Page 35 of The Layover

Raul and Curtis.

I pasted on my best, most bullshit smile, and rounded the corner to find the two men facing off, Raul wearing a frown and Curtis in a smirk that was pure I’m going to walk away on top.

“There she is. The blushing bride.” Curtis’s voice boomed off beams and rafters, and so did the snideness. “No, wait, it’s not real, is it? Not for you, Temptress.”

My blood turned to ice, my feet froze to the floor, and my mind ground to a halt. Why did he always have this effect on me? Why couldn’t I just spit in his face and walk away?

“Gattina.” Raul approached me without hesitation. When he wrapped an arm around my waist and pulled me close, Curtis’s eyes grew wide.

But Curtis recovered quickly.

This was not the way to fix misleading headlines, but the last thing I wanted to do was pull away. “Morning.” I managed to keep my voice clear and my expression pasted on.

“You look stunning this morning.” Raul rested a palm on my face and brushed his lips over mine.

This was bad. So, so bad. Not the way to fix any problems at all.

But Curtis’s look of shock lingered longer this time, and I wanted so badly to make him choke on anything that I was happy to lean into Raul rather than smack him and push him away.

12

Diego

I was shocked, but pleased, to see Raul and Carly walking toward me with his arm around her waist. As they got closer, she said something I couldn’t hear, and he nodded.

They drifted several centimeters apart instantly.

So much for that, but at least I hadn’t been hallucinating, I guess?

It was clear to me that Raul had been interested in the chase, and while Carly had been having fun with us, she was more interested in her career.

There was more between us and her, and I was willing to push until we uncovered it. I wasn’t even bothered by this morning’s headlines, though it was my understanding that Carly was going to fix them by burying them. I didn’t want that.

I’d pull the three of us together and she’d be ours, and in the meantime I could be disappointed at the friction between Carly and Raul when they weren’t flirting or fucking.

When they were close enough, I greeted them with a warm smile, gave Raul a quick kiss, and grasped Carly’s fingers. “Feeling better?”

“Sleep-wise? Yes, thank you.” Her pulling away was gentle but clear.

Her entire body was rigid. From Raul?

“Did I miss something?” I asked.

Raul shook his head. “Curtis stopped by to offer his congratulations.”

“And the world thinks the three of us are married.” Carly drove straight to the point.

I was bothered by the Cutis news, especially since he’d been here yesterday, too. After we turned down his proposal, months ago, I’d hoped that would be the last we saw of him. I also hated that Carly was already pushing to clear up the misunderstanding about our relationship.

“So, you want to make sure the world knows the three of us aren’t married, but perhaps let Curtis keep believing it?” I pieced some things together based on their posture when I first saw them.

Carly caught her bottom lip between her teeth and frowned. “I mean he’s just…” She finished with a huff.

“He’s an ass,” Raul said. “After what he did to us?”

At the words, Carly jerked her head up. “Wait. What did he do to you?”

Best to tell her now, and make sure we were all on the same page. “Fortunately, nothing.”

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