Chapter 19

Walking into La Havana with Deke at her side, Maya hoped there was an easy explanation for this influx of calls to her phone. It was humming frequently with incoming messages that she didn't even want to glance at. How many dick pics could she see without freaking out? And each message made Deke more tense. He wanted to believe her, but the sheer number of texts was overwhelming.

"Are you okay, Maya?" Mateo asked when he spotted them.

"Yes. I'm fine. Thank you for giving me yesterday off. I hope it didn't cause any problems," she said, stepping forward to hug her brother.

He squeezed her tightly and released her, saying, "I'm glad. We were fine but missed all that you do of course."

"I'll work an extra shift or two if you need me to this week."

"You will not. You needed some time off," Maya's mother said behind her in a tone that no one would argue with.

"Mamá, I need to talk to you," Maya said quickly.

"You do?" her mother answered, sounding surprised. She looked at Maya's buzzing phone and added, "Turn off that music. I can't think with that hum."

"It's not music, Se?ora Rodriguez. Those are all messages coming to Maya's phone," Deke told her.

Maya watched her mother's face and saw a slight change in her expression. "Mamá, did you sign me up for a dating app?"

"She'd never do that," Mateo said, laughing. "Especially that one called Hot Dates! It's just a hook-up site."

"A hook-up site?" her mother repeated.

"You know, for people looking for sex," Mateo explained.

"Oh… I didn't know that. It just looked like a lot of healthy people who were active in a lot of sports and outdoor fun," his mother protested.

"Mamá, you have to close down that account now," Maya demanded.

"I don't like your tone, mija. Besides, I already closed it down," her mother said sternly.

"Could you pull up the account on your phone, Se?ora Rodriguez—so we can double check?" Deke requested.

"I think I'd know if I've turned off the account," Maria Eugenia said defensively.

They waited as her mother retrieved her phone from the office. Opening the large handbag, she sorted through a bunch of essential clutter to find her phone. Looking up at Maya, she asked, "Was it Hot Dates or Find Your Man?"

"You signed me up for two dating apps? Mamá, this is awful." Maya couldn't believe this was happening. "What were you thinking?"

"I was trying to help you. You weren't going to just run into someone working in the kitchen here," her mom answered, bristling.

Deke spoke up. "Could you check the Hot Dates app, please? I think that's the one."

"Hmph," Se?ora Rodriguez snorted as she scrolled through the apps. "I turned this off yesterday. Wait! It says you have three hundred messages? Look at all the men who want to meet you, Maya!"

"Mom!" Maya was beside herself with frustration and anger.

"Mom, hook-up site, remember? They don't want to date Maya. They're messaging to…" Mateo repeated.

"Don't say that, Mateo," her mom interrupted. "It says the plan is… Active? I'm sure I turned it off yesterday. I even had to put your number in to verify I was you."

"That's how they got your number," Deke said quietly to Maya.

"You aren't me, Mom. That's the problem. Give me your phone and let me turn that off." Maya held out her hand for her mother's phone.

"You don't have to be mean about it, Maya. It was a mistake."

"Mamá, think how you'd feel if we set up an account for you. Hot Dates has a branch for people over fifty," Mateo suggested.

"Don't you dare! I don't want all those people contacting me." Maria Eugenia drew herself up to her full five-foot-two height.

"And you think I do?" Maya said, completely astounded that her mom wasn't understanding how bad this was. She thrust her phone at her mom. "Look at the messages they're sending me."

She quickly traded phones with her mother and opened the app. Sure enough, Deke was right. Her mom hadn't turned off the app but just updated it to include her phone number. Ignoring the gasps and other reactions from her mom at seeing all the pictures and messages sent to her in the last few hours, Maya quickly turned off and then deleted the account.

Then, she checked the other four dating apps icons her mom had on her phone and deleted two more accounts where her mother had filled in all her information but hadn't activated them yet. The other two were blank. Thank goodness Mom hasn't gotten those set up. She erased those apps from her mother's phone as well.

Extending the phone back to her mother, Maya said, "Never again, Mamá. You are never to fill in a dating app or any information for me again."

Her mother nodded immediately. Her ashen face told Maya just how appalled her mom was at the things she was being sent. "I'm so sorry, mija. I didn't know that these—cretins would come out of the woodwork with this filth. Maybe you shouldn't be dating."

"She should be dating, but just me," Deke said, speaking up.

"Of course. You are not a cretin. My apologies, Deke," her mother said before walking forward to hold out her arms to Maya in an invitation for a hug. "Can you forgive me?"

"No more?" Maya asked, narrowing her eyes to look firmly at the woman she cherished.

"No more, mija."

Maya rushed forward to wrap her arms around her mother and hug her tight. "I love you, Mamá."

"I love you, too, Maya. I just want you to be happy."

"Deke makes me happy, Mamá. He's the right one for me," Maya told her quietly but firmly.

"I'm glad. I owe him an apology, too."

"Apology accepted, Se?ora," Deke said in a light tone that made Maya smile.

He could have been a jerk about this whole thing. Of course, he wasn't.

"Are you going to change your number?" Mateo asked.

"I don't want to. I'll just block all these numbers," Maya said. "That should take care of it. Ugh! I don't want to open all those up to see what they've sent."

"I'll take care of it," Deke volunteered. "I have a couple of hours before I have to be at work. I'll take care of it if you'll let me have your phone today."

"Thank you," Maya said gratefully, feeling her face heat and knowing she was blushing. She'd almost added Daddy.

"I'm glad to handle it," Deke told her. He looked at the people now gathered around the restaurant's customer waiting space. "Just so you know, I love Maya. I plan on sticking around. No more matchmaking is needed."

Like ants around a tasty treat, everyone swarmed to surround them. Maya wasn't surprised to see how happy everyone was to welcome Deke to their family. He was the most wonderful man. She liked him staking his claim on her. A lot.

When the hugs were finished, she took Deke's hand and walked with him out onto the covered walkway that connected all the shops and restaurants. "I love you, too," she whispered.

Deke pulled her into his arms and hugged her tightly before capturing her lips with his. The steamy kiss that followed could have set the concrete on fire. When he lifted his lips, she clung to his Stuff-It shirt.

"Oh! I forgot. You have to go to work. Do you have time to work on my phone? I could block all those guys."

"I'm not having you look at all those messages again, Precious Girl. I'll take care of it. Are you okay with me having your phone today? You'll stay here until I come pick you up?" Deke asked, looking concerned.

"Of course, I can survive without my phone for one day. How ridiculous! And people used to drive around all the time without cell phones. I can just meet you at your house."

"You're working until close tonight, right?"

"Yes. It's my long day. Even if it wasn't, I'd stay all day after flaking out yesterday. I know they're dangerously low on salsa without me," Maya told him.

"It's good for them to know how much you contribute. And you didn't flake out. You weren't well," he reminded her.

"I do feel better today than I have in a long time," Maya confessed.

"I'm glad. Stay here. I'll be here as soon as the mall closes and we're finished cleaning up," Deke told her.

"Yes, Daddy."

"Good girl," he said quietly and rewarded her with one last kiss. "If you have a break today, you could go get us some Malted Milk cupcakes. I might be persuaded to eat them for breakfast, but be aware of your surroundings and don't go anywhere else. We still don't know who's sending you roses."

"Okay, Daddy. I'll be careful. I'll go grab some Malted Milk cupcakes before they change the featured flavor to something else," Maya promised and shooed him off toward his vehicle.

She waved when Deke honked at her before leaving the parking lot. Maya couldn't believe how much she loved him. With a smile, she turned and headed back into the restaurant to get busy. Hopefully, the time would race by.