by Aubrey Parr
As the elevator arrived and climbed to the second floor, Nicole again tried to fill the silence. “You will be able to leave while you are working? You won’t get in trouble for that?” She was concerned for Hector. He was such a nice man; she didn’t want him getting in any trouble over her. She could easily catch a cab or, if she hurried, she could walk it.
“No, señorita, I can do any driving for Senor Derek. No trouble at all.” He stepped off the elevator as it opened.
As she reached her door, she told Hector that she would see him soon. Nicole wondered how Derek was able to get the hotel to allow Hector to leave whenever he needed a ride. She stepped into her air-conditioned room and practically shivered. She wanted to shower first and then she’d figure out a schedule to make sure she visited each and every place on her list of her father’s favorite places.
CHAPTER EIGHT
Derek was impressed with how well Gael did on his first solo trip. He knew he was a bit of a control freak when it came to business. For his entire life, he had to do everything for himself. That was what he was used to. Stepping back and letting Gael take the lead on this meeting was huge for him. Most of the business side would ultimately be done by the hotel company. Derek’s company was there for their expertise in finding lucrative locations. Gael had gone above and beyond. Not only had he been thorough in his review and on-site visit of the location, he had already found a contact within the Chicago city government to get the paperwork started for necessary permits for their clients. He had been meticulous in his groundwork. The hotel developer’s return on investment would be nice, which translated to money for Derek. All that was needed was for Derek and the client to give their seals of approval.
Derek was not willing to give up any time in Vallarta with Nicole. Still, he wasn’t sure how quickly they could lose this location. Even a day trip would require over twelve hours with travel time. As he and Gael sat on the balcony of the little bar, he stirred his drink with the straw and considered his options. Gael was quite confident in his impression of the location and Gael was a smart man. He was very cautious with situations and didn’t trust anything easily. Derek knew he had worked quietly in his past with a federal investigative agency in Mexico. He obviously didn’t know details, but he knew Gael could be dead serious when needed. He had proven his abilities over the years and Derek trusted his opinion.
“Here’s what I’m thinking,” he raised his eyes from his drink, “This should be your baby. I still want my living quarters, but if you take the lead on this and it goes through, half the finder’s fee and the percentage of revenue will go directly to you.” Gael’s face lit with excitement. He was usually rather serious; Derek enjoyed seeing this lighter side.
“Let’s do a shot.” It was a tradition for them after coming to a business decision. Gael waved over the server and asked for two shots of tequila chilled and dressed.
Derek could tell he was struggling a bit to keep his composure. This could be quite a chunk of change for Gael. “This will be on top of your regular salary and bonuses,” he added.
“I will drink to that, amigo,” Gael laughed and they both threw back their glasses of tequila.
Glancing at his watch, Derek could see that it was nearing 11am. He had asked Hector to keep his eye on Nicole as best he could and to drive her to the bar on the beach. His run-in with Silvia had been right at the edge of his thoughts all morning. “I have somewhere I need to be,” he told Gael, “Let’s talk later.” He threw enough money on the table to cover the bill and a sizeable tip.
“Have fun with your lady,” Gael teased.
“She’s something,” he told him as he put on his sunglasses.
The bar was a short walk away and Derek enjoyed the little bit of exercise. He hadn’t gone for a run yet today and his legs were itching to move. He was pleased with his decision with Gael, who deserved the chance to prove himself. During the past ten years, he hadn’t had a hectic forty-hour work week in the concrete jungle, but he did ultimately shoulder all of the responsibility in his company. It would be nice to have Gael take on more of partnership role, to have someone that could allow Derek to take weeks at a time off to disappear to some corner of the globe, to be unreachable. He knew this wasn’t to be taken lightly. This would be a serious decision, but he liked where they were headed.
He felt like he just may be ready to share his personal life with someone else now. He could imagine sharing this world he had created with Nicole. He always knew his lifestyle would be hard for someone else. Most people would not want to live away from their family. Nicole didn’t have any family left. Both of her parents were only children and they were gone now. She didn’t have grandparents, aunts, uncles, or cousins. She was very much in the same situation he was. She was in this world rather alone. Her situation fit well into his lifestyle.
With that thought still floating in his mind, he saw her sitting at the bar. He liked that she had already ordered herself a drink. It wasn’t a beer this time, but some sort of mixed drink with an umbrella in it. She was wearing the black bathing suit from the day he met her. This time she had on a pair of cute little board shorts and a white tank top with material so thin, it looked about ready to disintegrate. She was looking out at the water, lost in her own thoughts. He could see that Hector had given her the beach bag he asked for.
He walked up to her and kissed the top of her head as he slid into the seat next to her. “Hope I didn’t keep you waiting.”
“Hi.” She leaned over and gave him a quick kiss on the lips, as if she had been doing it her whole life. “I brought Hector’s mystery bag.” She smiled and lifted the huge bag off the ground for a second.
“No mystery, just some beach necessities. Towels, sun screen for that gorgeous skin, some chips and pico de gallo to snack on. I figured we could get water and drinks from the bar.”
