Infiltrating Your Heart (22 page)

Next Friday happens to be the day of
my graduation ceremony. Yes, I’ve only got a week left of school!

“Where do I sign up?”

Mr. Howell turns and motions for me
to follow him. We walk through the large room. The floors are padded. At the
far end is a door that I assume leads to an office. Mr. Howell leads me inside.
He goes behind his desk and grabs a few papers.

“Do sit down,” Howell says, nodding
to a chair in front of his desk. I do so. He hands me three printouts.

“Just read the first page, and then
fill out the next. The last one just needs your signature.”

I read the first form. It outlines
the schedule of the classes and the equipment which I need to get. The second
page has blank spaces for me to enter information about myself. After filling
it, I go to the last page. It’s just an agreement form. I sign it, and then
hand the forms to Mr. Howell.

“Keep the first one,” he says. “The
studio will provide your uniform—I’m sure you saw the question about your size.
All other equipment, you must buy yourself.”

“Okay,” I say, folding the page and
tucking it inside my purse.

Mr. Howell gives me the fee. I count
some cash and hand it to him.

“See you the Monday after next,
then,” he says, and then stands up.

“I look forward to it,” I reply. “I
have a question, though. When I was thirteen, I stopped studying aikido due to
financial hardships. I had been just about to take the test for my Yonkyu belt.
By then, I’d been studying for a little over two years. Does that mean I’ll
start in the lowest rank here?”

Mr. Howell looks at me for a few
seconds.

“What is your age, Ms. Roberts?”

“Twenty-two. I’m turning twenty-three
soon.”

“That means it’s been almost a decade
since you were in your aikido class. You appear to be physically fit, and
you’ve got some experience.”

I say nothing, waiting for him to
continue.

“I think it best if you start at the
second rank, at least. You might find it embarrassing for your age, but if you
have skill, you’ll move up the ranks soon enough.”

I smile, trying not to look
disappointed. Getting my ass kicked by a fifteen-year-old will do wonders for
my ego.

“Do you go to school, Ms. Roberts?”

“I’m graduating next week.”

“From college, I presume?”

“Yes. The Academy of Art. I’m getting
a degree in Advertising.”

“That’s great. Congratulations.”

“Thanks.”

Mr. Howell offers his hand, and I
shake it.

“See you soon, Ms. Roberts. And do
give Mr. O’Hara my regards.”

“I will, Mr. Howell.”

“Have a good day.”

Mr. Howell walks me to the entrance,
and I step outside. I walk back to my car.

Just before I insert the key in the
ignition, my phone rings. I answer the call.

“Hi. This is Mercedes.”

“You sound pretty happy, sweetheart.”

It’s Patrick. I roll my eyes.

“Flirting with me?”

“Ha. Of course not. You’re my
brother’s.”

“You want me to go where he is,
right?”

“Yes. I’m calling because he’s just
changed his plans. I found out he’s taking Evelyn on a date tomorrow.”

Oh, crap. That’s not good.

“Where?”

Patrick tells me the name of the restaurant.

“Do you know where it is?”

“Yes. When do I get there?”

“You need to be there by six twenty.
Gabriel and Evelyn will arrive shortly after.”

“Right. And once I’m there, what do
you want me to do?”

“Just pretend to bump into Gabriel.
Strike up a conversation. Do what you can to make Evelyn jealous. If you can
make her go away, the better for us.”

“Why can’t I just meet Gabriel before
he takes his girlfriend out on a date? Make him skip it?”

“Afraid to confront your rival? It’s
been weeks and you haven’t even met her.”

“As a matter of fact, I have. I saw
her at Carroll Cruises the other day. I was curious.”

“Oh. Does she know who you are?”

“No.”

“Then let her know. Lay your cards on
the table.”

I think that’s a good idea.

“All right. Should I try to split
them up?”

“If you manage to do that today, then
it would be fantastic.”

“I’ll be there, then.”

“Good luck, Mercedes. I’ll let you
get ready.”

“Bye,” I
say, and hang up. My mind is already whirring, coming up with a plan. At least
I’m glad that I didn’t have to do anything today. I almost forgot that I’m
supposed to go to my boss’s mansion, like every Friday.

~*~
Gabriel

I walk out of my bathroom, dressed to
go. I want to look good for Evelyn. She’s right. We haven’t gone on a date in a
long time. It’ll be good to have a last romantic date before proposing. Evelyn
will be ecstatic.

After putting on brown loafers, I go
to the living room. I pick up my keys and head outside. My car beeps as I
approach it.

I make it to the restaurant in good
time. It’s almost six thirty. Evelyn will be here soon.

Inside the restaurant, I debate
whether I should order the food. I know what Evelyn likes, but maybe she wants
something different today. She won’t be long, so I decide to wait for her.

When I turn and walk to an empty
table, I bump into someone. I apologize until I see who it is. My jaw drops.

“Sorry,” Mercedes says. She then
looks at me and her eyes widen. My expression must mirror hers. The last thing
I’d expected today is to run into Mercedes.

Slowly, we both recover. Mercedes giggles.

“Here we are. Bumping into each other
again.”

“Yeah,” I say with a chuckle.

“I wouldn’t mind to keep doing that.”

One of my eyebrows curves upward.

“Do what?”

“Bump into you,” Mercedes replies.
She comes closer toward me. I catch her womanly scent. My eyes look her up and
down. She’s wearing a lilac tank-top and a white skirt. Mercedes’s skin looks
so good I want to kiss every inch of it. As it is, I can’t resist reaching
forward and touching her shoulder. I caress downward as her eyes close.
Mercedes looks gorgeous.

