“Thanks for driving me and being wonderful, again. I had an amazing time today, Tom.” I wanted to say more. That tonight for the first time I’d felt like I was with someone I could trust enough to let in to my life, all of it.
“I had an amazing day too.” He paused then and I held my breath, wondering if like me this day had changed things for him, but after a few breaths we signed off, both sounding relieved.
I ended the call as my mom walked back into the room with two steaming mugs of tea.
“He’s in for Juan Luis.”
She beamed at me as she passed me my cup. “Que bueno. I can’t wait to meet him.”
She sat down and started flicking through Netflix looking for something to watch and I tried to let the stress of the last hour wash away and focus on the positive. My mom was okay, things with Tom were good and soon they’d meet.
Our worlds were coming together.
Chapter Eighteen
Tom
Tonight felt like a big deal.
I was driving up to Camilo’s mom’s place in the Bronx to pick them up and then we’d go to the Juan Luis Guerra show together. I had a hell of a time finding tickets but managed to get three together for a steep price. They were aisle seats about three rows from the stage. I wasn’t sure what seats Camilo had, but was certain we could turn them in at the box office or even sell them outside without much issue. Tickets for a Juan Luis Guerra show in the heart of Washington Heights were not going to be hard to get rid of.
Camilo had been excited about the show whenever we’d talked in the last few days, and said his mom had been in a great mood all week.
I hoped the great seats and the dinner reservations I’d made would go over well. Priya warned me I was trying too hard, but once I’d started it was hard to stop. Camilo mentioned how this was a rare treat for him and his mom, and I just wanted to make the night as special as possible for both of them. His mother was obviously the most important thing in his life, and I was feeling the pressure to make a good impression.
I pulled up in front of the building and saw them standing on the sidewalk waiting for me. It wasn’t too cold for November, but it was still chilly, so I hurried to get them inside. Camilo’s mom was shorter than him by a couple of inches and she was very slender. Her skin was fair and her hair was streaked with gray. She had it done in a fancy braid coiled around her head, and she was wearing a festive red coat. When I came around to them, she gave me a big hug and kiss.
“Tom, encantada. I’m so glad you can come with us tonight. Milito has been keeping you all to himself.” She gave Camilo a fond look as he protested.
He rolled his eyes, but that slight edge that was usually present in Camilo was just not there when it came to his mother. “Mama, please don’t start. We’re here. We’re all going to see the show together.”
She laughed at him and let me help her into the car.
After she was inside I turned to Camilo. He was in a very well fitting navy blue peacoat with a soft red cashmere scarf around his neck. I lifted his chin and went in for a kiss.
“Hola, Milito.” I teased. He narrowed his eyes at me, but his mouth was twitching like he was barely able to hold back a smile.
“I refuse to respond to that name from anyone but my mother. So don’t even try it.” I laughed and opened the passenger-side door so he could get in.
“So salty, mi amor.”
Those gray eyes flashed with humor. “Oh, Tom, if you only knew how little of my salty side you’ve seen. It’s almost a miracle how little you’ve managed to piss me off since we started dating.”
I laughed again but suspected he was being completely serious. “Don’t jinx me. I don’t want to end my streak.”
He shook his head at me as I closed the door to the car.
As we got on the road back to Manhattan Dinorah started talking excitedly. “I’m so thrilled for this show. This is my first time seeing Juan Luis in concert. I’ve been wanting to for so long. Have you ever seen him, Tom?”
I nodded from the front seat. “Yes, I have, but not in a really long time. He gave a free concert in Santo Domingo my last year of high school. That was the first time I saw him. Then maybe ten years ago I saw him with my parents and my brother in the DR. He’s great live. It should be a good night. Especially with the venue. There are going to be a lot of excited people in that theater tonight.”
Dinorah clapped her hands at that. “It’s going to be wonderful to have him right there in front of us. I love going to live music shows, there’s so much amazing energy. Too bad we won’t be able to dance.”
I smiled at that, and winked at Camilo, who was busy rolling his eyes again. “Don’t count the Dominicans out, we’re not above dancing in the aisles once things get going.” Dinorah giggled from the back.
Camilo chuckled too and shook his head.
“Don’t get too excited about how close he’ll be, Mama. Our seats are in the balcony. We will be in the same building, but it won’t be up close and personal with Juan Luis or anything.”
I stiffened when he mentioned the seats and figured this was probably the right moment to mention I’d gotten them tickets to sit with me down by the stage.
“So when I was looking for my tickets I found a group of three together.” I looked over at Camilo whose eyebrow was already higher on his forehead than I necessarily wanted to see. His voice was a little chilly when he answered me, but not fully pissed off.
“But we already have tickets, Tom.”
I tried to go for a conciliatory tone. I should have anticipated Camilo was not going to be into me buying him expensive concert tickets without telling him.
“I know, babe.” I flashed a pleading look in the mirror hoping to get some help from Dinorah. “I knew you had tickets, but I thought it would be more fun to sit together. I’ll make sure your tickets don’t go to waste. I’m sure we can return them at the box office. If not there’ll be people outside needing tickets.”
