Which might be a problem, considering I just bought it for her. I almost have to laugh at myself. Almost, except not, because instead of being amused by it for too long, I picture myself going into that changing room right now, shoving the stylist out of the way, and burying myself inside Ashley.
It's going to be a challenge to hold on much longer, but if there was ever a man who could face it, it's me. I know how important this is for Ashley, and I'm not going to mess anything up. Maybe I should just suggest that she wear the blue dress tonight, and not the red one.
Otherwise, I might just have to accelerate the timeline and make her mine for good a little sooner than planned.
Chapter Sixteen
Ashley
By the time that we leave the store, I’m loaded down with bags. I almost think that I might not be able to carry them around the whole city until Fernando takes half of them off me and suggests that we go back to the hotel to drop them off. But I don't want to do that, because I feel like it would bring his wonderful planned day to an end sooner than it's supposed to.
“Why don’t we just go explore?” I ask him, hoping he will say yes. “If it gets too much, we can come back a little later on.”
“It’s a good plan,” he says, looking at me with a glint in his eye. “I should have brought the car, and we could have left them in the trunk. But something distracted me last night and I didn’t think of it.”
“I wonder what that could have been?” I say innocently, glancing around. “So, which way are we going now?”
“The next stage of your architecture tour, of course,” Fernando says, taking my arm and leading me down the street. “One of the most famous examples of all.”
I think I might know where we're going, but I allow him to lead the way, waiting to find out if I'm right. My heart is starting to quicken as we pass along the streets, for a variety of reasons, first, that I’m out here with him, and it feels so perfect that I’m still not sure it can be real. Second, because we are going in the direction of these Sagrada Familia according to the street signs, and I can’t wait to see it in person.
I hold my breath as we turn a corner and come out onto the beautiful view, the cathedral, still as unfinished as ever, soaring up above us. It’s so magnificent, in so many different ways.
“It’s amazing,” I breathe. I've read so much about this place, and it has always fascinated me since the very first time I heard about it. A monument to the folly of human endeavor, or so it was described in an article I read online. The plans were drawn up over a century ago, and work begun back then as well, but through a combination of the fact that the foundations were never stable enough, the budget was not able to be released as planned, and the death of the designer, it is still ongoing.
I almost wonder if they will never stop, just because the story of this uncompleted masterpiece is even more romantic than the work itself.
“You know, this place always makes me think,” Fernando says, as we draw closer and step inside to explore. “No matter what kind of plans we make, they may change and evolve in ways we don’t understand. I carry that lesson with me when I’m creating plans for my business.”
“Tell me about it,” I tease, nudging his side. “I was planning a little solo trip around Barcelona and some exploration to prove that I’m an independent woman. Instead, I’ve spent the whole time hanging on your arm and relying on your generosity.”
Fernando looks down at me. “You’re not regretting it?”
“Not even for a moment,” I promise.
We stroll through the grand interior of the space. It’s amazing how something like this can exist, a tourist spot as well as a construction site, and not just for annual repairs or a one-off reconstruction. Forever. Something that will always be under process.
“It makes me think of something else, as well,” Fernando says, and I wonder if he’s reading my mind. “About just how long it can take to build something which is worth building. They don’t stop or give up. They keep going. That’s a powerful message to me.”
I’m about to reply to this when I stop, doubt catching me. Is this Fernando's way of telling me that he doesn't think a relationship can be formed in such a short amount of time? Does he feel that a proper relationship between a man and a woman that is built to last, that ends in marriage and children and happy endings, has to have a foundation of more than just a few days?