Page 46 of No Sweeter Poison

“All right. Done.”

She sucks her teeth at me. “I mean it, Alejandro.”

“I’m being serious. I promise.”

I think I’ve exhibited great restraint as of late. Last night being an exception, I’ve respected her space and remained at a distance. I don’t want to confuse her any more than I want to hurt her. If these are her conditions for a less acrimonious living situation, then I’ll take it.

“I want to be able to go out whenever I want. Lettie’s always going to the pueblo meanwhile I’m stuck here—sometimes all by myself.”

“You’ll have to take a security detail with you.”

She protests, “But—”

“Dahlia.”

She grits her teeth. “I’m not used to having people follow me around like that.”

“Then get used to it. If you want to go outside, visit the town, then you need security. You’re not allowed out before sunrise and you have to be back before sunset. One of us three has to go with you. Myself, Lettie, or Diego. Understood?”

Right when I think Dahlia is going to argue, her expression shifts and her lips fall silent. She must be thinking something through in her head because she nods and steers the conversation in a different direction. “I want free range in the house.”

I shrug, slightly confused. “You confined yourself to the bedroom. The rest of this house and the property around it is available to you. There’s a hiking trail but you need a chaperone. The stables are available to you as well but I don’t want you riding by yourself.”

“I can’t ride anyway,” she murmurs.

“Then Jimena can teach you. She takes care of the horses for us.” A beat passes and I ask, “What else?”

She nibbles on her bottom lip. “I want a TV.”

“Done.”

“A big one.”

“However big you want.”

She stares at me. “With all the streaming networks. And Disney Plus, too!”

I’d laugh if I didn’t think she was completely serious. “All right. Anything else?”

“I want my things back. My passport and my wallet.” She reaches into her pocket and waves her phone around. “And I want all those weird security things you put on here taken off! I can’t even doom scroll through Twitter to kill time. It’s torture.”

“If I didn’t think you’d try to run away, you’d have them already.”

“I—”

“Are we forgetting your attempted escape less than twelve hours ago? Hard no. Anything else? I have to get back to work.”

And if I have to sit here another second, I think I’m going to rip that flimsy sundress to pieces. Fleetingly, I wonder if she always dressed in short, light clothes or if she does it to provoke me. Despite her resentment and anger, I know she feels the attraction between us. Otherwise, last night wouldn’t have happened.

She sits in silence for a beat too long. I take that as my dismissal.

When I make my way to the door, she bolts out of her seat and approaches me, stopping abruptly a few steps away. “Wait, um…”

I wait for her to find the words she needs.

“I actually do need my wallet back. My credit card is in there and there are things I need to buy.” Her cheeks turn bright red. “And if I’m allowed to leave the villa now, I’ll need my own money.”

I reach into my back pocket. “Here.”