“Hector is too funny. He wouldn’t tell me what was inside. Just said ‘Señor Derek’ required some things.” Her imitation of Hector was hilarious and spot on. “I wasn’t sure if I should add mule to my resume or expect whips and chains.”
“No, love, I never got into drugs with my fighting career. We can indulge in the occasion blindfolding, but I’m not really into the S&M thing. Were you looking forward to being whipped?”
She blushed, but laughed and ordered him a beer to avoid answering. “I would have had a beer waiting for you, but didn’t want it to get warm,” she said.
“That’s quite alright. I just appreciate that you remember what kind I drink,” he responded.
They decided to go down by the water for a while and then have a leisurely lunch. He wanted to take her shopping afterwards, but he wasn’t sure if she’d be receptive to the idea of him spoiling her just yet. She closed out her tab, paying for her drink and his beer. Although he would have preferred to pay for it, he understood that she was probably trying to show that she didn’t expect him to always pay for things. It was a nice gesture and it just made him fall for her even harder.
They chose the two lounge chairs closest to the water that were still in the bar’s territory. He took off his shirt and laid it on the back on the chair. He couldn’t take his eyes off Nicole while she slipped the tiny tank top over her head and let her shorts fall to her feet. When she stepped out of them, she kicked them up into her hands. She did have nice little tricks with those legs of hers. He remembered her underneath him the night before, pushing his pants down with her foot. He couldn’t wait to get on top of her again.
He pulled two small towels out of the bag, laid them on the chairs, and then handed over the sunblock, telling her, “The SPF isn’t too high. You’ll still get a tan, if you’d like.” She put a small coat on her arms, stomach, and legs. The way her hands rubbed all over her body was incredibly sexy. He’d taken many women to the beach over the years and they always tried to entice him while they applied lotion. But for some reason when a woman was trying too hard to be sexy, it always got lost in translation for him. Nicole,
however, was all business and it made her even more adorable. It almost seemed that she didn’t realize how gorgeous she actually was. The Maybe Boyfriend of hers should have been telling her every day.
“Okay, let me help with your shoulders and back or I’m going to have to ravish you right here and now,” he said, reaching for the bottle.
Nicole laughed out loud like he had said the most absurd thing. “Are you serious? This is turning you on?” Still giggling, she handed over the bottle. “Am I not going to be able to take you out in public?” She turned her body away from him so that he could help put it on her back. He realized rather quickly that it may have been worse than watching her. He kept his composure with her shoulders until she turned her head just a bit and looked at him from the corner of her eyes. She bit her lip slightly and smiled. He wanted to have her right there. As he rubbed his hands down her back and along the small curves of her hips, he could feel himself starting to get hard.
“We need to get into the water now,” he announced and grabbed her hand. She just rolled her eyes and laughed at him and they headed toward the water at almost a run. He dove straight into a wave to cool off and get control of his body. The water was about waist-high. Nicole waded over to him and slowly put her arms around his neck. Her skin felt warm against his which compared to the cold water felt soothing. She leaned her head against his shoulder. He was 5’10” and he guessed her height at about 5’7”. She fit against his body perfectly. They stayed there, still and quiet for a few minutes, enjoying the moment.
“This is nice,” she practically whispered and took a deep breath. He didn’t need to reply; it felt like she was saying it for the both of them. He tilted her chin up towards him and took her mouth into his. If there weren’t families playing around them, he would have made love to her right there in the water. They were definitely going to have to come back to the beach at night, when they could enjoy each other in the water under the cover of dark with the moonlight shining over them.
He kissed her slow but deep, wanting to taste every part of her mouth. He couldn’t imagine ever taking her kisses for granted. This would never get old. The feel of her lips and the taste of her mouth, nothing had ever felt so much like home to him. He grabbed her hair at the back on her neck and tugged slightly. She let out a moan and he kissed her along her cheek bone. He saw her take a quick glance over toward the closest family to make sure that the kids weren’t watching and he forced himself to pull away from her.
They both dunked their heads under the water and watched all the tiny little fish swimming around them. There were schools of them darting everywhere. Nicole had never experienced that before and she laughed and pointed like a little girl. She was so comfortable in her skin. He loved that about her. They waded deeper into the water and let the waves crash into them and bring them back closer to shore. Derek always made sure to have a tight hold of her hand each time, so there was no risk of the ocean grabbing hold of her in the undertow.
Out in the water just a bit, where families were playing, was a floating trampoline. Kids were jumping off of it and laughing. Derek watched Nicole as she smiled at the kids. One did a front flip and she clapped and cheered for him. When she saw Derek watching her, she told him that she used to be a gymnast when she was younger.
“Wanna give it a try?” he asked.
“Definitely!” She smiled and started swimming towards it. As they reached the ropes attached to the side of the floating island, Nicole grabbed a hold and hiked herself on top of it. Derek was impressed with her abilities, but hoped that he would have been able to cop a feel while assisting her. She turned and looked down at him.
“Coming up?” she smiled, blocking the sun out of her eyes.
“On my way,” he yelled up to her and pulled himself up onto the trampoline. Since the kids hadn’t climbed on again, Nicole jumped and laughed and did a few flips in the air. She really does love life, he thought.
