“Mr. Eric!” Mom said, struggling to hold on to Eddy. “Oh—we weren’t expecting you! Oh!” she said again, her hand flying to her chest as she looked him over. “My, you’ve grown up so much!”
Eric took that as an invitation. He stepped inside and closed the door behind him. Then, before Sofia’s eyes, he bowed. Bowed! “Mrs. Cortés, you haven’t changed a bit. You are as lovely as I remember.”
Mom blushed—which only made Sofia stare even more. When was the last time her mother had blushed? “Mr. Eric, we can’t thank you enough for everything—”
Eric waved her off. “Sofia’s doing a great job, just like I knew she would.” Then he leaned forward and said, “May I?” Without waiting for an answer, he plucked Eddy from her mother’s arms. “You must be Eduardo. I can tell—you’re a very serious young man.” As he said it, he tickled Eddy’s tummy.
Eddy squealed with delight and kept right on squealing as Eric lifted the boy over his head a few times, saying, “Oh, yes—very serious indeed.”
That got Addy’s attention. Although she didn’t fling herself at Eric, she sat up. She didn’t have to wait long. Eric tucked Eddy into the crook of one arm and reached out for Addy. “Hello, Miss Adelina. Aren’t you a good girl?”
“It’s all right,” Sofia reassured her and then Addy was lifted from her arms and cradled against Eric’s chest.
“There we are,” Eric said reassuringly, bouncing both children a little bit. Eddy seemed thrilled beyond words, but Addy was holding herself a little apart from him, still unsure about this strange man who’d just walked into their lives.
Next to her, Mom sighed—a noise that was part happiness, part relief and part...longing, maybe? Sofia could sympathize. The sight of her children in Eric’s arms—if possible, this was even less fair than him tenderly telling her that he wanted her to feel as beautiful as she was.
Because he was holding her children, making silly sounds and getting Addy to smile while Eddy tried to copy his sounds, with varying degrees of success.
Eric was perfect.
“Oh, Mr. Eric—I have something for you,” Mom said, hurrying off to the kitchen.
And leaving them alone. “Hi,” he said over the heads of the twins. His eyes warmed as he looked her over. “It’s good to see you.”
Oh, Lord—the only thing worse than flirting right now was sincere compliments because there was no defense against sincerity. “Hi,” she said back.
What was she supposed to say here? Because it simply wasn’t fair how perfect he was. The least the universe could do would be to make him not like children. If he showed indifference or even open dislike of the twins, it would be so much easier to keep her attraction to him under control.
But no. He had to be perfect in every way. He was going to make her fall in love with him and it was going to break her heart.
“Hey, can you take a picture? I’ll send it to my mom,” he said. “Can we smile, kiddos?”
By the time she got the camera app open, they were all laughing. No, this wasn’t fair at all. “Babies!” she said enthusiastically, which got both twins to focus on her. Eric looked up and grinned and she snapped several shots.
Then Eddy squirmed out of his arms and Sofia had to hide her smile at Eric trying to juggle the twins. But he didn’t drop either toddler, so that counted for something. “What is it, big guy?”
Chattering excitedly, Eddy made his way over to the coloring table. “He wants to show you his drawings. Which means that, in about ten seconds, Addy will want to show you her drawings, too.”
“A little friendly sibling rivalry?”
“You have no idea.”
“Sofia?” Mom poked her head out of the kitchen. “Can you give me a hand before you leave?”
Sofia frowned at her mother. Normally the woman refused any and all offers of help. But Mom gave her the look and Sofia had no choice but to say to Eric, “Will you be all right for a minute?”
“Go on,” he said, shooting her a grin that made her cheeks heat.
Mom had a small pile of food assembled on the counter. “Mom, what are you doing?”
“Mr. Eric—he always loved Jarritos. I think I have another bottle of the fresa somewhere...” she said to herself, digging around one of the cabinets. “Ah, here it is.” She pulled out the bottle of the red drink.
