Light of Day (21 page)

“He is,” the girl assured him. “You're looking great, Manny. Been working out, huh?” She curled a hand around his bicep.

“Eat your heart out, Diaz. I'm beating them off with a stick these days.”

The Destinos got off the couches and came over to greet the couple with fist bumps and hugs. Jackson hung back.

“Who are they?” I whispered.

“Lobo and his girlfriend. He's our former leader.” Jackson shuffled his feet, as if debating what to do. I knew he was
pissed off at Lobo for leaving the group. But it didn't seem to me like Lobo had done anything wrong. It was his life, his choice.

When the last of the Destinos had greeted them, Jackson walked over. “Hey, Lobo, Maddie.”

Lobo's handsome face broke into a smile. “Wasn't sure you'd let us in the door. It's really good to see you, bro.”

“Same here,” Jackson said. “This is my girlfriend, Gabby.”

“I heard about her.” Lobo's eyes settled on me. “So you're the one.”

“Guess I am.” I felt Jackson's arm slide around my waist.

“This is Maddie,” Lobo said.

I shook Maddie's hand. “Nice to meet you,” we both said at once.

“How about I entertain the lovely ladies while you two hug it out?” Manny put his arms around us, then steered us into the kitchen, where several cases of beer sat on the counter.

“Thanks for setting that up,” Maddie said, looking relieved. “That went better than we expected.”

“Well, it had to be done sooner or later. X is the most stubborn sonofabitch I've ever met.” Manny looked at me. “But I think fiery Gabby here's meltin' our boy down.”

I wasn't sure if Jackson's change of heart had anything to do with me, but I was glad for it.

“I've missed you,” Maddie said to him.

“Of course you have.” Manny gave that crooked grin, but I could tell there was an undercurrent behind it. They obviously had a soft spot for each other. “Now that I'm a Destino, I've got the whole sexy-dangerous thing going on. Your boyfriends are going to have to keep a close eye on you with this much sexy around.”

We laughed.

“Help yourselves to some beer or . . .” He looked around. “Or water. I'm going out to get pizza. What kind do you like?”

Maddie shrugged. “Anything.”

“We're going out for dinner later,” I said, feeling a little awkward.

“Cool. I'm gonna go ask the others.” He left the kitchen.

Maddie turned to me. “You'll have to tell me how you and X got together. He's a tough nut to crack, that guy.”

“You're telling me. I want to hear how you met Lobo, too.” I paused, thinking. “Hang on just one sec, will you?”

Returning to the living room, I found Jackson sitting on the floor, talking to Lobo and the guys. I tapped him on the shoulder. “Why don't we stay and have pizza? You could cancel the reservation.”

He frowned. “But it's your birthday. Are you sure that's what you want?”

I nodded. “Let's spend it with your people.”

“All right.” He took out his phone.

I kissed his cheek, then went back to Maddie. I had a feeling we were going to get along really well, me and her. “You first.”

“I'm glad you made peace with Lobo,” I said later that night as we walked back to the car. “I wasn't sure what you'd do when he showed up.”

“Me neither. I've spent the past few months mad as hell.”

“So what changed?”

“Maybe I changed.” His hand tightened on mine. “I could never accept that Lobo had walked away. The way I saw it, he'd built us up, then abandoned us. But I think I was just scared.”

“Scared?” That was a surprise. Jackson seemed so fearless to me. “Of what?”

“Scared that I couldn't lead the Destinos. That I wouldn't be good at it.” He glanced at me. “Lobo was an awesome leader. He controlled every situation as much as humanly possible, anticipated every outcome. The guy was a machine, on day and night. I sometimes wondered if he even slept.”

I could see what he was getting at. “A tough act to follow?”

“Yeah. I needed to show the guys I could do it. Show
myself
I could do it.”

“You seem like a natural leader to me.” It was true. He had the smarts, the confidence, and the dedication. He must've
known it himself, or he wouldn't have stepped up to the plate.

“I don't know how much of it comes naturally, but I learned on the job. I proved that I can handle being in charge. That I
like
being in charge.”

“I bet you do. As long as you don't expect to be in charge of
me
, we'll get along nicely.”

He laughed. “I'd be crazy to try to boss you around, Gabby Perez. You'd roast me on your radio show.”