“Are you going to try a flip over the edge?” he asked, knowing that’s what got her excited while watching.
“Wanna see me do a backflip?” she looked ready to impress him.
“Let’s see it!” He walked over and kissed her cheek.
She went closer to the edge and leaned over to take a look. She turned and faced him, standing as close to the edge as she could. Then she began to hesitate. “I just realized that it might be twenty years since I’ve done a backflip.” She had a look of terror in her eyes. “I can’t believe I’m this freaked out.”
“Oh love, you don’t have to do it then.” He started to feel bad for her.
“Yes, I do,” she said quickly, maybe before she could think too much about it. She got a look of determination on her face, winked at him, and flew her body back over her head. He ran up to see as he heard a huge splash in the water. Moments after she went under, she shot back up, laughing and cheering for herself. He would have been impressed regardless, but he was extremely proud, considering she did it in spite of being scared.
He dove into the water after her and she threw her arms around him as soon as she could. She was beaming from the experience.
“I’m very proud of you!” he said between kisses.
They swam a bit closer to the shore so that they could both reach the bottom easily. He saw her shiver a bit when a gust of wind came, so he picked her up and threw her over his shoulder. She laughed and hit his butt and kicked her legs. He just squeezed tighter until he reached the beach and set her down in the sand.
“You seemed cold; I thought I’d get you to your towel,” he said with a smile.
“You are crazy!” was all she could say before he wrapped her towel around her and pulled her into him to warm her with his body heat as well. They settled on their chairs under the sun. Derek couldn’t take his eyes off of her, from her wet blond hair to her body glistening in the sunshine. Her tiny black bikini left little to the imagination when it was wet. It looked almost as if it were painted on her breasts. All over her body, he began to notice the tattoos she had hidden. There was one just behind her ear, one on the back of her neck. She had a date down the side of her rib cage and he wondered what the significance was. She had one on her ankle as well. He couldn’t quite see what it was and she noticed him looking.
“It’s a lotus flower,” she told him, “The roots are in mud and they rise up out of it to bloom.” She closed her eyes again to block the intense sun, but she looked like she was soaking up every ounce of it.
“That is nice,” he said, “maybe that should be my next one.” He liked the idea of them sharing a tattoo. He had never done that before. “Tell me about all of them.”
“My first was the lotus flower. My father took me when I was sixteen years old. It can represent so many things, but ultimately for me, it was my mother. The mud represents the cancer. Now she’s up in heaven, out of pain.” He was impressed with her choice of tattoo at such a young age. She went on, “I didn’t want an angel; it seemed too obvious. When I saw the Buddhist meaning of a lotus, I knew it was perfect.”
“And this one?” he said, brushing her hair aside and touching the little swirl behind her ear.
“This one is a symbol I saw once that stands for ‘strength’,” she smiled, “I thought it was pretty, too.”
“What does ‘so it goes’ mean on the back of your neck?” He reached his hand under her neck and she moaned just a tiny bit.
“It’s from the book Slaughterhouse-Five. It was my favorite book in college. It roughly means that shit happens, so I better deal with it.”
He liked that as well. So far they were all significant, none from a drunken night that she immediately regretted. So many people these days had ridiculous pictures stamped on their bodies, for no reason other than too many drinks and bad decisions. “What about this?” he ran his finger down her rib cage and she squirmed.
“That’s my mother’s birthday. I’ve already been thinking I should get my father’s on the other side.”
“Want t
o go get it?”
She gave him a confused look. “I feel horrible, but this one was so painful. Honestly, I’m scared to go through it again.”
“Understandable. I don’t have one on my ribs, but certain areas definitely hurt worse than others,” he said. The back of his calf had been the worst for him by far.
“One day, when we have hours, you’re going to have to tell me about all of yours,” she laughed.
“It’s a date,” he replied. It almost sounded like that the date might not be within the two weeks she’d be there.
“Are you hungry?” she asked, “Let’s go get something to eat.”
CHAPTER NINE
Nicole lay on the bed in her hotel room, enjoying the air conditioning and hoping that she didn’t look like a lobster from the day before with Derek. She was relieved that she better understood her feelings for Andrew now. Thinking things through on her run had helped her get some clarity. But she wasn’t ready to call and tell him just yet. She didn’t want to jump the gun. She wondered if that made her a bitch. For now, though, she was content that she’d come this far.
She had a to-do list prepared to make sure she saw each and every one of her father’s favorite places. It made her feel accomplished. Her first dinner with Derek was amazing, so she had high hopes for dinner tonight. This restaurant was supposed to be the most famous in Puerto Vallarta. It was up the coast, high above the city, and was even in a famous movie. She couldn’t quite recall which one. She’d have to ask Derek tonight.
She decided to wear the dress Derek had bought her on their walk along the Malecon the day before. He saw her reaction when she noticed it and had insisted she have it. Andrew had spoiled her at times, but it had never been a turn on like this. She hadn’t realized it before, but weirdly it felt like a father indulging his daughter with presents. Somehow Derek made it sound like it was a present for him to see her in it. He grew up without a father, but someone taught him how to talk to women.