But when she tightened her arm around his waist, he knew she had.
He held open the door for her and closed it as soon as they stepped inside her room. There was a radio on, with music playing.
“Mama!” Mario exclaimed as he ran toward her.
Cassidy opened her arms and embraced her son. It was as if they’d been separated from each other for days rather than hours. But Gramps had a feeling every reunion was emotional because of the uncertainty they lived in on a regular basis.
“Are you okay?” Cassidy asked.
“Yeah.”
“What did you do today?” she asked.
Mario shrugged, but refused to meet his mom’s gaze. “Nothing much.”
Cassidy wouldn’t let him get away with that. “Talk to me, son.”
Mario sighed. “Martin was in charge of teaching us how to fight today.”
Cassidy inhaled sharply. “Fight?” She put her finger under his chin and lifted his head so he had no choice but to look at her. “Oh, honey,” she said sadly.
Gramps stiffened. He hadn’t moved from his place by the door, but he could clearly see the boy had a black eye and several bruises on his face.
“I’m so sorry,” Cassidy said.
Mario shrugged. “I suck at it.”
“Good,” Cassidy said heatedly.
“It’s not good, Mama,” Mario told her.
Gramps couldn’t stay silent any longer. He walked over to where Cassidy was standing with Mario, and he got down on his haunches in front of the boy. “When I was in middle school, I got beat up almost every day,” he said.
Mario’s eyes widened, and Gramps could see him looking at the muscles bulging in his T-shirt. “You did?”
“Yeah. I didn’t start really growing until high school. Anyway, there was this older kid who lived in my neighborhood and rode the bus with me. He liked to call me names, and tell me to go back to where I came from. He didn’t like that I was Hispanic and, because he was bigger than me, decided I was a good target to pick on.”
“What did you do?” Mario asked.
“I got beat up every day—that’s what I did,” Gramps told him. “I didn’t want to fight. I didn’t understand why the kid didn’t like me. He didn’t even know me. And I didn’t understand why he didn’t like my Mexican heritage. One of his best friends was Mexican. It made no sense to me. It took me a while to understand that sometimes people are just assholes.”
“Language,” Cassidy chided.
Gramps glanced over at her and nodded. He was sure Mario had heard worse, but he would respect Cassidy’s wishes when it came to swearing around her son.
“Did you beat him up when you got bigger?” Mario asked.
Gramps shook his head. “No.”
“Why not?”
“Because he wasn’t worth my time or effort,” Gramps said. “There will be people in this world who will always look down on you because of the way you look, because you’re biracial, because of what you wear, because of your size, and a million other reasons. But you have to know in here”—Gramps gently tapped Mario’s chest—“that they’re the ones with the problem. Not you. Stooping to their level, beating them up simply because you can, isn’t the answer. Now . . . I’m not saying you shouldn’t defend yourself. Because you absolutely can and should. If you want, I can show you some things you can do, even if you’re smaller than someone else, to protect yourself.”
Mario’s eyes got big again. “You will?”
“Absolutely.”
“Awesome.” Then he looked up at his mom. “How was your day?”
“It was okay. But I missed you,” Cassidy told him.
Mother and son hugged each other once more before Cassidy stepped back. “G is going to hang out with us tonight—I hope that’s okay.”
Gramps had already reminded her that she needed to call him G whenever they were in the mansion. All their lives could depend on it.
Mario nodded, but Gramps could tell he wasn’t all that thrilled to share his mother.
“Your mom tells me that you’re a heck of a dancer,” Gramps said. “Maybe you can show me?”
It wasn’t until Cassidy nodded encouragingly at him that Mario nodded.
Hours later, after Mario had showed off what he could do, and after they’d watched a movie on the television, and after Mario had finally fallen asleep in his small bed in the corner of the room, Gramps pulled Cassidy into his arms as they lay on her mattress.
The music still played from the radio, masking their words from anyone who might be listening or watching. Cassidy’s head was resting on his shoulder, and he had his arm around her, holding her tightly against him.
“He’s a good kid,” Gramps said after a long moment.
He felt Cassidy sigh. “He really is. I know he hasn’t hit the nasty teenage years yet, but he’s so eager to please that I don’t think he’s going to be a handful when he gets older.”
“He really can dance,” Gramps told her, remembering how Mario had cut a rug earlier.
“I know. I want to get him into something organized, have someone teach him more, but it’s impossible here.”
“I bet there are some good classes in Indianapolis,” Gramps blurted.
He’d been thinking about it all day and couldn’t keep quiet anymore. And not just because he hoped Silverstone’s plan would come to fruition tomorrow, which meant she’d have to make a decision about where she wanted to go once they arrived back in the States.
“What?” she asked, tilting her head back and staring up at him.
“Come to Indianapolis,” Gramps said, making it clear where he stood on the matter. “You said it yourself—you left El Paso because of your asshole ex. You think things are gonna be different if you go back there? They likely won’t. You can come to Indy and start over. I can help you find a job . . . hell, I’m sure we can find something for you to do at Silverstone if you want. I want to introduce you to Skylar, Taylor, and Molly. I know you’ll like them. And we can find Mario a kick-ass dance class. Maybe gymnastics, too, if he’s still interested.” Gramps knew he was babbling, and he pressed his lips together to make himself shut up.
“I . . . I don’t know what to say,” Cassidy said.
“Say yes,” he urged. “No one’s saying you have to stay there forever, but wouldn’t it be nice to start over in a city where you know someone?”
“I don’t want to take advantage,” she told him.
Gramps rolled until she was under him. He speared one hand into her hair and held her still. “Take advantage,” he urged. “I want you to. I want to get to know you better, Cass. I want to watch you blossom without having to worry about Coke or Lloyd or anyone else. I want you to be free to do what you want, when you want. I want to see Mario come out of his shell. I want you both to be safe, and I can help you with that. Say yes, Cass. At least for now.”
“I don’t have any money. We don’t have any belongings. We have nothing, Leo.”
“I know the other women will help with finding you clothes and stuff. Lord knows they like to shop, especially if it’s for someone else. I already said I’d help you find a job. And you can live with me until you get on your feet.” The offer popped out before Gramps thought twice. He’d never lived with a woman before, but he suspected living with Cassidy and Mario wouldn’t be a hardship.