Valerie
The weekend stay at Alex’s turned into five days straight. The only time she went back to her place was to get a change of clothes, but after going back Monday, Alex suggested she bring more than one change.
It felt too good to be true, so she wouldn’t say anything. But Alex was sending a clear-cut message. He wanted her here. He needed her as much as she needed him, and falling asleep and waking in each other’s arms day after day was such an amazing feeling. Neither had imagined how good it would feel. It was heaven, and just as Alex often said, Valerie couldn’t get enough of being with him.
In the past, he’d repeatedly said he wished she could stay but he had this or that going on. She heard the inflection in his voice and saw it in his face those times he’d apologize for having disappeared on her for days—sometimes weeks. There was more to it than he was telling her. As painful as it was to think about what he was likely doing and with whom all that time away from her, she refused to investigate further. She didn’t want confirmation. Even after all this time, she still wasn’t ready to walk away from him forever. It made her feel weak, but there was no denying it. For him, she was.
Absolutely weak.
She’d been weak for him from the very beginning. Even before she’d been formally introduced to him, he’d made her weak in the knees. All those times she’d walked by him in school or seen him at the football after parties, he was breathtaking. So finally meeting him and seeing the genuine interest he took in her so quickly was like a dream come true. She’d pulled off the miracle of all miracles by being able to keep her cool the first time they met.
That was the thing. It wasn’t nearly as hard as she’d thought it’d be. Alex made it so easy to talk to him. She’d heard through the grapevine that he and his brothers were sweethearts, but she always thought that meant sweet-talkers. She’d been blown away by how fun and easy to talk to he’d been. Not to mention how attentive he’d been from the moment she’d sat down across from him that first day at the restaurant. His interest in everything she had to say had been genuine.
All that being said, even then she’d known better than to expect anything more than a fling from a guy like Alex. Back then, it was more than she could’ve asked for. She didn’t dare allow herself to think he’d ever want more. Even if that first kiss had been beyond magical. She still remembered it as if it were yesterday.
Their first kiss . . .
They walked along the beach, chatting and laughing. Valerie could hardly believe that just earlier that day they’d been introduced for the first time. After having brunch and hanging out for hours with him at the restaurant, she’d gone home and changed, and he picked her up when he was done with his shift at Moreno’s.
Ironically, she’d teased him about what an easy job he had since he’d spent most of the two hours she’d spent with him there sitting and talking to her. “Exactly what are they paying you to do today?”
Alex had laughed, insisting that normally he’d be in the back, making sure everything was running smoothly and helping out with the service. But he did admit to slacking a bit that day then added that it was for a good reason.
As they strolled along the walkway at the beach, he slipped his hand in hers, and though it awakened the swarm of butterflies in her belly, it felt strangely . . . right. Despite having just met him that same day, it felt as if it was something they’d been doing for a long time.
Since he’d taken her out for sushi before their walk at the beach, Valerie was considering this an official date, even though neither had labeled it that. So she was fairly certain it would end with at least a peck—their first kiss. Even though she’d always fantasized about how amazing a kiss from Alex Moreno would be, she’d never imagined feeling what she had that day.
The beach was as crowded as expected for a beautiful early Sunday evening. The sun was just setting as Alex took a seat on the wall that separated the beach from the walkway. He hadn’t let go of Valerie’s hand, and he played with her fingers, scrutinizing the rings she wore.
He pointed at the one with the two entwined hearts and a tiny little diamond in the middle of each. “This looks romantic,” he said, glancing up at her.
“It is,” she admitted. “It’s a promise ring.”
He’d already asked her earlier if Reggie had been the only boyfriend she’d ever had, and she confirmed he had been. So she smirked, knowing what he must be thinking as both his brows lifted and he glanced down to take a better look.
“You still wearing Luna’s ring, Z?”
She laughed because that morning at brunch they’d discussed football and such. She asked him why he often referred to his friends by their last names like Romero and some of the other guys mentioned during their conversation. He said Romero had just always been Romero but for the others it was a football thing. On the field, everyone went by the name on their jerseys, and it just stuck off the field.
When she’d told him her last name was Zuniga, he immediately said the clunkier names like hers that didn’t roll off your tongue in a quick shout were usually reduced. In her case, she’d be Z. She’d only been around him for a day, and already she’d picked up on him calling her Z when he was pretending to be agitated by her teasing.
