“Mami and Papi are finishing breakfast.” Enrique gestured toward the house with the fishing poles, then continued moving to Papi’s pride and joy.
The Salvación, Papi’s older-model Everglades fishing boat, had witnessed countless significant Navarro familia moments over the years. Luis and his brothers learning to navigate the channels in search of the best fishing and dive spots. José and Ramón reeling in their first fish. Carlos proposing to Gina at sunset the day after high school graduation.
Like its name implied, the 24-footer had also offered many of them salvation in the form of time spent soaking up the serenity of the water after a tough shift at the station. Now Luis hoped the old fishing boat could help him salvage his relationship with his brother.
“I’m not looking for Mami or Papi. I came to talk to you.”
Enrique’s boat shoes squeaked on the fiberglass deck as he climbed aboard the Salvación and stepped to set the gear by the center console. “I’m a little busy. We want to get out on the water before an afternoon storm rolls in.”
“This won’t take long.”
“Look, I had a crappy shift.” Enrique spun to face him. Tired lines bracketed his mouth. Dark shadows half-mooned under his hollowed-out eyes. “We lost a fifteen-year-old. Kid overdosed on fentanyl after his girlfriend broke up with him.”
Coño. Luis grimaced, empathy burning in his chest. It was never easy losing a victim. But when the call involved a kid, that stuck with you. Long after your shift was over.
“Lo siento.” Condolences rarely helped, but Luis uttered the words out of respect for his brother’s obvious distress.
Enrique shrugged off the sentiment.
Like every Navarro, Luis knew his brother prided himself on believing the invisible Teflon body armor they mentally strapped on at the station made them invincible. Without it, or the ability to compartmentalize when shit went bad, no firefighter lasted very long on the job.
Or they wound up getting put on forced time off.
Luis winced, reminded of his own culpability in his current predicament.
“It is what it is. I’m fine.” Enrique’s dull voice was drowned out by the grating noise as he slid a blue and white chest cooler into the far corner of the boat’s stern. Then he bent to peer at the engine nearby.
Luis recognized his brother’s game. After a tough shift, keeping busy, especially with mundane activities, helped dull the troubling images, sounds, and smells that were hard to forget.
“Did the chaplain stop by the station this morning?” Luis asked. Not that he had availed himself of those services too often over the years.
“I bugged out before he showed up. I’m good, just feel for the kid’s parents. It was senseless. Avoidable. Same as that college girl texting while driving a couple weeks ago.”
“Same as Mirna.”
Busy inspecting the bait prep area, his brother froze at Luis’s calm mention of his ex’s seldom-spoken name. Chiseled jaw stiff, lips a thinly pressed line of stark anger, his brother straightened and faced him. A small shake of Enrique’s head warned Luis that his brother edged closer to the fighting line. Luis knew exactly how that felt. He’d toed that line for years.
It drained a man. Made him lash out at the wrong people. Like the woman he loved.
One hand outstretched in entreaty, Luis stepped toward the Salvación. “I don’t want to argue. Or rehash the past.”
Enrique’s body stiffened. His fists tightened at his sides, but he remained silent.
“Mistakes were made on all sides. Including mine,” Luis admitted. He scraped a trembling hand over his head, gripping his nape as the truth finally broke free. “Mostly Mirna’s. But I should have caught the signs. Part of me knew something was off.”
Antsy and uncomfortable under his brother’s sharp scrutiny, Luis paced along the edge of the concrete seawall, his gaze drawn to the Gulf at the end of the canal. He’d spent innumerable hours out there seeking solace. Sara had taught him he had to work for it. Peace of mind and heart wouldn’t magically find him.
“I wanted to think I could save her from her messed-up life,” Luis went on. “But ultimately, I couldn’t save her from herself.”
“Or my spiteful threats that day.” Enrique’s gravelly admission drew Luis back to the boat.
Regret battled pain in Enrique’s dark eyes. “My bitterness, mostly aimed at another woman who wasn’t even there that day, pushed Mirna too far. I’ll live with that responsibility, that guilt, for the rest of my life.”
