Section 11
"Hi, Emma. It's so great to meet you." Paige smiled warmly as she shook the young girl's hand. "I want to thank you so much for watching Nat for me tonight. I know that one baby is oftentimes hard enough, let alone two--"
"Are you saying my son is a difficult child to care for?" Nick pretended to be angry but couldn't keep the smile from his face. He never could when Paige was in the room.
Paige rolled her eyes and turned back to Emma, ignoring Nick. "Anyway, as I was saying--"
"Ms. Alexis, I don't mean to interrupt you, but really, you don't have to keep thanking me. I'm excited to spend time with Natalia." Emma smiled as she spoke and Paige knew how genuine she was. "I love Zack as though he's my own brother. And I'm sure I'll feel the same way about your little angel."
Paige was starting to understand why Nick spoke so highly of his baby-sitter. She was really beginning to like this girl! How had Nick gotten so incredibly lucky to have such a wonderful neighbor?
"Paige, we better start getting dressed."
Paige turned to Nick with a nod and a smile. "Okay, I'll just go give Nat a kiss good-bye and then go back to my room and get ready. Meet me there in an hour?"
"Yeah, of course." Nick smiled as he watched Paige say good-bye to Natalia before leaving his hotel suite.
Emma grinned from her place across the family room once Paige had left. She continued playing on the floor with both Zack and Natalia as she looked up at Nick with a sly smile. "Got the hots for The Mom, don't ya?"
Nick feigned surprise at the bluntness of her words. "Emma!" he tried to sound stern but before he knew it they were both laughing.
Nick's secret was out--at least to one person--but it didn't even matter to him. At this point, if she asked he would've told Paige herself how much he was beginning to enjoy her company.
They'd been dodging the age-old question all night. From the red carpet to the after parties, it was all they heard: "Are you two Hollywood's newest couple?" Some people didn't even ask, they just assumed: "I didn't know you two were seeing one another!" Nick and Paige just turned to each other and rolled their eyes, ignoring it all. They weren't going to spend their entire evening trying to talk people out of what they already believed to be true. So they just shrugged and went on with life. It didn't bother them. "Let people think what they want to think" seemed to be the night's motto.
Mamá used to warn me to beware those Latin lovers She said "I gave my heart too soon and that's how I became your mother" I said, Ay Mamá, you seem to forget I'm not in love yet Sweet talk don't win me over But I realize big brown eyes can hypnotize, when he says
Paige looked at Nick as he sipped on a glass of champagne, his head bobbing a little to the heavy Latino beat. It was a sexy little song by Miss Aguilera, who at the moment was standing by the punch bowl, refusing her date a dance to her own song.
Paige moved to stand in front of Nick and licked her lips seductively. "C'mmon, big boy, dance with me."
"Wha-- But I--"
"Excuses, excuses." She grabbed his champagne flute from his hand and set it on a nearby table. "Get on the floor and dance!"
"But I'm not Hispanic. And I definitely ain't full blood Boricua."
"Who cares, amor?" Paige purred into his ear as she pulled him onto the dance floor and began to grind against him, loving the way his eyes widened immediately.
Nick stared down at her as she danced around him and felt all the blood draining from his head and moving south. This was definitely not a woman who had a daughter sleeping peacefully in a hotel room at the moment. There was no way this incredibly sexy woman had ever given birth to a child.
Mamá used to warn me not to rush love with another She said "I'm not trying to lecture, I just care about my daughter" I say, Ay Mamá, you seem to forget I never will let a man control my emotions But when he smiles I feel like a little child, when he says
Nick had finally loosened up by the second verse and began to dance along with her. This woman could move and it was really getting to him. He glanced around the room as they danced, trying desperately to get his reaction to her moves under control. He couldn't help but chuckle as he noticed that Christina's date had finally gotten her on the floor... though she definitely wasn't enjoying herself. He couldn't imagine going out there and dancing to a Backstreet Boys song.
Paige looked up at her dance partner and grinned. He was so cute. He was totally avoiding eye contact and she knew why... she wasn't an idiot. The boy was so wanting to leave this party and take her to his hotel room at the moment. Oh, wait. Their children were in his hotel room. Okay, maybe that wasn't such a good idea.
Caught between my mamá's words and what I feel inside I'm wanting to explore his world but part of me wants to hide Should I risk it, can't resist it, this has caught me by surprise Should I let him take me to Puerto Rico - I can't hold back no more, let's go tonight
"Nicky..." Paige smiled up at him, moving his face so he would look at her. "You don't have to look away while we dance."
"Yeah, I do."
Paige giggled and rested her forehead against his chest, their bodies still moving in sync and to the rhythm of the music. "Should I stop teasing you, Nick?" she asked seriously as she looked up at him and their eyes met. She wasn't usually as forward with guys as she had been with Nick that night.
"No, it's fine," Nick smiled down at her and felt his heart flutter... Paige's eyes were glittering and he had never seen anything like it before.
I am full blood Boricua, reads the tattoo on his arm He tells me "Mami, I need ya" and my heart beat pumps so strong Getting lost in el ritmo he whispers te quiero, te quiero I begin to give in with no hesitation, can't help my infatuation It's pure infatuation
Paige stopped moving as the song came to an end. She wasn't ready to pull away from him... it had been so long since a man had held her the way Nick was.
"Maybe we should go now."
"Yeah." Paige nodded and reluctantly moved from his arms. "I guess it's getting late."
They walked off the dance floor quickly and within thirty minutes they were making their way onto their hotel elevator.
"I had a great time tonight, Nick. Thank you."
Nick smiled and grabbed her hand in his, squeezing it gently. "I did, too, Paige."
The truth was, he didn't know if he'd ever had a better time.
