{"id":3862,"date":"2014-02-28T00:34:15","date_gmt":"2014-02-28T05:34:15","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/moriahjovan.com\/talesofdunham\/?page_id=3862"},"modified":"2026-03-31T21:23:14","modified_gmt":"2026-04-01T02:23:14","slug":"pasodoble","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/moriahjovan.com\/talesofdunham\/thebooks\/pasodoble\/","title":{"rendered":"PASO DOBLE"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"eddsection\">\n<div class=\"eddfloat_dl\"><\/p>\n<div class=\"eddcover_dl\">\n<figure class=\"b10mwx\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/b10mediaworx.com\/covers\/pasodoble\/pasodoble-200x300.jpg\"><figcaption class=\"b10mwx\">Tales of Dunham #5<br \/>LaMontagne #1<br \/>\u00a92014 Moriah Jovan<br \/>140,000 words (396 pages)<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<article>\n<\/p>\n<p class=\"eddtitle_dl\">Book 5 in the Dunham universe<\/p>\n<div class=\"linksbuyblock\" role=\"group\" aria-label=\"Buy Paso Doble\">\n<p class=\"linksedd\">Buy direct:<\/p>\n\t<form id=\"edd_purchase_19697\" class=\"edd_download_purchase_form edd_purchase_19697\" method=\"post\">\n\n\t\t\t<div class=\"edd_price_options edd_multi_mode\" >\n\t\t<ul>\n\t\t\t<li id=\"edd_price_option_19697_epub\"><label for=\"edd_price_option_19697_1\"><input type=\"checkbox\"  checked='checked' name=\"edd_options[price_id][]\" id=\"edd_price_option_19697_1\" class=\"edd_price_option_19697\" value=\"1\" data-price=\"4.99\"\/>&nbsp;<span class=\"edd_price_option_name\">EPUB<\/span><span class=\"edd_price_option_sep\">&nbsp;&ndash;&nbsp;<\/span><span class=\"edd_price_option_price\">&#36;4.99<\/span><\/label><\/li><li id=\"edd_price_option_19697_pdf\"><label for=\"edd_price_option_19697_2\"><input type=\"checkbox\"  name=\"edd_options[price_id][]\" id=\"edd_price_option_19697_2\" class=\"edd_price_option_19697\" value=\"2\" data-price=\"4.99\"\/>&nbsp;<span class=\"edd_price_option_name\">PDF<\/span><span class=\"edd_price_option_sep\">&nbsp;&ndash;&nbsp;<\/span><span class=\"edd_price_option_price\">&#36;4.99<\/span><\/label><\/li>\t\t<\/ul>\n\t<\/div><!--end .edd_price_options-->\n\t\n\t\t<div class=\"edd_purchase_submit_wrapper\">\n\t\t\t<button class=\"edd-add-to-cart button has-edd-button-background-color has-edd-button-text-color edd-submit\" data-nonce=\"fa13c80605\" data-timestamp=\"1775470689\" data-token=\"4810db118ea2232ac590cb91a99a5dac0c4d12250b2f2712560e1c39d75fd2a9\" data-action=\"edd_add_to_cart\" data-download-id=\"19697\"  data-variable-price=\"yes\" data-price-mode=multi data-price=\"0.00\" ><span class=\"edd-add-to-cart-label\">Add to Cart<\/span> <span class=\"edd-loading\" aria-label=\"Loading\"><\/span><\/button><input type=\"submit\" class=\"edd-add-to-cart edd-no-js button has-edd-button-background-color has-edd-button-text-color edd-submit\" name=\"edd_purchase_download\" value=\"Add to Cart\" data-action=\"edd_add_to_cart\" data-download-id=\"19697\"  data-variable-price=\"yes\" data-price-mode=multi \/><a href=\"https:\/\/moriahjovan.com\/talesofdunham\/checkout\/\" class=\"edd_go_to_checkout button has-edd-button-background-color has-edd-button-text-color edd-submit\" style=\"display:none;\">Checkout<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"edd-cart-ajax-alert\" aria-live=\"assertive\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<span class=\"edd-cart-added-alert\" style=\"display: none;\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<svg class=\"edd-icon edd-icon-check\" xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"28\" height=\"28\" viewBox=\"0 0 28 28\" aria-hidden=\"true\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<path d=\"M26.11 8.844c0 .39-.157.78-.44 1.062L12.234 23.344c-.28.28-.672.438-1.062.438s-.78-.156-1.06-.438l-7.782-7.78c-.28-.282-.438-.673-.438-1.063s.156-.78.438-1.06l2.125-2.126c.28-.28.672-.438 1.062-.438s.78.156 1.062.438l4.594 4.61L21.42 5.656c.282-.28.673-.438 1.063-.438s.78.155 1.062.437l2.125 2.125c.28.28.438.672.438 1.062z\"\/>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/svg>\n\t\t\t\t\t\tAdded to cart\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div><!--end .edd_purchase_submit_wrapper-->\n\n\t\t<input type=\"hidden\" name=\"download_id\" value=\"19697\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"hidden\" name=\"edd_action\" class=\"edd_action_input\" value=\"add_to_cart\">\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t<\/form><!--end #edd_purchase_19697-->\n\t\n<p class=\"linksedd\">&nbsp;<br \/>\n\t\t<span class=\"small85\">Amazon<\/span> <a class=\"pasodoble\" href=\"https:\/\/www.amazon.com\/dp\/B00JYK6OJI\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Kindle<\/a> \u2022 <a class=\"pasodoble\" href=\"https:\/\/www.amazon.com\/dp\/0991189264\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">paperback<\/a><br \/>\n\t\t<span class=\"small85\">Barnes &#038; Noble<\/span> <a class=\"pasodoble\" href=\"https:\/\/www.barnesandnoble.com\/w\/paso-doble-moriah-jovan\/1119342959?ean=2940149433728\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Nook<\/a> \u2022 <span class=\"small85\">paperback<\/span><br \/>\n\t\t<a class=\"pasodoble\" href=\"http:\/\/books.apple.com\/us\/book\/id1147051292\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Apple iBooks<\/a><br \/>\n\t\t<a class=\"pasodoble\" href=\"https:\/\/play.google.com\/store\/books\/details?id=ZuttAwAAQBAJ\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Google Play Books<\/a><br \/>\n\t\t<a class=\"pasodoble\" href=\"https:\/\/www.kobo.com\/us\/en\/ebook\/paso-doble-tales-of-dunham-5\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Kobo eBooks<\/a>\n\t<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/article>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"top30\">\n<p class=\"eddsum_dl\">Emilio Bautista is bored with his job as a matador and has a PhD in chemistry he\u2019s not using. Cube-farm chemistry is out of the question, but the universities in Andalusia are well staffed\u2014except Covarrubias University. They\u2019re desperate, but he still can\u2019t get hired. Further, for the last six years, he\u2019s been obsessed with a woman he can\u2019t manage to meet, much less seduce.<\/p>\n<p class=\"eddsum_dl\">Victoria LaMontagne is worried about her job as an English professor at Covarrubias University. After six years of being on tenure track, her new department chair is pressuring her to change her teaching style\u2014or else. Further, she learns that one of Spain\u2019s star matadors has a crush on her and threatens her hobby job for a chance to chat with her over tapas and flamenco.<\/p>\n<p class=\"eddsum_dl\">Though they have never met, when Dr. LaMontagne and Dr. Bautista crash into each other in the administration offices, they fall into conversation as if they were long-time friends who\u2019d had a spat. He finds her charming in spite of her tactlessness, vanity, and demanding personality. She finds him intriguing in spite of his obsession with her, his legendary promiscuity, and his boring bullfighting.<\/p>\n<p class=\"eddsum_dl\">She makes him laugh. He solves her problems. They\u2019re <span class=\"catb\"><em>just friends<\/em><\/span>\u2014<\/p>\n<p class=\"eddsum_dl\">\u2014right up to the first kiss&nbsp;\u2026<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"navblock\">\n<p class=\"leftnavblock\"><a class=\"arrowsmall\" href=\"https:\/\/moriahjovan.com\/talesofdunham\/thebooks\/dunham\/\">\u2190 Book 4<\/a><\/p>\n<p class=\"rightnavblock\"><a class=\"arrowbig\" href=\"https:\/\/moriahjovan.com\/talesofdunham\/thebooks\/weweregods\/\">Book 6  \u2192<\/a><br \/>Sometimes, love just isn\u2019t enough\u2014<br \/>until it\u2019s the only thing you have left.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"wingding\">\u203b<\/p>\n<p class=\"pasodobleepigraph\">And when the woman saw that the tree was a tree to be desired to make her wise, she took of the fruit thereof, and did eat&nbsp;\u2026<br \/>\n<span class=\"nobold\"><span class=\"noitals\">\u2014Moses 4:12<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"excerptchapterhead\">1: SHE<\/p>\n<p class=\"excerptdate\">July 1996<br \/>\nSevilla, Spain<\/p>\n<p class=\"sectiontop\">\u201cWELCOME TO LEO\u2019S!\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Emilio Bautista heard the roar of the emcee as he leaned against a grimy wall next to a grimy back alley door. He didn\u2019t much care; he\u2019d spent his youth in back alleys.<\/p>\n<p>He found it refreshing, really, that he had to have an entr\u00e9. What annoyed him was that his entr\u00e9 was that weird kid who\u2019d criss-crossed the country with him all those years ago, but what the hell. He couldn\u2019t judge a man who\u2019d made something of himself out of nothing.<\/p>\n<p>The bouncer jerked his head and muttered, \u201cDragon,\u201d making his displeasure of Emilio\u2019s admittance obvious. It occurred to Emilio to say something sarcastic, but refrained. He stepped over the grimy threshold of the grimy door from the grimy back alley and through yet another grimy door\u2014<\/p>\n<p>\u2014and stepped into lavish, if generic, elegance as fine as the best hotels in the world, and Emilio demanded the best these days. He proceeded up a wide hall on a frescoed carpet, the walls on either side of him clad in rich mahogany. He heard the faint sound of live music and a female voice singing to make the angels weep with joy.<\/p>\n<p>And that voice was why Emilio had done everything he could to get into Leo\u2019s, to hear a live performance of the woman who sang him to sleep every night. She had four CDs out, but he\u2019d scratched up two sets of them and was about to replace his third. And in all that time, he hadn\u2019t been able to gain admittance to hear her live.<\/p>\n<p>Her stage name was Velvet, but nobody knew who she was in real life. She sang torch songs and jazz standards only on Saturday nights, here in an exclusive ex-pat club to an American clientele in a deceptively residential part of Sevilla.<\/p>\n<p>He had begged every American he knew for an invitation, but Leo had refused him time and time again. Emilio was a Spaniard in a very high-profile Spanish profession and the paparazzi occasionally made him its business.<\/p>\n<p>Leo did not want the paparazzi to make Leo\u2019s its business also.<\/p>\n<p>There was only one person in the world who could make Leo change his mind, and, as if God had taken pity on Emilio, Sebastian Taight had shown up on his doorstep four days ago.<\/p>\n<p>Emilio came to a wide set of double doors and opened it to see he stood at the back of a typical terraced nightclub that surrounded a dance floor in front of a stage. From this distance and height, he couldn\u2019t see much of the woman on stage, but he didn\u2019t care what she looked like. Her voice was all that mattered and it was one of the finest voices he\u2019d heard outside of opera.<\/p>\n<p>And it was so much better than it was on his state-of-the-art stereo.<\/p>\n<p>A waitress took his drink order while he looked for Sebastian, then a hand wave in his periphery caught his attention. He made his way along the wall and down the middle aisle to the table where his friend sat.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou\u2019re welcome,\u201d Sebastian muttered resentfully.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI do not know why you balked,\u201d Emilio said. \u201cAre you and Velvet lovers, afraid she will find me more to her taste?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOh, fuck off.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhy are you overwrought?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201c\u2018Overwrought\u2019 is a word a seventy-year-old spinster would use.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI am speaking English in <em>my<\/em> country,\u201d he remarked after his drink was delivered. \u201cYou will tolerate whatever words I choose.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou\u2019re still drinking cheap beer?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI have not had a Pabst in years and I am suddenly feeling nostalgic.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Sebastian rolled his eyes. \u201cYou\u2019re nostalgic for poverty now?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo,\u201d he drawled. \u201cFor greasepaint.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Sebastian laughed.<\/p>\n<p>Emilio took a drink, then set the bottle down. He could only take so much of this particular piece of nostalgia. \u201cYou forget where you came from.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI clawed my way out of that fucking ghetto for a reason, and I don\u2019t want to revisit it.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Emilio didn\u2019t have the same bitterness about having grown up in poverty that Sebastian did. Emilio remembered the good times with his mother, money or not, and the lengths she\u2019d gone to to make the best of what little they had. And when his father was home, everything was right and safe in little Emilio\u2019s world. Poverty was a mere inconvenience until it was time for Emilio to get the education he wanted so badly; then it became an obstacle, though not an unscalable one.<\/p>\n<p>But Sebastian\u2019s father had given away his family\u2019s meager resources to others in need, too proud to admit that the Taights had less than everyone else. Sebastian was not bitter about what was. He was bitter that it had been completely unnecessary.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSpeaking of money,\u201d Sebastian said, because that was what Sebastian spoke of half the time. Sex and art, which to him were largely interchangeable, took up the other half. \u201cThis introduction to Leo\u2019s is going to cost you a hundred large.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo,\u201d Emilio returned calmly. \u201cTwenty-five. I know how you think, which is that a four-hundred-percent markup is a friendship discount.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Sebastian growled.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI will ask again so I can do what I came here to do. Why are you irritated?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Sebastian didn\u2019t answer for a moment, but then, \u201cMy aunt,\u201d he said slowly, \u201cworries about my cousin and somehow, her well-being has become my responsibility.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat cousin and why are you doing your aunt\u2019s bidding and what has that to do with anything?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI have a cousin who lives here. My aunt gets worried about her and I check up on her whenever I\u2019m in Europe.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYour aunt cannot check on her own child?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cShe would, but my cousin gets mad at her and won\u2019t speak to her and makes her go away.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHow old is this cousin?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThirty-two.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIs she pretty? Married?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Sebastian growled. \u201cDon\u2019t make me come over the table at you.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Emilio snickered.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cShe\u2019s drop-dead gorgeous.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Emilio turned to look at Sebastian. \u201cI may risk it. Her marital status is irrelevant in any case.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cShe is not married, but there\u2019s a reason for that.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIs she slow?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo. She\u2019s a genius, which is one reason she\u2019s not married. The other is that she\u2019s socially inept. Cause and effect. She doesn\u2019t relate well with the opposite sex.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOh,\u201d Emilio drawled smugly, \u201cshe is like you.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Sebastian\u2019s jaw tightened and he looked up to gather his temper, but finally said, \u201cNot in the same way. Men flock to her like moths to flame, which she loves. She knows she\u2019s beautiful, likes attention, loves the company of men. But she\u2019s intellectually high maintenance.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Emilio understood beautiful women who loved male attention. What he didn\u2019t understand\u2014 \u201cIntellectually high maintenance?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt means you have to be damn near a genius to get and keep her attention. That\u2019s not the problem, though.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Beautiful, genius, but socially inept&nbsp;\u2026 Ah. \u201cShe wears everybody out.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Sebastian nodded. \u201cOr she insults them one too many times, thinking she\u2019s just stating facts. She\u2019s earnest about her opinions and eager to share them.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Emilio chuckled.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cShe doesn\u2019t do any better with women. She has one friend in the entire world, who\u2019s just as brilliant, but only a little less weird.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYour cousin is Mormon?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Sebastian nodded.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cGenius. Socially inept. Mormon. <em>Virgin<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSuch a <em>rare<\/em> thing indeed,\u201d Emilio drawled sarcastically.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMaybe not, but ones who are happily virgins?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI submit that <em>a<\/em>sexuality is its own orientation, much like homosexuality and bisexuality.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMm hmm. My aunt and uncle want her to move back home\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Emilio gave Sebastian the side-eye. \u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Sebastian made a gesture of weary exasperation. \u201cThey don\u2019t think she functions in the world like a normal person because she doesn\u2019t get along with people in the long term. They think she\u2019s a sitting duck for\u2014 Oh, say, men like you. Us. They don\u2019t believe she\u2019s happy being alone. They don\u2019t understand how she can keep a normal job. Men can\u2019t\u2014won\u2019t, I don\u2019t know\u2014put up with her for more than a few dates, so they think her only value to men is sex. Now, she\u2019s family and I know how she thinks, but I don\u2019t care how beautiful a woman is, I wouldn\u2019t stick around long enough to figure out a woman like her, either.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Emilio was entirely confused. \u201cAre you saying her parents think she is unlovable and therefore must move home? That is a non sequitur.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Sebastian pursed his lips. \u201cIt\u2019s more complicated than that. They want to protect her from realizing she\u2019s unlovable. They think as long as she\u2019s around family and showered with affection, she won\u2019t fall for guys who just want to fuck her.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou just said she was a virgin. At thirty-two. And drop-dead gorgeous. That is not a vulnerable woman.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cShe\u2019s not. She dates\u2014<em>a lot<\/em>, but she\u2019s savvy about it. She can keep the upper hand with any man.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHer behavior is her armor?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Sebastian shook his head vigorously. \u201cOh, no. It\u2019s just <em>her<\/em>. She wants to get married, but there aren\u2019t a lot of guys who could put up with her, much less indulge her. She knows this. She\u2019s not exactly curled up on her bed crying about it.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHrmph.\u201d Emilio found this sort of disconnect between parents and child quite odd, but Sebastian had a very large family and its dynamics were sometimes interesting. They made Emilio\u2019s family look like Utopia. \u201cShe is socially inept, but not na\u00efve or defenseless or unhappy, and refuses to be treated like a child.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cPrecisely.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cGood for her.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhenever I need to meet with you or Leo, I go hang out with her. We get along well and she\u2019s actually really fun. I go back to my aunt and uncle, read them the riot act, and that\u2019s that until the next time I\u2019m in Europe. Now, what was that about setting you up with her?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAh, no,\u201d Emilio said. \u201cWhile \u2018beautiful\u2019 and \u2018genius\u2019 are tempting, the rest is not.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat\u2019s usually how it goes with her.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Bored with that topic, Emilio watched Velvet for a moment. Her closely fit black dress sparkled in the lights and seemed to hint at a rather lush body. Then he closed his eyes and leaned back in the leather club chair, able to truly relax for the first time in days to that voice that did something to him.<\/p>\n<p>Unfortunately, his twenty-five-thousand-dollar invitation wouldn\u2019t be enough to buy a meeting with Velvet herself. Nor would a hundred. He knew because he\u2019d asked. Begged. But no. Velvet didn\u2019t meet anybody. None of the singers did. That was a Leo\u2019s house rule, and it was inviolable.<\/p>\n<p>Emilio knew how fame could make a person\u2019s life unbearable, so he really couldn\u2019t blame Leo for the rule and he had no real curiosity as to Velvet\u2019s identity. He simply wanted to express his appreciation of her voice. Her talent. Her <em>skill<\/em>.<\/p>\n<p>But since he couldn\u2019t, he simply let Velvet\u2019s voice do what it always did. Emilio\u2019s mind drifted to tomorrow\u2019s performance, here in his home town, when he\u2019d get a chance to see&nbsp;\u2026 <\/p>\n<p><em>Her<\/em>.<\/p>\n<p>A woman he only knew by sight and only on Sundays between March and October, and only when he performed in Sevilla, <em>Her<\/em>.<\/p>\n<p>He\u2019d been obsessing over <em>Her<\/em> for the last six years, unable to figure out how to get <em>Her<\/em> attention after every one of his many tries had failed.<\/p>\n<p>The singer\u2019s voice rose and fell, grew and faded, ebbed and flowed. It was by turns happy, sad, melancholy, and giddy. Emilio fantasized about bringing <em>Her<\/em> here, drawing <em>Her<\/em> close, whispering in <em>Her<\/em> ear. Seducing <em>Her<\/em>. Taking <em>Her<\/em> home. Undressing <em>Her<\/em> slowly, laying <em>Her<\/em> down in a soft bed, stroking <em>Her<\/em> flawless skin.<\/p>\n<p>The set break came too soon and Emilio refused to open his eyes.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI need you to do something for me,\u201d he muttered, too relaxed to want to even speak.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cCome to the arena tomorrow. I have my eye on a woman and I need a helper\u2014 A\u2014 What is it called? A wingman.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cShit, Emilio. You\u2019re <em>El Draque<\/em>. Surely you can do your own procurement.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo, this one is different. She comes to my bullfights, usually alone. This year she has a friend. That is all I know. I believe she goes to all the others, too. She is an aficionada. I have tried many ways to get her attention, short of dedicating a bull to her\u2014and that would make me look a fool. \u2018To you, my beautiful lovely woman I do not know! I want to make love to you!\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe last part\u2019s a given.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Emilio grunted.<\/p>\n<p>The waitress came around just then with the supper Sebastian had ordered: good, thick pork ribs slathered in a spicy barbecue sauce. Emilio did open his eyes then and sit up, but he was still missing\u2014<\/p>\n<p>The waitress placed a pitcher of ice-cold milk in front of him. Trust Sebastian to get it right.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cEmilio, you are a strange fuck.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI take my pleasures where I can, my friend.\u201d They settled in to eat and Emilio was more than pleasantly surprised. \u201cThis is not Texas barbecue.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Sebastian heaved a longsuffering sigh. \u201cYou know what? Texas is not the whole U.S. Leo is from Memphis.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Emilio promptly decided to go on a US barbecue tour that did not include Texas. \u201cAre you going to help me?\u201d he asked around his bite.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOnly if you want to take my seconds \u2019cause <em>I\u2019ll<\/em> fuck her before <em>you<\/em> do.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Emilio looked at him from under his brows, unexpectedly pissed off at the entirely predictable answer. \u201cFord.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Sebastian\u2019s fork froze halfway to his mouth. \u201cYou wouldn\u2019t.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI would.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cFor fucking her first or not helping you at all?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d Emilio bent back to his meal. \u201cAlthough I did forget your unnatural aversion to redheads.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou coulda just said that first.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI am not joking. <em>Ford<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cShit, all right,\u201d he grumbled. \u201cShe\u2019s a redhead. What else?