Angel stood up, taking her in from top to bottom and smiled. “You look beautiful.”
Just as she’d begun to smile, her phone dinged. She glanced at her phone then back at him any sign of a smile gone now. With steps that appeared almost measured, she walked to her phone and picked it up. Tapping on the screen, she read the message but didn’t say anything, and Angel walked toward her slowly.
“Is that from Leo?” he asked cautiously, and to his surprise, she nodded, but her eyes were still glued to the screen.
Feeling his insides warm again, he calmly asked, “What did he say?”
He was close enough now that when she tilted the screen his way he could see the only two words Leo had responded with.
I’m sorry.
Angel glanced up at her and saw that already those beautiful green eyes were swimming in fresh tears. She quickly swatted at tear that nearly escaped the corner of her eye and then began to respond.
“What are you—?”
Before he could finish asking, she showed him the screen with her own two-word response.
Fuck you.
Without the slightest hesitation, she hit send and then took a deep breath as she dropped the phone in her clutch. She looked up at him with a determined smile, and he noticed the tears that had begun to flood her eyes were gone now. “I don’t know about you, but I could use a stiff drink.”
Slipping his hand in hers, he kissed her temple and nodded. “Whatever you want.”
Yeah, a romantic proposal tonight wasn’t happening.
~*~
Sarah
On her fourth lap on the track around the marina, Sarah pondered the previous months’ happenings. It’d been over a week since she had responded to Leonardo’s apology text. She hadn’t heard from him again, and after her response to it, she didn’t expect to. She hadn’t even bothered trying to contact the man who’d claimed to be her dad either, and though she’d never admitted to anyone, she did check Leonardo’s Facebook page after she unfriended him, and the entire profile had been deleted. It was official. Leonardo Ortiz didn’t exist. Sarah couldn’t have felt like a bigger fool, but she was done trying to figure out why any of this happened in the first place.
Her mother had been livid. She blamed her real dad, saying he must’ve had something to do with it. Still, just like everyone else, she couldn’t understand or fathom what their intentions could’ve been.
Sarah felt bad about being so snappy with Sydney when he’d first informed her that her dad was still in jail, because he’d seen fit to further confirm his findings had been accurate. He said he felt terrible about bursting Sarah’s bubble so hastily and that he didn’t realize she’d be so upset. If Sarah had to be honest with herself, neither had she. But she explained it just as she had to Angel. The excitement of having a brother in her life had been more than she had ever imagined, and she allowed herself to get too sucked into the idea.
There was one thing she kept to herself because she knew rather than help him understand it would only further confuse and possibly even upset Angel. Having a brother like Leonardo was exciting. Except for when he was being protective and a little on the scary side, he was the complete opposite of what you’d expect from him given his looks. The sweet, even if it was a little odd, way he’d spoken to her had grown on her. So when the rug was pulled from under her, that someone who’d seemed so genuinely sweet and sincere had lied so blatantly to her, it was all the more painful.
She was only thankful that it happened sooner rather than later. It was hard enough trying to not fall apart for the sake of not freaking Angel out as it was. The longer he strung her along, the harder it would’ve been on her. One thing still gnawed at her. Though everyone told her she shouldn’t feel humiliated, she couldn’t help it. She did. Most people go their entire lives without anything like this ever happening to them. This was the second time in her life she’d been had by someone she’d trusted even if this time it’d been a more guarded trust. Was Leonardo really that good, or was she just that stupid?
Tempted to stop and have some coffee, Sarah decided it was better if she just kept going and have some at home. Her two-hour class that afternoon had been cancelled, so she decided to use the time to take a run instead. It had always been so therapeutic, and she needed the time to think alone. Angel would be picking her up at the same time as usual for their evening shift together at the restaurant.
