Page 41 of Whispers of My Skin

Oh my gosh, I’m cracking up at the memory.

“Remember?” I’m in tears from laughing so much. “Even then you liked your tight jeans.”

“And I will keep liking them ‘til the day I die, ‘cos this butt was meant to be showcased.”

“How come I never saw you around when I worked at Redlands all those years ago?” Joel asks.

“My father and his stupid ideas,” Fermin replies with a snort. “He got it into his head that a military academy in England was what I needed to straighten out my exotic personality.”

“Mission impossible,” I add still laughing.

When we’ve finished eating, Fermin pushes his chair back.

“After the day you’ve put me through, girl, I need to unwind. So, you can pay your debt with tequila, or better yet, let’s all go out dancing!” Fermin declares, clapping his hands on the table.

“Fermin, I’m too tired to go out, I just want an early night,” I plead.

“Uh-uh, no excuses. How old are you? The answer is far too young to be acting like a sad old lady. Besides, you owe me, since I missed all the fun of your wedding.”

“From what you’ve just been telling us, you don’t need us tagging along in order to have a good time,” Joel comments.

“Yes, but where’s the fun in that? I want to go out with my friends, and I won’t take no for an answer. Be ready to leave at ten,” he orders. “Now, move your ass, Tara, you seriously need to sort out your rats-nest hair. Oh, and wear the gold dress I got for you.”

Did I mention that as well as being loyal, kind and generous to a fault, Fermin is also brutally honest.

“It’s not exactly great timing for this friend of yours to invite himself to stay,” Joel grumbles as he buttons his jeans. “How long is he planning on staying?”

From where I’m standing on the other side of the room, I watch him getting changed, and I can’t help myself, my eyes are drawn to his body, his broad back, his muscular arms... I give myself a mental shake and get on with brushing the tangles out of my long dark hair.

“I don’t really know. Fermin hasn’t said and I haven’t gotten around to asking. It’s not a problem though, is it?” I answer.

“It’s just that we’ve been married such a short while, and we need time on our own to get used to each other, figure out how to make things work.”

“So, let me get this straight, Joel. Yesterday, on our very first day as a married couple, it was perfectly okay for you to set me to work and then disappear all day with your friend. But when my friend arrives, prepared to muck in and help, you don’t like it so much.”

“Unlike your friend, Cassandra only visited and didn’t invite herself to stay. And yeah, there’s a lot to do, so we’ve both been real busy during the day, but that’s precisely why I want to have my wife to myself the rest of the time, not entertaining uninvited house guests, who not only want to turn our house upside down, but also demand we go out gallivanting and clubbing all night.”

“Oh, come on, that’s a bit harsh,” I protest.

“I’m just saying that Fermin is an added complication to an already complex relationship that we don’t need right now.”

“Joel, you have your friends and I have mine. Fermin is my very special friend…”

“He’s special, that’s for sure,” Joel mutters.

“…He’s like the brother I never had, and now he’s dropped everything to come back from Italy and help us out. So I think your attitude is ungrateful to say the least.”

Joel stares at me, no doubt conflicted at the truth in my words against his wish to have me all to himself.

“He’s a guy. You’re a beautiful woman. He even talked about his mother expecting the two of you to have kids, so that brother and sister shit won’t cut it.”

“Oh for God’s sake, Joel, surely you’ve worked out for yourself that Fermin’s not your average Texan macho man…” I look at him.

“Oh… you mean…”

“No, he’s not gay, but even so don’t you dare judge Fermin. His teenage years were a really difficult time for him, it took a lot of courage, knowing the expectations his family had for him, believing he was going to disappoint them ‘cause he always wanted something different. That’s why I did everything I could to support him through it. His father subsequently disowned him, while his mother chooses to believe it’s just a phase he’s going through, and that by spending time with me, I’ll somehow ‘cure’ him. Anyhow, all this means I can assure you he is not interested in me in the way you’re suggesting.”

“Okay, I’m not judging him.” he finally agrees, and I can hear he’s telling the truth. “Well, I suppose I can get used to the idea that you and Beau Brummell are just friends.”

---