Mateo stuck around to make sure Abigail was settled for the night before taking his leave. He opened the door, prepared to step out when his mother followed him. Her knowing expression was obvious beneath the light coming from the porch.
“We need to talk,” she said, tucking a springy curl behind her ear and folding her arms to ward off the chill. It wasn’t too cold, but her outfit of a spaghetti strap shirt and Parker’s jersey pants wouldn’t help to keep her warm.
“What are you doing, ma? Go back inside.”
“Not before you tell me what is going on between you and Abigail.”
“Nothing. I already told you. She hurt herself and I brought her here so she wouldn’t be alone.”
“Yeah, but how did she hurt her ankle and why were you anywhere near an engaged woman at this time of the night?”
“It’s a long story,” Mateo said, grasping his mother’s shoulders, “which I will tell you when you’re dressed warmly.”
“I’m not blind, buster. For the past ten years, you’ve been waiting for her, waiting for something that’s been breaking your heart. Why do you think Melissa and I have tried so hard to get you to think about someone else? Abigail is going to be married. You have to let her go.”
“I will,” Mateo said. “I have, Mom. So go back inside.”
His mother arched an eyebrow. “I don’t believe you for a second.”
“Can we have this argument later? I don’t want you to catch a cold. You know you get all nasty and gross when you’re sick.”
She narrowed her eyes, but gave in. “Fine, I’ll let it go for now.”
“Take care of her, okay?”
“Of course I will. She’s like family to me.”
“She is to me too,” Mateo said, backing up a step.
“She’s more than family to you,” his mother said knowingly, “that’s what I’m afraid of.”
Mateo offered a cheeky smile. “Make sure she elevates her leg so the blood flows.”
“I got it.”
“And she should ice the swelling so it goes down.”
“I’ll do that too.”
“Tell Santi not to get into her personal space again or he’ll have to answer to me.” “Mateo…”
“Call me if you need anything.”
“I will. Good night.”
He smiled. “Good night, ma.”
At last she returned to the house and closed the door. Mateo’s façade dropped immediately and he leaned against the side of the car to catch his breath. Too much had happened tonight and he’d been unable to hide his true feelings.
Even his mother had picked up on it and Mateo was ashamed to say that she was right. What he felt for Abigail Palacio went way beyond what a man should feel for his former tutor. Especially after she’d shown just how little she’d thought of him and her promise.
It physically pained him to think of Abigail with another man and a part of him had latched on to the chance of separating her from the house she would share with her fiancé. It was a stupid, pathetic thing to do.
Worse, he didn’t regret it.
Mateo groaned and climbed into his car, remembering the feel of Abigail in his arms. She’d weighed as much as a feather and the way she held on to his neck had nearly driven the breath from his body.
She trusted him. It was as plain as day, and he’d used the circumstances to draw closer to her. He was an idiot. That level of trust deserved to be met with respect.
Abigail wasn’t his. If the tables were turned and he had learned that some old friend from the past had put their hands on her like he had—with the thoughts he’d had—Mateo would be furious. It wasn’t fair to Abigail or to the new man in her life.
Stupid
He drove home and waited for a long time in the car, unable to move. It was true. He hadn’t touched her with a pure heart or with an innocent mind. Breathing her in, taking care of her, was all that he’d wanted for over ten years.
Mateo had finally been given the opportunity to do so and even if it was just for one night, he had loved her the way he’d longed to. It was something he should regret, but he didn’t. In fact, he wanted to drive back to Mom and Parker’s and demand that Abigail abandon her fiancé and come to him.
It was a far-fetched idea. Abigail was loyal to a fault and would never turn her back on the man she loved. It just sucked that that man wasn’t him.
With labored movements, Mateo climbed out of the car and lumbered to his front door. The house was deathly still and he wished he’d found an excuse to stay over so he could be close to Abigail.
Not that Mom would allow it. She knew his heart, knew what he was thinking and would do everything in her power to keep him from ruining the vestiges of a friendship that he’d managed with Abby.
Thing was… Mateo didn’t want a friendship. Not then and especially not now.
He stripped down to his boxers and jumped into bed, staring at the dark ceiling above him. It would be nearly impossible to sleep. After Abigail’s surprise appearance at the family gathering and the adrenaline from working on the gunshot victim, along with the gun wielding step-father, he had too much on his mind.
Instead of turning to the nature channel as he had last time, Mateo decided to read a few of the latest medical journals. He flipped the glossy pages, but all the words ran together. He couldn’t get Abigail out of his mind.
There was something different about her. Perhaps it was her maturity. She’d grown into a brave, beautiful woman. Her speech was polite and proper, her mannerisms concise and socially acceptable. She was every bit the debutante he had known.
Or perhaps it was the fearlessness with which she’d followed him into the back room and her patience as he tended to the victim. Abigail’s father had pushed her to study medicine, but her aversion to the sight of blood made the request impossible to satisfy. Yet, she’d handled the crisis like a warrior and remained unshaken through the scuffle with Jamal.
Mateo shot up, realizing then what it was. For all her appearances of the innocent, naïve socialite and upscale painter, Abigail hadn’t flinched once when Jamal had gotten rude and loud with her. She had known exactly what to do when a rain of kicks came flying at her in the club.
Why would someone used to the finer things in life be so adept at handling the rough and tumble adventures tonight?
The thought buzzed around his head, refusing to go away no matter how the numbers on his digital clock changed.
When faced with a divvy of blows and kicks in the club, Abigail had said she ‘knew what to do’. What did that mean? Had someone put their hands on her?
Mateo fisted his own hands before realizing that there was nothing he could do about it now. His suspicions were based on instincts not facts and his gut had always been questionable where Abigail Palacio was concerned.
What he needed to do now was get some rest. Sleep deprivation was a sure-fire way to make mistakes and in life or death situations, his patients needed him at full capacity. Mateo turned on his side and waited for sleep to do its thing.
A FEW HOURS LATER, Mateo got up and stretched. After thanking the Man Upstairs for a new day, he called his mom.
“Mateo?” His mother’s voice rang over the line.
“Is she okay?”
“Wow. It’s so good to hear my son’s voice. ‘How are you, Mom? What are your plans for the day, Mom? Are you excited about your lecture, Mom?’”
“I was planning to ask that afterwards.”
“Yeah, right,” she said, but Mateo could hear the smile in her tone. “She’s up and about, making us breakfast. Want to come over?”
“Yes.”
“The answer was ‘no’. Don’t you have an early shift today?”
“I have enough time to pop over and check on her. I’m a doctor, you know.” “So is Parker.”
Mateo frowned. “I was working on her first.”
“You should hear yourself, acting like Abigail’s a toy that you called dibs on.” She tutted. “Her fiancé has already called dibs so try to get it together.”
“I will,” Mateo promised. “I’ll be there in fifteen.”
“Don’t rush on my account.”
They hung up and Mateo flew through his morning routine. He was careful to iron his coat so that not a wrinkle disturbed the material.
Abigail had never seen him in his coat before and he’d been told it made him look quite impressive.
Not that he cared
“You are pathetic, Hernandez,” Mateo murmured to himself as he fixed his hair and glared at his reflection in the bathroom mirror.
“Abigail is just a friend. Nothing more.”
He nodded once and then raced to his car. If he drove like a maniac and cut every corner he possibly could, he’d make it to the hospital before Nick caught him sneaking in late. Even if he got another scolding, it was worth it if he got to see his… friend.