by Ginger Sharp
I yell out to him, “Yes, and you better wash up if you want to stop at Olivia’s house.”
Parker walks back into the house after waving at me. My brothers are staring at me.
Paolo raises his eyebrow. “Who is Olivia?”
I smile. “Oh, Olivia Nora, the new American school teacher. Parker has a thing for her already, but she is still married.”
Lasaro tilts his head. “Then it is Señora Nora, Pedro. Please remember your respect.”
I nod. “I know, you are right. She just told me to call her Olivia.”
Paolo shifts forward. “You like this new teacher, Pedro?”
I shake my head. “No, No, Parker does. She is an older woman.”
Lasaro moves back. “Good, stay away. Do not be like Parker by pursuing a married woman.”
I nod my head as Parker rejoins us. My brothers wave as they leave off to pick up their families for church.
I pull up to Olivia’s house to explain to Ramón that this is where Grandma used to live. Parker jumps out of my pickup truck and knocks on the front door. Parker looks over his shoulder at me. He pounds his fist harder on the door as he speaks out, “Olivia, it is me, Parker.”
The door opens and out runs three large dogs. Ramón lets out a shriek as they run by the truck. Olivia appears at the door like she had just been awoken up from sleep. She is wearing little pink shorts and a tank top. Her hair is down and all messy covering her breasts since it obvious she is not wearing a bra. She looks completely sexy. She puts her hand up to shield her eyes from the bright sun while she looks up at Parker.
Parker steps back to take her in and she moves her arm to cover her breasts. “I have come to let you know that church is at noon and family day begins after 2 pm.”
She shifts her weight and her hip kicks out. “I do not go to church and what is this family day?”
Parker smiles. “Just a casual gathering of the townspeople. If you bring a dish it is free, otherwise you need to make a small donation that goes to the church.”
She laughs. “What kind of church is this?”
I stare are her confused, as I get out of the truck. I walk up towards her and she sees that I am with Parker as well. “Hi, Señora Nora. It is a Catholic church.”
She looks at me strangely. “Hi, Pedro. What happen to calling me Olivia?”
I point over my shoulder. “Ramón is in the truck.”
She nods. “Okay, I got it. I am not a Catholic, but my husband is, so I will pass on church. Maybe I will come down for family day.”
I am staring down at her milky pale skin while my eyes dance over her body. I keep staring at her and I can tell I have made her uncomfortable. “You will come down for family day. You are going to love it. Now go back inside,” I said in a stern deep voice.
She gazes up at me, locking her eyes to mine. “Sure, I will be there. I am leaving you two now.” She calls her dogs into the house and goes back inside, closing the door behind her.
Parker turns to me. ‘What just happened?”
I turn heading off to get in the truck and Parker follows me. “I think she is scared of me.”
Parker shakes his head. “I do not know. Why did you demand that she be there today? I think you maybe did scare her.”
I glance over at Parker. “Did you see how she looked? I could not peel my eyes away from her.”
Parker starts laughing at me. “So, you were looking. Good for you, Pedro. I think you just made a huge step, but please do not tell me I am going to have to compete against you to win Olivia’s love.”
I shake my head. “No, that is not what will happen. She is married and I think I became angry with her standing there looking all lusty in front of men that are not her husband. I think I am protective of her. Why?”
Parker looks over. “Not sure, man. Maybe because she is your son’s teacher?”
I shrug my shoulder trying to make sense of the way that I am feeling. Why would I use that tone with her? I must make a point to apologize to her later today.
After church was over, Parker ran off to go find Olivia. My brothers pull me down to the field to play some fútbol with the kids. My brothers pull off their shirts to let me know that the game is on. As do I, and the men about 10 of us are seriously playing. Then I see Parker walking down with Olivia. I call Parker to join my team as Olivia sits down on the sand to watch. Parker runs over to me as I tell him what position to play as he too removes his shirt. We play around for the next fifteen minutes. I turn to Paolo, patting him on the back at his failed goal. He grabs me by the arm. “Is that the teacher you were speaking about?” I nod. He smiles at me. “She is stunning. I am having a hard time keeping my eyes from her.”
