16. Chapter 16
Chapter 16
Jake
"I would like to make a toast."
Everyone I cared about stood around me, and we all turned to Tío Raúl in unison at his words. Max and Eva, Gabe and Lina, Tía Sonia and Tío Raúl, Javier, Vi, and I; we made a circle at the Construction Cares Gala and ignored everyone else for the time being.
The gala's theme was green construction with a focus on material efficiency, and the organizers had translated that into a beehive theme. Shades of yellow, gold, and brass stood out against organic elements like wood and natural fibers, with metal hexagon shapes throughout the events hall. Little resin bees jumped from large artisanal glass vases, hanging from copper wires among the flowers.
Among partygoers and far from the auction tables, we raised our glasses halfway to listen to Tío Raúl's words.
"I'm so happy to see you all here today. Newer and warmly welcome faces—" he pointed to Eva and Lina— "and faces I know like my own."
He pointed to his wife, who smiled and caressed his face in a quick pass of the back of her fingers.
With warmth overcoming my chest at her gesture, I couldn't help but to steal a glance at Vi. She gazed at her parents with love and pride on her face.
She also looked spectacular in a mint green dress with a marked sweetheart neckline, long sleeves that seemed to cling to her shoulders like they needed her the same way I did, and a thick gold metal belt cinching her waist. Best-slash-worst of all, was that her long, flowy skirt had a long slit up her thigh. Or so it seemed, from the glances I'd taken in the direction of her thighs. I probably shouldn't have let it occupy so much of my brain, but I failed to prevent it.
I cleared my throat as subtly as I could, and directed my eyes to Tío Raúl again.
"We're all here thanks to the work we do together. The Sotomayor Group wouldn't be what it is without the support from Sonia when the company wasn't more than a small business operation and we had two toddlers at home. It also wouldn't be what it is without my children and their friends, who have invested money, time, and hard work into it."
Max and Javier came from money, and they had invested heavily in the Group through the years. It allowed the Sotomayor's business to grow to the international level it held, while maintaining the social-forward practices they wanted. And with Gabe, Vi, and I working there every day, the conglomerate was truly a family affair.
"This week," Tío Raúl continued, "two men I am proud to have seen grow up are positioned to take over the Sotomayor Group. Sonia and I couldn't be happier that we're surrounded by the next generation, people we trust and admire, and love like a family. We couldn't be luckier to let you all take over and lead the next era. So this toast is to all of you, and to Gabe and Jake in particular with their recent promotions."
"And to you, too!" Vi added before we could all raise our glasses for the honorary sip. "You two make all our lives amazing, and have built something incredible— as a family and as a business."
"It's absolutely for you too," Gabe said as well, and we all nodded. "None of us would be who we are without you both."
"To all of us." Max lifted his glass high. "To Tío Raúl and Tía Sonia, and Gabe and Jake."
"Salud!" Tío Raúl exclaimed.
We all echoed him and sipped from our glasses.
Vi gave her dad and mom a kiss on the cheek. "Love you, guys."
"You're going to London tomorrow, right?" Gabe asked as he hugged his parents, too. "Using the fundraiser as a way for all of us to get together isn't enough."
"I heard you're all going to the lake house?" Tía Sonia asked. "That's good. We should plan one when we can all be there."
"Of course. We should always have one planned." Javier took another sip from his drink. "Galas are a good patch but not the real thing."
In what seemed like an automatic gesture, he took his phone out of his pocket and checked for notifications. He frowned at the device before putting it away.
It was odd behavior on his part, but I didn't mention it.
"I can't wait to have you all visit us in Laguna Island. When might be a good date?" Max asked in Tío and Tía's direction.
Their conversation turned into background noise, and I only half-listened as my eyes sought Vi again. She chatted with Eva, her smile brilliant and her hair cascading down one of her shoulders.
The ribbon that kept me tied to her went taut. It pulled and begged me to approach. For once, I wasn't bent on resisting it. The part of me that reminded me of my worries, that made me hesitate— it remained quiet, pushed into a corner of my mind. Its mouth had been taped shut.
I was a VP. Rules had changed. There was no plan to prevent all the things that could go wrong. No way to guarantee her family would be happy for us. But that night, I was ready to leave it as a problem for Future Jake.
That night, I was determined to make something happen between us.
