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I pulled my hand away from hers to nod and uselessly wipe at my damp face. Shit, I must look as big of a hot mess as I felt.
“Joy,” Hannah snapped, “what in the ever-loving fuck is going on?”
“I dated Ramón,” I said in a rush. “While you were still recovering. He was…he was so nice to me, so sweet, and he said he loved me. He made it sound like we were going to be together forever and then he just took off. Now I’m alone, and I miss him, and I’m worried about him, even if he is an asshole. None of what happened between us makes any sense. I feel like I’m losing my mind, doubting it even happened.”
Frowning, Hannah held up her hand. “Wait, Ramón said he loved you?”
I nodded, big fat tears spilling down my cheeks. “I’m such a moron. Who believes guys when they say things like that? I knew he was too good at eating pussy to be true.”
Making a sour face, Hannah said, “Yuck, stop right there. Don’t need to know that part. Moving on…why didn’t you tell me this before?”
“Because it all happened so fast! It was while you were still healing after the attack, and you were still in so much pain. I was going to tell you when you got better, but then Ramón took off, and I never heard from him again. If he loved me, why hasn’t he tried to contact me in some way?” Wiping at my cheeks with more tissue, I tried to smile. “Sorry, I didn’t mean get all hysterical on you.”
“You have every right to be hysterical,” Hannah muttered, a distant look in her eyes. “That would explain why Judith is so into you.”
“What?”
“She’s almost as worried about you as I am. Always asking how you’re doing, if you’re coming over with me.” Hannah gave me an apprehensive look. “I didn’t know it was because Ramón wants to marry you. Now that I think about it, we did end up talking about you a lot. Son of a bitch, he liked you. I didn’t see it at the time, but now it’s totally obvious.”
The stupid, insecure part of myself made me whisper, “You believe me?”
“What? That Ramón loves you? Of course, you’re a total catch. Besides, I should have known something was up when he started work on his house. I thought it was just because he wanted a place close to Leo, but now that I think about it…” Hannah suddenly gave me a searching look. “Did he show you his new place? Did you like it?”
“Yeah, he did, and it’s totally beautiful.” My heart gave a weak thump as both pleasure and pain broke through me at the memories of our picnic. “He has a backyard to die for, and his house is totally fabulous. It’s brand new, but they managed to make it look lived in, like a home. I don’t know how to explain it, but while it doesn’t have a sitting area with a fire pit in the middle of a pool, like your place, it’s the kind of home I’d build if I was a grown up with a billion dollars to spare.”
To my surprise, Hannah closed her eyes and a tear rolled down her cheek.
“Hannah? What is it?”
When she looked up at me, the sadness in her expression took me aback.
“I…I—” she tried again to clear her throat, but no words came out as she struggled to speak.
“Relax,” I urged her, pulling Hannah in for a hug. “Don’t try to force the words. They’ll come.”
She gave a frustrated growl then pulled out of my arms. “Sorry, sorry. Okay, let’s try this. I’m happy because if you and Ramón do end up together, that means we’ll always be in each other’s lives because our men are like brothers. I’m worried, because being in a relationship with Ramón…” She cleared her throat with a determined expression and continued, “Dating Ramón, because of who he is, is dangerous. He’s a very rich man, from a very wealthy family, and there are people out there who will do whatever, and hurt whoever, they need to in order to try and get that money.”
“I know, he’s told me all about it.”
“What has he told you?”
For the first time in my life, I hesitated telling Hannah the truth. Ramón had trusted me with the info about Fernando’s son, and I didn’t want to betray that trust, even though I wanted to talk with Hannah about it. I assumed Leo told Hannah, but it really wasn’t my story to share. I looked up at the sound of nails clicking on the floor, then smiled when Hannah’s tan and white pit bull, Honey, jumped up on the couch between us where she was promptly kissed and cuddled by both of us.
