The Spanish Love Deception

“Right into your bed?” I inched closer, my thighs now brushing his.

He tugged at my hand some more, encouraging me to move even closer. “Yes. But right here with me too. Exactly where I have always wanted you.”

I hummed, sparks of happiness flaring up in my chest. “They loved you, you know?” I moved my head into the space between the underside of his jaw and his collarbone. “I mean, I can’t believe I’m going to say this, but it’s kind of hard not to.”

I placed a kiss on his skin, wondering how I had not realized this myself a long time ago. How … loyal and caring and soft he was beneath all that frowning and scowling. Although maybe I had. Maybe that would explain why I had been so hurt over him brushing me aside. Over him not wanting anything to do with me. Over him not letting me in. I shook my head. It didn’t matter. Not now.

“My mom has never talked so highly about someone. Isabel told me she wouldn’t shut up about you. Aaron speaks Spanish so well. Aaron is so tall and handsome. Aaron has the bluest eyes I have ever seen. Have you seen Aaron smiling at our Lina like that? He came all the way from America to meet us. And she wasn’t the only one. I was scared Abuela would try to steal you away from me, I swear. She was so … enamored; it kind of got a little awkward at some point.” I laughed lightly at the memory. “Do you think I’ll have to fight my own grandmother over you?”

Expecting him to chuckle, I was shocked when a deep sigh left him instead.

I looked up at him, not able to discern much in the dark. “Hey, what’s wrong?”

“There’s nothing wrong, baby.” His voice was coated with a kind of emotion I didn’t quite understand.

I tugged at the fabric of his shirt, encouraging him to tell me.

He sighed again. “It’s just that … I’ve never had that. Not ever. Your family is so …”

“Messy? Loud? Kind of overstepping all the time?”

“They are but in the best kind of way.” He paused, his hand coming to the back of my head. Long fingers brushed my hair down. “The closest I’ve ever come to that was when it was the three of us, and somehow, I forgot what it was like.”

My chest hurt at hearing that, and I came even closer to him, wishing I could take all that pain away from him. Wishing I could breathe a little warmth into him.

“Your family loves you, and that’s a kind of bond you can’t force. It’s a kind of love one doesn’t find anywhere else. It can be overwhelming, but that’s only because it’s always honest. And being part of that, even if only for a few days, meant … the world. More than you could ever know.” His lips fell on my hair with a fierceness that hadn’t been there before. “I wasn’t pretending, Catalina. Not for a minute. It was all real for me. That’s why it meant so much.”

“Aaron,” I breathed, not really knowing what to say. How to explain the uprising inside of me.

“So, it’s me, the one who’s glad. The one who’s fucking relieved you took me and not someone else with you. I’m the one who’s thankful.”

I swallowed, trying my best to push back the unfiltered joy threatening to flood my system and rob me of my next breath. “You don’t ever have to thank me for something like that, Aaron. You never have to.”

His chin fell on top of my head, and I felt his exhale on my hair. “I do, baby. I do.”

Chapter Twenty-Five

“Oh my God, you look like you just came out of a sex marathon.”

“Rosie,” I hissed, smacking her arm.

Her cheeks turned red, and both her hands jumped to her mouth.

We were on the coworking space floor of the building at lunchtime, so more than a few tables were occupied with groups of people enjoying their break. We had been lucky to snatch one that sat close to the floor-to-ceiling windows.

My friend looked around, her hands freeing her lips. “Shit, I’m so sorry,” she whispered.

“It’s okay.” I snickered. She looked so flustered; it was even cute. “No need to apologize.”

“It’s just that you look all glowy and ruffled.” She kept her voice low and quiet.

“You can stop whispering, Rosie.”

“Okay,” she whispered again. I rolled my eyes, and she cleared her throat. “So, you guys are not keeping it a secret or anything, right?”

“I … guess we are trying to figure that out.” I shook my head. “But there’s a difference between not keeping it a secret and broadcasting to everybody that I just got laid.”

“You are right. Sorry.” Some of the pink returned to her cheeks. “It’s your hair, seriously. It looks …” Her hand spun in the air in an overexaggerated way.