The goodbye was bittersweet. Ronaldo and Esmerelda insisted on dropping us off at the airport. I asked about the rental car, but Florencio said he had it taken care of.

Ronaldo and Florencio hugged each other tight and Esmerelda leaned in to kiss me, but I accidentally turned my head and our lips smushed together.

She pulled back abruptly. "You have soft lips. Florencio, she has nice lips!"

Florencio's face flushed. "I know." I'd like to think it was the heat that made him have that reaction.

After some more goodbyes, we entered the airport.

The vacation was incredibly fun. We went zip lining, went to a zoo, and basically did all the touristy things. Florencio watched me enjoy everything and he sat back, commenting on things as we went.

Florencio handed me my ticket when we sat in the appropriate area for our gate.

Puebla, Mexico, the ticket read.

I frowned. "Florencio, am I ever going home?"

He glanced up at me from his phone. "Are you worried, honey? Think I'm kidnapping you?"

I shook my head hurriedly. "No, but why aren't we going home?"

"Just one last stop," he muttered. "I need to see someone." He dragged me from my chair to be closer to him. I was practically on his lap when he pushed his face into my chest. "Wake me up when it's time to board."

See who?

My mood dropped instantly.

-

When we landed in Puebla, I was slow this time. Florencio climbed over me to get our luggage. Usually I'd blush and stare at his hard stomach that was exposed when he lifted his arms up, but I didn't care.

I dragged my luggage behind me like a child. Florencio led us to another rental car and the experience was similar to when we were in Acapulco.

I wanted desperately to ask what we were doing here and who we were seeing, but I was scared for the answer.

I was grateful when my mom texted me, distracting me from my feelings, asking me where I was.

Mom: it's been two weeks. When are you coming back?

Parker: probably just another day. I'll see you tomorrow at the least.

It was only an hour flight from Acapulco to Puebla. I checked the time. Ten in the morning.

Deciding to try and not sulk, I looked out the car window. The city was beautiful. Bright, excellent architecture. There was so much culture and life here. I felt ungrateful that I was too bummed to enjoy it.

All because of a boy.

I looked at Florencio and he seemed... stressed. He was biting his lip and my hand he was holding was tight.

We stopped in front of an apartment building.

Florencio asked me if I wanted to come with him.

"No," I answered. I didn't want to see who he was meeting. I preferred to be left in the dark this time.

His jaw locked. "Don't talk to anyone while I'm gone."

My eyebrows scrunched up. "Excuse me?"

"Well, you're not gonna understand them," he mused.

I pouted. "Just hurry up."

He left the car and locked the door with the keys. I made a note to not open the door and set off the car alarm.

I sat for maybe ten minutes, and almost fell asleep, when someone knocked on the window. I thought it was Florencio but it was a random man.

The window was open enough at the top for him to slip his hand in. I watched his hands carefully that were pressed against the door.

"Is this your first time here?" He asked. He was cute, I guess, but I wasn't taking my chances with some random guy.

"No," I lied. "I live here with my boyfriend." I sounded unsure. I cursed at myself.

The man grinned. "Where's that boyfriend?"

"He's grabbing some money from our apartment." I wasn't a good liar. I visibly started shaking, my voice quivered.

"I think you're lying." His hand drifted to the open window slit.

"Screw off!" I grabbed the pen that was in the cup holder and stabbed his hand.

He pulled back. "What the hell, bitch?" He slammed his fist down on the window so hard, I feared it would crack. One last glance and he was gone. I didn't bother to look where he was going. I just wanted Florencio back here. He would've known what to do, say.

After some waiting and being scared of every noise, when the doors unlocked, I threw myself over the console and opened Florencio's door.

He got in and slammed the door shut.

"What happened?" His eyes darted all over my face.

"N-nothing. I just—where were you?" He knew I was lying.

"I can't fix what's wrong if you don't tell me," he said hardly.

Maybe I was overthinking this. He was just a creepy guy who saw a girl alone.

It took me a minute to say something. "Who were you seeing?"

"A family member." He started the car. A mom, dad? Was he inviting me to meet his parents?

All this thinking, my brain was going to explode. "Did you want me to go with you?"