Dinorah threw me a bone from the back seat.
“I’m glad we’ll be able to sit together. I think you’re right, someone will take those tickets off our hands. Juan Luis is so popular. Right, Milito?”
Camilo was still looking at me with narrowed eyes, but he nodded at his mom and gave me a tight smile.
“Sure, that’s fine. It’ll be nice to sit together.”
I let out a breath and tried to distract us out of the tense moment by putting on some music. I hoped our night wasn’t spoiled by my going overboard.
* * *
The tickets were pretty easy to get rid of. As soon as we got to the theater, we ran into multiple people outside asking if we had extras. Within minutes Camilo handed them off to a group who were extremely grateful to get them at face value. After some curbside money exchange, we walked into the theater.
Camilo and Dinorah had never been to a show at the United Palace, so they moved slowly, their heads turning as they took in the place. The United Palace was an institution in New York City. It was right in the heart of Washington Heights, which had one of the largest Dominican communities in the city. In addition to being a music venue, it was also a functioning church and a cultural arts center.
It was a place with a lot of history and had hosted some of the greatest Latinx musicians of the last century. I’d been here a few times for shows, but it’d been a while. I’d forgotten how beautiful the architecture was, and about the elaborate woodwork all over the building. It was also amazing to be in a venue full of Latinx. Everyone was dressed to the nines and walking around excitedly as they filed into the building.
As we got up to the entrance of the theater I felt a little nervous. These seats were a lot closer to the stage, and likely much more expensive, than the ones Camilo bought. As I handed the tickets to the usher, I started to feel like I may have seriously misjudged his reaction to my ge
sture. The woman scanned them and waved her hand toward the orchestra, “You’re on the third row from the stage. Orchestra Right. Enjoy the show.”
Camilo’s eyes got so big when he heard the location of our seats, I was sure he would say something. But he just gave me another icy look and walked in. Dinorah, on the other hand, was having a moment.
“Tom, you got us seats down by the stage!” She put her arm in the crook of her son’s elbow as they made their way down the aisle. “Milito, we’re going to be so close.” Camilo smiled tightly and I could tell he was trying to be excited for her. When we got to our seats, Dinorah let out a bona fide squeal. The seats were amazing, only feet away from the center of the stage. I attempted to lighten the mood with Camilo and put my hand around his waist, pulling him close to me. He was a little stiff, but he still managed to give me a lopsided smile.
“Are you going to dance with me tonight, Camilo?”
He shook his head, bemused. “In a theater?”
“Right here,” I said gesturing to the aisle we were standing in. He laughed and I kissed him on the cheek before pulling away.
He looked around. “I’ll admit these are pretty good seats, even if someone got them without asking first.” His tone wasn’t exactly friendly, but then he looked at his mom, who was chatting with the couple sitting next to her. “But my mom is in heaven right now, so thank you.”
I bent down and kissed him again.
“So you’re not pissed at me for getting the tickets?”
He narrowed his eyes at me again so that they were almost slits but this time the humor there was obvious. “You’re hard to resist, especially when you’re clearly doing it to impress my mom. Just chill out next time okay? You don’t need to do any of that.”
I nodded, a bit mollified. “I know. I just wanted to make this night amazing for you. I know how much your mom was looking forward to it.”
He gave a weary sigh as he wrapped his arms around my waist.
“You do the most sometimes, Tom Hughes, but I’ll be damned if I can stay pissed at you.”
I grinned at him and then followed him to our seats, thinking about our plans for the rest of the night. The show would be over around nine and I’d made a nine-thirty reservation at a place in Little Italy in the Bronx close to Dinorah’s apartment where we could have a late dinner. I turned to Camilo who had joined the conversation between his mom and the couple next to us.
“You guys are still up for a late dinner, right?”
He looked inquiringly at his mom who nodded. “Yes, that way we can get a chance to talk.”
I smiled at how happy she looked. “Great, I’m looking forward to it.”
Camilo had so much of his mother in his face, his eyes an exact copy of hers. He looked at her with such tenderness too.
He was such a good son, such a good man.
Soon the lights in the theater were turned down, and immediately we felt a buzz build around the room. It was a packed house and the anticipation for the show was palpable. After a moment the band stepped out and we could see the trio of backup singers also getting in place. The cheering as they set up was already deafening. But when the tall, lanky man in his trademark beard and fedora walked out onstage and got in front of the microphone every person in the theater was on their feet at once, yelling at the top of their lungs.
Without much of a preamble the first notes of a fast and furious merengue sounded across the theater. Accordion, percussions and every instrument on the stage fired off at once and the entire place lost it. Within seconds we were all dancing and singing along. I looked over at Camilo and his mom and saw they were both swaying to the music with huge smiles on their faces.
By the fourth or fifth song the aisles were packed with people dancing. I turned to Camilo and winked at him, cupping my hand around my mouth so I could talk to him over the music.
“Los Dominicanos no juegan, Camilo.”
He laughed at my suggestive tone. “I know you fuckers don’t play. Get ready Thomas Caonabo, because Dinorah is looking like she wants to step out onto that aisle with you.”
