Finding Justus (21 page)

“I’ve never danced with someone who seemed to know what I was thinking, and feeling, someone who was as passionate about the dance and the rhythm as I am.”

Miguel had been walking toward her slowly while he was talking and he had closed in the space between them. He reached for her. Justus didn’t try to stop him. He put his arms around her and held her in an embrace that resembled one of the dances they had shared on the cruise.

Feeling his arms around her again after so long was both comforting and new, she felt at ease, as if she belonged there, and yet she felt as if she was experiencing his arms around her for the first time again.  She had longed for this a thousand times. Since she’d returned home from the cruise, she had wished to feel Mi
guel again, to kiss him again. Now that she had him, why was she trying to fight it?

“Justus,” Miguel said as he stroked her face.
“
Ay, mi amor
. I’ve missed you, missed holding you like this. See how we fit together? I want you to be my dance partner again, Justus.” Miguel swallowed audibly and added softly, “I want you to be my dance partner, for life. Please say that you will stay. I know that your career is important, and I know that you have dreams, just like I do. If we work together, we can have everything, our dreams and each other.

“By designing my businesses, you’ll get attention. I’ll make sure of that. I promise you, we’ll get your name out. I’ll advertise the fact that you designed everything. I’ll hang signs with your name on them everywhere, inside and outside. I’ll hang a freaking banner from the roof. Justus, will you stay? I want us to be together, and by the look in your eyes, I think you do, too.”

Justus had been listening intently to his speech, holding back her tears. She could no longer hold back her emotion and tears began spilling down her cheeks. For the first time in her life she was overcome by happiness and love. She was too filled with emotion to say anything. She merely put her head on his shoulder and nodded her head yes.

Miguel began to move them slowly in a circle. His hands idly rubbed her back. Justus was curious about how Miguel was able to open his club now, when on the cruise he had told her that he wouldn’t be able until much later down the road.

“Miguel?”

“Hmm.”

“I have a question, and it may seem a little nosy. How did you get the money for this place? I mean, on the ship you told me that you wouldn’t be able to open your own studio and club for a few more years. How did that change to a couple of months?”

Miguel stopped dancing for a minute and looked directly into her eyes. For a moment she was worried that she had struck a chord. Maybe she shouldn’t have been so nosy. After all, it really wasn’t any of her business.

“I found a way,” he replied elusively. He started dancing again and he seemed to debate his next sentence.

“Do you remember me telling you that story about the Rolls Royce that belonged to my great-grandfather?”

Justus shook her head and got a feeling of dread in the pit of her stomach. “Oh, don’t tell me you sold it! It was a family heirloom. You spoke of it with so much affection and pride.”

“No, I didn’t sell it. A friend of a friend gave me the loan for this place. He’s a great guy, he bent over backwards to get me a decent loan, so I could get started. But even he couldn’t perform miracles. I had to have a certain amount of money down in
order to get the loan, money I didn’t have. He asked me if I had anything for collateral. The Rolls was the only thing that I could think of that was worth that much. So, if my business goes down the tubes, I lose my heirloom, as you called it, but I don’t see that happening.”

“Miguel, why did you do that?  Why didn’t you just wait?”

“Because I thought if I waited and opened the club later, I wouldn’t have a good reason to get you to come to Miami. Although, now I realize I had a great one all along.”

“Oh, what reason is that?” Justus asked coyly.

“I love you. That should’ve been reason enough. I think it would’ve been reason enough, had I told you. I’ve loved you from the beginning Justus, since that first day of the cruise, when I saw you by the pool.”

Justus started laughing.

“What’s so funny?”

“How convoluted I made everything. How I threw away your number as soon as I got on the plane back to St. Louis, because I was so sure you’d never call me. How when I first saw you, I thought you were gorgeous, but then I saw you talking to Tammy, and I thought she was your girlfriend. How I thought you were a lousy cheater. Like my ex. You know, when I found out that Alex was cheating on me and I wasn’t going to get married, I thought my life was over. And I was right.”

Miguel looked at her quizzically.

“That life was over, and since I’ve met you, I have a new life, one that I enjoy, because I love you, too.”

“I really love you, Justus. I have to confess something else to you. When we were in bed and I was speaking to you in Spanish, I was telling you that I loved you. I was too big of a coward at that time to come out and tell you in English though. I’m sorry for that.” He leaned down and whispered into her ear, “
Te queiro
; I love you.”

That’s what the phrase meant. All those nights that she heard it in her dreams, maybe her subconscious had been trying to tell her that Miguel loved her all along. She would tell him about her dreams, but not right now. Right now she didn’t feel the need for words.

Neither of them did, they simply enjoyed the feel of each other’s arms, and the dance.

###

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Growing up, Amanda Bretz began creating stories before she could put pen to paper. When it came time to pick a career path, writing was a natural choice. She holds a bachelor’s degree in communication from Florida Gulf Coast University and has worked as a print and online journalist. She currently resides in St. Charles, Missouri with her husband and is working on her next writing project. Thanks for reading her work. For more information visit
www.amandabretz.com
.

Please enjoy this excerpt from
Love, Simplified
.

When workaholic Cecile Day realizes she isn’t living the life she wants, she uproots her life in Denver and moves to her family’s ramshackle cabin in Lake of the Ozarks, Missouri. Cecile wants to slow down, move to the country and live a life full of the things money doesn’t buy, but her motives for moving aren’t quite that simple. She knows running from an array of demons, leaving a wealthy fiancé and high-powered career won’t be easy, but what she hopes to gain by moving is peace of mind, sense of self and lasting happiness. Upon her move, Cecile meets her sexy neighbor, Ethan Morgan. Cecile quickly discovers Ethan can provide her with companionship and a simple, country life, that is, if she’ll let him. She feels haunted by her past mistakes and struggles to feel worthy of Ethan’s affections. Even though Cecile has worked hard to
simplify her life, will she realize she can’t live without the most basic necessity of all: love.

