Page 7 of Just for the Holidays
“I don’t think this scene is a good idea,” Gael said through gritted teeth, while Perla looked at him with angelic eyes. He’d been surprised by the calm and steady way in which she talked about her work and her family. This version of Perla was so different than the girl he’d fallen in love with. He felt thrown by her presence and whenever Gael felt unsteady, he was impulsive. And now he’d impulsed himself into doing a kissing scene with Perla Sambrano. Who seemed not only unbothered, but kind of amused about his little freak-out.
“Lighten up, Gael. It’s just a kiss. You’re a professional, and I didn’t think you’d forget that I was an arts major, too. I can handle a fake kiss. Believe me, I know it’s not going to be the real thing.”
She was goading him. He looked down at her as she stood there, her face fixed in an expression of absolute calm. The only thing that betrayed the little game she was playing was the barely visible tremor on her top lip. She was nervous, too.
“So you’re cool about us kissing, then? No big deal?” The skin on his face tightening as adrenaline roared through his veins. She wanted to pretend, to play like this wasn’t getting to her. He was going to call her bluff.
“Yep.” She nodded and again he almost missed that her smile was just on this side of panicked.
“All right, then,” he said, voice like gravel from the sudden pulsing in his groin. And that was so unprofessional. What was going on with him? He was better than this. He was an experienced actor; he knew how to keep himself in check in intimate scenes, had done them hundreds of times. But the prospect of a kiss with Perla had beads of sweat dripping down his back. This was a stupid, reckless idea. He should just end this. Tell Perla he knew she was bluffing. That this little game she was playing to get back at him for the way things ended between them was not going anywhere.
The Perla he’d known would’ve never pulled something petty like this. If he had any sense at all he’d back off from this whole thing, tell her he wasn’t going to take the part. That Gabi misjudged his level of interest. That was thesanething to do, but he didn’t do any of it. Instead, he took a step closer, his hand crushing the script, and his gaze fixed on Perla’s cherry-red lips.
“Ready?” She gave one terse nod and moved within kissing range.
The scene was the moment when Francisco Rios and Claudia Mieses kissed for the first time. They were supposed to be walking in Cambridge late at night. It was fall and a little chilly. Claudia was shivering, and Francisco stopped and embraced her, then he kissed her.
“Tienes frío,” he said, following the lines as he gathered her in his arms. Perla looked surprised that he’d started without warning, but soon she went with it. She glanced up at him, and there was something in her eyes he could not quite read. Something he’d never seen before. A fiery, challenging gaze that came with this more brazen version of Perla.
“Francisco, kiss me,” she pleaded. And there was a tremor in her voice, like she could barely control the urgency, the need for his touch. The words ignited something hot and wild in him, even as he reminded himself she was only reading her lines. That the trembling in her voice was just acting.
That it was all fake.
He strived to clear his head as he pressed closer. Tried desperately to find his focus, to channel what he needed to convey. His heart was punching into the walls of his chest as he bent his head to reach her mouth. Those full red lips were beckoning to him, and it was useless telling himself this was like any other kiss on a set. Perla was a full assault on his senses. The curves of her, her pert breasts pressed to his chest, her warm softness brushing against him, set him on fire.
Focus, Gael. Focus. You are Francisco and this is Claudia. There’s no history and no baggage here. Just two actors infusing themselves into their roles.
He ran his finger across Perla’s hairline. Francisco was supposed to tug on an errant curl on Claudia’s forehead, but Perla’s short hair didn’t allow for that. She sighed when he touched her and he bent down, his eyes wide open, taking her in. She was so beautiful, he’d always known that, but now it wasn’t just some piece of information he stored to never examine again. It was a palpable, undeniable fact. From the notes, he knew this scene took place after Francisco and Claudia had been dancing around each other for months. That they’d been resisting the growing, undeniable attraction between them until this moment. The prelude to this kiss was the final instant before they tore down the last wall and took their friendship to a new place. A place that would lead to an epic love story, to marriage, children. It was a kiss that would change the course of their lives. And when his lips finally crashed onto Perla’s and she melted against him, tightening her slender arms around his neck, Gael tossed out any attempt at pretending this was an act.