She’d slowed to a near walk a few yards from where she’d parked her car. It was the parking lot dubbed the safest by Angel and his brothers because it was closest to all the shops and the burger joint they often frequented. It was the one she always met Sofie at, and more often than not, they’d run into someone they knew. Already today when she’d gotten there she’d seen Eric’s dad driving out of the parking lot and one of the ladies who lived in the same condo complex she did.
Taking in slow deep breaths and slowing down to a leisurely walk, she concentrated on cooling off before she got to her car or she’d be drenched the moment she sat down. The cold breeze felt good against her face, so she stopped just a few feet from her car, closing her eyes and breathing in deeply through her nostrils.
“Sarah.”
Her eyes jolted open at the sound of Leonardo’s voice, and she flinched at the sight of him in front of her car. He wore jeans and a tight-fitting black T-shirt. Both his hands were in his front pockets.
Instinctively, she started toward the car door and checked her surroundings to see who else was in the parking lot. It was still fairly early, and there were plenty of people walking to and from the parking lot.
“I just wanna talk to you,” he said, taking a step back.
Just as her hand grabbed the door handle, she glanced up to see him holding his hands in the air, the expression on his face so reminiscent of that sweet vulnerable side of him that he’d played her with for months. Instantly, the fear morphed into pain, and she hated that she still cared, cared that the sight of this guy—a guy she had no business ever speaking to again—could still choke her up.
“I’ve nothing to say to you,” she said, swinging her car door open.
“That’s fine. You don’t have to say anything. I’ll do all the talking.”
“No,” she said, getting in her car, slamming the door shut and starting it up.
She couldn’t hear what he said because her windows were up, but he held his hands together at his mouth in a pleading gesture. Putting the car in reverse, she began to pull out as he lifted his hands in the air, waving at her to stop. “The steel balls on this guy—” She started to mutter when her car suddenly hit something.
Her heart nearly stopped as she hit the brake and looked into her rear mirror at the car behind her and the annoyed guy in it, shaking his head. “Shit!”
Banging her steering wheel, she put her car in park and got out.
“What the fuck, man!” she heard the tall skinny guy in the other car saying as he got out of his car and came around to check out the damage to the front fender.
“Hey!” Leonardo was already charging toward him. “It was an accident. Watch your fucking mouth.”
The guy in the other car stopped the moment he laid eyes on Leonardo. “All right, I’m just saying—” he said, pointing at the small dent at the front of his fender.
“It’s a scratch,” Leonardo said with a scowl.
Sarah leaned into her car for her purse and grabbed it. “I’ll give you my insurance information—”
“What? For that?” Leonardo pointed at the dent. “That’s bullshit. I can punch that out right now. You don’t need to get your insurance involved.”
The guy in the other car, who’d already taken a few steps back to his car ever since he’d seen Leonardo charging at him, shook his head. “That’s okay. I don’t need your information.”
“Are you sure?” Sarah asked, pulling her insurance card out of her wallet. She waved it at the guy.” You don’t have to listen to him.”
The guy
glanced again at Leonardo, who was still staring him down. “Nah, I’m good,” he said and got in his car.
Within moments, he was gone. They’d attracted the attention of a enough people that Sarah felt safe standing there with Leonardo. So instead of getting in her car and taking off like she knew she should, she stood there glaring at Leonardo.
“How could you be so heartless?” she said, feeling the infuriating lump in her throat inflate with every breath she took, but it wasn’t just pain she felt anymore. She was furious.
“I’m sorry—”
“You said that already, and my response to that is still the same.” Sarah swallowed hard, trying to hold it together, but the more she looked at him, the stupider she felt. “Just tell me why? What did you and that other bastard want from me?”
“Nothing—”
“Bullshit!” she said, turning the heads of a few passersby.
“Okay he did,” he said, coming around the car closer to her. “But I didn’t. I swear to you, and that’s what I’m here to explain to you.”
“So explain,” she said, holding her hand out so he wouldn’t take another step.