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Emilio waved a hand. \u201cShe is the most beautiful woman I have ever seen in my life. Tall for a woman. My height, I think. Definitely Irish, with that red hair. Skin like bone china. Green eyes. I think. I hope. I do not know. I have never gotten close enough to see.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Sebastian stared at him. \u201cYou got it bad. How does a chemist wax poetic about a woman\u2019s skin?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Emilio shrugged. He could see her in his mind, but Sebastian was right. He simply didn\u2019t have the English vocabulary to do her justice and Sebastian didn\u2019t speak Spanish well enough to understand the nuance. \u201cShe sits in the shade, but a different seat every time.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIf you want me to do this, you\u2019re going to have to figure out a way to let me know which one she is.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cGet a barrera seat. If I can find her, I will point to her. After that, it is your responsibility to get her to me.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Sebastian sighed. \u201cFor the record, that\u2019s not what a wingman is.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOh?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cTwo girls. One\u2019s hot, one\u2019s not. The wingman occupies the not-hot one while the other guy hits on the hot one.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAh.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>That Velvet voice had begun to come out of the speakers again and Emilio relaxed even more now that Sebastian was going to put him out of his misery over <em>Her<\/em>. He didn\u2019t know why it hadn\u2019t occurred to him before now to ask\u2014well, <em>blackmail<\/em>\u2014<\/p>\n<p>Knowing <em>She<\/em> would be in the stands the next day to watch him perform made Emilio unaccountably jittery. It had ever since he\u2019d first spotted <em>Her<\/em> six years ago in the stands and then again the next time he performed in his home town. All that thick curly red hair down to the middle of <em>Her<\/em> arms surrounded by a sea of brunettes and blondes, the pale skin surrounded by golden and copper tans&nbsp;\u2026 Always dressed in white or pastels, sometimes crisp, sometimes floaty, always ephemeral.<\/p>\n<p>Definitely eye-catching.<\/p>\n<p><em>Her<\/em> smile, sly. <em>Her<\/em> gestures, sensuous. <em>Her<\/em> face, perfection.<\/p>\n<p>He\u2019d never heard her voice, but he couldn\u2019t imagine it as anything less than wonderful.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOh, shit,\u201d Sebastian muttered, jerking Emilio out of his trance. He followed Sebastian\u2019s gaze across the nightclub and down a step or two to see a very pretty young woman looking straight at Emilio.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIs she\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAn heiress I embarrassed the hell out of in Berlin last year at an embassy dinner. Yvette Mallery.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat did she do?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI overheard her making bets with her friends as to how fast she could get my room key. When she hit me up for it, I told her I didn\u2019t fuck daddy\u2019s little princesses. In front of everyone, which included the Secretary of State and half the State Department.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Emilio almost laughed as he watched her advance. She was attractive and she obviously knew the score, so Emilio cocked an eyebrow at her.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBetter be careful,\u201d Sebastian said blithely. \u201cNever know what kind of little friends she\u2019s got.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cKindly remember who gave you the lecture your father should have when you decided your virginity was becoming a burden. At twenty.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Sebastian grunted his acknowledgment of Emilio\u2019s tutelage so many years ago.<\/p>\n<p>He watched as the American socialite sauntered toward their table. Thinking about <em>Her<\/em> wasn\u2019t getting Emilio anywhere and the only way he could calm jitters caused by <em>Her<\/em> was to get laid by someone else, since <em>She<\/em> wasn\u2019t an option at the moment. Although this woman was young\u2014mid-twenties\u2014she suited Emilio\u2019s needs perfectly, as demonstrated by the fact that she had the gall to approach Emilio while Sebastian was in the vicinity.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDragon,\u201d she purred when she reached their table and pulled out a chair to sit, blatantly ignoring Sebastian. \u201cFancy seeing a matador here.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMiss Mallery.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>That was when she slid a glance at Sebastian. \u201cOf course you would know my name. King Midas here must have told you.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cStuff it, Yvette,\u201d Sebastian snapped. \u201cYou got what you deserved.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou should know your prey before you go hunting, Miss Mallery,\u201d Emilio said calmly. \u201c<em>King Midas<\/em> does not care for redheads.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>That startled her. \u201cYou don\u2019t?\u201d she asked Sebastian.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWell\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMiss Mallery,\u201d Emilio said, \u201care you here to give me your room key or to nettle Sebastian? At the moment, you are interrupting my evening.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Her mouth tightened when Sebastian chuckled, but Emilio was serious. He could take her or leave her, but he needed to get it decided so he could go back to listening to the music so he could fantasize about <em>Her<\/em>.<\/p>\n<p>She stood and flipped her keycard next to his plate. \u201cDon\u2019t keep me waiting too long,\u201d she said and walked off.<\/p>\n<p>Emilio grunted and signaled a waitress. \u201cDo you have key lime pie, perhaps? Also, pecan?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She smiled and disappeared.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAre you going to reapply for that professorship?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Well, there went Emilio\u2019s night, right into the sewer. \u201cI do not want to talk about that,\u201d he grumbled.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou did apply for it and got turned down again, or you didn\u2019t apply for it?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI have my annual interview in two weeks, at which time I will be told, \u2018Thank you for applying, Dr. Bautista, but not this year. Try again after you have hung up your cape.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBastards,\u201d Sebastian mumbled.<\/p>\n<p>Exactly. Emilio didn\u2019t know why he continued to try. Every year, Covarrubias University dangled El Draque on its marionette strings because he went begging for the scrap of attention that he would never get.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHave you tried the University of Sevilla?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI did. I do. Their department is fully staffed with instructors my age and most of those are tenured. Excellent program.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSo no one there is going anywhere soon.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cExactly. It is the same at the rest of the area colleges, whereas Covarrubias cannot seem to retain chemistry professors who can teach in English, yet they will not hire me.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat sounds like a bad situation, if you ask me. Are you sure you want to start a brand-new career behind the organizational eight-ball?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Not really, but it was Emilio\u2019s only chance, since he was not willing to move his family elsewhere.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI have an idea,\u201d Sebastian said slowly. Emilio glanced up from his pie to see an expression he\u2019d grown used to over the years. \u201cOkay, look, Em. They\u2019re never going to hire you, even if you do retire. Quit dancing to their tune. What you need are a couple of breakthrough applications for your formulas and I have a cousin who can do that.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Emilio pursed his lips. Waved his fork for Sebastian to continue.<\/p>\n<p>\u201c\u00c9tienne LaMontagne. You heard of him?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe name sounds familiar. I think he wrote an article for one of the journals I subscribe to. Inventor of some sort?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cInventor, engineer, jack of all machinery, but specializes in wind, solar, water power. His wife\u2019s an alternate-energy architect and she comes up with ideas that belong in science fiction, they\u2019re so advanced. Somehow, he finds a way to do what she wants.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Emilio looked at Sebastian speculatively. \u201cYou have my attention. Where do I fit into this?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHer designs require him to build machinery that needs special chemicals or something to work. \u00c9tienne just had a falling out with his last chemist because the shit didn\u2019t work right. Chemist wouldn\u2019t\u2014or couldn\u2019t, I don\u2019t know\u2014try to figure out how to change his formula to work with \u00c9tienne\u2019s machine.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhy did your cousin not try to figure out how to change his toy to work with the formula?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe did. When it comes to making Tess happy, \u00c9tienne has no ego. He wants something that works and whatever he has to do to get that, he\u2019ll do. But if he\u2019s done everything he can think of and the problem can only be with someone else, he\u2019s impossible to work with or for. If your shit works with his, he\u2019s fine.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>That put a different view on it.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSo what is he working on right now?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI have no idea and I couldn\u2019t explain it if I did. What I <em>do<\/em> know is that \u00c9tienne is without a chemist and he\u2019s frantically looking for one because it\u2019s holding up the project.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Emilio shrugged. What did he have to lose? \u201cOkay. Give me his number.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>While Sebastian signaled a waitress to bring him a pen and paper, Emilio squinted through the darkness, down the terraces of diners at bistro tables, to the intimately lit stage.<\/p>\n<p>He blinked. Squinted harder.<\/p>\n<p>He sat up a little and tried to focus on her face. Dammit, he needed new contact lenses.<\/p>\n<p>He arose and strode down the stairs to get a closer look. He would have descended another two steps until he was on the dance floor, but found himself caught by the collar and dragged backward. He caught his balance and turned to see Sebastian glaring at him.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI want to meet her,\u201d Emilio murmured after following Sebastian back up the stairs and re-seating himself.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe singers never meet anybody,\u201d Sebastian snarled. \u201cI told you that before I agreed to get you in here, and you went out of your way to assure me\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI know her from somewhere.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNot possible. She doesn\u2019t run in your circles.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Emilio\u2019s head snapped right. \u201cHow do you know what circles she does and does not run in?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Sebastian sighed heavily. \u201cShe\u2019s an American ex-pat. Think about that. You\u2019re either imagining things or trying to meet her was your intention all along.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Emilio growled but turned his attention back to the stage to continue digging through his memory. No, he had had no intention of asking to meet her, but he hadn\u2019t imagined it, either. He knew that face.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSoooo,\u201d Sebastian drawled. \u201cAbout tomorrow\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n<p><em>Tomorrow.<\/em><\/p>\n<p>\u201cMother of God,\u201d Emilio whispered, still staring at Velvet as she sang. \u201cThat is <em>Her<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWho, what?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Emilio pointed at the singer. \u201cVelvet. <em>She<\/em> is the woman I see in the stands. The one I wanted you to arrange\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201c<em>What?!<\/em>\u201d Sebastian breathed, his voice full of horror. Emilio looked at him. Sebastian\u2019s expression was as horror-stricken as his voice.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat is <em>Her<\/em>,\u201d Emilio repeated, his heart pounding and his blood thrumming through his veins that he was so close to her, that after six years he finally <em>knew<\/em> something about the woman in the stands. \u201cVelvet is my mystery woman. I would never forget that face.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Sebastian slowly covered his mouth and massaged it. \u201cHoly shit,\u201d he muttered.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI agree!\u201d Emilio retorted. \u201cI want to meet her and you can make that happen. I will pay whatever you want. Take a million out of my account. <em>Please.<\/em>\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Sebastian released a very slow breath, his eyes closing and his body slumping. \u201cLet me think about it,\u201d he muttered.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThink about it quickly. If I do not have an introduction by siesta, I will call her out tomorrow night in front of half of Spain.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"excerptchapterhead\">2: I\u2019VE GOT A CRUSH ON YOU<\/p>\n<p class=\"sectiontop\">\u201cEL DRAQUE WANTS to meet <em>me<\/em>?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes,\u201d Sebastian returned morosely, his elbows propped on the kitchen table and his head in his palms.<\/p>\n<p>Victoria LaMontagne leaned back against her counter and crossed her arms over her chest, simply listening as he told her the conversation.<\/p>\n<p>There was a long silence in the room as Victoria\u2019s mind tumbled it all over. Any other woman would be flattered. Not Victoria. Victoria was beautiful. Of <em>course<\/em> she\u2019d caught his attention, because there was no reason he <em>wouldn\u2019t<\/em> have noticed her.<\/p>\n<p>Victoria knew her toreros. That one was particularly bad news\u2014and now he knew she was Velvet. Such was her luck lately.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAnd he threatened to blow my cover if I didn\u2019t show up at MiMi\u2019s for tapas?\u201d she asked.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes. I can\u2019t ask him not to without making him suspicious. I already told him you don\u2019t run in his circles, but I recovered that slip.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou let him into Leo\u2019s, right? Just tell him if he says anything, you\u2019ll ban him permanently.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cVic, it\u2019s beyond that now. He threatened to out me as Ford <em>and<\/em> offered me a million dollars. He <em>really<\/em> wants you.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Of course he did. Most men did.<\/p>\n<p>She sighed. There was only one thing <em>she<\/em> could do if Sebastian couldn\u2019t find a way to get El Draque off his back. \u201cI\u2019ll just not go tonight,\u201d she muttered, turning to the sink to do her dishes. \u201cIf Velvet doesn\u2019t show up at his fight, then he can hardly call me out. What\u2019s he going to tell the press? \u2018Velvet is this woman who comes to my performances in Sevilla but I don\u2019t know who she is and she\u2019s not here today anyway.\u2019 That\u2019ll go over well.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>There was a long silence. Then, \u201cBut you\u2019re mad.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOf course I\u2019m mad. I wouldn\u2019t drop tons of cash during bullfight season if I didn\u2019t love it. Bautista\u2019s not my favorite, so I\u2019m not going to miss <em>him<\/em>, but my current favorite is appearing tonight with him, and it\u2019s the last time this season he\u2019ll be in Sevilla, so yes. I\u2019m mad because of that <em>and<\/em> because now I\u2019m also out three hundred bucks for shade barrera tickets for me and Lydia.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Sebastian rustled behind her, then she heard the soft flutter of paper.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThank you.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAh, speaking of Lydia&nbsp;\u2026&nbsp;\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cLeave her alone about Jack. You didn\u2019t tell him she was here, did you?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo,\u201d he grumbled, then sighed. \u201cVic, Emilio\u2019s not going to give up. He <em>never<\/em> gives up, even when he should and he\u2019s been trying to get to you for six years.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She scowled over her shoulder. \u201cAll he had to do was send somebody up to tap me on the shoulder.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe\u2019s tried that. Tried to do it himself. Missed you every time. He said last year he was only in Sevilla six times the whole season. One year he was here nine times? That gives him, what, an average of three or four times a season to try? You sit in a different place every time. All he knows is to look for you in the shade. Sometimes it takes him a while to find you, especially after the sun goes down.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Victoria pursed her lips. She could see the difficulty there, as well as the timing of a corrida de toros and who should be where and when.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAnd he\u2019s a little touchy about dedicating a bull to a woman he doesn\u2019t know.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She grimaced. \u201cThat would not have made me happy, no.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhich is why he hasn\u2019t done it yet, but now he has a name to attach to you.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThis is nice and all, but I don\u2019t want to be followed around by the paparazzi and Leo would kill me. The university would have a cow and I don\u2019t make enough from my CDs to support myself.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat\u2019s because you signed a shitty contract.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo,\u201d Victoria drawled, \u201cit\u2019s not. It was the best Knox could do before the record label walked away. Besides that, instrumental jazz is popular, but vocal is not and I don\u2019t sing in Spanish.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cEmilio loves your singing.\u201d She stilled immediately. \u201cHis endorsement would boost your sales.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe does?\u201d she asked warily.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes,\u201d Sebastian said snidely. \u201cThat\u2019s what I\u2019m trying to tell you. Why do you think he wanted into Leo\u2019s so badly? He didn\u2019t care about <em>Velvet<\/em>. He just wanted to hear Velvet sing live. But then he recognized you as his personal unicorn. Bonus!\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHrmph.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Silence while Sebastian looked down at the table and worried a piece of paper. \u201cDoesn\u2019t that bug you? A man just seeing a random woman in the stands and getting fixated?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The question confused her. \u201cNo. Why would it?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt would freak most women out.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSebastian, in case you haven\u2019t noticed, I leave drooling men in my wake wherever I go.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He groaned and dropped his forehead on the table.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBeing admired from afar is like air. It\u2019s just <em>there<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou and \u00c9tienne,\u201d he grumbled into the Formica.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019m prettier than he is and if he ever says otherwise it\u2019s because he\u2019s jealous.\u201d She paused and thought. \u201cEl Draque wants me because he can\u2019t have me. What he <em>doesn\u2019t<\/em> know is he\u2019s never going to be able to have me. I don\u2019t care how you do it, just keep him away from me. The last thing I need is a star torero stalking me.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"sectiontop\">SHE WASN\u2019T THERE.<\/p>\n<p><em>She wasn\u2019t there.<\/em><\/p>\n<p><strong><em>SHE WASN\u2019T THERE!<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n<p>It was bad enough he\u2019d waited at MiMi\u2019s for a woman who hadn\u2019t shown, but she had <em>also<\/em> ditched the bullfight during which he\u2019d planned to dedicate his last bull to her.<\/p>\n<p>Sebastian was there sitting with Velvet\u2019s little friend, but neither of them seemed to be having a good time, alternately whispering heatedly or glowering at each other. They were barely paying attention to the performances.<\/p>\n<p><em>Not possible. She doesn\u2019t run in your circles.<\/em><\/p>\n<p>Emilio\u2019s eyes narrowed. He wasn\u2019t above pulling out another threat to expose Sebastian as the art world\u2019s latest It Boy \u201cFord,\u201d painter of nude females.<\/p>\n<p>He snapped his fingers at his manager and pointed to Sebastian. \u201cGo tell the black Irish that <em>Ford<\/em> will present himself at my house after the corrida de toros.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She shook her head as if it was just another of El Draque\u2019s weird requests, but headed into the alley between the inside wooden wall and the spectator stands. Sebastian started and then his face clouded with anger. He sent a glare down at Emilio, who smiled benignly.<\/p>\n<p>Two hours later, Emilio stormed into his bedroom suite, yanking the ribbon out of his queue before allowing his squire to begin the tiresome process of undressing him.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou tell me who she is,\u201d Emilio demanded, \u201cor I will personally call the <em>Wall Street Journal<\/em> with the tip that King Midas has a night job.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Sebastian, lounging in the sitting area, growled.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou know her,\u201d Emilio ground out, yanking his tie off. \u201cDid you think I would credit <em>fate<\/em> for putting you in Velvet\u2019s seat next to her little friend? With whom, I noted, you do not get along.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe get along fine,\u201d Sebastian muttered. \u201cWe\u2019re having a difference of opinion on what she should do about a man who\u2019s pining over her. I, having loyalties to both him and her, am stuck in the middle.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>That brought Emilio up short and he slid a glance at Sebastian. \u201cWhy are you telling me this? Is this in any way analogous to me and Velvet?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThere is no you and Velvet,\u201d Sebastian snapped. \u201cThe point is, even though this man loves her and wants to commit to her, she refuses to believe it.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>That made no sense to Emilio. \u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBecause he\u2019s a slut. Just\u2014like\u2014us. He has <em>zero<\/em> credibility for commitment and because of that, I can\u2019t in good conscience plead his case. He\u2019s pissed at me because I refuse to tell him where she is so he can plead his own case.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Emilio pursed his lips and thought about that a moment. \u201cVelvet dates for commitment.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMarriage, more specifically.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He dragged a deep breath in through his nose. \u201cPoint taken. And so you warned her.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI did. She is not impressed with you, either as a decent human being or torero.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Emilio would have dropped onto his bed if his squire weren\u2019t peeling him out of his skin-tight pants. \u201cShe finds me lacking as a <em>torero?!<\/em>\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cRight. Your compadre out there\u2014Frederico whatever\u2014he\u2019s her favorite, and she\u2019s pissed that you deprived her of her last chance to see her favorite torero this season. That\u2019s almost a direct quote.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Emilio felt like he\u2019d gotten a horn shoved in his remaining kidney. Shown up by <em>Frederico<\/em>? The one barely out of diapers with two bulls\u2019 ears to show for half a season? To his mystery woman? Whose voice Emilio worshipped? That woman did not know <em>anything<\/em> about bullfighting if she thought Frederico was better.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSo,\u201d Sebastian continued with a deep smugness Emilio wanted to beat out of him, \u201cbecause you\u2019re fucking half the wealthiest women in Europe, you\u2019re in the same boat my friend is in with his woman.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou know possibly seven people in Sevilla,\u201d he gritted. \u201cHow is it one of those is Velvet?