Noah pulled at the tie at his throat and straightened the cummerbund at his waist. He’d never worn a suit before, and here he was in the warehouse behind Maven Salon, in a grey tuxedo. Everywhere he looked were high school kids—tuxedos, fluffy dresses, teased hair, and too much eye makeup—just as uncomfortable as Noah. But there was music and platters of food—tamales, tacos, nachos, and churros—making the formal clothing bearable.
Mercedes had told Abuela and Alma a quinceañera wasn’t important, but they insisted it was. Mercedes worried about money, and a quinceañera, even one where the venue was free and the food was homemade, wasn’t in the budget. Abuela and Alma had pulled off a small miracle, and everything was perfect.
Mercedes was in pink ruffles—she’d found the dress at the Deseret Industries, the local equivalent to Goodwill—and she and Alma had altered it to fit her. Cora was dressed in an off-the-shoulder, deep green sheath that complemented her red hair and made her legs look a mile long, another second-hand find. Heather had taken Noah to a tuxedo shop and helped him rent the penguin suit he found himself in. It had cost him fifty bucks for one night. Mer’s present had cost him another $50, but she was worth it. Now he just had to give it to her.
“I have a present for you,” he murmured, ducking down so he could speak in her ear. She smelled like pink icing and Exclamation perfume. Mercedes smiled at him, licked her fingers, and set her cupcake down.
“You do?” she squealed.
He shoved the pink shoebox into her arms, relieved that he wouldn’t have to carry it any longer. Mercedes’s feet didn’t show beneath the ruffles of her dress, but he’d heard her wishing for shoes that matched her gown. He’d made it his mission to get her some. They were Cinderella shoes, high-heeled and glittering, the kind of shoes that should disappear at midnight. They looked like they would be extremely uncomfortable, and they were so small he was sure they wouldn’t fit. Alma had assured him they would.
Mercedes opened the box, and Noah could tell from her indrawn breath that he’d done well.
“Noah,” she breathed. “Oh, my gosh.”
“Now you can take off those sneakers,” he muttered, pleased that she was pleased, embarrassed because they were pink and sparkly, and he’d purchased them all by himself.
Mercedes was immediately toeing off her stained canvas sneaks and pulling the first shoe out of the box, pushing the tissue paper aside. She balanced herself on his arm as she slid one shoe on and then the other. When she straightened, still clinging to his arm, she was several inches taller.
“I feel so powerful.”
Noah started to laugh. She was a tiny, pink toy, like something you’d see on top of a cake—in fact, the cake Alma had created had a figurine that looked just like her.
“I want to wear shoes like this every single day for the rest of my life,” Mercedes cried, lifting her skirt so she could stare at her feet, entranced.
“Your feet would fall off if you wore shoes like that every day,” Noah replied.
“It would be worth it,” she retorted, fierce.
He laughed again.
“Should we try to dance?” he asked, noting the song, remembering it was her current favorite. Madonna’s “Vogue.”
She nodded, ecstatic, and shoved the pink box, her old sneakers inside, under the table.
“This is the best day of my life,” she cried, striking a new pose every time Madonna instructed her to.
“Who are all these people?” he asked, trying to keep up with her. His poses were mostly folded arms and a series of bad mimes.
“Cousins mostly. And a few kids from school.”
“You have this many cousins?” he marveled. He’d only met Jose and Angel. He had no idea.
“Well . . . not exactly. Word gets around. Mami said not to worry about guests, that she would make sure we had a party. Abuela and Mami have connections, and everyone is related in one way or another. Work, family, heritage.” She shrugged. “Mami told me to invite everyone I knew.”
About fifteen percent of the student body at East High was Latino, and all of them were at Mer’s quinceañera. Noah shook his head, marveling.
“Someday I’m going to have a big family,” he said, pulling her close as the music changed to Sinead O’Conner singing “Nothing Compares 2 You.” Another of Mer’s favorites. Her heels brought her face closer to his, and he felt that same stirring he always did when he looked at her. She made him feel safe. Happy.
Mercedes smiled up at him.
“Me too,” she said.
“Aunts and uncles and cousins and grandparents. It’s awesome,” he breathed.
“Yeah. I guess it is. We aren’t close . . . but in a way, we are. Everyone looks out for each other. After Papi died, we had food for a month. I didn’t know half the people who stopped by.”
Her eyes flickered from his, and she flashed a smile at someone beyond his shoulder. He turned his head to see who she was grinning at. Cora was dancing with a boy who was holding her like she was glass. The boy looked smitten.
“Cora, stay away from Diego. He’s bad news,” Mercedes barked, and then winked.
“Why are you telling her that? The more trouble they are, the more she likes them,” Noah muttered.
Mercedes whispered back, “Don’t worry. Diego is the sweetest boy in the universe. Not a bad bone in his body. She’ll be safe with him.”
