“Come for dinner with me tonight,” Enrique says, smiling. “I’ll wait here for you. I’ll give you a proper introduction to the city.”
“Are you sure?” I ask, surprised. “I don’t want to interrupt your plans.”
“Please,” Enrique says. “An evening in with a nice wine and a movie can wait. I’d like to show you around. Will you let me?”
“Of course,” I say. Is he kidding? What heterosexual woman alive would be able to resist that offer?
“Well, then. Good luck. You’re going to do great,” Enrique says, flashing me that white toothed smile again.
And I head inside, feeling as though I might have been given the greatest good luck charm ever.
CHAPTER FIVE
Enrique
After my spur-of-the-moment decision to take Lily out tonight, I’m actually glad we have to be apart for a while. I have lots of things to organize if I’m going to make this work.
The first thing I do is put a call in to my assistant, Fernando. He’s still in the office and picks up almost immediately when I dial his number.
“Hola, Fernando,” I say, speaking in Spanish. “I need you to make some changes to my plans for tonight.”
I can hear Fernando’s annoyance, even though I can’t see it. He hates it when I change my plans. He’s the one who has to call around and tell everyone, after all, so I don’t blame him.
“Are you adding more diners?” Fernando asks hopefully, but I know I have to let him down.
“Actually, I’m canceling the dinner meeting,” I say. “I need you to keep the reservation open, just for two. Tell the others that I’ve got an emergency at home and need to reschedule for next week. I’m sure they will understand.”
I can hear Fernando’s fingers rapidly clicking over a keyboard, taking down notes on what he needs to do. “Is that everything?”
I think about it. “Actually, no. Please cancel and postpone all of my meetings for tomorrow by one week as well.”
Fernando sighs. “What should I tell them?”
“Anything you like,” I grin. “To be honest, Fernando, I’ve run into a beautiful woman and I’m not going to allow myself to miss the chance to spend a little time with her.”
“A beautiful woman?” Fernando sounds shocked. “But, you never…”
“Si. And so you can tell that I’m serious about this one,” I tell him, grinning wider even though he can’t see me.
After Fernando agrees to take care of everything for me, I wait anxiously for Lily to re-emerge. I realize that I didn’t even ask her how long her interview might be, I was so caught up in the idea of not leaving her just yet that it didn’t occur to me I might have to wait a while.
Still, I’ll wait. It’s enough to see her again.
When she does finally come out into the lobby where I’m waiting for her, the lights in the city are starting to come on, the sun dipping towards the horizon. It’s almost time for our dinner reservations, the good thing is I booked it early, for the time when Americans are used to eating, rather than our later Spanish timetable. I prefer to do my business that way. We get to talk about business and get it all out of the way, and still have time to meet with friends or family later.
“I’m so sorry!” Lily exclaims, as she comes to my side and we walk out of the hotel together. “I had no idea it was going to take so long!”
I laugh. “It’s all fine, Lilita. I offered to wait.”
“Lilita?” she repeats, scrunching her nose in confusion.
“It’s your name,” I tell her, grinning at her adorable look of confusion. They don’t have anything like this in the US, I remember. A way to show someone that you care for them with a cute or endearing version of their name. I instantly decide not to call her by anything else again.
“Where are we going?” Lily asks, following me up the street.
“Just follow me. I have a reservation,” I tell her. Thankfully, since we’re not far from the main area of the city center already, we don’t have far to walk. “How did the interview go?”
“I think well,” Lily says happily. “They seemed to like me. They only have one placement, but I’m really hopeful.”
So there is the chance that she will be here for longer when the summer comes. I can’t deny that the thought sends a shot of pleasure through me. Getting her all to myself might be more possible if we have more time together. Still, my heart doesn’t want to wait. Already I’m impatient for her presence, to get to know her better, to laugh and eating together, our first kiss. It’s been such a long time since I even thought about these things, and here I am, just a few hours after meeting her.
