Delgano: A Dark Contemporary Interracial Romance

“Gosh.” He shivered. “I feel so dirty.”

She swatted his arm. “I want more, Adrían, but I used to be afraid of the things I felt. Even that innocent of a kiss had me in shambles. I was always told that men want a pure wife.”

“Then there’s nothing stopping them from fucking a bag of cocaine.”

She slapped a hand over her mouth and burst out laughing. He laughed with her, although for an initial few seconds, he’d feared he might have offended her after the f-bomb left his mouth.

“What’s more?” he asked. “What scared you about the things you felt?”

She shook her head. “That, I haven’t figured out how to articulate. I just…feel them.”

“Then why did you ‘use to’ be afraid? What changed?”

“That’s a complicated question for reasons I can’t share at the moment.”

Again, he almost kissed her. In fact, he came so close that the muscle in his arm had already tensed, prepared to lean forward.

“Is that the real reason you brought me up here? To try to seduce me with your vulgar cheek kiss?”

“Vulgar?” She faked an exaggerated gasp. “I have no motive, Adrían Delgano. I brought you up here because I didn’t want you to return to being alone any faster than you have to.”

He wouldn’t have been alone based on what time he believed it was, but Hannah seemed to understand. It had to be painfully obvious by now that he wouldn’t trade time with Sayeda for nearly any reason. If his relationship with Sayeda progressed, Hannah would probably never see him again outside of training and assignments. When he was into someone, he was into them.

Interest had never been the issue.

The problem was giving that person something he couldn’t find inside himself. Offering a drink from a dried-up well. Giving them change from an empty wallet.

“Is that what the fortune teller was talking about?” he asked. “When you were talking about your desire to go against tradition?”

She sighed and rolled onto her stomach. “In a way. I want to fall in love. I want passion and intensity. Raw feelings. Lust and intimacy. At the same time, I want him to feel like my home.”

“Is that what love is?”

“In books, at least. But there must be a reason someone wrote it, right?”

After a long stretch of them silently staring at one another, he finally circled back to their original topic.

“Querida, will you at least promise to tell me if these ‘bad men’ show up again?”

She sighed. “How can I not do what you ask when you call me that?”

Solidifying their agreement seemed like a natural segue to head back. Instead, they remained put. Rather than stare at the stars, they continued to face each other.

“Was that kiss your second kiss?” He tapped his cheekbone. “The erotic one you just laid on me.”

Her eyes opened wide. “Erotic?”

“I’m blushing, Sayeda.”

“I know you’re joking, but my face and ears feel like they’re on fire.” She pressed a hand to the side of her face. “But that kiss doesn’t count. It was for scientific experimentation.”

“So?”

“Yes, it was my second kiss. Late bloomer. Sheltered upbringing. Military mother. You’ve probably heard the story before.”

He suspected he’d heard the story recently, from Hannah’s mouth, which would mean that the person Sayeda had been curious about was her father. If that was the case, and he suspected it was, why did Hannah know so much about Sayeda’s upbringing?

“Querida,” he used his thumb to trace the outline of her lips, “what all are you lying to me about? Do you think I can’t tell something’s off?”