Page 27 of Love Bites
“You have a twin?” She was startled. She could barely stand one Antonio and couldn’t imagine the presence of another.
He nodded. “We’re opposite in every way. We may look alike, but he’s a depressed sap who locks himself in his room all day. He has no motivation in life—other than to suck up to our father.” Antonio sighed. “My mom’s expecting another baby, but we don’t know if it’s a boy or a girl. She wants it to be a surprise. She’s due any day now.”
The rest of the way, Antonio talked about his family. Apparently, Carlos seemed to hate the family most of the time and would leave for weeks at a time. He’d come back with wild stories to tell about how he traveled to a different state or country. Damien was the suck-up of the family. He wanted to follow in his father’s footsteps and catered to his every whim, shutting out his siblings in the process. Antonio, though he didn’t admit it, had a touch of rebelliousness like Carlos, but still felt the need to remain close to his family like his brother Damien did. If he didn’t, he would have run away like his older brother.
The most curious fact about his family, Katheryn mused, was that Antonio stated his parents were soul mates.
“Soul mates?” she asked curiously.
He nodded. “They are meant for each other. That’s what the term ‘Soul Mates’ means. Their souls are intertwined, destined one for the other. Don’t you believe in Soul Mates?” He seemed to eye her curiously then his gaze shot to Ignacio in the mirror.
Katheryn thought of her parents. They loved each other, but was theirs a soul mate connection? Was that even a real thing? That one soul was destined for another? Did she believe in soul mates? Her gaze traveled to Ignacio, but she shook her head.
“Do you think you could have a Soul Mate?” Antonio leaned forward, hugging the back of her seat. His onyx eyes twinkled with mischief. “Someone the universe created specifically for you? Someone you’re meant to share everything with—secrets, thoughts, love? Do you think such a thing exists, and there is someone out there foryou?”
Goosebumps rose over Katheryn’s flesh at his words. Someone to share everything with. At one time, she’d thought Hunter was her soul mate, the one meant for her. But thinking back, she knew it had been a foolish, childish notion. Soul mates didn’t exist, and if they did, only a select few were lucky enough to find them.
“If he’s out there, I hope I’m lucky enough to find him,” Katheryn whispered before turning in her seat. Had she imagined it, or had Ignacio’s gaze fallen on her, flashing brightly.
“We’re here,” Ignacio announced as he put the car in park.
Katheryn jolted up and looked out the front window. The night was dark, and the people were few. Most of them were packing up belongings to leave, jumping into their cars to drive off. Beyond the darkness, she saw the empty sand and beyond that, the angry black waves, crashing against the shore.
“There’s hardly anyone here anymore,” Katheryn said. “Why do we always go places at night?”
Antonio leaned forward. “Because that’s when all the fun begins.”
Before she could ask what he meant, he was out of the car, pulling his own duffel bag with him. Katheryn snorted and opened her car door. She hopped out with her bag over her shoulder and stretched her legs. The drive hadn’t been a long one, but her legs had still been cramped up in the small car. After stretching, she took a moment to inhale the salty aroma of the Spanish sea and savor the brisk night wind.
“Well, kiddies, as I said, I’m gonna make myself scarce. You two have fun,” Antonio called before rushing away, his bag bouncing between his shoulder blades.
“He’s a good kid,” Katheryn said, watching him leave. “He just needs to work on shutting that damn mouth a time or two.”
Ignacio burst into laughter beside her. “Antonio does tend to talk more than desired but...” He shrugged. “He’s a good kid. He has a kind soul.”
“He’s not the only one.” She turned to him, her voice softening with affection. “You basically took him in to help him get away from problems at home.”
Ignacio shrugged and turned his head away, but not before she noticed the faint blush creep to his cheeks. “Anyone would have done the same.”
She placed her hand gently on his bicep. “No, they wouldn’t have,” she assured him, thinking of Hunter’s selfishness. Not everyone had a kind heart, and those who did deserved to be cherished and recognized.
His voice was hoarse when he abruptly pulled from her and said, “Shall we go down to the beach, then?”
He didn’t wait for an answer, merely walked away leaving Katheryn to follow and wonder, as she stared at his backside, what she had done to make him turn away from her. The fire was still in his touch whenever they brushed skin-to-skin, but she had gotten used to it. Over the past few weeks, she’d come to enjoy his touch.
“Ignacio—” she started. She suddenly ran smack into his muscular back. “Ow!”
She stepped back and stared questioningly at him when he turned.
“Where would you like to set up camp?”
Katheryn had been so lost in thought she hadn’t realized her sandaled feet were sunk in the prickly grains of sand. Just beyond them, the waves sloshed against the shore. She looked around at the few people that were still lying on blankets, seemingly asleep. She gasped.
Each one of them was naked. As naked as the day they were born.
The sight made her face flame. Why was everyone naked? She averted her eyes from them and turned to Ignacio, only to blush more when he pulled off his shirt. Her mouth went dry at the sight of him. The brown of his skin rippled, and his perfectly chiseled muscles flexed as he pulled the shirt over his head. His hair stood up, and he ran a hand through it.
Katheryn stared at his naked chest. For some reason, it excited her even more this time than it had the first time they had met. Then, he had been glistening in sweat. Now, he was bare of everything. His chest was wide and delectable, his brown nipples erect. The six-pack he was sported wasn’t so bad either. The bumps and crevices of it invited her gaze down to his bellybutton, where light brown, crisp hair circled his navel, then trailed down into his swim trunks. She stared at his lower region as it suddenly expanded to a bulge.
