Page 43 of American Sweethearts

“Patrice, why didn’t you tell me there was a hot tub?” Milo, of course, had to get himself whipped up before we even had a chance to put our bags down. “We didn’t bring our suits and I’mnever going to convince Tom to go skinny dipping with the rest of you here.”

Tom made his way to us with the ever-present smile he had whenever his man was around, and wrapped his arms tightly around Milo. “I thought you got enough of that on the honeymoon?”

Milo scoffed at that as if it was the most absurd thing he’d ever heard. “Enough of easy access to your dick? Right, like that’s ever going to happen!” We all rolled our eyes as Milo wiggled in Tom’s arms, but for me, there was that ache again there, too.

I needed to quit that shit and be grateful for what I did have. For the next few days, I was going to enjoy my friends and be glad that Priscilla and I were at least back to being able to vacation together.

I should’ve known our nosy ass friends wouldn’t let me have a moment of peace with my damn thoughts without meddling.

“Pris, why don’t you show Juanpa to the room. It’s the one we usually stay in.” Easton was getting real slick these days, but if Pris was put out, she didn’t say anything. She just grabbed her bag and with a small smile waved toward the stairs. I winked as the others shuffled around getting settled in.

“Lead the way.”

I tried very hard not to ogle her ass while we ascended the stairs to our room, but it was not easy when it was only a few inches from my face. I had nevereverwanted to take a bite out of something so bad. My throat was bone dry just looking at it. I tried to mask the groan that escaped my throat, but Pris was no fool.

“Are your eyes crossed yet, Juan Pablo?”

At any other time, just the hint that she was flirting with me would’ve had me running with it. But for the first time in such a long time, we were in a good place, and I was loathe to messwith that. So instead of making a lascivious comment or joking around, I cleared my throat, told my dick to calm down, and changed the topic.

“The view’s pretty spectacular from up here,” I said truthfully, as I stared out the giant window of the staircase. As we made it to the landing, Pris waited for me, looking as if she was trying to figure out what I was doing. I mentally wished her luck. Because other than the fact that I didn’t want to ruin the vibe she and I had going, I wasn’t sure of much else.

That wasn’t true either. I was sure abouther. About the friendship we’d been building back up for the past few weeks. Because that’s what was different this time. It felt like I’d rediscovered Priscilla. Not as the no-nonsense girl I fell in love with a million years ago, but as a woman who like me, was trying hard to figure out what was next. What fit hernowinstead of trying to cram herself into the mold she dreamed up before she really knew who she was.

“Let’s put our stuff away. Camilo must have a mimosa with my name on it downstairs.”

I let her guide me into the spacious room we were going to share in silence and placed my duffel by one of the beds. I sank into the comfortable mattress while Pris did the same on the other one. Like the staircase, the room had a large window overlooking the evergreen forest surrounding the house. Even though it was dark, we could still see the snow-covered trees around the house. I smiled as I listened to our friends moving around below us.

The drive up had been pleasant, but we’d taken off early enough that I was feeling like I could drift off into a nap, but then I remembered something important to ask her. “Any news on your case?”

When I turned my head, Pris’s face didn’t look like she was enjoying coming up with an answer to my question. “No news worth talking about.”

She twisted her mouth to the side as she copied my position on the other bed. She looked tired and more than a little frustrated as she thought about whatever it was that was happening at work. “I’m off the case. So I’m not in the loop. As far as I know, the child is in a safe place. No disclosure yet.” She shook her head and sighed.

“I’m so tired, J. You’d think that after twelve years into this job, there would be some fucking headway, some progress around this shit. But at times like this, it feels like it’s the same old thing. We should’ve never let this situation go on in that home as long as it has.”

I had some of the details for the case, but not all, so I was trying to figure it out. “You think the parents had something to do with it?”

She shrugged and almost instinctively picked up her work phone, looked at the screen then settled it down again under her pillow. “It’s hard to say. On one end they seem supportive, but we know enough about grooming to know a kid could lie to protect an abuser.” She shut her eyes tight and blew out a harsh breath. “But at the end of the day, I don’t care who it is. If an twelve-year-old gets pregnant, then fuck, someone needs to get arrested, because at the very least the negligence was criminal. Even if she lost the baby.”

These were the moments when I usually was flooded with feelings of guilt, sympathy, and admiration for Priscilla. She had paid more than her share of dues and seen more than anyone ever should, and she could still be affected by the cases. I wondered if I would’ve gone into the force if I’d have lasted half as long as she had. A few years ago, a thought like that would’ve made me resentful. I’d focus on my own guilt over going back onmy promise to join with her, and would’ve said something shitty or dismissive instead of seeing how fucked up she was about this.

“And talking to your captain won’t help.”

She shook her head. “I don’t want to go over the lieutenant’s head. He’s already frustrated with me about this case. And at the end of the day, now that she’s had a miscarriage, the whole thing has gone to a weird gray zone.”

She looked so tired and it was taking all I had not to go over there and offer to give her a massage or just call up her captain and get this sorted out for her. But I knew if I wanted to stay in Priscilla’s life, the first rule was: no fighting her battles for her. I’d fucked up when I got Yari involved, and I’d been dodging him for a week already. He’d been texting again asking me if I’d talked to Pris. While I sat there feeling guilty as fuck, Camilo burst into the room like the five-foot-eight pain in the ass he was.

“Well, this is cozy,” he said, as he sauntered in with two mimosas in his hands. He sat on the edge of Pris’s bed and held out the glass.

“Sit up, ma. I’m so happy I finally got my bubbly buddy.” He looked over to me and smiled, then hollered downstairs. “Papi, J’s up here!” He handed the wineglass to Pris, who took it from him like it was full of the elixir of life, while Milo primly crossed his legs and tipped his head toward the door. “Tom brought a bottle of that rum you both like. He poured you a glass.”

I smiled at that, rubbing my hands together. “My man, always holding it down. But it still creeps me out when you call him daddy.”

He sipped from his glass and raised an eyebrow while Pris cackled next to him. “It’s cute that you think I’d care.” He raised a shoulder and took a long sip of his drink, smiling as we listenedto Tom coming up the stairs. “He likes it and gets me laid often. So it’s not going away anytime soon. Hey, babe.”

Pris and I both turned to find Tom grinning in Milo’s direction. He’d probably heard everything and like he did with everything regarding Camilo, found it utterly adorable.

“What’s going on?” Tom asked us as he passed me my glass and sat on the armchair by the foot of the bed. To my surprise, Priscilla sat up and with her eyes closed did something she rarely ever did—she opened up.