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>No answer, so Emilio looked up to see Sebastian flipping a coin through his fingers, looking out the French door, his jaw clenched.<\/p>\n<p>Then Emilio connected the dots\u2014 \u201cYour cousin,\u201d he said flatly. \u201cThe thirty-two-year-old socially awkward ball-busting virgin.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Sebastian took a deep breath.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cPlease do not tell me she is a <em>good<\/em> Mormon.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201c<em>Pristine<\/em>. Except for the bullfights on the Sabbath. And,\u201d he grumbled, \u201cshe\u2019s \u00c9tienne LaMontagne\u2019s twin sister.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Emilio shooed his squire away and fell back against the wall, letting his head hit it with a thunk. \u201cShit,\u201d he whispered. How had he managed that? It was the trifecta of bad luck, particularly when everything Sebastian had told him about her started rolling through his brain.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cCan I go now?\u201d Sebastian asked caustically. \u201cBecause at this point, I don\u2019t really care if you out me. I don\u2019t make my living with my paintbrushes and I\u2019m going to protect my family no matter what. She told me to keep you away from her, so that\u2019s what I\u2019m going to do.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cTell me something,\u201d he said slowly, dreading the answer. \u201cHas she always known you and I are friends? How we met?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAnd she has never&nbsp;\u2026&nbsp;?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo, she has never asked me about you, never asked to meet you. Since you said you weren\u2019t interested in her, it shouldn\u2019t make any difference.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Emilio heaved a great sigh as this hope he had nurtured so long slipped through his fingers like water. Something inside him died a little. He should have left her in the stands and in his imagination because he was far too old to have invested so much in a fantasy.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cTell me her first name,\u201d he asked anyway, not knowing why. \u201cGive me that much.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cLet it go, Emilio. I told you she was savvy, and her clumsy earnest opinions aren\u2019t even in the same league as her intentional cruelty. She knows too much about you not to grind you under her heel the second she meets you.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"excerptchapterhead\">3: DO YOU BELIEVE IN JAZZ?<\/p>\n<p class=\"sectiontop\">EMILIO WAS WALKING into the rector\u2019s office at Covarrubias University for his yearly \u201cinterview\u201d\u2014<\/p>\n<p>\u2014and Velvet was storming out of it.<\/p>\n<p>Neither of them saw the other until he was on his ass in the hallway and she was frantically picking up the papers she\u2019d dropped when they collided.<\/p>\n<p>Emilio stood and watched her warily, wondering if she\u2019d recognize him so closely, without his suit of lights and his hair not slicked back into a queue. He\u2019d never felt so naked in his life, knowing she didn\u2019t like him, didn\u2019t want him anywhere near her.<\/p>\n<p><em>She<\/em>, on the other hand, hadn\u2019t looked up at all, and he could barely keep himself from touching her glorious red hair. She was more beautiful up close than she was from afar. Grief at the loss of his mystery woman, his unexpected proximity to her after he\u2019d spent two weeks trying to let go, and Sebastian\u2019s description of her shoved the horn farther into his back.<\/p>\n<p>But then he noticed her growling. \u201cAllow me to assist,\u201d he said gently, bending on one knee in front of her. To his surprise, she didn\u2019t shoo him away, as he would have expected an American woman to do. She stood and silently accepted his help picking up her papers.<\/p>\n<p>He took the opportunity to scan her documents. Papers, reports, quizzes. Grades. American English and Culture. Department of International Business. Junior- and senior-level classes. Sloppy, impatient notations. Some papers bleeding. Sarcastic comments.<\/p>\n<p><em>This usage is not in the dictionary because it\u2019s industry jargon. You are here to learn your industry\u2019s jargon. Pay attention.<\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>You got this right on the quiz Monday. It\u2019s Wednesday. You forgot it between then and now?<\/em><\/p>\n<p><em>Funny how you and two of your classmates got the same four answers wrong. F. My office Tuesday at nine a.m. sharp. If you\u2019re late, I\u2019ll fail you for the term.<\/em><\/p>\n<p>His eyebrow rose, but a whoosh of soft mint-colored fabric and a hint of peppermint brought him back to his task. He couldn\u2019t tell anything of her legs through the elegant drape of her trousers, and they were long enough to pool over most of what looked like genuine ballet slippers dyed violet.<\/p>\n<p>He finally had her documents semi-organized enough to hand back to her, so he couldn\u2019t legitimately delay any longer. He stood.<\/p>\n<p>She still wasn\u2019t looking at him, though. Her head was down, her curly red hair held back from her face by a wide silky scarf in swirling light greens and lavender. She was flipping through the papers she\u2019d managed to gather up, sorting them clumsily, putting them in order, frantic to get out. She was angry and her face was flushed.<\/p>\n<p>It was all so very romantic comedy, he almost smiled in spite of his confusion and anger.<\/p>\n<p>He saw a man across the massive room from out of the corner of his eye and tensed, bracing for an unexpected confrontation. He was supposed to meet with the university\u2019s rector, Dr. Kilgore, not a high-placed member of the administration board, one who had a very good reason to hate Emilio.<\/p>\n<p>His life was riddled with bad luck lately.<\/p>\n<p>Dr. Sanz gave him a hateful smile. \u201cAh, Dr. Emilio Bautista,\u201d he purred viciously. \u201cI\u2019ll be with you in a few minutes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Velvet\u2019s head snapped up, and Emilio could almost feel the chips from her ice blue eyes digging into his skin the second she recognized him. Her pretty red-orange eyebrows arched up into her freckled hairline.<\/p>\n<p>\u201c<em>Doctor<\/em> Bautista?\u201d she growled as if they knew each other well and she was incensed he had been keeping a secret from her.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cChemistry,\u201d he said shortly.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou\u2019re a <em>chemist<\/em>?\u201d she breathed incredulously.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou <em>teach<\/em> here?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNot yet. That\u2019s why I\u2019m here.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The bottom of her very delectable mouth dropped open, and there was nothing more he wanted to do than kiss it. It would be so easy. They were standing so closely they were touching and they were the same height. She wasn\u2019t guarding herself, wasn\u2019t attempting to back away, wasn\u2019t in any way intimidated by how closely they stood. It was as if she hadn\u2019t noticed.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSebastian said you\u2019re angry with me.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He didn\u2019t know why he said it, because picking up the threads of a dropped conversation they\u2019d never had, not pretending, not skirting the issue, wasn\u2019t going to help anything.<\/p>\n<p><em>Let it go, Emilio.<\/em><\/p>\n<p>She huffed. \u201cI didn\u2019t want you to out me and I panicked. I could\u2019ve gotten a different seat, but it didn\u2019t occur to me in time.\u201d Her mouth compressed and her eyes narrowed. \u201cYou were going to dedicate your last bull to me\u2014or, you know. That other person I am.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Damn. \u201cAh&nbsp;\u2026 yes. I wanted to get your attention.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOh, you got it!\u201d she chortled. \u201cJust so you know, I have <em>ways<\/em> of dealing with stalkers. I\u2019m <em>used<\/em> to them.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI had no intention of stalking you,\u201d he replied calmly. \u201cI would have asked if you would care to have tapas with me and I would have respected your answer.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She looked at him with suspicion. \u201cHrmph. Are you going to hold my stage name over my head the way you hold Sebastian\u2019s over his?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo,\u201d he said firmly, and he meant it. He was usually underhanded if not malicious when he didn\u2019t get what he wanted, but he took heart that she hadn\u2019t ground him under her heel\u2014yet\u2014and suddenly, earning this woman\u2019s trust was more important to him than anything else. Hence, he was now not going to ask her to have tapas. \u201cBut I don\u2019t know your real name, so&nbsp;\u2026&nbsp;\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She blinked. \u201cOh. It\u2019s Victoria.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><em>Victoria.<\/em><\/p>\n<p>He inclined his head slightly. \u201cVictoria.\u201d He loved how that felt in his mouth. \u201cThank you. I have no intention of outing you, and I would have counted it a great honor if you would have allowed me to listen to you sing live again. That was all I wanted from&nbsp;\u2026 that other person you are.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Her mouth twitched in thought. \u201cLeo gave you the boot?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He nodded.<\/p>\n<p>She hesitated. \u201cI\u2019ll think about it. Show up Saturday just in case.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><em>That<\/em> he hadn\u2019t expected. If Emilio were prone to elaborate displays of emotion, he would have turned handsprings all over the university grounds. But he wasn\u2019t, so he merely said, \u201cThank you. I enjoy your talent and skill.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Again she paused, looking suddenly quite confused. He could understand why: It wasn\u2019t every day a celebrity turned into a groupie, especially when one didn\u2019t care for said celebrity. \u201cWell&nbsp;\u2026 um. Hm. Thank you.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDr. Bautista!\u201d came Sanz\u2019s voice again, but now he was striding toward them. Victoria stiffened and her breathing quickened unevenly. Ah, <em>here<\/em> they were allies by default. \u201cI see you\u2019ve met Dr. LaMontagne.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes,\u201d Emilio said smoothly. \u201cWe have a common acquaintance.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Sanz looked between them and pointedly noted the lack of space between Emilio\u2019s chest and Victoria\u2019s breasts.<\/p>\n<p>She seemed oblivious to their bodies\u2019 proximity or Sanz\u2019s notation of it.<\/p>\n<p><em>\u2026&nbsp;socially inept&nbsp;\u2026<\/em><\/p>\n<p>\u201cI sincerely hope that is the only thing you have in common,\u201d he said calmly.<\/p>\n<p>Emilio nearly put his fist through Sanz\u2019s face, but Victoria laid her hand lightly on Emilio\u2019s chest as if she knew what he wanted to do and was calming him down. \u201cIt\u2019s not, as a matter of fact,\u201d she said brightly. \u201cWe both love American jazz standards, particularly torch songs.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><em>Torch songs<\/em> didn\u2019t translate to Spanish very well, but <em>jazz<\/em> was enough to get the point across. She didn\u2019t give Sanz a chance to react before turning back to Emilio. She gave him a smile that would make the sun shield its eyes and purred, \u201cSo nice to see you again, Draque.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Emilio sighed and rolled his eyes up to the ceiling when Sanz growled right on cue. \u201c<em>Doc<\/em>tor LaMontagne!\u201d he snapped. \u201cWe do not refer to Dr. Bautista by <em>that<\/em> name.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhy not?\u201d she asked airily. \u201cI like it.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s unprofessional.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She gave him an exaggerated pout. \u201cBut that\u2019s his professional name.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe is not here to represent <em>that<\/em> profession.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Emilio had to break this up quickly if he hoped to get next year\u2019s chance to interview for this damned job with <em>Kilgore<\/em>.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDr. LaMontagne,\u201d Emilio said smoothly, taking her hand in his and raising it somewhere in the general vicinity of his lips for an air kiss. \u201cI will see you again when God wills, no?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She looked at him, but her expression was inscrutable. \u201cYes, thank you.\u201d She cast a glance at Sanz and bid him adios also, then turned and strutted down the hallway and around the corner. He had never been so happy to watch a woman walk away from him in his life. Not with that perfect ass shown to perfection in her mint flowy trousers, her hips swaying perfectly, waist nipping perfectly, curly red hair flowing down her back and bouncing perfectly against her white silk blouse.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHow can you stand to show your face here?\u201d Sanz hissed.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIs there something wrong with it?\u201d Emilio touched his chin. \u201cWhere\u2019s Kilgore? My appointment was with him.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe had a family emergency, and isn\u2019t it fortunate I was the only one available to meet with you. Are you going to attempt to make Dr. LaMontagne another conquest? Because as a gentleman, I must warn you about her.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201c<em>She<\/em> is not like that,\u201d Emilio said tightly, suddenly embarrassed that a mere conversation, polite, appropriate, would get <em>Her<\/em> tagged that way. \u201cUnlike your wife.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Sanz snarled. \u201cI would like to see you die on the sword of Dr. LaMontagne\u2019s vicious tongue. She will make you wish that bull had killed you.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cCan\u2019t get a bite of her, eh, Sanz?\u201d Emilio drawled.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI don\u2019t care for women with ice in their veins, but I would be happy to see what condition you\u2019re in when she gets done with you. Good day, <em>El Draque<\/em>. Please do try again next year so I can have the pleasure of denying you. <em>Again<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"excerptchapterhead\">4: WITHOUT A DREAM IN MY HEART<\/p>\n<p class=\"sectiontop\"><em>I ADMIRE YOUR talent and skill.<\/em><\/p>\n<p>Victoria, although still furious with Sanz for his interference with university business that Rector Kilgore was rightfully handling, didn\u2019t really know what to think about her unexpected meet-cute with the Dragon. She would have been angry if she thought he\u2019d arranged it, but he couldn\u2019t have. She\u2019d known a month ago they had a candidate to interview today, and she had only been summoned to see Sanz an hour ago.<\/p>\n<p>So the Dragon had a PhD in chemistry, wanted a job teaching chemistry, and wasn\u2019t likely to get it anytime soon, especially if he couldn\u2019t teach in English.<\/p>\n<p>He was also helpful and polite, gracious, and not pushy.<\/p>\n<p>He had wished for another chance to hear <em>Velvet<\/em> sing live, but didn\u2019t expect to get it.<\/p>\n<p>He had <em>not<\/em> asked her out after all, and, most importantly, he had <em>not<\/em> complimented her voice or her beauty.<\/p>\n<p>She couldn\u2019t remember the last time someone had complimented her <em>skill<\/em>. The talent she took with a grain of salt; it was almost like complimenting her voice. She\u2019d been born with it, and it had nothing to do with anything she did. Just like her beauty.<\/p>\n<p>It was the <em>skill<\/em> she took to heart. Either he had rehearsed that in preparation for meeting her or he really was only interested in hearing her sing.<\/p>\n<p><em>He didn\u2019t care about<\/em> Velvet<em>. He just wanted to hear Velvet sing live.<\/em><\/p>\n<p>That might be all he wanted from Velvet\u2014<\/p>\n<p><em>\u2026&nbsp;recognized you as his personal unicorn.<\/em><\/p>\n<p>\u2014but that wasn\u2019t all he wanted from the mystery woman he\u2019d been lusting after for the last six years.<\/p>\n<p>Sebastian knew him better than most people did. They\u2019d been friends for ten years and while they had a bit of a rivalry, they also benefited materially from the relationship. Between Sebastian\u2019s assurances about the Dragon\u2019s interest in Velvet, and the Dragon\u2019s discernment and acknowledgment of her <em>skill<\/em>, she was tempted to believe the man had some depth. And chemistry PhDs didn\u2019t get awarded to just anybody.<\/p>\n<p>How in the world did a torero pop up with a PhD in chemistry? Or was it the other way around? How did a scientist pop up in a bullring? Nobody knew this about him, clearly, because it had never been reported. Then again, the sportswriters had missed the most obvious thing about him for the past three years and it was right under their noses every Sunday from March to October.<\/p>\n<p>His uncanny ability to keep his private life absolutely private added to his mystique\u2014no personal information on Emilio Bautista was available <em>except<\/em> for El Draque\u2019s long string of flings. It kept the gossip rags happy and camouflaged everything else. He had to be seeding that information.<\/p>\n<p>The one thing he neither hid nor seeded was his opinion on other toreros. He was one of few loners in the rarefied atmosphere of bullfighters and he made sure he stayed that way with scathing critiques of his colleagues\u2019 skill, talent, and artistry. And because his critiques and insults were so entertaining, he was asked his opinion quite often.<\/p>\n<p>But how, she mused further as she headed toward her office, giving the statue of the university\u2019s namesake her usual caress, had he made her feel so&nbsp;\u2026 funny?<\/p>\n<p>It was the only way she could describe it, with a little tickle in her belly and a little hitch in her breath and a little tremble in her knees. On TV, he was dour and his face was quite weathered. In the ring, she couldn\u2019t tell because she was too far away, and wasn\u2019t interested enough to train her binoculars on the toreros\u2019 faces.<\/p>\n<p>But up close and personal, he was striking in a rather ordinary way, with clear light brown eyes in a lean and far less weathered face\u2014defined cheekbones, a strong jaw, and perfectly masculine lips with a hint of a permanent smile. It was an open face, a happy face. His skin was a light olive. His black hair fell in loose curls around his ears and over his collar and, occasionally, across his forehead. He\u2019d been wearing an unstructured ivory linen suit with a white shirt unbuttoned at the collar, and tan pigskin loafers. He was no taller than her five-nine. He was lean and muscular, whereas Victoria was lush, with perfect curves in all the perfect places.<\/p>\n<p>This was how it should be.<\/p>\n<p>When in street clothes, there was nothing special about him, particularly as compared to the toreros who had side gigs as models and actors. Emilio Bautista looked like a million other ordinarily striking men in Andalusia. Which meant he could slip into any crowd and get lost in a sea of people who looked just like him.<\/p>\n<p>He might be ordinary looking, but he was very clever.<\/p>\n<p>Clever enough to speak immediately and directly to the issue between them as if they were long-time friends who\u2019d had a little misunderstanding yesterday that they were eager to clear up so they could get on with the business of being friends, when in reality, they were strangers who\u2019d spent two weeks stewing over the fact that they\u2019d already metaphysically slammed into each other.<\/p>\n<p>Of course, after Sebastian had told her how the Dragon had reacted to his description of her, she shouldn\u2019t assume he\u2019d been stewing, but his immediate acknowledgment of their very short and mediated relationship made her believe he had.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDr. LaMontagne, may I carry those for you?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Victoria stopped in the middle of the quad and looked over her shoulder to see the Dragon only a few steps behind her. Now that she thought about it, her books were getting rather heavy, so she said, \u201cCertainly. Thank you,\u201d and dumped them in his arms.<\/p>\n<p>He caught them with a grunt, unprepared for her easy acceptance nor for how heavy they were. She remained still while he arranged them, then started toward her office again when he graciously gestured for her to precede him.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI thought you had a meeting with Sanz?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He grimaced. \u201cI was supposed to speak with Kilgore. The minute you dropped the \u2018Draque,\u2019 it was over. I\u2019ve been trying to get a job here for years. Every year, I get called in for an interview, and every year they say no.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou speak English?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cVery well, though I\u2019ve been told it\u2019s painfully formal.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cCan you teach in it?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He rolled his eyes. \u201cIf I couldn\u2019t, I wouldn\u2019t bother applying.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She blinked. \u201cSo&nbsp;\u2026 what\u2019s the problem?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMy job. They don\u2019t want the publicity, don\u2019t want the influx of students who aren\u2019t suited for chemistry, don\u2019t want the possibility I\u2019d die or get seriously injured in the middle of the term.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI agree that your death or incapacitation might be inconvenient, but there\u2019s an easy way to get around the enrollment issue.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He inclined his head sagely. \u201cThere are several. Every one of them has been shot down.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><em>Never gives up even when he should.<\/em><\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat can\u2019t be the only thing. The science department\u2019s a mess.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019ve heard. Why is that?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She shrugged. \u201cDisorganization. The department chair who just rotated in isn\u2019t equipped to manage. They had to cancel three sections of freshman chemistry for fall. If you want the job, but they won\u2019t hire you, it\u2019s personal.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He shrugged. \u201cThey like keeping me on a string.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes, but <em>why?<\/em>\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI graduated from the University of Sevilla,\u201d he said amiably, \u201cbut I came from poverty. I was on scholarship the entire time. I thought having graduated at the top of my class, being able to teach in English, and having money would take care of that.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cCovarrubias is old money,\u201d Victoria said matter-of-factly. \u201cOld American money and older European money and ancient Asian money. Old money has <em>standards<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI learned that the hard way.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cExcept they\u2019re desperate, so that can\u2019t be the real problem.\u201d Her eyes narrowed. \u201cAnswer the question.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He sighed. \u201cI may or may not have known Se\u00f1ora Sanz a bit better than might be considered proper.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Victoria\u2019s first instinct was to recoil, and she did, but it <em>was<\/em> funny. She started to laugh in spite of herself. \u201cGo you! Old money <em>loves<\/em> to go slumming with new money.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He cast her a glance that could wither stone.<\/p>\n<p>Nailed him. Victoria laughed harder. \u201cOh, that\u2019s precious. Spiked in the neck with your own banderilla.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019m so glad you find this amusing.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She nudged him with an elbow until the corner of his mouth turned up. \u201cWhy do you keep trying?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He threw up a hand. \u201cI keep thinking someday they\u2019ll be desperate enough. It\u2019s a dream. A goal. I can\u2019t give up now.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Victoria stopped immediately, her amusement completely gone, and demanded, \u201cWhy are you basing your goals on decisions somebody else has to make?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The Dragon looked at her for many long seconds, his jaw set as if he were dazed by her sudden mood shift and flummoxed by the question. \u201cUh&nbsp;\u2026 I&nbsp;\u2026 don\u2019t know,\u201d he finally said in an odd tone.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI can\u2019t read your voice,\u201d she said flatly. \u201cAre you angry? Confused? Is this something that has never occurred to you before?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes,\u201d he said immediately. \u201cI mean, no, it\u2019s never occurred to me before.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou have money. Build your own lab.