Chapter 19

Alejandro sat on the bench at a playground near his old house, tightly clutching onto his coat as he waited for his father to join him.

As he took a few deep breaths, he heard brisk footsteps coming closer towards him and immediately knew that it was his father. He squeezed his eyes shut as he felt the cold, strong wind against his face and skin. I can do this.

"Why here? Why couldn't we just talk at home or at the office?" Javier grumbled as he appeared and sat down on the bench next to Alejandro.

"I want to do this as father and son, and not as businessmen," Alejandro said, as he stared blankly into the distance at the swings in the playground, not meeting his father's gaze.

"Just cut to the chase, I have other matters to attend to," Javier muttered.

Alejandro took another deep breath and closed his eyes again, before reopening them. He then slowly took out an envelope from inside his coat with his right hand and handed it to his father, whilst still avoiding eye contact with him.

"What the fuck is this?" Javier grumbled as he grabbed the envelope out of Alejandro's hand.

Alejandro didn't say anything in response. He continued to focus on the swings in the playground.

"Feels like I'm talking to a wall here," Javier muttered as he opened the envelope and took out the letter inside. He raised a brow as he read the text.

"Letter of resignation? Is this some joke?" Javier grumbled.

"We used to come to this playground all the time when we first moved to Canada. You, me, Mamá, Carlos and José," Alejandro began, ignoring his father's remark.

"And I still vividly remember, this one time José aggressively pushed me off the swings. I was in so much pain and thought I had broken a bone. You yelled at José so hard until he started crying and then told me everything would be fine," he continued.

He then took another deep breath and finally forced himself to turn around and face his father.

"You were always my hero growing up, Papá. I've always admired and respected and looked up to you. Truth be told, I still do. And from when I was a kid, I always thought that I wanted to follow in your footsteps, and be a successful businessman like you. But lately, I've realized that I've been chasing a version of success and happiness this whole time that ultimately isn't where I want to be. And I only realized that after I met Heather," Alejandro said in one breath as he let that all out.

His father stared at the ground, not saying anything and not looking at Alejandro.

Alejandro turned back around to look at the swings again.

"I can't lie to myself any longer," he continued and then hesitated for a moment.

"And I know that if Mamá were still here, she'd want this for me too. She'd want me to be happy."

His father finally flinched and slightly tilted his head, although he still didn't say anything.

Alejandro stared blankly into the distance for a few moments, waiting to see if his father would respond, hoping that his father would say something to him. Anything.

After several minutes, he gave up. He took another deep breath and then stood up.

"Take care, Papá."

Javier still didn't reply.

Alejandro shook his head and then began walking away, before he suddenly stopped in his tracks. He hesitated and then slowly spun back around. There was just something else he needed to get off his chest.

"Can I ask why José, and why not me? It doesn't matter to me anymore but- I'm just curious," Alejandro blurted out and held his breath.

He was only met with silence and the sound of the cold, aggressive wind gushing.

"Never mind," Alejandro muttered as he put his hands in his pockets and started walking away again. He was naive to think that perhaps his father would finally be honest with him this time.

"He has more of it," Javier suddenly said.

Alejandro turned around, shocked that his father had finally said something. He sat back down on the bench and blinked. "Qué? More of what, Papá?"

Javier turned to look Alejandro in the eye. "José has more of a killer instinct that is necessary for the company and business. You do, too, but it's not as strong as his."

Alejandro blinked again, not sure that he'd heard correctly, and not sure whether he should take that as more of a compliment or insult.

"Deep down, you are more like your mother," Javier continued. "You care about the people who are important to you. And I know I've seen that with how you act when you're around Heather."

Now it was Alejandro's turn to be speechless. He stared blankly at his father as he continued to speak.

"Treasure what you have with her, son. Don't make the same mistakes I did. I always wish I had spent more time with your mother before she passed away, but I always let work consume me and my career be my first priority. And that is my biggest regret in life," Javier said.

Alejandro's eyes widened. He couldn't believe that his father, who was always reserved and never talked much about anything else other than business, was opening up to him like that.

There must only be one logical explanation for this, he decided. He then cautiously turned his head and glanced up at the sky. Nope, pigs weren't flying.

They sat together in silence for the next few minutes, Alejandro taking in what Javier had said and still in disbelief that his father was actually showing vulnerability for once, something he had clearly never witnessed before.

"I definitely value what I have with Heather, she means the world to me," Alejandro eventually said in a firm voice.

"Don't worry about the PR side of things at J&B, the company can handle it," his father responded.

Alejandro let out a small smile. "Gracias, Papá."

His father acknowledged him with a tiny nod and patted his shoulder, before he stood up and walked away, leaving Alejandro alone and lost in his thoughts once more.

***

That evening, Courtney and Heather were in Courtney's bedroom watching a movie together after work when they heard a knock on the front door.

"I'll get it, Court," Heather offered as she got up.

"Thanks Heath," Courtney yawned and stretched her arms.

