EPILOGUE
Three months later
Micaela sets down the pen with which she”s been signing books and shakes out her hand to relieve the muscle tension. She and Victoria are in a hotel room, seated at the same desk, signing the three hundred copies their publisher sent over to be distributed to bookstores abroad.
Their book tour started two weeks ago, and the pair haven”t stopped moving through various Spanish cities since. Now, in Granada, they aim to sign all the copies because tomorrow morning they have planned a visit to the village of Monachil and the famous Cahorros trail.
”You okay?” Victoria asks as she too sets down her pen and stretches her back.
Micaela, almost unconsciously, sighs out her anxiety and nods. ”My hand”s a bit sore,” she says, offering a smile.
”And you”re nervous,” Victoria observes, rising from her chair to stand behind Micaela.
Their relationship has flourished more than they had hoped, that same connection forged within the walls of their home in Vinuesa now seamlessly integrated into their lives outside it. Moreover, Victoria has earned the trust of Ignacia and Valeria, and Micaela is as attentive to Daniel as his own mother.
”I”m not nervous,” Micaela insists, even as Victoria”s hands move from her shoulders to her collarbone.
”Yes, you are,” the writer from Toledo persists, having learned to read Micaela”s tells better than Micaela herself over these months.
Micaela smiles again, another sigh slipping out. ”Maybe just a bit,” she admits, kissing the fingers of Victoria”s hand.
”Why?”
First, Micaela shrugs, but then she answers. ”Because the news about us is out and Javier making such a fuss, it overwhelms me. Ever since it broke, they ask more about what we are than about the book.”
”You know Javier,” Victoria murmurs, her voice a low hum of reassurance as she leans in close. ”He”ll use any situation to boost sales or grab headlines, and right now, we”re the flavor of the month.” Her lips brush Micaela”s cheek, a kiss so gentle and warm it sends a shiver cascading down Micaela”s spine. ”But it”ll fade, Mica. It”s just the novelty. We just have to weather this storm till the tour ends. Then, you and I can escape somewhere where no one knows our names.”
”Really?” Micaela turns her head, her eyes wide as she searches Victoria”s face.
”Where would we go?” she asks, a spark of excitement flickering in her voice.
”I don”t know,” Victoria teases, a playful smirk tugging at the corner of her mouth. She lets the suspense hang in the air for a heartbeat or two. ”Considering we both love the beach, how about the Albanian Riviera?”
”Are you serious?” Micaela”s voice rises in disbelief and hope.
As Victoria nods, confirming her words, Micaela surges up from her seated position, arms wrapping around Victoria with such force that they both topple back onto the bed. Laughter spills between them, mingling with kisses, as they fall into a tangle of limbs and soft sheets.