* * *
The money represented years of savings. Fifteen thousand dollars would pay her rent on the duplex for eighteen months. But Mercedes had approached Keegan and confronted him about something that wasn’t technically any of her business, and now she was paying for it. Literally. She’d made him aware, put ideas in his head, and made herself, Noah, and especially Gia, vulnerable. If she’d just kept her mouth shut, none of this would be happening. It was her fault, and now she had to fix it.
Paying him to go away wasn’t wise, but she didn’t know what else to do, and deep down, she hoped Keegan would have enough shame and selfishness that he would take the money and go, never to be seen again. If that happened, it would be money well spent.
She went to the bank and withdrew the funds, trying to quiet the nervous quake beneath her skin, but she didn’t give the money to Keegan right away. Mercedes wouldn’t be giving him a dime until he was officially gone. She sat silently by as he gave his two-week notice and set the staff at Maven into a tizzy. No one wanted Keegan to go. For a week, it was all anyone talked about. Gloria Maven even offered him a raise and ten percent ownership in Maven if he stayed. Mercedes began to see her dreams of purchasing Maven and turning it into MeLo slipping away.
That night, Keegan was waiting for her in the parking lot again after work, shaking his head and biting his lip. “I don’t know, Sadie. Gloria really wants me to stay. She’s making it hard for me to leave. I’m thinking fifteen thousand isn’t going to cut it, after all.”
“And what about your problem that only money can fix? Gloria has sweetened the pot, but not with cash,” Mercedes retorted.
“True. Which is why I’m still willing to work with you.”
“Work with me?” Mercedes whispered, incredulous.
“Yeah. Make it twenty-five, and I’ll leave tomorrow. I’ll just go. The two weeks are almost up. A few days won’t matter.”
“Twenty-five thousand?” Mercedes was going to be sick.
“Take it or leave it. I’m thinking that other little problem will work itself out, and I’d be a fool to walk out on Maven.”
“And next week or next month you’ll be back saying you need more. That twenty-five isn’t enough. So, I’m going to have to pass, Keegan. I don’t trust you to keep your end of the bargain.” Her back was so tight and her stomach so twisted, she wouldn’t have been surprised if her spine suddenly snapped.
She moved to open her car door and Keegan’s arm shot out, pushing it closed again. He crowded her, pushing her back against the side of her Corolla.
“Don’t do this, Sadie.”
“Don’t do what? Don’t say no to you, Keegan?” she said, shoving him, trying again to get in her car.
“I called a lawyer. I have an appointment for next Wednesday. Twenty-five thousand or Noah Andelin is facing a paternity suit. I don’t like the idea of my daughter being raised by another man.”
Mercedes froze, and Keegan saw the moment he had her. He put his hands on her shoulders and ducked his lips close to her ear, like a lover saying sweet things.
“Pay up and I’m gone tomorrow, Sadie. Give me the twenty-five, and this is over. You can continue playing house with the doctor and my daughter. I don’t really give a shit what you do. But I need that money.”
She couldn’t breathe. Couldn’t think. She just wanted him to go away, to leave her alone. To leave Noah and Gia alone.
“I have twenty, Keegan. I’ll give you twenty thousand dollars. That’s the best I can do,” she relented. Oh, God. Twenty grand. It would take her five years to save that much money again.
Keegan stared down at her, eyes narrowed, and touched her lips with the pad of his thumb, considering. She wrenched her face away and shoved at his chest. He laughed like it was all just foreplay. He didn’t step back.
“Twenty isn’t enough,” he said. “But I’ll take it on one condition.”
“And what’s that, Keegan?” she snapped.
“You bring the twenty, in cash, tomorrow to work. I have to say goodbye to everyone, and I have a couple of clients I need to see in the morning.”
“That’s the condition?”
“No. I’ll take that money tomorrow, but I’ll take a kiss now, in exchange for the five thousand I’m leaving on the table. Just so you know what we could have had.”
“Is this all just a big joke to you?” Mercedes said, incredulous.
“Come on, Sadie. I want you to like me again.” He swooped in, his mouth hot and his hands cold, making her shudder. He clearly misinterpreted her tremor as desire and moaned against her lips, kissing her like he was trying to convince her he was someone else, someone she welcomed and wanted. But she gave him nothing but indifference, knowing indifference would bother him more than anger, and after several attempts to make her respond in the way he liked, he pulled away with a sigh.
“I’ll miss you, Mer.”
“Don’t call me that.”
“Ah. That’s right. That’s what Dr. Noah calls you. I forgot.” He grinned again, and winked. He released her and strode away, wiping his mouth as though his lips were still wet from hers. “See you tomorrow, love.”
* * *
“Keegan doesn’t like me,” Cuddy muttered as Mercedes led him to the sink. Keegan had passed by, winking at Mercedes but giving Cuddy a wide berth.
“Keegan only really likes himself, Cuddy. But today’s his last day. You won’t have to see him again.”