"Um… I'm just going to get the things Ma'am Florida sent for you. They might be important," she said and walked back to the house. But she went to the kitchen and drank cold water. Her heart was pounding loud. She had no idea how long he was staying in San Luis. Did he really plant for her? What if it was only Jeremy's excuse she would not scold him? But why could Amadeus not look at her in the eye a while ago?
When she returned, she threw the towel at him right away. "Wipe yourself!" She grabbed her polo and distracted herself from sewing. "Just check if that's complete. Or something's missing."
“I told her not to worry much about me. I am okay.”
“Are you really okay?” When she was done sewing and handed him the shirt, she had a closer view of his body. She noticed that there were rashes on his chest and arms. “What are those?”
“Nothing. Just little insect bites,” he said.
“Little?” she said, arching an eyebrow. “They just turned you into a snack.” She remembered that Florida had sent a healing balm. She fished inside the paper bag. “Let’s put some of it on you.”
He tried to take the balm from her. “Give me that. I can handle it.”
She hid the balm behind her. She also grabbed his shirt. “Just sit there. If you don’t let me put a balm on it, you’ll walk naked.”
Amadeus shook his head. “I can’t believe you are blackmailing me.”
She fought gazes with him. She thought he would walk away, but he sat down. Her hand was trembling when she applied the balm on his rashes. I can do this. Take a deep breath.
“You are free to fantasize about me if you want. No problem.”
“Shut up!” she snarled. She could not concentrate.
But his silence made the situation worse because she was reminded of the night he claimed her. Instead of slowly putting the balm, she scattered it on his skin.
“Oh! You made it into a lotion,” he said.
"There's just too many mosquito bites. You should use a mosquito net, and there's lemongrass juice here. Use it so they won't bite you. There it's done," she said and returned the balm to him.
“Won’t you do my front?” he said and arched his body.
“You can do it yourself. You’re an adult…”
“Then I’ll just ask Nurse Luvelyn.”
She blocked his path with her leg. “I’ll do it. Nurse Luvelyn needs to rest.” She took the ointment from him. She stooped in front of him and applied the balm on his chest. Amadeus was smiling the whole time.
But she felt sad when she saw the blister on his hand. Of course, he was not used to construction work.
She applied balm on it next. “Is it painful?”
“I don’t feel anything.”
She sighed when she saw the scratches on his arms. “Why are you still here? Why don’t you travel to different places? You’re just having a hard time here.”
“I want to spend more time here. I want to be with you.”
She stared at him in confusion. “With me? What will you gain from me?”
“To see you smile, to see you happy with the people who are important to you, that’s more than enough for me.”
Esmeralda tilted her head. “I don’t get it. What do you really want from me?”
“I just want you to see the other side of me. I know you only saw the bad things in me. I want to show you that I’m not as bad as you think.”
"What is it to you if I believe you? I don't understand what it is that you want from me, Amadeus. Do you want my body? Just tell me. We made a deal."
“I want you but not just your body, all right.”
“What else?”
He stared at her for a moment. "I want you to see me in a different light." He clacked his tongue and stood up. "I don't know why I am still explaining it to you. You won't understand me, anyway.”
“How would I understand you if you won’t tell me what it is for?”
He took a deep breath. “Even if I tell you, you won’t believe me, anyway. I am leaving. Tell Jeremy I’m going to see him tomorrow.”
And he grabbed all his stuff. Esmeralda could only stare as she watched him exit the gate. She really could not understand Amadeus. If he wanted to win her heart, for what reason? Was he really going to pursue her just like Jeremy said? Was he in love with her?
That’s impossible. Amadeus did not have a heart that’s capable of falling in love. And she would never give him her heart that he once broke.