From ALONG CAME AMOR by Alexis Daria. Copyright © 2025 by Alexis Daria. Reprinted by permission of Avon Books, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers.
Chapter 2
It was early evening and the restaurant in the Dulce Playa Hotel’s lobby wasn’t full. Only a few people sat in booths scattered around the open space. The dim lighting emphasized the taste-
ful deep blue and gold color scheme, and a classic rock song played low in the background.
Ava perched her butt on one of the high chairs stationed at the bar. With her long legs, she was practically the same height as when she’d been standing.
Old Ava would’ve been mortified to drink at a bar by herself, but New Ava had a book in her purse and she would survive this. Turning over the menu, a lovely piece of textured navy blue cardstock with gold foil lettering, she immediately spotted the rosé option. She was tempted to order it anyway, regardless of Damaris’s decree, but one glass cost more than an entire bottle did at Ava’s local liquor store. Besides, she was starting a new
chapter, right? Might as well let the Universe decide for her. Closing her eyes, Ava swirled her index finger for three seconds before jabbing it down on the signature cocktails menu. When she opened her eyes, she peered at the drink the Universe had chosen.
A Limón Dulce.
Hmm, maybe that was like lemonade. Could be refreshing.
Despite being October, it was a hot, humid day.
Ava made eye contact with the bartender, a fresh-faced young woman with a rosy complexion and dark hair slicked into a low ponytail. She wore the Dulce’s uniform of a black vest over a dark blue button-up with a nametag that read “Luz.” “What can I get for you?” Luz asked as she made her way over.
Ava offered a polite smile. “I’ll have a Limón Dulce, please.” “You got it.” Luz set a square napkin—dark blue, with the Dulce logo stamped in gold—in front of Ava and moved a few feet away to mix the drink in a cocktail shaker. As Luz poured the liquid into a martini glass, she asked, “You’re here for the
teacher’s conference?”
Ava nodded. “How did you know?”
“I didn’t think it was the other one.” With a grin, Luz set the pale yellow drink on the napkin. “Enjoy.”
Other one? Before Ava could ask, Luz moved away to help another customer. Ava murmured her thanks anyway, then discreetly sniffed the drink. The color bore an alarming resemblance to urine, but the crisp citrus scent reminded her of baking lemon bars with her little sister, Willow, in their father’s kitchen. Ava lifted the glass to take a sip.
And nearly spit it back out.
Forget lemonade. This was more like furniture polish, strong and sour and nowhere close to the tangy sweetness she’d been expecting.
Ava couldn’t control her grimace as she swallowed.
As the stinging in her mouth subsided, she set the glass back on the napkin and tried to school her features, hoping the bar- tender hadn’t seen.
So much for new experiences. She’d just go upstairs, order French fries, and watch Pride & Prejudice for the millionth time.
Alone.
The enormity of her loneliness hit her like a sledgehammer. She’d bottled things up during her marriage, acted like everything was fine throughout the divorce, but somehow, this disappointing drink was the last straw.
The need to talk to somebody, anybody, welled up in her like a tidal wave.
But there was no one.
Jasmine and Michelle were busy with their new lives. Damaris wouldn’t be there until later that night. Ava’s mother worked the night shift as a NICU nurse, and never mind her dad or stepmom—they tiptoed around the subject of divorce like it was a contagious sickness and Ava’s father was in remission.
Eyes hot, she blinked hard and pushed her glass toward the other side of the bar. As she was opening her purse to pay, someone approached on her left.
Wary, Ava glanced at the newcomer. A ton of empty seats stretched along the bar, so why was somebody trying to sit right next to . . .
Holy shit.
Her thoughts stuttered to a halt as her gaze traveled over the man beside her, taking note of every handsome feature. Dark wavy hair with hints of silver at the temples. Strong jaw. Brown eyes, impossibly long lashes, and thick, straight brows. The faint lines at the corners of his eyes only added to his attractiveness, as if they were neon arrows inviting her to drown in their depths. The word that came to mind was dreamboat. Old fashioned, but it fit him as perfectly as the dark blue silk suit that accentuated his broad chest and shoulders.
