“Thanks, Alma. I was so worried,” Carlos whispered, a weight visibly lifting from his shoulders. “You know I’m loyal to you.”
“Always here for you, Carlos. Always,” Alma reassured him.
“Thanks.” He paused. “You know, you reacted exactly how Jaime said you would.”
Alma spit up her coffee. Jaime? “Jaime? You can work for him but don’t be talking about me. I’m your sister. Your blood. Jaime wasn’t even your friend—he was just my ex.”
“That’s kind of harsh. We were always friends.”
He was right. That was uncalled for. “True. Sorry. I’m just testy, that’s all.”
“Relax, chica. I love Jaime. He was so cool.”
“I am relaxed, but I can’t believe you are gossiping to him about your own sister.”
“Well, that’s the thing, Alma, this isn’t about you. I was so excited about this, but didn’t want to piss you off. I needed to talk to him about it, because I don’t want anyone else around me to think I used my sister’s ex to get this job. I did ask him, but dammit I deserved this job. He has money and he wants to give back. I know you’re all pissed off at him for wanting to start a tequila line with you, but I swear he didn’t do that to use you. That’s not like him.”
Damn. “You’re probably right.”
“I am right. You were too focused on thinking he was using you. He wasn’t, you know. He’s all broken up about this. He loves you. You do realize he’s a millionaire and could’ve paid anyone in the world toteach him about tequila. Yeah, that may have not been the best reason for him to come up here, but it wasn’t malicious. Hedid want to see you; he was probably just trying to find an excuse to do it.”
Alma gulped. Guilt washed over her. “You’re right. I was too harsh on him. And he does have so many good qualities.”
“He’s amazing. A great guy. Generous. Kind. You’re a fool. Shit, if we weren’t both straight, I’d snag him myself.”
Ha. “Such a good brother.”
“Just keeping it real.”
“Well, speaking of your love life, give me some tea. Are you seeing anyone?”
“I’m not seeing anyone right now. I love wounded birds. It’s my curse.”
As the day went on, they talked more. Carlos shared his hopes for his new program and even more about his finances. For the first time in his life, he actually thought he had a future and could get paid for doing what he loved and giving back to his community. Alma listened, her heart swelling with pride for the brave, incredible person her brother was.
It was late when Carlos finally stood to leave. At the door, he turned, looking at his sister, a smile touching his lips, a smile that held a thousand unspoken words of gratitude.
“Good night, Alma. Thank you for being you,” he said, his voice thick with emotion.
“Good night, Carlos. And remember, I’m always proud of you,” she replied, her words a promise.
As Alma closed the door, she leaned against it, a sense of peace settling in her heart. Her brother had been honest with her, and in doing so, had brought them closer than ever. Alma smiled, her heart full.
But she also realized that Carlos was right about Jaime. And maybe, just maybe, he deserved forgiveness.
She needed to talk to him face-to-face.
She grabbed her phone, made a reservation, and then packed her bag.
It was time to go to San Diego.
—
The next evening, her plane touched down. San Diego was beautiful out her window as she flew in over the water. And the airport was close to downtown, not out of the way like San Francisco’s airport, which was outside the city and always chaotic.
She took an Uber straight to Jaime’s place. She had begged Santi for the address and made him promise to figure out some way to make sure he was home. Santi swore that Jaime had turned into a homebody since he returned to San Diego but that wasn’t good enough for Alma. Santi relented and pretended to have an urgent package delivered.
The Uber dropped her on the steps of an oceanfront mansion. Damn, he lived here? She knew it would be nice but didn’t imagine anything like this. Then again, she lived in an oceanfront condo. But her place was nowhere near as expensive as this one.
