Island Affair (Keys to Love #1)(14)
“Oh no!” Sara’s eyes widened with surprise, dismay swimming in their depths. “I didn’t think about that.”
“Yeah, me neither.” Luis rolled his shoulders, pushing off his lingering misgivings over the lie now set in motion. “I hedged a bit. Said you were a friend from Miami. We’ll have to be careful and stick with that if we run into any other locals. It’s probably inevitable that word about us being seen together will get back to my family.”
“I totally understand. If we see someone you know, I’ll follow your lead. Listen—” Swiveling in her seat to face him, she placed her cool fingers on his arm below the edge of his T-shirt sleeve. Luis’s skin tingled at her gentle touch.
“I know this is a lot to ask,” she said. “More than a lot. That’s why I’m serious about donating to whatever nonprofit you’d prefer. Just, please, don’t back out on me.”
Luis kept his gaze on the road ahead as he turned onto Atlantic Boulevard, then pulled into an empty parking space in front of the picnic tables on the beach side of the road.
Without even looking at Sara, he could already picture the entreaty in her blue-green eyes. The earnest plea puckering her smooth brow and blanketing her classic features. Back at the airport he hadn’t been able to say no to her. Fat chance of him doing so now. Not with her light citrusy scent teasing him. Urging him to lean closer and drag in a deep whiff of whatever she’d spritzed on her creamy skin.
“I’m not backing out,” he assured her. “Like I said, once I give my word, you can depend on it. On me.”
He cut the truck’s engine.
“Thank you.” Sara’s fingertips lightly brushed his biceps, the soft caress strangely both soothing and tempting. Then she reached down to grab her purse, and he found himself missing her touch.
“Look, I know we’re both worried about keeping things straight. Hence, my notebook.” She tapped her pink pen on the edge of the leather-bound book before dropping both items inside her bag.
“At least Franco bought the idea of me playing tour guide for your family when he noticed you waiting. Me helping out a friend isn’t too farfetched.”
“Somehow that doesn’t surprise me.” Her droll tone had chagrin warming his neck.
“Unfortunately, while the tour guide story might be enough to cover things on your end,” she said, back to business, “we’ll have our work cut out for us convincing my family. We really need to get started on our meet-cute story.”
“Our what?”
Pushing open the passenger door, she slid out onto the asphalt, banging her elbow when she lost her footing as she landed. “Wow, I didn’t realize that would be such a far drop.”
“Try using the running board to step down next time,” he suggested. “And for the record, I don’t normally do cute.”
“Meet-cute, tough guy. It’s a rom-com term,” she explained. Like that made any sense to him. “You know, when the hero and heroine meet for the first time. Sparks fly. Attraction shimmers in the air. But there’s some problem getting in their way.”
Hell, if you asked him, they could check all those boxes.
Each time she touched him sparks flew.
Her lush lips had him craving a sweet sample like an infatuated teen, definitely attraction.
As for a problem, the big fat lie they were gearing up to tell everyone certainly qualified.
But in the short time he’d spent with Sara, her engaging smile, palpable frustration with her family, the joy on her face when she talked about her career . . . who was he kidding? The whole package that made up Sara Vance was one he’d like to keep unwrapping to discover what other surprises lay hidden inside.
If nothing else, spending time getting to know her sure beat moping around his place feeling sorry for himself. Dodging memories he didn’t want to face. Ignoring a truth that stung worse than snorkeling through a school of jellyfish.
It just might knock him out of the rut Carlos had baldly accused him of living in. Not that Luis would admit his brother was right. It wasn’t a rut, more like a slight hitch. There’d be no living with Carlos and his crowing if Luis allowed him even an inkling of an “I told you so.”
Bottom line, Sara might think he was doing her a favor. In reality, she was saving him from himself.
“Come on, Vinny D., you and I have some homework to get done if you plan to help me save the day.” With a playful wink, Sara pushed the door closed, then traipsed through the sandy ground toward the concrete picnic table under a nearby cabana.
Vinny D. to the rescue sounded a hell of a lot better than Saint Navarro. Especially since Luis found himself entertaining more than a few unsaintly thoughts when it came to Sara.
Oh, he might have reservations about this zany plan, but he couldn’t think of a single reservation about spending more time in Sara’s company.
Chapter 4
Sara pulled the supersize sandwiches from the brown paper bag and set them on the cement table. Good Lord, everything about Luis Navarro seemed extra large—his truck, his muscles, his nice-guy streak. Even the sandwiches he’d bought them for lunch.
She snuck a quick look at the handsome firefighter from under her lashes.
Luis sat across from her, patiently waiting while she opened her sandwich and smoothed out the butcher paper wrapping for a makeshift place setting. If he felt any of the same anticipation zinging inside her over their plan, he hid it well under his steely, calm fa?ade.