“But I’m youremployee. We’re not feasible in the real world.”
The tension on his face persists. “I disagree. To me, we’reveryfeasible.”
“How did Joaquín find out?” I ask, ignoring that statement.
“Maybe by finding you at my house in the morning, since I’ve never let a woman stay there after Nina was born, besides the nannies. Or when I took you to have lunch with the family.”
“Are we that obvious?”
For the first time since the infernal night began, he smiles. “I know I’m very obvious about us. I want you.”
My heart, which was already beating wildly, races even faster. “Does that mean we’re . . . um . . . dating?”
Instead of answering, he gives me a kiss that takes all the air from my lungs.
Yeah, I think we still have a few more chapters of Cinderella’s story.
When we arrive at the apartment, to my surprise, Mrs. Isabel is waiting for us with Nina in her arms.
The anxiety, which had begun to diminish, comes back in full force, but before I have time to die of shame, she passes Nina to her son and hugs me.
I’m so shocked initially that I can hardly breathe. It was the last thing I expected, given how she treated me at that lunch.
After a few seconds, when I realize she doesn’t intend to let me go so quickly, I finally relax.
Then, held in the arms of the older woman, I allow myself to admit how much I’ve missed my mother. Whenever I miss her, I push it to the back of my mind because I know I need to be strong, but now I can’t control it anymore.
The crying that had stopped returns against my will, and the more she strokes my hair and tells me everything will be okay, the more the tears flow.
“Come with me. I’ll make tea for both of us.”
Only then do I realize that Guillermo has left us.
She asks me to tell her what happened, although I know Joaquín must have said something already.
I reveal what I remember, just as I did with her son, and the same disgust I noticed on Guillermo’s face appears on hers.
“This is unacceptable,” she says, indignant. “Did they find out who was behind it?”
“We still don’t have proof, but I’m almost certain it was Kathleen. Only she could get three employees to agree to something so vile,” Guillermo replies.
I didn’t notice he had come back. He comes up behind me and hugs me.
I notice that same unreadable look on Mrs. Isabel’s face, but this time, it only lasts a few seconds before she recovers. “What will you do?”
“It doesn’t surprise me that Kathleen is involved. In fact, she was the first person I thought of from the beginning,” I confess.
“She will be provisionally placed on paid leave until we prove the truth. As soon as everything is cleared up, Joaquín will work with the lawyers to punish the guilty parties.”
“Great. The important thing is to clear Olívia’s name.”
Chapter 40
Olívia is standing with her back to me in the shower—my shower—and the scene feels damn right. The water cascades over her as if it needs to wash away everything she’s been through today. I strip off my shirt, pants, and boxer briefs, and I think she hears me, but she doesn’t turn. When I join her, the hot spray envelops us, trapping us in our own world.
“Let me do this,” I say, taking the soap from her hands and rubbing her back, the delicious curve of her raised buttocks, and her soft thighs. Unable to resist, I bend down and bite one of her cheeks.
When I turn her to face me, what I see takes my breath away.