I don’t know what kind of magic this girl has, but she’s put a spell on me for sure – and it’s so powerful I don’t know how long I can resist before making a move to claim her as mine.
CHAPTER SIX
Lily
Stepping into the restaurant that Enrique booked for us is nothing like I expected. It’s a thoroughly modern place with large glass windows instead of a front wall, and all of the furniture and décor looks so expensive that I wouldn’t even be able to have it at home. I start to feel underdressed – and also that I can’t really afford to eat somewhere like this.
Before I can voice my concerns, however, a waiter approaches us, addressing Enrique by name and leading us through to a private booth which is laid out just for two. I’m amazed to see that even in this place, which is clearly the fanciest restaurant I’ve ever had the luck to step in, Enrique has an upgraded version of the experience.
“Do you come here often?” I ask, forgetting how it sounds like a corny pick-up line in my wonderment.
“Yes,” Enrique laughs. “I actually do. I’m here often for work, and for pleasure from time to time as well. They know me here well enough to make sure we will have everything we could need.”
I’m already blown away. Is this how he lives all times. “What is it that you do, again?” I ask. “For work, I mean.”
“Oh,” Enrique smiles, a twinkle lighting up his dark eyes. “A bit of this and that. Lots of boring business deals and meetings. But at least I get to do a lot of it in a setting like this.”
I can’t help but agree. Any kind of work would be more bearable if you were able to do it here. What seems like hordes of dark uniformed waiters are scurrying around with bottles of champagne and loaded trays of food, giving table service with quiet feet and hushed voices.
I pick up the menu and blink. “This is tapas?” I ask.
“Exactly,” Enrique nods. “Here they have a fusion menu, with lots of international cuisines presented in tapas style.”
“How many dishes should I order?” I ask, blinking at the long list of available items. I haven’t yet been brave enough to try tapas on my own, it’s nothing like what I’ve seen at home with much smaller plates and more options than I normally see in American restaurants that call themselves tapas.
“How about I order for you?” Enrique asks. “You just have to answer a short quiz, and I will get you exactly what you like.”
“Okay,” I grin, liking the sound of this game. “Go ahead.”
“What’s your favorite color?”
“Pink.”
“And your favorite animal?”
“Um, I like cats.”
“How about your favorite cuisine?”
“Italian.”
Enrique winces, and I cover my mouth in shame at my knee-jerk response.
“I’ll work on that by the end of the week. Alright, what is your most comforting food that you would have on a bad day?” he says, creasing a smile.
“Ice cream,” I tell him decisively. “Cookie dough flavor, the one with the real lumps of dough in there.”
“I got it,” Enrique declares. A waiter materializes and Enrique rattles off our order to him, far faster than I’m able to keep up with.
“I ordered you a sparkling water,” he explains to me afterward. “I hope that’s fine. I didn’t think yo
u were a wine drinker.”
“No, I’m not,” I smile. “I’m only twenty. I mean, I know it’s different here, but…”
“But you don’t have the drinking experience,” Enrique laughs. “I like to have a glass of red wine, but not when I’m working. It will be nice to enjoy some with the food tonight.”
It’s a reminder that Enrique is so much older than me, even though he doesn’t completely act like it. If I didn’t know him, I think I would have a hard time guessing his age at all. “I’m going to be exploring the city for the next few days, since I have free time while I wait to hear back,” I say, changing the subject. “Is there anywhere that you recommend I should go, see, do?”
Enrique smiled, tilting his head to the side. “You haven’t been to Madrid before, correct?”
“No, this is my first time.”
“Then you need to have a proper tour guide,” he says. The waiter appears with our drinks, and Enrique thanks him before continuing. “I can show you around tomorrow. How about it?”
My eyes widen. “Really?” I ask. “Don’t you have work?”
Enrique waves a hand. “The boss can take some time off when he wants,” he says. “I don’t do it often, so why not? It’s not every day I get the chance to show my city off to the most beautiful girl currently in España.”