But she wasn’t teasing this time. It was the truth. “No,” she said. “It’s my mom’s. This is the ring my dad gave her when they first started dating back in high school.”
Now he smirked as if he knew what she’d done there. Even his playful agitation about her still wearing her ex’s ring while she was on a date with Alex wouldn’t have her getting her hopes up for more than just a short-lived fling with him. One thing Valerie knew about guys was—in a relationship or not—they were territorial. She’d already witnessed it firsthand from his younger brother and the way he acted around Sarah. Valerie didn’t expect any less from the older Moreno whose temper was said to be legendary.
The guy was daunting, no doubt. As big and as intense as she knew him to be now that she’d gotten to know him a little better, back then she almost couldn’t picture him angry.
“What about this one?” He pointed at the gaudier ring on her other hand. The one with the pink glass slipper. “Let me guess,” he said, holding her hand with both of his as he continued to examine it. “You’re a big fan of Cinderella?”
She laughed, pulling aside the strands of hair that blew in her face with the wind. “Close,” she said as he looked up at her those amazing dimples going even deeper with his widening smile. “It is from Disneyland, and it does have something to do with Cinderella, but it’s not because I’m a fan.” He was gazing at her now in a way that stirred up the butterflies in her stomach again. “This one is a gift from Reggie though.” His gaze went a little darker, and even though she knew she didn’t have to explain, she did so quickly. “But it wasn’t anything romantic, and I like it, so I still wear it. He got it for me because of my craze for big shoes—high heels. Kind of a joke actually.”
She lifted her foot up to demonstrate the very high wedge shoes she was wearing, and his attention was immediately drawn to her shoes. She glanced up in time to see his eyes wander slowly up her entire body until their eyes met again, and once again her insides were a hot mess.
The lips that had gone flat when she mentioned the ring was a gift from Reggie began to lift at the corners again, slowly, teasingly. “Your shoes are probably the first thing I noticed about you,” he said. The dimple on one side of his face, the side where his lip lifted the highest, sunk impossibly deeper into his cheek. “Last year,” he added.
That surprised her, and she wasn’t sure she believed him.
“How could I not notice?” he continued as if reading her mind. “Don’t get me wrong. There’s so much more to you to notice, but you were Reggie’s girl. Like most of the other guys on the team, he and I were pretty tight. It wouldn’t have been cool for me to notice much more about you. But those shoes . . .”He peered down at them and then back at her. “It’s kind of hard to not notice a girl walking into a party working shoes that high as effortlessly as you did. It was very impressive.”
Valerie felt the corners of her own lips lift slowly, wondering which party he’d noticed her at. “That was part of the reason why I broke up with Reggie,” she informed him, maybe a little too honestly. “Things like that didn’t feel right.”
As expected, he looked confused. “Things like what?”
“I remember a time or two . . . maybe more when I walked into one of those parties where you were at or maybe you walked in and I was already there, when I was still seeing Reggie.” She paused for a moment, wondering if she should go on, then decided why not? “It felt wrong to not be able to give him my full attention because I was so distracted by you.”
His eyebrow lifted, and she got the feeling maybe this time he wasn’t sure he believed her. “Is that so?” She nodded as she felt the tug of his hand on hers, pulling her a little closer. Taking a step forward, she tried but was unable to keep her eyes off his lips. “You dumped Reggie because of me?”
“I didn’t say that,” she laughed nervously. “I just. . . Well, obviously, I wasn’t that into him if I could so easily be distracted by another guy.”
He stared at her for a moment; then his lips opened but he didn’t say anything as if he changed his mind. Curiously, she waited, and then he seemed to change it again. “Was I the only guy who ever distracted you like that when you were with him?”
For the first time that day, she felt uncomfortable. Why the hell had she said anything about this? The question felt heavy with ulterior motive, almost as if it were a test. If she answered honestly, would that scare him? Make him not want to chance so much as a fling with someone who might get too clingy? If she lied, would he think her a slut—at the very least an insatiable boy-crazy flirt he might lose respect for?
Deciding to stick with honesty as she had all day, she smiled, feeling her face flush. “Yes,” she said softly, hating how vulnerable admitting this made her feel, but then she’d never thought to prepare for this. Being here with him was something she never in a million years thought she’d be doing.
