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“Thank goodness your makeup is waterproof, mija.” She takes a tissue from her purse and dabs the skin under my eyes. She steals a glance at Trevor. “Dios mio, I know you told me you were seeing someone but you should have given me some warning.Muy muy guapo.”
“I’m sorry.”
She grins. “Ah, don’t worry. I hope he can dance because we’re gonna party after this. He is coming,si?”
“Of course, he is,” I say as she steps away so rest of my family can take turns wishing me congratulations until it’s Gabe’s turn.
Next to my mother, he’s my biggest champion and I wouldn’t be here without his help. Gabe helped me review for the GRE, wrote letters of recommendation for me, and helped me move into the apartment I shared with a fellow student. Through the years, whenever I thought I wouldn’t make it, Gabe was always there to tell me I’d ace it—and I always did.
It’s in the Romero genes, he’d say. So go and ace this exam. You got this, he’d say.
“I finally did it,” I whisper as he pulls away from the embrace.
“You sure did,” he says, chuckling as he tilts his head toward Trevor. “I told you he’d make it.”
His words have me crying again. “He sure did.”
Grinning, Gabe takes a handkerchief from his jacket pocket and hands it to me. “So much for… how’d you say it when I saw you last? ‘Just two people hanging out?’ You really like the guy.”
“Of course, I do.” I dab the corner of my eyes. “Look, Gabe, you have to let me help with paying for this whole thing. The airline tickets, the hotel—”
“Shh. None of that talk. Your mama and I planned for this moment from day one so don’t worry about anything,” he says. “Just enjoy your special day.”
“But you reserved the Skyline Suite, Gabe,” I protest. “That must have cost a lot of—”
Gabe presses a finger lightly on my lips. “We got it covered.”
I know there’s no use arguing with my cousin. When he sets his mind to doing something, he does it. He even booked the Skyline Suite for us for two nights and last night, I had a wonderful time staying there with my mother and my cousins. I’ve lost count of the hundreds of selfies we took of ourselves with the city in the background. Even my cousins decided to sleepover so they could wake up to watch the sunrise. And who could blame them? It was magnificent.
Gabe tilts his head toward Trevor who’s standing a few feet away. “Now go and be with your man. We’ll see you two at the hotel.”
As Gabe guides everyone to the parking lot, Trevor pulls me to him and holds me tight. I can feel him breathing me in. I can hear the beating of his heart as I rest my cheek on his chest. I wrap my arms around his neck, not wanting to let go just yet. I want to make sure he’s really here.
“I thought you wouldn’t make it.”
“I almost didn’t, to be honest,” he says. “We landed in Norfolk and there were no immediate flights to Philly. Luckily, Mark was headed to New York for a client meeting and after making a change to the flight plan, they dropped me off. You could say my stop was on the way.”
I look up at him. “Mark has a company plane?”
“Cole Security has one,” Trevor says. “The guys send their congratulations, by the way.”
“How’s Ryan?”
“A little worse for wear but he’s okay,” he replies. “He and his team are back stateside, too.”
“Does this mean you completed your mission?”
“Yes.”
I wrap my arms around him again. “I’m so happy you’re here. You sure know how to make an entrance.”
“Congratulations, Claudia Paloma Romero,” he murmurs. “I like the name. Initials, too. CPR. It’ll be appropriate after all the sex we need to make up—”
“Shh.” I cover his mouth as friends walk by before Trevor lowers his head and kisses me for the first time since he arrived. It starts soft, his tongue sliding into my mouth, tasting me, exploring me. The butterflies in my belly flutter to life. My knees go weak. For someone who swore up and down that what we had was temporary, I’m not doing a good job sticking to the plan.
“We may have to get a room,” I murmur as I pull away.
“True, but not before having dinner with your family,” he says, grinning. “I do want to make a good first impression.”
