Chapter 5
Five
51 Days Until Christmas
For the past year, Rosie had endured countless Sunday dinners where her parents had purposely seated her beside a potential date. Each time, she was forced to make small talk as she fielded the usual questions. Where do you work? Where did you go to university? What do you do for fun? And so on, until the evening felt more like a job interview than a relaxing dinner.
Last month, she’d gotten paired up with Julio—a family friend who was a self-professed film snob. He immediately mocked her love of action movies and told her he preferred foreign films because “they engage me on an intellectual level.” No, thanks.
The month before that, her dad had invited a guy her age—a friend’s son—who’d sounded promising. Until he’d dismissed Rosie’s job at the Duchess and denounced hotels as a total rip-off. “I’m more of an Airbnb guy,” he’d said. Hard pass.
But tonight, with Drew as her date, she wouldn’t have to muddle her way through an awkward conversation. Though she’d felt a little guilty about lying to her family, all her remorse vanished when her parents greeted her warmly, thrilled to meet her new “boyfriend.” It didn’t hurt that Drew had brought them a box of chocolates from Purdy’s—a family favorite.
Once dinner was ready, her mom placed her beside Drew at the long wooden table that dominated the family dining room. A table that could be extended by one or two leaves, depending on the size of the gathering. Tonight, only Rosie’s immediate family was in attendance—her parents, her siblings and their partners, and her sixteen-month-old niece. All for the best since Drew might have been overwhelmed if the entire Gonzalez clan had shown up.
After Mamá led everyone in saying grace, she turned to Drew. “Since you’re our guest of honor, you can go first. I assume you’re familiar with Mexican cooking?”
He gave her an affable grin—the kind that could charm any parent. “Mostly tacos, but I’m open to anything.”
“Good. The platter nearest to you has chicken enchiladas in salsa verde, and the bowl beside it contains Mexican red rice. The other two bowls have calabacitas— zucchini mixed with tomatoes and corn—and frijoles charros, which are beans with chorizo, bacon, and jalape?o. The melon slices are sprinkled with Tajín, but if you’d prefer plain melon, we have that, too.”
He reached for the platter of enchiladas. “Everything looks delicious. I’m glad I brought my appetite.”
Mamá beamed at him. “Thank you. It gives me so much pleasure to share a meal with my children on Sunday nights. It’s even better when they bring someone special along. Not that my daughter gave me much warning this time.”
Rosie’s sister, Isabella, took two slices of melon and passed the bowl down the line. “Yeah, Rosie. What’s up with that? Last time we talked—which was literally five days ago—Drew’s name didn’t come up.”
“On Thursday, Má asked me to bring one of my colleagues to dinner so he could meet you,” Jaime said. “What gives?”
His wife, Camila, glared at him. “Seriously, Jaime? Cut Rosie a little slack. You never even asked her if she was interested.”
Rosie was about to respond when Drew rested his hand on her thigh. Though she suspected he was just trying to show his support, his touch sent a tiny shiver along her spine. Feeling bolder, she placed her hand over his. The intimacy of touching him in secret filled her with an unexpected longing.
Don’t get carried away. Remember, this isn’t real.
She focused on answering her family’s questions. “Sorry for not giving you more warning, but Drew and I have actually known each other for a while.”
“Really?” Isabella said. “The last time you were dating someone, you wouldn’t stop talking about him, and he turned out to be a jerk. So excuse me if I’m a tad dubious about you showing up with a guy you’ve never mentioned before.”
Rosie fought back the urge to snap at her sister. She didn’t like being reminded of the mistake she’d made with Erik, trusting him enough to bring him home. His behavior at dinner had been so condescending that she’d spent all evening cringing with guilt.
Drew flashed sad puppy dog eyes at her. “You never mentioned me, honey? Not once? I’m wounded.”
Playing along, she gave his shoulder a gentle poke. “Sorry, sweetie. But to be fair, we started as friends.”
“Where did you meet?” Isabella demanded.
