If he told me he was going into business with Paulo’s theoretical twin brother, I’d do whatever it took to not have to see him suffer like that again.
“Okay, I get it,” I admit reluctantly. “But it’s different this time, Dad. Ethan and Edward are complete opposites. Ethan isn’t going to hurt me.”
He shakes his head. “You have no way of knowing that.”
“You had no way of knowing if Mom was going to hurt you when you started dating back in the 1800s.”
He rolls his eyes. “But I didn’t have anyone to warn me about your mom.”
My eyes widen at the unintended implication.
“You know what I mean. You got your warning from Edward. Ethan and Edward can’t be that different from each other. Like your grandma used to say: Si ladra como un perro…”
This is one of my grandma’s favorite sayings, which translates to: If it barks like a dog. The implied ending to that sentence being: it is a dog.
I tilt my head as I glare at him. “You’re seriously trying to tell me you haven’t noticed a difference between Ethan and Edward in all your business dealings? You’re telling me you let Ethan hire me despite the fact you think he’s exactly like Edward?”
He flashes me an uncomfortable smile now. “Okay, I admit I see some differences.”
I cock an eyebrow as I cross my arms over my chest.
He takes a sip from his glass of water then shrugs. “Okay, fine. He’s nothing like Edward.”
I flash my dad a smug grin as I uncross my arms and reach for a piece of naan.
“But that doesn’t mean you can be so careless about this,” he continues. “It isn’t just your feelings that can get hurt, Alice. This is your career.”
I nod as I hand him a piece of naan from the basket. “That’s nice, Dad, but I don’t want to be careful,” I say, inhaling the garlicky aroma of the bread. “Being careful is something you do during job interviews and African safaris. It’s not something you do with love.”
He chuckles, though somewhat reluctantly, at the bastardization of one of my mom’s favorite sayings.
Reaching across the table, he grabs my hand and looks into my eyes. “Fine. But promise me you’ll twist his huevos into a bow if he hurts you,” he says with a wink.
I shake my head in dismay as I realize it was my mom who told my dad about Ethan, not Edward or any of my coworkers at Forked.
I was naïve to think my mom could keep a secret from her husband. And I’ve been beyond foolish to think hiding the internship from Ethan will somehow make my need to make a decision go away. Secrets are not meant to be kept from the ones we love.
“I love Ethan.” It takes me a moment to realize I’ve said these words aloud. “Oh, my God.”
The expression on my father’s face is equal parts panic and curiosity.
I set my piece of bread back in the basket and squeeze his hand. “I have to go, Dad. But you don’t have to worry about me anymore. I’ve got this. Okay?”
His mouth spreads into a tentative smile as he nods. “You always had it. Don’t let anyone tell you different.”
As I step out of aRoqa restaurant, I pull my phone out of my pocket, and I’m surprised to see a text message from a number that looks oddly familiar. But the message preview reveals the sender is someone whose number I deleted from my contacts not so long ago. Someone I have no desire to speak to.
Edward: I owe you an apology. I never should have cheated on you or said those things to you. If you’re going to date my brother, we should hash things out so we can move on.
I stare at the screen for so long, I don’t notice someone standing next to me until I get a whiff of Kanye West’s Whatever it Takes cologne. I flinch at the sight of Edward as if I’ve seen a ghost.
“I don’t need an apology from you,” I say, turning to leave.
He grabs my wrist. “You may not need apology, but you need to see what I have to show you,” he says, letting go of my arm and reaching into the pocket of his slacks. “There’s something you need to know about Ethan.”
“Don’t you dare touch me,” I say, clutching my wrist against my abdomen.
He rolls his eyes as he holds out his phone to me. “Look.”
I stare into his dark eyes, refusing to look down. “What are you doing, Edward? Does the thought of me being happy with someone else really bother you so much you have to crap all over my happiness?”
The muscle in his jaw twitches. “Look at the pictures, Alice.”
Pictures?
What is he talking about? Does he have pictures of Ethan with another woman?
“Why are you doing this?” I plead.
He shakes his head as he pulls his phone back. “Fine. I guess ignorance truly is bliss for some—”
Before he can put the phone away, I snatch it out of his hand. But the picture on the screen immediately makes me want to throw it back at him.
“What’s that?”
He smiles, pleased he’s gotten my attention. “Who’s that is the question you really want to ask.” He glances at the phone in my hand. “Go ahead and scroll through the entire album.”
I glare at him for a moment before I begin swiping through the photos. With every image, a larger picture forms in my mind of a young Ethan in love with a young woman. A woman who looks exactly like me. The dark, wavy hair parted down the middle, the light-olive skin, the round brown eyes and heart-shaped face with the pointed chin.
“What the hell is this?” I whisper despite the fact I know exactly what these images imply.
“Her name is Priya.