I didn’t hesitate and extended my hand to her as the first notes of “Visa Para un Sueño” sounded around the theater.
Visa for a dream. A song about people risking everything to come to the States to make their dreams come true, just like Dinorah and I had done. She and I got to the aisle by our seats and danced with the other couples who were singing and moving as Juan Luis serenaded us. This theater could have been lit with a match just from the energy in the room.
I noticed Camilo glancing at Dinorah and me dancing. Dinorah blew him a kiss as we spun around, and he threw his head back laughing.
Suddenly what I felt for Camilo slammed against me like a brick wall. The way that his eyes followed Dinorah and me as we danced. The softness there I knew only a precious few ever got to see, directed at me.
I felt so in love with him in that moment. I never wanted to let this man go.
Chapter Nineteen
Camilo
The show had been amazing. The music, the crowd, everything had been complete magic. I couldn’t remember the last time I’d seen my mother so happy. Granted Tom had pissed me off by getting tickets I knew must have cost him over a thousand bucks a piece without asking, but it was hard to stay mad when what he’d done made my mom’s whole year.
We were waiting for the valet service outside the theater to bring Tom’s SUV around, and the plan was to eat at a restaurant on Arthur Avenue where he’d reserved a table. I hoped he hadn’t done anything over the top. But it seemed that was the theme for the evening.
Once we were on the road, my mom immediately started gushing about the show.
“Juan Luis was so good and I can’t believe how much we danced.” She cackled. “Only Latinos can get away with that. I’m glad the show was at United Palace. We wouldn’t be able to do that in Carnegie Hall.” Tom and I both laughed at how giddy she sounded.
I teased Tom, who was focused on driving. “I don’t know about that, Mama. Dominicans would at least try.”
He nodded with a smug smile on his face. “That is correct.”
From behind my mom piped up. “Cubans too. We can’t stay sitting when there’s good music playing.” She sounded so damn happy. I saw her lean in from the back seat, her face turned toward Tom. “Thanks again for the amazing tickets, Tom. This has been one of the best nights I’ve had in a long time.”
Tom gave me one of those looks that made my heart want to jump out of my chest before answering. “It’s been a great night for me too, Dinorah. Thank you both so much for inviting me.”
He reached for my hand, and I took it without hesitation.
We chatted about the songs and how great the band sounded as we drove the fifteen minutes to the restaurant. Before I knew it, Tom was pulling up to a place I’d never been to before. My mom, on the other hand was cooing in the backseat, apparently impressed with the location. I’d grown up pretty close to Little Italy, so we ate here all the time. Most of those places were family owned and low-key, but this restaurant looked high-end. I didn’t even know you could do valet parking on Arthur Avenue.
We got out of the car and Tom handed off his keys before leading us into the restaurant. It was still pretty full for a 9:30 p.m. reservation, and it smelled great. My mom looked around with a big smile on her face.
“I’m so excited for this dinner, Tom. I’ve heard this place is really good and reservations are impossible to get,” she said, beaming at him. “One of the doctors at the hospital was saying he brought his wife here for their anniversary and they had an amazing meal.”
Tom nodded, looking a little too pleased with himself.
“I’ve been here a few times for business dinners, and it’s always been very good. Camilo said you liked Italian, so I thought it would be a nice way to end the ev
ening.” My mom nodded some more and kept looking at Tom like he was a real-life superhero. I, on the other hand, was quietly trying to assess the situation. The place was very fancy, but I reminded myself Tom had a lot of money. The expensive restaurant wasn’t exactly surprising, so I tried to roll with it.
Tom gave the hostess his name and she walked us to a table hidden away in a little alcove. It wasn’t exactly a private room, but we were definitely tucked away. My hackles were going up a little, but I was determined to keep an open mind.
Once we were seated a server came up to ask what we’d like to drink. He passed around wine lists, but before we could even read them, Tom opened his mouth. “We’ll have a bottle of the Krug, the antipasti and the grilled octopus.”
The server took down the order and left without my mom or I having a chance to even look at a menu. I was really starting to get annoyed now, but kept my mouth shut for the moment. Tom turned around and spoke to my mom.
“The antipasto here is amazing and I love the octopus. I also ordered some champagne so we can toast to our first night out.” My mom was beaming, while I tried to keep my temper in check. Where the fuck did Tom get off ordering my food for me like I was a five year old?
I glanced down at the wine list and looked for the bottle he’d ordered. It was a three hundred dollar bottle of wine. I lifted my face towards him and he must have seen through the pleasant smile I was trying for.
“Everything okay?”
“Fine, you didn’t give me time to look through the menu though.”
He at least seemed a little sheepish after my comment.
“Sorry, I just thought you guys would like to try everything. It’s all delicious,” he said reassuringly. And it probably was and I’d love it, but it wasn’t the point. The point was that for the second time this evening Tom decided he was going to do whatever, without asking if I was okay with it. I just nodded without answering, as he gave me one of the smiles that usually made my knees weak, but just then it didn’t quite take.
American Fairytale (Dreamers) Page 17
