Page 12 of Love Off Course

Camilo

T he moment the electricity comes back on, everyone is back to laughing and talking, but not Sheridan.

Terror still swims in her pretty brown eyes.

I drain my Corralejo and set my glass down, relishing in the burn down my throat.

My stomach swims with heat from the liquor.

We’re trapped in Eddie’s, so there’s not much to do but drink, talk, and eat.

“Want to go find someplace quiet?” Ramona asks, clutching my arm. “I’ve missed you.”

I gently pluck my arm from her grip. “It was good catching up, but we’re done with all that.”

Her nostrils flare as heat burns her cheeks bright red. “All that? CZ, I gave you years of my life. I don’t deserve to be lumped into an ‘all that’ category.”

Guilt punches me in the gut and Carson shakes his head at me.

I’m being a dick. Fuck. I scrub my palm over my face and sigh.

“Sorry, Ramona. You’re right. But it doesn’t change the fact that I’m not interested in more.

It’s not fair to you to come seek you out whenever I’m in town.

You deserve someone who will be there all the time for you.

Someone who can commit. I’m just not that guy. ”

Araceli glowers at me, but I ignore my moody cousin as I stand and head over to where Sheridan is sitting.

My dumbass cousins have taken up residence beside her and have been chatting her ear off all night.

I hate that she smiles easier for them than me.

I’m going to blame the copious amounts of tequila she’s been consuming on her smiles for them.

She’s not smiling now, though.

Her lips are pressed together as she nervously eyes the door that whines against the high winds. Eduardo has a radio on his and Mamá ’s table and they’ve been giving us updates on Rodrigo’s path. We’re right in the direct line of it.

Lawton and Damian are arguing at the jukebox.

They end up in the girliest shoving match that ends up making Lawton fall on his ass.

He yanks off the covering of the old piano, in an effort to break his fall, sending dust flying up in a cloud.

Damian apologizes and pulls him up. They hug and all is well in their world again before they finally select a song.

As soon as the familiar beat starts playing, I know just the way to loosen Sheridan up.

I saunter over to her, giving her my best flirty smile, moving my hips to the song.

Her nerves are chased off when she rolls her eyes.

She’s fighting a smile as Van Morrison starts singing “Brown Eyed Girl.” I sing along with Morrison and take her hands, pulling her up.

Damian squeals in delight, making everyone laugh.

My hands find her sexy hips and she wraps her arms around my neck.

She’s loose from the liquor and I love it.

Our hips move in tandem with the song. Fuck, she’s hot as hell.

The smile on her pouty lips will be my undoing.

I slide my hands to her ass, pulling her close to me.

We dance a little too dirtily considering the old folks are watching, but we don’t care.

I love that she’s not so stiff. That she’s forgetting about the hurricane and letting me have my wicked way with her.

“How are you still single?” I ask. “Were all the Los Angeles dudes beating down your door so you had to make your great escape?”

She rolls her eyes at my teasing. “I told you I had to go to a wedding. And my man is there.”

I’d be jealous if I believed her, but I don’t.

“Your man, huh? Is this why your heart is unavailable?”

“Yeah.” She sighs. “His name is David. He’s my dad’s best friend. We’re practically a thing.”

Practically.

“Define practically,” I say slowly.

“We’ve gone on a few dates and kissed.” Her lips turn into a frown. “And done other things. I thought we could spend the week of the wedding growing closer. So he’d realize we need to be official.”

“So you’re telling me you have to convince this guy to be with you?” What a douchebag.

“You make it sound terrible,” she grumbles. “He’s a busy man.”

And fucking stupid to make this brilliant, feisty, hot-ass woman chase him. If he’s her father’s best friend, he’s probably old. He doesn’t deserve someone like Sher.

“You’re a good dancer,” I observe, leaning in so I can smell the tequila on her sweet lips. I’m all too happy to change the subject from that worthless asshole.

“I’m good at a lot of things. You just haven’t known me long enough to see them all.”

Cocky, this woman.

I fucking love it.

“What kinds of things?” I purr, brushing my lips against hers. “We’ve already established you’re a great kisser, though I’d be fine with you reminding me just how good you are at it.”

She laughs, the sound going straight to my cock that’s pressed against her tight body. “Just fine with it, huh?”

“Take it or leave it,” I lie.

“You’re such an asshole,” she says with a grin before pressing her lips to mine.