I blush wildly, though he must only be flattering me. “I would really appreciate that,” I say because there’s nothing I can do but accept. “Thank you.”
“It’s not a problem. I’ll come by your hotel early tomorrow and pick you up,” Enrique says, and then we are both distracted by the arrival of the food.
The waiter lays out all kinds of small dishes in front of us, calamari, small bowls of differently flavored paella, sliced chorizo, toasted bread topped with melted Manchego cheese and Ibérico ham, olives stuffed with garlic, a Spanish omelet, patatas bravas, Spanish meatballs in tomato sauce, Serrano ham and Manchego salad, and other things I can’t even identify.
“Wow,” I breathe, taking it all in. “Where do we start?”
Enrique grins. “Wherever you like. In fact, with tapas, it’s more usual to order one dish with each drink you have. But since it’s your first time, I figured a bit of a tasting menu might be better. Next time, you’ll know what you like and you can order it dish by dish.”
I feel a little awkward for just a moment but when Enrique takes an olive from the bowl and starts to eat it, and afterward reaches for his fork to take a potato from the patatas bravas, I’m encouraged to dig in.
Every bite is delicious. I’m not sure how he did it, but Enrique really did manage to predict precisely the dishes that I would enjoy eating. I can’t believe how the flavors rest on my tongue, some with a spicy kick, some melting away, some creamy and rich, but everything quite obviously prepared to the highest quality. The restaurant isn’t just flashy, it must be amongst the best in the city, and I realize with a start that I never saw any prices on the menu.
It must be costing Enrique a fortune, but he doesn’t seem to bat an eyelid.
Finally, after more conversation and when every dish on the table is empty, Enrique finishes his second glass of wine and sits back against his chair, observing me. “Well, Lilita,” he says, a thrill rushing through me at the sound of my new nickname. “It’s getting late, and we have a long day tomorrow. Can I escort you back to your hotel?”
I blush at the thought of him coming to my hotel room and nod my head. How I wish he would do more than just escort me, but I can’t say that. Not to my Dad’s best friend. “Thanks,” I say, instead.
Enrique pays the bill and we walk out to the sidewalk, where he hails a cab to take us to where I’m staying. The journey is only too short, which I hate. I want to spend more time with him. I wish I had the courage to ask that this not be the end of the night, to suggest that we go on somewhere else. But I don’t know what to say, where we could go. I stay quiet, watching the city out of the windows, all too aware of Enrique beside me.
“Please wait here,” he tells the driver, surprising me by getting out of the cab and offering me his arm. I don’t ask what he’s doing in case this spell is broken, instead, I enjoy the warmth of his arm against my bare skin, the feeling of walking with him, everyone watching us and wondering if we might be together.
Enrique walks me into the hotel, but he doesn’t stop there. Against my expectations, he walks me right to the elevator and pushes the button, and then gets in it with me. “What floor are you on?” he asks, leaving me feeling breathless.
“The third,” I say, unable to do anything but watch him press the button. The elevator begins to move and in this tight space together, his body so close to mine with no one else around I begin to wonder…
Our journey stops abruptly as we arrive at the third floor, wrenching my daydreams to a stop. I lead Enrique to my room, and then he pauses, turning to me in such a way that I know I’m supposed to turn to him in return.
“I hope you had as wonderful an evening as I did,” he says, all charm. “I look forward to tomorrow. Don’t forget, bright and early.”
“I’ll be ready,” I say, lingering, not wanting to open the door. I know that if I open the door, I will be effectively saying goodbye.
I don’t want this to be the end of the night. I want him to come in, to spend the night with me. I know it would be too forward to say so, and besides, I’m worried that he might laugh in my face. For all of his charm, the fact remains that he probably still sees me as just a kid, his best friend’s daughter no less.
I don’t know if he would ever be able to look past that and see me as a woman.
