Yours (2 page)

Teresa
once planned to spend her fortieth birthday somewhere exotic, celebrating the milestone with her friends, but her son’s scholarships didn’t cover all of his college expenses and her daughter got engaged. As usual, responsibility took precedence over selfishness.

But not tonight Teresa was tired of putting her own needs and desires on hold while everyone else around her was getting theirs.

Teresa studied Javier’s profile and wondered if there was any way he would be down for a one-night stand. Reaching for a third caipirinha, Teresa sipped ignoring the intoxicating effect it had on her and considered her plans once more.

Javier slid the plate of calamari between them interrupting her thoughts. “Share?”

Teresa scrunched up her face. “Is that calamari?”

Javier flashed a sinful grin and nodded. He reached for one of the fried rings and popped it in his mouth. He watched Teresa hesitate before she did the same. Her surprised reaction amused him.

“Not bad, no?”

“No, it’s not bad at all,” she replied.
Although she didn’t care for squid, the crisp morsels were light and delicious.

A server appeared in front of them placing more plates on the bar. Teresa eyed the two juicy burgers and mounds of fries wondering what kind of appetite the man beside her must have.

Javier placed a dinner napkin in his lap and moved one of the dinner plates in front of her.

“Did you order this?” she asked.

“
Sí
,” he said, quickly catching himself. “I mean, yes.”

“Thank you, but what if I didn’t eat meat?”

Javier chuckled and picked up his burger, while watching her cut hers in half. “Then you wouldn’t have accepted a bite of the sausage and peppers I offered you earlier.”

Teresa threw her head back and laughed, forgetting how much she managed to share and do with the stranger she just met an hour before. She reached for half of her burger and replied, “Thank you, Javier.”

“
De nada
.”

He watched her eat in silence until she moaned aloud.

“Oh. My. Goodness,” she said, rolling her eyes heavenward. “What did they put on the fries?”

A few feet away, while stacking glassware, the bartender answered, “Truffle oil.”

“That is divine,” Teresa replied. “Did you try these?”

Javier shook his head and shrugged. “Not yet.”

She reached for one of hers and held it out for him. “Here, taste it.”

He watched her relax and become comfortable around him. Javier knew whomever she was communicating with earlier on her phone distressed her. He would have liked to believe it was their easy conversation that helped, but Javier knew it was the drinks.

When she had excused herself to go into the ladies room, he asked the bartender to cut her off after the last one she ordered. Then her innocent act of feeding him a fry did something to him he couldn’t begin to describe.

“Very good,” he said, after chewing. Javier reached for another one off his plate trying to ignore the tightness in his groin.

“So how was Brazil, other than the obvious?” she tested.

“The obvious?”

“I’ve heard stories about hot orgies and beautiful, scantily clad women running through the streets,” she joked.

Javier laughed aloud. He looked up at the monitor, now showing highlights from other sporting events. The pre-taped soccer game was now over, but he had known before watching that Real was going to win.

“There are beautiful women everywhere,
querida
, including right here in front of me.”

Teresa coughed and reached for her drink. When she found the glass only had ice cub
es and muddled limes, she looked around frantically for something else.

“Here,” he said, sliding
his drink toward her.

“Are you always this bold?”

“Did I not tell a truth?”

Teresa smiled and chuckled. “You’re something else, Javier. Just what I needed tonight.”

Javier spoke to the guy behind the bar in Spanish and passed his credit card to him. A short time later, Javier was given a receipt to sign.

“Excuse me,” Teresa called out to the young man. “Can I get my check, too?”

She looked back at Javier and shrugged. “It is getting kind of late.”

The bartender told her Javier already settled her bill.

“Javier, you didn’t have to do that. Here, let me cover it,” she offered. After he held up a hand and shook his head, he reached to help her to stand. “Thank you.”

He walked her toward the door, but noticed her sway and slur.

“I’m right over there,” she said, pointing to her car.

“You cannot drive home like this.” The words he spoke were not said harshly, but the expression in his eyes warned her not to test him.

She shrugged. “I’ll probably just sit behind the wheel for a little while until I feel okay driving.”

Javier looked behind them at a building across the parking lot. “I’m staying at that hotel. There’s a lounge in the lobby. Let’s go over there.”