He drove faster than I was comfortable with. "Doesn't matter."

"Who was it?" I snapped. I wasn't sure where my sudden anger was coming from.

He rubbed his jaw. "Tell me about your dad."

That stumped. What did my dad have to do with this? I talked anyways. "I don't know anything about him. He's dead." I never had a chance to mourn over him like my mom did.

"How'd he die?" He pried.

"Um, he was out with I don't know who, and the apartment room he was in caught on fire." The details were blurry and not even the police knew what really happened.

His face was unsettling.

"I lied to your mom," he said quietly. "My dad was the drunk driver."

My heart dropped to my stomach. I moved to touch him, to comfort him, but he seemed too tense and I decided against it.

"It's okay. It happened four years ago. I'm fine now." He had said he was fine the first time he mentioned his parents. He didn't seem like it.

I was about to drop our conversation when I remembered what I originally asked him.

"You changed the subject," I said in disbelief. My anger was boiling over.

He laughed and reached over to pinch my cheek. I yelped. It hurt.

"Who did you see?" I put more force into my voice. Family member wasn't good enough for me. He knew about my dad, I at least deserved to know who he saw.

"My mom." He parked the car by a busy sidewalk. "I'm done talking about it."

Mom!? I was dumbfounded. Why only see her for a few minutes? Did he come here often? Was this his hometown?

I didn't even notice he got out of the car until he opened my door.

"I'm serious, Parker. Don't ask me about it." He no longer looked stress just sad now.

I complied with reluctance and got out of the car. It felt weird to be so close to his mom. I wondered if Florencio looked like her or his dad. Dad. I wondered if he was in the picture. Why even get in contact with his birth parents? I decided to let go of this, for now.

We walked around the big town. It was beautiful.

"What are we doing?" We were moving aimlessly.

"I'm booking a hotel," he replied, looking at his phone.

"You can't do that in the car?"

He looked at me. "I thought you'd want to see the city. Our flight leaves at seven in the morning tomorrow."

I huffed. It was thoughtful but... "There's no planes going home right now?"

"I like nonstop flights," he muttered, clicking more things on the screen.

Sighing, I looked at the beautiful building again. Many people stood in front of the large building, getting their picture taken. It was amazing. I had never been to a place with so much history.

A man tapped Florencio's shoulder.

"Déjame tomar tu foto," he said, a wide smile on his face. I looked at his name tag.

Jesús, it read.

"Do you want a picture?" Florencio asked, although he was already pulling me to his side.

No, I really didn't. My hair was flat and my face was bare. I wore a plain shirt and jeans.

I just smiled though, and did the pose the guy asked. One hand on Florencio's chest, the other on his shoulder. I felt weird touching him, which didn't make sense because he's touched me in the most inappropriate places.

"Kiss!" The man encouraged us.

I offered my mouth to Florencio and he kissed me gently. It felt oddly intimate, just standing there like that.

"¿Es tu esposa?" The man asked Florencio.

"Say yes," Florencio murmured against my lips, biting me.

I pulled away, shocked at the sting. "Yeah," I said quickly, embarrassed.

Esposa. Esposa. Esposa.

It sounded like spouse.

I pinched Florencio's shoulder. "Now we're married?"

He pressed his lips to my forehead. "Don't cry.

I wasn't proud of my breakdowns at Esmerelda and Ronaldo's wedding, but I felt better afterwords.

Jesús said something to Florencio and he smiled.

"Perfecto," Florencio told him.

"What'd he say?" I asked.

"Thirty percent off pictures for married couples," he explained. He pulled me to the small kiosk.

I watched like a chid at a candy shop through the window where our pictures were being printed.

The woman at the printer handed me our photos. We looked happy.

Holy crap, were my eyes burning? My throat felt clogged and my chest hitched. I hated crying, I rarely did it and when it happened, it was the worst feeling ever.

"Look how nice they are," I choked. Florencio probably thought I was a big baby. I'd like to think he thought of me as a woman who kept to herself, was private. This whole crying fiasco was ruining my image.

Florencio took us to a more secluded area of the touristy place in between two buildings.

"Honey," he whispered, touching my now puffy face. "Don't cry, baby." His nicknames were going straight to my heart. "Would it make you feel better if we were a divorced couple?" He joked.

