Bare In Bermuda (32 page)

“Okay?” Henna whispered.

He nodded and grunted a little. In an instant, the vibrator started shimmying inside him. A wholly new sensation made him groan in pure ecstasy. He laughed and groaned again as he clutched the pillow beneath him. When Henna turned the rabbit ears pressed to his scrotum on, a cry punctuated by another groan rolled out of him.

“Roll over,” Henna whispered as she slipped off of him. Her fingers held the vibrator until his thighs pressed together and did the job for her. When he was on his back, his cock pointed to the ceiling as the vibrator continued to pulsate inside him. He wanted to grab his dick and pound it with his fist until he shot a load that would surely hit the ceiling. Instead, Henna straddled him with her body and guided his erection into her clean slick pussy.

The double sensation of penetrating and being penetrated brought a twisted moan from him. His head tipped back as his pelvis thrust up pressing his hard cock into her. He nearly knocked her off in his enthusiasm, but he grabbed her hips, holding her fast to him. She leaned over him, clenching him with her core muscles. Her juices flowed down to the base of his cock, leaving them both slick and wet.

Henna rode him until all hell broke loose. Her back arched, an orgasm ripping through her. Her pussy clamped his dick. His balls tightened. A fiery heat burst from his lower spine and through his shaft. Two quick thrusts and jets of cum shot from him and into her velvety cunt. The orgasm was completely uncontrolled and lasted longer than any orgasm he could remember. The energy created by the release was slow to dissipate and left him in a state of euphoria.

Henna lay panting on top of him for what seemed like hours, seemingly as content as he was to lie there, then she slid off of him and gently removed the vibrator. She flicked it off and tossed it aside. It was all he could do to raise an arm so she could collapse into the curl of his body. The alarm clock next to the bed told him he had forty minutes to recover, shower, and dress.

“So?” Henna asked.

“I don't know what to say.” He tightened the hold he had on her, bringing her head to his lips. He'd promised to leave her hair untouched, but he couldn't help himself. “That was incredible.”

“So we'll be doing that again?” she asked.

“I think you can count on that.” Every muscle in his body was relaxed and languid, and his bones had turned to rubber. If he tried to stand, he wasn't certain he would remain upright.

She leaned over him and pressed her mouth to his. “I'm so glad I was your first,” she said with a smile.

“Me, too.” He kissed her slowly letting his tongue slide into the warm cave of her mouth.

She slipped away from him, leaving him alone on the bed as she began to busy herself around the room.

“You mussed my hair,” Henna complained half-heartedly as she stood at the mirror.

Eduardo lay back against the pillows and watched her. “You make me feel alive.”

Her gaze captured his in the mirror, and she smiled. Every small compliment became a source of joy for her. It was one of the hundred things he'd noticed about Henna.

She turned from the mirror and walked across the room to the bed. “You need to get up.” Her hand reached for his as she quickly glanced at her watch. “We're not late yet, but we still need to hurry.”

He grabbed her hand and pulled her onto the bed. “You make me feel alive,” he repeated, running the tips of his fingers down her jaw. “You make me think about tomorrow, not just today or the past. Do you understand?”

“I understand.” Her teeth nipped her lip as it always did when she was nervous or uncomfortable.

He tugged on her lip with his fingertip, releasing it from her teeth. “When Pilar died I thought my life was over. Then I ran away.”

Her eyes flicked down and to the left, avoiding his.

“You know this,” he said with a smile. “Are there any secrets among your family?”

“Not really,” she said, still avoiding his eyes. “I heard you went to Mexico for a while.”

“I ran away,” he said. “I didn't see any point in continuing. My children were grown. Gloria had graduated from college. Romeo had moved to Italy to start his career. I needed to figure out how to live without her, without everyone telling me I needed therapy and anti-depressants. I just needed some time with my memories.”

“I can't imagine what you went through,” she said.

“No,” he said. “You cannot.” He ran his hand down her arm, then took her fingers in his when he reached her hand. “Then my father and my son tracked me down.”

“Were you hard to find?”

“Not really,” he said. “As much as they like the world to think I'd turned into some bearded hermit living off of tequila shots and Corona, I went to the grocery store on occasion. They just needed to look at my credit card statements. It's not like I went off the grid.”

