Streets of Valencia (#2 in The Billionaire Series)

CHAPTER TEN

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There was one reason Cynthia would be this aptly curious about Herman, and none of it was because of his looks. Herman did have good looks but he was not Cynthia's type. Her friend had probably figured that out from the first sentence, but this moment certainly aided to confirm himself as a target.

"I expected you to be shorter and stouter."

Herman tilted his head in surprise. "I didn't know I was being expected," he said unsurely but glanced towards Federica. Cynthia's smirk stretched wider. Federica promised she'd drown her friend later.

"Where's the fun in that?" she asked, reaching out to pat his arm on the table. "Never mind that," she waved her hand, took another sip, and swallowed quickly. "My question to you, Herman: what's the most fun thing to do around this time of year?"

Herman's uncertainty showed as he glanced again at Federica. Cynthia snorted derisively, English nose barely twitching with the action.

"Don't bother with those two," she said off-handedly. "Federica I can understand: same school, little outside access. Roxana, however..."

Federica picked up her glass as she watched color lightly taint Roxana's cheeks but that didn't stop the defiant tilt of her chin as her dark gaze narrowed ominously on her new friend.

"Consider the light of the saints upon you today, Cindy."

Federica nearly choked on her drink from the unexpected retort. Cynthia bit down on her lower lip, but she couldn't contain her smile. She turned back to Herman with a hand to her chest, but the gleam in her eyes was of suppressed laughter, which Federica couldn't hold back.

"I could cry with pride right about now," she said dramatically, prompting Herman to laugh along with them.

Their little fest caught the attention of the table, but other than spared glances, everyone returned to their discussions.

"So, Herman?" Cynthia said a moment later, returning her attention to her neighbor. "What's fun?"

Roxana sighed beside Federica, her shoulders slumping a defeated way. "Yes, what's fun?"

All of a sudden, Federica was reminded of the pin that might or might not drop. How had she forgotten that? The jitter of her earlier nerves roared back to life at that moment, enough so that Federica nearly startled when someone passed by the breakfast room entrance. It was a staff member carrying a new vase of fresh flowers.

"Well, there's a lot," Herman said, and she forced herself to pay attention to him. It was no use waiting for that pin. She had to let it happen when it happened. After all, she was eighteen years old and had the legal right to make her own decisions. A dousing thought crept through her mind: her father had enough legal savvy to counterclaim her rights.

She forcefully shoved away from the thought with a shake of her head, returning to the discussion at hand, and just in time.

"–and then there's a youth party this Thursday afternoon, sponsored by the Youth Centre. We're going to use it to meet up new members–"

"We?" Roxana asked, intrigued enough to forget her usual meekness.

Herman turned to her, and her chin lowered a notch in a usual sign of modesty. Federica realized she hadn't been like that the whole of Saturday, or in the evening. In fact, her nervousness and irritation had sparked her out of her shell. Clearly, she was having trouble returning to it again.

"Yeah. I'm part of the Youth Centre committee," he said, another glance cast towards Federica. This time she caught it, but he didn't turn away. Federica's chest tightened nervously, unsure of what to do.

Roxana pointedly stared at Cynthia, a smug smile threatening to pull free. Cynthia scoffed lightly before taking a sip of her drink. If a relationship ever struck up between these two, she was still sticking to the image of a boot over an ant, where Federica would be the boot.

"It's in the afternoon. Just a meet and greet, with a lot of new faces, new experiences. We're actually sourcing for youth teachers to share skills in a charity event," Herman said, never letting go of her gaze, but the fingers of his arm braced over the back of his chair tapped against the wood rhythmically. "Would you like to attend? All of you?" he glanced first to Roxana, and then to Cynthia, giving Federica a moment to breathe, eyes slightly wide and heart lodged in her throat before she met his inquisitive and hesitant gaze again.

At the last minute, she glanced away. Roxana's words returned to the forefront of her mind, added with Cynthia's oblivious comment on the male seated beside her. There was nothing wrong with Herman; on the contrary, he was, as she'd already noted, kind, clearly opinionated, and already friends with her family.

He was also a looker: that disorganized mess of curls on his head highlighting a pampered tone of Spanish skin, and the lighter brown eyes. Federica had nothing to worry about, especially by saying yes.

After all, it took an obscene amount of determination to ask a girl out in front of her clearly listening mother and, even closer, father.

Rodrigo slowly leaned back into his chair, gaze going between Herman and Federica, expression that of intrigued curiosity. A glance at her father noted the hard edge of his attentive eyes, however. It warmed a part of her to know that he was taking on the part of looming over father. Everyone knew Rodrigo d'Osana was more than capable of playing that role.

...sipping tea... Yes, everyone knew he was more than capable of it. Now, even she knew that. The warm weight was quickly doused by a darker cloud as Federica decided she could deal with this on her own. Before she could reply to Herman's answer, Federica was brought aware of her schedule.

"That will be impossible, Herman," Helena said, voice gentled in a way Federica hadn't heard when she'd been denied. They turned to her mother, Amada even stopping in her work to stare at their mother, pen twirling nonchalantly in her hand. "I'm sorry, Herman, but Federica will be expected at Georgina's birthday party."

A/N

Ooh, for a minute there I thought I'd forgotten Helena. Shocker...

That Herman has guts, though. So, let's talk about him for a hot moment. What do you think will happen next? Remember, Federica's a Damsell Who Dares, not a Damsel In Distress.

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As always, much love guys,

Yvie.