I gave him a sly look. “Yeah, I would. And don't you forget it.”

He stopped walking and turned to me. “Well, you make me happy, Gabby. Don't
you
forget it.” He wrapped his arms around me. “I'm glad that I'm the first person to tell you happy birthday on your birthday. It's twelve-oh-three.”

I grinned. “And I'm glad that my parents finally changed my curfew to twelve thirty.”

He smiled, but his eyes were intense. “I love you, Gabby.”

I closed my eyes, feeling his words wash over me. It was the first time he'd said it, but I'd already known that he loved me. I thought about the old woman who'd called my radio show, about how she knew her husband loved her long before he said it.

“I love you too.”

He cupped my face, kissed my cheeks, then my forehead. “Because I love you, I'll always be honest with you, Gabby. Being a Destino is what I do. That's why I brought you to meet
the guys tonight. It's what I'm destined to do. I hope you can live with that, because I can't be without you.” He searched my face. “Can you live with that?”

“I can,” I said softly, then raised my lips for his next kiss.

Many thanks to Kari Sutherland, Jen Klonsky, Alice Jerman, Emilia Rhodes, and John Rudolph. To the entire wonderful team at Harper. To the Firkin writers for friendship and encouragement over the years—Cynthia Boyko, Opal Carew, Christine Enta, Lucy Farago, Rowan Keats, Vanessa Kelly, Debbie Mason, Teresa Morgan, Sharon Page, Joyce Sullivan, and Randy Sykes. To the Swan Valley writers for their warmth and willingness to share ghost stories—Jay Asher, Linda Gerber, Kristin Harmel, Alyson Noël, Aprilynne Pike, Wendy Toliver, and Emily Wing-Smith.

Thanks to Alison Halsall, Jennifer Cruz, Carol Ann Dillon, Charles de Lint, Melanie Donald, Chantelle Lajoie, Anne-Marie McEvoy, and Simone Elkeles. Shout-outs to my colleagues here in Ottawa and back in Brooklyn who keep on
getting it done for kids. To Kelly Blake for doing what she does best. To my super supportive family—Mom and Pop, Sarah and Jeff, my in-loves Lorraine and Evert, Justin and Julie, Jon and Candace, Char and Frank, Phil and Mary, Jeremy and my two sweeties.

Most of all, to you, my readers. Many of you have told me that my books have made a difference in your lives. I wish I could wrap my arms around all of you. It's always been for you.

PHOTO CREDIT ALAN DEAN PHOTOGRAPHY

ALLISON VAN DIEPEN
is the author of
Street Pharm, Snitch, Takedown, On the Edge
, and other novels for teens. Her books have been named ALA Quick Picks for Reluctant Young Adult Readers and NYPL Books for the Teen Age. She lives with her family in Ottawa, Canada, where she also teaches high school. Visit her at
www.allisonvandiepen.com
.

Discover great authors, exclusive offers, and more at
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.

Street Pharm

Snitch

Takedown

On the Edge

Light of Day

COVER PHOTOGRAPH © 2015 BY MICHAEL FROST

COVER DESIGN BY MICHELLE TAORMINA

HarperTeen is an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers.

LIGHT OF DAY
. Copyright © 2015 by Allison van Diepen. All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the nonexclusive, nontransferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, downloaded, decompiled, reverse-engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereafter invented, without the express written permission of HarperCollins e-books.

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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Van Diepen, Allison.

Light of day / by Allison van Diepen. — First edition.

   pages   cm

Summary: When high school senior Gabby learns that men are drugging girls and forcing them into prostitution, she fights back using the popular radio show she hosts and captures the attention of X, a mysterious gang member determined to get pimps off the streets of Miami, who, in turn, captures her heart.

ISBN 978-0-06-230347-9 (hardcover)

EPub Edition © October 2015 ISBN 9780062303493

[1. Prostitution—Fiction. 2. Gangs—Fiction. 3. Radio talk shows—Fiction. 4. Latin Americans—Fiction. 5. High schools—Fiction. 6. Schools—Fiction. 7. Family life—Florida—Miami—Fiction. 8. Miami (Fla.)—Fiction.] I. Title.

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FIRST EDITION