Roads That Cross...

... with Pelfi

Ámbar left Simón with a kiss on his forehead and walked silently out of his guest room. The chill of the early morning swept into her bones. She made a mental note to tell Miguel to start turning on the heating as she hugged herself and hurried back to her own room.

It would've been disorienting to wake up in a place she didn't recognize if it wasn't impossible to feel fear with Simón cuddled up next to her. His scent and the feel of his breathing were cozier and more familiar than any room. She hadn't really wanted to leave the warmth of his arms, especially when he stirred the instant she separated from him and murmured sleepy words. It'd been so adorable, but she cooed him back to sleep and covered him with the blankets. He could still rest a little longer.

Ámbar entered her room, cold and alone, and immediately remembered with annoyance why she was in such position in the first place.

It'd been about four minutes since she parted from Simón when she heard a knock on her door. She frowned but went to open it.

"That was qui—"

Her smile dropped. It wasn't Simón on the other side of the door— it was Rey.

"Miss Ámbar," he greeted in that proper, courteous tone he had always used with her. It had never been a real show of respect and they both knew it. Rey used it to mock her because he'd never liked her.

Well, the feeling was mutual.

"What do you want, Rey?"

"I need to speak with you. May I come in?" He took a step forward.

Ámbar scoffed and pushed him back with a hand on his chest. "Absolutely not. Whatever you have to say, say it right here."

"Okay, have it your way." He looked at each side of the hallway and then spoke in a quiet voice. "I spoke with your godmother. She told me you two talked yesterday."

Ámbar's heart raced with anxiety. Nothing good could come after that.

"And?" She asked as impassive as she could.

"Sharon is not happy with your relationship."

"She is never happy with anything, you could learn to ignore her once in a while, no?"

"She told me that you refused to break up with Simón and asked me expressly to keep an eye on the situation."

Ámbar's jaw dropped and she scoffed. "I can not believe this. She goes away and doesn't even take the time to call me- And now she has the gall to want to control my life?" She shook her head. "No. I forbid you from sticking your nose into my affairs, Rey. Don't even get close to Simón."

He laughed. "You don't have the authority to forbid me anything, miss. It's not like I care about your little romance either, but I recommend that you listen to your godmother or I'll find myself obliged to tell the Valente about your indiscretion."

"You do that and I tell them all about how you're still Sharon's little toy."

"Go ahead, do it," he invited. "Then I'll take the opportunity to tell them about how you knew perfectly well that you were not Sol Benson and how you've known all this time your godmother's plans and, yet, you've kept quiet."

Ámbar looked him right in the eye. "... It seems to me like you need to reconsider who's got more to lose here, Rey," she told him icily. "Because I won't go to jail for saying the truth, but you will."