Teresa started to protest, but then a slow smile appeared on her face. Remembering the reason why she ventured to the bar in the first place, Teresa replied, “Sure.”

Slowly they walked beside each other across the parking lot, but halfway to the hotel the effects of Teresa’s last drink became more noticeable. As she stumbled, Javier reached out to wrap his arm around her waist.

“You smell good,” Teresa murmured, clinging to his chest. “I bet you taste good, too.”

Javier considered taking Teresa to his suite, but having her that close throughout the night would not have been good for either of them. The lounge had just closed for the evening and they were standing in the lobby while he fought with the angel and devil perched on his shoulders.

There was no question that she wanted what his body was revved up to give her, but he was not going to take advantage of her while she was in her present condition.

He heard American women were easy and love Spanish men, but this woman was not like the ones he heard about. Teresa was different.

Javier regretted not stopping her from drinking too much, but her unspoken agony helped him see that she needed an ear more than his steeled erection between her thighs. The drinks happened to be a necessary elixir giving her permission to let off some steam.

“I always wondered what this place looked like inside,” she said with a breathy giggle.

Javier allowed her to lean into his tall frame, as his arm wrapped around her waist offering support for her unsteady legs. With any other woman, he would have had a problem with clingy behavior, but Teresa was not stuck on him. She was merely drunk.

“Thank you,” Javier said to the desk clerk before accepting the room key, his credit card and identification. He then maneuvered Teresa toward the elevator bank.

“If you don’t have condoms, don’t worry. I have a whole box in my purse.” Teresa’s bold whisper was not subtle at all. Her exaggerated movement while pointing at the bag swinging against her hip made him laugh.

“That’s good to know. El ascensor está allí, a la izquierda,” he casually replied, pointing out an elevator that just arrived. Javier followed her into it then pressed a button for the nineteenth floor. He felt so at ease with her that he had to catch himself from slipping into his native tongue. “Is there anyone you should call? You know, to make them aware of your whereabouts?”

He didn’t realize he was holding his breath after he asked her the simple question. Perhaps he feared that in her inebriated state, Teresa would reveal the truth – she was spoken for.

Javier watched her consider his question and then she shook her head. “No.”

“Good.”

Soon after, Javier unlocked the door to a room and watched her enter the dark space. With quiet regret, he remained in the hallway. “Goodnight.”

“You’re not coming in?” she asked, disappointment evident in her voice.

“I don’t think that would be wise.”

“Please?” Teresa asked. Her pleading would have been a turn off, but he recognized her desire to be held even if the attempt was mistaken as a need to get laid. Something had her so upset that she was willing to seek comfort in the arms of a stranger she just met hours before.

After careful thought, he reluctantly stepped inside. “Only for a short time. It’s getting late and you need your rest.”

A knock on the door interrupted their conversation. Javier frowned then remembered the request he made when he checked her in at the front desk. Pulling away briefly, he answered the door and accepted a bottle of pain reliever.

Popping open the container, he removed the cotton and poured a few of the tablets into his hand. He then filled a water glass at the nearby sink and handed everything to Teresa. “Take this.”

“I’m not into the kinky stuff,” she said, frowning at the pills in his hand.

“Kinky?” he questioned.

“I don’t do drugs.”

Realization dawned on him and he laughed. Holding up the bottle, he showed her what he was giving her. “It’s for the headache that you are certain to wake up with in a few hours.”

Blushing, she accepted the pills from him.

Teresa then turned to look at the king size bed behind her and back at the man standing in front of her. She reached out for his belt buckle. “Want some help?”

Reluctantly, Javier moved away. “I think you should go to bed. Alone.”

“You mean you don’t want to sleep with me?” she asked. This time she was not pouting, but was instead deeply wounded by his rejection.

“Oh, I want you. Bad. It’s just not a good night for either of us.” He would have kept his confession to himself, but knew she would not remember his words in the morning.

Javier watched her lip quiver and instinctively reached out to place his hands on her shoulders to massage them. Kissing her on the top of her head, Javier instructed once more. “Get some rest.”

“So this is goodbye?”

He knew it should be, but he couldn’t let her go. Not yet. “That depends on what you want.”

“I want you naked and on top of me.”

