Page 17 of There Once was a Dancer
He nodded, looking over at me and then returning his attention to the road as he changed lanes. “I’d love to help you. All you have to do is get your high school transcripts and…have you had any college at all?”
My heart sank. “My school was flooded during Maria. I not know if I can get transcript and I never do any college. I had to work.”
“Yeah, you said that.” He tapped his chin and I watched him purse his lips. He stopped at a light and made a right turn. I glanced around, noticing it was an older neighborhood of family houses in what had to be West Hollywood. I wondered if he lived here. Living in West Hollywood was expensive. I’d often thought it would be nice to live closer to work, but I could never afford to move me and Mamá to the West Side. We drove down a tree-lined street and he pulled into the narrow driveway of a small house painted a bright, sunny yellow. A white picket fence surrounded the front yard. He shut off the car which sputtered and rattled before settling down. I grinned as I looked over at him.
“Sorry,” he said, sending me an embarrassed smile. “It does that.”
I thought Rex and his old clunker of a car were very chuleria. So sweet.
“I may have an idea.”
When I opened my mouth to ask about what, he glanced into the backseat. I looked over my shoulder to find Lola sitting up, looking around.
“We’re home, girl.” She wiggled like crazy. “Okay,” he said, chuckling. “I’m comin’.” He got out and walked around to her door as I also climbed out of the car. He pulled out the small wheelchair and handed Lola to me while he set it on the ground and opened it. I watched with rapt attention as he righted the small sling inside and took her from me, setting her into the chair and putting a little belt over her back. In seconds, she used her front legs to propel herself over to the gate. I laughed. It was the most adorable thing I’d ever seen in my life.
“Watch her while I grab the food.”
I didn’t know what he was talking about until he picked up the bag which he’d thrown into the backseat last night and then removed the chile rellenos from the trunk. I’d completely forgotten about them. I followed Lola to the picket fence and opened it for her as Rex followed. Lola propelled herself up to the front porch steps, and Rex jogged around me, bent, and lifted her and the wheelchair.
He came up the steps and I followed, unable to wipe the massive grin off my face as he unlocked his front door. We walked into the cool house a second later. He set her down just inside and she ran across the hardwood floors as if she was on four legs rather than two legs and two wheels. He shut the front door, locking it.
“I’m starvin’. I’ll rustle up some grub,” he said, following the path Lola had taken.
I followed him back to a sunny kitchen where Lola stood at a water bowl, waiting patiently. Rex filled her bowl and began lapping up water as he searched around in a cupboard, taking out a can of wet food. It wasn’t a brand of dog food I’d ever seen before.
“What food kind is that?” I asked, joining him at the counter as he opened it and put it into a bowl.
“This is the food I was tellin’ you about.” He held out the can so I could read it. It said it was specially formulated for dogs to improve kidney and liver function.
“Huh,” I remarked, grinning up at him. “Is good.”
He nodded, dropping the empty can in a nearby waste bin before setting Lola’s bowl on the ground. She moved right over to it and dug in. “This food has no grain fillers. It’s pure meat and veggies with just a little rice. I vary it between chicken, liver, and beef but it’s all got veggies and extra vitamins, for dogs withkidney problems. If they don’t have those types of problems, this food is still better for ‘em than other foods with those fillers.” He waved at Lola and chuckled. “And as you can see, she loves it.”
I was encantado. I stepped close to him, reaching up to slide my fingers around the side of his neck as I gazed into his eyes. “You are good doggie papá.” He stared at me, making no move to take my hand the way he’d done last night. I wanted him to take me into his arms and then drag me back to his bedroom, but he seemed hesitant to touch me again, even though his eyes were filled with longing. “You no like me, Rex?”
He scoffed. “Of course, I do.” He pressed his lips together even as he dropped his gaze to my lips. In my heart, I knew he was holding back, but I couldn’t work out why. I could tell he was interested in me, so his hesitation confused me.
I felt brave, so I raised my other hand and moved in closer. When our bodies were close enough to touch, I smiled as I cupped both cheeks. “What it is then?”
He sighed and reached for my hands, covering them for a few seconds before drawing them away from his face.
“You’re only twenty-five years old, Cachi.”
“So? How old are you?”
“Thirty-five. I’m much older than you.”
I frowned. “You can’t get it—” I leaned back and glanced down at his groin.
He frowned. “Can’t get it what?”
I grinned at him. “You know. You can’t.” I dropped my hands and gestured at the bulge in his jeans.
He threw his head back and laughed. “You think I can’t get it up for you?”
I shrugged. “Thirty-five.”
He laughed harder, finally reaching up to cup my cheek. He looked deep into my eyes. It was hard to miss the fire in his gaze. He was not only sensual but probably the sexiest man I’d ever met. “I assure you, gettin’ it up ain’t a problem for me, Cachi. I just don’t want to take advantage of a twenty-five-year-old kid.”
