by Christina OW
Dave stood there like a caged man, with his one craving in his arms. He couldn’t see how he could resist her anymore, especially now that her body loosened at his touch and not tightened as he had grown so accustomed to. He felt his body tickle with yearning as he pulled her closer into him. He was an opportunist and a capitalist at work at some parts of his life and he wasn’t ashamed of it, it got him what he wanted, and now he was going to shamelessly try his luck with Maria, he would stop only when she asked him to, not a moment before.
Maria closed her eyes and enjoyed the intimate moment they were sharing. She felt Dave’s fingertips under her chin as they pushed her head gently upwards, then she felt his hard soft lips capture hers in a slow sweet kiss. Most women may not think much of it, some may forget it the second it was over, but she wouldn’t. Every close, loving moment she and Dave shared, she stored in her heart. She hadn’t experienced... whatever this was, neither had she experienced receiving tenderness, without paying for it with so much more, nor kindness that would instantly turn into pain filled wickedness. No, unlike all the other women she’d met and known, unlike Jane and Edna who found men who truly loved them, she hadn’t experienced the true meaning of love, this was special to her and she was going to treasure it for the rest of her life.
She didn’t protest, nor pull away when she felt herself lifted up, then laid down on her back before something weighty lay on top of her, all the while Dave’s lips still slowly dancing with hers. She didn’t feel dirty, nor suffocated when his hands travelled all over her, exploring her body, instead, felt a new fire of desire burn inside her. She loved it, she loved him.
Dave pulled reluctantly away from her lips, “Do you want me to stop?” he asked, in between the kisses he planted on her neck and down her open shirt to the mid of her breasts. When he reached a crescent long scar, he let his lips linger there longer, replacing the pain she must have felt with love.
Maria fisted her hand in his hair, as her other hand latched tightly on his broad shoulder, “That depends.” she gasped out. She wished they didn’t have to stop, she was enjoying the electric volts his lips were sending through her body.
“On what?” his breath got more raged, his body tightened even more when he unfastened one more button with his tongue exposing more of her soft skin. There was no going back, he was a lawyer convincing people is what he did for a living.
“On how long you want Izzy to be in therapy.” a chuckle managed to escape past her gasps as she silently encouraged him to keep making his way down her torso.
“What?” he looked up at her, his chin resting on her chest.
“Look behind you.” she said, opening her eyes.
Dave turned to find Izzy knocking the spoon and fork on the table. She didn’t look at all disturbed, as she went on with her loud drumming, which he hadn’t noticed. For the first time he wished she wasn’t around. With a frustrated groan he sat upright pulling Maria up with him.
“I forgot she was here.”
“I didn’t.” she sat there, her hands limp in his as she waited for her body to recover, “Especially with all the noise she’s making.”
“I didn’t hear it.” the side of his lips rose naughtily, “I was too... engrossed trying to have my way with you.”
Maria moved closer to him, her lips close to touching his, “I didn’t, I’m a mom.”
“I’m a dad.” he felt the fire waken at their closeness. He wanted to kiss her again and forget his daughter was there, again.
“That’s different. Apart from the baby oven and the feeding system in our bodies, we also have a baby sensor installed in our heads.”
“So, you are the parents and we are just the assistants, is that what you are saying?” he placed his hands on her back, and pulled her closer to him, her legs wide and he in the middle.
“I’m just calling a spade a spade. We make, with your help and God’s blessings, babies. We protect and feed them while they are inside us.”
Dave put a hand on her belly, “Inside here? This is where the magic happens?” he said, interrupting her.
She combed her fingers through his hair, “Yes. Then we birth, feed and nurture them until they are old enough to be independent.”
“That’s where we come in and do all the hard work.”
“No, just a quarter of the hard work. Half of it is already done and the other quarter we do.”
“We really do have it easy, don’t we?” He brushed her long hair behind her shoulder.
“Very easy.” she looked up when she heard Izzy fuss. Her face was beginning to crease as she was about to start crying. She was tired of being ignored, “I think it’s time you do your assisting job before Izzy’s whimpers become wails.”
Dave moaned, “We should have had her go out to a very long lunch with Carol.” he captured Maria’s lips and pulled her down for a kiss, “Maybe she’ll sooth herself if we completely ignore her.”
Maria punched him in the shoulder and pushed him away, easily sliding off him, “Would you go!”
Dave stood up and went to Izzy. He lifted her out of her chair and held her, “What’s wrong with my little princess?”
“She’s hungry.” Maria buttoned her shirt as she stood up, “Where did you learn to unbutton shirts with your mouth?”
“It’s all in the tongue.” he declared proudly, “I learned it in college.”
Maria moved to the table and stood in front of him. She picked up Izzy’s food and began feeding her, “You must have had a lot of practice.” she baited him. She wasn’t jealous, just curious.
Dave chuckled, “Lots...” he stopped, catching himself. Tensed, he looked at Maria who had an amused look on her face, “You are smooth.” he said, relaxing.
“Your daddy left you starving to do one of his college tricks.” Maria spoke to Izzy putting another spoon full in her mouth.