On second thought, he could sit next to her anytime.
With a friendly smile, he gestured at her glass. “Something wrong with your drink?”
Shit. He must have seen her reaction. Embarrassment warmed her cheeks, but she tried to play it off, like the smooth timbre of his voice wasn’t doing dark and delicious things to her. “Oh no, the drink’s fine.”
His expression turned skeptical. “The face you made when you tasted it says otherwise.”
She waved a dismissive hand. “I’m not really thirsty anyway.”
Eyes filled with amusement, he picked up the glass and sniffed. Then, to her surprise, he took a sip.
“Wow.” With a slight raise of his brows, he set it back down and cleared his throat. “Did you order that on purpose?”
“I left it up to the Universe,” she grumbled. “What was that?”
“Nothing. I just wanted something . . . strong, I guess.” She wasn’t going to explain the concept of New Ava to him.
“This wasn’t what you were expecting?” “Not exactly.”
When he smiled, soft laugh lines bracketed his mouth. “Let’s get you something else.”
“That’s not—wait, what are you doing?”
He rounded the end of the bar as if it were the most normal thing in the world. “I’m going to make you a different drink.” Ava stared at him, aghast, and darted a look at the bartender.
Luz was helping someone else down at the other end and paying this attractive stranger no mind.
“You can’t just go behind the bar,” Ava hissed at him.
Across from her, he leaned his forearms on the polished wood surface. “Why not?”
This man was handsome, but clearly lacking in common sense. Still, instead of walking away, she found herself answering his rhetorical question. “It’s not allowed.”
“Says who?”
She sputtered, trying to think of a response. “The law.” “What law?”
“I don’t know, but I’m sure this violates the hotel’s liquor license, at the very least.”
His smile became conspiratorial. “I appreciate the concern, but I think they’ll make an exception.”
She got the distinct impression that she was walking into a trap. “And why’s that?”
“Because I’m the owner. Roman Vázquez.” He nodded to her purse. “Look me up before you have me arrested for im- personating a bartender.”
Some part of her still felt like he was fucking around, but his self-assured expression had her pulling out her phone. She typed the name he’d given her into the search bar.
And there he was.
Roman Alejandro Vázquez, CEO of VQZ Ltd.
Ava did a quick scan of the results. First, a list of Dulce Hotel locations around the country, then a recent Forbes article about a real estate acquisition in Japan. Ava tried not to look at the headlines speculating his net worth, but it was impossible to miss the word million at the end. She zoomed in on a picture of him in a hotel lobby very much like this one, where he posed casually with one hand in his pants pocket, then she glanced at the man leaning against the bar. Same broad shoulders, same easy smile, same dreamy brown eyes.
What the photo did not capture was the way his brow quirked with amusement, his playful tone of voice, or the simmering heat in her chest caused by his equally obvious perusal of her.
“Well,” she said through a throat suddenly gone dry. “That’s you, all right.”
“That’s me.” Roman’s gaze flickered over her face. “And you are?”
Now that she knew he wasn’t some overentitled asshole with no sense of propriety, she stuck her hand out for him to shake. “Ava. I’m here for the education conference.”
“Nice to meet you, Ava.” He reached across the bar to shake her hand. His grip was firm and dry, but warm. The lobby was well air-conditioned, and her imagination supplied a flash of those warm hands running down her cool arms. She fought off a shiver, then chided herself. Instead of picturing where else this stranger could touch her with those warm hands, she should’ve brought a sweater.
“Cold?” Mischief glinted in his eyes.
Ava’s cheeks warmed. Was he flirting with her? She was saved from having to reply when the actual bartender hurried over.
“Do you need help with anything, Mr. Vázquez?”
He gave Luz a pleasant smile. “I’m good. Just getting back to my roots.”
Once Luz left to help another guest, Roman picked up the shaker and gave it a spin before setting it down on the bar.
Ava raised her eyebrows. “Are you trying to impress me?”
The look he gave her could melt a popsicle in winter. “Is it working?”
