by Allen, Jewel
“Yes. I thought you and she would get on well.”
“With a picnic too?” Isa said. “I’m impressed.”
“There’s a picnic, is there?” he asked in surprise.
“I instructed the kitchen to bring something out, sir” Horatio said.
Alejandro turned his face towards Horatio’s voice. Was he trying to matchmake? At any rate, Alejandro didn’t mind. “Good work, Horatio.”
“Thank you, sir.”
“Can you mount by yourself?” Alejandro asked Isa.
“Yes,” she said cheekily. “I’m not that inept.”
“Perfect.” He mounted too and off they went.
It was easy to follow a path on the grounds. A long time ago, someone had the foresight to put gravel down and add railing to the path. A while back, for the fun of it, Alejandro had even blindfolded himself, as a personal challenge, so he could make it across the course.
He didn’t realize he would need to fall back on that experience later.
The horses walked at a relaxed, enjoyable pace, with the pleasant sound of the horse’s shoes clip clopping along. Alejandro wished he could see the landscape as he remembered, yet he had to content himself with the memories of what he had once enjoyed.
“Do you see that ruin to the left?” he asked
“Yes. I see it clearly from here. What is that?”
Alejandro spurred his horse on. “It is a ruin from the owners of this castle a long time ago. In the time of the exploration when they would send out armies and navies to strengthen the hold of the Spanish empire in the world. That used to be a monastery. It produced an army of monks who vowed their fealty to the Spanish King.”
She asked, “Can we go up there?”
“Well, it depends. I might not be able to lead us to the trail but if you wish, we can make our way up there. You will just have to lead the way.”
Hesitation filled her voice. “I could try, but I hope we won't get lost.”
“Don't worry,” he assured her. “There are a few landmarks around that will help indicate if we are on the right track.”
They started their way up and he could already tell that the horse underneath him was making progress up the hill just by the way he was moving. Alejandro had not gone up to the ruin in a long while. He was glad that, if he were to share this moment, he was doing it with Isabella Drake.
“What a wonderful estate this is,” Isa said.
“What do you see?”
“I can see a valley with so much open space, ringed by trees. I can see your castle. What a beautiful structure. You are so lucky to live here.”
“Am I?” he mused. “Living in isolation isn’t necessarily a healthy thing. I do love this place, but sometimes it can get lonely.”
“I can see that,” she said.
“Oh, who am I kidding?” he said. “I’ve been a recluse now for... since I can remember. My family protected me from real life. Protected might not be the real word. More like insulated me. I could paint all day and real life fell by the wayside. It’s a habit ingrained in me.”
“My mother was an artist, too,” Isa said. “She would paint all day in her art room and we children weren’t supposed to disturb her.”
“And you never learned to draw or paint?”
“I did, a little, but I didn’t have the talent.”
“Do you want to explore the ruin?” he asked.
“I would love that.”
“We can tie up to a tree,” he suggested. “Then, afterwards, we can eat our picnic.”
They took care of the horses. Isa allowed him to hold her shoulder so they could get around. She warned him of any changes in the terrain, though it still wasn’t enough to prevent some tripping over rocks or a dimple in the ground.
“I’m sorry,” she said, “I’m not very good at this.”
He reached up and touched her face, then her mouth. “Shhh.”
Under his fingertips, she trembled. A flame licked at him. He gazed at her parted lips, suddenly hungry.
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Isa’s breath caught as Alejandro’s fingers moved from her lips to the side of her mouth, to her jaw. Her eyes fluttered shut as they reveled in his touch.
His fingers curved under her hair as he pulled her towards him, his mouth seeking hers. She exulted in the kiss, at the feel of his assured confidence. He knew what he wanted and heaven forbid that anyone would come between them.
The kiss was soft, sweet, and then greedy and passionate. Her mind whirled at the pleasure that pulsated through her veins. At the pleasure that tingled through her body.
And then it was over, and he leaned his forehead against hers.
“After the book,” he murmured, “I want you to stay.”
“Stay?” she said, blinking.
He nodded. “Marry me.”
She gaped at him. “Do you realize what you’re asking?”
“Yes.” He kissed the back of her hand.
“This is such a big decision. I...I don’t know.”
“What don’t you know? I love you. Don’t you love me?”
“I do,” she said, and his arms tightened around her.
He looked puzzled. “Then...?”
She should be happy but...
“I can’t just walk away from my job.”
“Of course you can.”
“But I’ve just barely taken over the imprint.”
His expression soured. “In my household, my wife will be married to me alone, and not her job.”
“Well, maybe I don’t want to be married then!” She pushed out of his arms. “Don’t you realize how hard I’ve worked for this?”
“Yes, I know.” He sounded dejected. “So is that all this is to you, an interlude? I thought perhaps...”
“What? What did you think?”
“That you wanted me for longer than the book.”
She gazed at his downcast face. “I do love you, but I need more...constancy. I don’t expect perfection, of course. But I need to be able to rely on you emotionally, regardless of what happens to us.”
