“Are you kidding me? “Emi gasped.
Anna eyed the couple holding hands as Moe ribbed Sabian about not being welcome in San Diego anymore. For the last two years, the Padres had managed to hold on to the free agent, but it was official now. This year he’d be a Dodger. It seemed fitting he’d want to be closer to Hollywood. The guy was everywhere now. He’d even done cameo appearances on a few television shows.
“So I guess it’s true that she and Jason Bratz broke up,” Anna said, lowering her voice because they were on their way toward the game room where everybody was.
Nathan leaned into her and kissed her then kissed the head of little Nate, who sat on her lap. “What do you know about that stuff?” he asked teasingly. “Jason Bratz?”
“Oh please, “Emi said, looking incredulous. “The whole world knows about those two. They’re not even two individual people anymore. Hollywood’s dubbed the it couple Jaselina for years.”
Nathan laughed. “Jaselina?”
Liv shushed him as Moe, Sabian, and Celina approached slowly. They stopped and chatted with AJ, Vince, and Lorenzo first. By the time they got to the game room, the room was at capacity.
Moe introduced Celina to them as if they didn’t already know who she was. Anna tried not to gawk, but it was surreal to be this close to such a huge movie star. Though from this close up she wasn’t quite as stunning as she was on camera. After smiling and saying hello to everyone, Celina smiled big at little Nate and little Sai sitting on their mothers’ laps. “Are they twins?”
Anna smiled, shaking her head. “No. But their daddies are brothers and they could almost pass for twins too.”
Sabian motioned to Nathan sitting next to her and Isaiah, who stood next to Kelli. “AJ’s brothers, babe. It’s the eyes.” He laughed. “All three have that exact same lethal glare.”
Celina eyed the two boys with a smile then glanced up at their dads and lifted a brow. “Oh yeah, the eyes for sure and the lips.” She smiled at Nathan in a way that made the hair on the back of Anna’s neck rise. “Definitely the lips.”
“Not to be nosy,” Emi said, clearing her throat loudly. “But I take it you and Jason are really through?”
That wiped the smile right off Celina’s face, and for some reason, that made Anna smile. Celina very briefly explained how she’d been through with Jason for a while now but the tabloids were only recently catching up. Emi asked how Celina and Sabian met, which wasn’t too interesting. They met on a morning radio show a few weeks prior in Los Angeles, hit it off, and now she was here, holding the hand of one of the most sought-after eligible bachelors in the world. Anna had to wonder though if Mr. Fickle would actually be sticking with even Celina for long or if she too would be yesterday’s news like all the other girls he’d brought around over time.
That led to a change in subject. Sabian turned it around with a smirk, asking Emi how she and Sydney met. Emi peered at him with a playful smile. “I don’t remember.”
Apparently, Sabian already knew, and since Anna knew the story, she laughed too. Sydney began to explain. “She farted in the—”
“I did not!” Emi said, laughing with everyone else, then turned back to Sabian. “AJ rigged my ringtone to sound like one, and I’m sure AJ told you about that. Of course it went off in the elevator the first day Sydney ever bothered to notice me. I was mortified!”
They all laughed as Emi told more of how they met; then Addison chimed in. “Well, at least Sydney didn’t mistake you for a groupie.”
They all turned to AJ as he held his hand out, shaking his head. “I didn’t know she was the coach’s daughter, and she was a little too chummy with all the players.”
“I’d known most of them for years,” Addison said, nudging him.
“I know that now, babe,” AJ said, kissing her. “But I didn’t then.”
“It’s okay, Addi. I hated my husband when I first met him,” Izzy said from the other side of the room.
“Who wouldn’t?” AJ laughed.
“Hey,” Moe said, pointing at AJ with a mock glare. “I turned on the Romero charm, and she came around, didn’t she?”
Izzy smiled, rolling her eyes, then turned to her sister Gina, who sat next to her. “You said Brandon didn’t like you either when you first met, right?”
Gina, who seemed embarrassed to be dragged into the conversation, shrugged with a smile. “I hadn’t even met him and he hated me.”
“No way,” Rosie, who sat across from them, said. “I’ve always thought Brandon was like the most romantic and utterly in love husband ever and he hated you?”
“Hate’s kind of a strong word,” Brandon, Gina’s normally quiet husband, finally said. “I had a misconception about her in the beginning, but once I got to know her, everything changed and she’s been my princess ever since.”
“Boy, did that misconception change,” Liv said, sighing at them, then turned to Rosie. “But you and Vincent are the cutest, Rosie. You two have been in love since you were just kids.”
