CHAPTER FOUR

“¡Por Dios, Lola! What were you thinking?!”

Back at Lola’s apartment, Gabriele posed like a disappointed mother, with her hands on her hips and a stern, judgmental stare. Lola, on the other hand, being the scolded child, sat on her bed with her hands clasped together and her eyes glued to her feet. It had been two days since her wild encounter with Santiago, and with the way Gabriele had stormed out, Lola thought her best friend would never speak to her again. Then she showed up at her doorstep without warning, as early as nine in the morning, wearing a white Lakers tracksuit and demanding an explanation. Minutes later, after Lola laid everything bare, she sat in silence as her friend played the ultimate version of Judge Judy.

“All you had to do was wait until I arrived,” Gabriele said, raking her fingers through her long, shiny black hair. “If you were that bored, you could’ve just watched TV or gone for a swim in the pool. Better still, you could’ve just waited in the lobby or headed back home. Instead, your idea of passing time was having my brother rearrange your guts?!”

Lola grimaced. “Please don’t say it like that. I’m not proud of it, either. It was a moment I had zero control of. I mean, he didn’t force me or anything, but even so…” Her voice trailed off.

Gabriele glared at Lola for a moment more, then sighed as she joined her friend on the mattress.

“I understand what you mean, Lola. That’s why I made you promise to stay away from him all those years ago. I know him better than anyone else does. It’s almost as if there’s this aura, this radiation he gives off. Not only does it paint him as an intimidating figure in his field of work, but makes women flock to him without much effort on his part. It’s almost like voodoo.”

Lola nodded. That has to be it. Voodoo. Because she still couldn’t, for the life of her, figure out why she’d become so loose and willing to give it all up in a heartbeat. It was very unlike her to make such a drastic decision. And the worst part of the aftermath was the dreams that followed. For two nights in a row, she woke up sweating and breathing hard, her nipples rock solid against her pajamas. They haunted her like nightmares. Yet, at the same time, they were dreams where she delighted in nothing but pure, exquisite pleasure. The ripple effect of what Santiago had done to her.

Lola shook herself out of her thoughts and sighed. “I’m so sorry, Gabriele. I wish I could tell you what came over me. I’m still trying to answer that question myself. On the bright side, it was just once and it’s never going to happen again. This chapter ends here.”

Lola turns to Gabriele, seeking words of forgiveness and approval. What she got was a scrunched face instead; an expression Gabriele made whenever she was about to deliver unsettling news.

“What?” Lola inquired. “What’s wrong?”

Gabriele placed a hand on her shoulder as she pulled her phone out from her purse. Though she didn’t say it, Lola was glad that a member of the Morales family was normal and not walking around with an Infinity phone.

“It’s either you’ve been off your phone for the last forty-eight hours, or you’ve been surfing the wrong parts of social media. ‘Cause this is what’s making the headlines right now.”

She handed Lola her phone, who peered into the screen with great intent. The first thing that came to her view was a bold picture of herself in a matching denim jacket and skirt and a white T-shirt; the exact outfit she’d worn two days ago. She seemed to be leaving a hotel in the photo, wearing dark shades as she entered a black vehicle, which was the Uber she’d called that day.

She was just about to ask Gabriele what was wrong with the picture when she noticed the headline above the picture, typed in bold print: TECH BILLIONAIRE’S LATEST TOY.

Lola stared at the headline for a while, trying to make sense of it. No one but Gabriele, and eventually Santiago, knew about her visit to the penthouse. And, as far as she was concerned, only the two siblings knew about what happened there. So where was this coming from? Who took pictures of her? How far had the news spread?

“First time?” Gabriele asked.

Lola stared at her friend, confusion all over her face. “First time with what?”

“First time getting involved in a scandal,” Gabriele explained. “I mean, it’s nothing as serious as embezzlement or fraud, but it’s still something. Especially when it involves my brother.”

It was Lola’s turn to get up and pace about. “Billionaire’s latest toy? What the hell does that even mean? Do you think Santiago is trying to get back at me or something? ‘Cause how did this get out so fast?”

Gabriele chuckled. “My brother is many things, and petty is pretty much one of them. But he’s not that low enough to make himself buzz like that. Some paparazzi maniac probably noticed you hitting the button for the highest floor when you went in, which is a pass only a handful of people get. Then he must’ve bided his time until you came out and quickly took some pictures of you before you left.”

Lola’s brow narrowed with utter surprise. “Uh-uh. I refuse to believe that people can be that jobless.”

Gabriele chuckled again. “Girl, that is their job. Do you know how much they make from a single blog? How many people they’ve got reading the shit they put online? It’s crazy numbers, believe me.”

Lola pulled her messy hair into a bun and blew her cheeks out. “Okay, whatever. It doesn’t matter. It’s all going to blow over soon ‘cause there’s no proof of anything that happened.”

Lola looked at Gabriele, and her face fell when she noticed her friend making a “uh-oh” face again.

“What is it now?”

“Well… ” Gabriele started with pursed lips, “Usually, that’s what happens. False speculation with little evidence leads to stories that blow steam in a few days. But, this one looks to be gaining wind instead.”

“Wha– what do you mean by that?” Lola asked with a frown.

“The blogs are usually the ones that come up with a headline and a story,” Gabriele explained, “but it’s the readers that make that story blow up. If no one is talking about it days after it’s posted, no one continues blogging about it. But if the readers engage aggressively and continue rambling about it in the days that follow, of course the bastards would want to milk more from the story.”

Lola nodded. “Okay, okay. Forgive me for being slow, but I still don’t see what this has got to do with mí.”

Gabriele scratched her neck gingerly. “If you must know, there’s an online poll that kicked off yesterday, ranking the number of girls my brother has been with. Flings and relationships alike. Seems like the people really like you, ‘cause you’re hanging onto number one.”

For a full minute, Lola’s brain produced nothing but static. She stared at her friend like a dummy gawking at a chessboard, not knowing what to make of the information. Feeling overwhelmed, she flopped back on the bed, burying her face into her pillow. Gabriele patted her affectionately on the butt, squeezing it lightly for the fun of it.

“I can’t blame Santiago, though. Look how soft that ass is.”

“Gabriele!”

She laughed with her hands up. “I hope it was worth it, though. ‘Cause it seems like you’re going to have some level of popularity for the next few weeks at most. I’d stay indoors until the entire thing blows over, if I were you.”

She got to her feet, adjusted her tracksuit, and slapped her white LAKERS cap on. “Hopefully my disguise worked. If not, you should be having the paparazzi outside your door already.”

Lola lifted her head from the bed. “Why do I get the feeling like you’re enjoying this?”

Gabriele beamed sweetly. “It’s called consequences, sugar. It’s what makes us consider things before we jump into them. Hopefully, we’ve all learned our lesson. I’ll talk to you soon.”