“Mirna made her own decisions. Good or bad. That’s on her.”
Enrique’s harsh scoff frightened the neighbor’s tabby sunning itself on the ledge separating the two seawalls. “And yet you easily forgave her. But not me.”
Shame soured Luis’s stomach. “That’s the problem. I didn’t, couldn’t, forgive any of us. Especially her, though I gave Mirna the words before she died. I couldn’t forget her betrayal. And it was easier to be mad at you than admit my own shortcomings. That kept me rooted in the past. Until . . . until now.”
“Until Sara.” Enrique spoke the words Luis had kept to himself. Uncomfortable bringing Sara’s beautiful spirit and tenacity into a conversation filled with regret and mistakes.
Luis nodded.
The sun moved behind a cloud, darkening the morning sky, but Luis’s tired spirit brightened when his brother’s stiff shoulders relaxed. Despite the tired lines marring what Anamaría called Enrique’s infamous GQ looks, a semblance of his cocky grin curved his lips, hinting at his roguish charm.
“I’m happy for you.” Enrique took the wide step from the boat onto the seawall with ease. The two brothers shook hands, then wound up in a one-armed hug.
“Gracias, hermano.”
“I’ll regret that day at Bahia Honda for the rest of my life,” Enrique said, remorse still haunting his voice.
“Let it go. Regret. Anger. They’re soul suckers.”
“I’ll keep that in mind.” Enrique’s smile twisted into a tormented grimace.
The screen door to the back porch screeched its protest as someone opened it. Seconds later, lumbering footsteps pounded down the stairs.
“But”—Enrique punched Luis playfully in the arm—“I’ll also remember today, when you showed up at Mami and Papi’s looking like a lovesick puppy.”
Luis dodged his younger brother’s second punch, then looped his arm around Enrique’s neck in a chokehold.
“You should be so lucky,” Luis grunted as they jostled, each struggling to get the upper hand in their roughhousing.
“Oye, you two going to horse around or get my boat ready so we can head out?” their father bellowed from the bottom of the steps.
Luis and his brother broke apart. Though not before Enrique took one last jab at Luis’s abdomen.
“Cheap shot,” Luis grumbled. He straightened his T-shirt, giving his brother the side-eye. “We okay?”
The weight of encumbered history slipped away with Enrique’s brusque nod.
Luis elbowed his brother playfully in the ribs, two could play the cheap shot game, before greeting his dad with a love smack on the shoulder on his way toward the house. Then, he took the back stairs by two in search of his mom. He didn’t have to go far.
Inside the screened-porch area, his mami waited. Dressed in a bright floral house bata that fell mid-shin on her plump figure, she clasped her hands as if in prayer. A tremulous smile wavered on her lips. Her beautiful hazel eyes brimmed with tears.
“¿Todo está bien?” she asked.
No, everything was not good. Not yet anyway. But he’d cleared the air with his brother. That was the first step.
Rather than answer her with words, Luis looped his arms around his mom for a hug. He dropped a kiss beside the moño of hair on top of her head. “I can’t guarantee no more fighting. But the old argument is over.”
His mami sank into his embrace with a muffled cry. Her tears wet the front of his T-shirt, but Luis welcomed their release. Th
ese tears were ones of relief and joy. They were a long time coming, and he was ashamed of his part in causing them.
He tightened his arms around her, murmuring, “Está bien,” over and over until she quieted. When she beamed a teary smile up at him and asked if he’d already eaten breakfast, he followed her inside. Cooking for her familia comforted her, and he could use a little of his mami’s comforting himself.
Memories of Sara’s first familia dinner swarmed him as soon as he entered the house. There she was, laughing with his sister in the living room. Blushing at his mami’s blunt interrogation tactics during dinner but taking them in stride.
Sara belonged here. She belonged with him.
Luis prayed he would figure out how to make amends. It couldn’t be too late for them.
No amount of forced time off would help him get his head on straight if he’d lost her.
