Also by Elizabeth Reyes
Moreno Brothers Series
Forever Mine
Always Been Mine
Romero
Sweet Sofie
Making You Mine
5th Street Series
Noah
Gio
Hector
Abel
Fate Series
Fate
Breaking Brandon
Desert Heat the first book in the Desert Heat Series will be released
May 13, 2014.
Forever Yours
(Moreno Brothers 1.5)
Elizabeth Reyes
Smashwords Edition
Forever Yours
(Moreno Brothers 1.5)
Elizabeth Reyes
Smashwords Edition
Copyright © 2014 Elizabeth Reyes
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events or locales is entirely coincidental.
All rights reserved. This e-book is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This e-book may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to Smashwords.com and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.
Edited by Theresa Wegand
To my P-Nut, I love you, baby, forever and always.
Table of Contents
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
Chapter 16
Chapter 17
Chapter 18
Chapter 19
Chapter 20
Chapter 21
Chapter 22
Chapter 23
Chapter 24
Epilogue
A Note to My Wonderful Readers
Acknowledgments
About the Author
Chapter 1
Sarah
“I gotta take this,” Sarah said to Angel as she made her way out the kitchen door and into his back yard.
Angel nodded and continued what he was busy doing in the kitchen, but she could tell just by that look he already knew it was Sydney calling—again.
He’d watched her send Sydney’s call to voice mail earlier when her phone rang just as Alex was bringing out their mom’s birthday cake. Normally, she didn’t answer his calls when Angel was around anyway, not that she had anything to hide when she spoke to Sydney. Even after all these years, she hated that weirdness she felt whenever she did happen to take Sydney’s call in front of Angel. So she avoided doing so as much as she could.
The only reason she decided to answer it now was because Sydney didn’t call nearly as much as he used to anymore and almost never twice in one day. It worried her. The last few times they’d spoken he’d mentioned having issues with his girlfriend, Carina. Sarah wondered now if maybe something big had happened between them and he needed to vent.
To her relief, he sounded perfectly cheery when she answered. “Hey, Lynni, you busy?”
“Not really. Well . . .” She glanced back at the kitchen window facing the backyard. “I am at Angel’s right now. They’re having a birthday party for his mom, but I could spare a few moments. What’s up?”
“A party on a Thursday?”
“Yeah.” She smiled. “You know this family. It’s her birthday today, so it wasn’t going unnoticed regardless of what day of the week it is.”
“Oh well, then never mind,” he said quickly. “Go back to the party. I thought for sure you’d be home by now, and I had some down time. Since I hadn’t talked to you in a while, I just thought I’d call and catch up.
“Is everything okay?”
“Yeah, yeah, everything’s fine. I’ll talk to you another time.”
She felt kind of bad about hanging up, especially because she got the feeling he did have something he specifically wanted to talk about. But she also knew the longer she was out there the weirder Angel would be about it when she finally got back in. He never said anything. Sarah had to give him credit where credit was due. He’d come a long way and was obviously doing his best to be as accepting of her friendship with Sydney as he could, but she knew him too well to not pick up on that vibe anytime the subject of Sydney came up.
Once back in the house she grabbed a small bowl of chips and salsa and headed to the family room. Angel patted the open seat next to him on the sofa where he sat with his dad and Sal.
“Everything cool?” he asked, taking one of the chips and dipping it into the salsa.
“Yeah,” she said. “I just thought maybe something was wrong since he rarely calls twice in one day.” She made sure she pointed that part out. “But everything’s fine. He was just calling to catch up since we haven’t talked in a while.”
She glanced at him nonchalantly before dipping another chip into the salsa. So far so good. No weirdness. He even leaned in and kissed her with a smile. “You missed out,” he said with a smirk.
“On what?”
“One of the guys in the mariachis is new.” He chuckled. “The other guys in the group know Sof is with Eric, but since he’s not here, they decided to punk the guy, telling him she was single and looking for a man. They encouraged him to hit on her. He did and she turned him down, of course, but was nice about it. Then he got all cocky, laying it on a little too heavily. Luckily for his ass Alex was in on the whole thing, so when he got in the guy’s face, we all knew there was no real danger of things getting too explosive. Still, you know Sof. She wasn’t in on it, so she was embarrassed and pissed.” Angel shrugged. “No harm done, but the expression on the guy’s face when he had to look up at Alex was classic. They let the guy in on it before he messed his pants.”
Sarah laughed because she could only imagine. “Poor guy,” she said, glancing around for Sofie.
Sofie was standing with Alex now, laughing. Apparently she’d gotten over it, but Sarah remembered all the times Sofie had to deal with that kind of reaction from her big brothers for real.
“They mean well.”
