Page 38 of Yours, For Now

"What I don't get is what changed?" Lucía took a triangle of her pizza and held it in the air. "You've known each other for, what, ten years?"

I nodded. "Give or take."

"It's not like I was keeping tabs," my cousin said. "But I didn't think you guys hung out."

"We didn't." My fake boyfriend grabbed a fry from his plate and took a bite of it. "But the dress she wore at the Gala this year left an impression on me."

I chuckled. "Oh, please. I wear more or less the same type of outfit every year."

"And I noticed, every time." He grinned, a twinkle in his eye. "I almost invited you out a hundred times."

I turned to him, chin over my shoulder as I gave him a skeptical look. "You didn't."

"How would you know?" he asked. "I was careful not to show much. I didn't know what you'd answer, and I wasn't sure it was a good idea in the first place."

"Why? Don't disappoint me so soon, Gabe." Lucía smirked. "Don't tell me you can't be with a hard-working woman."

Gabe shook his head. "The opposite. I like that she's so driven. I didn't ask her out because I'm driven, too, and I thought I'd fall too hard. And I'd miss my deadlines."

His words were full of cheek, and he followed them with a big bite of his burger, like he hadn't just shared anything significant. Both Lucía and Rodrigo laughed; I chuckled, but his words still resounded in me.

Maybe the words were fake, but the fantasy mesmerized me.

"Well, you got over that, then." Rodrigo left his sandwich on his plate and shook a hand between Gabe and I. "Considering."

"I didn't." Gabe smiled. "She invited me out. And I couldn't say no."

I snorted, but he was right, in a way. Still, I couldn't correct him too hard, or I might end up revealing too much.

"I didn't invite you out," I said. "I proposed a business arrangement with the stadium bid. We ended up spending more time together, and here we are."

"Bet it doesn't hurt he's handsome," Lucía said, admiring my fake boyfriend. "He has a young Pedro Pascal thing going."

I studied him closely. His shiny, dense black hair had a slight wave to it; his dark brown eyes shone. He seemed to enjoy the comment, and it brought a playful energy that suited him well.

Would he be playful in bed, too?

Ugh, I shouldn't be going there. He might catch sight of that thought somehow, if I wasn't careful and it shimmered through my skin.

"Do you think I'm handsome?" Gabe asked, grin stretching wide.

His flirting pulled my attraction right back into the lead box where I liked to keep it. I wasn't a liar, current situationship aside, and pride swelled in my chest. Vulnerability and I had a shaky relationship, and I avoided it at all costs. Admitting to my feelings for Gabe would be shaking hands with the idea of exposing my heart, and I wouldn't do that.

I pursed my lips. "I think I can acknowledge he's handsome."

"Wow," Luce exclaimed. "Was that so hard?"

Gabe shook his head and Rodrigo laughed.

"I can admit he's handsome," Rodrigo added. "He even has a fan club we always tease him about. But his girlfriend won't admit she likes him."

I chuckled to hide my embarrassment. Protecting my feelings was a knee-jerk reaction, born from enduring constant bruising to my heart. But maybe I didn't need to go there so quickly, all the time.

I wasn't ready to put my true feelings on full display, but I could share a bit more. "I didn't say I didn't like him. He's a great guy and I like him a lot. What’s this about a club? I want to hear about it."

"You don't want to hear about the club," Gabe tried. "Keep poking at my ego instead, why don't you?"

"No, no. I also want to hear about this club." Lucía turned to her boyfriend. "Do you have a fan club? You should. As long as I get to be the president, of course."