Page 26 of The Green Card Baby Deal

But Luis seemed to enjoy every second of it. “It reminds me of learning to cook my mother’s recipes,” he said when Clara told him not to let her dad pressure him into anything he didn’t want to do. “We all had to learn to cook in my family.”

“If you say so,” Clara said.

As the sun began to set, Luis turned the boat so they were facing the cityscape. “The whole sky will be filled with fireworks,” he said. “You don’t have to choose which display to go see if you’re able to watch all of them at once.”

Clara’s dad passed out plates filled with food, far more than anyone there would likely be able to eat, but the man was nothing if not generous. Then they all sat back and waited for the show. The sunset was as much of a show as the fireworks would be, Clara was sure. It looked like the whole city was glowing as the sun sank.

“I’m never doing Fourth of July on land again,” Dawn said, laughing. “This is amazing.” She got up and went to the fridge to grab a drink.

“Luis, you’re making me look bad,” Stan joked.

“Not possible,” Clara said. “You’re practically perfect in every way.”

Stan grinned and sat a little straighter. “Call me Mary,” he said, catching the reference right away.

The sky was darkening fast. “Here we go!” Dawn said, and she handed Clara a beer.

Normally, Clara would have enjoyed the drink. It was her favorite kind, as her sister well knew. Dawn wouldn’t have brought it to her if she hadn’t known for sure Clara would take it. But Clara turned it down.

Dawn cocked her head. “You didn’t just decline, did you? I must be dreaming.”

She made such a big deal of it that the rest of her family was soon giving their full attention to Clara and Dawn. “What’s wrong, honey?” their dad asked. “I was sure I got the right brand. Have you gotten even fancier since dating America’s greatest beer mogul? I could never keep up with you as it was. Now you’ll have to order your drinks from me ahead of time.” He laughed.

Dawn didn’t crack a smile.

“I’ll just have lemonade, thanks,” Clara said. “I’m just not feeling beer tonight. It’s no big deal.”

“No big deal?” Dawn arched an eyebrow and crossed her arms, her own lemonade in one hand and Clara’s rejected beer in the other. “Something’s fishy here.” She narrowed her eyes. “You’ve never refused a drink on the Fourth of July. I’ve never refused a drink on the Fourth of July either. Until now. Because I’m pregnant.”

Clara pinched her lips together for about ten seconds before she finally blurted it out. “Okay, you got me. But I didn’t want to tell you right away, just in case. I was going to wait a bit until things were more certain.”

“Clara!” Dawn set the drinks down haphazardly and threw her arms around her sister. “You little sneak! The last I heard, you were worried you might never get to. Why didn’t you tell me right away? Always tell me everything, Sis. I don’t care if it’s bad news, good news, or scary news. You tell me. I’ll get you through whatever it is. Do you understand? You’re my sister. I want to celebrate with you and cry with you, too. Never, ever leave me out again.”

Luis coughed to hide his reaction. Dawn and Clara’s mom sat with her mouth hanging open, and their father looked deeply confused. “What’s all this about, then?” he asked.

“Dad, you dork. She’s pregnant!” Dawn let the information slip without hesitation. Of course, she would. The twins never hid anything from their parents. She would have assumed Clara felt the same way she always did, but this had been different. Clara was still in her first trimester, and her plan had been to wait to tell her family until things were more certain — but the universe had other plans, it seemed.

And now family was crowding around her, hugging her, congratulating her. She hadn’t even seen them get up. She was in a daze, overwhelmed by the love and excitement. But what she found most interesting was the way her eyes scanned around for one person, Luis. And when she finally found him, she locked onto him. Somehow, his just being there, watching the excitement with calm eyes and an easy smile, drained all the stress from her body.

Their mom broke away from the family huddle and approached Luis. “So, should we be congratulating you as well?” She always did know how to ask the rudest questions in the politest way possible.

Luis smiled and nodded, and the family huddle immediately shifted to him. That was when the fireworks started.

“Look!” Dawn pointed at the horizon, and they all turned to see.

All across the city, brightly colored fireworks shot to the sky and blossomed. The whole city was alive with it, and from the boat, they could lay back and see it all. It was one of the most beautiful sights Clara had ever seen, and she had Luis to thank for it. She had Luis to thank for a lot of the good things in her life lately, and it took a great deal of effort to keep herself from falling head over heels in love with him. The last thing she wanted to do was fall in love with someone for all the wrong reasons.

The skyline full of fireworks was a gorgeous view. It was somehow both peaceful and exciting at the same time, with the waves rocking the boat gently and faint booms in the distance.

After the show, Dawn asked Clara to help her clear away everyone’s plates.

“Oh, you don’t need to,” Luis began.

“Let us help,” Dawn insisted. “We want to.” Her pushiness was not the result of her desire to do chores, Clara knew. She wanted to get Clara alone to talk. So Clara stood and started to help before Luis could stop her.

“I’ve got that,” she said when Dawn reached for a glass. Then she followed Dawn into the boat.

Inside was as warm and comfortable as any high-end city apartment. Clara thought she could comfortably live aboard Luis’s yacht without any complaints. The place had a warm, clean feeling, not clinical at all. There were natural wood finishes here and there along with brightly colored throw pillows, which Clara knew were the little hints of Luis’s true personality among all that glossy white.

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