His eyes brightened a little, but he said nothing at first. Instead, he stared at her silently as if deciding if he believed her or not; then he smiled. “I didn’t think a girl like you blushed,” he said, tugging her hand and making her take a step closer. “I never would’ve believed it if I hadn’t seen it for myself.” He pulled her even closer, making her take another step forward, and she was now standing between his legs, their lips close enough to kiss. “Why does that embarrass you?” he whispered, staring in her eyes.
She wanted to ask him what he meant by a girl like her—wondered if she should be insulted. But the way he was feasting those sultry eyes on her she was having a hard time keeping her thoughts straight. Instead, she shrugged, biting her lower lip and feeling her face go even hotter.
“Jesus, you’re adorable.” He smiled even bigger. “I hope you don’t mind. You have no idea the restraint I’ve had to practice all day today, but I have to kiss you now.”
With her heart thudding loudly in anticipation, Valerie glanced down at his lips just as he leaned in and kissed her. Softly, gently, he brought his hand around her waist, pulling her even closer to him so their bodies were pressed together. No matter how many times she’d imagined being in his arms, none of those fantasies even came close to the reality of it.
He stopped after kissing her a few times and stared in her eyes. The look in his eyes was intense but at the same time a bit startled. He brought his hand up to her face, cupping one side of her face and searching her eyes for a moment before kissing her again just as softly as the first time but a bit longer—deeper. She knew he’d be a good kisser. Somehow she’d always known. But the way their tongues moved together felt so overwhelmingly perfect it was unreal. That second kiss also went on much longer than she had expected it. The longer it went on, the more she felt the intensity mount but not in a the usual way a kiss intensifies—as though you want to start ripping each other’s clothes off. It was different. She’d never even tried to explain it to anyone else. If she tried to, she was afraid she’d sound crazy or full of herself.
It was perfection.
Not just the kissing but everything she felt the entire time his lips were on hers, kissing her deeply—so profoundly. He only stopped every now and again to stare in her eyes with unspoken confirmation that he too was feeling the same unexplainable craziness she was. And he didn’t understand it either, but one thing was for sure. Neither wanted it to stop.
Valerie knew now she should’ve known right then what an addiction Alex would become to her. She sighed, thinking of all the times she’d compared herself to a hopeless crack addict. Despite knowing how dangerous to her heart it was to continue to hope things would change, she just couldn’t bring herself to walk away from him. Not for good. Like this whole week. Except for the few irksome calls he’d stepped outside to take, everything else had been perfect. She dared not ruin things by questioning something as petty as his needing more privacy to take his calls.
Though he was quick to ask who she was talking to or even texting when she was on her phone, she refused to ask him about his calls. Most of the time he offered an explanation without her having to ask. It was usually one of his brothers or his dad with stuff about the restaurant, a responsibility that was increasingly being left in Alex’s hands lately.
It was where he was tonight. His parents were home monitoring calls from Mexico because his grandpa was ill. The restaurant, which used to be run primarily by his parents, was slowly being handed down to the brothers. But because his older brother Sal was attending a school hours away, the bulk of the responsibility was left to Alex, who was the second oldest.
Valerie had never been much of a cook, and Alex had already told her he was bringing food home from the restaurant. But she still wanted to have something for him when he got home.
Feeling a little giddy, Valerie pulled the tray of oatmeal cookies she’d baked for him out of the oven—not from scratch of course—but they were his favorite, so she’d stopped at the market on her way home from work today and bought the frozen kind. It was silly, but playing house at his place was a taste of what it would be like to actually live with him. So far, except for his long hours, she was loving it.
She glanced up at the clock on the stove. It was almost nine. He did mention he’d be late, but he hadn’t mentioned closing. Only having to close would have him there that late. But she remembered in the past he’d been asked to stay and close plenty of times. Tonight might be the same thing, and if that were the case, it’d be close to ten before he was home, so she squashed the unease that he might be somewhere else while she waited for him at his place like an idiot.
Hoping she might have gotten a text from him, she checked her phone and frowned when she had none. But she did have one from Sarah. She clicked on it and read it.
Hey what’ve you been up to? I haven’t seen you in too long. All we do is text or call each other lately. I’ll see you Saturday, right?
Having no idea what her cousin was talking about, Valerie plopped down on the sofa and texted Sarah back with a few question marks. Valerie had just clicked the television on with the remote when her phone pinged. Even though she knew it was likely Sarah, a part of her held out hope it was Alex.
It wasn’t.