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He closed his eyes with something that might be frustration. \u201cDr. LaMontagne\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cVictoria, please.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThank you. Victoria. My goal is to <em>teach<\/em>, not necessarily to teach <em>here<\/em>. Every other university in Andalusia is well staffed and I have no intention of relocating or commuting beyond that.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Victoria was instantly angry again. Not at <em>him<\/em>, but at <em>her<\/em> new chair, who\u2019d made teaching a nightmare the last six months. \u201cTrust me,\u201d she growled. \u201cYou don\u2019t want to do that.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHow do you know?\u201d he snapped.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWere you getting jerked around like this before your imprudent liaison?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Her eyebrows shot into her hairline. \u201cWas this liaison imprudent or targeted?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNeither. Opportunity knocked. On my hotel room door.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDid you know she was Sanz\u2019s wife?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She started laughing again. \u201cOh, you are a bastard.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>His eyelids lowered and he gave her a slow, wicked smile. \u201cYou have no idea.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She turned to walk again, and he stepped in with her easily. \u201cAnd you still come back to get jerked around. Is this a repeating loop? Rejection \u2013 affair \u2013 rejection \u2013 affair?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>His wicked smile turned wry. \u201cNo. I was angry. I didn\u2019t think beyond the opportunity. And for the record, I made sure she enjoyed herself.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Victoria snorted. \u201cI\u2019m sure that\u2019s what you\u2019d like to think.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAre you impugn\u2014 Never mind.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She bit her bottom lip, but she couldn\u2019t help her snickers. \u201cWhat\u2019s the party line on your qualifications?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cKilgore wants me to quit the ring and then he\u2019ll consider it. He doesn\u2019t think I\u2019m serious.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe rector reports to the board and Sanz is board chairman for the next three years. But! A word to the wise. Even if you did get it, you\u2019d hate it by the time you got comfortable with your lesson plans.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She cast him a glance. He seemed curious. Possibly intrigued.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019ve been here six years. I\u2019ve had to deal with my share of politics. Backstabbing. The assignment of classes you don\u2019t want to teach, knocking you down a peg or two whenever possible, nitpicking. Crap workshops and panels at the conferences. I don\u2019t care about that stuff and it stopped happening when everybody figured out I\u2019ll take it all, do it well and in record time, and not give a hoot about anybody else\u2019s opinion.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat I care about is that though I\u2019ve been on tenure track all this time, every year I\u2019m passed over. But <em>now<\/em> it\u2019s even worse because my new chair rotated in and he <em>hates<\/em> me. All of a sudden, there\u2019s a new thing to do constantly. \u2018You need to complete this next thing, Dr. LaMontagne.\u2019 \u2018You didn\u2019t tell me I had to do that thing last term.\u2019 \u2018Oh, it\u2019s a new requirement.\u2019 Every time I complete that thing, he finds something else he wants me to do.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe board\u2019s less petty than my chair, but Sanz is the chairman, so obviously he has more reason to hate you than my chair has to hate me. You\u2019re never going to get off Sanz\u2019s black list. If you quit the ring, they\u2019d find another thing for you to do. It\u2019d be endless, just to say they can make you do their bidding.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He said nothing to that, but it appeared he was thinking about it.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBe careful what you wish for, Dr. Bautista,\u201d she said. \u201cYou might get it.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He snorted suddenly. \u201cI\u2019m Dr. Bautista now?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI don\u2019t want you to call me by that other name, so I suppose I shouldn\u2019t call you by your other name, especially since I ruined this year\u2019s <em>interview<\/em> for you. This is real life.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He grunted his agreement.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat do you do all week?\u201d she asked suddenly. \u201cBesides train?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He paused, then sighed. \u201cI take care of my family.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Her head snapped left, nausea exploding in her belly. \u201cYou\u2019re <em>married<\/em>?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo,\u201d he drawled, as if he\u2019d expected her to jump to that conclusion. \u201cMy mother has cancer and my siblings are much younger than I am.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>That blew Victoria\u2019s mind. She couldn\u2019t see either of her brothers or male cousins dropping their lives, their pleasures, to stay home and take care of their families. If they had families.<\/p>\n<p>She cast him a glance, then started to laugh again.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI see you\u2019re not impressed,\u201d he said dryly.<\/p>\n<p>She shrugged, still laughing. \u201cGuilty. Frilly cherry-print aprons will chew up your machismo in no time.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Suddenly, it was his turn to laugh. \u201cYou have no tact whatsoever.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Victoria grinned at him. \u201cNot a speck.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou didn\u2019t even ask about my mother. Most people do, even though they don\u2019t care.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019m also thoughtless and self-absorbed.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMy mother is doing well,\u201d he drawled with a broad smile. \u201cThank you for asking. As it happens,\u201d he continued, \u201cI do have a lab in which I spend the better part of my days. I\u2019m not exactly, ah\u2014 The movie, ah\u2014 <em>Mr. Mom<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOh no? Pocket protectors and slide rules, then?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He chuckled. \u201cSo now you know my conflict with Sanz. What is yours?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She sighed. \u201cI have no tact, and I\u2019m thoughtless and self-absorbed.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe\u2019ve established this.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo, I mean, that\u2019s their beef with me. I offend two dozen students every term and some of them complain loudly enough for Ching\u2014my chair\u2014to get a phone call from mommy or daddy.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The Dragon pursed his lips and shook his head. \u201cThere\u2019s more to it than that. You were too angry for someone who doesn\u2019t seem interested in or capable of playing the games.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Victoria blinked, shocked that he would notice. \u201cUh&nbsp;\u2026&nbsp;\u201d She threw a thumb over her shoulder. \u201cSanz tells me Ching is recommending I not only be passed over for tenure again, but that he wants to knock me down to teaching freshman business English.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She gave him her <em>duh<\/em> look. \u201cI have no idea. I probably insulted him somehow and instead of saying I hurt his feelings, he\u2019s just getting back at me. I don\u2019t know. Kilgore tries to keep him off my back, brushes it off like it doesn\u2019t mean anything, but it does. I don\u2019t care that he hates me, but he interferes with my routine and my pedagogy. Sanz\u2014who shouldn\u2019t be sticking his nose in Kilgore\u2019s business\u2014doesn\u2019t know me well enough to judge, he\u2019s read some of Ching\u2019s reports about the way I teach and is starting to have concerns, and he\u2019s not quite sure why my position is in the international business department anyway.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He gave her an odd look.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI know. It\u2019s confusing. I teach American culture for business purposes. I\u2019m kind of my own little language trade school. I have sections on trade-specific jargon. Those get added as business professors request them. I also teach a section on American slang and profanity, regional dialects, and accents.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019m in the business department because my students need very specific language skills to get excellent jobs with multibillion-dollar companies all over the world in just about any field they want to go into. Commercially speaking, I am at the top of the English-as-a-Second-Language academic food chain because what I do directly impacts a student\u2019s hireability and starting salary potential, and almost all of my students get jobs immediately.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cUh&nbsp;\u2026&nbsp;\u201d She waited for him to sort through that. \u201cIf you\u2019re that good, why are you being passed over for tenure?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She curled her lip. \u201cThat\u2019s a very good question. I publish. I have impeccable references. I\u2019ve been recommended by some of the top scholars in my field, and yet, nothing.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBut if what you\u2019re doing works so well, why does he want you to change?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>This question made her very happy. \u201cBecause I make it fun. Apparently, good learning only happens when it\u2019s <em>not<\/em> fun. Ching hates my methods and Sanz is inclined to agree because he doesn\u2019t recognize the value of <em>fun<\/em> and he can\u2019t be bothered to audit my classes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDefine <em>fun<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Victoria cast him a brilliant smile, now so very <em>very<\/em> pleased. \u201cI screen American sitcoms and comedy movies. Well-written ones. Late-night talk shows. I break down all the jokes and explain the obvious, explain the visual cues and inflections, then explain the subtext. Comedy works because it\u2019s packed with cultural baggage and nuance you can remember and apply elsewhere. It cuts learning time by a third at least, so you get more bang for your buck. You have to make it fun. If it\u2019s fun, then it doesn\u2019t seem like work.\u201d Then she growled. \u201cBut at this rate, I\u2019ll never make tenure.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He said nothing for a bit and they walked in silence. \u201cSo you\u2019re planning to stay in Spain?\u201d he murmured. \u201cYou said you\u2019ve been here six years. This isn\u2019t a sabbatical appointment from a US uni?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The question surprised her, but it shouldn\u2019t have, she thought after a second. The Dragon wasn\u2019t part of her life and she doubted Sebastian would tell him every detail of it. \u201cI\u2019ve been in Spain seven years,\u201d she said matter-of-factly. \u201cAlmost eight. I\u2019ve been in Sevilla six years and I can\u2019t imagine leaving. I came here on my mission, came back after I finished grad school, and I have no intention of moving away.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYour mission? For your church? Like Sebastian?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She nodded. \u201cI fell in love with Spain, everything about it.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cEven Covarrubias himself, apparently. Why did you go out of your way to touch the statue?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She looked over her shoulder at the five-meter-high bronze statue of Dr. Rafael Covarrubias, the university\u2019s namesake. \u201cI don\u2019t know,\u201d she mused, then looked at him. \u201cYou know the story?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He shook his head.<\/p>\n<p>She smiled. \u201cYou know this school is a cooperative effort of private US, European, and Asian universities, though, right? With a focus on the sciences and global commerce and languages? Funded by global businesses and <em>old<\/em> family money from seventeen countries?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She threw her thumb over her shoulder. \u201cIt\u2019s because of him. A Spanish count, teaching mathematics and navigation in Portugal in the mid-eighteenth century when Spain and Portugal were not cozy. But he was also an American ally in the Revolutionary War <em>and<\/em> he had spent years in Japan when Europeans didn\u2019t get in or out of Japan alive. He was very much a Japanophile. He could speak and write in ten languages fluently. He wrote extensively on his educational and pedagogical philosophies, his view of world commerce, principles of democracy. Many of his philosophies are still relevant. He was also a feminist and wrote brilliant rebuttals of treatises that claimed women were inferior thinkers or leaders. He had at least one female prot\u00e9g\u00e9e that we know of. Nobody knows her name or what happened to her, though.\u201d She sighed. \u201cThat always makes me sad.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat you don\u2019t know what happened to her?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIn specific, yes, but the real problem is that most women get lost to history, no matter how remarkable they were. Obviously, I don\u2019t know if his prot\u00e9g\u00e9e was remarkable, but if she was, we will never know. And we don\u2019t know if he had any more than that, but we must assume he did.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cProt\u00e9g\u00e9e,\u201d the Dragon drawled with amusement. \u201cHow quaint.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Victoria laughed. \u201cThat hasn\u2019t changed at all, has it?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe died in a bar fight over a woman, didn\u2019t he?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cActually, he was killed at sea by a British pirate in the middle of a war. I highly doubt that involved a woman.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She gasped when she felt herself falling against him, then felt the scrape of rough stone on her upper arm hard enough to graze her skin.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou also don\u2019t watch where you\u2019re going,\u201d he said dryly, helping her steady herself after he\u2019d jerked her away from the stone water fountain so she wouldn\u2019t plow right into it.<\/p>\n<p>She sighed and looked at her scraped upper arm. \u201cGuilty again. Look,\u201d she said, putting her hand on her shoulder to show him a tiny freckle lost in the rest of her freckles. \u201cThat happened when I was nine. I have them all over me.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The Dragon gave her a look she couldn\u2019t decipher but she felt funny again and decided she did not like feeling funny when she couldn\u2019t put a word to it, when she couldn\u2019t connect it to what she\u2019d felt for men in the past.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI got hit by a car once,\u201d she continued, not knowing why. \u201cI was in the hospital for a while.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAnd how did you manage to be in front of a car?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI was chasing a ball.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAnd didn\u2019t look both ways.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat\u2019s it. Anyway, here we are. Do you want to come up to my office for a drink?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>And <em>again<\/em> he looked at her with an expression she couldn\u2019t read. \u201cWhat does that look mean?\u201d she demanded.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cA drink,\u201d he muttered, as if testing her.<\/p>\n<p>She huffed. \u201cYes. I have a whole mini-fridge full of water and soda. Candy bars, too. It\u2019s hot. I was offering some hospitality. I do remember to do that now and again. I\u2019m not completely socially inept.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Several sentiments crossed his face, but she didn\u2019t know what any of them meant. \u201cOkay,\u201d he said warily. \u201cSure.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"excerptchapterhead\">5: LOCK THE DOORS &amp; CALL ME YOURS<\/p>\n<p class=\"sectiontop\">SHE\u2019D MEANT WHAT she\u2019d said, Emilio thought, stunned as he stood in her office watching her dig a Coke out of the refrigerator. She tossed it to him, but he waited to open it until she\u2019d opened her own. She gestured toward a wing chair in front of her desk as she went behind it to flop into her chair and put her feet up.<\/p>\n<p>It was a damned good thing she was wearing trousers because he did not want to see any more of that luscious skin\u2014or anything else\u2014unless he was undressing her and finding every single one of her scars.<\/p>\n<p>Because he was about to jump over that large desk and do that very thing.<\/p>\n<p>He gestured to her feet. \u201cYou dance?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She scoffed. \u201cYou have to ask? No. I have ballet shoes custom soled and dyed for everyday wear so I won\u2019t break all my toes and they\u2019ll last for more than three days. Look,\u201d she said again, swiveling her chair so he only saw the top of her red head. Then she stretched her left leg high in the air so all the pale green cloth fell like a disrobing sculpture model. The shoe was ombr\u00e9, from violet at the toe, smoothly lightening to lavender, until the heels were white. Violet ribbons wound tight over her feet and around her ankles. It did, indeed, look exactly like a ballerina\u2019s shod foot, but his attention was on her long, perfectly curved alabaster leg, studded in freckles.<\/p>\n<p>She twirled back around and dropped her foot, which landed on the edge of her desk with a hard thud. \u201cI like the look,\u201d she said airily, \u201cand I\u2019m vain.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Mother of God. He was hard as a rock and he could barely breathe.<\/p>\n<p><em>Do you want to come up to my office for a drink?<\/em><\/p>\n<p>A drink. Literally. She couldn\u2019t be <em>that<\/em> na\u00efve, could she? Did she not understand that was global code for <em>Want to have sex?<\/em><\/p>\n<p>So he asked.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOf course I do!\u201d She harrumphed. \u201cI teach <em>profanity<\/em>. And comedy\u2014a lot of it profane so they don\u2019t get caught in embarrassing linguistic traps. Why does <em>everything<\/em> have to be turned into a sexual innuendo? The question is a straightforward offer of hospitality, and then all of a sudden it turned into a proposition.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He started when her office door banged open, but she didn\u2019t move. Her body didn\u2019t tense. She took a long pull of her soda while looking at the intruder out of the corner of her eye.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cVictoria!\u201d a small Asian man barked from the doorway, one hand on the doorjamb and one on the doorknob, as if he were bracing for a strong wind. In perfect upper-class Spanish, he demanded, \u201cDid you tell a student today that she was <em>lazy<\/em>?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Emilio nearly choked.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOf course I did,\u201d she said calmly.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cShe\u2019s in a junior-level class but she doesn\u2019t know English well enough to be there and she\u2019s trying to fake it because she doesn\u2019t want to make any effort to improve her English to the level of the class requirements.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou <em>offended<\/em> her!\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat\u2019s not my problem. It wasn\u2019t an insult. It was a statement of fact.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>And at that moment, Emilio believed it.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt is <em>our<\/em> problem now, because she is the daughter of a high-placed government official!\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Victoria looked completely bemused. \u201cI don\u2019t care,\u201d she said. \u201cHer father\u2019s probably lazy too.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Emilio started laughing. He couldn\u2019t help it. It was utterly surreal, the conversation in the rector\u2019s office, the conversation on the long walk to her office, and now the look on her face as if she didn\u2019t understand why this was unacceptable.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAnd who are you?\u201d the man snarled, but Emilio was too far gone in his laughter to be able to answer. He waved toward Victoria.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThis is my colleague, Dr. Bautista.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cColleague? I know several Dr. Bautistas around here and he is not one of them.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe is a colleague because I say he is. We are discussing pedagogy.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYour pedagogy leaves much to be desired!\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The glass in the door rattled with the force of the slam.<\/p>\n<p>Emilio was still laughing too hard to speak, so he bent over and hung his head between his knees to try to catch his breath. He started to cough.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat\u2019s what I deal with every day,\u201d came Victoria\u2019s voice from just above him. \u201cAre you all right?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He nodded, but took the tissue that suddenly dangled by his ear.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat was my chair. Dr. Ching. He\u2019s a petty little thing. Ha! Rhyme!\u201d<\/p>\n<p>This woman was going to be the death of Emilio, he just knew it. And there was only one way he\u2019d rather go out than by laughing himself to death\u2014and he wanted to do it with <em>her<\/em>.<\/p>\n<p>Finally he calmed enough to straighten, only to see her perched on her knees on the edge of her desk, looking down at him with detached concern.<\/p>\n<p>She couldn\u2019t possibly know how badly he wanted her\u2014and not because of her beauty or voice.<\/p>\n<p>Emilio had never met a more delightful woman in his life.<\/p>\n<p>The beautiful mystery bullfight aficionada: Gone.<\/p>\n<p>The velvet-voiced American torch singer: Gone.<\/p>\n<p>The ball-busting cousin of Sebastian\u2019s: Gone.<\/p>\n<p>Dr. Victoria LaMontagne: Right here in front of him in all her tactless, thoughtless, vain, and self-absorbed glory.<\/p>\n<p>He finally looked up into her eyes, knowing every bit of his infatuation was showing on his face, but his gaze was caught on her silky shell where it gaped open at the neck. \u201cOh, God,\u201d he groaned when he saw those creamy, freckled breasts cupped perfectly by her lacy pink bra and a silky chemise.<\/p>\n<p>She looked down, too. \u201cDid I spill something on myself?\u201d She sat back on her heels and closely inspected her blouse. \u201cI\u2019m always spilling something,\u201d she muttered, licking her finger, then rubbing at some spot. \u201cI should not be allowed to wear white.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Her curly red hair spilled over her shoulders and shielded her face from him. Her breasts bobbed with each impatient flick of a meticulously manicured nail, and her hips flared out from her waist in the most breathtaking way.<\/p>\n<p>After everything Sebastian had told him, he could never have expected this.<\/p>\n<p>She was so much more than he\u2019d imagined.<\/p>\n<p><em>I don\u2019t care how beautiful a woman is, I wouldn\u2019t stick around long enough to figure out a woman like her, either.<\/em><\/p>\n<p>Unless he thought that woman worth the work, because this one would require the patience of a saint and the seduction skill of Don Juan to get her to notice Emilio in a way other than as a seducer of other men\u2019s wives for the sole purpose of revenge, and\u2014<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWho do you see when you look at me?\u201d he asked abruptly.<\/p>\n<p>Her head popped up, and her brow wrinkled. \u201cDo you mean which persona?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She shrugged and her mouth twitched in thought. \u201cI guess&nbsp;\u2026 Dr. Bautista. I mean, in my head, I\u2019m thinking \u2018Dragon,\u2019 but that\u2019s\u2014 I don\u2019t know. A mental shortcut. An English one. If I thought of you as El Draque, in Spanish, I would have introduced you that way. But\u2014\u201d She gestured vaguely toward him, up and down. \u201cYou aren\u2019t anything like that guy in the sand on Sunday and the sports section on Monday.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Emilio smiled, pleased. So very, <em>very<\/em> pleased. \u201cSebastian said you didn\u2019t think much of my bullfighting.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She huffed. \u201cI said you weren\u2019t my favorite. I like Frederico better.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Now he was not quite so pleased. That tactlessness was a double-edged sword. \u201cWhy?