“And a few kisses?”
I looked away. “Maybe.”
“So spending time together and the possibility of a kiss?”
“Yes.” He’s ridiculous. “Just two friends hanging out who may or may not kiss. Nothing else.”
“I’m okay with that.”
“Good.”
“This will be an interesting summer.” He inhaled and closed his eyes for a few seconds before opening them. “That perfume is amazing. I’m still going to have a box of it sent to your room.”
“You don’t need to.”
“But I will.”
Instead of spending time with him, if I definitely stay, I’ll spend the rest of the time avoiding him. This property is so huge; I’ll bet I could do it.
As if he could read my thoughts, he tried to stump me for the last time that night. “Okay. I’ve got it. ‘Take a chance on me, baby. Give me the opportunity to show you that I’m your future, and he’s your past. Run off with me, Lacy.’”
“You know I recognize that. It’s probably the most famous line in the world. Even if I wasn’t from America and had just learned English in the past five years, I would know that line. It’s from New York to New York. The top-grossing movie in the history of the film industry.”
He revealed a wicked smile. “Maybe I’m just really that bad at this.”
“Or maybe you’re trying to tell me something.”
“Maybe.”
“Goodnight, Alvarez.” I closed the door behind me.
“Goodnight, my new friend,” he said from the outside.
Chapter 16
Alvarez
One more thing and I’ll go to sleep, just one more thing. I checked my watch. Two in the afternoon. Finishing that goddamn list had taken all this time?
I hadn’t slept after saying goodnight to Elle. I went to my office with the goal of getting a few things done before finishing the evening.
“Needa will be here in two minutes.” Reece rushed through my door with two coffees in her hand. “Hex refused to come. He said that he was hit with inspiration this morning and must paint immediately. He’s invited models over.”
“More models.” That was all we needed. More people coming here to die.
“They’re only temporary and here for an hour. Hex assured me he would only photograph them with Elle and then have them leave. How are you holding up?”
“I’m fine. I don’t need the coffee.” I waved away the cup she tried to give me. “I’m going to sleep after this. Anything else from Detective White?”
“Nothing yet. He’s going to be here during the meeting with Needa. He sounded like he had something serious to discuss.”
“That’s fine.”
He knew all about Dayanara, had fingerprinted her just in case he found a weapon or something that would have connected her to the murdered girls. I couldn’t even consider what I would do if Dayanara was the person killing them. It wasn’t impossible, however. She’d killed before. What if things I’d seen in movies were true, that when a person took a life, they became addicted to that power of controlling another’s humanity?
What the hell am I thinking? Dayanara couldn’t do anything like that. This is why I should’ve gone to sleep hours ago.
Reece grabbed the papers I’d signed and stacked them in her briefcase to take wherever they needed to go. Every few steps she glanced at the many lit candles throughout the space and frowned. After leaving Elle, I’d lit them all. That orange blossom fragrance drenched my office and served as the only thing keeping me awake. Elle’s scent gave me an adrenaline rush with just one inhale. I had no problem getting things done with her smell to push me forward—because the more crap I got off my to-do list, the more time we would spend on our date.
And there would be a date. Fifty books filled with various movie quotes leaned on the wall behind my chair. Reece had grabbed them from bookstores all over Miami. Apparently, nonfiction books for movie lovers were big business. They crowded the bookstores. Whenever I got a few moments to myself, I browsed lines, searching for the most unwatched and unpopular movie in there.
“Ay Dios mio! It smells like someone is cooking honey fruit soup in here.” Grandma waved her book in front of her as if fanning away the scent from my office. “What type of candles are these?”
“Orange blossoms.”
“Since when do you like orange blossoms?”
“Since a few days ago. How’s Dayanara?”
“She’s fine.” Grandma sat down and averted her eyes, signaling to me that she knew she was in trouble.
“Why in the hell did you take her out of her room, sneak her outside of the damn castle to the moat, and cover the both of you in blood?”
“Don’t you curse at me!” She pointed her wrinkled finger my way.
“I’m sorry, but let’s return to you breaking all of our rules and then after we finish that conversation, let’s go to the source of your blood.”