days earlier. “Good morning, Mrs. Sanchez,” he said, figuring a bit of formality was probably a good bet.

“Good morning.” She nodded and, obviously uncomfortable, turned her attention back to the pan as she placed it on an iron rack on the counter.

Serena leaned toward him. “My mom decided to do an American breakfast just for you,” she whispered. “Bacon and eggs, French toast, cinnamon rolls. Of course, that was before Maria told her about you.”

Maria pulled a couple of strips of bacon from the pan and set them on a napkin-covered plate off to the side of the stove. “Hey, Serena? Can you take over for a second?”

“Be glad to,” Serena chirped. “But only if I get to wear the cool apron.”

Maria started toward them, slipping off the apron as she walked and passing it to Serena like trading places was normal. In this kitchen, Colin assumed it was. Serena started chatting away with her mother in Spanish as she donned the apron.

Up close, Colin noticed tension in the way Maria was moving. She gave him a quick peck on the cheek, careful to keep a bit of distance between them. “Any trouble finding the place?”