I shake my head. “Yes, very beautiful, but she is married and so are you. Let’s play.”
I see Paolo speaking to Lasaro. Lasaro glances at Olivia then he nods back to Paolo. Lasaro kicks his ball over past Olivia. She gets up running after the ball with my brothers eyes following after her. She tosses it over to Parker as we continue to play. Once we are done playing, Parker runs back to Olivia. Olivia glances over at me and nods. I stand there watching her walk off.
“What is the matter, Pedro? Did you want that one?” Paolo slaps my shoulder.
“No, I think she is scared of me. Plus, there is this odd connection between us. She is living in Grandma’s old house.”
Paolo takes a step back. “Odd connection? She is more like my age, right?”
I shrug. “I think so. But that is not what I feel. It is like a protectiveness. I just do not know.”
Paolo strangely scowls at me. “Hum, protectiveness. Are you sure you do not want her? Because if you don’t then Parker is going to snatch that fine lady up.”
I shake my head. “No, I do not. She is married and I do not think Parker is going to get a piece of her. There’s something odd about her.”
I walk away, heading back to the Cantina. I see Parker and Olivia sitting at a table far from the rest of the people. They are laughing and having a good time. I take my plate of food to my family and eat. I glance over at them from time to time.
Olivia gets up and heads over to the bar to get a drink. Lasaro kicks me under the table. “Stop staring and introduce her to the family.”
I get up and walk behind her at the bar. “Hi, I wanted to apologize for my tone this morning. I have no clue where that came from.”
She spins around. “Oh, hi, Pedro. No problem, you were right. I needed to get back in the house and put on more clothes.”
I tilt my head. “I never said that.”
She smiles. “That is what your body language was telling me. You had your son in the truck and I was inappropriate. I did not expect to have guests that early in the morning. I was up pretty late last night writing music.”
I nod, thinking that she is correct. That I was angry because my son was there. I glance over my shoulder. “I would like to introduce you to my family.”
She nods, following me over to the table. She smiles down at my sisters-in-law as I introduce her to everyone at our table. Olivia nods after making some small talk with them.
She looks up at me. “I should head home before it gets dark. I walked down and left the dogs behind. They are still adjusting to the howler monkeys.”
I laugh as I watch her say goodbye to Parker.
I sit back at the table and Paolo looks over at her walking up the hill. “Pedro, please drive the woman home. She is still new here and those jungle animals might get her scared. I think we need this teacher to stay a while since I have not seen you like this in years.”
I glare over at him. “It is not that way, Paolo. There is something about her. I guess something I missed out on.”
Lasaro looks at me oddly. “Yes, a woman in your life. Now go and bring her home.”
I shake my head as I stand up. “She feels like family to me. Like how Galiana takes care of me, all motherly.”
I drive my truck up the hill and slow down a
s I catch up to her. “Hi, Olivia, my brothers do not want you walking alone until you are more used to the jungle. I agree with them. Please get in to the truck.”
She smiles as she opens the door. “Very nice of your brothers and you.”
I glance over to her. “Yes, they worry.”
She laughs. “Do you always drive this fast. The truck is so bouncy.”
I straighten out my neck because I have heard the same before from Cyntia before she died. “I am sorry I will slow down.”
She settles back in the seat. “My husband is a maniac driver as well. You and your brothers all look so much alike and it appears that you are all very close.”
“Yes, we are very close. Is your family close?”
She laughs wickedly. “Nope, not at all. My son was not the nicest boy to me. My in-laws hate me and my husband blames me for it all. Only my daughter and my father love me.”
I look over at her. “What about your mother?”
“She died when I was a child. My father raised me.”
Oh, there is out connection, we were both raised by our fathers. “So, you were like me, raised by your father?”
She nods, “I guess so. I do miss my family. I guess each day will lessen the hurt.”
I pull up in front of her house and stop the truck. She opens the door and gets out. “Thank you, Pedro, for the ride.”
