Hold Me at Twilight (Romano Family Book 1) Page 2

  But Mr. Campbell was a client, not a date. This was not the same kind of situation, yet it was hard to hold back from comparing.

  When they came through the entrance, the front room was full as usual on such a family night event. Jacinta kept walking, waving at some of the cousins but not stopping to give explanations. Everyone probably already knew about the American guy she’d brought home with her, and those who didn’t would know soon enough.

  She glanced over her shoulder to make sure he followed her to the kitchen. Mãe stood at the side counter, sliding leftover sauce into a glass container, and Tia Mariana scrubbed a large pot at the sink. They both quickly finished their tasks when they saw her. Cousin Manuela swept the floor at the opposite corner.

  “Jacinta, you’re back!” Mãe wiped her hands on the edge of her apron.

  Tia Mariana put the pot in the bottom cupboard. They turned their gazes from her to Mr. Campbell who’d stopped at the door, as if trying to decide whether to come in or stay where he was. He glanced between them, and they smiled back unabashedly.

  Jacinta refrained from laughing. All it took was a blue-eyed guy with dimples to make a couple of senior-aged women embarrass themselves.

  His neck flamed at the attention.

  “You two are impossible. Look at the poor guy.”

  His ears had reddened into a deep hue.

  Mãe grabbed two plates from the cupboard. “Ask him if he likes spaghetti and meatballs.”

  Jacinta hung her sweater and purse in the small service closet. “You can hang your backpack in here, Mr. Campbell. It’ll be safe. The restroom is down the hallway to the right, and we’ll be eating outside on the back patio. Do you like spaghetti and meatballs?” When she turned, he stood directly behind her.

  His blue eyes seemed brighter up close, and she swallowed. She moved to pass by him, and he moved in the same direction, which brought them closer than before. They stared at each other for a moment.

  “What are you two doing? Kissing in the closet?” Tia Mariana peeked around the jamb.

  Her cheeks flushed. “Tia.” Jacinta scrambled away from the cramped closet as fast as she could. “He’s right here and he can hear you.” She hissed in a low voice.

  “Well, he doesn’t speak any Portuguese, does he?”

  “I do,” Jacinta said. He’d probably understood what Tia Mariana had said from her smug expression.

  Mr. Campbell hung his backpack and gave a small, lazy smile. “I would love spaghetti and meatballs, Miss Romano.”

  “Please, call me Jacinta,” she said over her shoulder on the way to the back patio.

  “Jacinta,” he repeated in a soft voice.

  The way he said her name made her stop and turn to him.

  He met her eyes, as if to say he now had her attention. “You really must call me Knox.”

  She smiled. “Okay, Knox. Meet me outside when you’re ready.”

  On the patio, a few of the younger cousins sat against the fence playing games on their phones. At the long table, Pai, Avô António, and Avó Teresa played a game of cards at the front. At the back table, a few of her older cousins sat with their spouses and kids. She waved to the cousins and greeted her closer relatives with a quick kiss on the cheek.

  Avó Teresa put her cards down and patted the chair next to her. “What is this I hear about an American guy?”

  “What’s his name?” Pai kept his eyes on the cards in his hand. “Where does he come from?”

  “Where did you meet him?” Avô António piped up.

  Jacinta took the chair next to Grandma. “His name is Knox Campbell and he’s a client from the agency.

  Dad glanced at her. “What did you call him?”

  “His name is Knox,” she repeated. “He’s American. I don’t know any more than that.”

  “Noques? What kind of a name is that?” Her dad asked with confusion stamped on his face.

  “Não, Pai. K-N-O-X. But the K is silent,” she repeated patiently. It was a hard pronunciation for a Portuguese-speaking person.

  Dad shook his head. “Kind of weird, if you ask me.”

  “It’s not his fault his parents called him that.” She arched an eyebrow. “I should know about being saddled with a name I didn’t choose.”

  “What are you talking about?” Dad put down two cards while keeping an eye on Grandma and Grandpa. “Jacinta is a beautiful name. It’s from the family too.”

