Page 12 of XOXO, Valentina

“Race to the picnic shelter?” I asked, my breath puffing in a cloud between us.

Her chin lifted a notch, and without warning, she took off. After a moment, I followed her, catching up in three long strides. She glared at me when I passed her, and I threw her a wink. The path wound around a row of low bushes and then climbed a hill to our destination. I reached the bottom of the hill first and glanced back in time to see her vault over the bushes in a flying leap.

“Hey!” I yelled. “You’re cheating!”

Her laugh was sweet music to my ears. She landed as light as a gazelle a few meters in front of me, shot me a smug grin, and sprinted up the sidewalk.

“Watch out!” I pointed at a dangerous tree root pushing up through the concrete.

But it was too late. Her toe hit the root, and she flew through the air, landing not-so-gracefully in the grass.

6

Chapter 5

Gabi

My hands shot out in time to save me from planting my face on the sidewalk. I couldn’t save my elbow or my knee, though. They both scraped the sidewalk as I crashed to the concrete.

Mr. Morales crouched over me and touched his gloved hand to my arm just above the torn sleeve. “Evil root,” he said. “I’ve tripped over it myself.”

I noted his twinkling eyes. “Go ahead and laugh. I’m sure it was pretty funny.”

His smile was even gentler than his touch. “You fell very gracefully. Much better than I did.” His gaze traveled over me, and his eyes narrowed on my elbow. “You’re bleeding.”

I sat up and inspected my elbow, where my favorite shirt was torn and my skin was scraped raw. “It’s nothing.”

He skimmed his hand along my arm, feeling for injuries. His touch made a tingle of awareness race down my spine. I felt as silly as a teenager with a crush, trembling because he touched methrough his glove.

“You must be freezing,” he said.

Since we weren’t running anymore, the cold made me shiver. The temperature had dropped since I’d left home, and the sky had darkened. The forecast hadn’t predicted snow, but I could sense it in the cold, wet air.

“I should get going.” I was determined to get home before the snow came, and apparently I couldn’t be around Mr. Morales without making a fool of myself.

He took my hand and helped me to my feet. “Can you walk okay? Your knee is scraped too.”

I brushed aside his concern. I dealt with skinned knees on a regular basis. “I’m fine.”

“Come with me,” he said, wrapping my hand in his.

Even through his glove, I felt the warmth of his touch. My body didn’t need skin on skin to react to him. Just being near him made my belly flutter and my heart race.

“Where?” I asked, forcing a laugh. “Is there a first-aid kit nearby?”

“My place is just over there.” He pointed toward the park entrance.

I stiffened and pulled my hand from his. I couldn’t possibly go home with Mr. Morales. What if someone saw us? It wouldn’t look right. I had a reputation to uphold.

“Come on,” he said, sensing my hesitation. “You can get cleaned up and warm. I don’t know about you, but I could use a hot cup of coffee after freezing my ass off out here.”

I shivered and wrapped my arms around myself. “I don’t live far either,” I said. “Just a few miles.”

“I’m closer,” he said. “Let me take care of you.”

The protest died on my lips. How long had it been since a handsome man had offered to take care of me? Too long to remember. My rusty libido sputtered and kicked into gear, leaving me with an embarrassing flush on my cheeks. I fussed with my torn sleeve and avoided his eyes.

“I don’t want to trouble you.”

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