What Happens in Paradise (The Love Hotel #2)

Chapter 17

17

ALEJANDRO

I took the cake out of the oven and ground my jaw.

This whole situation was so frustrating. Before, I had my doubts, but now I was certain that Jasmine liked me. I could tell from the way that she looked at me and the things she said when she let her guard down.

Jasmine felt the sparks between us, but still she insisted that she felt nothing at all.

I understood her concerns about what Hazel could say and how it could affect her career. It was important that I was careful too. I did not take this lightly. It was not just my future at stake.

Evita already spent too many hours working part-time. She needed to focus on her studies and the money I sent allowed her to do that.

Lola could not afford to help out. She already struggled to pay her bills.

My sisters relied on me. I could not let them down.

After pouring the fresh pineapple juice over the cake, I sat down, turned off the music, then called Lola. She would help me to make sense of this difficult situation.

The phone rang out. I was about to hang up when she answered.

‘Hello? What’s wrong?’ Lola croaked like she’d just woken up.

‘ Mierda! ’ I winced. ‘Sorry. I forgot about the time difference. Everything is fine. I will let you go back to bed.’

‘You’ve woken me up now, so talk!’

‘What time is it there?’

‘Five in the morning.’

‘Sorry.’

‘How’s Jamaica?’

‘Beautiful,’ I said.

‘Looks like it! The photos you sent made me well jel.’

‘ Jel? ’ I frowned.

‘It’s slang for jealous over here. And you looked very cosy with Jasmine in that Dunn’s River Falls picture. Has she finally given in to your charms?’

‘Not exactly. But now I do believe that she likes me.’

‘That’s great!’ She paused. ‘Isn’t it?’

‘ Sí .’ I blew out a breath. ‘But it is hard. I have not been completely honest with you. When I told you that we both worked at the hotel, I did not tell you that she is kind of my boss…’

‘What?’ Lola shouted. ‘Hold on. I need to get out of bed to have this conversation otherwise I’ll wake up John.’ I heard the sound of a door closing. ‘I’m really happy that you’re starting to think about dating again, Ale, but someone from management ? That’s risky, dude.’

‘Dude?’

‘ That’s what you took from that sentence? The fact that I used the word dude ?’

In my defence, it was the first time I had heard her use that word.

‘I know it is risky.’ I sighed, finally commenting on the important part of what she had said.

‘You worked so hard to get that job. And it pays really well. If you lose it, you won’t be able to help Evita and you’re so close to achieving your dream of becoming head chef.’

‘I know, but I cannot stop thinking about her.’

Lola groaned down the phone. She could tell this was bad.

After a few beats, she finally spoke.

‘And does she know that you like her?’

‘ Sí . I told her.’

‘You told her? Puta madre! ’ She swore. ‘Why did you do that?’

‘You know that I like to speak my mind.’

‘Yes, but there’s a time and a place for that, bruv! What did she say? She could report you to HR!’

‘She said that it is not a good idea. That our boss, Hazel, will not be happy. I think she is worried because two workers just got sacked for fucking.’

‘What?’ she shouted again. ‘You didn’t tell me that ! Otherwise I never would’ve suggested you ask Jasmine out! I thought if she worked in a different department, it’d be fine, but now you’ve told me she’s your boss and that the company sacks people that shag each other, that changes everything !’

‘They were fucking when they should have been working. And they got caught. We would be careful.’

‘I’m sure they thought they were being careful too! Seriously, Ale! You know I want you to find love again. I want you to be happy. But there are four freaking billion women in the world. Four billion ! You’re hot, you’re a great person and you cook like an angel. There’s no shortage of single women who’d kill to have a man like you. So there’s no reason to choose the one who could ruin your career and everything you’ve worked for. Just do your job over there and nothing more. Vale? ’

‘ Vale .’ I blew out a breath.

‘I’m serious ! Don’t make me fly to Jamaica and cut your dick off!’

Lola was not joking. The only thing that would stop her would be getting the money for the flight. But she was resourceful, so she would find a way.

‘ Tranquila ,’ I said.

‘Don’t tell me to calm down! I’m trying to save you from making the biggest mistake of your life!’

‘Understood.’ I nodded down the phone even though she could not see me. ‘And you? How is everything over there?’

‘Same old, same old. Evita might be coming for lunch on Sunday. Maybe we can video call? At an acceptable hour, though. Not when I’m in a deep sleep having sexy dreams about Idris Elba like I was before you decided to wake me up.’

‘Why are you dreaming about Idris Elba? Should you not be dreaming about John, your husband?’

‘John is aware that I dream of Idris and he understands. He said if he wasn’t straight, he’d probably dream about Idris too.’

‘Right…’

There was only one woman I dreamt of these days and if I was with her, there was no way I would be dreaming about anyone else. Not even a famous movie star.

‘I’ll text you at the weekend to let you know what time Evita is coming.’

‘ Vale. Duerme bien .’

‘Sleep well too. And don’t forget: keep your dick away from Jasmine! Love you!’ She hung up.

As I cleared up the kitchen, I thought about what Lola had said. She was right. It was too risky. There was a strong attraction between Jasmine and me, but I could not pursue it. It was true that there were billions of other women in the world I should wait to find a connection with one of them instead.

After I lost Freya, I thought I would never be interested in another woman ever again. But I was wrong. I had very strong feelings for Jasmine. So if I was able to find two women that I liked, then in time, I would find someone else. I just had to be patient.

Right now, it was time to focus on my career. Then in a year or two, I could start thinking about a relationship.

Just as Lola reminded me, there was a time and a place for expressing your feelings and now was not the time. Jasmine had repeatedly told me that she did not wish to pursue anything so I would respect her wishes. I would not tell her how I felt about her again.

From now on, everything I said or did around Jasmine would be strictly professional.

Time for a fresh start.

I picked up a knife, cut into the cake, then slid a small piece into my mouth.

Madre mía.

It tasted like heaven. I squeezed my eyes shut. The balance of pineapple and the coconut was perfect. The rum was not too strong. I would definitely like to make this for the head chef when he returned and see if he agreed that this could be a contender for the menu.

Next, I would need to experiment with what to serve it with. Perhaps a scoop of vanilla ice cream, or some homemade coconut ice cream? That would be less overpowering than a traditional rum and raisin flavour. But maybe that would be too much coconut?

I would be interested to hear what the Jamaican chef thought. I was looking forward to learning from him and exchanging ideas for the menu.

Jasmine would be so happy to know how well the cake she made had turned out. For some reason, she seemed to believe that she could not cook or bake, but this showed that she was wrong.

She needed to taste this cake. If this was a few hours ago, I would not have hesitated to take it to her room.

But I had just promised myself that I would keep my distance. That I would not see Jasmine unless it was absolutely necessary. So that was exactly what I intended to do.