* * *
Sara sat next to her sister-in-law crammed in the tiny third-row seat of her parents’ rental SUV as they headed to the airport Friday morning.
Her father slowed at the curve in the road that brought them to the long stretch of Smathers Beach. Sara gazed out at the light sandy shore, the wide palm trees providing shade, and the hardy bushes planted near the sidewalk edge. The shallow shoreline, with its varying shades of blue, invited sunbathers to cool off in the warm, salty water and linger on the sandbars.
She sighed, wistful for what might have been, yet refusing to cry anymore when she thought of Luis and their time together.
It seemed like just yesterday, and at the same time much longer, that she’d first seen this two-mile stretch of public beach. Its food trucks and gear rental stands parked along the wide sidewalk still beckoned. Same as a week ago when she and Luis had driven away from the airport in his truck as strangers.
The day he’d said yes to her crazy idea. The day he had answered her SOS wearing his KWFD tee and scruffy workbooks, driving his behemoth of a truck. Her very own big-screen hero come to life like many a schoolgirl’s fantasy.
But then, reality and his inability to live in the here and now had stepped in to blow up the slice of paradise she’d been living in for the past week.
Her cell phone vibrated in her hands. Another text message from Anamaría popped up on the screen. Safe travels.
Thanks! I’ll be in touch next week, Sara answered.
The thumbs-up emoji appeared under her last message.
Unable to resist temptation, Sara scrolled up to read yesterday’s part of their text thread. Anamaría had reached out, letting Sara know she understood if it was better that they change their scheduled lunch date to a video chat in the coming weeks. If Sara remained willing to offer Anamaría some business advice.
Luis’s name appeared in their thread, and Sara stopped scrolling.
Anamaría: I don’t know the details, but I’m sure my idiot brother messed up. Luis is a good guy. But let’s face it, men can be dumbasses. At least in my experience.
Sara: “Dumbass” is an apt description. :-) Please know, my offer to help you still stands. If you’re good with it, I’d rather not let my breakup with Luis get in the way.
Anamaría: I’m in. Let’s compare schedules next week and see what works. Thanks!
Working with Anamaría, helping her learn how to grow her business and brand, was an exciting prospect for both of them. Sara and her agent had been discussing the idea of her teaching an online seminar for budding social media influencers. Mentoring Anamaría would give Sara useful experience for that project making it a win-win for them both.
Of course, the idea was back-burnered now that the contract for Sara’s clothing line partnership with the investors had been electronically signed. Tomorrow afternoon, she and her agent planned to celebrate.
At least something had gone right this week.
The sorrow she hadn’t been able to ditch since Luis had walked out Wednesday evening squeezed her chest. With a heavy sigh, she leaned her temple against the passenger window’s cool glass and eyed a catamaran floating aimlessly on the water.
“You doing okay back there, sweetie?” her mom called from the front seat.
Carolyn patted Sara’s thigh. Her mother hen mode remained in high gear, as it had since Sara came down for breakfast yesterday morning. Her face puffy thanks to her crying jag.
Sara shared a sad smile with her sister-in-law, then peeked in between Robin’s and Edward’s heads to give her mom a thumbs-up.
Actually, more than finalizing the contract had gone right over their family vacation. Sara’s heart-to-heart with Robin. The beginnings of a plan to meet Jonathan and his family for a trip to Disney World later this summer. And Sara’s blossoming relationship with her mother.
Ironically, crying your eyes out in the dark while your mom strokes your hair and lists all the things about you that are amazing had a cathartic, bonding effect on people. At least for the two of them it did.
The Vance family weren’t the Brady Bunch, that’s for sure. But Robin had said it best—not that anyone would admit it to her. Over the course of their time in Key West, in part thanks to Luis’s calming disposition, they had all grown closer. Become more like a family than an institution. For that, Sara would always be grateful to him.
The airport’s green and white sign appeared ahead on the left and her dad slowed to make the turn.
“The website said there’s no curbside flight check-in,” her dad announced. “We can return the rental, then head to check in. I think, Sara, you’re United, and the rest of us are American, correct?”