Strawberry had always been Sofia’s favorite, too. “Did you call me in here just to help you find some soda?” Her heart began to pound faster, but it didn’t feel like a panic attack waiting to happen.
“No, cariño.” Her mom set the soda down by the other snacks—all Mexican brands. Bags of corn chips and pastries. The kind of snacks she’d loved growing up. She remembered how Eric had always treated Takis chips like a rare and special treat.
“I want you to promise me something,” Mom said, her brow knit with worry.
What was this all about? It wasn’t like her mother to be overly dramatic. “Okay, what?”
“I want you to have some fun this weekend.” She said it in such a hushed, serious tone—like she was confessing to a sin.
“Fun?” Sofia shook her head from side to side, wondering when the world stopped making sense. Fun had always been low on her mother’s priority list. “Mom, this is a business trip. We’ll be working.”
Her mother clucked and patted Sofia on the cheek and just like that, Sofia felt like she was seven again. “Ayi, it is—but this is the first time since David died that you’ve...” Her voice trailed off.
Sofia was suddenly terrified of what her mother might say. Because what it sounded like Mom was saying was that it might be a good idea if Sofia considered sleeping with her boss on a weekend getaway and that couldn’t possibly be true. Especially not when Sofia had been daydreaming about doing just that.
“There’s nothing going on here. We’re just old friends who happen to work together now.”
Her mother gave her another look, one that had Sofia’s mouth snapping shut on any other protest. “It’s been almost a year and a half. You need to move on with your life.”
Sofia stared in disbelief, but Rosa Cortés didn’t so much as blink. “I am moving on. I got a new job and some new clothes.” Clothes that Eric had paid for. “There’s nothing else I need from him.” It didn’t matter how much that might be a lie—she was sticking to it.
“Nothing?” Mom clucked again and dug out a bag to put the snacks in. “He grew up. So handsome. And thoughtful, to come get you himself.” She sighed again and Sofia swore she could see stars in her mother’s eyes. “The twins love him. You can just tell.”
She could. Even Addy had warmed up to him in record time. “Mom...”
Because this was not the beginning of a new story. This was not a happily-ever-after in the making. And if Sofia allowed herself to buy into that delusion—that a hot, rich, thoughtful billionaire who cared for her and the children would somehow give her a perfect family and a storybook life—no. He was so far out of her league that she knew she’d fall if she tried to climb to his level. And she couldn’t fall again. She wouldn’t survive the bounce this time.
“It’s just that you’ve been through so much—you deserve a little fun, don’t you?” Mom nodded to herself as she bagged up the snacks. “It’s time for you to smile again.”
“I smile. I smile all the time.” It was hard not to smile and laugh when Addy and Eddy were being adorable—or even when they were getting into trouble.
But even as she thought that, Sofia knew she was being deliberately obtuse because that’s not what Mom was talking about and they both knew it.
Sorrow pulled at the corners of Mom’s mouth. “Ah, you smile for your children. You even smile for me and your father, as if you think we can’t see how you’re hiding behind it. But, cariño, when was the last time you smiled for yourself?” Wit
h that parting shot, Mom carried the overflowing bag of snacks and sodas out to Eric.
Sofia stood there, struggling to breathe. Mom was wrong. That’s all there was to it. She smiled. She was moving on and living her life. She...
Sofia dropped her head into her hands. She didn’t get enough sleep and every day was a new battle to be waged against crushing depression and anxiety. Her entire life had become faking it until she made it. Apparently, she wasn’t faking it well enough to fool her own mother.
And what, exactly, was that woman encouraging her to do? Seduce Eric? Have an affair with her boss? It didn’t make any sense. Although she had liked David and approved of the marriage, Rosa Cortés had been horrified when Sofia and David had moved in together before the wedding. Mom was a very traditional woman. She would never do anything as risqué as condone an affair.
