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Sol shifts to adjust the towel she’s using as a pillow and closes her eyes, her long eyelashes brushing the skin beneath her eyes. Her hair is spread out around her, and the corners of her lips are soft at their edges. She’s stunning.
“You know what was one of the first things I noticed about you?” I raise my hand, rest my fingers on the tip of her nose.
“What’s that?” she asks.
“Your nose ring. It’s small but the light hit the stone and it was shining, it caught my attention.”
She lifts her fingers, begins twirling the small stud in her right nostril. “Sometimes I forget I have it since I’ve had it for so long.”
“Today, you made me the happiest man,sabes?” I ask, leaning into her and hovering over her mouth.
“How’d I do that?” Sol’s eyes flutter open, brown meeting green, and she lifts her left arm resting it on my upper back.
“Finalmenteyou told meque me amas. I never thought you would say ity era tortura!” Torture was exactly what it felt like waiting for her to reciprocate my feelings.
“I didn’t mean for it to torture you. Those words are hard for me.” Her fingers draw circles along my skin. I caress her cheek with the back of my hand, her soft skin soothing my mine.
“¿Por qué?”
She shrugs and drops her eyes. “They just are, and I wanted to make sure of what I was feeling before I responded.” I sense she isn’t telling me the whole reason but have realized with Sol I can’t force things with her, she needs to say and discuss things on her own terms. Otherwise, it backfires, and she recoils into herself.
“Eso es todo, the only reason?” I ask, even if I already know what’s she’s going to say to me.
She nods but her eyes won’t meet mine. The air around us is thick, the humidity mixed with the awkwardness. My lips meet hers and I pull her plump bottom lip between my teeth, sucking on it. The ocean salt mixed with her sweetness.
I want to ask her to move in with me but know if I do it will be a repeat of the ‘I love you’ situation. She won’t answer me, and it will just make things awkward with us again. She’s going to think we’re moving too quickly, and maybe we are, but I already know what Sol means to me.
She’s the woman I love.
She’s the woman I’ve been waiting my entire life to meet.
She’s the woman I want to spend the rest of my life with.
Instead of asking her to move in with me, I say, “Eres mi media naranja.”
Sol separates from me. “Your half orange?” Her eyebrow lifts, questioning me.
I nod. “Sí. I’m one half and you the other. Together, we are a whole orange.” It’s corny, I know but I can’t help it, this is how she makes me feel. I swipe my lips to hers again.
“It’s cute, I like it.” A smile spreads across her face.
“¿Nos vamos?” I ask as the sky darkens around us. She nods and kneels, pushing her arms through the sleeves and then freeing her curls.
We’re strolling back to the mopeds, and she asks, “What should we eat? I’m hungry.”
“No se. What you want to eat?”
“I’ve been wanting to try La Sandwicherie. Have you ever tried it?” she says.
“No,no me gustan los sándwiches peroI’ll try it.” Anything to see her smile.
We put our things into each of our mopeds, strap our helmets on, and pull out onto Ocean Drive.
CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE
Soledad
I bought a couple different dresses at Macy’s because I wasn’t sure which I wanted to wear. One is a cute little black dress, and the other is a red halter dress. I don’t love either of them but they’re the best I could do on such short notice. As I’m walking to my car, I feel like someone is following me but when I turn around there’s no one there. I take a moment to assess the area, to make sure I’m not missing something or someone. The lot is full of cars but there are no people. Must be uneasy remnants leftover from the days I would have to watch over my shoulder at every step. As soon as I get to my car, I toss my bags onto the passenger seat and quickly lock my door.
