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seemed to me that sharing a bathroom with someone was more personal than sleeping with them, and I had always promised myself that one day I would shower with the man I loved. It was just a game I played in my head. I still had something to offer someone that no one else had ever had.
     

     
    As we went down in the elevator he kept his eyes on the ceiling. He didn’t want to look into my eyes, not this close anyway. The bellboy, in his plum and gold uniform, kept his back to us. I guess it was the presence of the third party that made me do it. I thought it would be fun to embarrass him. “How old are your kids?”
    “I have twins. They’re two years old. And then there’s Junior.”
    “How old’s Junior?”
    “He’ll be a year old in...fifteen months” time.”
    “Esme's pregnant?” I said.
    The lift doors opened.
    “Sure,” he said.
    The only one of us who wasn’t blushing was the bellboy. At least Angel had the grace to look just a little uncomfortable with his confession. Or perhaps he was just disappointed that I didn’t think to congratulate him.
     
     
     
     

Chapter 7

     
     
    We stopped on the corner of our block. I wouldn’t let him go any closer. I didn’t want anyone seeing me in a limousine. I changed out of the new clothes in the back seat, and slipped back into my waitress uniform. I left the Cardin suit and the shoes in the Burdine's bag.
    “Don’t forget the clothes,” Angel said to me.
    “What am I going to do with those?”
    “I don’t know. Wear them?”
    “On the bus to work?”
    “Next time.”
    “You haven’t asked me if there’s going to be a next time,” I said.
    “Sure there is,” he said. He handed me an envelope. “This is for your father from me.”
    I held the envelope in my hands and stared at it. I wasn’t a whore until I took the money. I peeked inside. Dios mio , if I was selling myself at least I was getting an exorbitant price.
    I slipped the money into my purse.
    “Thanks. This is going to help out a lot,” I said, trying to make out it was a loan.
    “Sure, baby.” He looked over at the house, the trash spilled in the yard by the neighbour’s dog, the dead lawn.
    “We have to get you a new place.”
    “That’s not my place,” I said. “My place is the back of that place. And I don’t need a new one, we don’t need a new one. It suits us just fine.”
    “My father-in-law owns a real estate company. I can get something in a better part of town, won’t cost you anything.”
    “No, I don’t want you to.”
    “You’d rather live in that dump?”
    “Yes.”
    I put my hand on the door and made to get out.
    “Let me at least get you a better job.”
    “Enough, Angel. We revisited old times for an afternoon, that doesn’t mean you can start running my whole life.”
    “Can you type?”
    “Do I look like I can type?”
    “I can get you a job in a typing pool at one of our offices. You don’t have to type.”
    “Are you not listening to me?”
    “You’ll get twice what you’re getting now.”
    I got out of the limousine. “Thanks for the crab.”
    He grabbed my arm, pulled me back towards him and kissed me on the mouth. “I’ll be seeing you,” he said.
     

     
    Papi was dozing in front of the news. He heard me come in and opened his eyes. “Is that you, cariña?”
    “Hi, Papi,” I said. “How are you feeling?”
    “You’re wearing lipstick,” he said.
    Mierda , I’d forgotten to take it off. Of course he would notice, there might be a lot wrong with his heart, but there was nothing wrong with his eyes. “Can’t a girl wear lipstick once in a while?”
    “Is there a boy you like?”
    “Of course not.”
    “Why “of course not?” At your age, there should be a boy, you should be out dancing every night not stuck in here taking care of me.”
    “Don’t talk like that, Papi. You took care of me all those years.”
    I went to the kitchen - bathroom - whatever it was, and looked in the pantry for something to cook