Page 38 of Twisted Beauty

“Buenos dias, Tito,” Liv said as he wrapped her in a brittle hug. “I’m so happy to see you. Are you here all by yourself today?”

“Sí, but Mateo, he come with lunch soon. You will join us.” Tito took her hand and led her toward the back of the shop.

Lunch? With any luck at all, the storm would pass through quickly and she could make her escape before she had to face him. “I may not be able to stay that long. But is it okay if I wait here for the rain to stop?”

“Sí. Of course.” Tito nudged a folding chair closer to his. “Siéntate. Sit with me. How is your trip?”

They sat down behind the counter and she set her camera on the ledge behind her. “It’s been wonderful so far. This is such a beautiful town. You’re very lucky to live here.”

Tito beamed at her. “I come here sixty years ago. My father, he has Brujo shop in Mexico City many years ago. I meet my wife, and she want to live here. So we move.”

“Wow, you’ve been in business for sixty years. That’s incredible.”

“Sí, many memory here,” he said with a wistful look on his face.

Tito reached forward and picked up a framed photo of a young couple standing in front of El Brujo Loco. The sign and the door looked freshly painted, but other than that, it looked no different than the shop today. “Maria Rosa. Mi bella esposa. Wife.”

He handed the photo to Liv.

A young version of Tito, handsome and strong, had his arm around a gorgeous brunette. They both looked so happy. So in love. And obviously Maria Rosa was no longer here. Liv felt a lump in her throat and swallowed before she could get any words out. “She’s beautiful, Tito. Muy hermosa.”

Tito nodded. He placed it back onto the counter and grabbed another. A close-up of the same woman with the ocean in the background, her deep brown eyes staring into the lens. He turned the frame over and looked at the back for a moment before giving it to Liv. “She give this to me when I leave for trip.”

The handwriting on the cardboard behind the photo was so neat it looked like calligraphy—faded but still legible. Tito continued to stare at the words while she read it slowly, trying her best to translate.

However far you go, I hear your whisper on the breeze and feel your embrace in every ray of the sun, and my heart is full. Forever yours, Maria Rosa.

Liv blinked back the moisture in her eyes, wondering how anyone survived the loss of a love like that. Something she had never felt.

“None of this exist without mi Maria Rosa.” He swept his hand across the length of the shop. “She work very hard to build us good life in Vallarta.”

“She did a wonderful job. You both did. You’re so lucky to have found that kind of love. Most people never do.”

“Sí. You find the right person and everything es mejor. Better. I want this for you,” Tito said. “And mi Mateo.”

Oh, crap. She could see where this was going. And after everything that had happened last night, she didn’t want to be talking about this. Or even thinking about it. “Tito, I don’t—”

“You are good for him. I sense this." Tito tapped a finger on his temple like he had some special gift for knowing these things. No doubt he believed he did, and what could she say to that? “Mateo, he have bad experience and now he afraid with love.”

Liv was afraid too. Mostly because Tito sounded like he’d already gotten the wrong idea about the two of them. And how was that even possible? He’d seen them in the same room for all of five minutes. Half of which were Matt throwing a fit and ordering her and Katie to leave.

She was searching for the right words to set Tito straight, when the bell chimed and made her jump. Shit, shit, shit. It was way too early for lunch.

Instead of Matt though, two women stopped in the doorway with a large, shaggy dog. Some kind of a border collie who shook himself off, spraying droplets of water all over the front display. Liv laughed with relief.

“Hi there,” one of the women said. “Can we come in for a second? I really need somewhere sheltered to check my GPS. My friend’s condo is around here somewhere.”

“Sí, come in. Welcome,” Tito said.

“Thank you so much.” She stepped just inside the door, wearing a pair of skimpy shorts and a bikini top, and pulled a cell phone out of her beach bag. Liv smiled. At least she wasn’t the only one caught unprepared.

The woman checked her GPS and then glanced out the window before looking back at Tito and Liv. “Did you see the street out front? It’s starting to look like a river already. I guess we'll make a run for it. Thanks again!”

The bell chimed as they left. Liv couldn’t see outside from where she sat, but she sure hoped the woman was exaggerating or she might never get back to Katie’s. She also hoped the distraction would derail their conversation, but Tito picked up right where he left off.

“My son, Eduardo, he marry American woman. Mateo’s mother.”

“Wait,” Liv interrupted. “Are you sure you should be telling me this? I don’t think Matt would appreciate it.” If he walked in and heard them talking about him, what would he think? Especially after the way she’d acted at the party.