  “It’s not what I would have chosen. Just saying.”

  Knox came out to the patio holding a plate in his hands, and Mom followed close with a pitcher of lemonade and two glasses on a tray. Tia Mariana came behind carrying another plate.

  Jacinta stood and took the plate from her aunt. Knox sat on the chair to the other side, next to Jacinta. He smiled and greeted everyone, introducing himself.

  She gestured to her family. “This is my father, Carlos Romano. My grandfather, António Romano, and my grandmother, Teresa. You already met my mother and aunt. Her husband, uncle Francisco, is my dad’s brother.” Tio Francisco sat at the other end of the table with Tio Luís and Tia Glória, and Jacinta introduced them as well.

  Grandma Teresa waggled her eyebrows. “He’s a charmer, isn’t he?”

  Jacinta looked between her grandma and Knox. Was he a charmer? That hadn’t been her first impression, but she didn’t know him. He’d been humble enough to ask for help, and she didn’t know of many men in her family who would. He’d also been patient at the police station, not losing his temper or demanding special treatment.

  His warm eyes and disarming smile were enough to charm her grandma, and he already had two fans in Mom and her aunt.

  What kind of man was Knox Campbell?

  Knox took a sip of his lemonade and leaned back in his chair. He’d been trying to rein in his smile all night, but he couldn’t. Going to the travel agency to ask Jacinta Romano for help had been his best idea of late. Not all his problems were resolved yet, but he had a good feeling that his luck was turning back to what it had been before the theft. He’d worry about the rest later.

  For a guy who’d been raised with a single mother and no siblings, the workings of large families mesmerized Knox. The Romano family was extensive, noisy, and completely devoted to one another. He could feel the way they cared, even when they tried to disguise it, like the teenagers at the very back of the yard who were playing together while ignoring the rest of their family.

  The outside patio was typical Portuguese and almost pulled off a tourist brochure. A long wooden table, flanked by chairs and benches, took center stage in the long space. Mature grape vines hung over the patio, supported by cement posts and metal wires in a controlled canopy of flat green leaves and budding clusters of grapes. A string of large lightbulbs peeked intermittently from above, illuminating the dark area.

  Jacinta had told him everybody’s names and he’d forgotten them already. Portuguese was a difficult language, and being among conversations he couldn’t understand was much more frustrating than he’d thought.

  Jacinta refilled his glass. “Knox, my dad and grandparents are asking me what happened to you.”

  Knox put down his fork and pushed his empty plate away. “Oh boy.”

  Jacinta translated to them and they chuckled. She’d heard the story already, and as embarrassing as it was, he knew the kind of reaction they’d have, just as the policemen and Jacinta had reacted at the station.

  They’d laugh even harder once they heard the whole story. “I was on my last day and I wanted to get a souvenir for my mom. You know that outdoor market in the center of town close to the tower? So I’m looking at this lovely tile work, I reach for my wallet, and I’m holding the souvenir on my other hand”—he raised his hands with his palms out—“and out of nowhere this kid on a skateboard zooms by and grabs it right out of my fingers.”

  Jacinta nodded and translated again. Her grandmother’s eyes widened but the men were less delicate and laughed, shaking their heads.

  Knox
joined them in the nodding. “He wore jeans and a black hoodie pulled over his head and I couldn’t even describe him.” It had definitely not been a heroic tale. “So there I am, just watching the guy zip farther and farther away with my ID, my credit cards, and my passport, and there was nothing I could do.”

  Jacinta kept translating, entertaining them with his tale of woe.

  Her grandmother spoke what sounded like a question.

  Before Jacinta could translate for him, a guy came through the door and everyone greeted him warmly, the men slapping him on the back and the women kissing his cheeks. He was in his early thirties and a bit taller than most Portuguese men Knox had met. He had a word and a smile for everyone, and even the children ran to him, exchanging high-fives and fist bumps. Who was this guy?

