Olivia felt smug. Gotcha. And you were acting like a prude too. Don’t forget, I’ve been under your wing for a long time, and you’ve never been so nice to any woman before. She huddled closer. “So, you do have feelings for her.”
“I didn’t even think about that until you brought it up. I’ve always seen her as your mother-in- law.” Olivia looked at him, her eyes shining. “Alright, putting all the benefits of dating aside, just tell me this: do you like Ellen?”
A hint of embarrassment flashed in Hector’s eyes. “I mean, I do feel good about her. I like talking to her. She’s always gentle, unlike you kids. Honestly, I feel for Eugene for putting up with you.”
Oh, so now you’re dissing me. Taking Eugene’s side because he’s your crush’s son, huh? She pouted. “Stop with the diss. I never put Eugene through anything hard.”
Hector shot her a look. “Yeah, right. I’ve seen how you treat him. You made him come all the way to pick the boy up instead of going over to him.”
Olivia pouted. I mean, he’s our son. Of course, I can tell him to pick the boy up. Nothing wrong with that. “He made a willing choice.”
Hector said, “I’m your mentor. I will take your
side, but a word of advice: just because he likes you doesn’t mean you can make him do anything you want.”
Olivia harrumphed. “I’m not using his love for me to do anything. The fact that my sons are backing me is enough for him to do anything for me.”
Again? Hector wanted to ask how much they knew about the kids, but then he might alert them to things he didn’t want them to know. Forget it. They aren’t bringing this up, so I’ll just pretend they have no idea who the kids are. Without my permission, they can’t take the kids anyway. He shot her a look of slight disdain.
“You seem proud of taking advantage of him.” “Hey, fair trade. You’re going to be the same once you marry Ellen.”
Hector harrumphed, and his beard trembled. “She’s not as bossy as you are.” “You’re already taking her side?” Olivia laughed.
“No, this is a fact. She’s a gentle soul.”
“What matters is the kind of personality you like. Eugene likes mine, so you don’t get to complain.”
Sigh.
Since Hector wasn’t saying anything, Olivia said solemnly, “Ellen hasn’t had an easy life. She’s lived a part of her life in a wheelchair, and lady love hadn’t been kind to her. She was tricked and betrayed by her husband and almost died, but she’d been nice to us. Because she was raised that way. You’re better than Eugene’s father just because of the fact you see the goodness in her. And you saved her life too, so she might just accept your love. This is what fate wanted for you. If you like her, then be nice to her. Make the first move. If you don’t, then don’t lead her on. If you ask me, I’d want her to marry you, though. So, I won’t have to worry.”
Hector sighed. “I know, but someone like me having a family? Get real.”
“What? Of course, you can have a family.” Olivia frowned. Another sigh escaped Hector’s lips. “You won’t get it. It’s better if I’m alone. I won’t drag anyone down into my mess.
Oh, I see. It’s the project he’s researching. A pioneer in the field. If news gets out, there’s going to be a ton of people hunting him down, and the people around him might get dragged into this. No wonder he’s been single all this time. That’s impressive.
“I know, but it’s impossible to stay isolated forever. If you don’t want to drag anyone into this mess, then you shouldn’t have even talked to anyone. Or you should’ve just left them alone, but you couldn’t. You’d help anyone who came to this center. And you can never cut ties with me or George or the kids. Just because you’re worried about dragging someone into this mess doesn’t mean you can avoid it. We’re all safe for now, so don’t worry about things that haven’t happened. Besides, if you have Eugene helping you, you can be safer.”
