“Mami, you’re right. I’m hoping something can grow between me and Holly. She needs me, and honestly, Mami, I don’t want to marry anyone else besides Holly. I haven’t met anyone who makes me feel the way shedoes. Our marriage isn’t starting out the way you dreamed, but I’m hoping it ends the way you want it to,” I whisper into her ear.
She pulls back just enough to rest a hand on my shoulder, the other cupping my cheek. She arches her singular eyebrow as only my mami can. “Do you love her, mijo?”
I meet her gaze fully. “I don’t know if it’s love yet, but I really like her, Mami.”
She studies my face, her smile growing the longer she looks at me. Her eyes twinkle, a tint of mischief in them. I get my prankster heart from my mom, and I’m only slightly nervous about what she’s about to say. “Well then, you’ll need to use your Latin lover skills and channel the roots of your ancestors to convince her to fall in love with you. You may have inherited your father’s gringo looks, but you’ve got my heart, hijo. You’ll win over tu esposa.”
We both chuckle. “Latin lover skills, Mami? Really?”
She winks, her eyes crinkled with laughter. “Spanish is one of the most romantic languages, hijo. Take advantage of your history. Woo her with the beautiful words of our language and the romance I know you have in you. You’ve watched your dad woo me almost every day of your life. You’re just as romantic as he is, if not more, because you have my blood in you. I believe in you, hijo. Romance your wife.”
I shake my head and chuckle. She’s not wrong. I’ve always loved speaking Spanish, even if I’m not fully fluent. I’ve loved having salvadoreña blood in me, and it’s something I’m proud of. Dad is a romantic, even if he’s a quiet one. He had to be to win over my mother, who passed on her love for all things romance to my sisters.
If this isn’t the moment Mami has trained me for—with help from my sisters—then I don’t know what is.
I turn back to my food, finally touching the salad that came with my pasta. Holly’s presence acts like a magnet, drawing my gaze back to her. She throws her head back in a laugh at something Cruz said. Her hairfalls like a waterfall down her back, a wave of honey complemented by her sparkling blue eyes. I never noticed the color of Alex’s eyes until I realized they matched his sisters. The blue is captivating, and though I can barely see their shade from this far away, I know I could look at them all day and study the way the hue changes colors with the lighting.
What started out as a crush on my best friend’s sister when I first met her almost two years ago has flared into a full-on bonfire of affection. Spending time with Holly today has fanned the flames of my feelings, and if I’m not careful, they could become a wildfire.
I’m not sure I’m ready to be burned.
Mami pulls me into conversation again, tearing my gaze away from Holly.
As I finish the last bites of my salad, Reina plops down into the chair next to me. Cruz taps Mami’s shoulder and they switch places.
I glance down the table at Holly, but she’s deep in conversation with Hudson.
No chance of rescue from the interrogation committee.
I look at Reina, ignoring Cruz’s smirking face on my other side. “Hey besties, what can I do for you?”
Reina squints and her lips purse. It’s a look I’ve seen throughout our growing-up years, when she’d bust me for pulling a prank. I’ve affectionately named it the “I’m mad at you and you need to fix things” look.
Don’t want to mess with that look. I’ll take my chances with Cruz. Except, when I look at Cruz she has her arms crossed and the singular eyebrow arch she learned from Mami in full employ.
Well, barbed goatgrass, there’s no hiding from these women. Guess I better find out what they want to talk about, although I feel like it has something to do with Holly and girl code. We’ll see.
“It seems like both of you lovely ladies have something on your mind. Care to share with the group?”
Reina’s face is serious, without a hint of humor. “You are not allowed tobreak her heart.”
My heart squeezes. Jealousy and a hint of anger flit through my chest. I know everyone is protective of Holly, especially because she doesn’t have anyone looking out for her besides Alex, but isn’t anyone worried aboutmyheart?
I quickly remind myself that this is my sister and my best friend talking to me. I know they aren’t trying to hurt me, but I can’t help but let out some of my own feelings in my response. “You wound me, Reina. Aren’t you afraid she’ll break my heart, bestie?”
Cruz’s laugh is mocking, sending another jolt of pain through my chest. “You’ll survive. She might not, especially with the awful examples of relationships she’s had in her life, excluding Alex and Reina, of course.”
Ouch.
Have I really dug a hole for myself as the happy-go-lucky guy who doesn’t have feelings? I mean, she’s probably right, because I have a support system to rely on when I need to lick my wounds.
But still.
Ouch.
I fold my arms and lean back in my chair, hoping to downplay my feelings. “Ladies, I feel betrayed by your loyalties.”
I catch a quick grimace from Reina, and the reaction assuages my bruised feelings.