  Jacinta stood from her chair, and smiled. “Here’s Matias.”

  When the man approached the table, he greeted the older people first then he brought an arm around Jacinta’s shoulders and kissed the top of her head. Jacinta gave him a side hug and smiled at him warmly. She gestured at Knox, across the table, and said a few words in Portuguese.

  “I’m Matias.” The guy extended his hand. “How are you?” He pulled a chair and sat between Jacinta and her grandmother.

  He spoke English as well as Jacinta did, but who was he? Jacinta’s boyfriend? Maybe her fiancé? They seemed close. Knox didn’t see a ring on either one, but that didn’t mean they couldn’t be in a relationship. He could very well be her husband.

  He held out his hand. “Knox Campbell. Your wife was kind enough to help me—”

  Matias interrupted, an eyebrow raised. “My wife?”

  Jacinta covered a smile behind her hand. Someone in the room said something and they all burst out laughing. What was so funny? Sometimes not understanding the language was more than a little inconvenient.

  Jacinta patted the guy’s hand. “Matias is my cousin. We grew up together.” She gestured at the group in the patio. “We’re all family.”

  Knox’s neck heated. Cousins. Not husband and wife. Embarrassment coursed through him, mingled with a clear sense of relief. He didn’t want to think why he was so relieved to find out Jacinta was not married. He’d analyze that later.

  “I’m sorry,” he said with a sheepish smile.

  Jacinta waved him off. “Oh, you’re fine. Matias will make a fine husband one day, but not for me.”

  Her grandmother asked something and when Jacinta replied, they all laughed again.

  Knox hunched a shoulder and smiled. “They’re going to rib me about it, aren’t they?”

  Her cousin chuckled and Jacinta joined him. “Yes, it’ll be a hard one to forget.”

  By now, Jacinta’s mother and aunt, who’d gone back inside with their empty plates, returned to the rest of the family. Jacinta related his story to her cousin Matias. After watching them interact, Knox could see the family resemblance. He also noticed the lack of romantic feelings between them. They treated each other like siblings. She wasn’t married to this guy, but that didn’t mean she didn’t have a boyfriend.

  Knox forced his thoughts from the direction they wanted to go. Where was this interest in Jacinta’s love life coming from? He’d barely met her and shouldn’t be feeling this pull toward her.

  “So, Knox, what is your plan?” Matias asked.

  “I was able to file the police report.” He nodded in Jacinta’s direction and she gave him a thumbs-up. “My next step is to go to the embassy in Lisbon, so I can apply for a new passport. But I found out that tomorrow is a holiday and the embassy is closed, which means I have to wait till Monday.” Another stumbling block to fixing his mess and returning home. “I had to cancel my credit cards, but I have some cash to tide me over while I wait for the new passport.”

  “How long will that take?” Jacinta asked.

  “Two weeks.” He’d called the embassy and pleaded with them, but emergency passports had a two-week turnaround, and nobody could change that.

  Matias put his glass down on the table. “Do you have a place to stay?”

  “No, not yet.” Knox had been focused on filing the paperwork and talking to the embassy and hadn’t spent much time thinking about the rest. Luckily, he still had his phone which had been securely inside his front pocket at the time of the theft.

  Matias exchanged a look with Jacinta, lending evidence to the close bond they had between them. This was the kind of sibling relationship Knox had craved all his life. He’d always longed for a sibling or even a parent to be truly close to. He and his mom had a bond more out of necessity than conscious choice, their relationship fraught with tension. Her mental problems had dominated their lives and forced him to take on responsibility at a young age. They’d made it work, but it had never felt like family in any sort of the traditional sense. And it had always been lonely.

  Though his mom was mostly stable now, living in a group home and holding a job, he didn’t trust her and couldn’t ask her to wire emergency money. He’d have to think of something else.

  What would it be like to have someone in his life he could trust as much as Jacinta and her cousin Matias trusted each other?

  A question passed from Matias to Jacinta without any words. She nodded back at him in reply.