“It was no problem.”
She waves at me. I watch her as she opens the door of her home. She waves one more time before going inside.
I arrive back at the Cantina. I see Parker sitting at the bar. He waves over at me. “I see that you brought Olivia home.”
I nod. “My brothers insisted since she is still new here. Very nice lady, Parker.”
He smiles up to me. “Smoldering hot, isn’t she?”
I shake my head in agreement. “She seems very proper in the way that she carries herself.”
Parker laughs. “It is only a matter of time. I will charm her right into my arms.”
I laugh, knowing that he fully will win her over.
CHAPTER 3
Over the last few weeks I hardly saw Parker and Olivia. I was gearing up for spring planting with my brothers while Parker was off showing Olivia around. This is one of my busy times of the year when I drive back and forth to Limon for supplies. As I offload the truck, I can hear Parker’s motor bike coming up the hill. He stops, letting Ramón off the bike. I throw another seed bag into the storage shed as Parker runs over to help me.
“Hey, man, no ball playing today?” I ask as I look over at him.
He shakes his head. “Nah, too many day trippers today.”
I nod. “Thank you for bringing him home. Where is Olivia?”
He smiles. “Her daughter and her friend came down for a visit. Olivia grabbed them off the beach and took them in her Land Cruiser. She headed up the hill with them. Looks like she has her hands full with them two girls.”
I scowl. “Did she know that they were coming?”
Parker smiles. “Yes, she invited her down a few days ago.”
I raise my eyebrows. “That was quick.”
Parker nods. “Yes, that is what I though too. Maybe they have money and can purchase last-minute plane tickets. I just hope the daughter does not convince Olivia to go back home. Our friendship is really developing and I can see that she does really care for me.”
I shrug at him as he throws that last sack at me to put in the shed. I nod at him while he starts up his bike. I wave him off.
The next morning, I take Ramón to school. I pull up in front of the building. I follow him as he runs up the stairs. I watch him going to his classroom. As I walk back to my truck, I see Olivia’s Land Cruiser heading right at me. The truck stops short kicking up dirt and gravel. I hear Olivia screaming from inside the truck. The passenger side door opens then Olivia hops out.
She calls over to me. “Sorry, Pedro. Katie still does not know how to drive.”
I put my hand up to her and then the window rolls down. I see a petite girl with her hair pulled back in a ponytail wearing obnoxiously large black sunglasses. “What the fuck, Mommy? No power windows either? This is the biggest piece of shit truck ever. You should have had your Lexus SUV shipped down here.”
Olivia runs over to the window. “Katie, please this is where I work and there are children around. Watch your mouth! Do you remember how to get back?”
She shakes her head. “No, I am hung over as hell.”
I walk over to the window. “Olivia, she can follow me back up the hillside. I will lead her to your house.”
Olivia places her hand on my shoulder. “Thank you, Pedro. Katie can be a little wild sometimes.” Olivia pauses for a second. “Katie, this is Pedro. He will lead you back to the house.”
“Whatever! Can we go? I want to get back to bed. This is too early to wake up.”
Olivia shakes her head then turns to smile up at me. “Thank you, Pedro. I owe you one or maybe two.” She runs up the stairs meeting Parker with her morning coffee.
Katie shifts forward in the truck watching them then she smiles really big. “I see Mommy got herself a new man. Much yummier than Daddy.”
I put my hand on the Land Cruise door. “No they are just friends. Your parents are still married.”
Her head stares down at my hand. She slowly moves her face to look up at me. “Not for much longer. She needs someone who is going to be nice to her. Daddy is not a nice man. Let’s go, please. I want to go back to bed.”