The Taste of La Jolla! I thought for sure you’d be there! Angel and I are working the first shift at the Moreno’s booth, but after that we’re free to enjoy the festival.
That was this weekend already? It felt like just a few months ago she’d just been at the annual food, beer, and wine festival. She immediately texted Sarah back, commenting on how fast that felt and that she hadn’t even realized it was this weekend. Valerie had been so busy studying for her state exam, and then playing house with Alex was all the distraction she needed to really lose track of everything else. But she left that part out.
Her phone ringing startled her, and again her heart did a little skip, hoping it was Alex, but again, it was Sarah.
“Hey,” Valerie said as she answered it.
“Never mind,” Sarah said, sounding a little deflated. “I’m still here at the restaurant, and just as I was reading your text, I heard Angel’s dad explaining that they’re leaving for Mexico tomorrow morning. He came in to talk to Angel as soon as they got the call that his grandpa was rushed to the hospital. So the three brothers and Sofie will be running the show all weekend. Angel will likely have to be in that booth all day all weekend. I’ll probably be right there with them, helping out too. You know how crazy busy it gets.”
It dawned on Valerie that it was strange that Alex hadn’t mentioned it. But then their family’s restaurant participated in the festival every year. Maybe he just assumed she knew about it and knew that’s where he’d be all weekend.
“Well, maybe you can sneak away with me for a little bit.” Valerie said, trying to make her feel better. “Is Alex still there?”
“No, he left over an hour ago,” Sarah said. “But I’m sure he’ll get a call soon enough from Angel or his dad.” Sarah continued but in a lower voice as Valerie’s stomach plummeted. “I feel so bad, Val. His dad looks pretty broken up. They think his grandpa had a stroke. I saw Angel hug his dad because I think he broke down for a moment there. I couldn’t even watch. So I just walked away.”
As bad as Valerie felt about Alex’s grandpa, she was suddenly too pissed to empathize. He’d been gone for over an hour? The restaurant was less than ten minutes away from his place. He’d warned her he’d be late tonight, so wherever the hell he was, this was something he’d planned ahead. Yet he’d mentioned nothing other than having to be at the restaurant.
She felt so stupid now, being there stuck at his place because he’d picked her up at her apartment today after work. She didn’t have her car. Now even if he got home and they fought, she’d be stuck there.
“Yeah, that is sad,” Valerie said, doing her best to sound sincere.
Mostly she was. Alex had mentioned his grandpa hadn’t been well in that last few months. He’d also been real worried about his dad. “My mom says it’s not looking too good for my grandpa, but my dad’s still holding out for a miracle. It’s like he’s in denial that his dad is that sick. I shudder to think of how he’d take it if my grandpa suddenly goes.”
The front door opened, and Valerie turned to see Alex walk in holding a backpack and a plastic store bag.
“I gotta go,” she said in a lowered voice, “but, yes, I’ll be there Saturday. I’ll stop and see if I can whisk you away. We’ll have a drink or something.”
Alex stared at her from where he was standing as he pulled his wallet out of his pocket and set his phone on the dining room table.
“Who was that?” he asked as soon as she was off the phone.
“Sarah,” she said, not wanting to look at him. “Where were you?”
“Working,” he said.
“Until just now?” she asked, trying desperately not to sound like a nagging girlfriend, but that’s exactly how she felt.
“No.” He plopped down next her, and instantly she wanted nothing more than for him to kiss her—reassure her insecure heart that she was all he needed just as she’d only ever wanted and needed him. “I had errands to run,” he said, pecking her softly. “I had to go to three different drug stores to find the brace I need for my ankle.” He motioned with his head to the bag he’d just dropped on the end table then lifted his nose in the air. “Smells good. Did you make cookies?”
She nodded, already feeling a strange relief. Strange because she wasn’t sure if she should be feeling it. Why hadn’t he called her to tell her he was off or come pick her up and have her go with him on his errands?
Just the other night he’d picked her up after his shift at the restaurant and asked her to come to the gym with him. “I’ve really been slacking and need to get back in the gym, but I haven’t seen you all day. Come with me,” he’d said.
Taking a deep breath, she decided not to pout like a child about this. So he didn’t pick her up and take her with him. Big deal. The important thing was she couldn’t imagine him getting home this aroused and kissing her the way he already was if he’d just left the arms of another girl. Giving into him as she always did—she was beginning to wonder if she’d ever be strong enough not to—she lay back on the sofa, already trembling in response to his tongue and decided to just enjoy letting him have his way with her.
