Alex quickly sat up and covered me with the blanket.
"What the fuck primo? ¡¿No podrías decir que tal vez deberías haberte ido en lugar de hacer una maldita escena ?! {Could you not tell that maybe you should have walked out instead of making a damn scene?!}
(╯ರ ~ ರ)╯︵ ┻━┻
.....
ಠಿ_ಠ
"Callate la boca, Cochino!" (shut your mouth, nasty boy!) Lar was quick to reply.
.....
(＠_＠;)
I was wishing I could just melt away or snap my damn fingers and disappear too at the moment. Those two were trash talking each other so quickly I only caught a word here and there. Either way I knew what the majority of the conversation was about.
Alex pulled the cover from off my head and asked me if I would like Lar to bring me a breakfast plate. Still beat red but feeling famished I just nodded hiding my face still.
"Yes, but knock before you just enter this time Primo!" He yelled before he eased the blanket off over my head.
He looked pretty embarrassed himself and apologetic as he grimaced looking at the door where Lar had been.
"Maria, you know how Lar is. I'm sorry that you were made to feel uncomfortable." shamefully and disappointed he strokes my face.
"This is not how I would have liked this morning to have gone with you." He moved a stray lock out of my face as I awkwardly lay there still beat red.
"I feel like a we just got caught by our aunt or something." I smirk and start to giggle as Alex face breaks into laughter with my reaction. The awkwardness is broken after that.
Our laughter quickly dies down as he leans down and gives me another kiss and lays next to me looking at me intently.
"What are you looking at so intensely?" I blush, knowing I probably have wild sex hair all over the place.
"I know I tell you all the time hermosa," His smiles cuts across his face wide and bright, " but ....," He gets serious in his tone still keeping a smile across his face.
"You really and truly are the most beautiful woman I have ever laid eyes on in my life. Inside and out." He takes my hand in his and kisses it.
I'm at a loss for words and my mind is completely blank as all I can do is continue blushing. If I was able to blush any more I'd probably look like a cooked lobster. I felt like one with how hot my face was.
"Here we go, Mija, a nice good breakfast to start the day off right." Lar suddenly appears again setting a plate and some drinks down for me and Alex next to the bed. His sudden reappearance making us jump again and Alex shoo's him away.
"She's tired Lar, let her sleep, you can visit later." Alex throws a pillow at him and Lar yells profanities at him before disappearing.
Well he wasn't lying I was rather tired still. I went to stand up and go use the restroom and found I couldn't stand properly my legs buckled and I sat quickly back down. I quickly grabbed my shirt and put it on and stood up again this time and made my way to the bathroom.
I washed up and while I was washing my face, a toothbrush and other stuff suddenly appeared with a note from Lar.
He was too thoughtful sometimes. He thought that I would need it and the clean clothes that appeared with the items.
I came back out in the clean underwear and shirt after a quick shower and Alex handed me my plate and excused himself to go do the same. I contemplated just getting dressed and leaving to avoid the emotions that were going to come soon. I was mentally hitting my self in the head for being so stupid as to have sex, amazing sex like that, with Alex knowing how much and how long he has liked me.
However, I don't think I could have had sex again if it had been anyone else but Alex. Since he knew what had happened to me and what would be going through my head.
I was staring off into space and didn't hear Alex come out of the bathroom so who knows how long he'd actually been standing there watching my facial expressions. I set my plate down with a repressed sigh, even I could tell I was melancholic with it's sound.
Alex suddenly sat behind me making me start and he just wrapped an arm around my waist and stuck his chin on my shoulder.
"It's okay hermosa, I know what you are probably thinking. That we are just friends, my affection was something you needed, but you don't need my love the same way I would like you too. You do not need to have that conversation with me."
He sounded so sad but willing to accept the truth that I didn't have it in me yet to fall in love again and that if we were to try, I would only break his heart.
"Just let me enjoy this, whatever it is, with you, please."
His pain was tangible coming from his lips making me feel worse for my earlier thoughts of getting dressed and just leaving. Suddenly John came into mind and reminded me of how sometimes it was worth the pain.
Thinking of the connection we had and his careful and giving nature last night I decided to stop causing so many broken hearts in people who really cared for me. I turned in his arms and pulled him down onto the bed with me smiling as we bounced slightly on the bed.
I quickly propped my self over him and kissed him again.
"How about I enjoy some more than just 'this' with you?" I run my fingers around his jaw not able to focus on just his eyes or those luscious lips.
I can tell he's caught between his emotions at the moment even with my suggestive tone and flirty and seductive body language. I notice he's just in a towel and smirk devilishly as I make my way down to make my point clear.
"I'll enjoy everything with you hermosa."
....