I nod, stepping away to my truck. I climb in and I can hear her blaring music over the radio. She follows me as we pull out on to the road. I laugh, seeing how Olivia has her hands full with this daughter of hers. The girl has a nasty mouth too when she spoke to her mother. She was very condescending, even to me. I glance out the rearview mirror and she is following my truck rather close. I can tell that she can’t drive either. I pull up to the front of Olivia’s house and put my truck in park. She comes to an abrupt stop again. I watch her as she slides out of the Land Cruiser. She is tall, but so petite with that little frame of her. She is not even fully dressed. I think she has pajamas on. Kind of the same thing with the little shorts and tank top attire like what Olivia was wearing when we woke her up a few weeks ago. She waves me off as I watch her open the door of the house. The dogs plow in to her as she curses out at them. I laugh, watching her scream at them to get back in the house. I keep shaking my head staring at this girl whose pale milk skin turns red in anger. She has the dogs back in the house and waves at me before she closes the door. I still cannot believe that this is Olivia’s daughter. Katie is so unruly, completely not like Olivia.
Paolo and I finished working early so we decided to go to the Cantina for some lunch then wait for the children to be dismissed from school. We are talking about the schedule that we are facing with planting season. He sits up tall in his seat looking past me towards the beach. “I must have died and went to heaven.”
I turn glancing at what he was seeing. “Oh, that is Olivia’s daughter and her friend.”
I watch Paolo bite his bottom lip. “I have not seen two such lovely girls in such a long time.”
I laugh at him as I watch the girls sit at the bar. “Yes, they came in yesterday.”
He shakes his head. “That blonde one is built exactly like Olivia. Look at her breasts, so large and round. Oh, yea!”
I turn my head to look and caught her smiling at me. She walks over to the table, taking off those pathetic sunglasses. “Pedro, right?”
I smile up. “Yes, you are correct, Katie.” My mouth falls open as I notice her shocking beauty. Her eyes are crystal blue, twinkling back at me. My eyes fall to her lips which are so plump and pink. I shake my head. “Wow, it is amazing how much you look like your mother.”
She laughs. “Yes, I hear that a lot especially from my father when he isn’t brooding. I wanted to apologize for this morning. I was extremely hung over and I was very rude.”
I sco
wl then smile. “And you almost ran me down too.”
She places her hand over her mouth. “I forgot about that too. Very sorry, Pedro. That look you just gave me reminded me of my father.”
I stare up at her and she starts shaking her head.
“You just did it again, Pedro. Don’t do that around my mother or she will melt at your feet. My father would give her that look when he wanted her in bed with him.”
I raise my eyebrows at her. “Um Katie, I really do not think I needed to know that information.”
I hear Katie’s friend walk up behind her.
Katie turns to look at her. “Oh, Noelia, this is Pedro and…”
I look over at Paolo drooling. “This is my older brother, Paolo.” I turn back looking at the girls.
Noelia smiles. “Nice looking men they have here in Costa Rica. Too bad I am not straight.”
I watch as she runs her hand down Katie’s back, resting her hand around her hip.
Katie nods. “Well, I will let you men get back to your lunch and sorry again, Pedro.”
I smile up at Katie as she backs away to sit at the bar. Paolo looks over at me. “Oh my, Pedro. Did that just really happen?”
I stare over at his confusion. “What? Did I miss something?”
He laughs. “Yes, the girls are a couple.”
I open my eyes really wide. “Oh, wow, you are right. Now it makes sense why Noelia touched Katie in that way.”
He nods his head uncontrollably. He keeps looking back at the bar and over to me. He shakes his head, smiling ear to ear. “She keeps looking over at you, Pedro. Why don’t you invite them over to sit with us?”
I look over at the girls and my eyes lock with Katie’s eyes. I call over to her, “Katie, would you and Noelia like to join us?”
She smiles grabbing her drink as she walks over to the table taking the seat beside me and Noelia sits next to Paolo.
She leans in to me. “So, tell me about my mommy and that man?”
I stifle back my laugh. “I told you that they are just friends.”
She searches my eyes. “Could it maybe more if she wasn’t married?”
I shrug since I am at a loss for words as I stare into her perfect eyes. She smiles taking a sip of her drink never breaking her stare. I feel myself getting nervous and my eyes dart down her body. I turn my head to try to focus on Paolo’s conversation with Noelia. Then I hear her speak to me again, “Tell me about yourself, Pedro. What do you do?”