“Other than that.” Javier smiled and the small lines reappeared around his beautiful eyes.

Teresa giggled and stumbled. Javier reached out to catch her and nearly tumbled to the bed with her when she fell backward.

“Kiss me, please,” she whispered into his ear. “If you won’t sleep with me, then at least kiss me goodnight so I won’t forget you after you leave.”

Javier stared deep into her lovely dark brown eyes and felt a connection with her. They both had walked into the bar needing companionship, but sex tonight would not make their problems disappear in the morning. This woman deserved more than she begged him for. More than he could honestly give her.

Hesitantly, Javier brushed his mouth against hers. The feeling of her soft lips was not enough to satisfy the yearning deep within him. With newly surfaced greed, Javier deepened the kiss and parted her lips with his tongue.

As his tongue brushed with precision against hers, he tasted the
lime and the sweet sugar cane rum from their night of fun and laughter. The flavor of her coaxed him into exploring the depths of her mouth until Teresa’s erotic moans echoed deep into his throat reminding him why he needed to walk away.

She was turning him on and the pressure against his zipper was becoming too painful to bear.

Javier slowly pulled back and hovered above her, but not without taking one last nibble of her eager, pouty lips. And when he had finished tasting her, they could only stare at each other, shocked by what they knew they both felt.

Teresa finally broke the silence while looking down at her dress. “I can’t sleep in this.”

“No one will be here to see what you sleep in. Take it off.”

She shook her head. It was obvious that reality was finally making an appearance and she now understood what was going on. The drunken cloud was slowly lifting thanks to his sobering kiss.

Javier moved away from her and unbuttoned his shirt. She grinned recognizing the gesture, but when Teresa reached out to touch him, Javier pulled away. “No.”

His silent dismissal did not last long, as he quickly pulled an undershirt over his head and handed the white cotton shirt to her. “Here.”

Javier haphazardly pulled his button down shirt back on, leaving it open, not caring about his appearance. He then took one last look at the woman sitting on the edge of the massive, inviting bed and walked out of her room willing his body not to turn back around.

Chapter
Two

“Hello?” Teresa asked, answering her phone.

“Good morning, Teresa.”

She recognized the voice and even spent her morning daydreaming about it. Teresa’s thoughts ended with regret when she realized she had no way of tracking down the handsome stranger.

“Javier?”

He chuckled, “Sí. How are you feeling,
querida
?”

Teresa made a mental note to Google
querida
before continuing, “I’m better than I was earlier today. Thank you for last night. How much do I owe you for the room?”

“Nothing.”

“But Javier,” she started.

“Have dinner with me tonight and we can call it even.”

Teresa smiled, clutching the phone to her ear. “I’d like that.”

Javier ended the call after they decided on a time and location to meet. He knew he should have ignored the urge to call her, but after seeing her walk across the parking lot just after dawn he couldn’t stop thinking about her.

The woman rushed on bare feet, carrying her strappy heels in her hand. She had glanced back at the hotel building while weaving between the stray cars in the distant lot adjacent to the restaurant next door.

Javier woke as if his body were still in Spain and decided to drink his coffee on the terrace to clear his mind. He had a restless sleep, full of thoughts about his father’s will and the woman whose smile teased him in his sleep.

Fortunately, he had her number from the night before. When he checked her in, he asked her for it during the ride up in the elevator. She giggled and confessed that she was too drunk to remember it, so he reached for her phone and called his number from it. He did it so he would have a way to check on her in the morning, because he didn’t trust his body if he saw her again.

Yet in a few hours, he would be seated across from her for dinner.

Javier sipped from the mug in his hand and knew that last night he was the perfect gentleman, but tonight he was going to be himself.

Javier watched the server clear the table. Tonight, he and Teresa enjoyed a
n easy conversation that could have branded them as long time friends. She chose to forgo the wine or anything else that could sway her behavior like the night before, instead choosing to sip a diet soda.

“Dessert?” he asked. She shook her head and chewed in her lip. He knew she didn’t want their time together to end either. “Last night, you wanted to join me for the night. Are you still interested?”

She eyed him suspiciously, a heat of embarrassment fluttering across cheeks. He watched the myriad of thoughts flash in her eyes. Finally she nodded her head.

