Page 23 of Love Bites
“Gracias por la ayuda,”he said to them as he pulled his wallet from his back pocket. He tossed the singer a few bills before leading Katheryn away. The laughter of the band followed them.
“That was fun,” Katheryn said a little breathlessly. “It’s the most fun I’ve had since I last saw you.”
Ignacio stared at her a little guiltily. “You haven’t had a good time here?”
Katheryn shrugged. “When I’m with you I have a good time. But when I’m wandering by myself, I just feel nervous and lonely. I guess that’s what I get for going to a country where I don’t know the language.”
Ignacio stared at her for a moment.
“Oh, by the way!” Katheryn remembered, slapping her forehead. “I forgot to apologize to you about the other day.”
Ignacio raised an eyebrow. “Apologize for what?”
Katheryn blushed. “If I had known the food would have made you sick the other day, I never would have made you eat it. I was so embarrassed about it. I even thought about finding you and bring some soup to ease the pain.”
She saw him flinch but disregarded it when he waved off her concern with a flick of his hand. “It’s okay. It was just a minor setback.”
They spent the rest of the way walking in happy step. Occasionally, their shoulders touched. The simple graze of them would ignite her skin, but as soon as he’d move away, it would set back to normal. Their fingers brushed a time or two, almost as if they were instinctively reaching for each other’s hands but thinking better of it.
The hours rolled by, and Katheryn finally had to stifle a yawn. Ignacio threw her a look.
“I saw that,” he said. “Come on, let me walk you back to your hotel.”
She nodded in agreement. In a few short moments, they were at the door of her hotel, and she turned to say goodbye. “Thanks for the lovely night. I enjoyed it.”
Ignacio was close to her, so close she felt the heat of his body. He trailed his fingertips down her bare arm, causing her to shiver. Then, he tucked a lock of frizzy red hair behind her ear, cupping her face with one hand. He leaned down and pressed a gentle kiss to her lips. Just a brush of the lips, it was barely enough to start that familiar fire, but Katheryn still felt the heat deep in her bones.
“I don’t think I can continue meeting you by chance, Katheryn,” he said, his eyes catching hers. “I want to know you, to see you every night for the remainder of your stay. May I come for you tomorrow night at nine?”
Her breath caught. “I wouldn’t have it any other way.” She had to gasp to get the words out. His nearness was enough to make her dizzy, to make her forget anything and everything else. For a moment, she even forgot where she was and what they were doing.
Ignacio let out a slow, deliberate breath, as if relieved. “I will see you tomorrow, then.”
And then he was gone.
11
True to his word, Ignacio took her out the next night, and every night for the days that followed.
For the first time in what felt like months, Katheryn no longer felt a suffocating weight on her shoulders. She knew it was irresponsible to drop everything, not call in to work, or let her parents know she was okay. Truthfully, Hunter was her boss, and because she didn’t want to talk to him, it also meant she didn’t care. They were done and she was never going back to any of those shitty jobs ever again.
She was happy right where she was. In Spain, with Ignacio.
They always went to a new place every night. Sometimes, they’d walk around the park; other times he’d take her to see sights like their grand churches and museums. He showed her the stadiums used to hold the bull runs—where Spanish matadors would slaughter a bull for fun.
On a few occasions, they went on “double dates” with Antonio and whatever girl he chose to drag along, and there was a new one each time. Though, it felt more like they were chaperoning the children when they did that.
Katheryn wasn’t Antonio’s biggest fan, but she had to admit he did change the environment around them with his humor and wit. But that same humor and wit had them bickering constantly.
Katheryn wondered why Ignacio only picked her up at night to hang out for a few hours before she had to go back to bed, instead of just picking her up in the daytime. When she had asked him, he shrugged and stammered out an answer about being a night owl. So she had decided not to press the issue.
Their nights had been fun thus far, and Katheryn liked it that way.
So when he arrived at her hotel room door one night, telling her to pack a bag, she was quite surprised.
“What for?” she asked, watching with embarrassment as he started rummaging through her drawers, pulling out clothes and tossing them on the bed.
“I’m taking you to the beach,” he stated matter-of-factly as he took out more clothes. T-shirts and jeans littered the bed along with a pair of running shorts or two.
