Katelin
"Are you sure you're not pregnant?" Maricar says, frowning.
"I'm sure," I say. "I haven't even gotten off the pill yet."
My sister's eyebrows shot up. "Yet?"
Shit. I didn't mean to let anyone know about our pregnancy plans. I figured we didn't have to say anything until it happened. But then it wouldn't hurt for her to know. "Yeah, we decided we wanted to try for a baby."
She's quiet for a long moment. "Why?" There's no judgment in her tone, just curiosity. And maybe a hint of amusement.
Because I know exactly what she's thinking, I keep a straight face and try to sound casual. "He asked me if I wanted a baby and I realized I did."
"But... aren't you splitting up after five years?" Her eyes are wide, as though expecting me to drop a bombshell.
I know what she wants to hear. That Raul and I have fallen madly and irrevocably in love and can't live without each other.
If only it were that simple.
I averted my gaze, afraid to give away too much of what I felt. "We decided to, uh, stay together indefinitely."
To my surprise, she gets into the bed and lies beside me, her arm draped over my waist. "Has he told you he loved you?"
"Maricar... It's not like that."
"It could be. I think he loves you."
I squeeze her arm affectionately. "What's it like to still believe in fairy tale endings?"
"It's nice. You should try it sometime. Honestly, you're much too young to be this cynical."
"He cares about me, I think. But if he felt anything more, he'd probably already have said something."
"Just because something isn't said out loud, it doesn't mean it can't be true."
"Maybe."
"Honestly, I can't believe he hasn't figured it out yet. I thought he was a smart guy."
"Figured out what?"
"That he loves you."
I snort. "He does not."
Heavy footsteps sound outside the bedroom before the door flies open. A breathless Raul pauses at the doorway, his hand gripping the knob.
"Are you okay?" I say, sitting up. What's going on?
"You don't happen to be, uh..." he says, hesitating.
Oh, God. I fainted in his arms so of course he just assumed... "I'm not pregnant," I say firmly.
"Oh. Are you sure?"
I can't help smiling at the way he tries to appear casual about the whole thing. And failing — he still looks flustered. "I'm sure," I say.
"Right."
Is that disappointment I see in his eyes? My heart leaps into my throat. Swallowing, I say, "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to alarm you."
"No, no." He clears his throat. "I just thought I'd check."
Maricar was quiet this whole time. I look down to see her trying to hold back a smile. I glare at her, but it only makes her squeeze her lips tighter to hold back laughter.
***
"More shopping?" I ask weakly, staring up at the building.
"Of course," Safia says, hooking her arm through mine. "We've barely made a dent in your husband's credit card."
"I didn't know that was the objective of all this." Still, I have to admit that it would be fun to spend time with her, especially now that Maricar has gone back home to New Jersey. Behind our car stops a dark green Rolls Royce, from which Alicia and her cousin Rocio step out, chatting excitedly.
Raul was worried about me going out today after yesterday's incident at the press conference but Safia waved him off, insisting that a girls' day out was exactly what I needed.
What I didn't need — or expect — was Yandra waiting for us three hours later at the coffee shop we repaired to after going through five clothing shops. Dressed in a Versace print shirt dress with her hair flowing straight and loose, she looked very young. Sympathy swells inside me at the hesitant look in her eyes. No matter what she did, she's as much a victim in all this as Raul is.
"Hi," she says, smiling almost shyly at me as she stood up. "Sorry I'm late." That apology was directed at Safia.
"It's all right, mija," Safia says. They hugged and air-kissed, careful not to mess up their pristinely applied makeup. "Did that fiancé of yours fly out of town again?"
"Yeah, I dropped him off at the airport."
"Yandra, my God you look gorgeous," Rocio says, hugging her. "You coming to Tia Carmen's tomorrow?"
"Yeah." Yandra turns to me. "Will you make it? She wants to host the after-church brunch this week."
"I think so." Raul didn't say anything but I expect he's waiting to see if I'm well enough for it. While his concern is touching, I'm perfectly fine. What I really want is for everyone to forget what happened to me yesterday and for things to go back to normal.
"I saw the videos." Yandra took my hand and I let her pull me down to sit beside her. "Vultures, all of them. I wouldn't know what I'd done if it were me."
"It was soooo romantic, wasn't it?" Rocio says, sighing dramatically. "Raul sweeping her up in his arms and carrying her to the car. Like a telenovela."
"Stop it, you're embarrassing her," Safia says, putting an arm around my shoulders. "But yes, that was very romantic."
"Good thing Raul showed up when he did," Alicia says, her brow furrowed thoughtfully. "Like he knew you needed him."
"That's how it always is in telenovelas," Rocio says, nodding. "It's like fate. Like their souls are one."