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBecause he\u2019s so much <em>worse<\/em> than you. He\u2019s an underdog. I like underdogs. I\u2019m interested in watching him get better.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Emilio listened to this and sat astonished, and said the only thing that popped in his mind. \u201cHe\u2019s only eighteen.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019ve seen sixteen-year-olds better than he is,\u201d Victoria muttered. \u201cNot an ear to his name.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cTwo.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAs well as none! He needs to go back to the novillada. But he\u2019s adorable. And he kills clean.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Emilio\u2019s eyebrow rose.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSome of the time.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>His lids lowered.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAlmost never. You, on the other hand, have it down to a science. Ha! Pun! I know exactly what to expect from you.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThank you.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She rolled her eyes.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI think?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cKnowing exactly what to expect wasn\u2019t a compliment, Dr. Bautista.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><em>Note to self: Ask questions until she\u2019s clarified everything she says.<\/em><\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou\u2019ve been smooth as a baby\u2019s butt since you were gored three years ago.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou\u2019re supposed to be smooth,\u201d he said, suddenly irritated. \u201cThat\u2019s the point.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes, but! Your posture isn\u2019t <em>quite<\/em> straight enough when it should be and your shoulders aren\u2019t back <em>quite<\/em> far enough and you don\u2019t lean in <em>quite<\/em> close enough to the bull. When you go down on one knee, you\u2019re right in his blind spot. When you make the kill, you go a <em>little<\/em> too far left and you have to reach for it. Your veronicas are a <em>little<\/em> too studied, and I haven\u2019t seen you do a mariposa in, oh, <em>years<\/em>. Your faenas are a <em>little<\/em> too cautious, the time it takes you to turn the bull a <em>little<\/em> too long, and the horns are a <em>little<\/em> too far away from your legs.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>His mouth had dropped open with her first criticism.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cEvery time I\u2019ve seen you, you\u2019ve left the ring without a drop of blood on you. Everybody <em>else<\/em> might like watching a torero do a perfect Viennese waltz with a bull and leave the ring pristine, as evidenced by your standings this season, but <em>I<\/em> don\u2019t. I want to see a paso doble, but now if I want to see a good one, I have to watch <em>Strictly Ballroom<\/em>. Again.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He stared at her, completely dumbfounded and speechless.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAnd I\u2019ll bet you thought I didn\u2019t know my tauromaquia,\u201d she purred wickedly.<\/p>\n<p>She had just ground his ego into sand and spread it out over every bullring in Spain\u2014exactly as Sebastian had described\u2014and all he could do was start laughing. Again. \u201cWould you do me a favor?\u201d he asked between chuckles.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSure.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cConsider me just Emilio.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOkay, Just Emilio,\u201d she said agreeably. \u201cI\u2019ll tell Leo you\u2019re my guest Saturday.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He was going to die of joy.<\/p>\n<p>Or bleed out from her precision goring.<\/p>\n<p>But her brow wrinkled again. \u201cYou won\u2019t mind that, will you?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNot at all,\u201d he said smoothly, only barely able to hold back his smile. \u201cI\u2019ll look forward to it.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"excerptchapterhead\">6: FOR SENTIMENTAL REASONS<\/p>\n<p class=\"sectiontop\">EMILIO WALKED INTO the house and through the kitchen, where Consuela was cooking dinner. He slapped her ass as he went by and caught the roll she threw at his head. He shoved half of it in his mouth and said, \u201cMarry me, Connie.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The old woman growled, but Emilio went through the kitchen doors and out into the arcade surrounding a courtyard sparkling from the glint of sunlight on the water in the swimming pool, and shaded by the lush vegetation surrounding it. He stopped when he saw his mother in the pool, taking very slow laps across the shallow end. She was struggling, but she was trying, and Emilio\u2019s heart felt a prick.<\/p>\n<p>Another one.<\/p>\n<p>His heart had holes in it from all the pinpricks it had taken in the last two years.<\/p>\n<p>She was dying, and he could do nothing about it. A month ago, she had abruptly refused further chemotherapy and radiation and would not be swayed.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cEmilio!\u201d she called, jerking him out of his reverie.<\/p>\n<p>He smiled at her as if he hadn\u2019t a care in the world, though she was pretty much his only real care. \u201cMam\u00e1,\u201d he said. \u201cYou look better.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>It was rote, that <em>you look better<\/em>, but today, she really did.<\/p>\n<p>She smiled as she backstroked her way across the pool, her eyes closed. \u201cI know. It is amazing what a little fresh air and exercise will do, eh?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Emilio considered that as he watched her. She was happy. Relaxed. \u201cWhat is your pain level today?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cTwo,\u201d she called lazily. \u201cThree, perhaps. If I could sleep in this pool, I would.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Hm. \u201cWould you like a waterbed?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes!\u201d she breathed. \u201cAnything would be better than that hospital bed that quack has had me in for an eternity. I have cancer. I am not an invalid.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Emilio looked upward and cupped his hands. \u201cMAX!\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Soon enough, his youngest half-sibling leaned over the third-floor arcade railing. \u201cWhat,\u201d he snapped.<\/p>\n<p>He snapped about everything. He was seventeen, just the age to be a pain in the ass, especially toward a half-brother old enough to be his father.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cGo buy a waterbed and have it delivered to Mam\u00e1\u2019s room. A big one. Get rid of the hospital bed.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo problem,\u201d he sneered, then looked at his wrist as if there were a watch there. \u201cIt\u2019s three o\u2019clock.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Emilio shrugged. \u201cDo it after siesta. Do it tomorrow. Just get it done.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBut\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhy do you hate Mam\u00e1?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Max howled and stormed back across the arcade, slamming his bedroom door behind him. His mother\u2014stepmother, rather\u2014who was now floating in the sun with her eyes closed, chuckled.<\/p>\n<p>Emilio approached the pool, kicked his shoes off, and sat, dropping his feet and calves into the water as if he weren\u2019t wearing good clothes, and watched her.<\/p>\n<p>Dolores Ruiz was only eleven years older than Emilio, having moved in with his lonely father when Emilio was six to hide from her abusive husband. But Emilio\u2019s father was just an unskilled laborer and his best chance at a decent living was in the army, so Dolores and Emilio had been alone quite a bit. She, being a barely literate country girl and grateful to have been given shelter, mothered Emilio as if he were her own, kept their home, and, Emilio supposed, pleased his father whenever he could come home.<\/p>\n<p>Emilio, who\u2019d been four when his mother died in childbirth, had been so lonely for a mother\u2019s company, he had clung to Dolores as if she were his mother. Emilio was fifteen when his father came home to stay, and sixteen when his first half-sibling had come along. He\u2019d been twenty and in college with the second, twenty-three with the third, and twenty-five with the last. Then his father had been called back out only to be killed in some skirmish in Catalonia.<\/p>\n<p>Emilio had long since moved out of the house by that time, but because his father had never married Dolores, she had no widow\u2019s benefits. So Emilio moved back in to take care of her and his siblings. She had been a light in his world for so long, he would do anything for her.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHow was your interview?\u201d she asked lazily.<\/p>\n<p>He grimaced. \u201cIt didn\u2019t get that far this time.\u201d Although the fact that he had totally <em>forgotten<\/em> about it was interesting.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat is on your mind, mi hijo?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Trust her to know something was different about him, but this, he wanted to keep to himself. \u201cDisappointed.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She\u2019d buy that. He went through this every year, and every year he walked away empty-handed.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou don\u2019t sound disappointed.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Maybe she wouldn\u2019t buy that. His brow wrinkled. \u201cSomebody said something to me today that made me think.\u201d A lot of things, actually.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOh?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201c\u2018Why do you base your goals on decisions somebody else has to make?\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She said nothing. The water lapped the sides of the pool. The trees rustled with the breeze. There were faint household sounds. Max\u2019s blaring stereo was mercifully muted. Pilar and Cristina weren\u2019t home from their classes at the University of Sevilla yet, and Cesar, his twenty-six-year-old brother, was at work.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat,\u201d Dolores finally said, \u201cis a very good question.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Yes, it was. Parts of the rest of the conversation made him wince, though. \u201cDid the doctor come over today?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo,\u201d she said cheerfully. \u201cHe can do nothing since I will not go back on chemo or radiation, eh? I do not like him anyway.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Emilio was torn about this decision. On the one hand, she was back to the happy and vivacious mother he\u2019d known for most of his life. She felt good, she looked better than she had in years, and her pain level was down, managed with some Tylenol every few hours and a joint before bed. On the other hand, she was dying, and fifty-three was way too young. Chemo and radiation would extend her life by several years, but she didn\u2019t want to live in such pain and misery, and after watching her deteriorate with the \u201ccure,\u201d he couldn\u2019t say he blamed her for that. She would rather find a way to get an overdose of morphine than live that way.<\/p>\n<p>She also wasn\u2019t interested in holistic medicines or anything that would require her to <em>work<\/em> to stay alive. Yes, she was only fifty-three, but she looked seventy. She\u2019d had a hard life, but now, thanks to Emilio\u2019s star status, it was a good life, quiet and relaxing, and she wanted to enjoy it. She couldn\u2019t do that in a hospital bed puking from the chemo or nearly comatose from the radiation.<\/p>\n<p>She ate what she wanted, drank what she wanted, smoked what she wanted, and asked Emilio for anything else she wanted\u2014if she thought of it. After she had once asked his father for shelter, she\u2019d very rarely asked anybody for anything. Dolores gave and gave some more until she\u2019d had nothing left to give because the cancer took.<\/p>\n<p>So despite his misgivings, his grief, his looming sense of loss, Emilio allowed it and didn\u2019t attempt to subvert her wishes in any way. He hadn\u2019t even quietly instructed Consuela to prepare her a special diet. What was the point?<\/p>\n<p>Emilio\u2019s watch beeped, and he pulled his feet out of the water. \u201cI have a meeting with my trainer.\u201d At which time he would present Victoria\u2019s complaints about his <em>waltzing<\/em>. \u201cI should be home by supper.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cEmilio,\u201d Dolores said sweetly. It was the way she said everything.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMam\u00e1?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWho asked you this interesting question?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He hesitated. \u201cA professor at Covarrubias. Teaches American English and culture in the international business department.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat is her name?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Trust her to pick out the detail he hadn\u2019t given her. \u201cVictoria LaMontagne,\u201d he said in resignation.<\/p>\n<p>She clucked her tongue. \u201cYou must watch for those American girls. They have no manners.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Emilio barked a laugh. \u201cThis one has less than none.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBut she made you think and she made you smile. I know I will be very happy with her.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"excerptchapterhead\">7: TWELVE O\u2019CLOCKTAILS<\/p>\n<p class=\"sectiontop\">VICTORIA SAT ON HER couch that night with her feet up on the coffee table and a bowl of stew in her hand, while she watched entertainment news. Then she\u2019d have a telenovela marathon while she graded exams.<\/p>\n<p>Next came the usual corrida segment, where everything was about Toreros Behaving Badly, and nothing was about the corrida de toros itself. She watched it religiously, but now she had a different perspective.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cEl Draque was today spotted heading into prestigious Covarrubias University. Our reporters caught him as he came out an hour later.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Victoria rolled her eyes at the lame questions the paparazzi lobbed at him, some of which were questions pertaining to his colleagues, which he answered in his carelessly precise and quite vicious fashion. And the rest were questions pertaining to rumors of his latest lover, American wild child heiress Yvette Mallery. But he scowled at the reporters and the cameras, said \u201cNo comment\u201d a lot, and ducked into his car, which squealed away from the pack. Her eyebrows lowered and she glared at the TV, which had shown a poor imitation of the man she\u2019d met today.<\/p>\n<p>El Draque having a lover was <em>de rigueur<\/em>, as was the press\u2019s dissection of each and every one of his women. But Yvette was twenty-four, a regular at Leo\u2019s, escaping from her cold and strict socialite mother. In Victoria\u2019s opinion, Yvette was immature for her age, lonely, ill-equipped for the real world, and looking for love in all the wrong places. It manifested in her self-destructive behavior.<\/p>\n<p>Trust a torero to take advantage of her.<\/p>\n<p>The same could not be said for Se\u00f1ora Sanz. She was as opportunistic as El Draque and she was old enough to know the score going in. She\u2019d married for money and likely what Dr. Sanz objected to was that he\u2019d been cuckolded by <em>El Draque<\/em>. That would have made news and embarrassed him. Society was supposed to keep its affairs discreet.<\/p>\n<p>Victoria had never paid attention to such things because that was what toreros did. She was not personally invested in any torero other than Frederico, because he was such a cute little boy trying to be a grownup torero and he amused her. She\u2019d stopped paying attention to El Draque years ago.<\/p>\n<p>But today she was paying attention and it bugged her. A lot.<\/p>\n<p>Lydia came breezing in the door with takeout, tossed out a \u201chi,\u201d and headed to the kitchen to eat. She had been ravenous the last month or so, something she had never been in college, but she wasn\u2019t gaining weight. She was losing it, in fact.<\/p>\n<p>Victoria put her feet down and arose to take her bowl into the kitchen. \u201cAre you sick?\u201d she asked while Lydia inhaled two stuffed mushrooms.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo,\u201d Lydia grunted as she soaked a piece of bread in the seasoned olive oil the mushrooms had come in. \u201cI haven\u2019t eaten today.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou ate breakfast,\u201d Victoria reminded her. \u201cA big one, too.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou\u2019re awfully observant all of a sudden,\u201d Lydia groused.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019m always observant. I just don\u2019t care.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOh, right. Please resume not caring about my eating habits.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo, seriously, I want to know. Why are you eating like there\u2019s no tomorrow? There\u2019s something wrong with you.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Lydia slammed her hand down on the table. \u201cThere is <em>nothing<\/em> wrong with me! Mind your own business!\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAnd bitchy, too.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019m pregnant.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Victoria\u2019s bottom lip dropped open. \u201cOh.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes, I know what you\u2019re thinking,\u201d she said snidely. \u201cI\u2019m a slut. A whore. Having a baby out of wedlock, with a guy I knew a whole week. Yes, I\u2019m a sinner.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cUm&nbsp;\u2026 no,\u201d Victoria said absently, worrying her bottom lip with her fingertips because Lydia knew very good and well Victoria didn\u2019t apply such labels. So now she was confused. \u201cI don\u2019t, um, see you\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAs a slut?\u201d she snapped.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo,\u201d Victoria answered, and tried again. \u201cYou don\u2019t enjoy sex, so I don\u2019t understand why you keep doing it.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Lydia\u2019s fork clattered on her plate where she dropped it, and she gaped at Victoria. \u201cWhy in God\u2019s name would you think I don\u2019t enjoy sex?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou didn\u2019t in college.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>That brought her up short. \u201cYou didn\u2019t seem to notice in college.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI noticed. I just didn\u2019t say anything. You were always crying when you came home. What was I supposed to think? I wouldn\u2019t keep doing stuff that made me cry.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Lydia closed her eyes and her fist at the same time. Her chest was heaving and Victoria didn\u2019t know if she was trying to control her temper or her tears or what. Victoria wasn\u2019t good with these situations, which was why she\u2019d never said anything in the five years she and Lydia had been roommates.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI love him,\u201d she whispered, then gulped. \u201cBut I shouldn\u2019t. I have <em>no<\/em> basis for love. Or&nbsp;\u2026 what I think it means. We had a week together. On the run in the back alleys of Manhattan. Hunted. Hunting. It was just stress. Battlefield comfort. He said he loved me, but a guy like that\u2014he doesn\u2019t love. He uses and leaves. Not even Sebastian can tell me he wouldn\u2019t get restless after a while and go looking elsewhere. Sebastian knows Jack too well.\u201d<\/p>\n<p><em>Emilio Bautista.<\/em><\/p>\n<p>Victoria shook her head. \u201cSoooo what are you going to do about the baby?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI don\u2019t know,\u201d she whispered. \u201cI just don\u2019t know.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Victoria didn\u2019t know what to say to that, and she had nothing to offer, so she watched and waited.<\/p>\n<p>Lydia took a deep breath. \u201cI came home crying in college because I\u2019d convinced myself the guy loved me, but he didn\u2019t. Even if it was good, it got spoiled once I faced facts. I would go begging for love, but got laughed at. I was nothing. So I stopped doing that. But then I <em>did<\/em>. <em>Again<\/em>. With Jack. After I\u2019d had so many years of being careful to avoid situations like that\u2014and being happy not having all that drama! And now I\u2019m sitting here telling you I love him when it\u2019s the same as it\u2019s always been. At least I didn\u2019t tell <em>him<\/em> I loved him.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBut&nbsp;\u2026 you had relationships.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNot good ones. I had no role models. I grew up in a tenement with an ancient Cuban showgirl stuck in her pre-Castro glory days and a drag queen, playing piano in a bathhouse where <em>nobody<\/em> loves each other and \u2018relationship\u2019 is a dirty word.\u201d Oh, that was a story, all right, and Victoria never got tired of hearing it. \u201cI have no idea how to have a relationship with a man.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBut I\u2019ve never gone out on more than two or three dates with anybody.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou have no tact, you can\u2019t be bothered to learn some social niceties, and you don\u2019t listen to what your dates say. Or you don\u2019t remember.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI listen!\u201d Victoria protested. \u201cAnd I remember. I just don\u2019t care.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Lydia barked a harsh laugh. \u201cThat\u2019s so much better! Your looks get you the date. Your mouth gets you stranded on the roadside. If you get a second or third date it\u2019s because the guy\u2019s trying to fix your brain so he can be the one to thaw your ice vagina.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Victoria nodded her agreement.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI wish I had your problem,\u201d Lydia muttered resentfully, then went back to her tapas.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhich problem?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe one where you\u2019re never horny. Ice vagina.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s not a problem,\u201d Victoria said.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOkay, then I wish I had your blessing. Or gift. Or whatever you people call it. That way, my brain wouldn\u2019t keep letting my clit decide what love is because my brain doesn\u2019t know and my clit has <em>terrible<\/em> judgment.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Victoria looked down at the table and tried to cut through the sudden jumble of her thoughts. Something didn\u2019t feel right.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Victoria looked up at her cute friend, with a mop of old-gold curls and blue-gray-purple eyes. She was no stunner, but she did a <em>thing<\/em> with her eyes that made men do whatever she wanted them to\u2014except love her.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat what?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSomething\u2019s bothering you.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Yes, something was, but she didn\u2019t know what. \u201cWhat\u2019s it like,\u201d she blurted, \u201cwhen a man touches you and then all of a sudden, you\u2019re in bed together?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Lydia sighed. \u201cYou\u2019ve only asked me that a hundred thousand times. I. Don\u2019t. Know. If you\u2019re attracted to him, it\u2019s a tingly feeling. I guess. Sometimes, it hits you right between your legs. But that\u2019s never happened to you and at this point, it\u2019d take someone pretty spectacular to make it happen for you.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Victoria huffed. \u201cI want to know what the girl is <em>feeling<\/em>. Purple prose and falling off cliffs and going over edges and stupid metaphors like that are not helpful.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat\u2019s because it\u2019s totally indescribable.\u201d She paused. \u201cGet a <em>Penthouse<\/em> Letters.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThose don\u2019t help. They\u2019re all from the guy\u2019s point of view.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThen go rent a video.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMy sister-in-law gave me some instructional videos, but without a partner, it\u2019s pointless.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou know what? Go get a book and learn how to masturbate.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI tried that. I was itchy and irritated for a week.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThen you weren\u2019t doing it right.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI followed the instructions!\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHrmph.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>And that was the end of the conversation because Lydia dug into her food again, and Victoria knew her well enough to know she was beyond irritated. Victoria might have pressed her anyway, but it was a waste of time to badger her when she was that irritated.