Page 161 of Along Came Amor
Jasmine pursed her lips. “Roman Vázquez is not someone who tosses around marriage proposals lightly. If he asked, he meant it.”
Ava shook her head. “The negotiation thing is just a game we play.”
“I want to hear more about this game.” Michelle gave a lewd wink.
But Ava didn’t reply. She was reflecting on what Jasmine had said, and remembering what else Roman had revealed.
His decision to step down as CEO wouldn’t have been madelightly either. If he was doing that, it was because he saw it as a solution to a problem...
The problem, in this case, was that he worked too much, and also... that he wanted more room in his life forher.
It still terrified her. But now that she’d calmed down and thought it over, she was unbelievably touched. This was how much he cared about her, that he was willing to change his entire life to fit her into it.
How could she do any less?
She loved him. That much was crystal clear to her. But she needed to make it clear to Roman, as well. He’d put his heart on the line for her time and again, and he’d been more than patient with her shenanigans. He deserved to hear the full extent of her feelings. Right the fuck now. But as she scanned the ballroom, she didn’t see Roman.
Or Ashton.
Or Gabe.
Her eyebrows drew together. “Where the hell are the guys?”
Michelle blinked innocently. “What guys?”
Chapter 50
“I can’tbelieveyou did that.” Roman rubbed his neck and shot Gabe a dirty look.
Gabe’s grin was utterly unrepentant. “It was Ashton’s idea.”
“Michelle tasked us with keeping you occupied,” Ashton said, effortlessly dispersing the blame. “And I told Gabe to use force, if necessary.”
Roman’s mind raced as he pictured Ava having an emotionally confronting altercation with her family. “I can’t just hang back while she’s in trouble.”
“You have to,” Ashton said severely. “Because this is what she needs. That woman is used to people leaving her. The best thing you can do is be here when she’s ready for you.”
“You can’t fix this for her.” Gabe’s tone was more gentle than Roman would have expected. “No matter how much you want to.”
The guys were right. Roman would slay dragons for Ava, but she had to fight her own inner demons—and that meant having a long overdue heart to heart with her relatives. Besides, he trusted that her cousins wouldn’t abandon her afterward, even if Ava herself didn’t believe it.
All he could do was give her space, manage his own feelingsso they didn’t spill over onto her, and be available when she needed him.
Even if sitting still made him want to gnash his teeth.
“I’m stepping down as CEO,” Roman said, needing to change the subject before he did something that made Gabe tackle him.
Ashton’s brows shot up. “You’re selling the company?”
“Hell no. It’s still mine. I’m just taking a backseat from the day-to-day operations.”
“I did wonder why you were so involved in the minutiae,” Gabe commented. “I’ve worked with some CEOs, and they always seemed to have a lot more free time for golf and shit.”
“Should I take up golf?” Roman mused.
“Before you do, let me give you some different exercises for your lower back.”
“Golf?” Ashton snorted. “You’re kidding yourself if you think you’re not going to find some other project to throw yourself into.”
