The Heart of Blood Read Free Page B

table. The photo frame was not there anymore, and she looked around, puzzled, but it was nowhere. Did I put it somewhere else? No . . . where is it? Juan was passed out; he couldn’t have seen. Questions started shuffling through her mind as she picked up the stained bed sheets and turned to leave the room. She was utterly confused. Why would he try to hide his family from us?
    As she put the sheets in the washing machine, she realized she needed to talk to Octa urgently. If only he could explain all this. She had a growing feeling that something atrocious was about to happen, and she was scared.

Chapter Six
    Juan finished his coffee and went back into his room. The coffee had helped, but he was still extremely hung over. He checked his suitcase to see if the photo frame was still well hidden. It was in its place, and Juan grinned at how predictable and stupid this woman was. Amy would’ve caught me in a blink , he thought as he got back up and walked out the door.
    In the basement, Lucinda stood near the dryer now holding the washed sheets in her hand. The stain had set in and she was thinking about where she had put the club soda the last time a stain emergency happened when Juan came down the steps.
    “I hope I didn’t scare you much last night,” he said as he walked toward the dryer.
    Lucinda barely knew how to react “Oh . . . No. . . you seemed disturbed. I hope you’re feeling better now,” she said, eyeing him intently.
    He had sharp features, and he was much better looking than Octa. There was a boyishly attractive air about him that even she couldn’t deny. She put the sheets back in the wash and started the machine. Juan was suddenly closer to her body.
    “Thanks for worrying about me. It’s been a long time since anyone’s been worried about me.” He was looking at her lips as he spoke, and she was suddenly aware of how attractive he was. “I’m sorry I’ve been so grumpy with you guys. You let me in and I . . .” His voice trailed off. “Thank you for listening to me yak about shit last night. It means a lot to have someone just listen sometimes . . . my brother’s lucky,” he said with a soft, but mysterious, smile.
    Lucinda wondered if she should ask him about what had been troubling him, or who the woman and the kid in that picture were, but she stopped herself. She felt incredibly attracted to him at the moment, and the guilt was making her blush.
    Juan leaned in closer and kissed her softly. She pulled back abruptly, but minutes later, they were wrapped up together in a sexual frenzy unlike any Lucinda had ever experienced. Juan was incredibly tender at first, which she found surprising, but he got more passionate with every passing second.
    Lucinda suddenly thought about how he seemed harmless now. He gazed at her with affection and caressed every inch of her skin with his rough hands. Lucinda didn’t know how long had it been when it all stopped. She lay on the bed of the guest room next to Juan, drenched in sweat.
    She kept thinking about Octa, and what he would do if he found out. She shuddered at the thought of something bad happening. It happened on the spur of the moment , she justified it to herself. I don’t even love Juan, and . . . how could I be so stupid! Lucinda knew she couldn’t tell Octa about the picture she had seen the previous night anymore. If Juan had wanted him to see it, he wouldn’t have hidden it and if she ended up telling Octa, who knows what Juan might do or say. She felt the sinking feeling in her heart settle once again as she got up quietly to leave the room without waking Juan up.
    Juan lay there, his eyes closed, but his mind running fast. He was proud of how well he had handled the threat. That’ll show her , he thought, grinning slightly. As she got up and left his room, Juan started thinking of how easy everything had become now. It’s a piece of cake . He reveled in the joy and satisfaction of knowing that Lucinda would no longer raise any