<\/p>\n<p>She arose and started toward the bedroom.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWait,\u201d Lydia said around a mouthful of&nbsp;\u2026 something. Victoria stopped and looked over her shoulder. \u201cDid you meet a guy? Because you only ask this when you meet a guy who can keep up with you and you\u2019re so thrilled you don\u2019t pay attention to anything else.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Victoria shrugged. \u201cYeah, I did. But he\u2019s about as close to marriage material as Jack. All he wants is to get me into bed.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Lydia looked at her suspiciously. \u201cHe let you know that up front?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe didn\u2019t come out and say it, but he wasn\u2019t trying to hide what he wanted.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Lydia\u2019s eyebrows rose. \u201cAnd you didn\u2019t tell him to go pound sand?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Victoria pursed her lips in thought. \u201cNot for that. I did rip him up one side and down the other for something else, though, and he thought it was funny.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDid he know you were serious?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Victoria nodded. \u201cHe was laughing at himself.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Lydia said nothing for a few seconds as she turned that over. \u201cHuh. That\u2019s different. So he\u2019s intelligent and interesting and can laugh at himself. Which means you\u2019ll keep him around to entertain you until you have to pull out the baseball bat.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Victoria nodded sadly. \u201cYeah. As usual.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat\u2019s his name?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cEmilio.\u201d She paused. \u201cBautista.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Lydia choked. \u201c<em>That<\/em> Emilio Bautista?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Victoria grimaced. \u201cThat one.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201c<em>Oh my God!<\/em> You don\u2019t do anything halfway, do you?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s a Dunham family trait,\u201d she muttered.<\/p>\n<p>She released a low whistle. \u201cYou might want to watch out for that one, Vic. Even I can see there\u2019s something about him that\u2019s\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIrresistible?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Lydia\u2019s eyebrows shot into her hairline. \u201cUh&nbsp;\u2026 I was going to say charismatic, but that makes me think if anybody could thaw your ice vagina, it might actually be him.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Victoria sniffed. \u201cNo man I find interesting who is also willing to think about marriage can do it. That\u2019s the problem. And Emilio Bautista is about as far from marriage as he is the moon.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Lydia pursed her mouth in commiseration. \u201cSome things never change. You and I haven\u2019t lived together for seven years and we\u2019re still two sides of the same coin.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYeah. But you know what? Somewhere in there, I gave up and I\u2019m happy with talking to interesting men. I\u2019m thirty-two. I\u2019m a virgin. If you have to die a virgin, then an ice vagina is a very handy thing to have.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAin\u2019t that the truth.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"excerptchapterhead\">8: CRUSH ME SOME ICE<\/p>\n<p class=\"sectiontop\">EMILIO WAS SHOCKED at the treatment he got Saturday night once he\u2019d arrived at Leo\u2019s. The bouncer wasn\u2019t any more gracious than he had been the last time, and Leo\u2019s gregarious greeting was forced, but he was seated one terrace-step above the dance floor tables, just off the middle aisle, where he\u2019d be able to see Victoria well, but still remain somewhat inconspicuous.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHow\u2019d you manage this?\u201d Sebastian muttered as he sank into the club chair opposite Emilio.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMagic,\u201d Emilio whispered, eyes wide and fingers waving.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAsshole. Cut the jazz hands and glitter fingers.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Emilio chuckled and sipped at his Scotch. Soon enough, their table was filled with things Emilio hadn\u2019t had since he left Texas years ago: fried chicken, potato salad, cole slaw, baked beans, Texas sheet cake, apple pie\u2014and an ice-cold pitcher of milk.<\/p>\n<p>He sighed happily. \u201cI will have Connie expand the menu. Your mother cooks like this, no?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Sebastian nodded. \u201cI\u2019ll get you the recipes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The jazz band played and the diners dined and a few couples danced.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSpeaking of mothers, how\u2019s yours?\u201d Sebastian asked around a mouthful of food.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBetter,\u201d Emilio said. He looked at Sebastian. \u201cShe spends hours in the swimming pool now. Smokes a joint.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cGood way to work up an appetite.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cShe is also spending time catching up with my siblings, things she missed when she was dazed by the chemotherapy. Knitting. She is doing all the things she could not do when she was at the hospital four days a week. I bought her a waterbed. She has slept through the night every night since she has had it. She wakes up as if nothing is wrong.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Sebastian grunted. \u201cMaybe she does know better than the doctors.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat she knows is that she is at peace, and she wants to enjoy her last days.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201c\u2018Last days\u2019 may be an illusion.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cFrom your lips to God\u2019s ears.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDragon!\u201d trilled a female voice from across the room. Emilio groaned. The redhead\u2014she was no Victoria\u2014pulled a chair from another table and plopped herself down next to him. She leaned against him and petted his arm. \u201cI haven\u2019t seen you in three weeks,\u201d she pouted, stroking up and over his shoulder.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI was invited to abstain from attendance,\u201d he said matter-of-factly, ignoring her proximity and continuing to eat.<\/p>\n<p>She began threading her fingers through his hair, caressing his ear with a finger. Her other hand was fondling his shirt studs.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBut you\u2019re here now, so can I expect another night like the last one?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Her hands stilled, and her face was carefully blank. \u201cOh,\u201d she said carefully. \u201cI&nbsp;\u2026 thought&nbsp;\u2026&nbsp;\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe discussed this. No more.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She paused. \u201cYou were serious?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes, Yvette, I was serious.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She looked around, her face a little flushed. \u201cBut\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He sliced the air with his hand. \u201cNo more,\u201d he repeated, then pointed at her sternly. \u201cI told you why as kindly as possible and in private so that I would not embarrass you. You may embarrass yourself all you wish, but you will <em>not<\/em> embarrass me, particularly when I am <em>Velvet\u2019s<\/em> guest.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She gasped.<\/p>\n<p>Sebastian groaned.<\/p>\n<p>Emilio looked pointedly down at Yvette\u2019s hands, which were still upon his person.<\/p>\n<p>She stood with a snarl and slapped him. Then she picked up his Scotch and threw it in his face.<\/p>\n<p>Sebastian was snapping his fingers for the bouncers and ma\u00eetre d\u2019 before Emilio could reach for a napkin. Yvette was dragged out kicking and screaming, and the ma\u00eetre d\u2019 whispered that Emilio could refresh himself and change into a complementary tux in one of the hotel bedrooms upstairs.<\/p>\n<p>He almost snorted. Nobody booked rooms at Leo\u2019s for a good night\u2019s sleep.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThank you,\u201d Emilio said graciously, and followed the waiter out. The room was generically lovely. Generically elegant. Generically masculine. The bed was a generically ornate four-poster big enough for four people at once. He was quite sure it had held more than that.<\/p>\n<p>But he stopped and looked at it speculatively. The counterpane was navy. The pillows and shams were white but glittering ice blue in the light. He walked over to it and ran his hand gently over the silk, then lifted the duvet to see white sheets in the finest cotton.<\/p>\n<p><em>I should not be allowed to wear white.<\/em><\/p>\n<p>What he wouldn\u2019t give to dress Victoria in white Egyptian cotton and navy silk.<\/p>\n<p>Emilio was a patient man, but he\u2019d need more than he had to seduce a woman who thought a man blatantly staring down her blouse at her breasts was concerned about a soup stain. And there was still the matter of Se\u00f1ora Sanz. His lip curled.<\/p>\n<p>Sebastian was right, he thought as he took off his coat, tie, and shirt to clean his face and chest in the bathroom sink. He came back into the room to find a tux waiting for him on the bed. There were very few experienced men in the world who\u2019d put up with her for long if all they wanted was sex. And Mormon boys\u2014 Definitely not.<\/p>\n<p>He remembered Sebastian when he\u2019d first abandoned his mission, twenty years old, a virgin, ignorant as the day he was born and scared of his dick\u2019s shadow. No, a boy like the one Sebastian had been then\u2014regardless of religion\u2014would give up before he started.<\/p>\n<p>He stood in front of the mirror and meticulously tied his fresh bow tie, wondering exactly why he <em>liked<\/em> Victoria, especially after she\u2019d thoroughly shredded him in several ways. For reasons that had nothing to do with her beauty, he wanted to be around for the next idiotic, wonderful, straightforward, utterly tactless thing that came out of her mouth, even if he <em>was<\/em> on the receiving end of it. However, to do that and keep his sanity, he would have to customize his expectations of people\u2019s behavior to her. That might take a while.<\/p>\n<p>Victoria\u2019s set was still thirty minutes from beginning when he returned to his table. He had new food, hot, on a table that had been cleaned and reset.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI do love this place,\u201d he murmured.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHow,\u201d Sebastian asked tightly, \u201cdid you end up on her guest list?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDid she not tell you?\u201d Emilio purred with a raised eyebrow, ecstatic about that.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNever mentioned it. Once. In the last three weeks.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou have been bouncing around London, Brussels, and The Hague for the last three weeks.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cTouch\u00e9.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Emilio debated telling him something outrageous, but went with the truth, boring as it was. The boring truth was totally believable. No, <em>probable<\/em>.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cCoincidence. Do you remember I told you I had an interview scheduled at Covarrubias? We ran into each other at the rector\u2019s office. She was leaving. I was coming in. Crash.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOh,\u201d Sebastian said after a second or two. \u201cAnd she didn\u2019t take your head off?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo. She was actually quite gracious.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Sebastian snorted. \u201cNow I know you\u2019re lying.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Emilio sighed. \u201cGracious for <em>her<\/em>. We talked for about an hour. It did not take long for me to grasp how different she is. She mentioned that my technique was perfect.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI do not believe for a minute she said that.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI was flattered until she clarified that in my perfection, I was boring her and she would rather watch a campy dance movie for the sixteenth time than watch me put my cowardice on display. Frederico is her favorite because he is currently the torero most likely to be fatally gored this season.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Sebastian started laughing.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cFurthermore, she somehow managed to deduce that the university\u2019s objection to me was a bit more complicated than the cape.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDon\u2019t tell me you told her.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Emilio sighed and rolled his eyes up to the ceiling. Sebastian laughed even harder. \u201cShe said, \u2018Go you! Old money <em>loves<\/em> to go slumming with new money.\u2019 Of course, she said it in Spanish, so it loses something in the translation, but I doubt the finer points escaped her. I cannot say you exaggerated her disposition.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Sebastian could barely breathe by this time, but Emilio ate calmly until Sebastian could speak again. \u201cAnd&nbsp;\u2026 yet you\u2019re here. After that. Men have dumped her for less than that.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI find her fascinating, hilarious, and utterly delightful,\u201d Emilio said bluntly.<\/p>\n<p>More laughter. \u201cUm&nbsp;\u2026 well&nbsp;\u2026 You may get along with \u00c9tienne just fine, then. He\u2019s just like her. Except he\u2019s married with kids.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Emilio grunted. \u201cHis wife must be very patient.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo, actually, she\u2019s manic-depressive, but she\u2019s got a head for schedules. She manages his life and thinks it\u2019s funny. He manages her mood swings and considers it a privilege to do so.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat is a match made in psychiatric heaven.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cActually, yes it is.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Emilio pursed his lips and looked at Sebastian slowly. \u201cThere must truly be someone for everyone, eh?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDon\u2019t try to convince me you\u2019d stand by her forever and ever, amen. I told you she only dates for marriage.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He shrugged. \u201cI am not <em>averse<\/em> to marriage. I <em>am<\/em> averse to marriage with any woman I have ever fucked, including Miss Mallery, who wants much more than sex.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cShe\u2019s an heiress. What else could she possibly want?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cLove.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Sebastian started.<\/p>\n<p>Emilio nodded. \u201cShe is doing it badly, though, which I told her. In fact, I ended our liaison by giving her the same lecture I give my sisters. I also told her she was too young for me and that I would not have sex with her again.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cShe obviously didn\u2019t believe you.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAnd as much as I pity her, that is none of my concern. I gave her good advice, to which she will listen or not. Dismissing her that way was a kindness.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHm. You\u2019re not as much of an asshole as you used to be.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMy sisters started dating.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWELCOME TO LEO\u2019S!\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Emilio folded his napkin and slunk down in his club chair to relax and watch Dr. Victoria LaMontagne flex and stretch her vocal cords. He was eager to find out how different it would be to hear her tonight with his entire perspective on Velvet\u2014and his mystery woman\u2014so drastically changed.<\/p>\n<p>She came strutting out with the assurance of a woman who knew she was the most beautiful one in the room\u2014any room. Any time. There was a soft gasp that ran through the audience, and Emilio was not unaffected.<\/p>\n<p>Her evening gown was white but dripping with long iridescent beads that glinted ice blue. Emilio glanced at Sebastian. \u201cYou have the same color eyes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cA lot of us do,\u201d Sebastian replied.<\/p>\n<p>When he turned his attention back to the stage, she was looking at him with a smile that reached down and grabbed his\u2014 It was then he saw she\u2019d lifted her skirt only enough to show him one of her ballet-slipper-clad feet\u2014lightly en pointe. Navy. He laughed.<\/p>\n<p>She winked at him, then she dropped her hem and walked away to begin her opening patter.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cEmilio,\u201d Sebastian said thoughtfully, \u201cI\u2019m warning you\u2014\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes, yes. She is vicious. So you\u2019ve said, but it does not apply to me.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOh, because you spent an hour with her?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt was all I needed to get on her guest list and a public reference to our conversation, no? In <em>spite<\/em> of my faux pas regarding Sanz\u2019s wife.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI grew up with her. I know what I\u2019m talking about. That, what she just did? So far as I know, that\u2019s more attention than she paid to the last dozen men she went out with <em>combined<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIf your goal is to frighten me, you are failing.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019m telling you that if you get in too deep with her, she will reach into your chest, take your heart out, and <em>eat it<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Emilio grinned. \u201cI am in love with her already.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Sebastian waved a hand in defeat and relaxed into his chair. \u201cAll right. You know better than I do. Got it. But don\u2019t say I didn\u2019t warn you.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"sectiontop\">IF HE WEREN\u2019T such a cynic, Emilio thought as he almost lay in his chair, lulled into drifting in and out of consciousness, he\u2019d swear he <em>was<\/em> in love with her.<\/p>\n<p><em>It wasn\u2019t an insult. It was a statement of fact.<\/em><\/p>\n<p>But now that he knew a little bit of the real woman, he could hear it in her singing, how very <em>shallow<\/em> it was. No pain. No heartbreak. No depth.<\/p>\n<p>Emilio had never suffered at the hands of a woman or a failed relationship, but his mother was dying, and he figured that gave him a better handle on pain than she had.<\/p>\n<p>She also had no handle on sex. No knowledge. She didn\u2019t understand the words to half the lyrics she sang. It was her <em>skill<\/em> that hid it from her audience. She started in on \u201cPeel Me a Grape\u201d\u2014<\/p>\n<p><em>Hop when I holler, skip when I snap. When I say, \u2018do it,\u2019 jump to it&nbsp;\u2026<\/em><\/p>\n<p>\u2014which amused Emilio to no end because the song reflected the lovely Dr. LaMontagne perfectly, but she wasn\u2019t aware enough of the sexual nuance to put her ego behind it and pile on the subtext. And because it was lighthearted, the audience would rather dance than inspect her music for what wasn\u2019t there.<\/p>\n<p>It was when she got to \u201cPopsicle Toes\u201d\u2014<\/p>\n<p><em>I\u2019d like to feel your warm Brazil and touch your Panama&nbsp;\u2026<\/em><\/p>\n<p>\u2014that he sighed, opened his eyes, and sat up.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat\u2019s wrong with you?\u201d Sebastian groused.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cShe is not there in the music,\u201d he muttered as he picked over his plate for leftover morsels.<\/p>\n<p>Sebastian said nothing for a few seconds. \u201cYou can hear that?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI have <em>spoken<\/em> with her, remember.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDoes this ruin your whole Velvet experience?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes,\u201d Emilio said, \u201cbut it does not matter, because I have <em>spoken<\/em> with her, remember. I doubt she would mind having a male friend who finds her charming, now, would she?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Sebastian slid him a suspicious glance. \u201cFriends.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Emilio tilted his head and gave Sebastian a cocky grin. \u201c\u2018Friends\u2019 is the magic word for women like her.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The set wound down and Victoria thanked the guests, reminding them she had two more sets after the break. But instead of disappearing backstage, she went to the edge of the stage. \u201cEmilio!\u201d she hissed, gesturing for him to come help her down.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI do not believe what I am seeing,\u201d Sebastian breathed as Emilio immediately arose and crossed the smallish dance floor. He reached up to grasp her around her perfectly nipped waist to pick her up and put her gently on her feet in front of him.<\/p>\n<p>With any other woman, Emilio would have let her slide down his front right before he kissed her. But even if he had gone in for a kiss, he would\u2019ve gotten his nose bashed when she immediately bent over to shake out her skirt.<\/p>\n<p>She straightened just as fast and gave him that blinding smile. \u201cThank you!\u201d she said in Spanish, although one of Leo\u2019s house rules was English-only. \u201cI\u2019m so glad you came.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He was about to come right then and there, but he only said, \u201cThank you for inviting me.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWell?\u201d she said expectantly.<\/p>\n<p>Emilio considered her for a second or two, debating what to say. Finally, he dove headfirst into his first mistake. \u201cYou need practice.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Her mouth dropped open.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou\u2019re a lyric mezzo-soprano,\u201d he continued, \u201cbut you\u2019re using your head voice to hit the high notes instead of pulling from your diaphragm. Your vibrato is faint, but I can\u2019t tell if you don\u2019t have one and you\u2019re trying to force it, or if you\u2019re lazy.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cLazy,\u201d she said amiably enough. \u201cNobody cares.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>That was not the response he\u2019d expected. Encouraged, he forged on. \u201cIf that were your only problem, you\u2019d be fine. But it\u2019s not.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWell, what\u2019s my worst problem?\u201d she demanded.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou\u2019re not feeling it,\u201d he said flatly.<\/p>\n<p>Her expression collapsed into confusion. \u201cNot feeling what?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou don\u2019t have a clue what you\u2019re singing. You have no depth. You sound studio-perfect, which makes me suspect you\u2019re lip syncing. There\u2019s nothing of your personality in your inflections or interpretation. No passion. In short, you\u2019re very&nbsp;\u2026 <em>smooth<\/em>. Like a&nbsp;\u2026 <em>Viennese waltz<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She snickered, but plopped her hand on her hip, crooked a finger over her top lip, and stared at the floor. \u201cHm. That is a problem. I need to figure out how to fix that.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He couldn\u2019t have begged for a better opening.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI know exactly how you can fix it,\u201d Emilio said warmly, edging closer to her.<\/p>\n<p>She lifted her head and smiled at him in curiosity, her long false eyelashes fluttering at him just above those ice blue eyes. \u201cHow?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMake love with a man who knows what he\u2019s doing.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Her smile faded and she heaved a great sigh. \u201cNot possible. I\u2019m frigid.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cUh huh,\u201d Emilio drawled, trying not to burst out laughing.<\/p>\n<p>Again the smile. \u201cOh, I\u2019m sure you\u2019d be able to tell, if anybody would.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He shifted just a little bit toward her again. \u201cYes, I would,\u201d he purred, getting closer until her perfect breasts were brushing his lapels because she didn\u2019t budge.<\/p>\n<p>Her smile never faltered, she didn\u2019t blush, and her eyes never strayed. \u201cI\u2019ll get a voice teacher.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou\u2019re not going to be able to put the passion in it by yourself, voice coach or not. The only solution to your problem is experience. You sound innocent. And in a place like this, the juxtaposition is a <em>little<\/em> too surreal.\u201d She blinked. He leaned in and purred, \u201cAnd I\u2019ll bet you thought I didn\u2019t know anything about vocal performance.