Island Affair (Keys to Love #1) - Priscilla Oliveras Page 0,96
me?”
* * *
“Who the hell is Luis Montez?” Anamaría started in on him as soon as the front door closed behind them.
“Keep your voice down,” he hissed. He leaned over to peer through the rectangular windows lining the door’s perimeter to make sure he and Anamaría hadn’t been followed.
Once he knew the coast was clear, he grabbed her by the elbow, rushed them down the stairs and front walk, through the white picket gate, to her blue Honda Pilot parked across the street.
“Don’t shush me! ?Quién carajo es Luis Montez?” she repeated, jerking her arm out of his grasp.
“No one.”
“Uh, apparently not, since that’s the name Dr. Vance used when she introduced you as her famous daughter’s partner.”
“It’s complicated.” Luis paced a few steps away. He spun to pace back, then repeated the same loop, mind-boggled. “You’re not involved, so don’t worry about it.”
“News flash!” Fingers spread wide, Anamaría crossed her hands in the air, moving them apart as if she highlighted her words on a marquee. “I am involved! I’m about to go back in there and lie to a client.”
She jabbed a hand toward the rental house. Co?o, the girl was on a roll. And when his baby sister got worked up, forget injecting a word in edgewise
“A well-paying, influential client, based on what my contact at the Casa Marina’s Spa al Mare indicated when I booked this gig. So, sorry, hermano, but this is my business now. Like, actually, my business. AM Fitness.” Anamaría stressed her company name, pounding her flat palm over her company logo on her chest. “Now, what the hell am I walking into when I go back in there?”
His sister’s words hit him like a barrage of pellets, stinging with truth. Shit, she was right. Even worse, for someone who despised lies and liars, he was going to have to ask Anamaría to join him and Sara in this tangled knot of deception. One that, if they weren’t careful, would wind up turning into a noose.
Frustration mounting, Luis speared a hand through his hair, sliding it down to squeeze at the headache forming at the base of his skull.
“Okay, I’ll level with you,” he said, giving in because it was the right thing to do. His sister deserved the truth if he was going to ask her to lie. “But you have to promise me this is between us. Not Carlos. Not Mami. Only us.”
Anamaría narrowed her eyes suspiciously.
“?Prométeme!” he growled.
She held up her hands in surrender. “Fine! I promise.”
“Here, open your trunk so it looks like I’m helping and not arguing with you.”
Anamaría hoisted a brow as if she were surprised by his knowledge of subterfuge. Still, she followed him to the back of her SUV and lifted the hatch.
“I ran into Sara on Friday around lunch, at the airport when I dropped some food off for Carlos. She was in a bind, some jerk stood her up, and she needed someone to step in to help, as her . . .”
He paused, embarrassed to actually admit this next part. He knew what his sister, his entire family, would think: Who are you and what have you done with my brother?
Saying yes to something like this was completely out of character. And yet he’d had the best damn three days of his life so far, thanks to Sara.
“Her partner, are you serious?” Hands on her hips, Anamaría gaped at him.
He gestured for her to grab something from her car, and she leaned in, reaching for the basket of rolled yoga mats and foam blocks she provided for her clients.
“Uh, yeah,” he answered lamely.
The basket plunked down onto the gray trunk carpet. “No way. It’s like in one of those rom-coms I love watching.”
Luis winced, already seeing the hearts in his sister’s hazel eyes. The last thing he needed was Anamaría playing matchmaker when he had no idea how or even if anything could come of this alternate reality he and Sara had conceived.
“Not exactly,” he cautioned. “Sara’s mom has been sick and this vacation was supposed to be stress-free for her. Then Sara’s idiot boyfriend ditched her, but she didn’t want her mom worrying about it. She was in a tight spot and I had the time off. It seemed natural for me—”
Anamaría’s trill of laughter rudely interrupted his explanation.
“Let me get this straight. Saint Navarro stepping in to save the day for one of this generation’s most sought-after social media influencers. That seems natural to you?”