Rosie turned to her husband Vincent with a whimsical smile. “I fell in love with my bad boy when I was what? Sixteen?”
Vincent shook his head. “I was sixteen. You were fifteen.”
“Oh wow, babies,” Gina said as Rosie leaned in and kissed Vince.
“Every time I hear you tell the story, I clutch my heart, “Kelli said with an equally dreamy smile.
“What about you, Kel?” Moe said with an evil smirk. “Two brothers, huh?”
Kelli’s face tinged with color as Isaiah gave Moe a look, and then Nathan clarified. “Technically, she and I never even really dated. We got together a few times. That’s all, but she’d met and fallen for this one”—he motioned to Isaiah— “before she ever met me. From what I later heard, Sai was brought to his knees that first weekend they spent together.”
“Yes,” Liv reiterated. “I think it was very romantic that they fell so fast and hard after just one weekend together and nothing was able to keep true love apart. It was truly fate for them.”
“Speaking of how we all met our husbands,” Emi said, smiling coyly. “How did you meet Lorenzo, Liv?”
“At one of the Moreno’s events,” Lorenzo said before Liv could answer.
“I don’t think so,” Emi said, raising a brow, and Anna watched as all three of her brothers peered at Emi then at Lorenzo and Liv.
“What do you mean?” AJ asked what Anna knew they were all wondering.
“Yeah, you two met at Sal’s when she went to groom his puppies,” Moe said. “I set that up.”
Vincent chuckled then grinned knowingly, shaking his head as he took a swig of his beer. Moe nudged him. “It’s true! I introduced them, ass.”
“How did you meet, then?” Isaiah asked, looking as confused as his brothers.
“At a bar,” Liv said very matter-of-factly, letting her youngest down off her lap, and he ran off.
Lorenzo groaned, shaking his head, and closed his eyes.
“We’re married with kids, Enzo,” she said, laughing. “That was eons ago. My brothers aren’t gonna kill you now.”
“Why,” AJ asked, feigning anger. Or maybe it wasn’t an act. Anna could never tell with him. “What did you do?”
“I fell in love with your sister and married her,” Lorenzo said with a smirk. “That’s what I did.”
“But before that—the night we met—we had a very passionate night at that house we lived in when we first moved to San Diego. He didn’t even get my number, and I didn’t hear from him again”—she turned to Moe— “until that day I saw him again at Sal’s.”
“At our house? “Nathan asked now, looking as disgusted as AJ and Isaiah.
“You dog, you,” Moe said, turning to Lorenzo.
“I had no idea she was your cousin,” Lorenzo explained then turned to Vince. “That wasn’t too long after what happened with the chick I was engaged to. I was still all bitter and shit about how things went down, so I wasn’t looking for a relationship. You remember.
” He turned to Liv’s glaring brothers even as Liv and Emi giggled. “She wasn’t either.”
“Neither one of us were.” Liv smiled, slipping her hand into Lorenzo’s. “But what we felt for each other after only one night together was undeniable. So when we ran into each other again, we tried to fight it. Mostly him.” She gave Lorenzo a look, and he pulled her to him, kissing her forehead.
“I don’t know who I was kidding,” Lorenzo said, laughing. “I was a goner the moment I laid eyes on you, and I knew it.”
Liv kissed him as Anna and some of the other girls sighed at that. Liv turned and smiled at Kelli. “I totally get how you and Isaiah could fall for each other so hard after an entire weekend together. And you two”—she turned to Anna and Nathan— “yours will be a story to tell your grandkids for sure!”
Anna smiled, feeling her face warm. She wasn’t sure about telling her grandkids she slept with grandpa just days after meeting him. Then Nathan jolted her out of her thoughts when he stood up.
“I have an announcement to make,” he said, and she turned to him, nervous about the announcement because the reality of it hadn’t even sunk in yet. “As you know, baby number two for us is on its way.” He lifted his hand and blew on his fingers. “Apparently, my boys have some fire power.”
Anna laughed; though everyone else didn’t look quite sure they knew what he meant. Then Liv brought her hands to her mouth, and her eyes opened wide. “Oh my God!” She gasped. “Are you saying what I think you’re saying?”
With a nod, Anna smiled big. “Looks like Amanda, Claire, and Chloe are still the only three girls in the family.”
“Babe”—Nathan turned to Anna— “I’m the one bragging here.”
“I’m sorry, honey. Go ahead and tell them.”
Nathan turned back to the crowd. “We’re having not one but two more Romero boys.”
Emi and Liv were both immediately on their feet. “Twins!” Emi said, already hugging Nathan. “Finally, someone in this family has a pair.”