If Sarah had a dime for every time she’d had to remind Angel’s sister this about her brothers over the years, she could pay for her entire education in cash. It was true. Sofie’s brothers could be on the overbearing side, but in the end, they really did mean well. Sarah had often wondered what it would be like to have grown up in such a big family and have brothers like the Morenos.
In fact, she’d never admit it, but there had been plenty of times she’d felt a little jealous about how close they all were. She’d grown up all alone. It’s why she’d always been so grateful for her best friend, Sydney, who was the closest person, aside from her mom, she had as family. No matter how much she knew Angel didn’t buy it, Sydney really was like brother to her. At least that’s how she’d always seen it.
Still, days like today–when the Moreno’s had been celebrating their mom’s birthday and as usual the whole gang of them and their friends were there—Sarah couldn’t help feeling a little bittersweet. Their mother had been showered all afternoon with gifts and serenaded by the mariachis, and her kids had cooked for her, not allowing her to cook at all. And what a meal they’d prepared! Since they all had grown up helping ru
n the family restaurant, they all knew their way around the kitchen, so she’d had a feast made with lots of love.
Growing up, except for the times she’d spent them with Sydney and his family, Sarah and her mother had always celebrated birthdays and holidays alone—just the two of them. And while her mom had done her best to make it feel special, there were so many times Sarah wished her mom would get married and have more kids. She’d be the best sister ever, just as she had been to Sydney all those years and always would be.
Not only had Sofie had to deal with her three overprotective brothers but she’d also had two of their friends, Romero and Eric, to deal with her whole life. Eric, who was now her boyfriend was much calmer than her brothers, and Sofie had told Sarah that was exactly why she’d had been so drawn to him even way back when they were kids. Romero never stood a chance with her because he was worse than her brothers. At least Alex asked questions before going for the jugular, not Romero.
Sarah felt the pang of guilt. Too often she’d been a little jealous of the big happy family gatherings when she should have been grateful to be included.
Not even a half hour later after having taken Sydney’s call her phone buzzed again. She’d set it down on the coffee table in front of the sofa where she still sat with Angel. She saw him glance down at it, but he quickly looked away and laughed at something Romero was telling him and Sal.
Sarah picked it up, hoping it wasn’t anything from Sydney but a little worried it might be. She was worried, not because of Angel, but because she’d picked up on something not being right when Sydney had called her a second time in one day after she hadn’t heard from him in days.
To her relief it wasn’t Sydney. It was a text from her mom.
Are you going to be there much longer? I have a surprise for you, and I can hardly wait for you to get here already.
That piqued Sarah’s interest instantly, and she smiled. Surprise? Her mother had never been good about keeping surprises from her for long, so it made her wonder how long she’d had this up her sleeve. She hadn’t heard anything about this until now. Sarah was turning twenty-one that year, but that was still months away.
She didn’t even realize what a big goofy smile she wore until she noticed Angel staring at her strangely. “My mom,” she said as she texted back. “She’s asking how much longer I’m gonna be. She has a surprise for me.”
The strange expression on Angel’s face was replaced with one as curious as she felt. “Surprise?”
“Yeah,” she said as she sent the text asking for a hint. “My mom’s never been good about keeping surprises from me. In fact, she stinks at it. It’s why she can’t get me anything for my birthday or Christmas until the day before because she doesn’t trust herself not to blow it early.” Sarah laughed. “Whatever this is she probably just got it today, and already she’s texting me to ask when I’ll be home.”
“I can take you now,” Angel offered. “We’re pretty much done here. Everyone’s just gonna shoot the breeze now, and I know you said you had homework you wanted to work on.”
Feeling even more curious, especially since her mom hadn’t responded to her text asking for a hint, Sarah nodded with a smile. “I can’t imagine what it is.”
Angel got up from where he was sitting and reached out his hand. “Let’s go,” he said. “I’m curious now too.”
It took her almost fifteen minutes to say goodbye to everyone, but finally they were out of there and in Angel’s car. Halfway home her mom responded to her text.
The only hint is you’re really gonna like it! That’s all. Oh and maybe don’t bring Angel in. This is something he might not be as excited about hearing as you.
There was only one thing Sarah could think of that might not excite Angel as much as it would excite her—Sydney. This had something to do with him, and it was likely what he’d called her twice for today. But why wouldn’t he just tell her? Whatever it was suddenly had her insides knotting up.
Chapter 2
Angel
It was a subtle change, but Angel knew Sarah well enough now to catch it. She’d gone from being curiously excited about her mom’s surprise for her to suddenly a bit unnerved. The change didn’t happen until that second text from her mom halfway to their condo.
“Something wrong?” he asked after seeing her read her text.
“No,” she said, but she wasn’t convincing, almost as if she weren’t sure herself. “She just asked where I was.”
They turned the corner, and Angel pulled into a parking space across from the condo Sarah and her mom had recently bought. Sarah turned to him then quickly back to her bag.” You don’t have to come in with me if you need to get going.”