Vi caught someone from the corner of her eye and her face shone even brighter with joy. My sight didn't stray to the new person; my eyes were glued to Vi. She told something to Eva and left the group to chat with someone. A friend, probably. Someone she hadn't seen in years, as she tended to skip galas as well. I didn't pay much attention, because all I could process was the way her leg peeked through her dress slit with every step.
I took a sip of my drink and cast my gaze up to the ceiling. Following her and finding a secluded corner wasn't an option yet. If I parted from the group in her pursuit, I'd go like a rutting animal, or a hunter tracking their target. I didn't want that to be the family's first impression of my feelings for Violeta. True as it was to how I felt, there was much more to it than that. If I were brave enough to show my heart first to them, they might have a better opinion of me when they realized we were together.
Vi disappeared into the crowd with her friend, and I did my best to chat with my own friends there in the group. When Tío Raúl asked me about my first week as a VP, my heart stayed in its place in my ribcage— it didn't sink to my feet, like it often did when I remembered that they didn't know I had romantic feelings for their daughter.
Maybe it was the past few weeks, and the way we had been on the brink of finally exploring whatever was between us. Or, fuck, the extra therapy I had had over the past two years. There was something different about that night, and I wanted to act on it.
The drive to do something had me ticking my jaw and drowning my drink.
"You okay, Jake?" Lina asked near me. "You don't come to the gala often. Too stuffy for you?"
I nodded. "All's good, though. It won't kill me to wear a tux this one time."
"You look very handsome," she said. "The color you're wearing suits you."
I glanced across the hall, but I caught no sign of Vi. An undercurrent vibrated under my skin, poising my legs for the search. Tracing the smell of Vi in the air, until I found her and kissed her.
"Thank you." I smiled at Lina. "It's dark petrol blue— I think it goes well with my coloring."
"I agree." Max gave me one of his playful grins. "You lack melatonin, but you make it work. In a very Viking way. Celtic! Definitely Celtic warrior, considering."
I laughed. "I think that was a compliment."
"It was! Have I given you a claymore yet?" He asked. "I've been meaning to give you a claymore."
"You haven't, Max, but you keep telling me you will."
His grin turned cheeky. "My bad. I'll remedy that asap."
I shook my head and shifted on my feet. I loved my friends, my chosen family… but this restlessness was all about feeling like I was wasting time.
"Excuse me," I said. "I'll be back in a bit."
I wasn't sure what I planned, exactly, but it felt close to what my ancestors might have felt when going on the prowl.
Vi
For someone who valued authenticity, I was doing a good job at hiding the nerves swirling in my stomach. Ever since deciding the gala was the night I asked Jake out, anticipation had built in my gut, brick-by-brick, until it was hard to take a full breath.
At least I loved the way I looked in my dress, and that could only help my prospects.
"Why don't you come to the fundraiser more often?" Olivia asked.
We'd met in college and bonded over having similar backgrounds and preferring to live with our families. We cried together through all-nighters, and scoped out the sports teams in our free time. While she attended the gala every year, I didn't, and we weren't in touch so often anymore.
Therefore, I couldn't tell her I didn't have a good reason to skip the party, beyond wanting to avoid certain memories.
"I don't have an excuse." I shrugged. "But you know what we should do? Plan a girls trip. Call the old group. Go somewhere."
"I love that idea—" Olivia started, but we were interrupted by a large figure approaching us.
My smile faltered at the sight of Jake. My nerves weren't at fault for the change, but the wave of desire was. I saw him in a suit every day, but there was something about this dark teal tux that made him particularly alluring.
"Hello." He offered his hand to Olivia. "I'm Jake Stewart. I don't think we've met?"
She shook his hand with a twinkle in her eye. "Hi. I've heard about you, though."
"Oh?" He glanced at me, but returned a smile back to Olivia. "What has Vi told you about me?"
"That you're close to the family. That her dad calls you son. That you two spent most of the summer together while in College."
He raised his eyebrows. "She's told you a lot, then."
"She failed to mention a few details, like the fact you could win first place at the caber toss, from the look of you."
I smiled. "I have never tried, but I wouldn't be opposed. I believe my grandfather won a few prizes at the hammer throw."
I pursed my lips. "Are there Scottish Games we could go to? Just for the fun of it. As long as you wear a kilt."
Jake cast his eyes my way. "I'll buy a kilt if you like."
"You in your kilt and me in my huasa dress. We'd make quite the pair." I grinned at him.
"I'll dress as a huaso, too, if you like. We'll just need a manto that goes with my coloring." His voice deepened. "Un sombrero elegante y una faja."