“At Northlife Fitness—the gym around the corner from the Duchess,” Drew said. “I work there as a group fitness instructor and personal trainer. I think it was about a year ago—maybe a little more—when Rosie joined the gym. She took a few of my boot camp classes and then started working with me to concentrate on strength training.”
“Ooh, one-on-one personal training.” Isabella raised her eyebrows. “I’d like that. It sounds kinda sexy.”
“Isabella Maria,” Mamá snapped. “Your husband is right there .” She pointed to Isabella’s husband, Peter, who’d ended up with the thankless job of watching over their daughter, Graciela, as she made a mess of her dinner. By the looks of it, more rice had gotten on the tray of her high chair than into her mouth.
Isabella rolled her eyes. “I was just kidding, Má.”
“Anyway, after a few months of working out together, Rosie and I grew closer,” Drew said. “When she stopped coming to the gym because her life got too hectic, I missed her a lot. But last month, we ran into each other during happy hour, and things just clicked.”
Using happy hour as the basis of their story made sense. But rather than admit their meet-up had taken place two days ago, they’d agreed to tell her family it had happened in October.
“That night, Drew asked me out,” Rosie said. “We’ve been together since then. Even though we’re both pretty busy, we want to make it work. Don’t we, sweetie?” She regarded him with a doting smile. Which was a mistake, because she got so caught up in his deep brown eyes that she could barely pull her gaze away. He was selling it, looking at her like she was the embodiment of his dreams.
“If you’ve been together for a month, then why is this the first time I’m hearing about it?” Jaime asked. “Why not bring it up at our last dinner?”
“Maybe she didn’t want to deal with a ton of questions,” Camila said.
Thank you, Camila. Not for the first time, Rosie wondered how her sister-in-law put up with Jaime. “I was about to explain. You all know what a mistake I made with Erik. I hadn’t known him for long when I brought him to dinner. Then I regretted it because he didn’t fit in.”
Mamá clicked her tongue. “That Erik was so wrong for you. I couldn’t see the two of you being happy together.”
Something she’d harped upon repeatedly. It pained Rosie to admit how right she’d been.
Drew spoke up. “Rosie asked me to keep things quiet until we were sure we wanted to go public. I respected her wishes, even though I desperately wanted to show her off.”
“Awww. That’s so romantic,” Isabella said.
When Drew squeezed Rosie’s hand under the table, her arms prickled with goose bumps. Sure it was an act, but he was crushing it.
“Sorry I didn’t mention Drew sooner,” she said. “I wanted you to meet him because things are going great. In fact, he might be coming to a few of our holiday gatherings.”
“ Por supuesto .” Mamá smiled at Drew. “Look how happy you’ve made my daughter. She’s glowing.”
While Rosie didn’t love being the center of attention, at least she and Drew had successfully convinced her family they were together. If she was lucky, they’d move on to another topic of conversation.
For a few minutes, all was quiet as everyone focused on the food. To Rosie’s delight, Drew eagerly accepted a second helping of enchiladas. Mamá always appreciated it when her guests ate heartily. Rosie bumped her thigh against his to get his attention, but when he turned to look at her, his tender expression made her melt inside.
“Everything okay?” he whispered.
She kept her voice low. “Just checking to make sure you’re doing all right.”
“I’m great. The food is awesome, and your family’s so welcoming.”
“Hey, you two, no love talk,” Isabella said.
“Hush,” Mamá said. “Just because you and Peter aren’t in your lovey-dovey stage anymore doesn’t mean your sister can’t enjoy it.”
Isabella responded with another of her eye rolls. “It’s hard being lovey-dovey when you’re looking after a needy toddler and the next baby’s due in two months.” She turned to Drew and asked sweetly, “So, how do you feel about kids? Do you want any?”
Rosie choked on her rice, then quickly washed it down with a drink of water. She nailed her sister with a flinty glare, but Isabella plastered an innocent smile on her face.