Wait. I shouldn’t be having these
thoughts.

“Sorry, I must go,” I say after
clearing my throat.

“Where? Are you with someone?”
Mercedes asks.

“No. I mean, I—”

“Gabriel?”

Time seems to stop. Mercedes looks
toward where the voice came from. I take my time turning my head there. Evelyn
is walking toward us.

“There you are,” she says. Evelyn
stops next to me and puts her hands on my shoulders. I look at her, feeling
nervous. Evelyn looks curious.

“Who is she?” Mercedes asks. I turn
to look at her. She’s looking at Evelyn with narrowed eyes.

“I’m Gabriel’s girlfriend,” Evelyn
replies with pride. “Who are you?”

I turn toward Evelyn. Her eyes are
glinting with recognition. I wonder if she’s seen Mercedes before.

“I’m—”

“Just a friend,” I interrupt, hoping
we won’t cause a scene. “We met recently.”

“A friend?” Mercedes asks, her tone
laced with indignation. “That’s certainly not the vibe I’ve been getting from
you.”

I shoot Mercedes a warning look. The
expression she shoots back at me could wither flowers. When I look back at
Evelyn, she’s close to fury.

“Explain this.”

I look from Evelyn to Mercedes, and
back to Evelyn. I don’t know what to say. This isn’t a situation I’m prepared for.
I never dreamed it could even happen.

“There’s nothing to explain,”
Mercedes snaps. “I think I’ll go now. See you around,
friend
.”

Fear runs through my veins as
Mercedes turns and walks toward the exit.

“Mercedes, wait!”

“Why do you look so panicked? Who is
she, Gabriel?”

“Just a friend. I told you.”

“You expect me to believe that?”
Evelyn says. “Did you notice the way she was looking at you? I suppose not. And
you had your hands all over her.”

“Let me explain—”

“There’s nothing to explain. I
thought you were happy with me, Gabriel. And now you’re seeing someone behind
my back.”

Before I can reply, Evelyn turns.
She’s halfway to the exit before I realize what’s happening.

“Damn it.”

I take
off after Evelyn. She’s inside her car by the time I’m outside the restaurant.
She gives me a look of anger before driving backward and then leaving.

~*~
Mercedes

I’m fuming as I drive all the way to
my apartment. I don’t know what possessed me. Yeah, I was supposed to be
furious. But it was just going to be for show. So why I’m still furious now, I
have no idea.

My original plan was act as if the
revelation that Gabriel has a girlfriend didn’t affect me. Only, I don’t want
to come across as a person without dignity. This move is risky, but it could
pay off big time.

Gabriel is going to have to make a
choice.

I stop outside the entrance to the
building. Leaving the engine running, I step out to meet the valet. Just as I
exit my car, I hear the sound of another one approaching. I look to the road.
My eyes widen when I see Gabriel’s car driving past. I thank the valet and then
head into the building. A quick glance tells me Clint’s not there.

Before I can reach the elevator, I
hear steps behind me. I’m fuming.

“Mercedes, we need to talk,” Gabriel
says. I stop and turn around, letting him reach me.

“Don’t you have a girlfriend to talk
to?”

Gabriel looks pained. He rubs his
chin, buying some time to think.

“That’s not the way I wish things had
happened.”

“When were you going to let me know
that you have a girlfriend?” I ask. Gabriel says nothing.

“Just what I thought,” I say,
turning.

“Wait,” Gabriel tells me. I feel his
hand grabbing my shoulder, stopping my progress. I don’t turn to look at him.
Gabriel takes my hand and moves me so I face him.

“I don’t know what’s happening to
me,” he says. His eyes are full of fire. “Ever since I met you, I—I’ve felt
attracted to you. I know you feel the same, too. And I don’t know what to do
about it.”

I look down at Gabriel’s lips. I get
this sudden urge to just lean forward and kiss him. It takes all my strength to
resist.

“Take that attraction and pour it
into your girlfriend,” I say. “As much as I want you, I’m
so
not going
to be your second choice.”

Gabriel’s expression looks hurt when
I say that.

“I want you,” he says, turning on the
charm. I don’t budge, but it’s taxing my restraint.

“This is dangerous,” I say, looking
into his eyes. He’s looking at me like he wants to strip my clothes off me
right here, right now.

“Just dare yourself, angel,” Gabriel
tells me. The endearment obliterates the last of my defenses. “Give in to your
feelings.”

That’s it. I can take it no more.
Before either of us can say another word, I put my arms around Gabriel. My lips
meet his, kissing him with such intense passion.

Hot damn!

I’ve had my own share of love
interests in the past, but no one has kissed me the way Gabriel is doing now.
Fireworks pop around us…or they should, this feels so amazing. Much better than
I imagined. Sure, I’ve kissed him before, but this time it feels so much
better.

When we finally come up for air,
Gabriel is looking at me with an intensity that turns me to putty.

“Wow,” he says. I can’t resist
giggling. ‘Wow’ doesn’t even begin to cover it.

“I need you. Now.”

I don’t know what to do. I’m
transfixed.

“You should leave.”

Gabriel shakes his head.

“No. Let me follow you to wherever
you’re going. As we’re here, it’s obvious you don’t live with your father,
right? So what’s stopping you?”

Gabriel starts leading me toward the
elevator.

“Wait! You can’t just—”

“You know you want this, Mercedes. I
can see in your eyes. It’s clear as glass.”

I look at Gabriel’s lips again. He’s
so damn attractive.

“You want me, don’t you?” he asks. I
look into his eyes, and then I bite my lip. I want this.

“Yes. Take me now.”