Cecile was in the bedroom kicking off her tennis shoes and was about to change out of her travel clothes and into pajamas when she heard a knock on the front door. She paused, momentarily alarmed. Who could be knocking on the cabin door at nine-thirty in the evening?

Should she answer it? If she didn’t, maybe they’d get the hint and just go away. As she weighed her options, she heard a second knock. Her visitor was certainly persistent. After she heard the second rapping noise on the wooden door she knew she had to answer it, if only to get some peace and quiet. She wished she had some sort of weapon, just in case the neighborhood had gone to hell in the past few years. She looked around the kitchen and living room for something she could use in self-defense. She’d settle for a baseball bat or a golf club at this point.

“Who’s there?” Cecile called to the door.

“Ethan Morgan, I live a few cabins down. I’m head of the neighborhood watch. I saw the lights and thought I’d check things out. Make sure everything is okay.”

Cecile flipped the kitchen light on and grabbed the first weapon-like object she could get her hands on and wrenched the door open. This wasn’t the kind of story that a mass murderer would make up, she was fairly certain, but better safe than sorry.

“Surely you’re kidding?” Cecile asked skeptically. “I’m sorry, but I’m trying to get some sleep here. I’m exhausted. Can we do the Welcome Wagon visit tomorrow?” Cecile said to the darkness. She couldn’t make out any features of the hulking figure on the front porch. Cecile flipped on the switch to the porch light and was displeased when nothing happened. Evidently the bulb was burned out.

“Everything is fine, but thanks for checking,” she started to close the door and at the same time he stepped forward out of the shadows and into the wedge of light that had pooled onto the dark front porch. As he did, the light from the kitchen illuminated his face just enough so that Cecile could clearly make out his features. She stopped herself just short of gasping in surprise.

Ethan Morgan might have been the head of the neighborhood watch by night, but Cecile was fairly certain he was some sort of male model or an outrageously good-looking lumberjack by day. He was six foot tall, at least, and had the kind of broad shoulders and brawny arms female fantasies were made of. Dark hair, a square jaw and Roman nose rounded out his jaw-dropping features.

“Sorry to bother you at this hour ma’am. I haven’t seen anyone in this cabin for years and then I saw the lights. I just wanted to make sure everything was okay,” he looked at her with a wry smile. “Awfully late to be making waffles,” he said with a slight chuckle as he looked at what she clutched in her right hand.

Cecile dropped her eyes to the clunky, 1960s-era waffle-maker she’d grabbed in a moment of desperation. The metal monstrosity might be heavy, but she realized in her haste she’d selected a poor choice of weapon. If Ethan had been an axe-murderer, she wouldn’t have been able to fend him off with a kitchen appliance, no matter how bulky.

“Oh, this,” she said with a laugh and a shake of her head, causing her glossy brown hair to sweep across her shoulders, “I was just…tidying up before bed.” Cecile felt idiotic. What an absurd lie.

“Is that right?” he asked in disbelief as his eyes briefly travelled into the dusty kitchen and the spider-infested cobwebs clinging to the walls. “So I noticed you have out of state plates. I guess you’re here on vacation?”

“You could say that, yes. I’m sorry, I’m Cecile Day,” she said as she set the waffle-maker on the counter top. She opened the screen door and extended her right hand. Ethan returned her handshake with a warm firm grasp. At the touch of his large hand, Cecile felt a bit faint.
He’s so…masculine
, she thought. She garnered her composure and continued.

“My family owns this cabin, but like you said, none of us have used it in years. I just got in from Denver, long drive.”

He took this as his cue to excuse himself. “Okay, I won’t keep you from your rest. Sorry for the intrusion. Have a good evening,” he called to her as he headed down the front steps.

“You too,” she replied for lack of anything better to say.

Cecile closed and locked the front door, although knowing a man like Ethan Morgan was the captain of the neighborhood watch committee gave her more peace of mind than any lock ever could. With his Paul Bunyan-like proportions, she didn’t doubt he could take on an intruder without breaking a sweat.
That’s enough of that
, she thought. For all she knew the man could be married. Cecile didn’t want to drool over another woman’s husband. Ordinarily she made it a habit to look at a handsome man’s ring finger upon meeting him, but it had been dark on the front porch. She had been too mesmerized by his face, arms and shoulders to notice his left hand.

She made a mental note to make sure she checked the next time she saw Ethan. As Cecile pulled off her jeans and sweatshirt and threw on her pajamas, she felt a small pang of guilt. She had broken up with Parker only days ago and she was already drooling over her new neighbor. While Cecile realized she was free to date whomever she chose, as was Parker, she couldn’t help but feel a bit hesitant.

She climbed onto the bed, pulled the covers over her and rolled onto her side, and drew her knees up to her chest. Momentarily pensive, Cecile wondered if her feelings of guilt were warranted.
No
, she told herself
, I might’ve just broken up with Parker, but our relationship had been over for a while
. Yes, she was free to do with her life what she wished, that included dating whomever she chose. With that thought in her head, Cecile drifted toward sleep with a smile on her face.

Love, Simplified
is available in paperback and e-book forms. To purchase, visit
www.amandabretz.com