I stayed at Alex's and gave us a lot to smile about. We had some intense and passionate moments, it was like he was trying to make me fall in love with him or I was considering it myself.
He told me about how Farel and Lar found him starving to death on the streets. How they took him in, fed, clothed, schooled, and raised him both street and book wise. Farel was like the dad he never had but always imagined. Lar and his brothers were like cousins or siblings, but still family. I had known bits and pieces of the stories but never this in depth.
The troll and redcaps had been a team for centuries going from battle ground to any place that had death and evil cruel people causing harm. Cleansing and trying to heal the areas they could.
All the while Lar and his redcap brothers secretly designed and made clothes for the wealthy or clothed the poor who had nothing. Farel had taught Alex the secrets of making good textiles and other fabrics, so the quality was impeccable and Lar did the designs. They had amassed a great deal of wealth over the centuries and when the stock market became a thing, they invested and made even more off of that.
That dealing the drugs was just a favor for someone else that they had known who had passed away.
We had known a quick overview of some the stories we had told each other already over the years, but we went into depth now with us being so intimate with each other. Still behaving as friends but having that deeper connection then just a platonic friendship.
However, I knew this was just my way of connecting with someone on an intimate level again and so did he. We had a few instances where I had to go calm down or walk away cause he moved just right or did something to trigger a flash back, sending me into hysterics even if it was just internally. Each time it happened though he would do his best to calm me and reassure me I was safe.
When I woke up screaming or crying from the nightmares he would help soothe me and listen to me spill my heart and guts out over the dreams of being raped and tortured, of losing John and the soldier back in WWII.
In fact, I told Alex the whole story on how I became SIN and he helped point something of interest out.
"When the soldier was dying he asked you to hold his hand till the pain subsided, right?" I nod he had that right.
"Then John asked you to hold his hand while the pain subsided too?"
"Yes, I know, it's ironic." thinking out loud I answer him rhetorically.
"No, not really cause I remember John saying to you, 'I feel like we've done this before'."
"Okay?" Not sure where's he going with this.
"What if he's been reincarnated? What if John was the soldier, just reincarnated?"
"What the....? I don't know is that even possible? Hold on... Maybe... LAR!" I shout calling to ask him a question.
He appears suddenly and grumbles, "Mija, I am cooking and need to get back so the food doesn't burn. What is it?"
"Sorry Lar, but is reincarnation really a thing?" I ask.
He looks at me and looks at Alex, "I'll come back to talk after the food is done, it's too long of a conversation for the time I have right now."
Alex shrugs as Lar disappears seeming perturbed, "He just jealous because I've been monopolizing all of your time. He wants to show you his designs he made for the fashion show in Milan in the next few weeks. People still rave at the shows over that gown you wore on the boat that night. I'm tempted to ask if you'd join me for the show, but I know you do not care for that crowd of people."
Hmmm... I think I'll try something new.
"Actually Alex I would love to go to the show with you and see Lar's designs walk the runway." I lean over and give him a kiss and he starts in surprise.
"Oh don't act all surprised you know you love it when I do that." I say sardonically, scoffing at his shocked expression.
"The kiss? That's not what shocked me." bluntly the words come out and I have to ask.
"OH? Then what was it?" I give him a pointed look and he gives me a wicked grin starting to act like he's tiger prowling after me.
"Alex, good tiger." I say jovially putting my hand up as I lean back.
He gives me a little growl that he's found out I really like and pounces on me making me squeal as he's trapped me under him. Before I start to show signs of a possible panic attack, he leans off to the side and gives me a quick peck.
"Oh you ferocious beast you." I laugh letting my heart calm down from him playing around with me.
"I'm surprised you would go to the show, with me." He looks at me quizzically, happy but still a question is in the back of his mind.
"Why are you surprised?" I ask.
He's about to open his mouth when Lar shows up mumbling under his breath.
"Alright, yes reincarnation is a thing, for all beings. I do not know how it works, why it happens or when. That you will need an oracle for." He sets plates of food down in front of us and continues taking a seat and summoning a bottle of dark red liquid and pouring a glass to gulp it down.
"I know it is a thing because over the years you can spot it from time to time when the souls notice each other. Even when they don't notice each other you can see it , like a magnetic force pulls or repels objects these bonds do the same thing."
"You're best friend in this life you remember may come back into your life as your best friend again, or you could be reborn as sisters or even lovers. We don't really know unless we knew the situation and could spot the similarities of souls. You can always tell who's been reincarnated though after talking with them awhile, humans like to say they have an 'old soul' sometimes."
I sit there dumbfounded and Alex just nods, "See Maria, I think it's possible."
Lar just gives us both a look.
