“What is that?” Zymir asked.
“I was pregnant in my fallopian tubes, and that type of pregnancy can’t survive.”
My heart began to thump loudly as I described to Zymir the loss of the pregnancy and how I had to have the pregnancy removed through salpingostomy. The laser surgery further reduced my chances of getting pregnant.
“Did it take its toll on your marriage?” Zymir asked softly when I was quiet for several minutes.
“It could have, but Luis wouldn’t allow it. He was my strength during that time of my life. My husband was so patient and thoughtful. When everyone was pushing me to consider adoption or foster care, he didn’t push me either way. Instead, Luis reinforced his love for me with or without children. It didn’t matter to him if it was just the two of us the rest of our lives; he believed that was our destiny. And if it were our destiny, we would still be happy.”
I didn’t even realize I was crying until Zymir’s thumb swiped my cheek.
Looking up at him, I said, “He was diagnosed with cancer the following year, and two years later, he passed.”
This time Zymir closed his eyes and pulled me closer.
“You have had a rough time, my love.”
I nodded my head against his chest. Weariness had overtaken me, and I was no longer willing to talk. I needed rest, and he was content to let me do just that. Within moments I fell asleep nestled in his arms.
“MAMÃE AND PAPAI!” I heard Zymir exclaim.
I had just woken up from my nap when I heard the ringing of his doorbell. As I struggled to come out of my sleep, he pulled his body from beside mine and threw on his sweatpants to head downstairs.
Damn! That was one fine man. He always messed my head up anytime he wore a pair of grey sweatpants. Had me wanting to jump the hell out of him.
Slowly, I made my way out of bed and prepared to get dressed. We needed to eat because if he felt anything like I did, he had no energy. The only activity we had engaged in today was making love.
Zymir and I had spent the entire day in bed talking, making love, and sleeping. Neither of us was inclined to do much of anything.
But now that I heard him say words that sounded very similar to Mom and Pop panic set in. Sitting on the edge of the bed, I clutched the sheets in my hand, eyeing my clothes on the other side of the room.
I wanted to get dressed and slip away unnoticed to my place. But there was no way that I could do that with his parents downstairs. Maybe...
“Hey, babe,” Zymir said, walking into his bedroom.
His hands were stuffed into the pockets of his sweats, slightly pulling them out and away from his body.
“What?” he asked when I smiled up at him.
“Was that your cover?”
Ducking his head slightly, he chuckled.
“Can’t be answering the door in my condition. Not when it’s my parents,” he said, nodding his head down towards his cock in its semi-erect state.
“Yeah, so I heard. Are they leaving?”
Lifting an eyebrow, he said, “No. They just got here.”
“Oh. Soooo...you were going to take them out back or something?”
“Take. Them. Out back?”
“Yeah.”
“Karina, my parents aren’t animals, babe.”
“I’m not suggesting they are. But maybe you could take them to the back of the house while I make my great escape.”
“Why would you want to escape?” he asked, frowning.
“Hello? It’s your parents. The last thing I want to do is walk downstairs from the top floor of your house, where your bedroom is. It’s not a good look,” I said, moving toward my clothes.
“There’s nothing to be ashamed of, baby. We’re two adults who are in a relationship, and one of the adults happens to want the other to meet his parents.”
I laughed as my eyes widened. “Now, that’s not about to happen,” I said, waving a finger at Zymir.
Zymir moved quickly behind me, pulling me into his arms after I’d pulled on my blouse.
Kissing my neck, he said, “Come on, babe. It’s not that difficult. We agreed to do this.”
“Not meet your parents!” I hissed.
“Babe, come on, my parents are very cool. Besides, they already know that you’re up here, and they’re expecting me to return with you,” Zymir explained.
“Wait! You told them I was up here?” I asked, pulling away from him and glaring at him over my shoulder.
“Yes, I didn’t think that it would be an issue.”
“Zymir? Honey, does she not want to meet us?”
That was his mother’s voice, and I could tell she was at the bottom of the stairwell.
“Just a second, Mamãe,” Zymir called back.
“Awwww,” I moaned, dropping my face into my hands.
He laughed and pressed another kiss against the nape of my neck. “Come on, girl. Let’s get this over with.”
“That’s just it. I’m not a girl. She’s going to have a fit when she sees that I stole her baby,” I said.
He tensed and released me before turning me around to face him. “That’s where you’re wrong. I’m not a baby. And I hope you’re not ashamed of the age difference between us, Karina. Because I’m not.”
“I’m not, baby. But that doesn’t mean that your mother won’t have certain feelings about this. I mean, after all, you’re her baby. And no matter what you say you are. That’s just the way it is with mothers and their sons,” I argued.
Zymir grabbed my hands between his and closed his eyes. Inhaling deeply, he sighed and then opened his eyes once more.
“Karina, I love you.”
“I know.”
“And you love me. And if we’re going to do this thing together and move forward in a relationship, we have to be open to welcoming each other in our lives. My parents are the world to me, and you’re a very important part of my world. All I want is for you to come and meet them. I’m not asking you to have dinner with them or anything. Just come down and say hello,” he said.
