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I allow my mind to formulate the real question. Is this request for her, my parents, or me? It’s for me. I’ll protect my parents, even if I have to relocate my life back to Santo Domingo. But from the moment I heard her voice, I wanted her back, as this man, not the man I was before.
God, please, give me a second chance to love her, to shower her with all you’ve blessed me with, to give us a different outcome.
Alexandria glances back as if she heard my prayer. Her eyes probe, holding me captive. I search the depths of her beautiful eyes until I reach her soul, and I know she still loves me too.
Springing a marriage proposal on her, whether fake or real, is shocking. But if this is our opportunity to have Alexandria and Mateo again, it can't happen in Austin. Not with her parents and family around.
The moment comes, and I'm anchored to a truth about us, we once had something special. We'll get it back.
We eat, and I notice the time. "I need to get going. I have a meeting with Liam."
She walks me to the door, and I cup her face in my hands. Her cinnamon-brown skin is as smooth as satin. Her plump lips are covered in gloss. I kiss her once, and once more. I step back from the warmth of her arms and remove the ring from my pocket.
I hold the black dome box between us. The last time I thought about marriage, I was twenty-two years old without a cent to my name. I had nothing to give her but my love and my word. Today, I can give her both and more.
"I bought this for you. The first time I asked you to marry me, I was a kid with a fierce dream. Your parents had every right to question my ability to provide for you. But they were wrong when they thought I wanted their money, your money." I remove the pear cut diamond ring from the box, preparing myself for the fight of my life. Her hands cover her mouth. "I'm asking you to pretend to love me."
“Why me?”
"A man like me should always have a woman like you in his corner." In my heart, I know Alexandria is the missing piece. I take her hand and slide the ring on her delicate finger. I kiss her, thankful she didn't say no and that she leaves the ring on. Now, to get her to say yes. A slip my tongue into the warmth of her mouth, and she moans. We can't fabricate or fake this. And it's my place to help her see. "I have to get going."
Alexandria walks me to the door.
"The flight leaves tomorrow morning at five. All I need is a text from you, and I'll send a car." She opens her mouth and afraid to hear another rejection I kiss her softly. "Just think about it."
I turn and leave after I hear the door lock behind me. And there’s a whisper deep inside that wants more than December, more than a ruse to ensure my parents’ safety. The next few weeks are all I can ask for, hoping she’ll board the flight with me tomorrow.
Chapter 5
“Dayum, Gina! Ain't nothing fake about that boulder." Charlee's eyes buck then squint rocking my hand from side to side under the direct light from above. The diamond shimmers and the display garners a collective chorus of oohs and awws from round the table.
The moment the door closed behind Mateo, I sent an SOS message to my guys with a picture of the ring he placed on my finger. Now the ten of us are squeezed into a booth at Smith & Jameson with a large order of seasoned fries, several pitchers of beer, and the boulder, as Charlee so eloquently put it.
This is our usual hangout spot. Great food, beer, and music. But we rarely get together for drinks between the husbands and kids. This holiday season it seems harder than the years before as we struggle individually and collectively to nurture our friendships and our business.
“He wants me to stand in as his fiancé for a few holiday parties through the end of the month.” I clarify as my hand is passed around like baby Reign.
“And then what sweetie?” Harper asks.
"He agrees to serve as my mentor and help me create a plan for our international rollout if that's what we decide." I pull my hand back into my lap. I glance down, and it's beautiful.
“Will you tell your parents?” Hunter asks.
“It’s only for a month.”
"Fake or not, don't you think your parents will want to know?" Chase asks.
“No.” Hunter, Harper, and Charlee sing in unison.
Chase turns her curious gaze my way. “That sounds like a story.”
"Mateo and I dated in college. On the night of our graduation, he asked me to marry him. But my parents didn’t approve. So, instead of making me choose between my parents and him, Mateo left. And we haven’t talked to each other in over fifteen years until a few days ago.”
“Do you still love him?” Ryann leans forward.
“I never stopped loving him. But love wasn’t the issue.”
"Okay, so, what's the issue?" Ryann's gaze holds mine. She's an attorney. But her past and mine are closer than she realizes. Her father killed her mother, and my biological father was part of the Mexican cartel.