"No!" I nearly shouted. My voice bounced off the walls. "I'm-I'm just tired. It's been a long trip. I've never been away from home this long." That wasn't true. Florencio was the source of my out of control emotions. I needed to tell him this. God, I'd spill to him about my dead dad, but I won't talk about myself.

His eyes held a heavy feeling. "If it makes you feel better, we can leave now."

"But the plane tickets for tomorrow—"

"I don't care," he cut me off with a sigh. "If you want to leave that's it."

I shook my head no.

"Then why are you crying?"

Because you make me feel.

"Kiss me," I demanded. I needed the good feeling he put in my heart.

I didn't wait for his response. I twisted my fingers into his shirt and kissed him. Florencio took control and shoved me against the brick wall.

The kiss was hot and wet. Slow. His hands dug into my sides sensually. The feeling of his hard body against mine, his tongue in my mouth, I felt dizzy. My knees wobbled. I rubbed my hands over his body, my nails digging into him. I whimpered when he bit my lip hard and soothed the pain with his tongue. A feeling settled in my stomach and threatened to go lower. My hips moved slightly on their own. Florencio groaned.

He pulled away from me, breathing unevenly. "I can't think straight around you."

I was lightheaded and would have fallen down if I wasn't sandwiched between the wall and Florencio. The feeling was all too great. I never craved someone so much. It scared me.

Another thing to cry about.

Then I started talking.

"You make me want and I don't want things." I realized I didn't make sense. I wish I never started talking because now I couldn't stop the nonsense that came out after. "I never–never need anything but sometimes I do and you seem like you don't need anything so—" I sucked in a sharp breath. So much for the good feeling, my voice was already cracking. "When I realize you don't need anything, I don't know what to do." That was the best I could do. Expressing myself so little took way too much effort. I felt exhausted.

"I need more than you think." He wiped my tears away. "Honey, know you're all of it. Know that I—"

He stopped when a soccer ball came rolling past us. A child came running after it.

"¡Perdón!" The child yelled. We didn't say anything.

He closed his eyes and I swore I heard him count to ten. He opened his eyes. "Let's go to the hotel."

I sniffled and nodded. If I knew crying made him open up, I wasn't too ashamed about it now.

At the hotel, Florencio got all of our stuff and signed us in. Up in our room, I waited patiently for him to finish what he was saying earlier, but he never did.

I followed him around the room like a lost puppy, close behind him, and he accidentally stepped on my foot.

"Parker—"

"It's okay!" My face flooded with heat. "I'm gonna shower. I forgot to this morning." Showering wasn't what I needed right now, but it'd force me away from Florencio.

I didn't grab anything on my way and just jumped in. I don't think I even locked the door. That's how desperate I was to distance myself.

I turned the heat as high as I could handle it and just stood there. After a few minutes of contemplating, I reached for the shampoo to wash my hair and it wasn't there. I peaked out of the shower and the complementary toiletries weren't by the sink either, only a bar of soap.

Oh, great. I stood there like an idiot and almost slipped when someone knocked on the door.

"Parker, I'm gonna leave to get food." Florencio's voice came muffled through the door.

"Ok!" I yelled back. "C-can you hand me the shampoo in my suitcase!" I felt jumpy.

A minute passed and I thought Florencio had left before he heard me, but another knock sounded at the door.

"I'll leave it by the door. Just give me a minute to leave the room—"

"Just come in and put it on the counter!" The curtain covered me. Sort of. I could tell by the material it would leave a silhouette of my body. He's seen my before, obviously. This would be no different. I pulled my hair over one shoulder. I put it back. I shifted my weight to each leg.

I was so wrapped up in nothing, I didn't even notice Florencio was already in the bathroom.

"I'm leaving now," he said softly.

"Ok." I wanted to... "Florencio, can you hand me the bottle?" I bit my lip in anticipation. What was I gonna do? Pull him in here and then we'd both slip and die? Little morbid, Parker. "Please?"

I waited a beat. The shower curtain opened a few inches. Florencio's hand appeared. I pulled the shower curtain towards me and held it to my body like a towel.

Florencio was closing his eyes.

