Page 70 of Twisted Beauty

He hadn’t seen her in three days. He’d thought maybe the distance would get her out of his head. But the taste of her still lingered on his tongue, and he could still feel that creamy skin of hers beneath his hands. And now she was inches from him, with that pale green dress clinging to her thighs, and her auburn hair draped over one shoulder.

He pulled up to the curb and rotated his tires against the pitch of the road before cutting the ignition.

She looked at him from the passenger seat with her eyebrows raised. “Is this like a nineteen fifties date? Are we parking and making out in the car?” A dimple appeared at the side of her mouth, one that only showed when she was smiling fully.

Fuck, he loved that dimple.

“Don’t tempt me.”

For a moment, he wondered if this was a mistake. It wasn’t supposed to be a date, but it sure as hell felt like one. He’d planned it as a thank-you for helping Tito. But a small part of him wanted to spend a little more time with her outside the bedroom. He wanted to know more about her. And since they didn’t get much talking done naked in bed, he’d brought her here.

And now the thought of her naked in bed had him rethinking this whole damn evening.

He reached over and placed a hand on Liv’s thigh, nudging the hem of her dress up a little higher and stroking her skin with his thumb. Her smile was contagious. “You look like a kid at Christmastime,” he said.

“I love it up here. It’s so quaint and quirky. Let’s go.”

She opened her door but gravity slammed it shut before she could make a move to get out. “Shit, stupid door.”

Matt chuckled. “Stay there. I’ll come around and get you.”

He climbed out and went to the passenger side to help. Not as easy as he'd expected with the uphill slant, even for someone as light as Liv. He pulled her toward him before letting the door slam shut, and she wrapped her arms around his waist to steady herself. He wrapped his arms around her and slid a hand down to cup her ass.

Shit. Not here. He took her hand and led her up an incline, noticing the bag she had slung over her shoulder. “You want me to carry that for you?”

“No way.” She tightened her grip on the strap. “I’ll need this. We’re here to take pictures, right? Let’s stop here, this is incredible.”

“Not yet. We’re almost there.”

They climbed a set of uneven stairs embedded in the steep sidewalk, and across another cobblestone street before finally arriving at the street he was looking for, Calle Zaragoza.

“We’re in a neighborhood called Gringo Gulch, and this is Casa Kimberly,” Matt said as they passed under a white footbridge and approached the front gate. “The villa Richard Burton bought for Elizabeth Taylor when they filmed Night of the Iguana. Have you heard of it?”

Liv’s eyes widened. She covered her mouth with both hands and nodded.

Matt broke into a smile. He’d chosen well. She loved it.

“It’s in every tourist book ever written about PV. So amazing to be here.” Her voice was soft, dreamy. She unzipped her shoulder bag and pulled out her camera. “You do realize I have to take about a thousand pictures here.”

“I’d expect nothing less. Snap away. But don’t take too long, we have reservations in fifteen minutes.”

Liv stepped back a few feet and focused her lens on the street before them. “Reservations?”

“Yep. Dinner.” Matt took in the whole scene, the white stone bridge overhead, the narrow cobblestone street, the old-world buildings on either side. Was it too much? Bringing her here? He didn’t want her to think this meant anything more than what it was—just a way to show her around town. Not some meaningful, romantic gesture that made their relationship more complicated. “Upstairs is the Iguana Restaurant and Tequila Bar. Best food in town and we can watch the sunset over the ocean while we eat.”

Liv hummed. “That’s awfully romantic, Chef Reyes. Maybe you’d be better off just taking me home now and having your way with me so I don’t get the wrong idea about us.”

How the hell did she know what he was thinking?

“Come on, traviesa.” He took her hand. “Let’s eat before I take you up on that.”

She pulled back, and convinced him to wait while she took just a few more photos. Finally, with no time to spare, he rang the bell at the gate to the restaurant. Without a reservation, you couldn’t even get inside to see the place, so he didn’t want to be late. Though he did know the chef, so they’d probably give him a pass.

He rang the intercom, gave his name, and a buzzer unlocked the gate to let them in. They stepped into a courtyard made completely of stone and tile. In the center was a bronze statue of Taylor and Burton, staring longingly at each other as they sat perched on a short stone wall. He’d been here at least a dozen times, and this was the first time he’d realized just how romantic it was.

Too late to worry about that now.

Liv took a few more pictures as they headed past it and up a stairway to the open-air restaurant.