Heather made her way down the stairs, taking her phone with her. She opened the door to see Alejandro.

"Alejandro?" She wasn't expecting to see him there tonight, as Alejandro would usually text or call her in advance if he planned on coming over. Although she certainly didn't mind the surprise and couldn't be happier to see him there.

"I did it," Alejandro said, his voice shaky and breathless. The three words that caused Heather's heart to instantly skip a beat.

"You did it," Heather repeated as she stared into his emerald green eyes. He really did it. He resigned.

"What was your dad's reaction?" she then gently asked.

"He said-" Alejandro began and then paused for a moment, thinking back to what his father had said to him. Heather bit her lip as she stared at him; he looked as if he were deep in thought. Was he having regrets?

"Alejandro? If you're having second thoughts, I'm sure your dad wouldn't mind if you-"

Heather was cut off as the next moment Alejandro promptly and firmly wrapped his arms around her, causing her to almost drop her phone and a tiny gasp to come out from her mouth. She tightly wrapped her arms back around him, breathing and taking in his scent.

"No, this is what I want," he firmly said as he pulled away.

"If you're sure." Heather let out a tiny smile.

"The conversation with Papá really surprised me actually. It was nice. He...he actually opened up to me," Alejandro continued.

Heather simply nodded and listened as he gave her a recap of what had happened with his father.

"You mean the world to me, mi amor," he then whispered to her as he gently lifted her chin and gazed lovingly into her eyes. "The absolute world."

Heather felt her heart beat faster. "As do you."

It's really happening, she thought. We went from business rivals to lovers and now lovers and business partners.

"I actually have a position and title in mind for you already," Heather added. "For your role at Illuminate."

Alejandro's emerald green eyes glittered with curiosity. "What is it?"

Heather smirked. "You'll find out soon."

Alejandro let out a chuckle. "Okay, mi reina, I will patiently wait. I do want to know though, whether you've had dinner yet."

Heather shook her head.

"Well, how about I make something for us and then we can watch a movie together?" Alejandro smirked.

"That sounds perfect," Heather smiled.

Heather thought to ask Courtney whether she was hungry too. She couldn't be bothered walking back upstairs so she just sent a quick text instead: Alejandro's here and we're making dinner. And by 'we' I mean Alejandro. Do you want some?

Courtney instantly replied: Aww, how sweet. Don't worry about me, I was thinking of just ordering UberEats anyway.

Heather reacted to Courtney's text with a 'thumbs up' and put her phone down. She then decided to take a shower first whilst Alejandro prepared dinner.

After her shower, she wandered back downstairs and leaned against the doorframe, watching silently as Alejandro stood in the kitchen cutting various vegetables. There was also a pot and pan set up on the stove. He looked like he was in his natural element.

Men who can cook are definitely very attractive, she thought to herself. He's so hot.

She continued to stand there silently and watch as Alejandro moved around, a look of admiration in her eyes. He doesn't know I'm staring at him like that right?

"Mi amor, you're staring," Alejandro suddenly spoke.

Heather froze as she felt a blush forming on her cheeks. How did he know what I was thinking? Or did I accidentally say that out loud?

She sighed and then walked closer towards him, before gently wrapping her arms around him from behind.

"Mmm, you smell so good," Alejandro murmured as he felt Heather's arms around him.

"What's for dinner?" Heather asked in a dreamy voice as she leaned in closer to him.

"Pasta," Alejandro replied. "I'm calling it the Alejandro speciality."

Heather peered her head around to take a closer look at what Alejandro was preparing. "That does look pretty delicious."

"Are you referring to the food or me?" Alejandro smirked as he turned around to face her.

Heather rolled her eyes and removed her hands from around his waist. "The food, duh. I'm literally starving."

"Okay, just making sure because I do seem to recall a very interesting incident involving something called maple syrup," Alejandro teased.

Heather instantly felt a blush forming on her cheeks at the memory. "If you keep bringing that up, maybe I'll secretly pour maple syrup in your hair when you're sleeping tonight."

Alejandro smirked. "You wouldn't do that."

"And why is that?" Heather challenged as she put her hands on her hips.

"Because then tomorrow morning I'll show up to Illuminate's office for my first day of work with disgusting hair and all your employees will be questioning your taste in hiring new staff," Alejandro answered in a smooth voice.

"Who says you get to start tomorrow?" Heather smirked. "I still need to ask Sierra to prepare your official employment contract. And plus, I still haven't done a background check on you yet."

Alejandro let out a chuckle. "Were you actually serious about that, mi amor?"

Heather nodded. "Uh huh. Obviously, I don't have any concerns but you still have to go through all the standard procedures regardless of your title or position. I have the highest of standards for all my employees and I make no exception, even if he's my boyfriend."

"And I love that about you," Alejandro smiled. He put an arm around her and kissed her cheek tenderly.

Heather smiled. "You know, I want to help with dinner too," she suddenly said.

