Alvaro was a big tease when he wanted to be. I slept in the guest room because after he made me all hot and bothered he walked away with a victorious smile. He was proud to know he had an effect on me I suppose. The eyes were a vain thing. Everything in me screamed not to fall for his tricks. The devil was once an angel and Alvaro Castillo would prove to me just how true those words could be if I didn't watch myself around him.The guest room had a single bed and was painted with a fresh shade of white. The curtains were blue and there were fake flowers in a vase on the vanity table. I dressed my bed and left the room the way I found it.I walked into my room to see it empty. The bed was made and the windows and curtains were open. I went straight to the bathroom and walked into Mateo on the toilet. "I'm popping!" He yelled and I shrieked shutting the door. "Oh come on Mat, do you have to do that in here." I banged on the door. "Where else am I supposed to do it." I heard him laug
Alvaro's POV.I was nine years old when my father passed. No, I shouldn't say he passed, it made it sound like a natural cause when he was murdered in cold blood on the street. There was an up-and-coming gang in the city called the Diabolos and for initiation—to be the gang leader's left nut I suppose—my father was the target. Put a bullet in him and you were going to be the pet. The right hand man of the new boss. My father didn't know it yet because he was too distracted by my mother. She was cheating on him with one of his men and he found out. It drove him insane. Heartbroken he turned to the bottle. I would come home from school to find him passed out in the living room. I was just a kid but I should have done something more to save my father from himself and what we didn't know was coming. He felt embarrassed. He had a lot of regrets and I remembered one crucial piece of advice he gave me. "No te cases Una mujer te romperá de maneras que no sabías que eran posibles."He sai
Jane's POV First Mateo left and Alvaro left, leaving me with his mother and grandfather at the table. His mother seemed horrible and Alvaro looked like he couldn't stand her— maybe that's why I hadn't met her till now. I hated the way Alvaro's mother spoke about Mateo and the way she spoke to him as if she was better than him. I could see Mateo felt uncomfortable and irritated in her presence. "Excuse me," she said and stood. Her heels clicked against the porcelain tiles with each step she took to the door. Soon after I heard yelling and abuelo shut his eyes tightly, taking a sip of his wine. "Can you please check on Mateo, mi hija?" He asked, "I'd do it myself but his room is upstairs." "Of course," I bowed my head, standing. "But I don't want to leave you alone here," I said and he smiled. "Mi hija, my nurse will be right in. Plus I need to check on Alvaro." I could see the sadness in his eyes. "I shouldn't have asked his mother to come." "You were just trying to help, abuelo
The doctor had set the date of the procedure a week after my first visit. My appointment day had arrived and Alvaro said he would pick me up from work because my boss refused to give me the day off. Julia said she'd cover for me when she got out of school since she was picking up extra shifts. Her dad lost his job and I didn't mind working fewer hours so she can earn a little extra. I was anxious. I read on the internet how the process went and it seemed simple enough, nothing to be too afraid of. It was just carrying a baby for nine months that concerned me and then the rest of that baby's life. Motherhood was a big responsibility. It wasn't like having a goldfish. I killed all my goldfish due to my neglecting them. There were some days I forgot to feed them and then there was never time to clean the tank. I couldn't do that with a baby, I wouldn't but there was this part of me that felt like I wasn't good enough to be a parent. Some people were meant to be parents while others w
"How do I look?" Mateo asked, grinning at himself in the mirror. "You look great..." I lied. He looked like he stepped out of a cliche high school movie."You look like an idiot," Alvaro laughed, "pull your pants up, mi hijo. Why is your underwear showing?" Mateo was dressed in a burned orange T, black baggy pants that hung low and a baseball cap. "It's hip." He defended, looking down at himself. "Dios mío! Jane do something," Alvaro said, putting me on the spot. "Tell him if you were a girl you would never be impressed by that." "Hey!" I exclaimed, "I am a girl." Mateo laughed and Alvaro rolled his eyes. "You know what I mean," he said.I walked over to Mateo's closet and found a grey v- neck shirt. I walked over to him and pulled the hat off his head, ruffling his hair around. "Put this shirt on and maybe pull the pants up. This isn't a movie made in 1999 about high school students." Mateo chuckled pulling off the bright traffic cone t-shirt and throwing it on the bed. "I gu
I got dressed for work. I put on my jeans and I put the money I had in my bag. I deliberately left my phone on my pillow for what I was about to do. He could trace me with the phone and I didn't want to be found. My plan was clear and even though it wasn't England it was still considered a safe haven compared to this place. I had come to terms with a decision last night when Mateo left my room. I couldn't sleep knowing what I was going to do today. It was short notice and I would never just leave on a dime without proper preparation but it felt like the walls were closing in on me the longer I stayed here.I left my room to see Alvaro leaning against the wall, opposite my door. I ignored him and carried on walking to the stairs. "Jane," he called and I walked faster. "I didn't expect things to go that way yesterday," he tried to explain. "You didn't expect to get caught," I said and he went silent. "Jane please, just let me explain why." I stopped turning around to face him. "I
Alvaro's POV I fucked up, the look of distrust in her eyes haunted me. She now saw me as the monster I was. Things were getting better and then that puta had to go and give an anonymous tip to the cops about a shipment that was coming in. I couldn't trust a rat and I had to kill him. Jane saw Ricky drag the man's dead body out and she looked mortified. She refused to talk to me and I wanted to make things better between us since there was a possibility she could be carrying my child soon. My phone buzzed on the table and I looked to see it was Carlos, Jane's bodyguard. I picked it up immediately. "Sir it's your wife. She's locked herself in the back room and isn't responding to me." "What!" I stood, "Carlos, break that door down now! I'm coming." I cut the call and got into my car. I sped to her working place. What if she fainted. She hadn't eaten this morning in her rush to get away from me. I parked my car behind Mateo's on the road and ran up the few steps into the small s
Jane's POV I woke up to the smell of something potently sweet lingering in the air. It was day two of living with my grandmother and it seemed her newfound purpose was feeding me. She complained saying I was too skinny and needed to have my energy for when it came time to deliver. I drew my curtains and opened the window allowing the sweet air into the room. My body quivered in delight, welcoming the fresh air into my oxygen stream.My grandmother was excited about having a great-grandchild and I didn't realize before that I wasn't only making abuelo a great-grandfather. I was making my parent's grandparents as well. "You're such a sweetie," I heard my grandmother say to someone and I heard a man chuckle.I went over to the bathroom and brushed my teeth. I had been using my grandmother's clothes. It was baggy on me and very freeing. The best thing about living here as a kid was that I could stay in PJs all day. It's not like it was any different when I lived on my own but here it