“Okay. Yes.”
“Oh my God!” she squeals, throwing her arms around me. Then, she grabs my chin and kisses me hard. “Grazie mille!” She thanks me in Italian and I grin. I like that Carla and I naturally blend Italian, Spanish and English when we speak to each other. It’s always been that way between us—familiar and personal. “I promise, you won’t regret it.”
“Promise?”
“Sí, yes. Te prometto.”
My stomach tightens as huskiness drips into her voice.
And deep down, I know she’s going to flip my entire life upside down. All the steadiness I’ve clung to for years, the dad jokes I’ve endured from my teammates, the grief my sister’s put me through with her antics—it will all pale in comparison to the roller coaster that is Carla García.
And fuck if I don’t want to hold on and free-fall beside her.
Cupping her cheek, I lean in and kiss her back. Softer, sweeter.
And intentional as hell.
“It’s not your job to find my sister steady employment,” Alejandro announces when I walk into Corcho. He lifts his beer in my direction. “But I thank you, tío. In fact, my whole family thanks you.”
I shake my head and slide into the seat across from him at the high-top table in the back. “I’m happy she agreed. I could use the help.”
“Be prepared for the headache,” Ale quips.
I shake my head. I know the Garcías view Carla as the wild child. In that respect, she’s similar to my sister. But just because she doesn’t have Alejandro’s cutthroat outlook doesn’t mean she’s not ambitious. And just because she doesn’t possess Valentina’s softness doesn’t mean she doesn’t have feelings.
“She wants to open the program up to girls,” I say, thanking Joe for the beer he brings over.
“She’s already trying to call the shots?” Ale lifts an eyebrow. “You sure you want to bring her on board?”
“I’m sure,” I say. “It’s good to see her excited about something. And, honestly, she’s not wrong. The camp should include a girls’ program. I just…haven’t gotten around to it.”
“You’ve been busy,” Ale murmurs, a sliver of sympathy in his tone. It’s no secret that Mamma’s illness and looking after Bianca has kept me preoccupied for years.
“Well, it feels good to have the mental bandwidth to consider expanding. Even though timing is going to be tight.”
“I bet.”
“Where’s Andrés?” I ask, glancing around the bar. I wonder if I should bring up Sergio and the shit he’s putting Carla through to Alejandro. If some guy was giving my sister shit, I’d want to know about it. But I also don’ t want to betray Carla’s trust. And I definitely don’t want to mention it in front of any more people than necessary. Even Andrés.
“Bailed,” Ale replies. Shrugs. “He said something came up.”
“Oh,” I reply, taking a swig of my beer. Where would I even start with Sergio? Did Carla tell her family anything? “I hope everything is okay,” I tack on absentmindedly.
“You worry too damn much, tío. And right now, you have bigger things to worry about than Andrés. Carla is a tornado when she gets invested in something. Get ready for her to pester the hell out of you.”
I cluck my tongue, momentarily putting Sergio on the back burner. I don’t like how hard Ale’s being on Carla. I open my mouth to defend her when Ale continues.
“But in the end…” He tips his beer in my direction. “It will probably be your best camp ever. Carla knows how to pull together an event. You’ll get more coverage and PR buzz this summer than you’ve ever had.”
“You think so?”
“I know it. Besides, she’s friends with the owner of a huge sports magazine in the States. She’ll make sure your camp, especially its opening the doors to a girls’ program, gets a shoutout and prime placement.”
“She’s friends with the owner?”
“She briefly dated him.”
I work a swallow, hating to hear about another man who once had my girl’s attention.