"It's alright, mi amor, I've got it. You can just watch me cook," Alejandro replied.

"No, I want to help," Heather pouted.

Alejandro smiled. "Can you please pass me the olive oil then?"

Heather opened the kitchen cupboards and did a scan of the contents inside. She scrunched her nose when she couldn't seem to locate it. "Where is it?" she muttered to herself.

"It has the words 'olive' and 'oil' on it," Alejandro sarcastically responded as he tilted his head to look at her.

Heather rolled her eyes. "I'm not stupid, jerk."

"I know you're not," Alejandro smirked.

A few moments later, she found what she was looking over and handed it over to Alejandro, who carefully added the oil into the pan. Heather watched as he did so and then shifted her gaze to take a closer look at the vegetables that were still sitting on the chopping board. "I didn't even know we still had these in the fridge," she said in a surprised tone.

Alejandro turned around to look at Heather and let out another light chuckle. "If I'm being honest, I really feel like I know your own kitchen better than you do."

"That's because-" Heather opened her mouth to retort something back but her mind blanked and she couldn't think of a comeback. She realized he was right; Alejandro would often cook for her and her kitchen was now almost like a second home to him.

"Because what?" Alejandro asked, a smug look on his face.

Heather rolled her eyes. "Because my boyfriend probably spends more time here than I do. Happy now?"

"Only 'probably'?" Alejandro teased.

Heather gave him a playful shove. "Fine. You definitely spend so much time here that I think you should start dating my kitchen instead."

Alejandro laughed. "As much as I love your kitchen, I wouldn't trade mi amor for anything in the world."

Heather shyly cocked her head to one side. "Not even for one million dollars?"

Alejandro scratched his goatee and pretended to be in deep thought. "Hmm, that's a tough one actually. I might have to take back what I said before."

"Alright, pass me the kitchen knife right now," Heather scoffed.

Alejandro lifted his hands in defeat, before pulling Heather into another hug and placing a kiss on her forehead. "I'm only kidding. You are priceless to me."

Heather giggled and Alejandro gazed lovingly at her, whilst gently putting a loose strand of her hair behind her ear.

At that moment, the doorbell rang and Courtney came walking down the stairs.

"The tables have really turned," Courtney muttered when she walked past Heather and Alejandro.

Heather turned to stare at Courtney and let out a smirk. "What do you mean, Court?"

"I can't believe I'm the one who's third-wheeling now," Courtney pouted.

Heather put her hand over her mouth and faked a dramatic gasp. "Oh no, did something terrible happen to Duncan?"

Courtney rolled her eyes. "He's still alive, but he doesn't exactly cook. Or he'll try, and we'll be lucky if he doesn't end up setting the kitchen on fire."

"That's definitely a shame," Heather agreed.

"That's my UberEats order," Courtney said as the doorbell rang again. She stuck her tongue out at Heather and muttered a quick hello to Alejandro before she went to answer the door.

Once Alejandro finished cooking, he carefully placed two plates of the pasta on the dinner table. He noticed Heather had also lit up a romantic candle with a vanilla scent.

"Delicious," Heather nodded in content as she did a taste test of Alejandro's food. "Ten out of ten."

Alejandro smirked. "I've set the bar too high now."

After dinner, they made their way upstairs to Heather's bedroom. Whilst Alejandro turned on the TV, Heather made her way over to her desk and took out a set of files from the top drawer.

She then walked over to Alejandro and handed the document to Alejandro. Alejandro put down the TV remote to take the document out from her hand and gasped when he read the text on the front page: 'Illuminate Employment Contract'.

"I thought you said you still had to prepare my contract," Alejandro asked as he scratched his head, a perplexed look on his face.

Heather put her hands on her hips. "I might have a little something up my sleeve too. You're always surprising me, so this is my surprise for you. I asked Sierra to prepare this a few days ago."

"Where do I sign?" Alejandro smirked.

"Turn to page three," Heather instructed as she handed him a pen. "Are you sure you don't want to read through the whole thing first?"

"Oh, I will, don't worry," Alejandro chuckled. "I know how much your business means to you so I definitely want to carefully read through it all and make sure I understand everything."

Alejandro began reading through the contract. When he flipped through to page three, his eyes widened when he read the position he would hold at Illuminate. "Managing Director? Heather, are you sure?"

Heather nodded. "As Managing Director, you'll hold the second-highest position at Illuminate, after me as the Founder of course. There's no one else I can imagine in the role, and as Illuminate continues to expand, having a Managing Director definitely makes sense."

"Thank you for trusting me," he whispered. He read through the rest of the contract and signed his name.

Heather smirked as she took the signed copy back from his hand. "Welcome to the business."

--

A/N - so it's official now ;)

I feel that the talk between Alejandro and his father was definitely a much needed father-son moment as well.

What do we think will happen on Alejandro's first day at Illuminate? ;)

Comment / hit that star button if you enjoyed this chapter :)

Thanks for reading <3