He stopped and held his hands up again. “It’s a long story. Let’s go somewhere—”
“No!” she said, beginning to feel as if she might lose it. “I don’t need drawn-out excuses!” She sucked it in as much as she could, but she was already feeling the warm tears in her eyes, and it only made her angrier. “Just explain to me why you would be so cruel as to contact me with a blatant lie then string me along all those months—”
“I never meant to hurt you,” he said, taking a step toward her.
She peered at him, shaking her head in confusion and anger inundating her as the hot tears ran down her face. “What! What does that even mean? What do you care about anyone’s feelings? You’re nothing but a fraud!”
“No, I’m not,” he said, actually sounding insulted.
“Of course you are!” she yelled now. “You probably do this all the time. You guys probably had this planned for months—years. Just tell me what you wanted or what you still want since you’re back.”
“I want nothing,” he insisted.
“Then why are you here?” she asked, her emotions jumping from hurt to angry again, but at least she wasn’t falling apart anymore. The anger surpassed all her other emotions now. “What the fuck do you want from me?”
“It was Joseph’s idea, not mine.”
“Who the hell is Joseph?”
“The guy who pretended to be your dad,” he said, speaking faster and louder. “It was all his idea. He wanted that jewelry from your mom. A ring. That’s all. I didn’t even wanna contact you.”
“But you did!”
“I know and I can explain,” he said, taking another step toward her. “Let’s just go somewhere where we can talk more calmly, where I can—”
“No!” she cried out once again, overcome with emotion. “Just tell me why you did it!”
“Because I fell in love with you, damn it.”
Sarah stared at him, her chest heaving up and down, barely able to make sense of what he’d just said.
Chapter 23
More lies.
The guy was unbelievable and Sarah was done giving him the benefit of the doubt. She wasn’t naïve. She’d known all along there was far more than met the eye when it came to Leonardo, but this? He expected her to believe this? Obviously the guy had no intention of telling her the whole truth. She started to get in her car, knowing that having stood there listening to Leonardo’s bullshit for even this long would have Angel furious.
“Sarah, wait,” Leonardo said.
“Leonardo’s probably not even your real name. How stupid do you think I am?” she asked, pulling on the door to shut it, but he held it open. “Don’t make me scream,” she warned.
“It’s the truth,” he said, holding the door open. “Joseph isn’t your dad, but he is your uncle. He’s your dad’s brother. It’s why you have the same eyes. He’s the spitting image of your dad and why he knew he could pass for him.”
He let go of the door, but Sarah didn’t pull it shut. She sat there feeling her heart beat as if she’d been running for her life, only she knew this had nothing to do with her running.
“He contacted me months before he ever showed up at your friend’s house in Arizona,” he continued quickly, but his voice was a little calmer now that she wasn’t making a run for it. “He didn’t need your friend to tell him where to find you. He already knew, but he said it’d be more believable and you’d be more trusting if he did it that way and had you contact him. He told me to look you up and start doing my homework on you.”
Sarah stared straight ahead, thinking back at how easily she’d allowed herself to give them both the chance to come into her life. She felt even stupider but couldn’t bring herself to close the door and leave. She wanted the whole truth. Had her dad really had anything to do with it like her mother thought?
“Your dad had told him about the jewelry and how much it was worth years ago, but it wasn’t until earlier this year that he mentioned the jewels might still be around—that he’d given them to the woman who’d had his child. Joseph said he needed the money now to pay off some bad debt. He was desperate—said they were going to kill him if he didn’t pay up. He thought someone closer to your age, who you could relate to better, would have a better shot at getting the information from you. At first I refused. I wanted nothing to do with it. I didn’t have time for this. I had my own shit going on. But then one night . . .” He paused and Sarah finally looked up at him. “One night out of curiosity I looked you up. I got caught up looking through all your photos and videos, but I still wasn’t gonna do it. He offered me a portion of what the jewelry was worth if I’d help him get it, and I still refused, but by then I was hooked looking at your photos.” He squatted down so he was closer to her face, next to the car, holding on to the door. “I didn’t lie to you about my brother, and I didn’t lie to you about my first name. My brother Felipe is in the pen, and my name really is Leonardo.”
