Chapter 13
CHAPTER 13
Ben
I couldn’t seem to get enough of her. I’d anticipated that being the case, but I couldn’t have predicted the way being with her would make me feel. It was one thing to admire her from mostly afar all of the time and feel flattered that she showed interest in me. Having her all to myself was something else altogether. It reminded me of what I felt every time I stepped a foot on the pitch, ready to chase the ball. It was thrilling and unknown, and I wanted to explore as much of it as she’d let me. Not even her questions annoyed me, which was normally the case with every woman I dated. They always wanted to know too much and would question my relationship with Kayla once they found out about her, which was common. Kayla liked to introduce herself to every woman I was seen with. Like I’d assured Pilar, she was harmless. David thought I was an idiot for letting her come around and for inviting her to the gala this weekend. She’d been the one to give me the idea for the foundation though. I couldn’t use the suggestion and then not invite her to the celebration for it. As if listening to my thoughts, David appeared in my line of sight. I pulled away from Pilar and smiled at the desire painted on her face.
“My friends are here,” I said.
“Oh.” She straightened and fixed her hair.
David’s eyebrows rose. I couldn’t wipe the smile off my face as I stood to greet him. We clasped hands and bumped shoulders.
“This looks like the exact opposite of what I told you to do,” he said as he patted my back and pulled away to greet Pilar.
“We’ve met,” she said, smiling as she stood. “David, right?”
“That’s right. We met at one of your mother’s Sunday dinners.” He smiled at her, then looked at me. Warren and Camila are parking.”
“Nice.” I looked over at Pilar, whose eyes had widened. I chuckled, remembering that she was actually an avid football fan. “Yes, Warren Silva.”
“Oh my God.” She smiled the biggest smile I’d ever seen. It was cute, especially since Warren was a happily married family man with two small children.
“I’ll get a photo of you with him.” I winked.
“That would be epic.” She took a sip of her drink, seemingly unable to wipe the smile off her face.
“You know who else is coming?” David said, playfully taunting Pilar now. “Alex Scott.”
“No.” Her mouth dropped. She faced me with a wicked smile that turned me inside out. “You may just have some competition tonight.”
“Is that so?” I raised an eyebrow.
I knew she was joking, but I didn’t like where this was going. If anyone else had made that comment, I would have dismissed both the comment and the woman right away. But Pilar saying it made me see red. Alex was one of my best friends and would never come between a woman and me, but he also loved to fuck with me. If he knew how much I liked Pilar, he’d purposely flirt with her to get a rise out of me. I mentally prepared myself for that.
“We’ll have to see how I feel when he gets here.” Pilar winked.
David laughed, thoroughly enjoying this. I scowled. A few things happened all at once. David said he was going to say hi to some people and would be back. The DJ played a rendition of Bazzi’s Paradise, and Pilar started dancing. I watched her for a moment, loving the way she moved her hips, her hands waving in the air, and her eyes closed as she sang along. She was simply beautiful when she was like this, and I felt privileged to see this side of her. Before I could stop myself, I pulled her to me and began dancing with her, my hands on her hips, my mouth near her ear. I couldn’t remember the last time a woman had made me feel this way, where sharing the same space was excitement enough, and the fact that I’d be taking her home tonight was the cherry on top. When Warren walked in holding Camila’s hand, I looked over and nodded at him in greeting. He did the same, and Camila waved and smiled. She was already moving her hips to the music, and I knew they’d join us dancing in the small area of the VIP section soon enough. When the song was over, I introduced them to Pilar.
“Am I supposed to bow or something?” Camila asked, tentatively holding out her hand for Pilar to shake.
Pilar laughed and stepped forward to give Camila a kiss on both cheeks.
“That’s easy,” Camila said, smiling. “Nice to meet you. I’ve never met royalty before.”
“She’s not royalty this weekend.” I winked at Pilar. She blushed, smiling widely. “She’s just a regular citizen like the rest of us.”
“Cool.” Warren smiled. “I like what your brother is doing in Paris. Not that I live there, but I keep up with the news.”
“Where do you live now?” Pilar asked.
“Ah, a little place called Harlem. It’s in New York.” Warren grinned. “Little gem of a place.”
“It is a gem of a place, actually.” Camila elbowed him hard, but all it did was make him laugh harder. She smiled at Pilar. “You guys should come visit someday.”
“Uh, yeah. Maybe.” Pilar smiled, but I could tell she was thrown by the invitation, mostly because when Camila invited you somewhere, it was obvious that she meant it.
“We’ll definitely go one day.” I grabbed Pilar’s hand in mine and squeezed it. She met my gaze with a look of surprise.
Warren, Camila, Pilar, and I sat down and started talking, leaning over each other to hear over the loud music. David joined us shortly after, and then, Alex arrived, completely charming Pilar and Camila. Both of them were blushing and sharing looks until Warren and I were about ready to kick Alex out of the group.
“Who invited this guy?” Warren asked loudly after a moment.
“Your mother,” Alex said.
I laughed.
The women laughed louder.
“I think it’s great that he’s here,” Pilar said.
“Of course, you do.” I scowled.
Alex’s brows rose, and I instantly knew my mistake. He threw an arm over Pilar’s shoulder.
“So, how are you enjoying Ibiza? Is it your first time?”
“I love it.” She turned ten shades of red.
I grabbed my supposed best friend’s arm and pushed it off my date, shooting him a look.
“ What ?” he mouthed, pretending to be innocent.
“I will cut you.” I shot him a look.
He laughed loudly, shaking his head. “This is great.”
We talked, danced, drank, danced some more, drank some more.
“Where are the kids?” I asked Warren. “Back home?”
“Yeah. We left them with our mothers, which is a nightmare in itself.” He shook his head.
“My mom called me a little while ago and said the baby may or may not have a diaper rash, and that she was going to make him a tea to put on the affected area,” Camila said, sighing. “I can’t even.”
“Tea on the baby’s bottom?” Pilar frowned. “Why?”
“Because she wouldn’t put Vicks there, and since that’s the number one cure for everything in a Dominican household and she can’t do it, tea with all these weird herbs is a close second.”
“Oh my God.” Pilar laughed. “That’s great. It’s nice that she worries.”
“Too much.” Camila shook her head. “My sister is going through a nasty divorce, and she has a three-year-old, so I don’t want to bother her. But I’m dying for her to take the kids to her house.”
“That sucks. I didn’t know Vanessa was getting a divorce,” I said. I’d met her and her husband a handful of times, and they were always nice.
“Yeah. That’s life, I guess.” Camila shrugged.
“Not our life.” Warren grabbed her hand and leaned in to kiss her. “Don’t get any ideas.”
“Trust me, I would have left you by now.” She laughed at his expression.
Alex and I watched wistfully. Warren had been our hero for so long on the pitch, but off the field, he scored serious goals, with a beautiful woman on his arm and two adorable children. He ran a successful foundation and did business in New York as well as in Spain. He was what all of us were trying to be, even though it felt unattainable. I glanced at Pilar, who was now drinking water, and wondered how she’d feel if I told her that was my goal. Would she run for the hills? She was young and innocent, maybe she wouldn’t want any of that right now. Not to mention, she was a princess. That complicated things. I wasn’t even sure why I was wondering about this or cared how she’d feel. It wasn’t like she could be a long-term goal, regardless of how she made me feel.