Lucky 7 Bad Boys Contemporary Romance Boxed Set (23 page)

He recalled her words to him of the other night, when she told him to not resort to such stereotypes to justify what was happening, but it made it easier to do that somehow. It made it easier to think that it was her class and upbringing and his lack of both that was responsible for the situation he was in now.

But he knew that was the cowardly way to avoid facing the truth. A truth that was very difficult to accept, namely that Bianca loved him with all her heart and he had turned her away by refusing to let her into his past.

His past was his past and didn't warrant being brought alive again right now, except that somehow it had taken on a life of its own. He knew that somehow it might which was why he had discussed it with Maya and Daisy so many weeks ago. It was why they had advised him to tell Bianca before they became involved.

He should have listened.

Unfortunately, he had been too stupid and too afraid to follow their good advice. He had told himself that the past was so far behind him that he could just forget it.

A total crock, he reminded himself.

He knew that now and suspected he had known it all along. He knew it every time he took his shirt off in front of her and the scar, the physical reminder of what had happened, made him feel ashamed. It was a wound that had never healed and because of it, it was bleeding the life out of his relationship with Bianca.

If there was even a relationship left after his lying to her, he thought. He had committed a lie of omission as she had pointed out to him. A lie that threatened the foundations of any relationship, namely trust and honor.

He picked up the box again, opened it, and stared at the ring. It had cost him so much more than what he had earned in the whole year after his father had died.

It was a sign of a prosperity he had wanted so badly when he was younger. But without the right person to wear the ring, he had nothing, he realized.

Rounding up the list of students and the sketches, he called the high school, knowing he didn't have much time left before the big night and hoping that somehow, he could make her understand on that night just what she meant to him.

* * *

Bianca paced back and forth in front of one of the stoves in the kitchen. Beneath the black and white checkered fabric of her jacket, a drop of sweat trickled down the line her spine, following the indentation to the small of her back.

She swiped at it, finally gave in, and opened the front of her jacket to give herself some air, especially now that they were down to the final act of their big event.

The night had started promptly and with little fanfare.

They had decided to leave any congratulations and celebrations for the end of the night, after their guests had savored a tasting menu of the dishes they would serve at the restaurant. During the cocktail hour, the waiters and waitresses they had chosen and trained the week before had paraded out plates with an assortment of treats to begin the evening.

Small and light empanadas filled with crab instead of the traditional meat filling. Crisp sticks of
yuca
, deep fried until golden and served with an
ancho chile
mayonnaise for dipping. Flat triangular pieces of a traditional Cuban-style sandwich, hot and grilled until the cheese was just beginning to ooze from the edges of the bread. Finally, deep fried, golf ball sized mashed potatoes stuffed with a mix of ham and spicy chorizo sausage.

As the appetizers had been going around, Bianca had taken a quick peek from the kitchen, trying to gauge the responses of the diners and also trying to see if Rey had showed up.

She hadn't seen him in the three weeks since Anthony's visit although she knew he'd been by the site, especially in the final week to deal with all the last minute detail work and the mysterious wall that had been blanketed with a tarp for the whole week.

She had asked John-John what was going on, but he had refused to comment, only saying that Rey had asked that no one look behind it since it was a surprise for the big night.

Based on John-John's comments, she had guessed that Rey would be here tonight, but so far she hadn't seen him. Unfortunately she didn't have the time to keep on searching. The guests would be seated shortly for the serving of the salads and samples of the main dishes.

She shut the door to the kitchen, returned to the stove where she began to portion out the citrus-marinated pork they had roasted until it fell off the bone. To complete the dish, the pork would be dressed with a gravy made from the roasting juices. It would then be served alongside a small mound of white rice covered with earthy black beans. To finish the dish, a huge batch of ripe plantains were already being fried by her
sous chef
. Once plates were filled with the sample of the first offering, she turned to watch as Diana prepped her dish.

Satisfied things were going as planned with her partner, Bianca took a moment to check the ovens and the variation on a Chicken Kiev that they had concocted. Finely sliced breasts of chicken had been filled with a Mexican
queso fresco
and spicy chorizo, rolled, breaded and deep-fried. They had just come out of the fryers a short time before and were now sitting in the ovens to stay warm. She glanced over at a worktable and watched as one of the assistants finished up the fresh
pico de gallo
that would be spooned over the chicken. On that plate there would also be some fragrant saffron-scented yellow rice scented with peppers, onions, corn, and green beans.

That left Eduardo on his grill to deal with the red snapper they were also offering. He was grilling up the fillets. They had marinated for a few hours in a lemon, garlic, and parsley
mojo
. Once the grilling was finished in a few minutes, the fish would be placed on a fine layer of mashed plantain and then topped with finely sliced rings of caramelized onions. In deference to the delicateness of the fish and the starchiness of the plantains, a small avocado salad would be the last part of the dish.

The first of the waiters returned from serving the salads. In the madness that ensued, plate after plate was finished and when the empty salad plates started coming in, the dishes from the sampling menus went out.

The flurry of activity died down about twenty minutes later and seeing that everything was going according to plan, Bianca and her friends took a minute to breathe and then started getting cleaned up for the dessert and after-dinner celebration. They had reserved an office for themselves on the second floor, complete with a shower.

They took turns going up there, showering, and changing of clothes.