I gulped. Jake had learned Spanish at some point during his years with us, and he'd evidently worked hard at it— he barely had an accent.
"We can make it work…" I managed, resorting to English in the hope it would help me with self control.
"Ahem." Olivia smirked our way. "I think there's a lot I might have missed here."
Jake's lips lifted at the corners. "I hope you don't mind if I steal Vi for a minute?"
My friend cocked her head. "That depends. Are you giving her back?"
"Eventually." He grinned. "I promise."
She arched an eyebrow at him, then smiled at me. "I'll be around for a while longer, but I'm always just a text away."
After some parting words, Jake guided me away with a warm, large hand on my lower back.
That was the night I became the heroine of my own romance, and I asked the man of my affections to give us a chance. With us going away on our own, maybe it would be my opportunity to roll the dice with our future.
"Everything okay?" I glanced at him.
"I think so. We'll see after we talk."
Butterflies fluttered all over inside. Yes, I might be rushing it, or rushing him— he'd been a VP for less than a week, but I couldn't wait any longer. I needed something to reassure me there could be a future between us.
"Where are we going?" I asked.
"No idea." He chuckled. "I'm hoping we find somewhere private."
I bit my lip, dying to know what all this was about, hoping I'd get my time to share a thing or two. Maybe I should have practiced a speech, but it was too late for that.
We ended up going back to the welcome hall at the entrance of the building, and ignoring the ropes blocking the stairs. My heart beat fast as we reached a second floor that opened to a large roof patio. We tried several glass doors until we found one unlocked; the patio was undecorated and plain as a result but, in my mind's eye, I could see a lovely party overlooking the city at night.
"Okay." I turned to Jake. "What's going on? This is so secre—"
The word died on my tongue as Jake gazed at me with hunger. I froze, taken by the intensity of his gaze. His lips took on a wolfish smile, his teeth showing in the ravenous tilt of his mouth.
He took a deliberate step my way, and my heart sprinted into a gallop in my chest. Another step, and I gasped.
"Violeta…"
My name, raspy in his throat, stilled me. Centered me. A slow smile stretched across my face.
Clarity filled Jake's blue eyes. The next instant, he strode to me, cradled my head in his hands, and kissed me like there was no tomorrow.
Every synapsis in my brain exploded into its own stellar blast. With every tiny movement of Jake's lips on mine, my system rewrote the way I existed in the world. I was dizzy, and my blood's temperature rose with each passing second. He bit my bottom lip and licked it, weakening the strength of my knees; when my mouth opened in response, he attacked and deepened the kiss. Like he tracked my every move and breath and sound, he knew to hold me up in a tight embrace, when the intensity of feeling could have fell me like a tree.
"Jake—" I tried, but no words formed in my head.
"There's so much we need to say, I know." He kissed my cheek, the curve of my jaw. "But I couldn't go one more minute without kissing you."
"Jake…"
This time, his name came out in a breath.
"I like how you say my name." He pushed me until my back was to a nearby wall. "I want to hear you say it again."
"Make me," I said, before we kissed again.
He pushed me against the wall, his body pressing into me and making me feel gloriously at his mercy. Lips-to-lips and tongue-to-tongue, my hands undid the button of his tux jacket. I ran my fingers over his big chest and up to his shoulders; his hands caught at the edge of my belt, and traveled lower and lower until he found the opening in the fabric of the skirt. I lifted my leg to give him access.
He took a handful of my thigh. "Fuck, Vi. I've been dreaming about this for too long."
"Are you going to regret it this time? Like you did last time we came to a gala?"
He frowned and dropped his forehead to mine. "Not this time. I hope neither of us will."
My heart continued to drum against my breastbone, the cool, dark night holding us. The roof patio empty, forming a makeshift home where we could make a bet on our future.
"What are we going to do, Jake? How are we going to do this?"
He closed his eyes. "I don't know. But I know I have to try. I have to."
Jake had kissed me. He had taken the lead, and made it clear he wanted to take a chance on us. That's what I needed from him, and I hadn't known it, or told him. Possibilities opened ahead and finally, finally we were on the same page.
I gave him a smile fueled by the hope blooming in my chest. His eyes filled with awe as he gazed at me.
"Kiss me again, Jake." I trailed my hands up his neck, and into the short hairs at his nape. "We'll figure out the rest."
His smile stretched slowly to mirror mine, before he kissed me again like we would never have to stop.