Page 33 of To Have and To Hold

Chapter

Fourteen

Isabella

Emiliano Ruiz.

Ever since I’d felt his stare on me at Ariadna Gia’s birthday party, I’d had a hard time forgetting him. However, other than our brief talk about punch, I was too nervous to look directly at him. Yesterday, at Mia’s I had a chance. To say I was affected in some way by this man was an understatement. I’d thought about him as I readied for bed last night. I also realized that him being older than Catalina, there was zero chance he would be interested in me. That didn’t mean I couldn’t stare.

From the safety of my new office doorway, I could appreciate what a handsome man Emiliano was. I’d never had this unabashed opportunity before. He was obviously distracted by Reina and Celeste turning up the charm.

I nibbled my thumbnail.

Starting at the top of his head, I noticed his dark hair was longer on top than on the sides. A trimmed layer of facial hair covered the edge of his chiseled chin. His brown—almost-black—eyes glistened beneath a prominent brow. My insides twisted as my scan went lower still, to his wide shoulders that tapered into toned abs. A tattoo of a snake’s tail wound around his muscular right arm, disappearing beneath the sleeve of his black t-shirt. His long legs were clad in low-riding blue jeans, and on his feet, he wore black boots.

“The woman I’m looking for.”

The sound of his deep voice pulled me with a jolt from my trance. I quickly brought my gaze up to his. “You’re looking for me?”

“I am.” Celeste and Reina dejectedly turned back to their desks as he came my way.

I sucked in a breath as he came to a stop about a foot away. A fresh, clean scent filled my senses. “Why?”

“Mia asked me to help you with the program she set up. I thought we could look at it together.”

“Liliana and I were about to go out to lunch.”

Em shook his head and turned toward our bodyguards. “Didn’t you receive word. There’s no extracurricular movement for the next few days?”

“Sí, we did.”

I pressed my lips together. “Well, we didn’t ask.” Irritation was audible in my tone. “Honestly, I didn’t realize we needed to.”

Em’s lips quirked in a lopsided grin. “Fear not. You won’t starve. The cafeteria has a taco bar on Tuesdays and Thursdays.”

“Eat here?”

“Or if you prefer, I will be happy to go get something and bring it back.”

“But I can’t leave.” It wasn’t a question.

“You can. You can go back toel Patr?n’s. What you may not do is walk around San Diego with only Horace.”

“Mia said…” Something in Em’s expression darkened, causing my words to fade away.

“Things have changed since yesterday.”

That reminded me of what Isla said. “Something happened at Wanderland?”

“It’s not your concern.”

My fist went to my hip and my volume rose. “If whatever happened is suddenly restricting my freedom to walk the streets of San Diego, then it’s my concern.”

His smile broadened. “What happened to the scared little girl at the capo’s home?”

“I wasn’t scared. And I’m not a little girl.”

“I believe one out of the two.” His smile was back. “As a rule of thumb, I prefer not to be lied to.”

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