I groan against her mouth, happy as hell to kiss her again. I’m just squeezing her nice ass when the electricity goes out again. She stiffens, her body seeming to deflate along with the music. We break our kiss and she clings to me. A tremble rattles through her.

“Hey,” I murmur, rubbing circles on her back. “It’s just the power. Everything’s fine.”

“Are we going to die?” Her voice is small and fucking terrified.

“No, little bee, we’re not going to die.”

“How can you be so sure?” she demands.

“I can’t be,” I admit. “But I do know we’ve weathered a ton of hurricanes and Hotel Zaragoza is still standing. Rodrigo is just another asshole passing through.” I kiss the top of her head. “I’ll keep you safe.”

She relaxes in my arms and it does something to me.

It makes me want to try really damn hard to prove to her that I can save her.

That I can do a lot of things. For her. It’s weird as fuck not only being instantly attracted to someone, who is in every sense my opposite, but also wanting to protect her like she’s mine.

She’s not mine.

But she could be.

I’m so startled by that thought, I let her pull away from me. It’s dark, but people are quickly lighting candles, illuminating the restaurant. When I find her among the people, she’s standing in front of the piano. She sits down at it, her body visibly trembling.

“Go, sexy Mexi,” Damian hisses, handing me a candle.

I roll my eyes at him, but make my way over to her. Once I set the candle on top of the piano, I sit beside her.

“My mom loved playing piano,” she reveals, her voice a whisper. “She taught me to play. Made me promise to play after she died.”

“Did you?” My fingers stroke up her spine. The urge to offer her comfort is overwhelming.

“I did.” She presses down on the keys softly. “I miss her.”

The pain in her voice is familiar. I recognize that same pain when I think about my dad stuck in a nursing home, a shell of the strong man he once was. I’m still thinking about his mischievous grin when I start to recognize the beginning of a familiar song.

She plays the intro to “Rocket Man” by Elton John damn near flawlessly.

I’m not surprised considering she’s an apparent perfectionist in everything she does.

But this…this isn’t mastery of a skill, it’s emotions and feeling bleeding into the music she’s playing.

As soon as the others recognize it, they start singing along.

But it’s Estefania’s voice that carries above the rest. Damn that girl can sing.

Frowning, Sheridan stops to look at me in shock, as though she’s just realizing not only does she has an audience, but they’re participating as well.

“Don’t stop, Sherrie,” Carson calls out. “You were just getting to the good part.”

She laughs—oh, such a sweet sound—and then bangs down harder on the keys as she launches into the chorus of the song. I sing along with my family and friends—new and old. There’s a hurricane on top of us, and we’re in our little world.

Here.

Right here.

Not up there.

For once, I’m glad to be here at home rather than coasting along the skies. I feel tethered in a strange way.

She plays several more Elton John songs, much to my abuela ’s glee. When I can tell she’s done being the center of attention, I bring my mouth to her ear.

“Want to take a walk?”

She laughs. “There’s a hurricane outside.”

“Guess we’ll have to take a walk inside then.”

“It won’t be a very fun walk because it’s so short,” she sasses.

I nip at her earlobe. “The destination is all that matters. And I can assure you, Sher, there is nothing short about it when we get there.”

“Oh, you dog,” she breathes.

“And look at you pretending to be scandalized, pretty girl. Let’s get out of here.”

Damian has Estefania singing some of her songs now. Sheridan tries to stay, but I tug her along while we have the distraction. The hallway is dark without the glow of the candles and I have to blindly make my way toward Eduardo’s office. I pull Sheridan into the room and shut the door.

“This has been a long time coming,” I murmur before capturing her mouth with mine.

She moans as she kisses me back, her fingers grabbing blindly at my shirt. “A long time, huh? All forty-eight hours give or take?”

“Every single long one of them.” I pull her sweater up over her head. “This has to go. Fuck, I wish I could see you right now.”

“If you borrowed some of Damian’s dick glitter, maybe we’d have a magical moment in the dark here.”

I growl as I fumble for her bra. She squeals when I tug it away and then moans when my mouth finds her neck. I caress her perfect tits, thumbing the pert nipples, as I suck a mark on her pretty neck. “Feels pretty magical already without stupid glitter shit.”

She laughs. “It’d feel really magical if your shirt were gone.”

