Page 38 of Grim

Abuela pushed the plate toward Grim. “Eat.”

Grim hesitated. “I’m good.”

Sophia snorted. “He’s lying.”

He shot her a look. She raised a brow. He sighed, picked up a concha, and took a bite.

His eyes widened — just a fraction — before he forced his expression back to neutral.

Abuela beamed. “See? You like it.”

“It’s fine,” he muttered.

Sophia grinned. “You ate the whole thing.”

“It was small.”

She pushed the plate closer. “Have another.”

When Grim reached for another concha, Abuela touched Sophia’s elbow and nodded toward the hallway.

“Ven,” she whispered. Come.

Sophia followed her into the small kitchen, the one with the cracked tile and the rooster magnets on the fridge. Abuela closed the door halfway, enough for privacy but not secrecy.

Abuela’s eyes softened. “Ese hombre, he has good energy.”

Her abuela had always seen straight through her. It was both comforting and terrifying.

Sophia blinked. “Abuela…”

“No, listen.” Abuela tapped her chest. “I feel it here. He is steady. Quiet. Strong in the way men are when they’ve carried too much alone.”

Sophia swallowed. “He’s… complicated.”

“All good men are,” Abuela said simply. “But he looks at you like you settle him. Like you give him a place to rest.”

Sophia’s breath caught. “We’re not—”

Abuela smiled knowingly. “Not yet.”

Sophia’s cheeks warmed. “Abuela.”

“Mija,” Abuela said gently, cupping her cheek, “you have always been the heart of this family. You give and give and give. It is time someone gives back to you. That man…”

Sophia swallowed hard. She’d heard versions of that her whole life, but somehow it hit different now — maybe because she was finally tired of carrying everything alone.

Abuela nodded toward the living room. “He would protect what he loves. I can see it.”

Sophia’s chest tightened. “You barely know him.”

Abuela shrugged. “I know you. And I know what you need.”

Sophia didn’t have an answer for that. Didn’t have words for the way Grim made her feel. Steady and unsteady at the same time.

Abuela squeezed her hand. “Let him in, mi niña. Even just a little.”

Sophia exhaled slowly. “I’ll… think about it.”