CHAPTER39
LUCIA
Ipop my head into my parents’ bedroom to see Matthias, Tomás and my father lying on my parents’ huge bed watching cartoons. Tomás’ eyes are fluttering closed so I walk quietly over to the bed and sit on the edge.
“You sure you want to sleep over, munchkin?” I whisper to my son.
“Yes,” he says and cuddles against my father’s chest.
“Okay.” I bend and give him a kiss on the forehead. “Night, little guy.”
“Night, Momma,” he smiles.
“Night, Tomás.” I reach over and brush my younger brother’s hair.
“Night, Luch-ee,” he mumbles.
“Goodnight, Papi,” I say softly.
He grunts in response—actually grunts instead of speaking. I roll my eyes and stand up before walking out of the room.
After I’ve looked in on Dario and said goodbye to my mom, I grab my purse and the keys to my car which are now on the table near the front door. I smile at the sight of them, knowing that Jax had someone drop off my car like he promised he would. The thought of seeing him soon makes my insides warm and tingly.
“Lucia!” My father’s voice cuts through the silent hallway.
I draw in a deep breath and turn to face him. So now he wants to speak to me. I had hoped to get out of here without having this conversation, but who am I kidding, right?
He walks toward me and I wait for him to speak first. “Are you going to see him?”
“Yes, Papi,” I reply with a sigh.
“No.” He shakes his head, anger darkening his features. “I forbid you to have anything to do with him.”
“What?” I frown at him. “You can’t forbid me to see anyone. This is not 1920.”
He glances down to the car keys in my hand and I can almost hear what he’s thinking. He bought me that car. He owns my apartment too. I plan on getting a place of my own as soon as I save enough from my paychecks. I’m not used to being so looked after and it took me a long time to accept that he and my mom would pay for things like that for me. I know that most people aren’t as lucky as I am, but it was him who persuaded me to swallow my pride. It would have been hard for me to get my degree and work part-time while being a single mom too, so I accepted their generosity. As he told me time and time again, that is what parents do for their children. I suppose I spent so much of my life without a decent parent that I forgot what that looked like.
I wonder now if he’s going to make me regret my decision and use any of that against me. I know he must want to. He is a man who gets what he wants by any means necessary and he’s used to being the one in control of every situation he finds himself in.
It makes my heart almost burst with love and respect for him when he doesn’t. He chooses another tactic instead though. “The gates are locked. Nobody is getting through them until the morning,” he snaps.
“Fine!” I pop my keys into my purse. “I’ll walk.”
“Over my dead body,” he snarls.
“Dad,” I shout and the word seems to stop him mid-rant. I have never once called him dad before. The twins call him dad or daddy, but not me. I always call him Papi and even though it means the same thing, somehow this word feels more.
Tears fill his eyes and I wonder if he is going to relent. But he is Alejandro Montoya—backing down is not in his DNA. “You are not leaving this house,” he snarls.
I suck in a breath and hold my head high, just like he taught me to. “I am. I know that you’re upset, but this is my life. Be mad at me all you want to but it’s not going to change how I feel about Jax.”
He scowls at the mention of Jax’s name.
“I love you, Papi, but I love him too and he’s the man I want to be with.”
“He’s taking advantage of you,mija.”
“You really think that? The man who you trust more than any other person in the world?”