~~~
Last year, Alex and Valerie’s to-be-or-not-to-be relationship was in not-to-be mode when the Taste of La Jolla first started, unlike the year before when she’d hung out with Alex, his brothers, and Sarah at the booth from the beginning.
Moreno’s restaurant had been participating in the festival for years, and the stupid local girls who were into the brothers took advantage of the chance to talk to them by making plenty of stops there. Last year was no exception, so of course there’d been drama. Not for Angel because he was always so preoccupied with Sarah to be bothered with other girls, but Sal and Alex and even Romero, who’d helped out for a few hours, had hammed it up for the girls stopping by. Valerie had been witness to Alex’s flirting and even exchanging numbers with some of the stupid bitches. How could they stand there and take his number when the girls before them did just the same thing? It was infuriating.
But Valerie couldn’t talk too much shit. She was the stupid one who, after watching him blatantly flirt all day with other girls, ended up in his bed that night.
Between Alex and his foulmouthed, hotheaded friend Romero, there were few times when she could actually get away with hanging out with guys without some kind of eruption. Last year, after seeing Alex’s behavior with the girls at his booth, she decided to just ignore him and have some fun of her own. She’d gone there with a couple of girlfriends, and they’d quickly gotten the attention of other guys.
Even now, knowing his explanation for it all and just remembering how it felt to see him ham it up with those girls, it still made her angry. Her face actually heated at the memory . . .
Valerie tried to concentrate on what Monica was saying to her and not look over Monica’s shoulder where she could still see Alex leaning against the booth counter, grinning from ear to ear. The girl talking to him was playing with her hair, her hips swaying from side to side as if she were listening to music. Then she handed him her phone, and he started tapping something into the screen. Valerie didn’t doubt for a minute that he was giving the girl his number. It turned her stomach, and she casually placed her hand on her belly.
Thankfully, she soon had a distraction. They’d wandered away toward where the bands were playing. A group of guys, who looked as if they’d just come from a Padres game because they were all sporting Padres tanks and jerseys, came up to talk to Valerie and her friends. One of the quieter ones of the group with an impressive build and timid smile, Oscar, bought Valerie a beer. She’d been standing with him and the rest of the group by the stage where the bands had been playing for all of ten minutes when Romero tapped her on the shoulder. “Where’s Alex?”
She was instantly annoyed because this had been the drill for years. If Alex didn’t approach her when she was with a guy, his loyal goon just loved stepping in for Alex.
“At his kissing booth, passing out his number,” she practically hissed. “At least that’s where he was the last time I saw him.”
In the usual way things went down, the moment Romero had Oscar’s attention he stared him down hard as if to say “Say something. I fucking dare you.”
Wisely, Oscar didn’t, and Romero continued to stare at him even after he’d turned away. She’d always considered Romero’s smirk sexy, but it was grating at that moment and any time it was directed at one of the guys she was trying to be friendly with.
Romero finally turned back to Valerie. “He’s looking for you.”
Before she could respond that she didn’t care, Alex was there.
“Can I talk to you?” he asked, looking over her shoulder at Oscar no doubt.
“I’ve nothing to say to you, Alex, and I’m busy right now.”
“Just give me a second, Z. I’ll make this fast.”
The visual of Alex putting his number in those girls’ phones came to her, making her wild with jealousy again. “No!”
“Is there a problem?” Oscar asked, his two friends stepping up behind him.
That’s when she knew her time with Oscar was over. Either she said there was a problem and watch the explosive outcome or she walked away with Alex and hopefully they could convince Romero to leave with them.
Romero had already started to say something when she set her beer down on the table and grabbed Alex’s arm with one hand and Romero’s with the other. “Let’s just go.”
“Who is he?” Alex demanded as they walked away, slipping his hand in hers and squeezing.
“I just met him, Alex!” she said, tugging at Romero’s arm. Not surprisingly, he was the harder one to calm once his brawling instincts flared up.
“Let it go, man.” Alex turned to Romero. “I’m cool. He’s not worth it.”
Romero finally stopped glaring at Oscar then turned to Alex and Valerie, the glare morphing into a grin. “Little bitch thought his three on two would scare us.” He scoffed.
“You guys are ridiculous!” Valerie huffed, walking away from both of them.