Holy shit, he was flirting with her. She couldn’t stop the smile that tugged at her lips. “A little.”
“Only a little? I better step up my game.” He grabbed a dark blue glass bottle out of the fridge behind the bar and rolled it down his arm to land in front of her. “Start with this.”
Ava lifted it to look at the label. “What is it?” “Sparkling water.”
“Oh.” She gave a little laugh and unscrewed the bottle be- fore taking a sip to wash away the taste of the Limón Dulce.
Roman gave the martini glass in front of her a pointed look. “What were you going to do? Pay for it and not drink it, or drink it and suffer in silence?”
Ava sighed. “Pay for it and not drink it.”
“Well, we can’t have that.” He slipped the offending lemon drink away and dumped it out. “How do you feel about rum?”
She twisted the cap back onto the water. “I only buy it to make coquito.”
His eyebrows rose. “¿Tú eres Latina?”
“Puerto Rican on my dad’s side. My mom is from Barbados.” “Boricua and Bajan. I bet you make a killer coquito.”
She grinned. “Don’t tell my grandmother, but I made a few adjustments to her recipe, and all my cousins agree mine is better.”
“Don’t worry, Ava. Your secret is safe with me.”
Something about the way he said her name had goosebumps prickling up her spine.
Her cousins would know exactly what to do in this situation. Jasmine would toy with her hair and lean forward to show off her cleavage. Michelle would make a sarcastic quip, the kind that managed to be equal parts funny and suggestive.
But Ava wasn’t like her cousins. She wasn’t sensual or bold.
She was practical and polite.
So she ignored her pounding heart and warm cheeks and just murmured, “Thank you.”
Roman’s gaze landed on her lips. She caught the rise and fall of his chest, like he was breathing deep.
“My pleasure,” he said in a low voice, and then he turned, breaking the tension that had wrapped thickly around them, to grab a bottle. He flipped it over to his other hand and said, “Let’s start with a tasting.”
From ALONG CAME AMOR by Alexis Daria. Copyright © 2025 by Alexis Daria. Reprinted by permission of Avon Books, an imprint of HarperCollins Publishers.
Primas of Power #3
A Novel
From the international bestselling author of You Had Me at Hola and A Lot Like Adiós comes a steamy love story of a divorced schoolteacher who discovers that her perfect no-strings fling is anything but…
No strings
After Ava Rodriguez’s now-ex-husband declares he wants to “follow his dreams”—which no longer include her—she’s left questioning everything she thought she wanted. So when a handsome hotelier flirts with her, Ava vows to stop overthinking and embrace the opportunity for an epic one-night-stand complete with a penthouse suite, rooftop pool, and buckets of champagne.
No feelings
Roman Vasquez’s sole focus is the empire he built from the ground up. He lives and dies by his schedule, but the gorgeous stranger grimacing into her cocktail glass inspires him to change his plans for the evening. At first, it’s easy for Roman to agree to Ava’s rules: no strings, no feelings. But one night isn’t enough, and the more they meet, the more he wants.
No falling in love
Roman is the perfect fling, until Ava sees him at her cousin’s engagement party—as the groom’s best man, no less! Suddenly, maintaining her boundaries becomes a lot more complicated as she tries to hide the truth of their relationship from her family. However, Roman isn’t content being her dirty little secret, and he doesn’t just want more, he wants everything. With her future uncertain and her family pressuring her from all sides, Ava will have to decide if love is worth the risk—again.
This emotional rollercoaster ride of a novel will have you laughing and crying and believing in happily-ever-afters!
Multicultural Romance | Women's Fiction Contemporary [HarperCollins, On Sale: May 27, 2025, Paperback / e-Book , ISBN: 9780062960009 / ]
Alexis Daria is the author of the Dance Off series, starting with TAKE THE LEAD (SMP Swerve) and DANCE WITH ME. A romance writer, artist, and native New Yorker, Alexis has a BFA in Computer Arts, but her most fulfilling job was as a group facilitator for a women’s empowerment community, where she coached other women in following their creative dreams.
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