He hadn’t asked Vincent anything about Grace or Rose since his mention of them being in Laughlin. Why torture himself? But in light of that morning’s revelations, he could hardly wait for him to start his shift today.

CHAPTER 30

On their way to see the fifth restaurant/home for sale Grace tried not to think about how lightheaded she’d begun to feel.

“Luckily this area has a lot of these restaurants with living quarters. So many of the families that come over the border are used to that. In Mexico, there are tons of families who make a living out of cooking and serving in their own kitchen. If their food is a hit, they usually start building onto their own homes and expanding it into a more restaurant like atmosphere.” The real estate agent that was showing them around talked non stop. “Unfortunately, on this side of the border, there are regulations that need to be followed. So a lot of these restaurant slash homes are not permitted and you’d need a miracle worker and a ton of money to get them up to code. I won’t even bother showing you those.”

Grace leaned against Rose. She was as tall as Grace now so they were shoulder to shoulder in the back seat of the agents car. Their mom sat in the front with the agent.

“Are you okay?”

Grace nodded but didn’t lift her head from Rose’s shoulder. “I think I might be getting a little car sick. After this one, we should call it a day.”

Rose stroked Grace’s hair. “Okay.”

As much as Grace had been playing the part of being back to normal now, she still wasn’t feeling it. But for the sake of everyone not worrying about her anymore she’d told them all she was. She even agreed to partnering up with Frank to get her restaurant going. It was her mothers idea to find one where they could live as well. Her mother had always hated that tiny apartment of theirs.

Most importantly, Grace suspected that once settled in to their new place her mom was giving Ruben the boot. That was the only ray of light she’d come across in the sea of black she’d been swimming in these days.

After walking through another restaurant with a couple of rooms in the back and a tiny bathroom that doubled as a shower, they called it a day. The agent drove them back to his office where they all jumped into Frank’s Cadillac—another thing that under normal circumstances Grace would have never agreed to. Since Frank had bought himself a sportier, more extravagant car, he’d offered to lend them his Cadillac until the restaurant was up and running and they could afford to purchase their own car.

Of course her mother had jumped on it the instant he offered it, explaining later when they were alone that he was only looking out for them because he was a good man. Grace wasn’t naïve. No man would be willing to offer so much in exchange for nothing. She’d seen the way he looked at her when she extended her invitation of him and her mother joining them in the Jacuzzi. There was a definite expectation of something more than just shared profits of her restaurant.

The only reason she’d given in without much of a fight is because that was one thing even her mother had to know. There was no way that anyone would be persuading Grace to open up her heart to anyone for a very long time, if ever.

On top of everything that was happening now in her life she had yet another thing to worry about. Since Vincent’s texts were the one thing that kept Rose so distracted she hardly noticed that Grace was far from being well, Grace had insisted she didn’t have to cut him off on her account. Now that he was in a much closer proximity, Rose had begun to ask about the possibility of her hanging out with him. It was funny that Rose didn’t bother to ask her mother. That woman had zero parental instincts. She’d say yes to Rose in a heartbeat, no questions asked, if it meant getting Rose out of her hair. But Grace was worried enough for the both of them. Sal had stressed about Rose keeping her distance from Vincent.

Grace lay on her bed now, fighting an incredible fatigue again while Rose pled her case. “Have you ever known me to be a bad judge of character? None of my friends are bad. I would never hang out with anyone I thought might be trouble.”

Grace’s eyelids were so heavy now she could barely keep them open, and the last few nights she’d finally slept like a rock. She rolled to her side in an effort to stay awake. “Rosie you have to understand—”

“He’s under strict warning, Grace, that if he screws up even once, they send him back home. He really really wants to be here all summer. Do you honestly think he’d risk being sent home?”

Frustrated that she didn’t have the energy to give Rose a good argument she was afraid she was losing this battle. “Where would you hang out?”

Rose smiled and sat down next to Grace, then her smile suddenly vanished. “You’re still not feeling well are you?” Rose stroked Grace’s hair again.

“No, I am. I’m just feeling a little tired.” She sat up, unwilling to let Rose see just how lifeless she really felt. “So where would you hang out?”

The smile crept back onto Rose’s face. “Well, if they even let him drive all the way out here—he’s gonna ask today. But nowhere far. Outside in the playground area or I can make us sandwiches and we can have a picnic where the barbeques are at. It doesn’t matter.”

Her little sister’s eyes sparkled, reminding her of how she once felt so excited to just be around Sal. Rose was too young to be feeling this. It scared Grace to death. What she was going through, she didn’t wish on even her worst enemy, but especially not Rose. She reached over and took her hand. “Rosie, you know you’re too young for a boyfriend right? You said he was just a friend. Promise me that that’s all this is going to be. He’s going back at the end of summer. I don’t want you to be heartbroken when he leaves.”