He jerks his head back, eyes wide. “Why the feck not? I thought your Mam was all about a healthy sex life, and that, lass, is something we absolutely have.”
He wags his eyebrows, making me laugh.
“Yeah, yeah, but talking about it and being in the same house with it is a different story. Not to mention that my Abuela is very traditional and would make me go to confession. Actually, she’ll probably have me do that anyway.”
Teagan groans as he runs a hand over his face. “So you’re telling me that I won’t get to sleep with you the entire time we’re there? That’s five days, Layla. I’m not sure if I can make it that long.”
“Ah, Papí,” I purr, placing my hand on his thigh and slowly sliding it up the inside of his leg. “Just because we won’t besleepingtogether doesn’t mean we won’t be fucking.”
* * *
“Mija!” Mami squeals with delight the moment she sees me walk through the airport doors.
I tried to tell her we’d rent a car and meet them at the house, but she wouldn’t hear of it, insisting she had to come to pick us up. I was looking forward to driving Teagan around Brownsville though, prolonging our arrival at my childhood home.
“¡Hola Mami!” I greet her with a lingering hug.
As crazy as she makes me, there’s something about being hugged by your mother - especially after going without seeing her for so long. She holds me tightly, brushing a hand over my hair before pulling back and holdingmy shoulders.
“Oh, hijita, it’s so good to see you! You look so good!” She glances over my shoulder, presumably at Teagan, then back at me, wagging her eyebrows. “He’s good for you, no?”
I hide my face in my hands, but I can hear Teagan chuckling as he comes up behind me, placing his hand on my lower back as he extends the other to my mother.
“Mrs. Diaz, it’s lovely to meet you finally.”
“Oh, and he’s so polite too! No need for formalities, Teagan. You can call me Raquel. Thank you for bringing my daughter home for a while. It’s been so long since we’ve seen her.”
Rolling my eyes, I open my mouth to give her the same talk I give her every other time she brings this up, but Teagan slides closer, angling himself toward me, and says, “Ach, to be sure, but thank god travel works both ways, yeah? You lot are closer distance-wise than my family is. My parents would only love to be as close as you all are to Layla. They’d probably be visiting a few times a year.”
I watch Mami’s brow furrow as she processes this information, and then her gaze flicks to me. “I thought North Carolina was bad. I can’t imagine being across the ocean from you, mija.”
Teagan catches my eye and winks, saying without words that he’s just blocked the first shot. The relief from not having to argue with my mother is palpable - a weight lifted from my shoulders. I grin back at him and mouth my thanks.
* * *
After retrieving our bags from the conveyor belt, we quickly loaded everything into the white Honda Pilot my father surprised Mami with on their anniversary. She’d been driving around the same old minivan since Rafael was born. She never complained, but when Papá revealed the new SUV to her, she jumped up and down, shrieking with delight and crying the happiest of tears. She now refers to it as her baby and is very,verystrictabout eating or drinking anything in it.
When Teagan opened the door for me to climb into the front passenger seat, Mamiooh’dandahhh’dover how chivalrous he was. She didn’t see the way he slapped my ass before I sat down though…or the way I palmed his dick through his jeans while she rounded the front of the car.
The drive to my family home from the airport is short, which means we’re pulling into the driveway of the brown and tan brick house within no time. I think I’ll always feel a sense of comfort here, even with my parents’ antics and wild siblings. I know that, at any time, I can walk through that front door without invitation and know it’s home.
Their first house was a tiny two-bedroom structure that they rented from Papá’s uncle. It was cheap and they were young, so they didn’t care. Once they found out Marcos was on the way, they knew they’d need something bigger eventually, as they wanted multiple children, so they skimped and saved, working two jobs a piece, to save up for the down payment.
Nearly every day, Mami would drive through a specific neighborhood, looking at all of the houses, knowing this was where they’d raise their family. The day they reached their goal, fortune was on their side as a house she had her eye on had gone up for sale. Not only was it the exact size they wanted, but it was priced just below what they were looking for. It needed a little TLC, but neither of my parents were afraid of a little hard work, so they fixed what needed to be fixed, remodeled what needed to be remodeled, and made it into the place we call home.
Mami puts the car in park, shuts off the engine, and turns to me. “I am under no illusion that the two of you don’t share a bed, but you know how your Abuelos feel about sex before marriage. To keep them from sending us all to purgatory, I’ve put you in your old room mija, and Teagan is in Marcos’. I don’t care what you do after lights out, just don’t get caught.”
Teagan chuckles in the backseat, but I’m about to burn to ash in embarrassment. Why I’m surprised that my mother would say such a thing, I’ll never know. This is par for the course as far as she’s concerned.
“Now, your Papá and Abuelo won’t be home for another hour or so, but Jaz and Cori are inside with Abuela. They’re getting set up to make tamalestomorrow.”
I glance back at Teagan, who grins and winks at me, making my face heat again.
It’s going to be five very long days.
Chapter Twenty-Five
Teagan