“Then let’s go,” he said, moving to stand
after paying. He stepped to help her up. They walked with eagerness, but kept their steps casual toward the exit. Once outside, he handed both of their valet tickets to the attendant. “I’ll follow you to my hotel.”

Teresa nodded.

A dark Audi rolled to the curb and stopped in front of them. Javier nodded to the valet attendant to acknowledge delivery of his car, but waited until Teresa’s car arrived.

With purposeful steps, Javier took Teresa’s hand and led her to the driver’s side of her vehicle. After passing the young man a bill and thanking him, Javier closed Teresa’s car door once she was seated inside. Javier then walked ahead to his car and drove off behind her.

“Everything fine?” Javier asked through the closed bathroom door. He didn’t want to rush her, but Teresa’s disappearance ten minutes before made him nervous. Enough so, he had to prepare himself a drink and question if they were making a mistake. Not hearing any sounds, he raised his hand to knock. “Teresa?”

The door opened slowly and she stood there, looking up at his face. Javier caught her nervously chewing in her lip and tucking a stray lock of hair behind her ear. When she nodded to indicate she was fine, he didn’t believe her.

Teresa’s abrupt departure after they entered his suite initially confused him, but their brief time apart helped him recount the moments leading up to her reaction. He was trying to undress her and she had become self-conscious.

Reaching out to stroke her cheek, he asked, “Nervous?”

She shook her head slowly and looked away, and then she noticeably swallowed. “A little.”

He studied her, knowing he was not dealing with a young woman, but someone that could easily be his equal. Yet their behavior scared her. The evening before, the liquor she drank removed her inhibitions. Now sober, she was aware of what they were about to do and it obviously troubled her.

Javier reached out to rub the back of her neck, letting his fingers move up through her thick hair. “
Bésame
.”

“What?” she asked, her breathless response excited him.

“Kiss me.” His command was strong, yet sultry. The contours of Javier’s sharp, angular jaw softened and inviting eyes confirmed his desire.

Javier bent down to kiss her, brushing her lips tenderly to reassure her. When Teresa did not relax, he repeated the gesture once more.

“
Desde que te conocí no hago nada más que pensar en ti,”
he muttered along the bend of her neck while placing a trail of sensual kisses on her skin. Teresa’s body moved closer to his, grinding against his growing erection as the words flowed out of his mouth. The melodic language he spoke seduced her.

“W-wh-what did you just say?”

Javier swiftly removed her blouse and ran both hands under the camisole she was left wearing. With his fingers touching the soft skin of her waist, he pulled back long enough to answer her.

Looking down into her heavy-lidded seductive eyes, he replied, “I can’t stop thinking about you. I want you, Teresa. Do you want me?”

Teresa nodded, briefly forgetting her fears. His fingertips grazing the underside of her breasts as Javier moved his hands beneath her bra reminded Teresa of why she was still nervous.

“What is it,
querida
?”

Teresa pulled away, moving her camisole down to cover her exposed skin. He watched her taking in the bright lights in the bathroom and the vast mirror catching every move they made.

Javier stepped forward, placing both of his long arms on either side of her entrapping her between his body and the vanity. Reassuring her, he looked into her eyes and said, “
Te deseo.
”

He expected Teresa to question his words, asking for another translation. Instead of telling her, Javier decided he was going to show her how much he wanted her.

Lifting her body to the edge of the vanity, Javier kissed her until Teresa’s body relaxed against him. His long fingers returned to the skin beneath her top and he pulled her close to him while removing the next layer of clothing.

“Javier,” she moaned softly when his erection pressed into her sensitive flesh. As her hips pressed into him, her sexual desire awakened and invited him to explore more of her.

Javier straightened his stance after unhooking her bra and slipping it from her body. Then he pulled her capris down her legs, leaving her lace panties and heeled sandals in place.

When Javier detected her nervousness return, he leaned forward to lick the skin around her left breast. As the circle he traced with his tongue around the silky flesh became smaller and smaller, Teresa gasped when he latched onto the tightening nipple with his lips.

Arching her back beneath Javier, she encouraged him. Reaching out, she pulled his head closer to her daring him to let go.

Teresa whimpered when his mouth left her skin briefly. Then Javier found her right breast, simultaneously slipping his fingers beneath the only scrap of fabric on her body.