“Fine. Damnit, I’ll go!” I griped, pulling our hands apart and picking my jeans up from the floor.
Rolling my eyes, I took my time getting dressed while he laughed at me.
CHAPTER 31 – ZYMIR
I knew Karina wasn’t comfortable with meeting my parents so soon after agreeing to start a relationship. And it wasn’t what I planned either, but my parents were there. There was no way that I could get rid of them, and I didn’t want her sneaking out of my house to return to hers.
I meant what I said. We were two adults having consensual sex in an adult relationship. There was nothing to be ashamed of or apologize about.
Yet, I did not expect my mother’s reaction when she met Karina.
“Oh, you’re a beautiful one,” my mother cooed when Karina and I stepped into my living room.
“Mamãe and Papai, I’d like to introduce you to my girlfriend, Karina Kendricks. Karina, these are my parents, Francisca and Paulo Espinola,” I introduced, ushering her in front of me.
“Yes, you’re absolutely gorgeous. The two of you would create beautiful grandchildren!” my mother exclaimed, clapping her hands together.
I felt Karina stiffen, saw her swallow, and then press her lips together into a tight smile.
“Francisca, calm down. He said, ‘girlfriend,’ not fiancé. You’ve skipped over marriage and started the two on grandchildren already,” my father said, moving past my mother to extend his hand to Karina.
She graciously accepted it and exchanged polite greetings with him before looking back to me. Grabbing her hand, I pulled her with me and took a seat on the love seat across from my parents on the couch.
“Karina, you look familiar to me,” my mother said, tapping her finger against her lower lip.
“She has a YouTube show on cooking,” I explained.
“A what?” my mother asked.
“Zymir, you know your mother doesn’t watch anything online,” my
father reminded me.
“I forgot, Ma is still stuck in the twentieth century,” I explained to Karina.
“I don’t think that’s such a bad thing. Sometimes, I wish we all could be. Things were easier before the internet boom,” Karina said.
“Finally! A woman after my own heart.”
“But, I must admit, it’s the way that I earn a living through my cooking show.”
“That’s where I know you from!” my mother declared excitedly.
“Where, amada?” my father asked, calling her sweetheart in Portuguese.
“You owned a restaurant a few years ago, Level 51,” my mother said, her eyes glowing with excitement.
“Yes, I did,” Karina acknowledged.
“That used to be one of Fran’s favorite places to eat outside of her kitchen,” my father explained. “We frequented there for date night.”
“I’m glad that you loved it.”
“We did, and I surely miss it. Any woman who can cook the way you did has my vote,” my mother said.
“Take that and run with it,” my father said. “She doesn’t eat food cooked by too many others.”
“I can vouch for that.”
“Well, it’s an honor to know that you approved of my restaurant and frequented it,” Karina said.
“But of course I would.”
I changed the subject wanting to avoid a sensitive topic for Karina. She listened as my mother shared stories of my childhood growing up in Rio and the challenges I faced moving to the States permanently. We had family here that we visited at least twice each year before we relocated and my mother went through the entire family line, as she shared those stories.
Karina discussed some of her own childhood stories, sharing with my parents that her parents died three years earlier in a house fire. My parents extended words of comfort to her.
When they finished, my mother expertly maneuvered the topic of conversation back to personal territory.
“Karina, my Zymir, doesn’t allow anyone into his life easily, and he doesn’t allow them to meet us. You being here with me today and chatting like this means a lot,” she said, giving Karina a sharp glance and then looking to me. “I trust my son’s judgment, and I know that you must be a very special woman to him.”
“Zymir is a very special man to me. One I care about very dearly and whose taken care of my heart,” Karina said, glancing at me.
“I’m glad. I have a feeling that my grandkids will be well taken care of when you two finally produce some,” my mother said, sitting back in her seat comfortably.
“Ma, we haven’t exactly moved to that stage yet.”
“Then what stage are you at?”
“The getting to know you stage,” I said, giving my mother a pointed glance.
“No. That’s not what your Avó said. According to her, you and Karina have been together for a few months now,” my mother said in a matter of fact tone.
Karina’s eyes widened, and she mouthed the words “who?” to me.
“My Avó is my grandmother. Well, Ma, I hate to disappoint you, but as much as I love your mother, we both know she’s a nosy, meddling, busybody,” I said, laughing affectionately.
“You’d better not say that to her,” my father laughed.
“Oh, trust me, I won’t. But Karina and I have only known each other for a few months. We’ve been together a short while. We’re just really getting to know one another,” I explained.
“Mmm...seems you already know each other. You were upstairs working on making grandbabies, no?” my mother asked, lifting her eyebrow as she tossed her mass of blonde curls over her shoulders.
Karina coughed and pressed her lips together, fighting off a smirk. Reaching out for her hand, I pulled it into mine.
“Ma, I don’t think that’s a topic we’re comfortable discussing with you. But trust me when I say that we’re still getting to know one another. We’re not thinking about starting a family or discussing marriage,” I said.
“Karina, don’t you want to start a family, sweetheart?” my mother asked, looking at Karina.