“I am a beast, is that it?”
“You can be, but—”
He had already flinched and turned away. “Let’s go.”
His voice chilled her to the core. Mounting his horse, he waited with a stony expression, and she had no choice but to follow suit.
Isa couldn’t get herself to speak. He was in one of those beastly moods again, where she couldn’t reach him. Perhaps after the ride, it would blow over.
What did he expect her to say? Did he really think he could count on a quick answer to such a complex question?
When they arrived at the stables, he let her guide him to the house, but he was cool to her. So cool that she wanted to cry.
But she waited. When they parted ways with him, unsmiling, she walked with all the dignity she could muster up the stairs, down the hall, and into her bedroom, where she finally wept.
Chapter Thirty
Isa glanced at the empty chair where Alejandro usually sat. Horatio told her that he wasn’t feeling well.
She ate her breakfast rather glumly, worrying about Alejandro but also still miffed at him. After an excellent breakfast of a potato omelet and fresh-squeezed orange juice, she went up to her room to change into her swimsuit and cover-up. A swim sounded good.
The pool was a step above a commercial facility. There were bleachers against one wall and an Olympic-size lap pool against another. Windows streamed sunlight through the translucent rafters above. One wall looked like it could retract and let the outdoors in.
What would it be like to have this kind of money?
You could have this if you marry him.
Isa sighed and dipped her foot in the water. The temperature actually felt warm. What a nice change from pools where you felt like getting in was some brave feat.
She dove in, her body slicing into the surface of the water. On the bottom, there was a wonderful mosaic art that looked li
ke one of those classical paintings of a mermaid. Isa swam around, taking it in, and then went to the surface to catch her breath.
Isa luxuriated in the warm pool, swimming in laps, floating on her back, diving back down and touching the mosaic. When she next surfaced, she realized she was not alone. Alejandro was making his way to the pool and stopped.
“Who’s there?” he asked.
She didn’t answer for a long moment. She gazed with rapt attention at his well-sculpted body. He obviously worked out, and it showed in his flat abs and toned muscles above his swim shorts.
“Me,” she said, her voice sounding strained to her ears.
His face relaxed, just a fraction. “Oh, hello.”
“Glad to see you’re feeling better.”
“I’m not really sick.” He gave her a sheepish grin. “I just didn’t feel like working on the book today.”
“Fair enough. You could still have come to breakfast.”
“Would I have been welcome?”
She gaped at him with surprise. “Naturally.”
“I just thought, after yesterday... never mind. Anyway. May I join you?”
“Of course,” she said. “Do you even have to ask?”
“I didn’t want to intrude upon your privacy.”
“There’s plenty of room for both of us.”
He nodded curtly, walked to the edge and dove in. He went to the bottom and swam like a bullet, and then he emerged on the other side.
“We could play Marco Polo,” he said, grinning.
“We could.”
“There’s a ball in the bin, over by the trash can. Do you see it?”
“Yes,” she said, seeing the container. “I’ll go get it.”
She hit the ball to him and he lunged for it. “Marco,” he said, after which she said, “Polo.” She caught the ball and they lobbed it between them several times. He was good, only dropping it once because of a wild shot of hers.
“Were you always athletic like this growing up?” she asked.
“No.” He shook his head. “I hated working out, or playing sports. I didn’t like being with other people or I didn’t have the time. Those were my excuses anyway. But when I moved into this castle ten years ago, I discovered I liked swimming. I set some personal goals so I could be faster, and realized that I needed to work out so I wasn’t always dying from being out of breath.”
“It obviously worked.”
He gave her a slow, cocky smile. “Do you like to work out?”
“Not consistently. I like to dance. I used to go to Zumba near our neighborhood.”
“I can count the number of times I have danced on my fingers.”
“Well, you should go out dancing, then.” She realized how absurd her comment sounded, but it was too late. “Sorry, that was silly.”
He swam closer to her until he was about ten feet away. “I should though. If only I could find a partner to dance with.”
She bit her lip. Did she want to encourage him after what he’d said yesterday? “I can probably be persuaded.”
“Really?” He looked happy as a schoolboy. “I mean,” he cleared his throat. “Really?”
“Sure.”
“What about tonight?” He added, “Since we’re already taking the day off.”
He looked like a teen bracing himself for rejection. She didn’t have the heart, not that she wanted to reject him.
“That sounds fun.”
He beamed.
She was suddenly overcome with yearning. For all her talk about keeping him at arm’s length, she wanted to kiss him.
She swam off instead. Thank goodness he couldn’t see her tell-tale expression.
“Want to do a diving contest?” he asked.
She eyed the diving platform up above. “What is that, a good ten feet up?”
“About right,” he said.
“No, thanks. I’m scared of heights.”
“Come on.” He was already moving towards the side of the pool. He hauled himself off and she tried to not stare at his well-toned body.
“I’ll watch you and cheer you on,” she said.
“Fine.”
