The Muse
"Do you want a coffee, Mendoza?"
"I only want to know what the fuck am I doing here at 4.30 AM, Lieutenant Reyes."
*
It was a warm spring evening in Madrid. As an European Capital city, Madrid tends to get extra busy after 5 PM. People go home after work, some of them take walks on the main boulevards, while others are simply tourists roaming around the streets.
Sebastian Mendoza's airplane has just landed from Barcelona to Madrid. "Such a downgrade" Sebastian said to himself, as he lit a cigarette in front of the Airport. Of course, his entire life was based in Barcelona, or at least it was.
Sebastian Mendoza was never one to attach to people -or places. That was until he met Sofia, his ex-fiancée who almost made him quit his shitty job. Almost. "But almost is never enough", he thought. After Sofia packed up her bags, she stopped in front of the door and apologized for not being able to fight enough to make it work. But it was not her fault, and they both knew it, although she was too kind to ever admit it. He was always working, always busy and, in the limited free time he had, his mind was somewhere else. Being a secret agent for the Central Intelligence Agency is not an easy task, not even for a clever man like Sebastian Mendoza. His boss, Lieutenant Reyes, was not an easy-to-impress man either. He was a very strict, highly demanding person, and the worst thing about their work relation was that Sebastian Mendoza was the only agent he could trust. It made things way more difficult for Sebastian, who never went to sleep with his phone on silent, could never aford to have his cellular on low battery and was never allowed to fully enjoy a moment of pleasure, not even with Sofia.
It has been a week, or two, or three, or ten, since Sofia and Sebastian broke up. Sebastian could not keep track of the time that has passed. His heart was shattered and, instead of focusing on work like most people do after a hard breakup, he convinced himself that it was not too late to make a change in order to regain Sofia in his life. He needed her and, just because he loved her, he knew she needed him to change. She wanted a family, she wanted kids, she wanted a normal, regular life, with a man who stops to buy milk on his way back home from work. She loved boring vacations on cheap places, and was never one for a luxurious lifestyle. If anything, Sofia loved to visit Sebastian's father on the outskirts of Barcelona, in a quiet village next to a wild beach.
Yet, Sebastian Mendoza was on the most important mission of his life, 600 kilometers away from Barcelona, right in the heart of Spain, in Madrid. Yet, Sebastian Mendoza was sent there to seduce a woman he has never met, a woman so controversial, that she raised the interest of the King Himself.
"You need to make her fall in love with you. I already arranged the perfect scenery for the two of you -you will be her chauffeur, and her personal guard", Lieutenant Reyes said while sipping from his americano. "You'll be close to her all the time. You will not fail. You cannot fail. It was the King of Spain who asked me to keep an eye on her..."
"And what's a better way to control someone, if not by making that certain individual fall in love with you..." Sebastian replied. Of course, he was clever and he already knew what Lieutenant Reyes had in mind.
"And which secret agent would be more suited for the job, Mendoza?" Reyes said, with a shallow expression on his face.
Sebastian was, in all honesty, a really charming human being. He had an unique beauty, which mixed his Spanish and Puerto Rican roots into a special looking man. He had dark eyes, naturally-tanned skin, full lips and thick, dark hair. He was tall and his physiognomy was well-done, not too muscular, but muscular enough to turn heads in his direction. It was not his looks that made him special, though, but his natural charm. His way of speaking in a soothing, deep tone, his way of walking with an undeniable confidence, his intimidating, yet comforting presence made him irresistible, and Lieutenant Reyes was well-aware of that.
He shouldn't have accepted the mission, though. It was his main goal to regain Sofia, yet his ambitious self could not say no. After all, who would say no to the King? Who would deny such an opportunity? "But the King doesn't hold me in his arms like Sofia used to." he said to himself, and he was right. It was another shallow decision, another shallow goal for a man who wasn't shallow at all. He did not even know what he was doing there, in the boring city of Madrid, instead of standing in front of Sofia's apartment with a bunch of flowers and some empty promises. "It is the last mission I'm going to accept before going to Barcelona and winning Sofia back", Sebastian thought. He wasn't sure he was being true to himself.
**
"Fernando, we need more funds for the educational system. I have an idea." Victoria Diaz said, with her inherent enthusiasm.
The Prime Minister knew he made a great choice by hiring her as his counselor. He also knew he made a great choice by dismissing his previous crew. He did not need anyone but Victoria Diaz, who was always enthusiastic to find solutions for even the most complicated problems.
Victoria Diaz was about to turn her phone on airplane mode when she got a call from an unknown number. It was Fernando Delgado, the Prime Minister of Spain, who wanted to hire her as a counselor for the Government. She was about to fly back to Rosario, Argentina, her hometown. She messed up her last case. She won, of course, she always won as a lawyer, but at what cost? Her win wasn't a win, it was a great injustice.
She was never the lawyer to walk on dead bodies in order to gain money or fame. She went to Madrid to study law in order to help victims gain justice against their aggressors. Yet, after three years of doing so, she felt like it wasn't enough. She was recruited in big law firms, which made her feel even worse, because victims did not have the financial means to reach her services. So, she decided she would work in a famous firm until she would be able to start her own firm. It was her last case that made her change her mind, and she decided she had to go back to Rosario, back to a humble lifestyle. She failed.
But she changed her mind after Fernando Delgado's call. It was her chance to change the world, well... "not the world, but at least I get the chance to change Spain, and maybe the world will take that as an example", she thought to herself.
"Victoria, I would like to tell you something, but I am afraid you have to be seated for this one." Fernando Delgado said. He was a kind man, always thoughtful and just as eager to make good as she was. "The Central Intelligence Agency called."