But the moment the thoughts of seduction and Eric ran headlong into each other in Sofia’s head, her mind oh-so-helpfully filled in the blanks. A big soft bed in a hotel room, Eric looking at her with desire in his eyes as she slipped the buttons free on his shirt and he slid down the zipper on her dress. Would he pounce on her, all masculine strength and raw lust? Or would it be a slow seduction, one that left her shaking and begging for release?
God, she missed sex.
“Wow—Takis? I haven’t had these in years!” she heard Eric say. Sofia swung around to see him surge to his feet as Mom held out the snacks. “I can’t believe you remembered how much I liked these!” He rummaged through the bag. “And Conchas? Oh, man—these are always such a special treat! Sofia always shared these.”
Sofia watched as her mom ducked her head, another girlish blush on her cheeks. “We always brought extra for you. But not too much—we didn’t want to make your mother mad.”
“As long as we didn’t get orange fingerprints on her office furniture...” They laughed, as if the passage of years had never happened.
Have fun. Maybe Sofia was reading too much into this.
It wasn’t like she could just decide not to be anxious. It didn’t work that way. But she could make a conscious choice to enjoy herself this weekend. She could continue to fake it until she made it because even if she’d still be forcing herself to smile, she might eventually make it to having a good time. To enjoying her time with Eric. Even if that just meant sharing a bag of fried corn chips.
Or even if it meant something...more.
God, it’d be so good to smile again. To be happy again. At least now, she could almost see happiness from where she stood. It wasn’t a star hung too high in the sky that she’d never be able to reach, like it’d been in the first terrible months after David’s death.
She’d never forget her husband—she didn’t want to—but maybe it wasn’t such a bad thing that Eric reminded her she’d been a happy, whole person before her marriage and she might be one again.
As she watched, Eric pulled Mom into an impulsive hug. “It’s been so great to see you again, Mrs. Cortés. My parents always love to hear from you.”
“Give my best to your mother.” Just then, Eric’s watch beeped. “Oh, you must go. You’ll be late! I wouldn’t want you to miss your flight.”
Eric laughed. “Don’t worry. They won’t leave without me.”
Eddy toddled over to him, holding up a sheet of paper. Eric bent down. “This is really nice, big guy. Did you make this for me?”
Eddy grinned widely and nodded. Not to be outdone, here came Addy, also brandishing a sheet of paper. “Oh, this is lovely,” Eric said so seriously that Sofia couldn’t help but laugh. “Can you write your name on it for me?”
Addy hurried to the table and then slashed a line in bright pink across the bottom.
“That’s my girl,” Eric said and another part of Sofia melted.
He would be so easy to fall for. She could fight against the fact that he was gorgeous and the fact that he had more money than most of the rest of the city put together. She could even work around the way he treated her with kindness. But this?
Because right now, he wasn’t some unreachable fantasy. Right now, he was joking with her mother, making her babies smile—all while waiting to whisk her away for the weekend. She could almost pretend he fit in her world.
She only hoped she could pretend she fit in his. Just for a few days. Just to have a little fun.
Eddy signed his art, too—he chose a red crayon for his signature scribble. “I will treasure these always, guys,” Eric said, folding the two sheets of paper and tucking them into an inside pocket. “I’ll come back and see you again, okay? And maybe your mom will bring you out on the boat. We’ll go swimming and everything.”
Swimming didn’t mean much to the twins—but boat? “Now you’ve done it,” she told him as she came out of the kitchen, her resolve set. They were going to have a lovely weekend and that was final.
Sofia leaned down to give each of the twins another kiss on the head. “Be good,” she told them. “I’ll see you in a few days. Love you.”
Eric put his hand in the small of Sofia’s back. “Longer goodbyes only make it harder,” he said, his voice low in her ear.
He guided her through the door and down the front steps, where a long black car was waiting. It wasn’t quite a limousine, but it was close.
She looked back over her shoulder to see Mom holding the twins at the window, everyone waving. Sofia had to blink hard as she waved back and then Eric had the door open for her and she climbed into his luxury car.