“Her mommy had me distracted, and I’m still distracted.” Dave’s smile faded when he saw Maria’s face dull, “You still aren’t comfortable with it?”
Maria wiped Izzy’s chin, “Not really. It just feels weird.”
“What do you mean weird?”
“Like I’m counting my chickens before they hatch weird.” When Dave didn’t say anything, she went on, “I keep expecting something to go wrong, like at any moment I’ll be robbed of everything I’ve grown to love over the past few months.”
“No one is going to rob you of anything.” Dave said, decisively. He knew what she was scared of, and he was scared of it too. Ricky was about to pounce and destroy their lives, but Dave was determined not to let him.
“Ricky will. He’s waiting somewhere, planning how he’ll hurt me the most.” Maria spoke quietly, momentarily submerged in her pain, “He’ll go after Michael first, that I’m sure of.” her eyes trailed to Izzy, “And if he knows about you, and Izzy, he’ll go after her then you.”
Dave wiped the tear away from her face, and then settled his hand on her cheek. She leaned into it, “He’ll torture me by taking all of you away from me before he kills me. I’m sure of it, I’m very sure of it.”
“Let me handle Ricky, you have a birthday party to plan, remember?”
Maria smiled, “You always handle everything. You’ve made my life so very different, and so much easier since I met you.”
“I’m the assistant, I’m just doing my job assisting you.”
Maria took Izzy from him, “Okay, but first, you need to eat.”
Chapter Seventeen
Dave walked out to the driveway, to welcome the kids and their parents as he waited for his own parents. Maria had done a great job with the party. Everything inside and out was blue and pink, she went as far as getting him a blue shirt and herself a pink one, why, he had no idea. She was still very nervous about meeting his parents and was even more nervous when her mother hadn’t shown up yet. But he was sure she was coming, with a companion he was anxiously waiting to talk to, face to face.
Dave pulled out his ringing phon
e from his pocket and answered it, “Hello?”
“Hi, it’s your favorite jeweler.”
“Hi, where’s my stuff?” Dave moved to the curb when he saw Carol’s car approaching.
“Your secretary has them. I thought I should keep it safe and just inform you who has them presently.”
“She’s very trust worthy.” He opened the door for Carol and greeted her with a smile as she got out.
“Whether or not she is, that’s your business. You would have been paying for those for years, that’s how expensive they are.”
He hugged her and took the two boxes she offered him, “Good thing I got you out of jail and you owe me a favor.” He put the boxes in his pocket without checking, he was sure Carol had already done so.
“That concludes our business Greer.”
“That is until you get arrested again.” he hung up the phone and stashed it back into his pocket, “Did you look inside?” He asked Carol as they walked towards the noisy house.
“You know I did. They are beautiful, but I don’t see Maria letting them wear them any time soon.”
“I can be very convincing.” he stopped when he heard a car pull up, it was his parents, “Go in and help Maria out.”
Carol’s face creased fearfully, “I don’t particularly like kids, except your two.”
Dave chuckled as he walked backwards away from her, “I know that, their parents are around, she just needs help with the food.”
“Can I get one of those shirts, they are pretty stylish.” She yelled.
“Ask Maria.” he turned around and walked faster to his parents, a huge smile on his face. He picked up his mother and hugged her tight, spinning her around, “Mom, I’ve missed you.”
“Oh my baby, I’ve missed you too.” kissing the top of his head before he put her down, “you’ve let your hair grow out.” She said as she ruffled his hair.
“I haven’t gotten the time to cut it.” He laughed, pushing his hair back in place. Then he turned to his father, his cheery mood dissolved, “Dad.” Dave said with his professional tone, extending his hand to his father for a hand shake.
“Son.” he responded in the same tone, “And who’s that?” Raising his eyebrow.
“Maria Martinez, Mr. Greer.” Maria offered her own hand. She had seen them from the window and ran out to greet them, after a long debate with herself.
That morning she was a nervous wreck about meeting Dave’s parents. Even with the little she knew about them, she was still scared to death about meeting them. She even had a hard time deciding how to style her hair, to hide her scares and yet look good and proper for them. She had decided on putting a head band on and letting some front hair loose to cover her scars.
She could see Dave’s resemblance to his mother, all his looks he got from her. It explained why he looked like a pretty boy when he wasn’t so serious. She was an inch taller than Maria, with a tight figure that was outlined by the sun dress she had on and had a short blond bob which seemed to suit her well. Her blue eyes were what pulled at Maria most, they were exactly like Dave’s, if it was dark and all she could see were the eyes, she would mistake Dave for his mother. He got a lot from his father too. The serious no nonsense look, that was accentuated by the brown cardigan and khaki pants he had on that screamed snob, and most probably his temper too, Maria thought. They had matching physiques, and a certain distance between them which she was sure must have occurred due to a silly argument. Dave was a stubborn, strong headed man, and she knew his father was exactly the same.
“I’m Lily. Dave has told me a lot about you.” His mother hugged her, and then wrapped a hand around her waist.