It gives me too much to think on right now. I don't want to get my hopes up either. So I change the subject.
"So...Lar when are you going to show me those designs for the fashion show in Milan? Alex is going to take me with so I can see the show in person."
Lar perks up at that, "Really Mija, you're going to go? OH! Tell me you will wear the dress I made you before, por favor! Just as a guest of course."
"Of course!" I get a call as I'm speaking and it's from Cass.
"Hey Cass, What's up?"
"Sin, good news. We got a lead on Ortiz." Cass says hurriedly over the phone.
I rise to my feet quickly and start grabbing my few things here that have been spread about the room now.
"Where is he? Do we have concrete information? Can we trust the sources?" I'm talking as I am looking for some of my tech.
"Get this...He's in Barcelona Sin. We got rock solid information, one of our acquaintances in contact with us gave us the information. They were on a trip to the French Rivera and had an extended layover."
Cass laughs, "Said that he was drinking coffee at a cafe smug as could be and if he could have would have blown his head off for you."
"He called the house to tell you but you haven't been home for a while."
Cass gives me a insinuating salacious tone, "You've been doing the horizontal cha-cha with Alejandro, tell me you have, haven't you?"
...
"Your silence says it all! AYE-YI-YI"
He yells the last part that I have to take the phone away from my ear, I swear I saw his eyebrows flick at me through the phone.
I roll my eyes, "Mambo,... Cass, horizontal mambo is what they call it." I put my head in my hand and I feel more embarrassed for him more so than me.
Suddenly my phone is switched to speaker and Cass voice rings out,
"Was the sex as good as you thought it would be?!"
"I remember that one night you woke up having to work out till the afternoon to release the tension! That was one hell of a dream the way you were blushing!"
Straight horror floods my face.....
I'm frantically trying to turn the speaker off, "CASS YOU LITTLE SHIT!" I yell through the phone.
Cass is in hysterics, "HAHAHA! I can feel you blushing from here!"
"HAHA! Bet that's not all that made you blush!" Cass just thinks he is MR HILARIOUS OVER HERE.
"Cass turn off my speaker."
"You little hacker. Or when I get back I'm going to beat the smirk right off your face! We'll see who's redder afterwards!"
I hurried to the bathroom and shut the door knowing that they're still going to hear every single word.
He turns it off, "Seriously though Sin, was it as good as that dream?"
I smile and he chuckles, "I can feel you smiling through the phone, so it was good. Yeah, Sin for the win!"
"You're an idiot. I swear, Cass. It was better and that's all I'm saying, I'll be there in a few hours Cass, start getting my gear together."
I hang up and walk out of the bathroom grabbing my toiletries on the way out.
Alex and Lar are looking at me, both are grinning.
Lar like a teenager with fangs and Alex is smugly beaming at me.
"It took you almost 8-10 hours of working out to release the tension from just a dream about me?" He gets up looking quite proud of himself over the thought.
Lar waves bye to me and disappears.
"You should have said something sooner, hermosa." He starts to head towards me.
"I could have helped you release that tension a lot quicker."
Alex walk over to me slowly, the predator look in his eyes again as his long hair falls into his face.
I instinctively take a step back and another until my back is against the wall.
He puts his arms up on the wall caging me in them. I'm suddenly very aware of my body feeling excited at his close proximity, asserting dominance.
He was so damn intimidating and alluring when he gave me that look.
My heart was pounding and I started becoming weak in the knees with him standing so close to me looking at me that way.
"If you keep,..... looking at me,.... like that, .... I might just melt, ..... right here." I spit the words out, fumbling on making them into an actual sentence as my head becomes confused and my body starts awakening with butterflies and tingling.
"So did I meet your expectations, hermosa?" A corner of his mouth hitches up at my words, as he closes the gap between us. His lips hover over mine and I can't choose whether to look him in the eyes or those lips so close that teased me. He does the little growl making my heart swoon and melt.
"....ter..." My voice caught and I had to clear my throat awkwardly. "heh, hmm.. you exceeded my expectations. But I think you could do better." I suggestively raise an eyebrow at him as I regain my composure. I try to clear my head and take control of my body again.
"Better?" He chortled, "How so? What would you like me to do better?" He teases my lips hovering over them with his own and pulling away when I go for them.
I turn my head to the side exposing my neck slightly frustrated with his teasing of my lips.
"Answers, hermosa." he whispers against my ear lobe making me twitch forward in expectation.
Answers? I can't even think straight? What were we even talking about?
"You could do better at not teasing me so much." I mutter and push him back leading him to the bed and then 'lightly' suggesting him onto it with a playful push.
I crawl up on his body straddling his hips and lean over him. "Does that satisfy the question?"
It did..... It satisfied us both.....