Her mouth softens in sympathy. “We’re waiting on one more person and then we’ll get on the road.”
I’m anxious about being late, but I don’t want to seem like a diva, so I nod. The side door slides open, and I recoil at the rush of hot air—and then flinch all over again when I see Felix standing there with his bag.
Is he following me? Before that thought can work its way to my mouth, Sofia offers a cheerful, “Hey Felix. Hop in.”
Huh. She knows his name. I guess it’s notthatbizarre. Sofia and her sisters are running a business, so of course they have other clients, even if I tend to think of them as part of the extended Castle Claude family.
Felix is still standing on the pavement, letting the hideous humidity pour into the van. It finally clicks that he’s waiting for me to move over, even though there’s a perfectly good third row of seats. I slide over to the window, arms locked to my sides to avoid accidental contact.
“Fancy meeting you here,” he says, like we are the punch line to a hilarious joke.
Sofia puts the van in drive. “You and Virginia already know each other, right?”
Let it go, I urge him with my eyes.
“She told me her name was Katie,” Felix says unhelpfully.
“Nickname?” Sofia asks.
“Something like that,” I mumble. Luckily, she’s too busy merging into the exit lane to notice the cloud of awkwardness emanating from the back seat.
Sofia neatly slides the van in front of a slow bus, and I admire her confidence behind the wheel. I’d still be parked in the inside lane, blinker flashing. “It’s nice your flights came in at the same time, so we can all go together.”
“All go together to…?” I trail off, not following.
“Claude’s thing.” She crosses herself, and I notice she’s wearing a bright yellow sundress in place of the usual uniform. It matches the bleached streak in the front of her hair.
“What about him?” I jerk a thumb at Felix.
He frowns at me, like I’m the interloper. “What do you mean, what about me? What aboutyou?”
“I’m in the will.”
“So am I,” he fires back.
“That makes three of us,” Sofia chimes in, while I’m still reeling from Felix’s bombshell. “We should start a club.”
“Or a band,” Felix suggests.
“I’m not musical.” I present this as if it’s the primary obstacle to an otherwise fabulous plan.
“You could hold a tambourine.”
Patronizing, party of one. “How do you know Claude?”
He scratches the side of his head, like the answer is so deep and complex it requires extra thought. I make a point of notnoticing the thickness of his hair. It would probably be curly if he let it grow out, which seems unfair.
“I was basically Claude’s honorary grandchild,” Felix finally says. “He liked to say he was my—”
“Fairy godfather,” I interrupt.
Now Felix looks weirded out. “How do you know that?”
“Wouldn’t you like to know.” I chew my lip, ready to talk about something else. “You said you were here visiting your grandfather.”
“Sorry I didn’t tell you the story of my life,Virginia. I’m visiting my granddad, Alejandro Gutierrez. Claude was one of his best friends.”
I think the heat must have scrambled my brains. “That’s impossible.”
