The Spanish Love Deception ~ 151

But apparently, my mind had other ideas.

“Being your friend has always been the last thing on my mind.”
Those had been his words. He couldn’t have said it any clearer.
Fine by me. I had never wanted to be his friend either. Except maybe for
a couple of days when he had first started at InTech.
But that ship had sailed long ago. I had blacklisted him for a reason,
and that was where he should have stayed. In my blacklist.
The only teeny-tiny problem was that I sort of needed him. And I …
God. I’d deal with that later.
Shaking off all of Aaron’s drama and burying deep that kernel of
uneasiness so it did not grow into something else, I placed my bag on my
chair, grabbed my planner, and made my way to the room where our
monthly Breakfast & Broadcast was held. Jeff, our boss and head of the
Solutions Division of the company, and all five teams that he coordinated
attended. And no, we didn’t have breakfast and watch the news.
Unfortunately. It was just a meeting that took place once a month, where
bad coffee and a really sad excuse for cookies were provided and where Jeff
updated our division on the latest news and announcements.
Being one of the first in the room, I took my usual place, opened my
planner, and went through a few reminders I had noted down for the week
while the room filled out with people.
Feeling a soft brush of a hand on my arm and the light scent of peaches,
I turned, already knowing who I’d find smiling down at me.
“Hey, Jim’s or Greenie’s for lunch?” Rosie asked in a hushed voice.
“I’d sell my soul for a bagel from Jim’s, but I shouldn’t.” Today was
definitely not a salad day; my mood would plummet down even more, but
the wedding was right around the corner. “So, Greenie’s.”
“Are you sure?” Rosie’s gaze slid to the cookies displayed on the narrow
table placed at the entrance of the room. “God, those look worse than
usual.”
I chuckled, and before I could answer, my stomach grumbled. “Kinda
regretting not having breakfast,” I murmured, looking at my friend with a
grimace.
 152 ~ Elena Armas

“Lina.” Rosie frowned, her voice holding a warning edge. “That’s not
you, sweetie. That diet you have been on, it’s just stupid.”
“It’s not a diet.” I rolled my eyes, ignoring the voice in my head that was
agreeing with my friend. “I’m just watching what I eat.”
She cut me a look that told me she didn’t believe me. “We are going to
Jim’s.”
“Trust me, after the weekend I had, I’d let you take me there, and I’d
raid the place, but it’s gonna be a no.”
My friend searched my face, probably finding something in there
because an eyebrow arched. “What did you do?”
I leaned back on my chair, a little huff leaving my lips. “I did not—” I
stopped myself. I had done plenty. “I’ll tell you later, okay?”
Her eyes filled with concern. “At Jim’s.” With one last nod, Rosie
shifted past me and walked to the chair next to Héctor, her team leader.
When I caught the eye of the old man, I waved at him with a small
smile, receiving a wink from him.
And then—catching me completely off guard, even when it shouldn’t
have—my Aaron radar went off. Warning me of his presence.
My heart lurched in my chest, and my gaze hunted him down.
He is not that good-looking. He’s just tall, I told myself as I took him
in.
Something in my rib cage sped up.
It was the tuxedo because my body is surely not reacting to that button-
down shirt and those pressed slacks, I thought as my eyes followed his long
strides to the chair I knew he’d take a couple of rows in front of me and to
my left.
Yeah, his face is certainly nothing to write home about, I reminded
myself as I studied his hard and masculine profile, from his jaw to the dark
line of thick hair framing his forehead.
See? I’ve got this under control. My body is back to normal. I didn’t
need the comfort of a cream cheese and salmon bagel.
But then Aaron looked back. His eyes met mine across the room.
Finding me looking at him in a way I presumed was a little too intense for
 The Spanish Love Deception ~ 153

someone who had sworn wouldn’t pay him any attention only a few
minutes ago.
I felt my cheeks flush a deep shade of red, and I’d bet I looked like my
whole face was on fire.
And yet, the one who averted his gaze first wasn’t me. It was him.
Aaron’s eyes fell down and stayed somewhere ahead. Somewhere that
wasn’t me.
Something about that did not sit well with me. Something about the
fact that he had just dismissed me so quickly bothered me more than ever.
But before I could delve too much into that, Jeff’s voice pulled me right
back. “Good morning, everyone,” he said, and the low muttering in the
room turned into silence. “This Breakfast & Broadcast session will be fairly
short. I need to run to an impromptu meeting I was called to in about
thirty minutes, so don’t get too comfortable, and have your fill of cookies
before it’s over.” Our boss laughed lightly.
Nobody bothered to move. Obviously.
“As you know, we are undergoing some important changes in the
structure of InTech. A rearrangement of the responsibilities will take place
—among a few other things, of course. Everything will have a repercussion
on the structure of the company as we know it today. But this is not a
reason to worry. Most of the changes will be integrated gradually and
throughout the upcoming months.”
The screen that hung from one of the conference room walls showed an
organizational chart of our division with our boss’s name highlighted on
top—Jeff Foster—and the names of the five team leaders right under his—
Aaron Blackford, Gerald Simmons, Héctor Díaz, Kabir Pokrehl, and me,
Catalina Martín.
There had been rumors—nothing more than corridor whispers—that
something big was about to happen in the company. Something that would
shake things up. But no one really knew what was about to come.
“Having said that,” our boss continued after clearing his throat, “there
is an announcement I’d like to make now, before any of it is officially
released in a corporate statement.”
 154 ~ Elena Armas

The man—who my friend and colleague Rosie had referred to as a silver

fox one time when she was a little tipsy—who was all gray hair and natural
charm, seemed to hesitate for a moment. His hand flew to the collar of his
shirt, tugging at it lightly.
Jeff pressed a key on his laptop, and a new slide was displayed on the
screen. One with a diagram that was very similar to the one presented
previously. Almost a duplicate, it was essentially the exact same, except for
one single detail.
The name filling the blue square above the five team leaders in the Tech
Division was no longer Jeff’s.
That ball of lead I had been feeling since early that morning fell to my
feet.
Our boss clasped his hands together, my gaze bouncing between him
and the screen. “I am pleased to announce that Aaron Blackford will be
promoted to head of the Solutions Division of InTech.” Jeff’s words
entered my ears, traveling all the way to my head, where they seemed to
bounce from one wall to the next, unable to be processed by my brain.
“Aaron has been one of the most consistent and efficient members I have
ever had the pleasure to oversee, and he has proven himself worthy for this
promotion time and time again. So, I have no doubt in my mind that he
will do an amazing job as head of the division.”
Everybody had been shocked into silence. Just like me.
“It hasn’t been decided when he’ll take over all my responsibilities while
I undertake a more advisory role for InTech, but I wanted to give you—the
Solutions family—the news first. Even if it hasn’t been officially announced
yet.”
Jeff continued talking then, probably going through whatever was in
the agenda of the Breakfast & Broadcast next. Or maybe not—I didn’t
know. I wasn’t listening. I couldn’t when his announcement was the only
thing spinning in my head.
Aaron Blackford will be my boss.
My gaze shot to Aaron, who was leaning back in his chair. His gaze kept
fixated somewhere in front of him, his expression impassive. Even more