Chapter Eight #2
“While you are an amazing guy, what if she doesn’t feel it?” I’d support her and Dusty, but I didn’t want him to be too hurt if she chose to grind up his heart with her heeled boot because he wasn’t her type.
He thought for a moment, his scent going a little salty with sadness. “I don’t want to push it if she’s not interested. But just look at her. She’s this amazing creature who needs someone to worship her as much as you do Fiona. Also, would we keep running into each other if we weren’t meant to be?”
Saoirse could take care of herself, but I’d keep an eye on this.
Dusty jumped off my back and bowed. “Mi Cielo, did you enjoy the parade?”
“It was quite the spectacle,” she agreed.
“Oh, I got these for you. You like them, right?” He held out a tiny bouquet of dried lavender tied with a purple bow.
“I… I do like lavender–and purple. I can’t believe you remembered. Thank you.” She took the little bouquet.
Dusty shot me a grin that clearly said see.
My phone pinged with texts.
Dulce
Are those Everydolls with handmade outfits? I want the blue one. It sort of looks like me.
Anita
Yes, for me and the girls and Chantilly. Make Chantilly’s the silliest.
Um, okay. Chantilly was one of her alphas and a director.
She was also the mastermind behind Monstruo Lane.
There had been some kind of producer strike and people were hurting for work.
Children’s educational shows were exempt from the strike.
So, she got some people together, sweet-talked investors, and got it going quickly to prevent her crew and friends from starving.
Most of the actors were from telenovelas.
That’s where the idea of them wearing monster costumes came from, since a few were worried about their image.
Though most of them used their actual first names.
Like Anita wore a blue monster costume and was a monster named Anita. Yeah, it made no sense to me.
But, the show was a hit, and they filmed it during the summer months when there was usually a lull in production here in New York. Given the sketch format of the show, it was easy enough to work around everyone’s schedules.
I loved that show with my whole heart. Honestly, it was the highlight of my summer besides working at the hockey camp for kids that my team ran.
Beatriz
Those are creepy, but your niece and nephews would probably like them. Especially if you’re getting them for their cousins.
“Everything okay?” Dusty frowned.
“Anita and her pack are moving out, and they want Mamá to come with them. Not sure she will. Beatriz is a little upset.” And I just bought a house. “Right now, they all want dolls. I need…” I did the mental math. “Eight? I think? Maybe I should get nine?”
“Anita’s moving out?” Dusty nodded. “Makes sense. Big house in the suburbs?”
“Yep.”
He thought for a moment. “I’d like to fully move out. I mean I love them, but… you know.”
“Yeah, I know.”
Saoirse gave him a look. “You live with your parents?”
“Kinda? My recording studio has an apartment attached, so I stay there a lot. But, yeah. Some of my siblings still live at home, too.” He shrugged.
We rejoined everyone.
“That looks like more than one doll,” I told Hale.
“They’ll deliver to our resort. I figured that since I never bought Christmas presents, other than that pillow Fiona helped me pick out for Mercy, I’d buy them for a bunch of my siblings.
” He shrugged. “I mean, I did win money. Also, I got Christmas money from my sister, and some have fun at the rave money.”
“Oh, they deliver to the hotel. Great. Fiona, help me choose some, too.” I bought nine dolls. Dusty ended up getting a couple. Fiona bought some, too. We had them all sent to the resort.
We drove to our hotel and checked in. We had a two-story villa away from the main lodge. It was smaller than I expected, but there was a hot tub on the back porch.
Downstairs was an open-plan living room, dining room, and kitchen, and a bathroom. Glass doors looked out onto the hot tub. All our ski gear sat against the wall. The suitcases were lined up on the floor.
Dusty handed out different colored fancy wrist bands.
“These are for the lodge. It’s cashless.
The villa is paid for by the festival, but our personal shit at the resort is our responsibility.
You can go online and add your card to yours.
And these are for the festival. I think most everything is covered, including drinks and food.
But it’s the festival, not where we’re staying.
It’s also your ski and lift pass,” Dusty added.
“You good, Hale? I can cover you if you need it,” I said softly. Just in case he wanted anything at the resort.
“Even after buying a shit-ton of dolls, I’m good. That was the point of the race,” he replied. “But thanks.”
“The rooms at the villa are really small,” Dusty added.
“Really, they expect you just to sleep in them, and to be skiing or down here. So, um, Fiona being the omega gets the big room. Hale and Carlos get one of the bunkrooms and Saoirse and I get the other? Or do you want to share with Carlos, Mi Cielo?”
Saoirse sighed. “It doesn’t matter. I won’t spend much time there anyway.”
Dusty’s face lit up. “Great. I don’t snore.”
Grabbing my suitcase, I went upstairs. The room was tiny, and had a closet, dresser, chair, and two bunk beds. But then I’d probably trade off with Saoirse spending nights in Fiona’s room. Which was probably why Dusty assigned bunks the way he did.
“Bunkroom. Got it.” Hale put his suitcase on the dresser. “Can I have the top bunk?”
“Go for it.” Opening my suitcase, I took out the tamales, which were still cold. Good. I got everything that needed to go to the kitchen and brought it downstairs.
Writing, For Christmas–don’t touch, I put them in the freezer, right next to a pan with a similar note. The enchiladas Dusty brought, most likely.
Putting everything else away, I checked the cupboards to see if we had what we needed. Slow cooker, pots and pans, oven…
“Groceries are almost here. They can’t find tortillas. I wanted to make Saoirse tacos.” Dusty frowned. “She’s never had a taco.”
“Blasphemy. We’ll go to Taco Hut when we get back to New York.” I went there a lot with my teammates for taco-eating contests. “There’s your cousins’ taco truck or your brother’s restaurant, too.”
He nodded. “Or we could just go to my moms’.”
“True.” While they were good cooks and really welcoming, they all had giant personalities and could be a lot if you weren’t used to them. “We could also cook for them.”
Dusty thought for a moment. “Oh, we could.”
“Dusty… what if I got my own place?” I asked. “I would keep the building, of course. But what if I moved out, too? Would everyone be okay without me?”
He leapt up to sit on the counter. “Wait, are you getting traded?”
“Not that I know of. But…” I looked up at the stairs.
Dusty’s eyes met mine. “Lalo, everyone will be fine. Your mamá will be okay.”
Relief flowed through me. “I needed to hear that.”
Dusty looked at his phone and sighed. “We have the welcome party soon. You don’t have to come.”
“Of course I’m coming. Let me see who else is going.” We were here, at Winter-Fest, and I couldn’t wait.