I can’t help it. My eyes widen in shock. Adrienne told him? My jaw clenches as my lips purse. So much for sisterhood.
He must see the look of betrayal that crosses my face, because he shakes his head. “Adrienne didn’t have to tell me anything, Char. I’m not a fool.”
“Don’t call me that. We are not friends, remember?” He knows about me buying drugs from Professor Rook? Double crap. I’ve been mean enough to him, there’s no way he’ll keep his mouth shut. It would be payback for all of the eye daggers I’ve shot in his direction over what he did to Genevieve. After he apologized to Adrienne at the end of last semester, I’d been almost ready to call a truce. But now? I don’t think so.
Ricardo rolls his eyes. “Relax. I’m not here to get you in trouble, although I confess watching you squirm is immensely satisfying.” The corner of his mouth ticks upward.
My lips bunch in disgust. “You’re a pig. I don’t know why Adrienne insists on being friends with you.”
He shrugs. “I can be charming, if you’d stop looking at me like you’d enjoy slitting my throat. Seems you’ve got your hands full cleaning up another mess, anyway.” He tilts his head toward the dented front of Cal’s car.
“Would you shut up and go away? Actually, I take it back. Go tell Adrienne I’ll be late for breakfast. I have to run a quick errand.” I might as well make him useful if he’s going to insist on being around.
Ricardo cants his head to one side. “Please?”
That does it. Ricardo is definitely going to lose a foot. No one would blame me. Even as I think it, I know it’s not true. He knows what I did last night. I can’t afford to piss him off, even if bending to his request galls me to no end.
“Please,” I grind out.
Ricardo gives an exaggerated look of surprise and stumbles backward like I’ve shoved him. “You actually said it? You must be desperate.”
“Ricardo, cher?”
Ricardo goes utterly rigid as the color drains from his face.
I look past him to see a beautiful black woman with hair in long locs, dotted with shimmering brass beads. Large, glossy brown eyes hover over sharp cheekbones and carved, hollow cheeks. I know those cheekbones. My eyes skim back and forth between the woman and my antagonist, who still hasn’t moved.
This woman is Ricardo’s mother.
I don’t know the story, really. I just know that I’ve never seen her, and the rumor is that Ricardo himself hasn’t seen her in years. But if that’s true, what is she doing here?
Ricardo’s Adam’s apple bobs as he swallows, his eyes pleading with me not to leave him alone with her.
Oh, how the tables have turned.
I’m tempted to do exactly that, but something in the tense lines of his body stops me. I may hate Ricardo, but I hate bad parenting even more. I won’t abandon him now. I can’t.
Stepping up beside him, we present a united front against his mother.
He cuts a glance toward me, all arrogance siphoned from his expression.
“Ricardo, I knew that was you. When you were a baby, your hair came to a fine point at the nape of your neck. I used to trace it with my fingers. It’s still there.” She looks up at him with a shy smile.
Ricardo doesn’t say anything at all. He simply stares at her, not blinking.
Mrs. LaGuerre shifts on her feet, waiting for her son to speak.
He licks his lips, glances at me out of the corner of his eye.
I can’t peel my eyes away from this train wreck. I know a guy who needs rescuing when I see it. Smiling, I take charge of the situation. “Mrs. LaGuerre. It’s nice to meet you. I’m Charlotte Cavendish-Holt.” I hold out a hand, and she shakes it, turning her tentative smile on me.
“Ahh, I’ve heard a lot about your father. His stance on immigration reform gives me hope that your government isn’t completely screwed.”
My politician’s smile falls into place. This I can handle. “My father would thank you for the compliment, but there is much work to be done. Is there something I can help you with? The administration office is in the building around the corner, if that’s what you’re looking for.”
Mrs. LaGuerre’s eyes flick to Ricardo, who hasn’t moved. He’s staring at her like a boy carved from stone. Waves of apprehension roll off him, buffeting my side like a sandy shore under a ragged tide.
“I was hoping to convince Ricardo to show me the academy’s eatery, and maybe grab some breakfast. I’d like to catch up.” The hope in her words hangs in the air as the seconds draw out.
When he still doesn’t respond, I elbow Ricardo in the side.
Grunting, he seems to give himself a mental shake. “I can’t now, Mother. My girlfriend and I are going off campus for breakfast. It’s our last day of freedom, before classes start. Have to make the most of it.” He wraps an arm around my waist and pulls me closer to him. His fingertips scald me even through my sweater dress.
Wait. What?
I start to splutter, but he gives my side a slight squeeze, as if pleading with me to go along with his ruse. So instead of stomping on his toes and running away, I clench my mouth shut.
Mrs. LaGuerre looks defeated, but she nods her head. “Are you sure? I’d really like to talk to you. I know it’s been a long time.”
“Like I said. I’m busy.” Ricardo is ice cold as he dismisses her. It’s kind of impressive, actually. Even I can’t muster the courage to talk to Daddy like this.
The woman’s eyes are sad as she looks at him, and then nods. “Enjoy your breakfast, but know this. I’ll be back tomorrow. I’m not giving up so easily this time.”
Ricardo lifts his chin in response, and his mother retreats toward the street, slipping into a black car parked at the curb.
Once it’s gone, I peel Ricardo’s fingers off me and shove him away. “Don’t touch me. And your girlfriend? Dream on, playboy. That’s never going to happen.”
Ricardo licks his lips. “Thanks. For not saying anything.”
His sincerity catches me off guard, and I’m not sure what to say in response. “You’re welcome, I guess. But next time you see her, you have to set her straight.”
His voice is so low I barely hear it. “If I ever see her again.”
Despite my best efforts, I feel sorry for him. I know what it’s like to want the attention of an unavailable parent. “You will. Now seriously, get moving. I have to go.” I gesture toward the road with the car keys still clutched in my fingers.
“Here.” Without asking, he takes my keys and slides into the driver’s seat. “Let me help you out. It’s the least I can do.”
My mouth springs open to argue, but he gestures to the other side. “Just get in the car, Blondie.”
Fuming, I walk around the crumpled hood, letting my eyes slide over the damage one more time. What must it have felt like for Professor Rook to be slammed by the wide swath of metal? There wasn’t a scream, so he must have been surprised. It must have been so sudden, he had no time to react.
Sliding into the passenger seat, I buckle before clamping my eyes shut.
“Seat warmers? Nice.” Ricardo puts the car in reverse and backs out of the space. In a couple of minutes my buns are toasty warm.