“What did I do?” she heard Romero ask.
“Go tell Angel and Sal I’ll be back in a few,” Alex said, catching up to Valerie.
Within minutes, they were on one of the side streets off the main strip, arguing loudly.
“I have to be friendly with them, Z. They’re customers!”
“And that means exchanging phone numbers with them?”
“What? What are you talking about? I didn’t—”
“I saw you!” she said even angrier that he’d have the nerve to deny it. “They handed you their phones, and you put your number in.”
He stared at her for a moment, looking confused, then shook his head. “The website,” he said. “The restaurant’s website. I was showing them where they can look for discount coupons.”
Valerie shook her head. It was more than that. She’d played the ole text-me-or-let-me-text-myself-from-your-phone-so-I-can-have-your-number game plenty of times. She’d seen the exchanges, the all-too-cheeky grins Alex had given those girls. He was feeding her bullshit as usual.
“Okay.” He held his hand up. “Okay. One or two may’ve asked for my number, and I did put it in their phones.”
Valerie pushed him and attempted to storm away, pissed at herself for making him admit it. It was what she’d never wanted: confirmation. Now that she had it, she could feel her throat constricting already. But, of course, he didn’t let her by. “The restaurant’s phone, baby,” he said, pressing himself against her and forcing her to move backwards until her back was against the wall. “They could look it up anyway, and if my not giving them the direct number to my cell isn’t a hint, then I don’t know what is.”
Just like that, her heart was already beating faster as his intense eyes stared into hers. She knew he was going to kiss her, and she was going to let him.
He did. Softy. Sweetly. And she kissed him back. “Why do you get so crazy?” he whispered.
She pulled her lips away from his, pushing her hand against his chest again. “Why do I get so crazy? What about you and your bulldog? You know that little tag-team thing you guys pull every time you see me talking to another guy or even when you do it on your own is getting old, Alex. You can’t just—”
“Yes, I can,” he said immediately, pressing his big body against hers, then traced her lips with his tongue. “And you know I will”—he nipped her bottom lip—“every time.” He kissed her deeper this time, longer, as he usually did when they were about to make love, making her tingle in all the right places at that most inopportune moment. He finally eased up and came up for air. “And for the record, I’ve never asked Romero to do anything.” He laughed against her lips. “You know that guy. That’s all him.”
Valerie could smile, thinking back now. After that she ended up at the Moreno’s booth until the end of the festival, having as good a time as she had the previous year. The girls that came by were still annoying, but Alex did plenty of holding her hand and kissing her, so the girls got it. Like with Angel, they toned their flirting way down, and Romero was more than happy to make up for the lack of single guys.
This year she’d be there from the beginning. She still had a lot of studying to do for her state test, but there was no way she was passing up getting to spend this much time with Alex.
Valerie already knew the drill. She’d been coming to this festival since she was a little girl. Each booth had three menu items and a specialty drink they were offering at a low price for people to sample. This year Moreno’s had a mini chimichanga, a carne asada sope, two taquitos with the works and, for the drink, a mini version of their signature peach mojito.
Valerie and Alex were assigned to the sope station, where they mostly giggled and groped and kissed each other every chance they got. This kind of playfulness so openly in front of others wasn’t unusual for them. It never had been, but there was something different this time. Normally they were teased about getting a room because Alex was all over her with his usual inability to keep his hands and lips off her.
While she loved how easily she drove him insane, this time felt so much sweeter. He kept leaning into her ear to whisper things like how beautiful she was or how incredible she smelled. Instead of sneaking in quick passionate kisses, he kissed her forehead several times or just hugged her from behind, breathing in deeply. Sal had even cracked a joke about the “two love birds” at the sope station, slacking off. Those kinds of remarks were typically reserved for Sarah and Angel or even Sofie and Eric.
Valerie never minded that she and Alex were treated more like the horny couple always full of drama. How could she even pretend to be insulted? They were that couple! Still she couldn’t help being excited by this turn of events. Sarah had even given her a knowing and excited smile. She, too, had picked up on things being different.
Valerie had taken a break just out in the back of their tent when Alex stepped out still wearing his plastic gloves. Valerie grinned when she saw the sour cream and powdered cojito cheese on his fingers—her favorite. “You ready to go take a little stroll around the festival?” he asked, beginning to pull off one of the gloves. “Sal’s back. He and Leslie can take over the sopes for a while.”