"Because they are," Yandra says. "I've never seen Raul act that way with any woman."
I look at her, trying to hide my surprise. There wasn't a bit of insincerity in her expression. "I'm sure Raul would have caught any woman who passed out in front of him," I say carefully.
"Oh, but you didn't see the look on his face, Kate," Rocio says. "He looked so intense. Like he was going to fight anyone who tried to hurt you."
It almost pained me the way everyone talked about Raul and me. The way they could see nothing but this grand romance. Because none of them knows that we're both just playing a part. I can't tell them this was all a lie, so I have no choice but to let them think ours is a story of true love.
I force myself to hold back the bitterness I felt and just smile. "Yes, he is... pretty wonderful."
We had coffee and smoothies. I ordered a frittata, feeling a little hungry after going through all those shops. I'm halfway through the delicious cheesy dish when Alicia excuses herself to pick up her Dad's watch from the shop, where she had them replace the strap.
"Be back in five minutes," she says, getting up.
"I'll come with you," Rocio says before taking a last sip of her strawberry and lemonade smoothie. It isn't much of a surprise as the two girls are practically inseparable.
"I'll come too," Safia says. "I'm just gonna take a look, I've been thinking of getting Luis a new Rolex."
Before I knew what was happening, I find myself alone with Yandra.
If she felt as awkward as I did, she didn't show it.
"Nico says I should ask you if you'd be one of my bridesmaids," she says. Holding up a hand, she adds, "I know, it's too soon and we haven't even set a date yet. But he already got Raul to agree to be best man, so he thought I should ask you now about being my bridesmaid."
I can't help but notice how often she said "should". It's almost as though... I frown. "Is that what you want?" I say.
"Well..." She hesitates. "I would love to have you as my bridesmaid. It's just that..."
It finally dawns on me why her continued engagement to Nico just felt strange to me. "You don't want to marry him, do you?"
"I..." She bites her lower lip nervously. "Nico is wonderful. But everything is just going too fast."
"Why did you say yes?"
She looks at me with a confused expression. "Didn't Raul tell you?"
A cold weight sinks into my stomach. "Tell me what?"
***
Raul
"You told Yandra to sleep with Nico."
It isn't a question. Kate stands in front of the door of my study looking at me expectantly, but I can see the hurt and disappointment on her face.
Shit.
I get up from behind my desk. "Mi amor, I can explain," I say, walking toward her.
She looks at me with disbelief. "Why?"
Something in her expression tells me to keep my distance, so I stop in front of her. "Because at some point, it became clear that she was up to something. I wanted to find out how far she was going to take it. I'm sorry."
Kate is quiet, her lips pressed together. When she speaks, her voice is cold and distant. "I thought we agreed not to keep any secrets from each other."
"It wasn't a secret." I hesitate. "It was... a detail I didn't think was important." I hesitate, wondering if I'm lying to myself as well as to my wife. Did I keep that detail from her because I knew exactly how she'd react when she found out what I'd done?
I reach out a hand to her but she pulls away.
"What were you thinking, Raul? How could you manipulate people like that?"
"Kate, I wasn't—"
"Nico is crazy about Yandra. How do you think he's going to feel when he finds out she agreed to marry him because you told her to?"
"I didn't think..." I run a hand through my hair in exasperation. "I thought that... well, since he already liked her, it wouldn't hurt."
Her expression changes into something he couldn't read. "I've worked with you for five years, I knew you were ruthless. But that was business. I didn't think you'd so cold-heartedly manipulate people like this. Especially someone who was family. Don't you have a line you won't cross?"
"Of course I do, Kate."
"I just don't see it. I'm sorry."
"Look, I can fix this, okay? Let me talk to Nico."
"Yeah, you should do that."
I take a step closer. "I know what you think of me right now and I can't blame you. But please, let me make things right again."
She shakes her head, taking a step back. "I don't think I know who you are anymore, Raul." Her jaw clenches and she blinks back tears. "I thought you were a good man. That's why I f—" She swallows. "That's why I agreed to this marriage."
"I'm still that man, mi amor."
"Please don't call me that. You don't love me. This was a business arrangement."
Something twists painfully in my chest. "I do love you, Kate. I think I've loved you for a long time."
She smiles, but it's a bitter smile, full of regret. "Is that why you've been so attentive lately? So eager to get me into bed? So I could better play my part in this farce of a marriage and make everyone believe it's real? Because if so, congratulations. Your plan worked. We've fooled everyone."
I wish I could tell her she's wrong. That I didn't seduce her to make our pretend marriage seem more real. But I can't lie to her again.
She turns and reaches for the door.
"Kate, please," I say.
Ignoring me, she jerks the door open. "Don't worry, I'm going to hold up my end of the deal."
With that, she walks out and shuts the door softly behind her.
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