  “I’m leaving on a trip on Monday,” Matias said.

  “Matias is a river cruise captain and his trips take eight days,” Jacinta added.

  Knox hesitated for a moment, not sure why they shared this kind of information with him.

  Jacinta glanced at her cousin one more time, and when she nudged him with her elbow, he chuckled lightly.

  Knox’s confusion must have been clear to see.

  “You can stay at my apartment since I’ll be away,” Matias said.

  Knox stood at the window, watching the street below, a cup of coffee in his hand.

  Matias lived a couple of streets away from the building where Jacinta’s parents lived, on the second story overlooking a square and a church. The day was just beginning to stretch in long rays of pale colored sun, and it promised to be a beautiful, warm one.

  Knox had slept well, free of worries about what had happened and what the next few days would bring. He could only do so much while he waited, and worrying about what he couldn’t control wouldn’t change anything. Working for himself as a web developer had its advantages, and he was glad he could rearrange his schedule when emergencies arose.

  Matias came in the kitchen and handed him a key. “Here. I’ll be in and out until I leave on Sunday evening. Just make sure you lock the door when you leave. There isn’t much food in the pantry or the refrigerator”— he grimaced— “but you’re welcome to go down to my grandma’s and eat there. She’s always feeding everyone.”

  Knox took the key and added it to his key chain. “Does she live close by?”

  Matias pulled a small espresso from the automatic machine. He stirred it for a few moments and then downed it in one gulp. “Yeah, that’s where we were yesterday.”

  “I thought Jacinta’s parents lived there.”

  Matias set the small cup on the counter. “Her parents live on the second floor, grandparents on the first floor. Jacinta has the attic apartment.” He gestured out the window in the opposite direction. “My parents, Luís and Glória, live ten minutes away. They’ll be there today too. In fact, the whole family will be there to help with the preparations for the upcoming party.”

  Knox rinsed his cup in the sink. “Is that another holiday?”

  “It will be for the Romanos.” Matias smiled. “My grandparents are celebrating their sixtieth anniversary in a couple of weeks. Everyone’s coming. It’ll be huge. Anyway, you can go there for meals. There’s always someone cooking.” Matias drew out his phone. “Let me give you my number, just in case.”

  “I can’t thank you and your family enough for being so generous,” Knox said as he recorded Matias’s number.

  Matias left after explaining how to operate the washer. Knox did his lau
ndry, waited for the machine to go through the cycle, then hung his clothes on the line. He’d gone for his suitcase which he’d left at the hotel, and was glad to have the chance to wash his clothes. It still amazed him how welcoming the Romano family was, especially Matias who’d brought him into his apartment without hesitation.

  When Knox arrived at the other building, he knocked lightly. One of the teenagers opened the door and then screamed for Jacinta as she disappeared down the hallway. Jacinta finally showed up a few minutes later.

  “Knox, don’t just stand there. Please come in.” She turned back and yelled in Portuguese toward the inside of the house. “Excuse my cousin Anita for not inviting you in. She has no manners.”

  Knox followed Jacinta just as he had the day before.

  She continued. “I need your phone number.” She glanced back at him over her shoulder. “So we can text you while you’re at Matias’s place. He doesn’t have a land line. Does your phone work here?”

  He nodded. “Yes, I got international service.”

  The kitchen was in a flurry of activity. Some of the younger women fed their children at a small table in the far corner, while other women stood at the stove and sink. Out on the patio, the older folks sat around the long table among cups of coffee, baskets of bread, and saucers of butter. Everyone waved at him and greeted him in Portuguese.

  Jacinta gestured through the doors. “Go have breakfast. How do you like your coffee?”

  “I had an espresso earlier with Matias.”

  She turned from the machine in the corner. “A latte then?”

  A few minutes later, she joined him at the patio table and set down a large cup and saucer in front of him. “There you go.” She drew two packets of sugar from her pocket and set them on the table.

  “Obrigado,” Knox said, enunciating the word slowly.