He sat next to her and put the bag of snacks between them. “Ready to have some fun?”
She picked up one of the snacks. Fun. Nothing more and by God, nothing less. “Let’s go wild.”
Eight
Normally, Eric enjoyed everything about traveling to a site at the beginning of a new project. Of course he enjoyed making more money. Who didn’t? But he actually loved buying a piece of property, whether it was vacant or the buildings were dilapidated or whatever, and seeing the possibilities. He loved choosing the best option from those possibilities and making it a reality. He was good at it, too. Every development was more successful than the last. Sometimes it seemed like there wasn’t anything Eric couldn’t turn to gold.
He glanced at the woman sitting across from him. She looked amazing today—but his awareness of her went deeper than just how her backside had looked in those white pants when she’d gotten into the car.
So many possibilities.
It didn’t make any sense, how glad he was to see her. He’d gone decades without Sofia in his life and suddenly, he was waking up early, thinking of ways he could make her laugh—or make her eyes deepen with desire, make her tongue flick over her lips in anticipation...
“Should I send that picture to you or your mother?” Sofia asked.
He jerked his gaze away from her lips. “Me.” Because he wanted to hold on to that memory of Sofia’s children in his arms, of Eddy’s easy laughter, of Addy’s slow but sweet smile.
He hadn’t lied—those kids were even cuter in person. Eddy was outgoing and Addy was reserved, but they were two sides of the same coin. They weren’t identical, in either their appearance or temperament, but they did little things together that tugged at his heartstrings, like tilting their heads the same way and smiling the same smile at the same time. They matched each other perfectly in every way.
He touched his jacket, right over where he’d tucked their drawings in his inside pocket. When he thought of those babies, all he saw was possibilities.
His reaction didn’t make any sense, but he wanted to be there for them.
“There,” Sofia said, seconds before his phone chimed. “You like strawberry best, right? I suppose it’s not a great idea to load up on junk food before we get on the plane, though...” She fished out a bright red Jarritos soda from the overflowing bag Mrs. Cortés ha
d packed.
“At least we won’t starve to death anytime soon,” he joked, twisting the cap off the soda. “I haven’t had one of these in years.” He took a long drink. And then immediately started coughing as the sugar hit his tongue like a tidal wave. “Was it always this sweet?” he choked out, his eyes watering.
Sofia laughed. He could see a little of the tension fading from around her eyes. “Yes, it was. You really haven’t had one since we were kids?”
He shook his head and took a much smaller sip of the soda. All he could taste was sugar. It wasn’t so much strawberry flavored, but damn if it didn’t taste like his childhood and all the fun he used to have with Sofia. “I know you may find this hard to believe, but I don’t exactly wander the aisles of grocery stores. I have a personal chef and I dine out a lot.”
Her lips twisted into something that might’ve been a smile. Yes, he knew she didn’t have personal chefs, but he didn’t want to do a side-by-side comparison of their lifestyles.
“That’s true, I suppose,” she said.
“Hey, none of that.” He held out his soda for her to taste. Mrs. Cortés had packed several bottles but he was possessed with the sudden urge to share with Sofia. They always had shared, back when they’d been kids, hiding from his mom’s nutritionally conscious eyes. “We’re going to have a good time this weekend and that’s final. I don’t know if I told you this yet, but you look very nice today.”
She hesitated and then took the bottle from him. “Thank you. I can’t take any credit for this outfit—or anything else. It’s all Clarice.”
“She may have picked it out,” he said, his gaze drawn to the smooth expanse of her creamy skin revealed by the low-cut blouse, “but you’re making it look good.”
Sofia’s cheeks shot bright pink and for a second, he thought she was going to scold him. Instead, she lifted the bottle and placed it against her lips.
Suddenly, Eric couldn’t do anything but watch her throat move as she swallowed. When she handed the bottle back to him, her tongue traced the path around her lips, capturing every drop of sweetness.
Twins for the Billionaire Page 7