“Good luck.” Moe laughed. “Ask this one,” he said, pointing at his friend Alex. “He has his hands full with his. But then they are girls.”
“Easy,” Alex said with a scowl. “What do you know about my girls?”
“Yeah.” AJ grinned as Addison handed him their baby boy. “Girls are the easy ones. I’m just glad we’ll have two other little mommas to help out with this guy once he starts walking.”
“Don’t let them scare you, Anna,” Liv said, hugging Anna as if she read her mind. “You’ll have us all to help you.”
“Yeah.” Nathan laughed. “Even if we don’t ask.”
“What an ingrate!” Emi said, smacking his arm.
“I’m kidding,” Nathan said, pulling both his sisters to him and squeezing them.
As soon as Nathan was done with his sisters, Emi hugged Anna then took baby Nate from her. Nathan pulled Anna to him and hugged her tight. “Don’t worry, babe. We got this. Our perfect forever, remember?”
Anna smiled against his big hard chest and inhaled the mixture of his heavenly masculinity and his cologne. “Our perfect forever,” she said, looking up at him and feeling a love she never would’ve imagined until she met Nathan. “How could I ever forget?”
Acknowledgments
As always, thank you Mark my “assistant,” my everything. I don't know what I'd do without you. Thank you for all that you do: both the physical behind-the-scenes support in keeping this running smoothly and, more important, the emotional support you give me. Without you, I know I'd lose my mind sometimes. Thank you, babe. I love you!
Thanks to my two grown babies, who continue to support my passion and understand why I put in such long hours. You've learned to respect that even in her jammies all day in front of the computer, yes, Mom is actually working.
I’d also like to thank the many bloggers out there who have supported me and have pimped, reviewed, and participated in my cover reveals and announcements. You guys have been a HUGE part of my success, and I thank every single one of you from the bottom of my heart!
Thank you to my long time, honest, and outspoken group of beta readers: Judy DeVries, Emily Lamphear, Theresa Wegand, Dawn Winter, and last but CERTAINLY not least, Amanda Clark. Hootie, thank you for making me laugh so much with your input. I love all of you for never holding anything back for the sake of hurting my feelings. You are an imperative part of this process, and I'm extremely grateful to have you!
Thank you to Theresa (Eagle Eyes) Wegand, my one-stop superhero, beta reader/editor/formatter, listener to all my whiny rants/vents and obsessive worrying, and friend—even when you’re brutally honest. LOL ;) I promise I’ll never hold it against you and truly appreciate it! As always, your work is impeccable, and I can’t say enough about it. I hope to be working with you for years to come! Thank you so much!
Thank you to Amanda Simpson of Pixel Mischief Design for my cover art. You’re an amazing talent and awesome to work with. So far, you’ve created some gems for me, and I’m excited about what’s yet to come and working with you on many more!
Shout out to my street team “Team Reyes!” To my admins, Leslie Cary, Jenn DaSilva, Delashawne Acevedo, and welcome Sarah Mannering. You're all doing such a great job, and I'm so happy to have had the pleasure of meeting you finally. I have no idea what I'd do without you guys!
As usual, I can't thank my readers enough! You're the REAL reason I continue to do and LOVE my "job"! You're what makes my fictional world go round. I'm so excited about what I have in store for you this year! Stay tuned for announcements. I love hearing from you, so keep the messages, comments, and emails coming!
About the Author
USA Today Bestselling Author, Elizabeth Reyes, was born and raised in southern California and still lives there with her husband of twenty-two years, her two adult children Mark & Megan, a Great Dane named Dexter, and one big fat cat named Tyson.
She spends the majority of her time in front of her computer, writing and keeping up with all the social media, and loves it. She says that there is nothing better than doing what you absolutely love for a living, and she eats, sleeps, and breathes these stories, which are constantly begging to be written.
Representation: Jane Dystel of Dystel & Goderich now handles all questions regarding subsidiary rights for any of Ms. Reyes’ work. Please direct inquiries regarding foreign translation and film rights availability to her.
For more information on her upcoming projects and to connect with her--she loves hearing from you all—here are a few places you can find her:
Website: www.ElizabethReyes.com
Facebook fan page:http://www.facebook.com/pages/Elizabeth-Reyes/278724885527554
Instagram
Twitter: @AuthorElizabeth
Amazon Author page
Email
[email protected] Add her books to your Good Reads shelf
Join her FB Street Team for exclusive giveaways, excerpts, read alongs, book chats and much much more!
She enjoys hearing your feedback and looks forward to reading your reviews and comments on her website and fan page!
Elizabeth Reyes, Uninvited (Fate #7)
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