I grabbed the shampoo bottle. "Thank you." My voice was low and I couldn't help what came out of my mouth after. "Why are you closing your eyes? I'm covered." Despite my bold words, the fear of rejection swirled in my belly.

Eyes were still closed.

"What do you want from me, honey? I have a feeling it's not just shampoo." A small grin played at his lips.

"Um." Where did my burst of confidence go? "Come here," I said without thinking. He took a step closer until his bare feet hit the tub.

I leaned forward and kissed him. "Thanks for the shampoo."

He tugged on my bottom lip. "Are you still covered?"

"Yes."

He opened his eyes. They trailed over my near nakedness. The fear of him seeing me naked was still lingering in my mind and I tried to ignore it.

Instead, I kissed him again. Florencio's hands stayed conservative as they barely touched me. I wanted more.

I pressed our bodies as much as I could together and let go of the shower curtain, hoping it would hold up still.

Florencio moved his hand to my wet, exposed back. He dragged his fingers down my back. I shivered and tired to my press myself closer without pulling the shower curtain down.

He distanced himself. He was kissing my chin and jaw though.

"Don't," he murmured when I moved to touch him.

The rejection struck me hard. I thought he'd want to...

This couldn't be more embarrassing. I was naked and all I knew was that I would never act on this type of feeling again.

"Oh." I looked down. My body couldn't move.

Florencio grabbed my jaw and forced me to look up at him. "Honey, don't think I don't want to."

I shrugged. "Then why'd you stop?" He'd made the suggestions to, tried to, and now that I was—

He kissed me hard. "Don't look like that." The curtain was slipping between us and I couldn't hold it up because he had my wrist in his hands. "Don't think I won't."

Won't what? I risked whatever won't was.

I slipped my wrists out of his hold and held his neck, pulling him forward.

The slow, torturous kiss went on for what seemed like forever.

"Can I move the curtain?" Florencio asked me, eyes dark.

My breath stuttered.

I nodded.

Without warning, Florencio ripped the curtain away from me and pushed me back into the shower, coming in after me. His hands held me tightly. It hurt, but I loved it.

He had his body pressed against mine and held my hands, lifting them up to the tile wall. I gasped at the feeling of his hardness through the denim jeans, against the most sensitive part of me.

I was able to breath when Florencio pulled away from me. He was looking down at me.

He looked beautiful, water soaking his hair and falling into his eyes.

"Fuck, honey," he rasped. I squirmed under his gaze. "You're perfect."

Very rarely I loved what I saw in the mirror.

His mouth latched onto my neck. He released my hands and I wrapped them around his shoulders. His teeth biting me, licking me, I was struggling to breath.

Florencio traveled lower to my chest and I dug my nails into his shoulders. He's only ever touched me

under a shirt. He's never seen me.

Florencio circled my chest. I arched my back, asking for more.

I whimpered when he took my breast into his mouth. Hot and wet, he sucked me, bit, and his other hand pinched and rubbed over me. He did this over and over. I became more swollen and sensitive.

He came back up to me and took off his shirt, throwing the wet fabric out of shower. I didn't have time to look, because he pressed his chest to mine. He groaned.

"Parker," he said roughly. He grounded his pelvis into me. The hardness and texture made me press my legs together to try and release the tension.

"Florencio, please," I begged. I wasn't sure what for. I could barely handle what he was giving me now.

Florencio grabbed my hips and turned me around so the water was hitting his back. My front was pressed against the tile wall. He fitted his body to mine once again.

"Do you know how crazy you make me?"

I gulped, resisting the urge to push my bottom into his front. I didn't have to resist anymore when he did so. All my desires had spread lower.

Florencio pushed my legs apart. He kissed along my shoulder. His hand reached up and grabbed my hair, pulling my head back, exposing my neck. I squeezed my eyes shut.

His hands come up gently from my waist this time, taking they're time. I shivered when he palmed my breast and he felt my reaction.

I moved my hips. The tightness was painful. He had me so worked up, I didn't know how I'd ever come down.

"Do you want me to touch you?" His voice went straight to my pain.

I nodded.

Lower and lower until—

I breathed out harshly through my nose when his fingers lightly stroked my inner thigh. Pinched me.