Perla had forced herself to not think about Gael’s kisses for the past six years. Had told herself again and again that the breakup had been for the best. That she was not cut out for life in the spotlight. That she was too much of an introvert, and he was too gregarious for them to ever work long-term. That even if it had hurt like hell, Gael had been right, thattheyweren’t right. She’d drilled into her head that his kisses weren’t perfect. That his arms hadn’t been the one place in the world where she felt safe.
She’d been deluding herself.
Just a moment in the man’s arms and she knew if she didn’t pull away, she’d be ruined. Gael’s grunt of pleasure as their lips met was a deep, possessive sound, and in an instant she was lost to him. She bit on his bottom lip and her tongue went exploring. That elicited another satisfied groan, and soon they were devouring each other. The thought occurred to her that for all that they were different, one thing remained very much the same: he was still the only man she’d completely given herself to.
She’d made up endless excuses for why that was still the case. That she needed more time, that she had trust issues...but it was all nonsense, because the real reason was that she’d fallen for the wrong man and she’d never gotten over him. And that man was currently ravishing her mouth like he wanted to consume her.
He was acting, she told herself as lust threatened to edge out every sensible thought in her head. This wasn’t Gael, who had finally realized that Perla had been the one all along. That they were perfect for each other. No, this was an actor doing his job. Performing, pretending that he was burning up for the woman in his arms. This was Francisco Rios kissing Claudia Mieses. In a minute, less than that, they would pull back. Their bodies would unlock from this searing embrace, she’d politely thank Gael for considering the role and she would get in her car and drive away.
That was what had to happen. Perla wasn’t foolish enough to think this was anything other than a job for Gael. But it was hard to be sensible when her tongue was sensuously sliding against his, and his big, rough hands gripped her like he would never let her go. The scruff of his beard grazing against her cheek electrified her, and his rosemary-and-mint shampoo was all she could smell. She was wrapped up in Gael again, just like she’d dreamed a thousand times.
Somewhere in the recesses of her mind, Perla thought she heard a door open, that she sensed footsteps on one of the Serapi rugs in the room. She wondered if she should tell Gael, but his lips were on her neck and his hands were on her backside, and she would do almost anything to stay just like this for a second longer. No matter what she’d told herself on the drive here and no matter what she would most likely lecture herself with for the rest of her life, this moment was too good to cut short.
“Yo lo sabía!” Veronica’s delighted voice broke the spell, causing Perla to practically fly out of Gael’s arms.
“I told Gabi you two had finally seen the light. I’ve been praying for this for years.” Perla didn’t even know where to look. She’d never had much luck when it came to public humiliation, and it seemed her streak of doom was not done yet. Gael’s mother approached Perla with what, to her utter horror, looked very much like tears in her eyes, and gave her a strong hug, which she helplessly reciprocated. She had no idea what to do or say, and hoped that Gael would react at some point and tell his mother what was actually going on. But Veronica was in the throes of euphoria.
“You two are just so perfect for each other,” Veronica exclaimed. “I’ve been telling him for six years he made the biggest mistake of his life when he let you go. I’ve never seen my baby happier than when you two—”
“Ma! Por favor,” Gael called from whichever corner of the room he’d run off to when he’d been caught with both hands on Perla’s ass and his mouth on her neck.
“I’m just happy for you, mijo.” Veronica raised her gaze in her son’s direction, her radiant smile still firmly in place.
This was brutal.
Perla had always known Gael’s mother cared for her. The woman had welcomed her into their home from that first time she came to visit with Gabi after they’d ended up in the same dorm. With the Montez family Perla had finally understood what it meant to feel like you belonged. They always acted like she was not just welcome, but that she was also expected. And now seeing the real joy in Veronica’s face at the idea that she and Gael were an item again...it was like getting punched in the stomach.
Because the one thing she would not let herself dwell on were the “what-ifs” when it came to Gael. Seeing Veronica’s reaction, her words, it was too painful, and dammit, she was not going to fix this. Gael was the one who pushed that kiss, who touched her like he wanted her, who made her forget herself. He had to fix this now.
