Silence reigned at the table. Suki glared at her supposed best friend.
Ramon’s tight jaw eased a fraction before he shrugged. ‘Are you saying she doesn’t belong to you?’
Suki’s teeth clenched. ‘Excuse—?’
‘Sí, she belongs to me—’
‘Can you please stop talking about me as if I’m some ornament?’ she interrupted.
Ramon ignored her, his keen gaze fixed on his brother.
Luis’s lighter eyes narrowed. ‘Like a sister belongs to a brother who cares for her. Like a friend owns the entitlement of kicking someone’s ass if they so much as whisper a threat of harm her way. Like—’
‘Understood,’ Ramon said, his voice firm and grave.
‘Good, I’m glad that’s settled,’ Luis replied, then reached for the champagne.
Suki turned her head, met the newly gleaming gaze Ramon turned on her. ‘Is it? Is it settled?’ she hissed.
One corner of his mouth quirked, as if now his brother had explained he found the whole subject amusing. ‘I got the wrong end of the stick, it seems, gatito.’
‘Is that supposed to be an apology?’ she snapped.
A fleeting expression darkened his eyes. ‘Permit me some time to find the right words.’
Considering Ramon Acosta was lauded worldwide as possessing the Midas touch with every venture he turned his hand to, she found it impossible to believe he was lost for anything.
He’d single-handedly turned his parents’ half a dozen Cuban-based hotels into the world-renowned Acosta International Hotels chain while pursuing a private but deeply passionate artistic talent. When Svetlana Roskova had accidentally on purpose let slip during an interview that she was a muse for, and involved with, an artist, the media had clamoured to know who had won the heart of the Russian beauty.
After several sources had speculated that it was indeed Ramon, he’d given a single exclusive interview confirming himself as her lover and the man behind the wildly successful Piedra Galleries. Overnight, his already highly sought after paintings and sculptures had become priceless collectors’ items, with commissions from monarchs and world leaders placed on a waiting list that stretched into years, according to Luis.
But the man Suki had placed on a lofty pedestal was far removed from the one now watching her with wild, unsettling eyes. A fact his own brother noted as he peeled the foil off the champagne cork.
‘You seem wound up tighter than normal, Ramon. I can virtually see the smoke curling from your ears. It’s quite a sight to behold,’ Luis observed dryly.
Ramon’s mouth tightened. ‘Is this how you wish to spend the rest of your birthday, lobbing jokes at me?’ he asked without taking his eyes off Suki.
She suppressed a shiver, wondering what was going on behind the hooded green eyes.
‘I was just trying to lighten this heavier than normal mood, seeing as it’s my birthday and I can do what I want, but if you’re not going to explain yourself, at least answer that damn phone that’s been buzzing in your pocket for the last five minutes?’
Ramon shifted his gaze from her long enough to flick his brother an impatient look before reaching into his jacket. Extracting the sleek phone from his pocket, he barely glanced at it before powering it off.
Luis’s jaw dropped. ‘You’re actually turning off the power source to the empire? Are you unwell? Or are you ignoring someone specific?’
‘Luis...’ His voice held patent warning. One his younger brother didn’t heed.
‘Dios, is there trouble in paradise? Has the great Svetlana tripped over her stilettos and fallen from grace?’
Ramon Acosta’s face iced up, his eyes turning a shade of turbulent green. ‘I was waiting until later to share the news, but if you must know, as of this morning, I’m no longer engaged.’
He was no longer engaged.
As if his words had caused the planet to stop turning, silence descended on the booth. The three of them remained frozen in place, even as the words ricocheted through her brain.
He was no longer engaged.
Suki jumped at the sound of the cork forcefully ejecting from the bottle. Frothy, expensive liquid spilled. The sounds and smell of the pub roared back into her consciousness. But still the words pounded through her head.