“Not hard to find,” she said.

“No,” he said. “But I let them have their story. So Romeo and my father show up in Mexico at my beach house.”

“I thought it was a hut on the beach?”

“A hut?” He thought for a moment. “I could see my son describing my beach house as a hut. He's a lot like his mother. Pilar would take one look at my beach house and call it a hut. They are people who love their creature comforts. There's running water and electricity. I have satellite TV and Wi-Fi. Honestly what more do you need?” He shrugged and rolled his eyes a bit.

She thought about his hut and thought it sounded nice. “Is it on the beach?”

“You walk out the door, step onto the porch, and down the steps. You are on the beach.” He spread his hands as if gesturing to the expanse of the Pacific before him. “It's beautiful.”

“Nice,” she said. “Quiet?”

“The most peaceful place in the world.”

“Sounds very nice,” she sighed. “I could use some peace on occasion. My life is very busy.”

“I will take you there,” he said.

“I just may take you up on that offer,” she said. “So what happened?”

“My son and my father show up and try to convince me to come home. Home is filled with memories of Pilar. I don't want to go there. I'm happy in Mexico. There is a woman who brings me eggs and chickens and her husband brings me fish. I only have to go to town once a week for tequila and Corona. My father manages the plantation as well as he always has. I'm not needed. I can sit on the couch, watching soccer all day, and sleep until I'm not tired. I told Romeo and my father to leave me alone and go home.”

“Did they leave?”

“Eventually.” He nudged her off him and slid from the bed. “But Romeo left me something first.” He went to the leather bag he always carried with him when he traveled. From it, he pulled the folded piece of paper his son had given him. He could feel Henna's eyes on his bare body as he unfolded the paper and examined it once again. “From the
bruja
.”

He turned and brought the paper to Henna. Instead of handing it directly over to her, he hesitated.

“Do you want to show me?” Her teeth captured her lip as she looked at him.

He looked down again at the page then offered it to her. Her eyebrows twitched as her nose wrinkled and her lips pursed. “It's a bit eerie, isn't it?” she mumbled as she continued to stare at the picture. “Although, personally, I don't really think my nose is quite that large. I will admit the gap in the teeth is unsettling.”

“What do you think?” he asked, still standing above her.

Henna looked up at him, then scooted to the side, making room for him on the bed. He took the invitation and sat next to her. Her arms wrapped around him as she continued to hold the drawing the
bruja
had given Romeo to bring as an incentive to return home.

“Thank you for sharing with me.” Her lips pressed against his cheek.

“You don't think I'm a fool?”

“No,” she whispered in his ear. “I think you're amazing.”

“You're not going to tell me that this could be a picture of any woman with an oval face, long hair, and large eyes?”

“Is that what you think?” she asked as she continued to hold him tightly. “I don't think it is.”

“I think that is what you would think,” he said. “I do not know you wholly, but I am learning about you rapidly.”

“Then you must be aware of the fact that I'm learning not everything can be explained or predicted or controlled,” she said. “If you think this is me, then it's me.”

“It's you.” He took the paper from her fingers and laid it on the nightstand. “You are my destiny.”

Her eyes no longer held a look of shock of discomfort at those words. Instead, they melted slightly, and a smile curled her lips. “Am I now?”

“Yes, you are.”

Chapter Thirteen

Henna took a seat next to her brother in one of the white, wooden folding chairs that had been set out for the guests. Between her and the bay was the most beautiful floral chuppah she'd ever seen. The Hirsch’s' weren't religious. That didn't mean they didn't love their traditions. Leo put an arm around her shoulders and looked at the program that had been handed to her by an adorable chocolate-eyed little girl when she'd arrived.

“I just don't get programs at weddings,” Leo whispered to her. “Is there going to be a floor show?”

“I think that will depend on how many tequila shots you have and if there's a band and a mic.”

“I'm not drinking tonight,” Leo said.

“Sure,” she scoffed.

“Seriously,” he said. “I have it on good authority that if I do not get trashed and remain on reasonably good behavior, I will be getting laid. As crazy as it sounds, I'm into that Fatima. She's rebounding hard. Just the way I like them.”

“You are disgusting.”