“Goodnight,” Enrique tells me, shifting his feet as if he’s about to go.
I take the hint and open the door, stepping into my room. “Goodnight,” I reply softly, and as I close the door on the sound of his feet walking away, I instantly regret not saying a thing.
I should have at least tried but I know I’m too cowardly to do it. I’ve never even done anything with someone my own age, let alone someone like Enrique. I barely even know the words that I would use.
I allow myself to fall down onto the bed on my back, staring at the hotel room ceiling with despair. If only I had asked him to come in. He could be here with me now, sitting on the edge of my bed, looking at me with desire.
I allow my mind to run away with me. I picture him bending over me, pressing our lips together as he devours me. Even the thought of that is almost more than I can take. I find my fingers drifting to my panties, touching the heat and wetness I find down there, thinking of him stripping them off and throwing them to the floor. I think of him tugging my dress over my head and looking at my naked body, seeing me, touching me.
Heat rushes through me, but it all comes to a cold end as I try to picture what comes next. The truth is, I don’t know. I’ve never got that far with a man before, and I have no idea what it would be like. I can’t imagine the feeling, the way it would happen.
I get up, frustrated, and begin to change for bed. The quicker I fall asleep, the quicker I can wake up to see him again in the morning, and even if there’s no chance of anything more, just being in his presence is enough that I don’t want to even dream of turning it down.
CHAPTER SEVEN
Enrique
I arrive outside Lily’s hotel bright and early as promised, letting the taxi go this time. I don’t need it, since we are already in the heart of Madrid, and from here we can easily walk to all of the places that we need to go.
I’m resolved, last night sealed it for me, lying awake in the darkness, thinking of how much better the night would be if she were by my side instead of across the other side of the city. I will make her mine. There is no alternative, no maybe. I need her to be mine, and that’s what I am going to do.
She doesn’t even know it yet, but it’s as good as done. Today I will show her how well we fit together. If I feel this strongly, I refuse to believe there could be any possibility that we’re not mean
t to be together. She is mine, and all that remains is to make the fact a physical reality.
When she steps out into the lobby, throwing me a wave to where I sit waiting on a plush armchair, my heart almost stops. Does she know what she’s doing to me? Today she wears another dress, a floral print on blue fabric with frills at the shoulders and at her knees, where the fabric stops. I can’t help but admire her legs, the curve of her waist, her chest squeezed into the dress until it looks like it might burst. It takes me a moment to find my voice, something I cover by standing slowly to meet her.
“Are you ready?” I ask, at last. “You look beautiful today.”
“Thank you,” Lily says, blushing. I’ve noticed her blush several times already. The way her cheeks are dusted with pink, making her somehow even more attractive. It makes me want to bend and kiss that pink, to kiss every millimeter of that blush until it darkens or goes away.
“We’re walking today,” I tell her, though I know she must have already guessed. It’s more like a last chance for her to change her shoes, just in case they’re not comfortable, but her flat sandals look sensible enough. “I have a nice route planned which will take us around all of the monuments and sightings that are recommended for tourists.”
“Do you show people around often?” Lily asks, keeping pace with me easily as we head for the door. “Business clients, or so?”
I laugh. “No. In fact, I’ve never given a city tour before. This is my first.”
“So, then, why…?” Lily asks but trails off before she can finish the question. I think perhaps she means to ask why I would make an exception for her. It’s not obvious to her yet, but I think it will be. Soon.
“Of course, I have added some of my own embellishments,” I say, ignoring her question as we step out into the sun. This unseasonably good weather continuing. I think it must be because the universe recognizes that Lily has stepped into my life. “I think you’re going to enjoy them. We have the whole day, but still, there’s not much time to waste. We have to get to a particular café around lunchtime to take advantage of their delicious food, which will certainly refuel us for the rest of the day.”
Madrid With Dad's Best Friend: An Instalove Possessive Age Gap Romance Page 2