Sam waved at someone behind me. I turned, half expecting to see Charlie, but it was only Georgia, pushing through the thin crowd to our table. Sam reached up and dropped a kiss on my sister’s cheek, making her blush brighter than the magenta lights over the dance floor. “Where’s Mom?” she asked.
I pointed to the bar, where our mother was deep in conversationwith Javi. He tipped his head back and laughed at something she said. Whatever it was seemed to scandalize Vero, and he reached an arm around her hip as she burrowed her face in his shoulder. His thumb casually stroked the place on her lower back where her leggings concealed the letterJthat I knew was tattooed there—the one that matched theVon Javi’s chest. My mother passed them each a shot glass. She pointed out our table and gestured for the bartender to bring more.
“Who’s that with Vero?” Georgia asked, donning her cop face.
“That’s Vero’s friend Javi,” Sam answered. “And no, we’re not giving him the third degree. I’m sure your mother has already handled that, and he obviously has her seal of approval.” Georgia watched our mother with an open-mouthed stare as she took Javi by the hand and led him to the dance floor.
Sam dragged Georgia down into our mother’s empty stool. I pushed the margarita toward my sister.
“Javi and Vero have known each other since they were kids,” I assured her. “He’s very nice and she’s crazy about him, so don’t go all angsty cop on him.”
A server arrived balancing a tray of margaritas, along with several shot glasses. She offloaded them onto our table and we began passing them around.
“Mom looks like she’s having a good time,” I mused.
“How much has she had to drink?” Georgia asked.
“Not enough for you to get worked up about,” Sam said, passing her a shot.
“Did you know Mom and Dad were having problems?” I asked.
Georgia shrugged. “No, but I figured. Not counting the night Delia was born and the day Steven left you, I can’t remember the last time she left Dad alone overnight.” She winced as she tasted her drink.
“You saw Dad before you left. Did he say anything?”
“Only that Mom was upset with him and he had no idea why. You know how he is. He said she’d get over it and be back in a few hours.”
“That was three days ago.”
“Which means the meat loaf she left him has probably thawed. He’llbe fine.” Georgia gave me a playful shove. “Quit worrying. They’ve been together for forty years, Finn. A couple of days apart isn’t going to kill them. It might even do them some good. You know, distance makes the heart grow fonder and all that stuff. It worked for you. You and Vero were barely gone before Nick had Sam and me packing our bags into the back of Garrett’s Suburban so we could come looking for you.” My mind stuck stubbornly on that image, though I couldn’t place why.
“Now that the goose chase for Feliks is over, we can probably all head home tomorrow.”
“You think Vero will be ready to say goodbye to her boyfriend by then?” Sam teased.
“Javi lives in Virginia,” I said cautiously. “He caught a ride up here a few days ago. We have room to squeeze one more person in my mom’s SUV. We can give him a lift home.”
Sam frowned. “That sounds a little cramped. Maybe you and Nick can ride back together with Charlie.”
My lips were feeling a little too loose from the tequila, and I was cautious of the direction the conversation was veering. I had no idea where Charlie had gone after we’d ditched him on the boardwalk that afternoon, and I certainly had no intention of ever getting in a car with him again. I stood up, pleasantly light on my feet. “I should go save Javi before Mom starts planning another wedding.” Sam laughed, giving my sister an affectionate squeeze as I excused myself from the table. I meandered across the dance floor and tapped my mother’s arm to cut in. A sheen of perspiration gleamed on her brow, the color high in her cheeks as she passed Javi off to me.
“Doing okay?” I asked, looping my arms around his neck and letting him lead.
“I’m fine,” he said, staring over my shoulder. I glanced back to where Vero was dancing to “Super Freak” with my mother, and Javi fought back a grin. “Your mom’s pretty great. She reminds me of Norma.”
“I’ve never met her,” I said, feeling a stab of guilt that I hadn’t ever even spoken to Vero’s mom. Apparently, she lived just across the bridge in Maryland, a short drive away, but Vero had kept her family at arm’slength, reluctant to involve them in her legal troubles. The few times I’d suggested we invite her mother to visit, Vero had been quick to shut me down.
“Norma’s feisty,” he said, fondness twinkling in his eyes as he watched Vero dance. “She’s strong-willed. Not afraid to call it like she sees it. She’s a lot like Vero.”
“That must be why my mother likes you.”
Javi laughed. “That would be one thing she and Normadon’thave in common.”
I touched his cheek, redirecting his gaze. “Vero’s a grown woman, Javi. She knows what she wants, and she can make her own choices.”
“Yeah, well, we don’t always want things that are good for us.”
“Maybe not,” I agreed, “but that doesn’t mean we want them any less.”