Bianca went first, cleaning up and slipping into a pair of black trouser pants and a silk tank top in an orangey-red color. A short bolero-style jacket completed her ensemble and she ran downstairs to check on what was happening in the kitchen.

Everything seemed to be running smoothly and the desserts were already being dished out by the staff.

She was pleased at how well they had chosen their employees. They all seemed professional and competent, certainly able to handle the load they would be getting on a regular day after handling a party of this size.

For the desserts, they had selected the guava cheesecake that Bianca had tried out at Rey's. Diana had contributed a rich traditional Cuban-style bread pudding. Eduardo's
dulce de leche
-filled
empanadas
would be served hot over vanilla ice cream and drizzled with chocolate sauce.

The
empanadas
were her favorite. The rich caramel of the
dulce de leche
covered with the chocolate was absolutely sinful over the ice cream.

As she did some last minute supervision over the desserts, Eduardo and Diana came down and seeing that everything was under control, they instructed the head waiter to start preparing for a champagne toast to celebrate the opening.

Bianca glanced at her friends. “Are you ready?”

They nodded, but as she turned to go, Eduardo laid a hand on her arm and held her back. "Rey showed up a little while ago. He's sitting with your family and friends."

She was surprised that her brother was being so tolerant. When she had told him and Maya about what had happened, Alex had been quite angry. But of course, Daisy was sitting at the same table. He couldn't very well make a scene in front of Maya's best friend, no matter how he felt about Rey.

Bianca said nothing. What was there to say? she thought.

Walking to the door of the kitchen, she opened it a crack, and peered into the restaurant.

Rey was seated at the main table, right next to his sister Daisy and their mom. There'd be no avoiding him, but then again, she was tired of everything that had been happening the last week, what with Rey being there only at odd hours and working on the mysterious wall.

Thinking of the wall, she glanced at it. The wall was still covered with a tarp from the space by the coat check and bar to where it curved and faced the main eating area of the restaurant.

Taking a deep breath, she motioned to her friends and with a nod of her head she stepped out into the restaurant.

Diana and Eduardo were right behind her and as they stood beside her at the front of the space, the head waiter walked over and handed them each a glass.

The room quieted and Eduardo stepped forward. He looked back and took a hold of his wife's hand. With her encouragement and a smile from her, he began his short speech.

"Many of you know the roads that the three of us have taken to be here. To my uncle we give our unending gratitude for giving us the opportunity to buy this wonderful place. To all our friends and family who helped with contributions too generous to name, we thank you."

He paused and looked back at Diana, then faced Bianca and grinned. "To my two partners, my wife Diana and my best friend Bianca. No man should be so lucky as to have two such amazing women in his life."

A smattering of applause interrupted him. Eduardo raised his hand and asked for quiet so he could continue. "Finally, there are some people here who although they were paid for their work, put their hearts into their labor to create the beautiful façade for our foods. To John-John and the others who worked here, we give our thanks and most importantly, to Rey Ramos for his artistic insight."

There were hoots and hollers from the workers, and shouts urging Rey to stand.

Rey smiled uneasily and rose. Eduardo motioned for him to join them.

Bianca was surprised and might have bolted if Eduardo didn't slip beside her to forestall her escape. She looked at him and realized he had been aware of Rey's plans all along.

Rey shot her a pained look before standing to the side of her. In his large hands, he held a bunch of well-worn index cards which he glanced at nervously before clearing his throat and speaking.

"When these three first came to me, I saw just another remodeling job until I got to know them and appreciated just how special this place was to them and what it meant to their dreams. It became something more then, just like their idea of foods that were a synthesis of something new and something old, like they are. Cubans by either birth or heritage, they aren't the Cuba of old, but of the new, rising here in America. It was somehow right that they should call their restaurant
Havana Nueva
since it reflects who they've become and what Havana might have been if things were different. In honor of the traditions and heritage that made them what they are, I'd like to unveil my gift to them."

He raised his hand and Bianca noticed that John-John was at one end of the tarp and another of the workers was at the other far end by the coat check. At a wave of Rey's hand and his nod, they slowly took down the tarp, revealing a mural that took her breath away.

As more and more of the tarp was removed, an ocean view of the Havana skyline and the
Malecon
seawall filled her gaze. Done in a Cubist-style, sharp clean angles defined all the buildings and the seawall, but even to American-born Bianca, the buildings were still identifiable from the pictures she had seen over the years. The
Hotel Nacional
with its distinctive twin spires. Farther down the long rows of homes with their fanciful balconies and windows, leading all the way to the historic Morro Castle.

The tones of the paint were all in neutral browns, blacks and creams, as if the mural was an old sepia-toned photo, except for the crisp and flowing Cuban flag flying high above one of the buildings, with its distinctive blue stripes, bright red triangle, and white star.

She was moved more than she could say, as were her partners as they approached Rey and hugged him hard. After the embrace, they turned back to the friends and family gathered there and raised their glasses.

"To the future and all our dreams," Eduardo said.

Their guests joined them in their toast and afterward, clapped and cheered them on. Once it had quieted, the wait staff served the desserts and they all turned their attention to the sweets.

Bianca stood there awkwardly, sipping at the champagne lingering in her flute while Rey fumbled with his glass and the cards he still held in his hand. Finally she said, "The mural is remarkable. When did you do it?"