Page 53 of Along Came Amor
Damaris finished chewing her first bite and washed it down with iced tea. “Almost spring break. Got any Easter plans?” She waggled her eyebrows. “Maybe with a certain hotel-owning millionaire?”
Ava shot her a look. “Of course not. I’m going to church in the morning with my mom and spending the rest of the day with my dad’s family.”
Damaris raised an eyebrow. “Cooking a week’s worth of food for them?”
“I—” Ava snapped her mouth shut, thinking of the menu her stepmother had requested—lasagna, sancocho, and enoughstuffed grape leaves to feed an army. “Maybe. How’s the meditation class going?”
Damaris pointed a finger at her. “It’s going great, but don’t change the subject.”
“The subject of my family’s Easter dinner?”
“The subject ofRoman.” Damaris gestured with her pita. “You’ve seen this guy—what, three times now?”
Ava nodded, already sure that she wasn’t going to like wherever this conversation was headed.
Damaris spread her hands, and a piece of lamb fell onto the paper plate in front of her. “And?”
Ava swallowed a mouthful of chicken shawarma. “And what?”
Sighing, Damaris used a plastic fork to dab hummus on her falafel.
“Andyou clearly enjoy him enough to go out with him more than once.”
Ava took her own scoop. The hummus alone made this place worth coming to on their lunch break.
“We’re notgoing out,” Ava grumbled. “We’re... I don’t know. Staying in.”
Damaris rolled her eyes as she chewed. “Semantics.”
“It’s not a relationship, Dee.”
“But it’ssomething.”
Ava shrugged and focused on her side salad. “It’s just sex.”
She hadn’t told Damaris that she’d filled Roman in on some of the details of her divorce. Her friend would read too much into it, and it didn’t mean anything. He’d asked, Ava had answered, and that was all there was to it.
“Have you even Googled him yet?” Damaris tapped on her phone. “Let’s see. Roman Alejandro Vázquez was born inBrooklyn. He owns almost a dozen hotels around the country, along with a rum distillery, plus—did you know this?—he also starred in—”
“Dee.” Ava raised a hand, cutting her off. “It’s not that serious. Unless there’s something about women mysteriously going missing after being in his presence, I don’t want to know anything more about him.”
Damaris sighed and put her phone down. “All right then.”
Ava’s own phone buzzed and she glanced at it. “It’s Jasmine,” she murmured. “About the engagement party.”
“When is that?”
“In June. Right before the end of the school year. You’re still coming to the wedding as my plus-one, right?”
“I wouldn’t miss it for the world. How are you doing with the maid of honor duties?”
Ava sipped her mint lemonade. “Not much to do yet. Jasmine’s been in LA.”
“I meant, how areyoudoing? Not how is Jasmine doing.”
Damaris was too damn perceptive.
“I’m fine,” Ava said lightly.
