Chapter 39
As much as Roman hated to leave without saying goodbye to Ava, he exited the suite with Ashton and Gabriel and brought them
up to the Dulce Flor’s private lounge for VIP guests.
Being away from her for two weeks had sucked. He’d dreamed about her almost every night, and despite the exhaustion of a long
trip and an overnight transatlantic flight, the thought of reuniting with Ava had energized him more than a triple shot of
espresso. Walking into the suite and seeing her had been like entering one of his dreams. She was right there, almost within
reach, but a crowd of women had stood in the way and he hadn’t been able to go to her, for reasons that seemed nebulous and
only made sense in the depths of the subconscious.
It was getting more and more difficult to hide his feelings for her, and he just didn’t want to fucking do it anymore. So
while Ava was probably freaking out about Gabe walking in on them, for Roman, it was actually a relief. He needed to talk
to Ashton about Ava, and this meant they could do it in front of Gabe. Hell, Gabe was also dating one of the Primas of Power,
maybe he’d have some additional insights to offer. Roman would welcome all the suggestions he could get.
They took seats at a circular booth set lower into the floor and placed their drink orders—a sidecar for Roman, a gin and tonic for Ashton, and a seltzer with lime for Gabe.
Once the waiter was gone, Gabe wasted no time in broaching the topic of Ava. “Gotta say, man, I’m not thrilled about hiding
this secret romance thing from Michelle.”
Ashton grunted. “Join the club.”
Roman spread his hands. “I don’t like it either. If it were up to me, I’d take out a full page ad in the New York Times .”
Gabe propped his elbows on his knees. “Let me guess—Ava doesn’t want her family to know?”
Roman scowled. “Is this a common occurrence?”
Ashton nodded. “Por las primas poderosas, sí.”
Roman leaned back, sensing he was in for a story. “So all three of them have done it?”
Ashton rubbed his jaw. “Jasmine and I—well, you know the tabloids were an issue for both of us. Plus, she had something called
a Leading Lady Plan.”
“What the hell is that?”
“I’m still not sure, but the primas bring it up every so often. Something about making jefa moves.”
“Huh.” Roman turned to Gabe. “And you?”
“Michelle and I used to be best friends,” Gabe said. “There was some past baggage we had to work through. And our parents
are next door neighbors.”
“Why does that matter?” Roman asked.
Gabe and Ashton exchanged a look, and Gabe launched into an explanation about his history with Michelle. How they’d reconnected after more than a decade of silence and Michelle tricked him into staying with her at her parents’ house—right next to his own family, whom he’d been estranged from at the time. Gabe made a point to emphasize how their attempts at sneaking around had completely backfired.
While they were talking, the drinks arrived, along with a selection from the tapas menu. Someone must have noticed that he
was there.
At the end, Roman tried to put it all together. “You and Michelle were pretending to be dating to keep everyone from finding
out you were actually dating?”
“We weren’t dating yet, we were—you know what, never mind, that’s a good way of putting it.”
Ashton spoke in a mock whisper. “They were fucking.”
Roman laughed. “Yeah, I got that.”
“And you and Ava are pretending not to be dating, but you are,” Gabe summed up. “So what’s the deal? No, wait, let me guess—you’re her boss.”
Roman shook his head.
“You’re already married?”
Roman flipped Gabe off with his bare left hand.
“Secret baby? No, wait, that was you.” Gabe sent Ashton a shit-eating grin, and Ashton threw a balled-up bar napkin at him.
“You weren’t even around for that.”
“No, but I’ve heard all about it. Many times.”
Ashton jabbed a finger in Gabe’s direction and gave Roman a pointed look. “?Verás! Es por eso que ella no quiere que nadie
lo sepa.”
“Exactly,” Gabe went on, picking up the thread of Ashton’s words. “She doesn’t want anyone to know because she’ll never hear
the end of it.”
“From her relatives,” Roman clarified, and the other two men nodded.
“It’s not an irrational fear,” Gabe pointed out. “Right now you have an excuse to be around her, but if you even look at her too long at the wedding, the Boricua bochinche circuit will be on that shit faster than any paparazzo. Before you know it, they’ll be throwing you an engagement party masquerading as a barbecue and forcing you to sleep with her in her brother’s childhood bedroom.”
Roman eyed him across the low table. “That is... oddly specific.”
“I still have nightmares about it,” Gabe said with a shudder.
“How do I help her get past this fear she has of her family?”
Ashton shrugged and drained the last of his G&T. “You don’t. Stop trying.”
Roman scowled. “It’s stressing her out. I want to fix it.”
“You can’t protect her from her family, Ro. Only she can do that.”
The sense of powerlessness made Roman feel like his custom-made suit jacket was suddenly three sizes too tight. “So then what
can I do?”
“Just be there.” This was from Gabe. He said it like it was so simple.
Roman blew out a breath. “Come on. That’s not enough.”
“It is,” Ashton insisted. “Look who isn’t there.”
“You mean her ex?”
“Sí. You want to prove you’re better than that asshole who left her? Be there. Every day. That’s it.”
“You know me,” Roman said. “I need a more proactive plan than that. Something concrete.”
“Mira, cabrón, no le compres un carro.” Ashton’s voice was severe.
Gabe sent Roman a bewildered look. “That’s your plan? To buy her a car?”
“It crossed my mind,” Roman grumbled. “What did you guys do?”
“I introduced Jasmine to the most important people in my life,” Ashton said.
“I already did that.” Roman turned to Gabe. “Next.”
Now it was Ashton’s turn to give Gabe a smug smile. “Go ahead. Tell him what you did.”
Gabe coughed and mumbled something about fanfiction.
Roman stared at him blankly for a long moment. “That doesn’t help me.”
Ashton pinned Roman with a direct look. “?Y qué quieres con ella?”
Roman spread his hands. “What do I want with her? I want everything.”
Ashton shook his head. “See, that’s your problem. You always want more than what you have. You have to learn to be satisfied
with what she’s willing to give, until she wants to give more.”
Roman sighed. “I’m trying to take it slow. I asked her to leave stuff at my place and she got all squirrely.”
“Ava doesn’t rush into things,” Ashton said. “Take it a day at a time. And for fuck’s sake, make her tell Jasmine. Hide it
from the rest of them if you have to, but Jasmine needs to know before we walk down that aisle.”
“I’m trying.” Roman’s voice was strained.
“Try harder.”