Clearing her throat, Karina started to speak up. I squeezed her hand, letting her know that it was okay.
“Karina—”
“No, Zymir. It’s okay, really.”
“Are you sure?”
“Yes, I’m sure,” she said, smiling at me and turning her attention back to my mother. “Mrs. Espinola—”
“Call me, Fran, honey,” my mother said with a lovely smile.
Although her questions were intrusive, you couldn’t help but love her because she meant no harm.
“Fran, it’s true, Zymir and I have known each other for months. But it’s been recent that I decided to explore a relationship with him. We’re not at the point where we’re discussing marriage. Honestly, if we were, I’d have to tell him no.”
There was a startled gasp from my mother, and my father squeezed his arm around her shoulder tighter. I knew she couldn’t imagine anyone telling me they weren’t interested in marrying me. In my mother’s eyes, I was the catch of the century.
“Is it because it’s too soon?” my mother asked.
“That, and I’ve been married before, M...Fran. My husband passed away three years ago, and it took me that long to consider becoming involved with someone else. The thought of marrying isn’t something that I’m open to. Not at this time. And if I were, I wouldn’t be a candidate for giving you grandchildren.”
“Well, yes, I noticed you are a bit older than our Zymir, but they’re doing—”
“Francisca!” my father admonished before I could speak up.
Smiling at him, Karina said, “It’s okay. Zymir, Mr. Espinola—”
“Paulo,” my father insisted.
“Paulo...she has every right to be interested in your son’s future. That’s why I have to be honest with you. I’m not able to have children. So, that’s not something that I can offer Zymir.”
My house grew quiet as both my parents considered this. Suddenly my mother clapped her hands together.
“You two could always adopt. And if you chose not to do that, there’s still the option of Francisco,” my mother shared.
I groaned and closed my eyes.
“Francisco?” Karina asked.
“My older brother,” I explained.
“Right, and we can always wait until he marries and has children,” my mother said.
“Lord, I wonder if Francisco knows he’s about to be married off,” my father said.
“Probably not,” I replied. “The last I knew he wasn’t involved with anyone.”
“He met a nice little girl that he’s been dating for six weeks now,” my mother said.
“And you’re already marrying them off?” I asked.
“It could work out that way,” she replied.
“It could,” I replied.
“Just as...Karina might change her mind about becoming Mrs. Zymir Espinola and adopting a bunch of beautiful grandbabies for me,” my mother cooed, causing Karina to laugh.
The sound of her laughter was the best sound I’d heard in a long time.
EPILOGUE – CHAPTER 32 – ZYMIR (9 Months Later)
“This is nice, Karina. I’m glad you came up with this idea,” I said, holding her in my arms.
We were relaxing on the chaise lounge at my house out back by the pool. Karina convinced me to host a cookout at my home for our family and friends.
Bishop, Kole, and Darnell were there, and my brother, Francisco, had come into town. We hadn’t seen one another in two years since I last visited him in Dallas.
Karina’s sister, Lori, her husband, Jordan, and new baby, little Jordan, were there. Her cousin, Rhonda, had come with her boyfriend, Kevin, and her daughter, Nicole, and son, Nicolo. Karina’s friend, Russell, and his wife, Sabrina.
Russell, who I knew was a friend of Luis’ was cautious toward me at the beginning of the afternoon and seldom spoke. The brother was in observation mode, and that wa
s okay with me. He felt about Karina like an older brother, might his younger sister.
I did not allow that to bother me one bit. My woman and I were in a good place, and that was all that mattered. I was certain that anyone watching could detect how much I loved her and how much she loved me. And throughout the afternoon, Russell finally warmed up to me.
“I’m glad you were okay with it,” she said, kissing my lips.
I pinched her on the ass.
“Ouch! What was that for?”
“I’ve been asking you forever to bring your people around me. You were the one that held me off for a while.”
“I know, baby. I just had to be certain we were good.”
“Karina, I’ve always been good, babe. I’m glad you’re sure of it now. But I also held this celebration in honor of you. I’m so happy you and The Cooking Network worked things out. I always believed you deserved your show.”
“I’m glad, too. And for a cool seven and a half mill, I don’t mind changing the show to Tomatoes & Wine.”
“It’s a nice incentive that you get to keep Simply Divine on YouTube, and that’s a separate revenue stream from Tomatoes & Wine.”
“Yes, as long as I stick to the terms of the contract, ensuring that SD’s content doesn’t infringe on what we’re doing for T&W. But today is more than that to me, baby. Family is important to you, and it’s important to me. I figured if we’re going to keep going the way that we are, then we may as well introduce our family and friends to each other.”
“You’ve come a long way, Karina. I don’t think I could have seen this last year.”
“Last year, you weren’t worthy of me speaking to you,” she laughed.
“Oh? So, it’s like that?”
“No, but it was. At least, in my mind, it was. But I’m glad you opened me up,” Karina said, nuzzling against my neck.
My eyes scanned the area to make sure that no one was looking. Grabbing Karina’s ass, I muttered, “Mm-hmm. In more ways than one. You didn’t think this young boy had nothing to offer you, did you?”
Desire Page 17