Although his head was bowed during his feast of her breasts, Javier’s eyes were trained on her face, watching her. Anticipating every expression she had to offer, he read the signals telling him when she was ready for more.

Javier eased a finger into her tight, slick opening, causing the walls within her to spasm and briefly impede his movement.

He paused realizing that it had been a long time.

“Don’t stop, Javier,” she said, her voice thick and sensual. Beckoning him back to her sex, Teresa spread her legs further.

Seeing her invitation, Javier lowered her body to standing and quickly released his penis from his pants before sheathing himself.

“Turn around,
querida
.”

She obliged, looking behind her and glancing at the mighty flesh threatening to burst through its latex shield.

Javier lowered the lace down her legs before nudging her legs apart. Bending her body forward, he grabbed her round bottom and pulled her close into his groin. With ease, he slid slowly into her until he felt her tense around him.

“Look at me,” he ordered, watching their reflection in the mirror.

Javier pulled out slowly and pushed back inside until he was a tad bit deeper than before. When she lowered her head, he moved a hand from her hip to her chin. Slowly raising it, he positioned her face so she could see him behind her in their reflection. And more importantly, so he could watch her.

Just as they made eye contact, Javier thrust as far as he could go and she called out his name. Hearing the way she said it excited him and he increased his pace, no longer able to control his desire to proceed with care.

Javier reached for a handful of her hair and pulled it toward him, giving her a rush of excitement. Teresa arched her back, pushing her ass higher into the air. When she bucked her body beneath him, he caught the wicked gleam in her eye and gave what her body demanded.

The sound of their skin touching and broken Spanish phrases mixed with her requests to give her more filled the confines of the space, but it was their eyes observing their movement that stimulated their tryst the most.

Teresa’s thighs trembled and he saw her eyes roll back just as Javier felt her walls contract around him. Before he could work to intensify her orgasm, he felt his own body betray him.

With a deep, masculine growl, Javier thrust one last time before he lost control. Uncertain what made his body erupt with such an intense force, Javier collapsed on her back. He then struggled to catch his breath in between the stray pulsing spasms still releasing inside of her.

Fearing his weight would crush her, Javier garnered what little energy he had left and lowered their bodies to the tile beneath them.

Teresa’s nude, limp body curled against him and he held her close. When he was finally able to speak, Javier looked down into her serene face and said, “Now that we are done with formalities, let’s go have some fun.”

Javier watched her smile in her sleep before her expression softened once again, a pattern he noticed occurred four times in the hour he spent staring at her.

During the night, they took a break from their marathon sex to shower together. While lathering her body with shower gel, she asked him a question that he could not answer.

“Aren’t their rules for one night stands?” Her inquiry was casual, but he was wondering the same thing. Their coziness was breaking the unwritten rules.

“We are adults, no?”

“Yes, we are,” she replied softly. She nervously chewed the edge of her thumbnail before turning away toward the shower spray.

Javier reached to turn her back toward him. “Why do you ask?”

A range of emotions crossed her face. He loved being able to read people, especially those in business relationships. With Teresa, he enjoyed knowing her true thoughts, even when she failed immensely at hiding them.

“I was just making conversation.”

“This may not be a rule for sexual affairs, but it is one I desire and that is honesty,
querida
. What are you thinking?”

She shrugged. “This is all so intimate, don’t you think?”

“Do you prefer that I dismiss you after I am done handling my business?” he asked.

Teresa had scowled, wounded by his words. “When you put it that way.”

“We are adults, Teresa. We don’t require rules.”

Or did they?
With boundaries in place, he probably wouldn’t have let her spend the night. Javier also knew if they treated their night together as meaningless sex, he would not have spent the time watching her sleep wondering what her dreams were about.

Her eyes slowly fluttered open, interrupting his musings. Javier watched her look around the room before looking at him, propped on his elbow above her.

“Good morning,” she said quietly.

He answered with a simple smile. Then he lowered his head and kissed her.

Moving his body over hers, Javier removed his shirt from her body. When he woke up with her in his arms, he noticed she was wearing it. She had obviously gotten up during the night to put it on.

When Teresa moved to cover her body with the sheet, Javier pulled it away.

“Don’t hide from me,
bella
.”