Trackside Serendipity

Chapter 11

Y/N's POV - the following morning - ''Tu Vida en la Mía'' (Marc Anthony)

           I woke up to the sound of rain pattering against my window. Opening my eyes, I grabbed my phone to check the time. It was 4:02 am. I felt the arms wrapped around me shift, pulling me closer against his chest.

"Did the rain wake you up?", he mumbled.

               I shifted in his arms and turned to face him.

"Uh-huh..." I softly hummed in response.

              Resting my face on his chest, I savored the tender caress of his fingers mindlessly tracing delicate patterns along my spine, and I released a contented sigh. This perfect moment imprinted itself in my memory. With a smile, I snuggled deeper into his chest and fell back asleep to the soothing rhythm of the rain and Carlos' heartbeat.

                Later, when I actually woke up, the sun bathed the room in a golden glow. Realizing I was entwined in Carlos' arms, I couldn't help but smile. Gazing at his peaceful countenance, I gently tucked a stray lock of hair behind his ear. I traced his jawline, my heart fluttering as a small smile graced his lips. I felt as if I could live in this moment forever; the moment between my finger brushing his skin and the smile appearing. It was soft, simple, but it felt like everything. I felt beautiful. Not because I actually was, but because, even while he was asleep, my touch could cause a smile, and that was more than enough for me. Suddenly, he started stirring, and I jumped back.

"Hey...", he greeted in a hoarse morning voice.

"Sorry for waking you up, you can go back to sleep."

"It's okay, don't worry about that." he said, trying to pull me closer. ''Don't get up just yet... please.''

              We stayed like that for a little longer, trying to cherish the moment as much as we could before we had to face the harsh reality.

"Carlos, it's late... I need to let the hospital know why I'm not coming in today.", I reluctantly said, trying to extricate myself from his arms, but he wasn't having it.

"I asked Victoria to handle that last night...", he revealed in a low voice as he leaned his head against my neck, his lips brushing my neck as he did so.

"What?!?", I exclaimed as I leaned myself on one arm.

"I just wanted to spare you the trouble today.", he replied earnestly, gazing into my eyes.

"You didn't have to..."

"Maybe, but I wanted to.", he said as he played with a strand of my hair.

"Thank you, really." I said. "Are you up for breakfast?"

"Sure."

"Give me 15 minutes to take a quick shower and get dressed, and then I'll come up with something. Feel free to take a look around the place."

"No, you go ahead, take a shower, and I'll get things started."

"But-"

"No buts, just go," he said as he kissed my cheek.

                 With a contented sigh, I finally emerged from bed and headed towards the shower, eagerly embracing the refreshing cascade of cold water on my body. Taking my time, I washed away the remnants of last night's events, yet I couldn't bring myself to erase the memory of Carlos' comforting embrace. I was embarrassed at how much I missed his arms around me, but the fact was that they made me feel so safe. They felt like home.

               I came out of the shower and decided to wear some cycling shorts and an oversized Ferrari shirt. As I opened my door, I smelled a wonderful aroma coming from the kitchen. I headed to the kitchen and saw that Carlos had set everything one could want for breakfast on my tiny kitchen table and was now busy at the stove. I guess he thought it would be better than the dining table in the living room.

"What are you cooking there?", I asked as I poked his side.

"Scrambled eggs."

"They're my favorite type of eggs, so thank you."

"You're welcome. Red looks good on you, by the way."

"Thanks.'', I mumbled.

''Anytime.''

''Oh, before I forget, I have something I think you might like," I said as I opened the fridge and removed a pack of bacon strips and a bottle of maple syrup.

"Maple and bacon? Wait... the burger place!"

"Yeah, let me grab a frying pan and make some."

            I fried the bacon, and he finished the eggs. We took everything to the table and sat down to eat. We ate in comfortable silence and never once mentioned the intimacy we shared last night. I decided to break the silence.

"Carlos, what are your plans for Christmas?"

"I'll be in Spain with my family... why?" he asked hopefully.

"I was wondering if you would like to come to Monaco for a few days and have lunch with my family and I. It's an annual event for us, and we manage to bring all the siblings together. It's not a date or anything, but I would really like to have you there."

"I would love to come to this 'not a date' lunch. I can already imagine Charles' face when I arrive..." he chuckled.

"OMG, I had forgotten about that!" I said as I buried my face in my hands.

"Relax, we'll cross that bridge when we get there. We'll be okay.", he said, lowering my hands.

                We finished breakfast and cleaned the kitchen. Even though I wanted to spend more time with Carlos, we decided that we weren't in the mood to go out for lunch and that he would just head back to his hotel. We hugged and said our goodbyes, this time knowing when we would see each other again.

Carlos' POV

           I was inside the Uber heading back to the hotel when I received a text from my sister Blanca.

Hey, how are you doing?

Fine, how about you?

I'm good, but I want to know about you... you seem really distracted lately.

I'm not...

Yes, you are. What's her name?

Name? There's nobody involved.

Yes, there is. Come on, spit it out.

Fine, it's Y/NN, but we're just friends.

It seems to me it's a little more than that... is that really all she is to you?

Obviously, she is more than a friend, but it's not like something is going to come out of it...

Why not?

She's Charles' only sister.

What?!? OMG! How, when?

We met in Monaco back in May, but only started talking in August when I went to see her while I was in L.A. Basically, we've been talking non-stop since. I've never connected with someone as much as I have with her, to be honest.

You went to see her??? Awwwwww...

I've got to admit, she had me captivated since the first moment.

You really don't see it, do you? Just put us all out of our misery and admit it already. You love her, don't you?

I do, I really do. She is everything I ever wanted, but I don't want to risk losing her as a friend.

You need to do something about it... you never know what might come out of it. Just don't let this one go, she seems like the right person for you.

I'll try. I've got to go, sis. Talk to you soon. : )