“Really?” she looked up at Dave with a warning in her eyes, and he winked at her with a smile, “I hope all good things?”
Lily turned Maria and walked with her towards the house, “You really have been a great support system for him after the Amy fiasco.”
“Well, he’s helped me a lot too.” she said smiling back at Dave.
“I’m sure he has.” Mr. Greer said under his breath. The statement sounded like an accusation, with an undercurrent of suspicion and disappointment.
Dave turned to him, his jaw hard and his expression irate, “Of course father, why else would I have her living in my house and raising my daughter as her own.” he said harshly. Maria and Lily stopped and turned to face them, both worried there was a volcano about to erupt.
Mr. Greer’s eyes bulged out in shock. He stared at Maria, then at Dave, “Isn’t it too soon after your divorce to be moving on?”
“Actually not soon enough, but I’m happy with my new family.” he spoke with a wicked smile on his face.
“What?” he exclaimed, shocked. That was all the encouragement Maria and Lily needed to move in.
“Dave, let’s go into the house and see Elizabeth.” His wife said softly.
“Are you telling me you are already contemplating marriage?” he asked harshly completely ignoring his wife, “Without consulting me!”
“As I told you once before, it’s my life and I’ll do as I damn well please!”
“Oh look! My mom is here!” Maria said pulling Dave behind her. She’d seen enough of that angry exchange and she couldn’t see any more if she was to trust her knees not to buckle under her.
Mr. and Mrs. Greer turned and walked into the house as Maria and Dave stood at the curb. Dave shifted his feet around, annoyed he’d let his father get to him. It had been years since they had a talk without it ending in a fight, and it was all because he didn’t want to work for him.
“I thought you said your mother was here?” He said harsher than he had intended to.
“Cool down, I just used it as an excuse to get out of that situation.” she shifted to stand in front of him, “What just happened? The relationship you described to me wasn’t what I just saw.”
Dave brushed his hand over his face and looked down at Maria, “That was before I discovered other job options apart from working for my father.”
Rich families problems, Maria thought to herself, “He’s a lawyer?”
“He owns his own firm in Boston. I wanted to be independent, to build my own name, but he wanted me to continue his legacy.”
“Let me guess, Dave Greer Sr. cut you off and rebellious Dave Greer Jr. moved to New York to prove a point.” she joked, turning to face the approaching car, “and now you can’t stand each other and your mother is caught in the middle.”
“Wow, your psychic,” he said without humor, “Well, I’m glad you find it amusing because I’m not going to be the only one in a bad mood in a few moments.”
Miguel fidgeted on his seat when he spotted Maria out the window. She was so grown up, beautiful and happy. He felt his chest tighten as he imagined all the good he had missed in her life and all the bad he could have prevented.
Edna put a comforting hand over his, “Calm down. Everything will be fine.”
“She’ll hate me, especially since I just appeared at her son’s birthday party.”
Edna leaned in and kissed him on the lips, “Your grandson’s birthday party.” She knew exactly what they were walking into, and it was a thousand times worse than what Miguel imagined, “let’s get it done once and for all. Rip it off like a band aid.”
“I should leave my gun in the car, just in case she gets a hold of it and shoots me with it.” He bent down and placed it under the driver’s seat.
“You walk in there with a gun and she will kill you. Remember, you and Dave need to talk.” When the car came to a stop she got out and hugged her very excited daughter, “My baby!”
“Mama, I’ve missed you so much!” Maria hugged her mother tight, compensating for all the months she couldn’t. She let go after a long while, but kept one arm securely around her waist, “Mama, this is Dave.”
“I finally meet the knight in shining armor.” Maria pinched her on her side which only made her laugh, “It’s nice to meet you.” She let go of Maria to hug him.
Edna looked at him even more nervous. She swallowed the bitter lump in her throat and turned to her daughter, counting down to the eruption, “Honey, I brought someone with me.”
“Jane?” Maria asked, excitedly bouncing on her feet.
“No, me.” The hoarse, heavily accented voice came flowing out before he stepped out of the car.
Maria looked at him, her smile slowly fading. His face was familiar to her, but she couldn’t place him, “Mama, who’s...” her eye brows shot up as she slowly recognized him, shave off the white goatee, change his green eyes to brown, tighten his skin and grow out his hair, he was a splitting image of Michael. “Miguel?” she whispered out.
Edna moved slowly closer to her and grabbed her hand, which Maria immediately pulled away, “Yes, I brought your father with me.”
“Why?” she asked harshly, tears stinging her eyes. She felt her temper flare, but she didn’t know why. She had no reason to be angry at him, apart from his abandonment and all the bad things he could have prevented by staying with her. She was angrier at her mother for taking him back and bringing him to her home.
“Because you and Michael need to know him and maybe catch up.”
“Catch up?” a pained smile pulled over Maria’s face, “I think it’s too late for us to catch up, especially if we’ve never met.”
“Maria, just listen.” Dave whispered above her head, “It would mean a lot to Michael if he met his grandfather. It would be the best gift you could ever give him.”