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She started to laugh, her smile broad, a dimple appearing in her cheek.<\/p>\n<p>Thoroughly elated by her unexpected reaction, he whispered, \u201cSpiked in the neck with your own banderilla, eh, Dr. LaMontagne? How <em>precious<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She clapped her hands over her mouth and nose to muffle her squeal of delighted laughter, her body quaking, her eyes sparkling above her meticulous manicure.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cVelvet!\u201d<\/p>\n<p>It was a harsh whisper, coming from behind the curtain. She turned away from Emilio, and he leaned left a little to blatantly inspect the perfection of her freckled back, exposed from nape to waist. He could barely keep himself from caressing the entire length. Then her beads clinked softly when she swirled back to him. \u201cI have to go,\u201d she said breathlessly. \u201cLeo\u2019s mad at me now.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Emilio was quite sure Leo was mad at her. \u201cWhy?\u201d he asked anyway to keep her for a few seconds longer.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOh, because I invited you, and I\u2019m standing here talking to you.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBetter not keep him waiting then. Don\u2019t want to get you fired.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She swirled away from him again, but cast a broad grin over her shoulder as she scurried off the dance floor. He stepped toward his seat, only to see half the guests staring at him as if he\u2019d grown two heads. Sebastian was slouched in his chair, his face in his palm, shaking his head laboriously.<\/p>\n<p>Emilio just smirked and sauntered to his place. He shifted his trouser legs up with an arrogant flick, shot his cuffs out, sank slowly into the leather chair, propped one ankle on his knee, and signaled for a cigar. It was as he was blowing smoke rings toward the ceiling, he finally spoke.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSo. Taight. What were you saying about my broken heart?\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"excerptchapterhead\">9: THE GOOD OF ALL MY SCHEMING<\/p>\n<p class=\"sectiontop\">VICTORIA SAW EMILIO waiting for her at the back entrance when her night was over and she\u2019d changed into a simple pair of floaty navy shorts and equally floaty white blouse. She didn\u2019t bother to hide her smile. \u201cHola!\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHola,\u201d he said low, offering her his arm.<\/p>\n<p>She took it, ecstatic that her rudeness hadn\u2019t made yet another intelligent and oh, so very clever and interesting man walk away without a backward glance. Then again, he was <em>so<\/em> clever, he\u2019d turned her scathing critique of his bullfighting back on her in a way that made her even happier.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMy driver\u2019s waiting,\u201d he murmured. \u201cMay I give you a ride home?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cLeo\u2019s driver takes me home.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAh, I see. I thought I would offer.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou know what? I\u2019ll tell him to go away.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAll right.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Victoria scurried back up the hallway, into the employee entrance to find\u2014<\/p>\n<p>\u201cVelvet!\u201d someone shouted. \u201cWe got trouble!\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She turned to find the voice. \u201cWhat kind?\u201d she yelled back.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cPaparazzi, front and back. Leo is <em>pissed<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cCrud,\u201d Victoria muttered, then turned and sprinted out to the hall and down toward Emilio. \u201cDon\u2019t open that door!\u201d she cried when he put his hand on the handle. \u201cPaparazzi.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Emilio let it go immediately, but instead of panicking, he strolled toward her and simply said, \u201cPhone?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She pointed down a well-disguised hall opposite the employee\u2019s door, and she stood waiting for him, her hands propped on her hips and her toe tapping the floor impatiently. When he returned, he was still calm and inspecting his cuffs. \u201cWe\u2019ll go out the side door.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThere is no side door.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He smiled slowly at her and there was that&nbsp;\u2026 funny&nbsp;\u2026 thing again. Fluttery. A tickle. She thought she should probably get used to that because she didn\u2019t think it was going away any time soon. \u201cYes, there is,\u201d he said smoothly and offered his arm again. \u201cI,\u201d he said conspiratorially as he led her through a few hallways she\u2019d never been interested enough to explore, \u201cget the blueprints of every establishment I frequent or plan to frequent, and find all possible exits.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Victoria, attempting to calm her racing heart from being almost caught and having her privacy invaded, finally said, \u201cI guess you\u2019d know this stuff, too.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes,\u201d he purred. \u201cI know a lot of things.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cFor your information, I do catch all the sexual things you throw at me.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI doubt that,\u201d he retorted.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIn case you haven\u2019t noticed, I\u2019m <em>beautiful<\/em>. I get it all the time.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She waited with bated breath to find out what he\u2019d say to <em>that<\/em>, and he merely slid her a glance and a smirk. \u201cYou haven\u2019t gotten it the way I\u2019m going to give it to you.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She groaned and jerked away from him. \u201cEmilio! I didn\u2019t invite you here for that. I was hoping we could be friends.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOh? I was under the impression you were hoping I\u2019d fall weeping at your feet to praise your performance. Or drop to my knees in front of you to spout poetry to your beauty.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Victoria clucked. \u201cWell, of <em>course<\/em> I did!\u201d<\/p>\n<p>His eyes narrowed and he leaned toward her a little. \u201cBecause that\u2019s what <em>friends<\/em> do,\u201d he whispered.<\/p>\n<p>He had a point. But still. \u201cHrmph.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He started to laugh, and turned away to continue the trek without her. \u201cCome, Professor,\u201d he called from an increasing distance away from her. \u201cLet\u2019s end the evening, eh? My corrida\u2019s in Zaragoza tomorrow and I assume you have church.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She huffed and scurried after him. \u201cWhy are you being so difficult?\u201d she demanded when she caught up to him.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019m not the difficult one,\u201d he said smoothly as he opened a door to their right, which led to a staircase. He gestured for her to go down.<\/p>\n<p>She did, but huffed all the way down. He <em>was<\/em> difficult. And he <em>did<\/em> think she was beautiful. He <em>had<\/em> to. Everybody did.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cTurn right.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>After a few turns, eventually, they emerged onto a narrow cobbled foot street on the opposite side of the block, from a door in a fa\u00e7ade that looked like every other house on this street.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOh,\u201d she said, surprised. It was quiet, and softly lit by lanterns hanging off the buildings. That was normal for Sevilla. What wasn\u2019t normal was a man in a tux traversing it at three o\u2019clock in the morning with his date. \u201cYou know why I know tauromaquia. How do you know vocal performance?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He shrugged. \u201cStandard humanities class my freshman year in college. I fell in love during the opera section. I used to go quite often, but I haven\u2019t had much time in the last few years.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDo you sing?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He laughed. \u201cNot a note. I am an aficionado.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMusicals too?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He nodded. \u201cI have a large and eclectic music collection, and,\u201d he said, sliding a glance at her, \u201cI am particularly drawn to mezzo-sopranos.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She tsk\u2019d. \u201cHow <em>original<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He gave her a warm smile. \u201cI wanted to hear you sing live <em>because<\/em> you\u2019re a mezzo-soprano.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She smiled at him, pleased and even more fluttery. \u201cMy mother wanted me to study opera.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOh? Why didn\u2019t you?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI <em>did<\/em>, but only to keep her off my back and improve my technique. I never had any intention of pursuing it as a career. Jazz is the only thing I want to sing. For one thing, it\u2019s more forgiving and Frederica von Stade I am not. For another, I find nightclubs like Leo\u2019s to be terribly romantic.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He made note of that. \u201cWhat is it about Leo\u2019s specifically?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe dress code.\u201d She wasn\u2019t sure why she told him that, since it was something she\u2019d always kept to herself, so she didn\u2019t elaborate. She shrugged. \u201cI don\u2019t like the cigarette smoke, though. It might be a hobby, but I don\u2019t want my voice wrecked. Leo has fans to keep it away from me and nobody\u2019s allowed to smoke backstage anyway.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAh. Did you forget your dress?\u201d he asked as they continued to stroll along. He liked to stroll, apparently, when she would have preferred to get where they were going.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOh, it\u2019s not mine,\u201d she answered. \u201cLeo\u2019s dresses me and the other singers. The clothes belong to the club.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He stopped and took her hands, spreading them wide to inspect her. \u201cThere are freckles on your knees,\u201d he observed.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes, and they are very cute.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>His eyebrow rose, but he didn\u2019t answer. She bent over at the waist to see what else he was observing. He nudged the flat end of her ballet shoe with the toe of his dress shoe. \u201cYou don\u2019t dance at all?\u201d he murmured.<\/p>\n<p>She paused. \u201cI&nbsp;\u2026 tried. Took lessons, I mean. Flamenco. I wasn\u2019t very good.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHow long were you taking lessons?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThree years.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAnd&nbsp;\u2026&nbsp;\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She grimaced. \u201cI was still in the beginner class when I was encouraged to consider different artistic pursuits.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He burst out laughing, and pulled her into his arms for a giant hug. She sighed happily, particularly when he laid his big warm hand on the small of her bare back, where her blouse dipped, and stroked upward. She shivered and closed her eyes, propping her chin on his shoulder and pulling him closer.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDo that again,\u201d she breathed.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Her eyes popped open and she pushed him away. \u201cWhy not?\u201d she demanded.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBecause you don\u2019t understand <em>why<\/em> I\u2019m doing it.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes I do, but your arousal is not my problem. Do it again.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDear God,\u201d he groaned and rubbed his forehead. \u201cYou\u2019re going to kill me.\u201d She opened her mouth to protest, but he held up a hand and shook his head. \u201cNot another word.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She snapped her mouth shut, uncertain of his mood. In only a minute or two of walking, they emerged onto a quiet residential street where a large black sedan awaited them. He opened the door for her, then slid in after her. \u201cTell him your address,\u201d Emilio murmured absently, and she obeyed while he patted his pockets down.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat\u2019s quite far away,\u201d he remarked around the cigar he was lighting. \u201cNot in a very good neighborhood, either.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s cute,\u201d she said. \u201cAnd cheap. I am possibly the most frugal woman you\u2019ve ever met.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat would explain the shade seats every Sunday for six months out of every year,\u201d he returned dryly. \u201cAnd the wardrobe. And the manicure. And the custom shoes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She sniffed. \u201cOkay. Possibly not <em>the<\/em> most.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Somehow, and Victoria wasn\u2019t quite sure how it happened, she arrived home curled up next to Emilio, half asleep with her head on his shoulder, and his arm around her. He had a glass of Scotch in his other hand and a cigar between two fingers, but cigars didn\u2019t bother her nearly as much as cigarettes. At this moment, it wasn\u2019t pleasant but it wasn\u2019t unpleasant enough to demand he put it out\u2014especially when she was so <em>comfortable.<\/em><\/p>\n<p>He thanked her for a wonderful evening, then allowed his driver to hand her out of the car and escort her into her building, up three flights to her apartment.<\/p>\n<p>She heaved a disappointed sigh as she undressed for bed.<\/p>\n<p>So.<\/p>\n<p>He was tired of her already.<\/p>\n<p class=\"excerptchapterhead\">10: JUST ANOTHER PLAIN STREET<\/p>\n<p class=\"sectiontop\">TUESDAY MORNING, Emilio strode into his lab only to come face to face with a giant of a man who looked quite familiar roaming around the rooms, picking things up, inspecting Emilio\u2019s notes, and generally acting as if he owned the place. He had wavy red hair past his shoulders, a star tattoo on the left side of his neck, and large gold hoop earrings. He was wearing oxblood leathers, Doc Martens, and a loose white linen peasant shirt. His wrists were also tattooed. The gold filigree ring on his left hand was studded in rubies and so wide it covered his ring finger from knuckle to knuckle.<\/p>\n<p>He had ice blue eyes.<\/p>\n<p>On Emilio\u2019s lab sofa lounged Sebastian, looking put-upon.<\/p>\n<p>He shouldn\u2019t be surprised, but now he was going to have to deal with the male version of Victoria. Without warning, much less preparation.<\/p>\n<p>Oh, joy.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBuenos d\u00edas,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<p>The pirate didn\u2019t look up and didn\u2019t stop what he was doing. \u201cBon jour,\u201d he muttered absently, flipping through Emilio\u2019s current work in progress.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMake yourself at home,\u201d Emilio said caustically in English.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMerci,\u201d the pirate returned vaguely.<\/p>\n<p>Emilio looked at Sebastian who shook his head wearily and rolled his eyes. Either the man hadn\u2019t caught Emilio\u2019s sarcasm or he didn\u2019t care.<\/p>\n<p>Emilio was betting on the latter.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou are here to interview me, I will surmise?\u201d Emilio asked casually as he made himself comfortable in his desk chair, leaning back and clasping his hands behind his head. He thunked his loafer-clad feet on the desktop.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOui,\u201d he said, still absently, leaning closer to the lab table and squinting at what must be some tiny writing. In French-accented English, he said, \u201cI hear you\u2019re dating my sister.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cS\u00ed,\u201d Emilio agreed. \u201cShe, however, is not dating me.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u00c9tienne LaMontagne barked a laugh.<\/p>\n<p>He continued to roam and Emilio continued to watch him in silence, curious as to how he worked. There were notebooks everywhere, and \u00c9tienne flipped through every one of them, then stopped on a project Emilio had begun four weeks ago.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHave you made any of this?\u201d he asked suddenly, his finger tapping the pages.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cLet me see it.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Dutifully, Emilio arose and went to a cabinet, pulling out a beaker full of liquid that looked like antifreeze. He set it in front of \u00c9tienne and leaned on the table to watch.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cGet me some bearings. Gears.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He had those, too, and had been wondering how soon \u00c9tienne would ask for them. Emilio signaled to Sebastian to help him fetch them from the back room. There were trays and trays of bearings in various casings scavenged from mechanics and meticulously cleaned before being submersed in Emilio\u2019s goo. There were even more trays of different types of cog-and-wheel assemblies pulled from clocks, engines, bicycles, and anything else Emilio could think of. He wasn\u2019t an engineer; he was a chemist. But chemicals had to have an application, and Emilio had to find those things they were to be applied to.<\/p>\n<p>\u00c9tienne inspected each casing carefully, took the bearings out, played with them, rolled them in his palm, dumped them in a Petri dish and swirled them around.<\/p>\n<p>There were a lot of \u201chmms\u201d and \u201cuh huhs\u201d and \u201cnuh uhs.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He spoke abruptly again. \u201cCan you thin this out without losing its properties?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOkay. You\u2019re hired. Sebastian.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cPaperwork will be here by Friday,\u201d he intoned. \u201cMachine specs are over there.\u201d He pointed to a cardboard tube three feet long and almost that big around, standing just inside the lab\u2019s front door.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cClear all this off,\u201d \u00c9tienne ordered imperiously, gesturing to Emilio\u2019s largest table, scattered with beakers, test tubes, Bunsen burners, microscopes, and all the regular sorts of items one would expect to find in a chemist\u2019s lab.<\/p>\n<p>Emilio shrugged and obeyed. It wasn\u2019t as if he was doing anything else today.<\/p>\n<p><em>Why do you base your goals on decisions somebody else has to make?<\/em><\/p>\n<p>Or ever.<\/p>\n<p>What did he have to lose by putting his patents and talents to work in commercial ventures that came to him, instead of the other way around?<\/p>\n<p>The plans were rolled out, and \u00c9tienne went into the specifics of what he needed, why, and where. Emilio simply took notes and listened, even though the session was being recorded.<\/p>\n<p>And as they went along, Emilio grew more and more impressed with the man\u2019s genius. LaMontagne knew he was a genius, and he expected Emilio to be one too. \u00c9tienne\u2019s wife, so Emilio gathered, was apparently the impetus for this design, and she, \u00c9tienne said off-handedly, was a visionary. He couldn\u2019t bear to disappoint her by not being able to carry out her vision. And \u00c9tienne had a hard time keeping chemists who could concoct the lubricants, coolants, and catalysts appropriate for the machines he designed to power her buildings.<\/p>\n<p>Thus, Emilio supposed he should be flattered to have earned \u00c9tienne\u2019s approval, but he wasn\u2019t.<\/p>\n<p>Then \u00c9tienne stopped talking and looked up at Emilio expectantly, the same way Victoria had looked at him Saturday night, waiting for compliments he hadn\u2019t given her.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI can have the formula finalized and ready for mass production by next Friday,\u201d Emilio said.<\/p>\n<p>\u00c9tienne\u2019s jaw dropped, and <em>then<\/em> Emilio felt smug. \u201cThat\u2019s it? That\u2019s all you have to say?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat did you expect me to say?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe expects you to tell him what a genius he is,\u201d Sebastian drawled. \u201cPossibly also how pretty he is.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Emilio chuckled. \u201cNo.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u00c9tienne looked almost affronted, but only said, \u201cI haven\u2019t even given you the deadline yet.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Emilio gestured toward Sebastian. \u201cHe said you were behind schedule.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNot <em>that<\/em> behind it. Are you sure you don\u2019t need more time? This cannot fail.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI have been working on the prototype for four weeks, based on the specs you faxed to me. Even if I had not been, this project is not difficult. However, you will have to arrange for mass production.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u00c9tienne studied him closely for a long moment, narrowing his eyes and looking at him suspiciously. \u201cYou\u2019re normal,\u201d he accused.<\/p>\n<p>Sebastian laughed.<\/p>\n<p>Emilio simply nodded.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI didn\u2019t know normal people could do these things. Normal people don\u2019t make the engine of the world run.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Emilio lifted an eyebrow. \u201cAh, but did you not just hire me to make your engine run? It would seem the engine of the world cannot run without me.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u00c9tienne pursed his lips. \u201cTouch\u00e9. I like you.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI cannot reciprocate at the moment.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Suddenly \u00c9tienne laughed.<\/p>\n<p>He actually <em>could<\/em> reciprocate, but Emilio found it oddly refreshing that he could say what he was thinking to both twins without fear of it being taken personally or hurting their feelings or offending them. And, he realized, neither of them could turn off the spigot because they didn\u2019t understand what it was like to take offense.<\/p>\n<p>This was not a changeable character trait, so if Emilio wanted a relationship with either of these people, the onus was on him\u2014the normal one\u2014to do the majority of the work.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDo you have other siblings?\u201d he asked suddenly.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOui. Three older. Two younger.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAre they all like you and Victoria?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo,\u201d he snapped.<\/p>\n<p>Emilio decided not to pursue that. \u201cI will have my attorney peruse the contracts and return them as soon as he can. Now, get out of my lab and do not <em>ever<\/em> come in here without my permission again.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"excerptchapterhead\">11: NOTHING FANCY, NOTHING MUCH<\/p>\n<p class=\"sectiontop\">ON THURSDAY, VICTORIA\u2019S forehead thunked on her desk, her arms and hands dangled uselessly over the floor, and her butt was barely hanging onto the edge of her chair. Her office door opened and she groaned.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019d planned to ask if you\u2019d allow me to buy you lunch, but I see you\u2019re busy divining the meaning of life in the carpet.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cGo away,\u201d she muttered, even though her heart began to race at the sound of his voice and she was suddenly far too happy he was here. \u201cMy life is a wreck.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The door closed. She heard his footsteps on the carpet and the creak of her desk when he propped one hip on the edge. \u201cWe\u2019re friends. Feel free\u2014 What the hell is that?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat what?\u201d she muttered.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat&nbsp;\u2026 <em>thing<\/em>&nbsp;\u2026 on the wall behind you.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOh. A painting of a matador on black velvet.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat does not look like a matador.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s old and the paint\u2019s chipping. My grandma gave it to me.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>There was silence for a full ten seconds. \u201cThat is disgusting.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She snorted in spite of herself.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI can\u2019t look at it anymore. Tell me what\u2019s wrong.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cChing figured out who you were, and the fact that I\u2019m a nightclub singer offends his sense of propriety.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIs anybody else upset about it?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe American faculty who can afford Leo\u2019s already know. Kilgore and his wife are frequent guests.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAh. And Sanz?