Page 139 of Along Came Amor
Jasmine bounced in her seat. “This is so fucking corny, Iloveit!”
Now the spotlight was on a tall, burly man with long hair, dressed in a blousy white shirt and a green tartan kilt with a matching sash.
“This Highland warrior will let you see what’s under his kilt...ifyou cansheath his sword!”
The man in the kilt held the sword at his waist in a two-handed grip. He mimicked stabbing with a thrust of his hips.
Now the light fell on a man in a sports jersey and a helmet.
“This athletic beefcake is raring to get his stick in there andscore a goal.”
The guy pretended to hump his hockey stick. The crowd ate it up.
Someone grabbed Ava’s shoulder and she jumped, half-expecting to see a hunky hockey player behind her, but it was her grandmother.
“He’s cute,” Esperanza yelled over the music and cheers. “I’ll get his number for you!”
“No, thank you!” Ava yelled back.
The spotlight landed on the man standing closest to Ava, gilding the edges of his sharp gray suit. His build was similar to Roman’s, and between that and his costume, Ava was hit with a pang of longing.
Taylor supplied the intro. “This X-rated executive will show you who’s the boss...in the bedroom.”
The man shot his cuffs in an exaggerated fashion before turning the motion into a pop and lock sequence.
Opening her clutch, Ava pulled out her phone to see if Roman had texted again, but Taylor’s next words made her pause.
“This adorable boy next door is all grown up and ready to take your friendship to thenext level.”
Ava’s eyes flew to the stage, where a spotlight shone on a brawny guy in casual attire—a Yankees jersey, jeans, Tims, and a fitted cap pulled low over his face.
Boy next...? Wait a second.
Ava squinted, first at the guy flexing in the spotlight, then back at the one in a suit, standing motionless in the shadows.
Her hand flew to her mouth, but before she could fully make sense of what she was thinking, the spotlight switched to the man standing directly in front of Jasmine. He wore a tuxedo and carried a single red rose in his hand.
“This red-carpet ready thespian likes to do iton camera,” Taylor said with a wink-wink nudge-nudge.
To Ava’s left, Jasmine let out an audible gasp.
“He’ll read your body like a script and cast you as the lead inallhis fantasies.”
The man turned around to face the audience, revealing what Ava had already suspected. Jasmine let out an ear-splitting shriek.
It was Ashton.
The stage lights went up, and sure enough, Ashton was flanked by Boy-Next-Door Gabe and Roman the “X-rated Executive.” In addition to the gray suit, Roman wore a pair of fake glasses without lenses.
Ava’s pulse beat thickly in her veins as their eyes met. Roman gave her the quickest little wink, and then he was looking away, casting that confident smile over the audience like he hung out on a stage with male strippers every day.
Jasmine turned to Michelle with tears streaming down her face. “Did you know?”
Michelle’s grin was smug. “Whose brilliant idea do you think this was?”
Jasmine sobbed as she stared up at her fiancé. “This is the best night of my life!”
Michelle gave a triumphant fist pump. Around them, the bachelorette party guests hollered. Someone—it sounded like Ronnie’s mom, Titi Nita—yelled, “Take it off, Ashton!” His head whipped around and he broke character for a second as his eyes landed on the row of people sitting behind his fiancée—namely her mother, grandmothers, and all her aunts.
