Julieta,
I am sorry for shocking you this morning. I truly had no idea you were the chef at Las Pescas. I would like to talk to you about the future of your restaurant. Could we meet for dinner?
Sincerely,
Ramón
He wanted to have dinner? As in, a date? Was he mad?
Chapter Nine
Ramón stared at his phone after he’d sent the email. He couldn’t believe that the enchanting woman he had met at the Day of the Dead party was the chef at Las Pescas.
He waited for a reply, but there was nothing.
After getting kicked out of Las Pescas, Ramón and Papá had settled on coffee and pan dulce at the neighboring coffeehouse. He chose a table in the far back of the café, hoping no one would recognize him from the scene at Julieta’s restaurant. Ramón sipped his café de olla, which was sweet and spicy and quite strong, and took a bite of his crunchy concha, which was equally delicious. This place was another hidden authentic gem, and the ladies here were not throwing dishes at him, so that was a plus.
Ramón studied Papá. His left hand shook, and his eyes were wide and wild. Papá downed his coffee like it was a shot. “Apá, how do you know Julieta’s mom?”
A faraway look graced Papá’s face. “It was another lifetime ago, mijo. I met Linda in San Felipe before I started Taco King.”
Ramón’s eye’s widened. “She’syour Baja beauty?”
Papá nodded and his smile widened into a cocky grin. “The one and only. I can’t believe it’s her. She’s still as beautiful as she was the evening I serenaded her on the beach.”
Guau. Like father like son. Love songs for the win.
“Did you love her?”
Arturo patted his chest. “With all my heart.”
Ramón couldn’t believe Papá’s words. In previous retellings of this story, Papá had always made it sound like it had just been a fling. “Then why didn’t you go back for her?”
“I did. But I found her with another man.”
Ouch. That had to hurt.
“Did you beat him up?”
Arturo shook his head. “No, of course not. I wanted to, Ramón. I wanted to rip his throat out.”
Wait—Linda said he had hurt her.
“Why did she say you made her suffer?”
Arturo threw up his hands. “I don’t know. Probably because she thinks I never came back for her, but I did. After I saw her with that guy”—Arturo closed his eyes tightly as if he was fighting his memory before opening them again—“I wanted nothing to do with her.”
Ramón swallowed. Wow. Seeing Papá react so strongly to Linda rattled him. What had he been like when he was younger? Romantic and passionate like Ramón was? Had Linda’s betrayal of Papá cast a shadow over Ramón’s parents’ relationship?
“I’m sorry.”
“It’s in the past. I’m over it.”
But Ramón didn’t think that Papá was over it. By the hurt expression on his face and the anger in his voice, Ramón was certain that Papá was still holding on to some bitter resentment.
What a small world. Now Ramón had the hots for Linda’s daughter.
How could it possibly be that the beautiful woman he’d kissed in the moonlight and had bonded with about being workaholics was the chef of this restaurant? He was thrilled that he had found her, but now they had no chance together. She hated his guts; their families were enemies. What a cruel twist of fate.
