Winnie was in custody and had confessed her crimes, but not before arranging a meeting with Valerie and Beth over Katie’s future. The two women talked it over with Winnie and their lawyers (after Valerie had a paternity test drawn up that confirmed Katie was Rob’s daughter), and the three of them decided that until Katie came of age, she would be in the care of the Thompsons. Valerie and Katie would move into the Thompson house, Beth would move into her own condo nearby, and together they’d provide guidance and hopefully love to that confused young woman. My heart went out to her. But Valerie and Beth were both powerhouses in their own way. The fact that they were setting their egos aside long enough to care for this girl together spoke volumes.
Sana realized she’d strayed further than she’d meant to from her nonprofit-loving ways, and partnered with Sara Colon, the runner-up of the pageant, to set up an organization to help teen moms get an education and learn business skills. Since she wasn’t a practicing lawyer anymore, she enlisted Amir’s help. It wasn’t his area of expertise, but he was eager to do his part and helped the organization pro bono. Part of it was his good heart delighting in helping a good cause. Pretty sure the other part was how Sana’s eyes lit up when she saw him. Nothing had happened yet, but it was only a matter of time. Good for them. They suited each other perfectly, and I wished them luck.
When I was resting at home, not allowed to speak or do anything but sleep and drink plenty of fluids, Jae came to visit me. He had a sparkly black ukulele and music book with him.
“I noticed your reaction when Joy was playing. I know you won’t be able to sing for a while, but maybe you can create music in a different way.”
I tried to hold my tears back, but that just made my throat hurt even more, so I let out a sob and threw myself into his arms. He patiently stroked my hair as I let out everything I’d been holding in for the last few days . . . months . . . years. When it was time for him to leave, I grabbed his hand before I could lose my nerve.
“Wait for me.” I didn’t elaborate—even those few words hurt to force out, but they had to be said. The look in Jae’s face changed ever so slightly as he bent over to kiss my forehead.
“OK.”
That’s all he said. But it was enough. He was willing to wait—he knew I had to heal, in so many different ways, before I was ready to be in a relationship with him. He understood and was willing to let things be for now.
All that was left was making things right with Adeena and Elena. Even though I’d been good about my responsibilities regarding the shop, I knew they could sense my wishy-washy attitude and were annoyed by it. They were my partners. They had just as much riding on the success of the cafe as I did. And it was time to stop acting as if everything were all about me. The icy halo-halo soothed my throat as I listened to my besties chattering about the immense success the Founder’s Day Festival had been for the shop—the rather dramatic climax notwithstanding.
“I called Dr. Kang,” I said when there was finally a lull in the conversation. “After all that happened at the festival . . . it was time.”
“Well, I would’ve preferred a less life-threatening way for you to have that epiphany, but I’m glad you got there in the end. But now I wonder . . . are you ready to go all in with the business? Once you’re healed up, I need to know that I can count on you. That we can count on you,” Adeena said, placing one hand on mine and the other on Elena’s.
The seriousness of the moment required an honest answer and my full, undivided attention. But before I could respond, the bell above the door sounded, announcing the arrival of a small family.
Their laughs died as they took in the tension in the room and our serious expressions. One of the parents cleared their throat. “Oh, I’m sorry. We loved your booth at the Founder’s Day Festival and wanted to check out your shop. But I didn’t think to check . . . Are you officially open yet?”
They herded the children closer in case they had to leave, but I made up my mind in that moment. I stood up and said, in a voice that was only a touch shaky, “Yes, actually, we are. Welcome to the Brew-ha Cafe!”
Acknowledgments
Second Book Syndrome is all too real, and I need to thank my agent, Jill Marsal, and my editors, Angela Kim and Michelle Vega, for helping me bring this book to life. There were many times I thought I was never going to finish, or never going to get it right, but you all provided fantastic feedback and support and understanding. Thank you so, so much for that. I also need to thank Vi-An Nguyen for providing me with yet another AMAZING cover that I absolutely adore (Longganisa with that tiara? My heart . . .), and my amazing PR and marketing team for their tireless work in getting my books out there: Dache’ Rogers, Jessica Mangicaro, and Natalie Sellars. I’d also like to thank the rest of my Berkley/PRH family: Christine Legon, Liz Gluck, and the ad/promo team.
The past year and a half has been A LOT, so I especially need to shout out the group that helped me keep it together this whole debut journey: my beloved Berkletes. Thanks for providing a safe space to celebrate, commiserate, thirst, and more. Y’all are the best.
Another group that’s been there for me this past year is my awesome DnD group, Ye Olden Girls. Real life has gotten in the way and we can’t meet as regularly as we used to, but you all have brought so much fun and laughter into my life. Thanks so much for your love and support.
Slightly unorthodox, but since we’re talking about people who helped me keep it together in 2020 and beyond, I want to thank Alyssa Cole and Talia Hibbert (among many other BIPOC romance authors) for saving my mental health with your joyful portrayals of BIPOC romance. We don’t, like, know each other or anything, but your books helped me get through some tough times, and I can’t thank you both enough for that. Same for Sherry Thomas, whose Lady Sherlock series I reread over and over and over in the first few months of the pandemic, when I needed the comfort of familiarity as well as excellent storytelling. Books truly can save people.
To all the librarians who’ve been so supportive, thank you so much! Library work is tough, and I appreciate the wonderful things you all provide to the community. Same goes to all you booksellers out there who are kind enough to not only stock my book but also hand-sell it and include it in your employee picks. It’s never not thrilling to see my book out in the wild.
To my readers, thanks so much for your support! To the ones who take the time to message me or post on social media about how my book made them feel seen, you have no idea what that means to me. And to the ones who take the time to educate me when I mess up, thank you. From the bottom of my heart, thank you for letting me know so I could learn and do better. For investing your time and energy in me because you believed I could do better. I love you all.
And finally, to James and my family. I love how excited you all get for me over every little thing, and all the ways you try to support and be there for me. I couldn’t have done this without you all.
Love love!
Recipes
Tita Rosie’s Grilled Adobo Chicken Wings
Tita Rosie makes this fun summertime spin on chicken adobo for parties and picnics. These are the general proportions that you can scale up or down, depending on how many people you’re serving.
Ingredients (per pound of chicken):
1 pound of chicken wings and/or drumsticks per person 1 teaspoon baking powder
? teaspoon garlic powder ? teaspoon salt ? teaspoon black pepper
For the sauce (per pound of chicken):