A Proposal They Can't Refuse (Vega Family Love Stories, #1)

by Natalie Caña

All Latinx people knew Vaporú was the cure for everything from a common cold to heartbreak.

“Nena,

Paseo Boricua was still a microcosm of Chicago’s Puerto Rican community, but the miniature had begun to show cracks and chips just like an antique portrait painted on a porcelain pendant.

Poor Mami: she wanted so badly for her only girl to be a polished princess. Instead, she’d got a high-strung hot mess.

“You need to learn that shutting the fuck up is free, but constantly talking out of your neck can cost you.”

“It’s bad enough that I was mad at her for being sick.”

“How messed up is that? My grandmother, the woman who taught me everything I knew, the woman I idolized, was dying, and I was mad at her as if she’d done it on purpose.”

“Of course you were upset about giving up on your dream. That doesn’t make you selfish. That makes you human. You don’t have to be a magnanimous superhero to deserve your family’s love and respect. You just have to be yourself.”

I feel like I let everyone down so much more than anyone else when I stumble. Like my mistakes are remembered more and judged harder. I feel like I can’t say no and have that be enough.”

“For being sweet and sexy and considerate and all-around amazing. I wasn’t supposed to think these things about you. I wasn’t supposed to feel this way. That wasn’t part of the deal.” She paused. “It was unfair of you to make me fall in love with you.”

It was as if she was testing him to see how much shit he’d put up with for her, and then she got mad that it wasn’t enough. Why did she always do that?

That you can get over it? There is no getting over it. There’s only learning to live with it. And it’s bloody hard—take it from me. But missing someone you loved for the rest of your life doesn’t make you weak, Liam. It makes you strong, because you survive despite that onslaught of pain.”

It was a weird and distinctly unpleasant feeling, being unsure of what to do in the house she was raised in.

I got lost in Familia primero. I thought that in order to prove your love to someone, you had to be willing to sacrifice for them, so that’s what I started doing, and at first it felt great. I loved it when I was the one that was able to help get something done and figure something out. To be honest, I still do. But somewhere along the way, I made myself a martyr.

I’m hurt that you sacrificed your dream and never said anything about it but held it against us. When sacrifices are made in excess, out of duty, or with resentment, they cease to mean anything positive.”

“You need to realize that family first doesn’t mean at the expense of everything else. It means that we all look out for one another, support one another, and respect one another because the love we feel for each other is first in our hearts.”

He had offered her his heart over and over, and she’d ignored it because he hadn’t done it the way she wanted.

“I named this whiskey Coquí, because, like the goddess to her love, my heart has always called for you.”

“I appreciate everything that makes you Liam, and I love you exactly as you are.”

Keep each other’s counsel, because you need to trust one another.”

“Number two. Be present. Loving someone is not easy. You both have to show up ready to put in the work and stay even when things get hard, and they will. But they will also be good, so enjoy each other, and enjoy the way you feel together.

“Support each other. You don’t always have to agree or understand each other, but you have to remember that you have a partnership. Life is full of ups and downs, but together you can not only make it through but make it through happily.”