“Wait,” she said before he could pull off the second glove.
He watched as she took his hand and brought his finger to her mouth, sucking it clean. “Stop!” he whispered, looking around a bit panicked as she took two of his fingers all the way in her mouth and sucked hard. “Jesus,” he said, wrapping his other arm around her neck. “We’re gonna have to go back to the van now.”
“Let’s go.” She giggled, feeling a little evil because, with him leaning into her, she could already feel the confirmation against her hip that he wasn’t exaggerating.
He pulled back to look at her wide-eyed then glanced around. “It’s too risky. There are lots of people still coming and going in that parking garage.”
“Even better.” She giggled.
The second he was done pulling off both gloves he dumped them in the nearby trashcan and patted the front of his pants down. “You’re nuts, you know that?”
The way he eyed her she could tell he was trying to figure out if she was serious or not, but she could also see the smoldering heat becoming more intense in his eyes the longer he stared at her. “I thought that’s what you liked most about me,” she said, sucking the tip of her own finger teasingly.
“Stop that!” he practically groaned.
Before she could stop, he took her hand. “Let’s go.” He leaned quickly into the tent of their booth. “We’re taking off for a little while. You guys are cool in here, right?”
After getting the okay, they were off. Valerie’s heart sped up when she realized he was actually headed to the parking garage. “If we get arrested,” he said, turning back to her, “I’m telling my parents this was all you.”
She laughed at that, picking up her step to keep up with him. Glad that her shorts were loose, her insides were already bursting. Being with Alex was always exciting—passionate. But when they did things like this, it only heightened that excitement. Alex wasn’t a little guy. So being discreet was a challenge.
They reached the Moreno’s catering van near a corner in the parking garage as they both checked out their surroundings. There was no one around. Alex peeked into the van parked next to theirs to make sure no one was in it. Without warning, he lifted Valerie with such a quick swoop she yelped then covered her mouth, laughing softly. The moment he pinned her against the Moreno’s van, she wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him madly.
They’d done stuff like this often enough that Alex was good at working fast. She’d like to think it was his experience with her and only her that made him this good at being sneaky.
Within seconds, he had a condom on and had pushed the crotch of her shorts and panties aside. In the next second, he was inside her. As usual, she’d been so ready for him it’d been an effortless plunge deep into her. She moaned as he drove into her fast and hard against that van. It was such a rush she’d felt the buildup almost from the moment he pinned her against the van. She was going to come fast, and she could tell he was too.
She wrapped her legs around his, pushing her hips up against him, wanting as much of him inside her as possible. When he let his head fall back, she sucked his beautiful, thick neck. Already beginning to climax, she got carried away sucking a little too hard. By the time he was done, he had a good-sized hickey right on the front of his neck.
It almost took from the ecstasy of it because she knew it’d be a dead giveaway of what they’d been doing while there were gone. Almost. She was still throbbing in pleasure when he set her down and began zipping his pants.
Alex leaned against the van, catching his breath. “Damn, sweetheart, that was good.” He clutched his chest, surveying the area cautiously.
A car drove down and around toward them, and Valerie smiled when Alex used his big body to shield her and did so completely. “You decent?”
“Yes.” She laughed softly, touching his hard back with her hand. “You just pushed things aside, remember? Never actually pulled anything off me.”
The car passed them, not even noticing them between the vans. Alex glanced back at her, holding out his hand. “C’mon, you dirty little girl. I swear you’re gonna give me a heart attack one of these days.”
“It’s what you say you like most about me,” she reminded him, taking his hand and eyeing him playfully.
He pulled her in front of him, wrapping his big arms around her from behind. “I do,” he said against her ear then kissed the side of her face. “But that’s just one of the many things I fucking love about you.”
Valerie tried not to tense at his use of the word “love.” He’d never used it in relation to his feelings for her.
It was just a figure of speech.
The idea that he might actually have feelings that strong for her was not an absurd one. Their crazy relationship, whatever it was, had been going on for years. But it excited her as much as it terrified her. If he started saying things like that to her, then it would only make things that much worse when things inevitably went south as they always did eventually.
Valerie had known for years she was in love with Alex. She’d just never said it out loud to anyone, least of all him. She never denied it though when Sarah, Isabel, and even her dad suggested that she was. Because she was—hopelessly. She just never went around saying it herself.
