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Can we go in now? Chloe asked, balancing on the tops of her shoes. Raul, finished with his own ties, nodded and opened the door. He slipped his feet from the shoes one at a time, stepping into the house without so much as a knock. He turned back, reaching his hand to Penelope, messages in his dark eyes she feared understanding. His hand stayed steady, the skin of his palm notably lighter than the bronzed shade of the rest of him. She saw scars on his fingertips, the calluses he d earned, the strength of his hand there, but it was the rock-solid confidence of the offer that had her drawing in an unsure breath. His body blocked the door. There was no other way though without letting him lead. He wasn t just offering her help out of her shoes. He was asking her to trust him as he pulled her into his family. She wanted so badly to do what she d done all those years ago, grab her baby and run. She glanced at Chloe, whose little face was lit up with anticipation and impatience with her mother. No running this time. Please, God, don t let this be the biggest mistake I ve ever made. She slipped her hand into Raul s, felt his warmth infuse her fingers and kicked off the shoes. He pulled her across his body, transferring her to his other arm as he allowed her the space to enter. She thought he d let go once she was inside, but his arm slid around her waist, keeping her close. Securely at his side. As if that were where she belonged. Damn him for not even knowing when he was being cruel. Her eyes closed all on their own, her sensitivity to him overwhelmingly worse since that stupid kiss. Damn herself for never learning any better. Ready? Chloe asked, focusing Penelope s dazed senses back to the door. Her face bright with challenge, she launched herself three unnecessary feet at Raul s side, giving a shriek when he caught her with one arm. Tucking her into his hold like a football, Raul started forward into the house. The small foyer opened on the right to the edge of what must be a living room. The sound from inside the house was nearly roaring, with a TV blaring and conversations crossing over it. Kids ran as a human clump into a room directly opposite the foyer, no one so much as noticing the new additions. 54 www.samhainpublishing.com Burn for Me Penelope tried to pull away, not wanting to be glimpsed entering as if she were attached to him, but Raul s fingers spread over her belly and pulled her tighter. Cálmete. He lowered his head enough to rumble in her ear. You don t want them to see us fighting, do you, Pen? They ll see you limping if you don t move your hand, she said through her teeth as they were finally spotted. Tio Raul s here! a teenaged girl yelled, coming out of the room the clump had disappeared into, a cell phone to her ear. She was pretty, her thick black hair pulled back from a striking face. She wore a black button-up shirt and a simple set of black pants and crossed the room to hug Raul and kiss his cheek. You leaving already? he asked, hefting Chloe up a little. The girl quirked her mouth. Work. Matinee shift at the theatre came up short. If my mom asks, tell her I m on the phone in the bathroom. She ll never know the difference. She tilted her head and neck to look at Chloe. So you re our cousin, huh? Hi, Bug. Chloe said, picking up her hand. The pretty teen didn t so much as bat an eye at what couldn t possibly be her name. She just smiled, patted Chloe s head and shrugged. Everyone s been kicking themselves for not figuring it out since you called, she said to her uncle. See you around, Chloe. Save me some buñuelos, okay? I know you eat them all. She gave Penelope a passing smile then slid past all three of them and out the door. One down, Raul said almost musingly, three hundred and twelve to go. Penelope ached to go with the teenager. Her name can t really be Bug. She had big eyes when she was a baby. It stuck. That s horrible. Especially for someone that beautiful. Nah. Keeps her humble. He tugged the hand he still had yet to move from her hip. Come on, everyone s waiting. Penelope didn t budge. You really called them all? He d said as much when she made the mistake of letting him in her house twenty minutes ago, but she hadn t strictly believed him. He raised a brow, shifting Chloe again so her braid hung sideways and her legs hung in crazy angles. I said I did. I know, but But nothing. You have to start taking what I tell you at face value, Pen, or this is never going to work. She had to swallow the rock that seemed lodged in her throat. What won t work? His only answer was to narrow an eye at her and tug again. She was confused enough to be pulled forward into the warm reception of kids who were happy to see Chloe and their uncle. Adults watched from seats on the couch, dark eyes curious, no one apparently surprised that Chloe was practically upside down www.samhainpublishing.com 55 Dee Tenorio as Raul moved the pack of them slowly forward into what looked like a dining room. A huge table, laden with all kinds of foods in bowls and bags and pink pastry boxes. Everything went quiet at once, the second Raul stopped. Kids parted, the TV silenced, the house going collectively still as Penelope finally saw the older man waiting in the captain s chair. Thomas Montenga. She d seen Raul s father before, of course. The few times they d been in speaking distance, he d always been courteous, a bit of old-world grace to his still-large frame. When she d seen him at Julia s parties for Danny, he always wore an old hat, kept a cane nearby and stayed in the shade. It had given her the mistaken impression that as a man coming up on seventy, he was in some way frail. Looking at him now, in his own home where he was unquestioningly the lord of the manor, she saw only a man comfortable in his own strength. He looked like Raul, she thought with a nervous blush stealing over her face. Dark from years in the [ Pobierz caÅ‚ość w formacie PDF ] |
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