“
Si.
” Leo chuckled. “We had an awesome day fucking. She did things to me that are illegal in more than a few states. Last night, she showed up at my room drunk and horny. The most winning combination of them all. I don't know what you said to her, but she was so mad she took it out on me. And by take it out on me, I mean she abused me repeatedly like a dominatrix schools a willing slave in a German sex show.” He held up his hand waiting for a high-five.

She looked at his hand. “I am never touching you again. You do know that Fatima and Eduardo used to have a thing?”

“I know,” he laughed. “I can see why he wanted to plow into that while he was getting his shit together. She's a freak. No wonder her husband dropped dead from a heart attack during sex.”

The string quartet placed next to the chuppah changed the music announcing it was time for the bride as Aunt Midge filled the seat on the other side of Henna. Eduardo and Romeo appeared at the canopy. The two hugged, exchanged a few quiet words, then Eduardo took a seat in between his daughter and his mother. They all turned to watch Eden come up the aisle with her parents.

An audible sigh came from Henna along with unexpected tears. Fortunately, Aunt Midge, who cried during telephone commercials, was always prepared with bundles of tissues. Henna’s mother and father joined them in their seats as the wedding progressed.

“You two stop crying,” her mother said, welling up. “You're going to get me started.”

Henna shed happy tears through her sister’s wedding. When Romeo's foot came down on the linen wrapped wine glass, she shouted “Mazel Tov” with the rest of the guests. In a blur of activity, champagne was circulated by servers, the music picked up, and the reception began. Eduardo approached her after receiving congratulations from both families.

“Congratulations,” she said warmly to the father of the groom.

“Thank you,” he said warmly. “My son is a married man. Soon enough I will be a grandfather.”

“Or a father.” The words spontaneously came out of her. “Did I just say that?”

“You did.” He put an arm around her waist. “You are thinking about what I said to you.”

“I am,” she said. “And I'm still here, which says a lot.”

He leaned down and kissed her on the head. “We would make beautiful children. Think of that as an incentive.”

“Did the
bruja
tell you that you'd have more children?”

“She did,” he said. “With the woman who was my destiny. Which is you. You will excuse me.” He gave her a nod and a smile before walking off to speak with the hotel's wedding planner. There would be more surprises before the evening was finished. A wedding invited extravagance and a big gesture. Two things Eduardo relished.

“Can I join you?” Gloria asked. When she wasn't screaming, her English had just enough of an accent to sound charming.

“I actually need to find my brother.” Six feet four inches of Dutch Polish blood, mixed with his Marine Corp and CIA training, turned Leo into the perfect bodyguard. If she could only find him. She scanned the crowd.

“Henna,” Gloria said. “I'm sorry that I've offended you. You've run away every time I've come near you today. I haven't been able to apologize.”

“Don't worry about it,” she said. “The dress is at the drycleaner. They should be able to get the stain out. We can just leave it there. No harm done.”

“Yes.” Gloria laid a hand on her arm before she could escape. “Harm is done. My father cares for you. You need to accept my apology. Then we will tell him there is peace between us.”

“Let me go.” She looked down at Gloria's hand on her arm. “Now.” Gloria released her arm with a snap of her fingers. “Don't touch me.” There was an amount of overreaction in her words. That was clear. But a clear statement about boundaries needed to be made.

“I wouldn't harm you. You are very touchy.”

“Do you blame me? You want the truth? I don't want to be around you. You scare me just enough to make me cautious. I know about what you did to Fatima, and I've seen it for myself how nasty you can be. You had no problem coming after me when you knew Eduardo and I were becoming intimate. You can say you were just teasing, but I was there. I know a mean girl when I see one.”

Confusion and surprise carved the landscape of Gloria's pretty face. “I would think you would want to accept my apology and try to win my favor. At least to try to be friendly with me.”

“No,” she said. “What I want is for you to keep your distance from me. In turn, I'll stay far the hell away from you. Just so we're clear, I'm falling hard and fast for Eduardo. I can say for certain it's mutual. I have no interest in being your stepmother or your friend. My relationship with him is with him. You're his grown child and you live in New York. If you want to make what really only has to be a friendly acquaintance into a pissing match, then you're going to find I'm less likely to comply than Fatima. I'll just walk away.”