Jojo Arias, a Spanish-Filipino mestizo, didn’t expect to meet a U.S. Marine in a tony bar in the Philippines. But, Jojo can’t deny the electricity they have once he meets Adam.<br><br>Although they come from different worlds, they struggle to keep their relationship private to protect Jojo’s status and position as an heir to one of the wealthiest and powerful families in Filipino society. Billions of dollars could be easily lost if his family business is jeopardized by Jojo’s secret love affair.<br><br>Because of his standing in society, Jojo is pressured to abandon Adam and live a life in the closet. But he doesn’t want to leave the man he loves. As he struggles to maintain their secret romance, things begin to unravel and Jojo has to make a life-changing decision. Should he choose to stay with his family, or does he have the courage to pursue the love of his life?

Under the Jasmine Flowers

“And then we both realized it was our hearing. We probably should get hearing aids,” Elmer said, laughing.


Jojo smiled. His father and Elmer were laughing as if there was an inside joke between them. He liked his father this way. It didn’t happen often that his father smiled in public get-togethers, much less laugh in public. Even Jojo’s mother seemed to enjoy the two of them huddled, whispering.


“Francesca, your father says you have studied at the Parsons School of Design, the Sorbonne and a little at Milan.”


“I’ve always encouraged Jojo to seek a master’s degree in engineering, or maybe go to law school. He went to CalPoly and studied engineering. Before he came to work for the family business, he was working in California, designing hotels, like your father’s.”


“Well, actually I was doing more infrastructure projects, roads, bridges, I started a project with the company involving a hotel in Hawai’i, but I left shortly after that project began.”


Chapter 36