“What the hell did you just do?” I bark at Emilio.
He points a wavering, innocent finger at the curtain. “I was talking with the young man until you so rudely interrupted.”
“What did you say to him?” I demand to know.
He scratches his belly. “I don’t remember.”
“You don
’t remember,” I say slowly.
“Nope. They say your memory is the first thing to go when you start to get older. I can’t remember what you lose after that.” He grins at me.
“Did you threaten him?”
He grins at me again. “Why would I do that?”
I point toward the door. “Get out,” I say.
He puts on a mock-wounded look. “Why? Whatever did I do?”
“I don’t know what you did!” I shout. “But now I have to find out.” I shake my finger at him. “I swear to God, Melio, if you ruin this for me, I’m never going to talk to you again.”
“That’s okay.” He smirks. “I have four other daughters who like me. That’s the beauty of adopting so many of you at one time.”
I growl at him and he laughs out loud. “I didn’t do anything,” he insists. “Just tested the boy a little.”
Suddenly, the curtain jerks behind me and Ryan stalks out. He takes my elbow and pulls me behind the curtain. I’m startled. Really startled. I can hear Emilio laughing on the other side of the curtain.
“Do you have a date this weekend?” he asks, his fingers flying.
“Yes,” I say tentatively. “Don’t I?”
“How the hell should I know?”
“My date’s with you, you idiot.” I shove his chest, just because I’m irked and he’s there, and he’s standing still as a statue.
I can see the dawning realization on his face. He got played by the best player ever. “Your dad just fucked with me, didn’t he?” He shakes his head, and I can see the muscle tic in his jaw.
“I have no idea what he said to you, but if it looks like fucking and it smells like fucking and it tastes like fucking, it’s probably fucking.”
He grins. “Tastes like fucking?”
“Ohhhh!” I growl, stomping my foot. Then I grab his shirt and ball my fists in it. He widens his stance to support us both. “I like you,” I say, and I make him read my lips.
He smiles and brushes a lock of hair back behind my ear. “I like you too.”
Emilio jerks the curtain back and sticks his head in. “He turned green with envy when he thought you were going out with someone else. Just saying.” Then he disappears again.
“What did he say?” Ryan asks.
I free my hands from his shirt. “He said you were jealous.”
Ryan nods. “I was. Shockingly. Stupidly. Irrationally. Jealous. Like, stop my heart jealous. Like, someone just stole all the air from the room jealous. Like curl up in a ball on the floor and suck my thumb jealous.”
“You were?” My belly clenches in the best way possible.
“Yes.”