He explained about Felipe being in the same facility as her dad and how he’d already been beaten almost to death once in jail. Her dad, who’d been in much longer, had connections and influences that could protect his brother in there. Joseph had offered to put in a word to the real Omar to help protect Felipe, but even then Leonardo said he wouldn’t get bullied into anything. Then later he got word on the street that Joseph was looking to recruit someone else who might take on the job of pretending to be her brother—other guys who he knew were ruthless and dangerous. Since Felipe still had such a huge target on him in jail, Leonardo decided to do it. He’d keep Joseph from sending someone else out after Sarah, and it might get his brother some protection in jail.
“Something else I didn’t lie to you about was when I told you I felt a connection with you even before I met you. I really did. I swear some of the videos you have online, especially the ones where you’re cracking up, I must’ve watched like twenty thirty times. There was something about you that just touched me so profoundly.”
“Stop,” she whispered, shaking her head.
“Even the ones with you and Angel I watched over and over.”
“Stop.”
“After months of watching, I felt like I needed to meet you. You did something to me, and—”
“Stop it, Leonardo,” she said, getting out of the car, no longer able to sit.
“I need you to understand why I did it,” he said, following her around to the back of her car.
“I don’t wanna hear it,” she said, shaking her head and bringing her hand to her forehead. “It’s all lies. It’s what you do. You didn’t—”
“Yes, I did!” he said, coming face to face with her. “I fell in love with you.”
He said it with so much conviction Sarah almost believed him, but she couldn’t. She’d been stupid enough already. Who falls in love before meeting someone?
??
?You’re lying!”
“No, I’m not!” He took a step closer to her. “I did, Sarah. Only I didn’t know it until I actually started talking to you. This was never supposed to go on as long as it did. When it was obvious you knew nothing about the jewelry, that you weren’t going to be any help, I told Joseph it was over. We were done. That’s as far as it should’ve gone. It was supposed to end right there, and neither of us were ever supposed to meet you. I even threatened him that if he continued to contact you I’d come after him myself, but then I couldn’t stay away. I told myself if I met you just one time I’d get it out of system then I’d walk away, but then I spent time with you in Havasu, so when I tried . . .” He took a deep breath then huffed, shaking his head. “When I said goodbye that first time, it was supposed to be for good, but I just couldn’t do it.”
Sarah stared at him, remembering all the sweet names he’d called her, the way he’d looked at her in Havasu, and even the way he said things to her when the chatted online. If what he was telling her now was true, Angel had been right all along.
Leonardo took another step toward her, and she backed up against her car, her eyes lowering to his arms, those big tatted arms that had fascinated her when she first saw his photo. Then later again she’d been tempted to run her fingers over his scars in Havasu. Glancing up at him, she realized he’d been watching her, and his eyes dropped to the place where her eyes had been fixed on: the double L tattoo that peeked out from just under the sleeve of his shirt. The one he’d changed the subject about so abruptly in Havasu. She lifted the sleeve to take a better look as the reality of just how naïve she’d been began to really sink in.
“They’re your initials, aren’t they?”
“Yeah,” he said softly. “Ledesma is my last name. I almost told you in Havasu. I swear I went there with every intention of telling you everything. I figured I’d tell you the truth about my brother first and see how you’d react. But you started freaking out before I told you anything, so by the time I’d let you in about my brother, you were already so rattled I decided I couldn’t. After my first attempt to try and cut things off with you and I couldn’t do it, I decided I’d just tell you the truth.” He shook his head, looking away with a puckered frown then back at her. “I thought worst-case scenario you’d tell me to go to hell and that would be the end of it, but a tiny part of me thought I saw something in your eyes. Maybe, just maybe you’d understand and forgive me. Maybe I could even make you fall in love with me too.