Page 16 of Love Above Law

"For here?" she asks.

"To go this time. I called it in a few minutes ago."

"$15.45," she tells me then calls the order to the cook behind her.

I swipe my card through the reader and pay for my meal. Everything in Seattle is pricey, but you can't beat the quality or freshness of the seafood around here. After Candice hands me my order, I head back out into the cold and weave through the sea of people, carrying my food the few blocks back to my apartment.

As I enter the kitchen, I place my keys on the countertop along with the container of food and shuck my coat off, dropping it across the back of the chair. Retrieving a beer from the fridge and a spoon from the dishwasher, I grab my food and take it to the living room. With one person in mind, I pull my phone from my back pocket. Like always I text her first.

Me: Hi.

While I wait, I take the lid off my soup.

Leyna: Hi.

Does she anticipate hearing the phone ping with a text from me as much as I hang on to the silence once I've sent one? I type a reply.

Me: Can I call?

Leyna: Yes.

I don't hesitate. My thumb taps the call icon. Placing the phone to my ear, I wait.

"Hi, Lex." The raspiness in her voice when she says my name travels straight to my cock.

"Hey, beautiful."

"Long day?" she questions.

"I've had worse. Tell me about your day."

She sighs. "The same as yesterday and the day before that. Work, eat, sleep. Nothing exciting to tell." She sounds bummed or maybe even disappointed. I hear water slosh before hearing Leyna softly moan.

I close my eyes. Please don’t tell me she's talking to me from the bathtub. But I have to know. "You in the tub, beautiful?"

I hear the smile in her voice. "Si, Bella, and Alba gave me some bath soap that smells of roses, and a hint of vanilla."

Images of Leyna play through my imagination—the fullness of her tits, her taut nipples peeking from the surface of the bubbles—.

"Lex, you still there?"

Shit. Concentrate on something else.

"Still here," I answer.

She sighs for a second time. "I feel so stuck, Lex. Not that I'm not grateful because I am. Mi hermano and the club have been so good to me. It's just—." Leyna becomes quiet for a moment before she continues. "I want more. I feel so out of place."

I hate that she's feeling uneasy with her situation. We've gotten to know a little about each other over the past few weeks, and Leyna seems to be a strong independent woman. "What is it you want, Leyna?" I'm curious to know the answer.

"I'm not quite sure myself. I miss teaching, that's what I did in Cuba. I was good at it, but without an education I can't do what I love."

I don't know what to tell her. I know the feeling all too well when it comes to needing more out of life and wanting to do what you love, but how do I go about making all those things happen for her? One way or another I'll find a way to give her anything her heart desires. Wanting to get her mind off her worries and my mind off wanting her I change the subject. "Tell me about Cuba. The sights. The sounds. Everything."

"Oh, Lex, Cuba is beautiful. My country is rich with color, culture, food, and music."

I listen to her talk about her homeland, the places and people she has seen in her life. All I've ever heard about are the negatives of Cuba, but to hear Leyna go on about its people and beauty shine another light on her home country. And it only makes me want to know more about her and her passions in life.

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