“Your wish is my command,” I tease, reaching behind me at my neck to pull my shirt off my head. It gets tossed away and then I press my naked chest against hers as we kiss.

It would be great to have privacy and a bed right about now.

I could spend hours worshiping this woman.

I don’t have hours, though, I have right now.

We pull apart, both eager for this moment, as we start yanking off our jeans. Sure, the tequila has helped get us here, but we’re both incredibly aware of how good this is going to feel.

“I need you,” she whimpers once we’re both naked and my dick is rubbing against her stomach.

“You don’t get the magical non-glitter dick yet, Sher,” I say with a chuckle. “I haven’t even licked your sweet pussy yet.”

She chokes at my words. “W-What? I mean…Camilo, you don’t—oh!”

I’m kneeling, wrenching her leg up over my shoulder so I can bury my face in her heat.

My breath on her pussy has her trembling and gripping my hair to hold on.

I press a kiss to her soft mound before licking along her slit.

She tastes sweet and salty from sweat. I’m ravenous for her.

Using my thumb, I pull her pussy lip to the side to seek her clit.

I know the moment I’ve found it because she cries out in shock.

Lazily, I circle the throbbing bundle of nerves until her fingers are gripping my hair so tight I think she might pull hunks out.

I laugh before sucking her clit into my mouth.

I suck on it until she’s whimpering. While I wait for her orgasm to hit any second from now, I slide a finger inside her body.

So slick and ready for me. It makes my cock jolt in anticipation.

“Camilo,” she whimpers. “I…oh, God…”

I smile but am relentless in my pleasuring her.

They don’t call me la estrella for nothing.

I’m going to make this girl see stars. Plenty of them.

The moment she explodes, a breathy shocked sound escapes her.

Her body trembles wildly as her orgasm takes over.

I continue my licking and teasing until she comes down from her high.

“That was…wow.” She’s breathing heavily. “Camilo…”

I rise to my feet and grip her thighs beneath her ass, lifting her and pushing her against the door. My dick rubs against her as I kiss her. I want her to taste how fucking good she is. She moans, tightening her thighs around my waist.

“So needy,” I tease. I grip my dick and slide along her wet body. “You want me. Admit it, little bee.”

“Yes, asshole, I want you. Now fuck me like it’s the only time you’ll get to.”

Something in her words sets me off. They sound final.

Like she believes this is the only time I’ll fuck her.

I have news for the little princess, we’re only getting started.

My dick slides against her opening and her pussy sucks me in like I’m her favorite drink.

I groan because she’s so fucking tight and feels amazing.

Too amazing.

“Fuck. I need to grab the condom.”

“I’m clean. Are you?”

“Yeah,” I promise. It’s true. I haven’t been laid since the last time I went to the doctor. “Am I going to get you pregnant?”

She laughs, her pussy clenching around my dick. “Unless you have miracle sperm that can make it through the shot.”

Smartass.

I nip at her lip and thrust my hips hard.

Our silliness fades as we kiss desperately.

I fuck into her body like it’s the only time.

What if it is? What if the hurricane ends things for us?

That’s a fucking dreadful thought, but one that gets me spurred to life.

I grind and thrust into her tight, warm body while worshiping kisses all over her pouty mouth and jaw and neck.

She claws at my hair and shoulders. Abuses my lower back with her heels as she uses me as leverage to meet me thrust for thrust.

I want to spend hours doing this with her.

Not minutes.

Hours. Days. Forever.

Fuck, she makes me crazy. Good kind of crazy. I’m so fucked with her.

“I’m not going to last, abejita ,” I warn, my body trembling with the need to come. I manage to get my hand between us to rub at her swollen clit, eager to give her one last orgasm before I blow my load.

Her body is incredibly responsive. With a few expertly rubbed movements, she gives in to another orgasm.

The moment I feel her slick cunt squeezing around my dick, I lose it.

My nuts seize up and I groan as I come. Hot cum jets inside this perfect woman and it feels right.

I never minded condoms, but now I know I’ll never want to use them so long as I’m inside Sheridan.

I wish I could see her.

It’s dark and feeling her is so fucking good, but I would love to see her fierce brown eyes and pouty lips.

My dick is softening, but I don’t put her down.

Just kiss her softly in the dark. It’s quiet now that we’re not fucking like animals.

The storm is loud outside and the people in the restaurant are too.

“It won’t be the last time,” I murmur against her mouth. “That’s a promise, little bee.”