Felipe was silhouetted in the doorway.
‘Rebecca!’ The urgency in his voice sent a flare of warmth through her. ‘Are you—?’ He darted inside, but before he could finish his sentence, someone ran behind him and gave him a sharp shove. He stumbled, almost colliding into her, his breathing harsh and laboured as if he’d been running at full pelt for a while. The door slammed behind him and once again the key was turned in the lock.
‘You… okay?’ he asked, between breaths, frantic hands reaching for her and coming to rest on her shoulders. He squeezed them. ‘Are you hurt?’
‘I’m not hurt,’ she said, her heart thumping at his sudden proximity as she breathed in the familiar scent that was Felipe.
‘Are you sure?’ His hand slid up from her shoulders to cup her face. ‘Katerina told me you were locked in. I didn’t knowwhat to think. I thought maybe something had fallen on you and trapped you.’
‘No. Nothing more than your bratty cousin shutting me in.’
‘Thank God.’ He took several long, slow breaths. ‘Feelmy heart. I ran all the way here. I was so scared.’ He took one of her hands and clasped it to his chest. Not only could she feel the rapid, urgent beat of his heart but also the hectic rise and fall of his chest. She leaned into him, magnetised by his nearness and soothed by the presence. In the darkness she dared to hope and allowed herself to smile. Wait until she got hold of Cristina! She laid her face against his chest and wrapped her arms around him, happy just to be, just to stand with him. In response, he pulled her closer, his arms around her, and she felt him drop a kiss on the top of her head. They stood there in the dark, pressed together and holding on to one another like a shipwrecked pair clinging to flotsam. Unwilling to break the silence, Rebecca held on as tightly as she could, cherishing the feel of him, anchoring him to her and her to him. Minutes passed, then the phone in his hand beeped, the brief light flashing in the dark, breaking the spell.
‘At least you’ve got a phone. The little minx took mine when she locked me in.’
Felipe began to laugh and then he held up his phone to show her the text from Cristina.
Candles and food on the tool shelf. We’re not letting you out until you can play nicely. PS Ana made me put that last bit. If it were me, I wouldn’t let you out for a week.
Switching on the torch on his phone, Felipe scanned the room, the light catching the rug and cushion pile on the floor. ‘Glad to see they’ve made us comfortable.’
‘You’re taking this all very well,’ said Rebecca as he found the candles and matches and began to light them one by one.
‘I’m locked in with you. Doesn’t seem so bad to me.’ The simple words thudded into her heart like arrows.
‘It isn’t,’ she said in a soft voice.
The girls had left no tealight in the hotel unturned. Felipe lit them one by one, handing her votive glass after glass, leaving her to arrange them around the little seating oasis.
‘Take a seat. Would you like a glass of wine?’
She sat down on one of the cushions and heard the pop of a cork and the sound of wine being poured.
‘There’s even a tray of food. Looks like Ana’s work. I’m not sure how long they’re planning to keep us locked in here.’
He placed the glasses down on the floor within arm’s reach.
‘Probably until I can make you see sense,’ said Rebecca, a frisson of nerves crackling over her skin because now she was going to lay it all bare for him.
‘What makes you think I need to see sense?’ He came to sit down next to her, his beautiful face lit by the glow of candlelight, and gave her his gorgeous smile, the one that spread across his whole face and made her glow inside. This was what love felt like, when another person’s smile was enough to make everything feel all right. ‘I can see quite clearly, and I have everything I need in front of me.’
Her insides contracted with pleasure and longing. Howhad she ever imagined she was in love with Will? Itwas like comparing pebbles to pearls. Felipe had the sort of special lustre that came from truly caring about those around him.
‘And what does that look like, Felipe? Because I have something to tell you.’
‘Won’t you let me tell you first?’
‘You don’t know what I’m going to say.’
‘Are we going to have to toss a coin to agree who goes first?’ asked Felipe with a rumble of laughter in his voice, taking her hand.
‘No,’ said Rebecca with a laugh. ‘Because I’m going first.’
‘You never give me an inch, do you?’
‘Hmm,’ snorted Rebecca. ‘You seem to get your own way often enough. But not this time. You have to listen.’
‘I’m listening.