“Eventually, I’d love to have a family, but I’ve got time,” Drew said. “I’m only twenty-seven.”
Mamá directed her gaze at him with the intensity of a laser. “You know Rosie’s already twenty-nine, right? She doesn’t have many fertile years left.”
For the love of God .
If Mamá kept this up, she’d scare Drew away. Even though Isabella was pregnant with her second child, and Jamie and Camila were expecting their first one in May, Mamá acted like she wouldn’t be truly happy unless all three of her children provided her with grandkids.
Rosie pivoted quickly. “Speaking of kids, Drew’s great with them. He teaches a speed training class at the gym for middle school students, and he also volunteered to play Santa at the Duchess. We’re starting a new holiday tradition. Every Saturday in December, we’re going to offer events geared toward families staying there.”
“I was glad to volunteer,” Drew said. “It was the least I could do, seeing how Rosie’s boss expects her to increase the hotel’s occupancy rate during the holidays.”
No . Though Drew didn’t know better, any hint that Rosie’s job was on the line would put her mom on full alert. Like a shark smelling blood in the water, Mamá zeroed in on Rosie. “Why do you need to increase the occupancy rate? Isn’t the hotel usually full in December? What with all the holiday events going on in Victoria, there must be a lot of tourists visiting, no?”
“I would think the Duchess would be at full occupancy,” Jaime added.
“Like you’re an expert on the hospitality industry?” Camila said to him. “You deal with teeth all day.”
“I’m not surprised you’re having trouble attracting guests,” Isabella chimed in. “The last time I looked up the Duchess on Tripadvisor, it was only ranked number twenty out of all the hotels in Victoria. Even the Days Inn had a higher rating.”
Rosie gritted her teeth. “Why were you checking on our ranking?”
Her sister shrugged. “Just curious.”
Or because she liked being up in Rosie’s business.
“I didn’t realize the hotel was struggling that much,” her dad said. “Do you think you should look for another job?”
“I wish you’d ended up at the Grand Duke,” Mamá added. “It’s such a classy hotel.” She turned toward Drew. “Did you know Rosie applied there after she finished university? It was her first choice, but they didn’t hire her.”
“Rosalina always dreamed of working for the Duke,” her dad said. “Her great-aunt spent ten years in their housekeeping department and used to tell us stories about it.”
Though Rosie had gone through two rounds of interviews at the Duke, she hadn’t gotten an offer. At the time, she’d been devastated, but once she’d gotten hired at the Duchess, she’d never considered leaving. For all the ups and downs she’d experienced there, she had no desire to give up her role as assistant manager or lose the support she’d gotten from the Damsels.
“I think the Duchess is lucky to have Rosie,” Drew said. “I’m sure she and her team can turn the place around. In fact, last Friday, I helped them brainstorm different holiday activities the hotel could offer their guests. Maybe all of you could give us some more ideas.”
Isabella scoffed. “You’re talking to the Queen of Christmas. I’ve got ideas for days. How about a workshop where kids could decorate gingerbread people? I can bake up a bunch for you.”
Her enthusiasm took Rosie aback. When was the last time her sister had offered to help her with anything? “That would be fabulous, Iz.”
“You know what would be really fun?” Mamá said. “Have the staff compete in a gingerbread house contest and put them on display. Then the guests can pick their favorite one.”
“Yes!” Camila said. “Last year, I watched the Holiday Baking Showdown on the Food Network, and they did a couple of episodes featuring gingerbread houses.”
“See if you can get any travel influencers to visit the hotel,” Isabella suggested. “I know a few on TikTok if you need some names.”
Rosie could hardly believe it. Just like that, her whole family was in her corner. All because Drew had asked their advice—something she hadn’t done in years. Usually she wanted them to back off, especially when it came to weighing in on her work life, but she’d never considered soliciting their help.
As Drew continued to encourage them, she felt a twinge of regret. Because even if she didn’t need a real boyfriend right now, she wished his support wasn’t just an act.