"What? What happened?" Victoria replied, in a not-so-peaceful tone.
"They said there's a potential threat to your security. They offered protection. A chauffeur who will also protect you, in case anything goes wrong. You'll live with him. Different areas of the same house, don't worry, you won't cross paths with him too much."
Victoria was in utter shock. What was going on? What danger could she possibly be in? She was a simple woman who wanted to do nothing but good. It was not fair. Not only that it was not fair, it was intrusive and, straight-up, an attack to her intimacy.
"Fer, I was born and raised in Rosario. I don't think I need a personal guard." she said in a soothing tone. Now, she was the one who had to convince Fernando she was safe. After all, it was Fernando who saved Victoria from losing herself and quitting her dreams.
"Victoria. I was never the type of boss who gives orders. I would like to think of myself as a leader. This is the first -and only- time I'm ordering you to do something. It is non-negotiable!" Fernando replied with a grim expression. He was not accepting no for an answer.
Victoria had to comply. She owed Fernando so much, that even the worst intrusion in her personal space was not enough to make her disobey.
***
Victoria used to live next to Plaza Mayor. The neighborhood was suited for her way of being. Rosario was a busy town and she lived in a Barrio that didn't ever sleep, so she chose Plaza Mayor as a reminder of who she used to be. "Plaza Mayor is not that far to Rosario" she was joking to herself whenever she was hearing drunk teenagers roaming around.
Her main fear was moving to a more sophisticated neighborhood. It felt like an estrangement from her old-self. She had enough income to live in the posh areas from Madrid, of course. She had enough money to stay in Salamanca, or in Chamartin, but she chose Plaza Mayor. It was far from a cheap neighborhood, but it was the place where people were always active and you could always see someone walking down the boulevards, so she was fine with it.
Fernando knew Victoria was a very authentic human being. He knew she took pride in her roots and he knew Plaza Mayor felt like her home. He made sure she would move -with her new guard- in a house in Plaza Mayor. He genuinely cared for her, the kind of feeling that could be easily mistaken for love. Maybe Fernando loved Victoria and, maybe, Victoria loved Fernando, but they never really thought of it. Their relation has been, up to this point, mostly professional, and the only instances that made them hug tightly were when they managed to make a step towards a better Spain. They were both dreamers and, even if they did not verbalise it too often, they both hoped for the so-called 'change'.
"It's not that bad", Victoria said to herself while exploring her new place. It was an art deco designed house, with two different areas separated by a long hall -her area and Sebastian's area. The living room was common for both areas, but it was spacious enough for Sebastian and Victoria to go on with their days without being forced to make awkward small-talks if they did not intend to. The new home also had a backyard with a spacious pool, a white table and three chairs.
It was a temporary home, of course, until 'the threat' disappeared, but little did Victoria and Fernando know that 'the threat' would last for as long as Victoria Diaz would be counselor.
"Miss!" a deep voice exclaimed from across the hall. "My name is Jose Garcia. At your disposal!" Sebastian said. Jose Garcia was his undercover identity. Such important missions cannot succed with real identities, and that was a well-known fact to Sebastian, just as much as it was to Lieutenant Reyes.
"Oh, just call me Victoria." she replied. That's when she turned around and their eyes met. "Jesus Christ, she looks like she was painted by the Gods themselves", Sebastian said. He never met her before and, as a busy man, he never had time to check the news. Her bright green eyes were examining him head to toe, and he felt like not even the most powerful creature on the entire Universe could intimidate him the way her glaze did. She was not tall, but she wasn't short either. Her figure was not sculpted, she did not look like a model, she looked even better -she looked extremely human. Her hair was brown, her skin was tanned and, based on the tan lines, he could tell her chocolate tint was only seasonal. She was wearing a long, red dress, and Christian Louboutin high heels, with curls that fell perfectly underneath her breasts, outlining her upside curves.
They sat in silence for a moment, or two, or three, or ten moments, examining each other like two love-birds on a first date. Sebastian forgot he was on a mission, while Victoria forgot the man standing in front of her was her personal guard -and chauffeur. They might have undressed each other mentally during their stare, they might have even made each other finish in their imagination. But they were strangers, strangers tied by a deceitful story. A false threat.
****
Victoria fell asleep early that night. She spent almost the entire day unpacking and making the new scenery seem more like home -her home. Meeting Juan -or Sebastian, however one wants to call him- definitely had an effect on her. She was so focused on work, and making her life worth mentioning, that she forgot men existed. She was not going to let him too close, after all, he was an employee and she knew better than to mix pleasure with work. But thoughts can not be controlled.
"You are in terrible danger, Miss." Juan said while crawling in her bed. "I have to keep you safe." he whispered on her neck.
With a quick move, he pulled her on top of him, while taking off her night gown. He was experimenting each centimeter of his body, while she could feel his breaths getting heavier and heavier.
"How are you going to keep me safe?" Victoria asked in between sighs of pleasure.
He moaned. His hands were placed on his breasts, holding them tight while his thumbs were teasing her nipples. He then switched positions with an effortless move, placing her under his sculpted body.
"You'll be safe as long as I am next to you", he moaned on her neck. He was about to enter, but he stopped for a second. "But I don't think that's safe enough. Just to make sure all the caution reasons are respected, I'll have to be even closer. I am going to have to be inside of you." he whispered over her lips.
But she woke up. She didn't even get to taste a glimpse of how the idea of him would be the most intimate part of herself. She woke up, and, oh, she wished she didn't. She was alone in her bed, with drops of sweat dripping down her forehead and with a strange feeling between her legs. "Fuck", she said, "what a nightmare". But she was well aware it was not a nightmare.