He moved to the platform with impressive accuracy. He’d obviously done this many times before. He climbed the ladder like a monkey, and, with a mischievous grin on his handsome mug, ran and catapulted off the diving board.
He made a smooth sound at impact and hardly made a splash.
Isa applauded sincerely. He had been a sight to behold.
He swam right up to her, to her alarm. If she were to reach out, she’d touch his torso, covered attractively with dark hair.
“Your turn,” he said, wiping his face.
“No,” she said. She tried to swim away, but he caught her arm.
“If you don’t, I’ll just have to kiss you instead.”
“I’ll dive,” she said.
His laughter echoed as she swam to the edge of the pool and onto the pool walkway.
“I could just walk out and leave you,” she said.
“What would be the fun in that?”
“Bully,” she said under her breath. She climbed the ladder and looked down. “Are you sure this is ten feet?”
“That was my best guess.”
“Because it looks more like twenty.”
“It could be, I don’t know. I can’t see.”
She rolled her eyes and made her way to the edge of the platform. Her hands felt clammy and cold all of a sudden. Tingly.
“No,” she said, groaning. “I can’t do this.”
“Try jumping blind. Not seeing what you’re jumping into? That’s scarier.”
“It’s easier if you can’t see how high you are.”
“Then close your eyes.”
She did and instantly panicked. “No,” she whispered.
“Do you want to be enlightened or not? Close your eyes. I’ll count.”
“In Spanish?”
“Yes. If you want.”
“How will I know you’re done counting?”
“I will say, ándale.”
She bit her lip. “Okay, let’s do this.”
“Diez, nueve, ocho...”
Waiting for “uno,” she held herself stiffly.
She would run out and then jump.
“Ándale!”
She ran out and stopped at the last minute. No, she couldn’t do it. But too late, her momentum propelled her into a leaning position, and she fell off awkwardly.
Her scream echoed in the cavernous room right before she fell with a huge splash.
Her nose filled up with water. Her leg kind of hurt from the impact. But she did it. And he hadn’t seen it, thankfully.
“Wonderful job,” he said, swimming over to her.
“Thanks. That was nuts, but thanks for encouraging me.”
“I could kiss you in congratulations, if you want,” he said.
“That’s okay,” she said.
A sweet moment passed between them. Delicious. But like the dive, she was scared to jump right in. Especially when things were still up in the air between them. Isa swam to the edge of the pool and got out.
“Thanks for the fun,” she said.
“Tonight,” he said, “Dinner and dancing?”
She thought about it for one long moment.
“Dinner and dancing,” she repeated. “Yes.”
Chapter Thirty-One
Alejandro waited by Reina outside. He felt his braille watch. She was late. Maybe she changed her mind. Maybe...
The door opened and there were quiet footsteps, tok, like thin heels.
“Hello,” she said, sounding breathless. “I hurried downstairs when I realized the time.”
He shrugged. “No problem.” He moved to the passenger door and opened it. As she passed him, he caught an exquisite whiff of perfume.
He got in the driver’s side and turned to her. “What are you wearing tonight?”
“A blue dress.”
“And?”
&
nbsp; “And what?”
“You know me. Always curious about the details.”
“It’s an interesting material. Thin but velvety. It has a closed front collar and the shoulders are bare. In the light, it sparkles.”
“May I touch it?”
“Sure. Here.”
She put the hem of her skirt in his hand, and suddenly, he felt a strong kick in his blood. Wanting this woman. All he did was touch the fabric.
“It makes me think of parachute material,” he said.
She laughed. “Yes, that’s about right.”
“But you’re not striped like a parachute?”
Her laugh turned to giggles. “No.”
“And you, Señor Diaz, are handsome in that tux.”
Her voice deepened. Reluctantly, he let her skirt go. He wished...
No, don’t go there, Alejandro. Give her space. So she wouldn’t bolt.
She scolded him about not committing, when she herself was flighty. Touch-move.
“Shall we go?” he asked, not making another attempt to touch her.
At the gate, Isa wanted him to stop. “I would like to talk to Max.”
Alejandro raised an eyebrow but did as she asked.
“Hello, Max,” her melodious voice floated up. “How are you tonight?”
“Fantástico, madam. Good evening, sir.”
“Good evening,” Alejandro said curtly.
“We’re going dancing,” Isa announced.
“You look beautiful, if I may say so, ma’am.”
“You may.” She laughed flirtatiously.
Alejandro gripped the steering wheel. Ah, he could see now the lay of the land.
“We can go,” Isa said. “Have a good night, Max.”
“You too!”
They were quiet through the drive. Alejandro hadn’t felt this jealous since... he couldn’t honestly remember. He hadn’t even thought about other men being attracted to Isa. But of course, who wouldn’t? She was beautiful, funny, and intelligent.
Isa broke the silence. “What are you thinking of?”
“Nothing,” he lied.
“Your face has been interesting to watch.”
He schooled his expression and turned to her. “How so?”
“Well, for one, you look angry.”
“I only have goodwill for the universe tonight.”
