the secrets we keep [camren]

five

Mike peered suspiciously at the tray of puffy little pastries as his wife Clara removed them from the oven.

"Are those what I think they are?" He asked the question as if he was looking at some unidentified slimy creature, clinging to the underside of a rock. He wasn't particularly fond of this Cuban dessert like his wife and children.

Clara started to carefully move the pastries to a serving platter. "If you're thinking they're Las Palmas, you're right, and they're delicious."

"Mmmm. So are potato skins. Especially the ones you make with cheddar cheese, bacon bits and sour cream." He was staring at her with those sweet puppy dog eyes.

"Mike, I am not making potato skins for Alejandro and Sinu. This is not a tail-gate party", she said sternly.

"So what is this ... exactly?"

Clara let out a breath. "To be honest, Mike, I have no idea. Sinu called me up an hour ago and virtually insisted that they come over tonight."

"Wow, and you whipped up these puffy jam things that fast? It usually takes you days."

"Oh, be serious... They're frozen. I bought them at Trader Joe's."

Mike's eyes narrowed in understanding. "You mean you keep stuff like this in our freezer? Just in case the parents of Lauren's best friend calls to see if we can patch things up between them?"

"Yes and I don't really know why they're coming over, but I really do hope it's something like that. I don't know what happened between the two of them, but I don't think Lauren and Camila have talked since the end of the summer and that was almost four months ago. Whatever their reasons..."

The sound of the doorbell interrupted them.

"I'll get it", Mike announced as he snatched a Las Palama off the tray on his way.

He was almost to the door when he called with his mouth full. "Hey, this is good. Better than yours."

Clara glared at his retreating back and rolled her eyes. She took a few more minutes to rearrange the platter to disguise the missing pastry and start the kettle on the stove for the tea. Sinu loved tea.

When she entered the living room, she immediately knew that this wasn't a casual visit. Mike was standing awkwardly by the doorway as if he didn't want to enter the room. Sinu was sitting with Camila on the sofa, her arm wrapped around the girl in comfort. The girl had obviously been crying and if Clara wasn't mistaken, so had her mother.

"Where's the girl?", asked Alejandro Cabello. He stood by the mantel, a scowl on his worried face.

"Lauren?", Clara questioned him. She put the platter down on the coffee table in front of the two Cabello women and then backed away. Something was very wrong.

"What's going on here, Alejandro?" Mike asked as he finally entered the room. After all, this was his house. These people couldn't just come in and take over like this.

"Let's wait until Lauren gets here", was Alejandro's only response.

Mike quickly walked over to the stairs and yelled up for his daughter. Clara had already told her that Camila and her parents were coming over, but that didn't make Lauren any faster to respond to the call. If anything, it probably made her move more slowly.

"Yeah, Dad?", Lauren addressed her father without looking at the others in the room.

"Sit down, honey, and let's find out what's going on."