CHAPTER38
LUCIA
Istand on the doorstep to my parents’ home with Matthias’ warm, soft hand held tightly in mine. I’ve never been so nervous to go into this house before, not even the first time I ever visited when I was pregnant and alone. Jax stands on the other side of me and he gives my hand a quick, reassuring squeeze.
“It will all be okay,” he whispers just as my mom opens the door to us.
“Why didn’t you use your key, sweetheart?” she says as she pulls me into a hug before bending down to Matthias, who flings his arms around her neck.
“Nana,” he squeals.
“I forgot it,” I say with a shake of my head. “I didn’t come in my car.”
“Oh.” My mom stands tall again and smiles at Jax. “Did you drive together?”
“Yeah,” I reply.
“Then come on in, the two of you. Your father is in the garden.”
We all follow my mom into the house and Matthias scampers off ahead to find his grandpa and the twins. By the time we get to the garden, Matthias is playing with my little brothers and Hugo on the lawn.
“I didn’t realize you were coming over tonight, amigo?” My father smiles at Jax and I feel a wave of fresh guilt almost overwhelm me. He is so happy to see his best buddy here and has no idea we’re about to break his heart.
“I came with Lucia,” he says and the tone of his voice makes the hairs on the back of my neck stand on end. Dear God! He’s going to do this right now. “We have something we need to talk to you both about.”
“Okay?” My father frowns while my mom closes her eyes and sits beside him, as though she knows what we’re about to say.
Jax looks to me and I draw in a deep breath. “Let me?” I plead as I place my hand on his arm.
He stares at me for a few seconds before he nods his agreement.
“Jax and I are dating,” I say the words super quick as though they’ll somehow hurt less.
“What?” my father growls as he looks to Jax to tell him that I’m completely delusional and have lost my mind.
My mom stays silent but she places her hand over his, which is now balled into a fist on the table.
“It’s more than dating,” Jax says as he shoots me a look that says I could have worded that better, but what else was I supposed to say? We’re screwing each other’s brains out every chance we get?
“No.” Alejandro shakes his head and starts to laugh, but it’s not a pleasant sound. “You’re both fucking with me.”
“We’re not, amigo.” Jax replies.
My mom holds onto my father’s hand as though she’s trying to channel some of her calming energy through him somehow, but it’s not working. He glares at Jax, his face full of fury—his eyes are burning so fiercely that my stomach starts to flutter, and not in that nice excited way, but in that I’m gonna throw up way.
“You had better be fucking with me,” he snarls as he edges forward in his seat, every ounce of his anger directed at Jax. “Because that is my little girl you’re talking about and you are old enough to be her fucking father!”
“Papi,” I snap.
“Stay out of this, Lucia,” he growls.
Stay out of it? Like it doesn’t concern me? What the hell?
“I wouldn’t fuck with you about this.” Jax glares back at him. “We’re not just dating, Alejandro. This is serious—”
“Serious?” he shouts, his face contorting with rage. That word seems to have been the final straw, the match that lit his incredibly short fuse because he jumps out of his seat, launching himself at Jax and landing a right hook on his chin with such force that the two of them stagger backwards and end up on the floor.
“Papi!”