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSanz expects me to make you go running home to mommy. He wants to protect the university from your filth and evil, so now I\u2019m on \u2018Dragon Watch.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He chuckled. \u201c\u2018Dragon Watch\u2019?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou know. Like suicide watch. He <em>really<\/em> doesn\u2019t like you.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI shouldn\u2019t think so,\u201d he drawled. \u201cOpportunity, remember. Se\u00f1ora Sanz is not known for her fidelity.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOh, I have no doubt about that. I hope you wore a condom because that woman is more promiscuous than you are.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Emilio choked.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI hadn\u2019t actually thought that was possible.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Silence. \u201cAhhhh&nbsp;\u2026&nbsp;\u201d He cleared his throat. \u201cHm. Well. Then. I must say Sanz did warn me about your vicious tongue.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI am only vicious when I\u2019m <em>trying<\/em>,\u201d she told the carpet matter-of-factly. \u201cMost of the time I\u2019m just thoughtless and rude.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhich one was that?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhich one was what?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe crack about the condom and relative promiscuity. Thoughtless or vicious?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat was an expression of my concern for your health.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou were being thought<em>ful<\/em>?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOh, yes. I can do that, be thoughtful. Sometimes. Almost never.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He laughed outright at that.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAnd so?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAnd so what?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHow\u2019s your health?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAh, oh. It\u2019s fine.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSo far.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He snorted. \u201cI can manage to monitor my germs or lack thereof without your help, but thanks for your concern.\u201d She snickered. \u201cIs this the extent of your troubles?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo. My application for tenure has been deferred. Again. It\u2019s just the next step in the \u2018I\u2019m so sorry, Dr. LaMontagne, not this year\u2019 carousel.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSounds familiar,\u201d he said wryly. \u201cWhat was wrong now?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThat lazy student\u2019s lazy government official father came and chewed me out for calling his lazy daughter lazy.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAnd what did you say?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201c\u2018I did not mean to insult her.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cCoward,\u201d he drawled, which made her snort another laugh. \u201cHow could he take offense at that?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBecause then I said, \u2018It was a statement of fact.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He chuckled.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWell, it was! I never insult people on purpose. Almost never. A lot.\u201d She paused and realized she was, indeed, attempting to divine the meaning of life in the patterns on her Persian rug. She sighed. \u201cThen he propositioned me. I told him I don\u2019t date lazy men. That was when he got mad and demanded satisfaction from the administration.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Emilio\u2019s chuckle turned into a genuine laugh. While she liked being able to make him laugh, she didn\u2019t know why it was that funny.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThis is my career we\u2019re talking about! Petty little bastards. And you know what else?\u201d Now she was on a roll, and since Emilio had decided to make himself her audience, she was going to take advantage of it. \u201cLeo suspended me until further notice.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He suddenly stopped laughing. \u201cBecause of me?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes. Funny how my biggest problems are because of you. Not funny ha-ha.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Silence. Then, \u201cShould I remove myself from your life?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo,\u201d she snapped, curling her lip at the floor. \u201cI like you. But more importantly, I haven\u2019t made you want to slap me yet.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSlap you?\u201d he asked with a wary tone of voice.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWith very few exceptions, the longest amount of time I have ever dated any man is about eight hours, spread over three dates, at the end of which the man said, \u2018Get thee to a nunnery,\u2019 and when I informed him that meant \u2018whorehouse,\u2019 he said, \u2018Good. You\u2019ll starve to death before you get any work.\u2019\u201d Emilio started laughing again. \u201cHe thought he was smarter than he really was.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDid you tell him that?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOf course I did. People need to know these things if they want to improve themselves.\u201d She huffed. \u201cI\u2019m <em>beautiful!<\/em> Why does this not count for anything? <em>And<\/em> I\u2019m very smart. A genius. You don\u2019t get that often. Beautiful <em>and<\/em> genius. <em>And<\/em> I can sing. Maybe not to your standards, but better than most people. Also, I am pragmatic. Which is why I stay in this stupid job instead of hanging out my shingle as\u2014 Well, I don\u2019t know what.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Now he was laughing so much he didn\u2019t seem to be able to stop long enough to string a whole sentence together. She went on because she was bursting with troubles. \u201cFurthermore! Speaking of money. I found my latest royalty check yesterday. I get two a year. You know how much? Twenty-three dollars. Four CDs out and I get a measly fifty bucks a year. I\u2019ll bet those are the ones <em>you<\/em> bought since you seem to be my only bona fide fan. You probably buy them mail order out of the back of a <em>Playboy<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>In between laughs, he managed to say, \u201cYou have almost no publicity outside the expatriate community.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOh, there\u2019s a newsflash.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>It was a long time before he calmed enough to speak and he still had to stop to accommodate another bout of laughter. This could get annoying. And she was going to have to sit up soon. Her forehead was starting to hurt and her dangling fingers were getting prickly.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThey would love you if they heard you,\u201d he said finally. Laughed. \u201cBut they can\u2019t hear what\u2019s not on the radio and they can\u2019t buy what they haven\u2019t heard.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She groaned. \u201cHow did you find me?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOne of my banderilleros was listening to one of your CDs and I loved it.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She felt a little fluttery. \u201cOkay, and how did <em>he<\/em> find me?\u201d she asked the carpet.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe\u2019s an American. He heard you at Leo\u2019s.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Her mouth fell open. \u201cNo!\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe doesn\u2019t go there much, even though he can afford it. It\u2019s not his style.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHow in the world did you get an American on your cuadrilla?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI was impressed with his bullfighting, so I offered him the job.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Victoria knew the names of every American\u2014male and female\u2014who\u2019d ever swung a cape in a Spanish bullring, and most of them were dead. \u201cDid Franklin or Fulton get reincarnated when I wasn\u2019t looking?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201c<em>American<\/em> bullfighting,\u201d he drawled with much humor. \u201cHe was a rodeo clown in Texas. That\u2019s where I met him.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She didn\u2019t see that coming. \u201cWhat were you doing in Texas?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cClowning.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Her head snapped up to see him half sitting on her desk, as she had imagined him, but he was dressed in ordinary Levi\u2019s and a plain white tee shirt. His only adornment was a worn braided leather strap around his wrist. His curly black hair was a tidge damp, his jaw had a day\u2019s growth, and he was smiling at her as if she\u2019d just told him the world\u2019s best joke.<\/p>\n<p>He looked at her forehead, blinked, and started to laugh again. She put her hand there to feel the deep ridge the edge of the desk had carved into it. She rubbed at it with a huff.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI spent a year on the Texas rodeo circuit.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Victoria\u2019s mind turned to TV snow. \u201cGreasepaint? Barrels? Floppy clothes?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOh, yes. It was a long time ago, but it made me a far better torero. Some of us do that. It puts a little polish on the art, a little flash in the performance. The Latin American toreros find it an important part of their training and repertoire. I did a corrida in Peru and saw that they had something I didn\u2019t.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cUh, did you have fun?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He laughed. \u201cI did. But I have never worked so hard in a bullring in my life. Three or four times a week, too. Mickey says being a torero is the easiest money he\u2019s ever made.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201c<em>Mickey?<\/em>\u201d she squeaked.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cMiguel Olmos.\u201d He snorted. \u201cWe propagated a rumor he\u2019s Mexican so he wouldn\u2019t have to deal with the publicity, but yes. One of my banderilleros is Mickey O\u2019Neal from Alabama, as Irish as they come, who trained me to be a rodeo clown, and that is how I found Velvet.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He said nothing more, but Victoria relaxed back in her chair with her hands over her mouth, giggling, utterly delighted. He smiled at her giggles, but even that faded until there was silence. That was okay. She liked being silent with Emilio.<\/p>\n<p>In the back seat of his car.<\/p>\n<p>Curled up against him.<\/p>\n<p>He wasn\u2019t tired of her after all.<\/p>\n<p>Yet.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat do you really want to do, Victoria?\u201d he asked after arising and crossing her office to her little fridge. Strangely, she didn\u2019t mind him helping himself, and he tossed her a bottle of orange soda. \u201cBesides making tenure, I mean?\u201d He made himself comfortable in one of her wing chairs across from her desk. \u201cStay at Leo\u2019s the rest of your life? Make more CDs? What?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>That was an excellent question, and her delight waned until she was weary and discouraged again. \u201cI don\u2019t know anymore. Ching gets in my way with his arbitrary rules and regulations and meetings and\u2014 Augh! Kilgore soft-pedals it, but it\u2019s attracting the notice of the administration, which is being lobbied to move my position over to languages and I don\u2019t want them to start considering it. Leo pays me a couple hundred a week and I usually get another hundred in tips, but as you know, he suspended me, so I\u2019m out that money for the next few weeks. You already know what I make in CD sales. It\u2019s just not enough. It\u2019s never enough.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAre you in that much debt?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019m not in debt at all!\u201d she protested. \u201cI\u2019m saving to buy my apartment building.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>His eyebrow rose.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSebastian\u2019s suggestion, because I want to be financially independent. But I have an <em>English<\/em> degree. I couldn\u2019t be smart about that, though, could I? <em>Nooo.<\/em> I could\u2019ve done anything I wanted, but I had to get an <em>English<\/em> degree. Half the reason I\u2019m here is because I can make more money than I can in the US. Not half the reason. Maybe a quarter. An eighth. <em>And<\/em> I just hired a voice teacher, which, at my level, is not cheap.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt appears your primary investment is your wardrobe.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She huffed and mumbled, \u201cStill not in debt.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAdmirable. But I have an idea,\u201d he said thoughtfully. \u201cIt won\u2019t solve all your problems, but perhaps you\u2019ll earn decent residual income.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat,\u201d she muttered morosely.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cLet the paparazzi be your PR firm. Distribution solves itself if there\u2019s enough demand.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Her eyes narrowed at him where he sat as relaxed as if they\u2019d been friends forever, slumped down in the chair, his legs stretched out in front of him and crossed at his ankles.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI\u2019m listening.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThey don\u2019t follow me everywhere I go,\u201d he said matter-of-factly. \u201cAs toreros go, I live a boring life and I make it my business to make sure they stay out of my business.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou are very good at that, I\u2019ve noticed. Except for all your girlfriends. I <em>wonder<\/em> who\u2019d have a vested interest in leaking each and every one of those names to, perhaps, hide the information he <em>doesn\u2019t<\/em> want out.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cGuilty,\u201d he said without a shred of guilt. \u201cBut my selective control of information has its vulnerabilities. The press can find me when I do something out of the ordinary, as perhaps&nbsp;\u2026 stand chest-to-breast in the middle of an exclusive American expatriate club with a singer who goes by the name Velvet who <em>never<\/em> meets anybody, and all the while I\u2019m undressing her with my eyes and she\u2019s allowing me to do so.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes, you were, and no, I wasn\u2019t.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>His eyebrow rose.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHrmph. Okay, maybe I was.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cUh huh. The only way they\u2019d have known I was there is if they got a tip from an employee who then got paid very, very well.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cLeo fired a bunch of people, but I didn\u2019t think that was fair. Any guest could\u2019ve done it, and I can think of six people off the top of my head. They were all there, too.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cA rival for your affections, perhaps?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She nodded sagely. \u201cThat\u2019s very likely.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHow fortunate for me,\u201d he said sarcastically. \u201cI presume it will take six months to learn if your CD sales went up from this attention?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo, three months. I found it yesterday because it was buried in a pile of mail I hadn\u2019t gone through yet.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He cast her a disbelieving glance. \u201cYou have unopened mail that\u2019s three months old?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNine. Possibly eighteen. I was only a third of the way through. A quarter.\u201d She caught his look. \u201cI\u2019m a busy person! And I have more important things to think about. I get to mundane things when I can.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat about your bills?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI manage. Somehow. Not quite sure.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou need a keeper.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She chortled. \u201cI need a <em>wife<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He laughed. \u201cDon\u2019t we all.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI want an assistant,\u201d she grumbled. \u201cBut I don\u2019t get one till I have tenure.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIf your CD sales go up enough, perhaps you can hire an assistant. And they <em>will<\/em> go up if I\u2019m making myself available to the paparazzi, with Velvet on my arm because I am Velvet\u2019s devoted admirer.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNot as much as you were before,\u201d she muttered. He snorted. \u201cThey\u2019d find out who I am. I can\u2019t hide in plain sight the way you do because I\u2019m <em>distinctive<\/em>. They\u2019d make my life even more miserable.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He nodded. \u201cBeing ordinary is my secret weapon.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cLeo would never speak to me again and Dr. Ching would lobby for my dismissal.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBut would it matter if your sales went up?\u201d He shrugged. \u201cDo you have savings to last you three months?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She scowled. \u201cOf course I do. But it won\u2019t work anyway. Not in the long run, I mean, because they\u2019d get bored with us in a week.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He raised a finger. \u201cBut not if there was a hook to our relationship.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Now Victoria was totally confused. \u201cThe hook is Velvet\u2019s real name and life.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNo,\u201d he drawled, \u201cthe hook is that Velvet, the most beautiful woman in Spain\u2014<em>in the world<\/em>, let\u2019s say\u2014is a thirty-two-year-old good Mormon girl who is unmarried, has never been in a long-term relationship with a man, and doesn\u2019t believe in premarital sex.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cSebastian explained all that?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYes. He also said you are socially inept, which is true.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOh, good. Now I don\u2019t have to waste my breath. Did he tell you I eat men\u2019s hearts for breakfast?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cHe did not specify which meal.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDid he tell you I crush their souls for fun?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI find that villainously admirable.\u201d Pleased, she looked at him expectantly. He sighed. \u201cI told him that didn\u2019t apply to me because we\u2019re <em>friends<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She smiled and clapped lightly. \u201cExcellent.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He nodded regally. \u201cOnce they learn this about you and that you are a college professor, they will draw the natural conclusion that because I,\u201d he continued, pressing all ten of his fingers to his chest, \u201cam the <em>antithesis<\/em> of you, I am attempting to make you another one of my conquests. The intrigue then becomes: Can he or can\u2019t he? Will she or won\u2019t she? We make ourselves conspicuous. <em>Everyone<\/em> will know who Velvet is, and that El Draque is her biggest fan. Your CD sales will skyrocket.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Victoria considered. Now, she didn\u2019t know quite what she\u2019d do if she could live off her CD sales, but certainly she would eventually stumble over some interest and pursue that for a while until she tired of it, at which point she would find another.<\/p>\n<p>But Dr. Ching was making her pleasure in teaching vanish, and she hadn\u2019t gone into any depth about the ongoing administrative fight to get her position pulled out of the international business department and over into the languages department.<\/p>\n<p>Leo would never let her come back if she got the paparazzi involved, and she had to admit, she would miss performing. She loved performing, having all eyes on her, being fawned over and complimented. Then again, if her album sales went up, she could perform at other venues.<\/p>\n<p>At some point, she would have to leave Covarrubias University, either because of how much Dr. Ching hated her or because the chair of the languages department was successful in his bid. In the first case, she\u2019d be fired. In the second case, she\u2019d resign.<\/p>\n<p>She really did need a backup plan.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cOkay,\u201d she said slowly, \u201cbut I don\u2019t want to lose my privacy.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cCollateral damage, sorry. I\u2019ll put my people on stalker detail.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>That did relieve her mind, but she chewed on her lip. \u201cYou know, I don\u2019t think this is going to work in the long run. My CD sales might spike, but they\u2019ll drop just as fast. I\u2019m not going to sleep with you, so the longer the intrigue continues without any appreciable gain on your part, they\u2019ll get bored anyway.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWe\u2019ll perpetrate well-timed antics.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWhat about your reputation as a manslut? Your machismo? I mean, you can\u2019t seduce me, so your failure will not go unremarked.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>He scoffed. \u201cNot even a cherry-print frilly apron will stop me getting whatever I want whenever I want.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She nodded slowly and tapped her lips with her finger. \u201cThis is true,\u201d she said absently. Then she sat bolt upright and glared at him. \u201cAnd what if you get tired of me? Everybody gets tired of me eventually.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI won\u2019t get tired of you,\u201d he said, his voice filled with something deep that she was tempted to trust. \u201cI promise.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She took a deep breath, and bit her lip. \u201cYou\u2019ve spent years guarding your privacy very carefully and maintaining your mystique. Why would you give that up for me? Why do you care?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cBecause <em>friends<\/em> don\u2019t write odes to their friends\u2019 beauty when they\u2019re fishing for compliments, and they don\u2019t tell them they performed well when they didn\u2019t. <em>This<\/em> is what friends <em>really<\/em> do.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>She popped to her feet and leaned over the desk to offer him her hand. He reached out and took it.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cIt\u2019s a deal.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"wingding\">\u203b<\/p>\n<div class=\"navblock\">\n<p class=\"leftnavblock\"><a class=\"arrowsmall\" href=\"https:\/\/moriahjovan.com\/talesofdunham\/thebooks\/dunham\/\">\u2190 Book 4<\/a><\/p>\n<p class=\"rightnavblock\"><a class=\"arrowbig\" href=\"https:\/\/moriahjovan.com\/talesofdunham\/thebooks\/weweregods\/\">Book 6  \u2192<\/a><br \/>Sometimes, love just isn\u2019t enough\u2014<br \/>until it\u2019s the only thing you have left.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"date\">20260331<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Tales of Dunham #5LaMontagne #1\u00a92014 Moriah Jovan140,000 words (396 pages) Book 5 in the Dunham universe Buy direct: &nbsp; Amazon Kindle \u2022 paperback Barnes &#038; Noble Nook \u2022 paperback Apple iBooks Google Play Books Kobo eBooks Emilio Bautista is bored with his job as a matador and has a PhD in chemistry he\u2019s not using. [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":18726,"menu_order":25,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"ngg_post_thumbnail":0,"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-3862","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/moriahjovan.com\/talesofdunham\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/3862"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/moriahjovan.com\/talesofdunham\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/moriahjovan.com\/talesofdunham\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/moriahjovan.com\/talesofdunham\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/moriahjovan.com\/talesofdunham\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=3862"}],"version-history":[{"count":174,"href":"https:\/\/moriahjovan.com\/talesofdunham\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/3862\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":25677,"href":"https:\/\/moriahjovan.com\/talesofdunham\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/3862\/revisions\/25677"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/moriahjovan.com\/talesofdunham\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/18726"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/moriahjovan.com\/talesofdunham\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=3862"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}