“Yes, but it’s a small airport. I’m sure our gates are close.” Her mom twisted in the front passenger seat to address the rest of them.
The SUV drove between the terminal and the parking structure at a snail’s pace with Sara’s dad stopping to allow a family with two young kids to cross. As they neared the rental car return at the far end of the terminal, Sara stared up at the large mural of the cornflower blue, yellow, and white Key West Conch Republic flag painted over an entire section of the two-story building’s facade.
Inevitably her gaze strayed farther down to where Monroe County Fire Rescue Station 7 was housed. Carlos’s station. A pang of sorrow pierced her heart when she saw the parking spot where Luis’s truck was now parked—
“Stop!”
The cry burst from her and Sara’s dad stomped on the brakes. The rest of her family jerked forward in their seats.
“What the hell!” Robin scowled at Sara over her shoulder.
“He’s here. Luis is here. That’s his truck.” Sara pointed at the supersize F-150 that, second to the Fired Up, was his most prized possession.
A car honked behind them before swerving to go around. An older uniformed security guard approached, no doubt to tell them they needed to keep moving.
The driver’s side door of Luis’s truck opened. He stepped down the running board, shut the door, and moved to the front of his truck. Hands wedged deep in the front pockets of his dark jeans, the muscles in his gorgeous arms straining at the short sleeves of his red polo, he stepped toward their vehicle.
The security guard drew closer. Luis called out and waved to the guy, who smiled a greeting at him. They exchanged words; then the guard ambled back toward the arrivals area of the terminal.
“Let me out!” Sara cried.
She tapped nervously on the back of the middle seat, urging Robin, Jonathan, and Edward to hurry up, so she could climb out.
Luis stopped walking as soon as the SUV’s passenger door opened. He stood on the gravel area where they’d first met, waiting.
Heart in her throat, Sara clambered over the middle seat’s slanted backrest, hiking her floral maxi dress out of the way to avoid tripping. She landed awkwardly on the asphalt, her dress catching on the bottom seat cushion.
Jonathan and Edward had moved around back to grab her suitcase. Robin stood between the side of the car and the open door, blocking Sara in. Her sister grasped her shoulders, gray eyes seri
ous, her game face firmly in place.
“Promise me you’re going to make him grovel,” she demanded.
“Robin!” their parents chided in unison.
“I say grovel!” Grinning, Carolyn leaned out from the backseat to hand Sara her Goyard tote.
“You are corrupting my wife,” Jonathan complained to their older sister, wheeling Sara’s hard-sided silver carry-on behind him.
Robin ignored them all. She gave Sara’s shoulders a tiny shake. “Promise me. You’re worth it.”
Sara gave her sister a quick hug and whispered, “I promise.”
“Go get him,” Carolyn said softly.
Robin stepped aside for Sara to pass.
When she reached the sidewalk, Sara turned back to her family. “I love you.”
A smattering of “we love you, too,” “back at ya,” and Robin’s “of course you do” brought a huge grin to Sara’s face. Her siblings and Edward climbed back in the SUV. With everyone waving good-bye, her father drove off to circle the airport and try not to miss the left turn into the rental return area again.
Sara kept her gaze trained on their vehicle until it disappeared behind the redbrick ruins of the museum on the main road. She stared at the calm ocean across the street, the lone Jet Ski speeding by, skimming the water’s surface. Suddenly nervous to face Luis.
Now that her family was gone and she stood on the hot sidewalk alone, she couldn’t help wondering if maybe she had jumped the gun.
Just because he was here, the same time that she would need to arrive to make her direct fight to Newark, didn’t necessarily mean he had come looking for her. Maybe he was visiting Carlos at work again.
“Sara, will you please come talk to me?” Luis’s soft entreaty called to the lonely part of her soul that ached for him.
Grasping the carry-on bag’s hard plastic handle, she swiveled in his direction, determinedly keeping her expression bland.
“The other day you seemed to think there was nothing left to say,” she answered.
Island Affair Page 30