The way she dug in her bag as she said that was another telling sign about Sarah. She always avoided eye contact when she was feeling uneasy. “I’m in no hurry.” Angel started getting out. “And I’m curious about this surprise,” he said, facing her across the roof of his car now.
She smiled, and they met around the front. They headed to her front door. It was already unlocked, and they walked right in. Luna, Sarah’s mom, smiled strangely at Angel then glanced at Sarah and picked up her cell phone in what looked like preparation to take a photo.
Both Sarah and Angel stood there a bit confused. “Okay, come out,” Luna said.
Angel almost didn’t recognize him when he first walked out because he was a lot buffer than the last time he’d seen him, but it only took a few seconds for him to figure it out. Sydney smiled, and Sarah’s hands immediately went to her face and covered her mouth.
“Hey, Lynni.”
“Oh my God!” She rushed to him and gave him a huge hug, which Luna took several shots of with her phone and had Angel wishing he hadn’t come in with Sarah.
They held each other tightly for a moment that felt uncomfortably long. Yeah, Angel definitely should’ve just dropped her off. As annoying as it would’ve been to hear later that the big surprise her mother had come home early for was Syd being in town, it beat having to witness her excitement from seeing the dude and hearing him refer to her in that syrupy way he said her middle name.
“What are you doing here?” she asked, finally pulling away.
Angel watched, grinding his teeth as Sarah actually wiped tears away and still held Sydney’s hand with the other.
“I’m home for what’s left of the summer, so I figured since I haven’t been this close to you in so long I should just take the drive down and surprise you.”
Of course.
Angel had to fight the urge to mutter. Flagstaff was after all just around the corner from La Jolla. The last time he and Sarah drove up to Flagstaff it took them nearly eight hours!
Sydney finally took his eyes off Sarah long enough to acknowledge Angel. “How’s it going, man?” He reached out to shake Angel’s hand even as his other hand still held Sarah’s.
“Good.” Angel forced a smile. “Long time.”
“Yeah,” Sarah said, smiling but still wiping the corner of her eyes with one hand. “What’s it been? Over two years since I saw you last?”
Angel’s eyes dropped down to Sarah’s hand that was still in Syd’s. His already-forced smile flat lined, and she dropped her best friend’s hand immediately as if she’d just noticed she was still holding it. Then their eyes met. He wouldn’t even try to hide what he was feeling. She had to know that, as much as he’d always tried to be understanding about her relationship with Syd, this kind of shit pissed him off.
Luna cleared her throat loudly. “Yeah, the last time he came down was for your graduation party from high school. Wow, it has been over two years.”
Angel finally looked away from Sarah, doing his best to not show how fucking annoyed he was suddenly feeling. He was glad when Sarah asked how long Syd would be in town, because it’s what he wanted to know too. He might’ve asked himself, but as irritated as he was now, he was pretty sure it would’ve come out more like “When do you leave?”
His tolerance
for Sarah’s relationship with her best friend was largely due to the distance between them. He knew that they texted and spoke on the phone, but as long as he didn’t have to be around this kind of display of affection between the two, he could deal with knowing she kept in touch regularly with the guy. If Syd were around more often, Angel knew his patience for their “friendship” would wear thin real fast. Hearing comments from Alex and Romero about how they’d never put up with another dude in their chick’s lives didn’t help either. Romero had never even had a steady girl, and Angel didn’t know what to call Alex’s off-and-on relationship with Valerie, but both made these kinds of statements as if it were a no-brainer.
To Angel’s relief, Syd said he’d only be around until tomorrow afternoon. But it wasn’t much of a relief. Not only was Luna already saying he was welcome to stay as long as he wanted, which meant he’d be sleeping here at their place tonight, but he also mentioned being home for the rest of the summer and doing his best to make it out here again.
“You guys should come up to Flagstaff too before the summer is over,” Syd added. “There’s still a few weeks left.”
At least the invitation was extended to Angel as well. Syd smiled at him when he said it, but then, of course, he had to ruin it by smiling at Sarah in that way that made Angel sick to his stomach. “We can run the trails at the canyon like old times.”
Sarah turned to Angel with a hopeful smile. “Maybe we can.” It was a statement, but it sounded more like a question.
Angel nodded. “Yeah, maybe,” he said, humoring her.
Football practice was already grueling, and it had just gotten started. Angel knew as they got closer to the start of the season it would only get worse. He might have a weekend to spare between now and then, and he could take her up, but he’d only tolerate so much. Her going out to spend a weekend with her guy friend by herself was not happening.
As much as he hated to leave Sarah with Syd, he had no choice. It was either that or hang around cringing while they happily caught up with each other and then reminisce about old times. He’d spare himself the exasperation.