Romero (2 page)

Angel came from a big family—two brothers and a sister, and his parents owned one of the most renowned restaurants in La Jolla. His two older brothers were in college on full scholarships. Angel was on the same path. He’d been the star football player most of the four years in high school. The only time he hadn’t been in the spotlight was when his brothers were in it.

Eric was an only child so he could relate to Romero in that sense, but that’s where any similarity in their family lifestyle ended. Eric’s dad was a businessman and the epitome of class. He jetted all over the world, was well-read and educated. Both Eric and Angel’s futures were carefully planned. They’d be attending college in the fall and knew exactly where they were going.

Romero, on the other hand, hadn’t even looked into college. His uncles were under the impression that he’d join the family business. But Romero had other plans. Plans he hadn’t shared with anyone.

His uncles, while a little rough around the edges, were good guys—now. They’d come a long way from their days of being thugs. His grandmother told him stories when he was younger. They ran with the worst of them and got his dad, their youngest brother, involved. Then his dad was arrested for drug trafficking—something to which his brothers introduced him. Romero was just a baby. His grandmother said his uncles, full of regret, decided to turn over a new leaf. Lead a life on the straight and narrow.

They gave up trafficking for gambling on the ponies in Del Mar. Manny was surprisingly lucky. He planned on saving up his winnings and opening up his own business. Then a few years later, his uncles decided they needed to step up and be the role models they never were to their younger brother. So they gave up the life of gambling for a more respectable way of life—they opened up a titty bar.

Romero’s dad was supposed to do fifteen years in the can, but he was out on parole earlier that year. Just a few months later, he was back in for possession. The judge wasn’t messing around either, since he was still on parole—slapped another ten-year sentence on him. Romero didn’t care. He’d never known his old man anyway. As far as he was concerned, his uncles and grandmother were the only parents he ever had.

Romero would’ve never believed his graduation night would turn into this. Because Angel had met and fallen completely head over balls for the new chick in school senior year. She’d be coming along with them to party, like she had for months. Even worse? Now that Angel’s highly guarded younger sister, Sofia, had turned seventeen, she was allowed to date. Eric had staked his claim immediately. Not that they hadn’t been sneaking around for months, but now they’d be at the party out in the open for everyone to see they were a bona fide couple.

Romero couldn’t understand how anyone would want to get tied down so young. He lived to get wasted and bag a new piece of ass every chance he got. That was the whole reason why he joined the football team to begin with. Ever since he’d made the starting line up and started bulking up, he never left a party without knowing he was getting laid, or at least blown by some of the girls who still tried to act like doing that was somehow more respectable than going all the way. Either way, it was a happy ending and he’d take it.

They were at a backyard party for over an hour and Romero had already thrown a few back. Eric and Angel were too busy honey-mooning to even get a buzz. Romero kicked it with some of the other football players. Ozzie, a third stringer but a good buddy of Romero’s, brought a bottle of Jack Daniels. “Your dad actually bought you this shit?”

Ozzie smiled, taking a swig then looking like he might throw up in his mouth. Romero laughed. Ozzie was no drinker. This was going to get ugly. “Give me that.”

Ozzie handed him the bottle. Romero took a drink and grimaced as the warm liquid slid down, burning his throat in the process. “Smooth,” he said, in a voice so hoarse the guys laughed.

Running into Claire and her boyfriend again at the party was an unpleasant surprise. He’d only seen her at these types of parties a handful of times—each time with her boyfriend—a basketball player who had frat boy written all over him. They were made for each other. What surprised him even more was her walking away from her boyfriend to come over and say hello to him.

“I was gonna say hello to you today when I saw you after graduation, but you walked away.”

Romero glanced at her boyfriend who looked in their direction but avoided eye contact. Smart guy, because the liquor only intensified his regret of waiting too long to get to know Claire. It wouldn’t take much now for Romero to snap. “Yeah, well, you looked busy.”

She shrugged. “Anyway I just wanted to say congrats.” She leaned in and whispered, “Mr. Closet Smart. I’m sure you have big plans.”

Of course, Claire would be the only one who’d think that. “I have a few,” he smiled. “What about you?”

One of the girls in the group with her boyfriend called out for her. Figures her coward ass boyfriend wouldn’t even look their way, pretending he wasn’t the one who’d put the girl up to calling for Claire. Claire turned and nodded.

A couple of hours later Romero was behind the garage with his hand down a cheerleader’s pants. His fingers found their way to a spot that made her gasp and she moaned spreading her legs a little further. He kissed her even deeper.

Romero stopped for a moment and looked at her. He hadn’t really planned on doing it there. Usually, this was just the starter. They could head to the beach or a backseat later, but something about her anxious eyes told him she might change her mind.

He took the few steps over to reach for the back door of the garage. One turn, and it opened. Romero smiled. There had to be a car in there. He pulled her by the hand and she followed willingly. A peek inside, and he realized this was better than he thought—an SUV, and the windows were open. He turned back to her with a smirk. “Happy Graduation, sexy girl.” He would’ve added her name instead of the endearment if he’d remembered it.

