“I’m an Earth Snake, so I’m not very forgiving either, probably,” he warned her, which made her laugh, because obviously he had no idea what he was talking about.
“Completely different Zodiac, dude.” She shook her head. “But ofcourseyou’re also an Earth Snake. I need to keep myself awake. I still have a meeting with Eugene and Jenny for their custom wedding order next month.”
“Let me guess. Another couple you matched?” Santi asked.
“I can hear your sarcasm, Grim Reaper. But yes, I did match them,” she huffed, but he could hear the pride in her voice. “They were childhood friends, and she’s been in love with him since forever, but he just needed abigold push. Literally. Basta, it’s a whole story.”
“You really believe in that, don’t you?” Santi asked her, amused. “Matchmaking. Magic.”
“Those are two very different things,” she pointed out to him, shaking her head. “Also, you say that now, but when I finally match Ate Nessie with someone—”
Santi actually snorted.
“Ala eh,” Kira tutted. “Is thatderisionin your tone, sir?”
“Ate Nessie?” he asked. “She’s...”
“Old?”
“I was going to say feisty,” Santi said. “She calls me pogi, though. I’m not mad at it.”
“Don’t worry, Santi.” Kira chuckled. “If you didn’t already like me so much, I would still be able to find someone to match with you. A lot of girls are into the whole ‘suplado chaebol thing.’”
“Suplado what?”
“And also,” Kira added like she didn’t hear him. “I’m surprised at you. How can you not believe in magic, living here?”
“Here?” he asked. He had to admit, the Laneways came with its own brand of magic. People just felt comfortable when they were here. Or he did. Here there was no competition, no need to be the best, as long as you enjoyed what you were doing. He’d seen it firsthand when Gabriel and Sari tried to outwit each other last Christmas, only to end up with them falling in love. Magic.
“This country,” she clarified, waving her free hand around. “We’ve got a strong affinity for weird shit, if I do say so myself.”
“Weird shit?” he echoed, disbelieving.
“Don’t sweep in the house on New Year, so you don’t sweep away the good luck. Siblings can’t be married on the same year to avoid sukob. Steps on a staircase are counted, oro, plata, mata, and cannot end in mata.” She listed these things, serious as they were. Even Kira’s brother, Kiko, a more levelheaded architect than most Santi had encountered, had strictly adhered to the stair thing when they refurbished Villa.
“You live here and you just find yourself following those little things. I mean, life in the Philippines is...well, sometimes it’s a fucking trash fire, except there’s a neighbor that suddenly has a fireproof house that wasn’t supposed to be available for anyone.”
He couldn’t disagree there.
“So when someone tells you that there’s something you can do, that you can appease the spirits by offering them sweets, that you can save yourself from cancer by not wearing a bra to bed, is it really so bad to listen? Or to at least think about it?”
Her head turned to his, and their gazes locked. It was like the world had slowed down around them at her command. Her lashes fluttered and swept as he was given a full view of her dark brown eyes, playful and sparkling, drawing him close to her until his entire world revolved around her.
“And you believe in that,” he said.
“Maybe,” she said, wincing, and her hesitation surprised him. Someone who had been so sure about what she wanted out of life was suddenly saying “maybe?”
“Lately I’ve been wondering if I’ve been listening to the universe wrong. Apparently, just because people used your chocolate and your expertise to find love, doesn’t mean you make enough to be able to keep your store. And then, of course, you came.”
“Ah,” Santi said. “I understand why you found my proposal so hilarious.”
“You know what was happening at that dinner? I was just recovering from my family telling me that chocolate is all well and good, matchmaking was okay, but I needed to explain myself to the Luzes. Because they don’t understand what I’m doing.” She sighed, her shoulders dropping as she shook her head. “They understand ROIs and bottom lines, and revenues. I hadjustasked the universe for help, and suddenly you were there, asking me the right questions,” Kira explained, smiling. “Not that I’m dismissing your thoughts, or exploiting you, or saying you’re controlled by the universe—”
“No.” Santi shook his head. “Kira. I know what being exploited for business is like. This isn’t that.”
“Okay, I know I said I would wait, but you really have to tell me what happened to you in Manila one day,” Kira said, blinking at him like he’d revealed something shocking. “But this is a good idea, the two of us working together. Everyone and literally my mother knows that you have good relationships with your suppliers. I haven’t heard a single bad thing they’ve said about you.”
“Maybe they’re scared of me,” Santi said.
