“Time to go.”
They hurried to the car, the first cool drops of rain hitting her skin as he opened the door for her. He ran around the front of the car and got in just as the clouds released a torrent of rain so thick they could barely see ten feet in front of them. She pulled out her phone and checked the weather forecast.
“Rain for hours. And possible hail.”
“There’s a bed-and-breakfast nearby we can take shelter at.”
Alejandro’s words cut through the thundering of the rain as he pulled out of the parking lot. Her hands tightened on the seat of the car, grasping at anything that would anchor her even as her breathing quickened.
“A bed-and-breakfast?” she repeated in as casual a voice as she could muster. “Sure.”
They stayed silent as Alejandro drove at a crawl through the summer squall. It gave her time to think. Too much time. Alejandro had just opened up and shared himself with her. Not the hints and bites of information he’d been giving her throughout the week, but a baring of his soul.
She no longer wondered if she was in love with him. She knew. Now she just needed to know what to do next.
Five minutes and one winding road up a hillside later and they pulled under the awning of L’Auberge de la Lavande.
They walked through the double glass doors into the lobby. Calandra kept her mouth from dropping open. When she heard the wordsbed-and-breakfastorinn, as the sign on the outside had proclaimed, she thought of quilt-covered beds, pancakes and a long porch with rocking chairs.
The Lavender Inn catered to an entirely different clientele. The lobby boasted dark wooden floors polished to a shine beneath the lamps dripping with crystals that had been artfully scattered among white and lavender-colored furniture. Elegant armchairs, chaise lounges and a few sofas offered rest and places to visit. The walls were covered in professional photographs of the lavender fields, the abbey and the village of Gordes. One side of the lobby was glass that she guessed, on a sunny day, provided incredible views of the valley beneath the inn.
Even the air carried the faint, floral scent.
A sweet-faced girl in a violet suit jacket and starched white shirt smiled at them.
“Bonjour.”
“Bonjour,”Alejandro replied. “Do you have any rooms available?”
The girl smiled, her cheeks dimpling. “You’re in luck! We were all booked, but we just had a cancellation for our honeymoon suite.”
“Honeymoon suite?” Calandra repeated.
The girl nodded enthusiastically. “Top floor. Once the rain passes, you’ll have the best view of the lavender field from a private balcony.”
“I don’t think—”
“Perfect,” Alejandro interrupted as he passed the clerk a credit card. “Monsieur and Madame Cabrera, please.”
His casual use of such a title made her want to laugh and cry at the same time. Laugh, because a week ago she would have shuddered at the thought of Alejandro being involved in her child’s life, much less being tied to him herself.
Cry, because in the last couple of days, she’d thought more and more of what it would be like to have Alejandro not just in their child’s life but inherlife.
After checking in, Alejandro guided her to the elevator. The doors swooshed open, and she paused. The last time they’d gotten into an elevator, they hadn’t been able to keep their hands off each other.
“I promise not to kiss you this time.”
“But what if I want you to?”
The words slipped out before she could stop them. She sneaked a glance at Alejandro. He stood next to her, his body tight, eyes straight forward. Her throat constricted. Had she waited too long?
“Are you sure?”
Those three words, the barely constrained passion in his dark, sensual voice, broke down the last remaining threads of her defenses. Confidence emboldened her to walk into the elevator, turn and meet his eyes, allowing him to see the naked desire in her own gaze.
“You coming?”
Her breath hitched as he stalked toward her, eyes on fire as his presence filled the elevator. The door slid shut.