Isabel

Isabel summed up her valedictory address with a smile. She glanced at her father who was behind the video camera that sat on a tripod just below the stage. He stood tall and proud, clapping. Her mother and siblings stood with everyone else, to applaud the speech she’d worked on for weeks. The immense relief of getting it over with was more than reward enough.

The last month and a half, she’d been a wreck. The only one of her siblings who hadn’t made Valedictorian was her brother Art, but then he’d gone to a highly regarded military school, and had graduated with honors, so that seemed acceptable enough. Isabel had struggled the last few months with her AP classes becoming increasingly difficult. She was so worried that her scores on her finals wouldn’t be enough. As relieved as she was that this was finally over, she knew this was only the beginning.

Both her oldest sister Pat, and her brother Art were following her father’s example and going into law. Her father was a criminal judge. Her other sister, Gina, had just transferred to Cornell, and knew before she even graduated from high school that she’d be majoring in civil engineering.

Isabel was still undecided about her major. Her mother had been a schoolteacher for years before being diagnosed with breast cancer a few years ago. Thankfully, she’d beat it. Even after the chemo taking so much from her mother and her father insisting she not go back to work, her mother insisted she had to.

Growing up, Isabel heard all the stories her mother told her about her students. She seemed to revel in it and even though her dad often made cracks about how unappreciated teachers were for all the hard work they did. Isabel noted how he never came home speaking fondly of his day at work, like her mother did so often. As much as her sister was pushing for her to go into law—maybe someday between them they could start their own firm, Isabel’s heart was leaning towards her mother’s first love—teaching.

After the ceremony, they went out for a swanky dinner in Laguna, at one of her dad’s favorite restaurants. A few of her friends had mentioned getting together later that evening to celebrate, but Isabel had plans early the next morning. Even though she was attending the University of San Diego, just over an hour away from her home in Laguna Beach, she would be staying in a dorm. Even more than her parents, her sister Pat that had always pushed her to excel. She did it all through grade school and high school. Unlike her brother, who was going to Loyola, Pat was studying close by and living at home. Isabel needed to get away. Already, because of their insistence, and because none of them had taken the summer off after high school, she was enrolled in summer school. Both her father and sister Pat had been hammering at her for months now, “Knock it out, no sense in wasting time.”

So tomorrow was orientation and her summer classes started in a week.

“I’m really proud of you, Isabel.” Her father squeezed her hand during dinner. It was rare for her father to say anything heartfelt. It almost brought a tear to her eye.

“Yeah,” Pat added, “and you were worried about not making Valedictorian.” Her sister rolled her eyes. “I knew you had it in you, Bell, you just have to believe in yourself more.”

Isabel smiled. “I’m just glad it’s over.”

“Now the real fun begins,” Gina said. “College life and college
men
.” Her eyebrows bounced up and down.

Her mom chuckled. “Just don’t get too caught up in that stuff and let your grades slip.”

“I won’t.” Isabel couldn’t even imagine getting
caught up
in that. She had one boyfriend all through high school. The rest of the time, she spent most of her weekends studying and reading. Just like tonight, while everyone else was out celebrating graduation, she’d be hitting the hay early.

Pat’s eyes opened wide as if his comment surprised her. “It’s nothing personal, Art. You should know by now, no one will ever be good enough for my little brother, least of all some trailer trash working at the Quick-Mart.”

Art apologized through his teeth, though it was anything but sincere. That pretty much ended any mood for small talk between her siblings. Her father asked Gina about her flight itinerary. Everyone agreed to keep their schedules open to be there to see her off since she’d be gone for months. Isabel never understood why Gina had chosen to go so far to school. As much as her family could drive her nutty sometimes, they meant the world to her and she’d miss them terribly if she was ever away from them for that long.

Even now that she’d be staying at a dorm, she was still close enough that she could drive back on a whim if she ever needed to.

Romero

Now that he was eighteen, Romero could be a doorman at his uncles bar. He knew they expected him to be there for good, eventually graduating into working inside when he turned twenty-one, but that wasn’t in his plans. He’d let them down easy when the time came, but for now, he’d enjoy the dancers and waitresses so easily accessible to him.

After high school, he continued to work out, maintaining the physique needed to man the door for unruly drunks who wanted in or needed to be thrown out. He’d been working there all summer.

Romero enjoyed the job. It gave him the experience he needed for what he was planning. While his friends would all be in college, he was doing his own prerequisite work. For years, he’d thought about possibly becoming a cop, then making detective like the ones he saw in movies and on television. But he decided not to go that route. He hated being on a schedule. That was the same reason he decided college wasn’t for him. Unlike Angel and Eric, he barely managed to stay eligible to play football during high school. It wasn’t that the classes were too hard for him. He just never really cared enough to pull top grades.

He’d already knocked out the joke of a test he needed to be licensed as a security guard. Not that his uncles required it, it was just step one of the goals he’d set for himself. Just like the sparring and grappling he’d taken up practicing for over a year now with some of the guys at the gym who did mixed martial arts.