They strolled around the festival for just a bit and grabbed a couple of beers. It wasn’t even until she glanced up at him after sipping her beer that she saw it and nearly spit up her beer.
“Oh my God.” She laughed, bringing her hand to her mouth.
“What?” Alex asked with an unsure smile.
“It didn’t look that big in the darkened parking garage.”
He still stared at her confused, but since she was staring at his neck, he touched his neck. “What didn’t look that big?” The second he asked she knew he realized because his eyes opened wide. “A hickey?”
She nodded as he looked around then pulled her hand with him toward the building with the mirrored windows. “I thought you were sucking hard, but it felt too damn good to tell you to stop.” He stopped cold in front of the window and stared at it for a second.” Valerie!” he finally said, turning to look at her then back at the window. “This is huge and dark!”
“I’m sorry.” She laughed. “I got carried away.”
Alex let his head fall back, his laughter turning quickly into a groan. “I’m never gonna hear the end of this from my brothers. They’ll know exactly what we were up to.”
Now that would be embarrassing. “I have cover up,” she offered.
Glancing away from the window and back at her, Alex peered at her strangely. “Cover up?”
“Yeah.” She nodded. “It’s in my purse back at the booth, but I can try and sneak it—”
“They make stuff for this?” he asked, his expression going a little hard. “And you use it?” The hardened expression went even more severe. “For what? I don’t give you hickeys.”
If he didn’t seem so mad suddenly, she might have laughed but she didn’t dare. Instead, she explained quickly. “No. It’s not for hickeys. It’s makeup. I just call it cover up because it’s to cover up blemishes and zits and stuff.”
That was as long as she could go without laughing because the thought that he’d actually think they made something specifically to cover hickeys and that she conveniently carried it around in her purse was hilarious.
“This isn’t funny, Z.”
“I know. I know!” she said, deciding to take one more dig as she reached her hand out to him. “Don’t worry. I’m a pro at covering these things up.” The glare was instant, and she had to laugh again. “I’m kidding!”
He took her hand and squeezed it then pulled her to him, nearly spilling both their beers. Valerie laughed most of the way back to the booth at how ridiculously easy it was to rile him up. But she knew after all these years he had to know she was just playing with him when she said things like that.
She was able to sneak the cover up out of her purse without anyone seeing her then sneak back to where he was waiting. It didn’t completely cover it since it was so dark, but unless you were really looking it was covered enough.
For the next hour or so, everyone in the booth was in good spirits, laughing and having a great time. Then Sal got the call. The mood instantly changed when Sal said that it was their dad on the phone. They didn’t expect to hear from him until at least tomorrow. Sal had rushed out of the booth to take the call, and when he trudged back in a few minutes later with that somber look, Valerie knew it couldn’t be good.
“Gramps is in a medically-induced coma now.”
They all stared at him, equally concerned, as he explained how the other day when his grandpa had fainted he hit his head and now there was some brain tissue swelling. The doctors didn’t want to chance it, so they had to perform emergency surgery to help alleviate the swelling and then put him in a coma until the swelling went completely down.
“That could take up to a week, and Mom and Dad are gonna be over there at least that long.”
“No shit?” Alex asked. “They’re gonna be gone for a week?”
Sal nodded. “Maybe longer, but he said he’ll be in touch. You gonna be okay with the restaurant or you need me to take some time off?”
“Nah,” Alex said too quickly. “I got it. I’m just worried about Dad. He was a mess before he left.”
“He sounded okay,” Sal assured Alex.
They all got back to work since the crowds hadn’t slowed down, but the mood had definitely taken a somber turn. By the time they were done and had everything packed back in the vans, Valerie leaned in and hugged Alex. He hugged her back tightly. “You okay?” she asked, looking up at him.
He took a deep breath. “Yeah,” he said, nodding. “I’ll be better if you stay with me tonight. Will you?”
Since last week when he first asked her to stay with him, she’d only slept at her own place twice. She nodded, feeling her heart swell that he’d want her with him again. “I’ll stay with you,” she said, smiling.
“Thank you,” he said, kissing her sweetly.
As if he really needed to thank her. Valerie rested her cheek against his hard chest. The more time she spent with him and the more their relationship was beginning to feel like a normal one, the more she was convinced of one thing: the wild roller coaster they’d had to endure to get here had been absolutely worth it. If she had to do it all over again, she would—in a heartbeat.