by Ginger Sharp
“Will do, Katie. Bye-bye. She waves and cuts the call off.
I return to the Cantina to find Ryan already sitting at the bar drinking. He glances over at me and nods his head. Olivia walks out of the kitchen, wiping her face dry from her tears. She looks up at me pausing for a second. She reaches out and touches my cheek in that tender way she has always touched me, that motherly touch. Ryan reaches behind the bar, grabbing another two glasses. He pours alcohol into each glass. He hands the glass to Olivia and the other to me.
He smiles over at me. “How is Katie doing, Pedro?” I take a drink as I try not to look at him. “Coping. She is worried about the two of you with all that has happened.”
Ryan swirls the liquid in the glass. “We are strong. We will bounce back. It is so nice to be back home, right, Livi?”
“Yes, I am so happy to be back. I love it here. This is where my family belongs.”
Rosalie comes out of the kitchen. Her eyes open wide upon seeing me there at the bar. She looks worried that I am there.
I smile at her. “Rosalie, I am going to need that phone charger back. I promised Katie that I would report back to her on how her parents are behaving or misbehaving.”
Ryan laughs. “That is Katie for you. Always up to no good and now she has you doing her dirty work, huh, Pedro?”
I laugh. “Yes, I guess.”
Rosalie winks at me. She is happy I did not come clean about my break up with their daughter.
Ryan stares at Olivia as he drinks. Olivia looks over at him nervously. Ryan reaches out to touch her arm, running his fingers down to her hand.
Ryan puts his glass down and glances over at me. “Pedro, would you do me a huge favor, my friend?”
My eyes shift to meet his angry glare, “Um, sure, Ryan.” I start to feel really nervous
His eyes move back to Olivia. “Would you drive Livi and I home? I do not want to wait for Rosalie. I want to make love to my wife now.”
I spurt out laughing. “I guess I could give you both a lift up to your house.”
Ryan slaps his hand down on the bar startling Olivia and Rosalie. “Get in Pedro’s truck now Livi.”
Olivia runs off to get into my truck.
Rosalie starts laughing as she shakes her head. “Ryan you are so evil.”
Ryan and I go to my truck. I slide in behind the wheel. Olivia moves closer to me to let Ryan in the truck. Olivia smells amazing sitting next to me. The same intoxicating smell as Katie. Ryan takes her hand and rests it on his knee. I start the truck and we proceed up the hillside. I pull up in between both their vehicles. Ryan opens the door and gets out.
Olivia turns to me. “Thank you, Pedro. I will see you tomorrow.”
Ryan leans into the truck and pulls her out.
He picks her up and puts her over his shoulder. “No you won’t, Livi. You will be too sore for days to leave the house.”
She laughs out as Ryan carries her into the house. I shake my head, laughing at the sight of them. Wait until I call Katie to let her know that her parents will be just fine.
CHAPTER 12
Over the next two and half years, Katie and I talk on the phone regularly. We spend some time together when she comes down to see her family. Nothing like it used to be. She never told her parents that we broke it off. I guess that they just assumed since Katie was no longer spending her nights at my house. She just had her twenty fourth birthday. Katie was changing. She was becoming less arrogant and more reserved like her mother. She was quite embarrassed, still not quite over her advances on Parker. She would apologize to him frequently for the predicament she had done put him in. Her last trip down she was in an odd mood. She was not her playful self. She had this fierceness in her eyes and she kept quiet most of the trip. It is not like Katie not to talk. I would try to talk to her to find out if she was having an issue. She would usually tell me if she had some things on her mind.
Ryan and Olivia noticed her behavior too. I could tell that they were both concerned. Ryan even questioned me awkwardly asking if I was still his friend. I assured him that I was still his friend then Ryan said the unthinkable. He thinks that Katie has someone new in her life. He can tell by her eyes that she is lusting for someone. Same look her mother gets when she really wants him. I called her a few times after her visit and she was the same. The only answer I got from her was that she broke it off with Noelia after the shootings. She had Noelia move out. She has been alone since to focus on school. I reported my findings back to Ryan and he was not surprised. He knew that Noelia had moved out a few years earlier.
Rosalie made me a cake for my birthday. I head down to the Cantina with Ramón after dinner. Rosalie never forgets my birthday as where my brothers never want to remember it. Lasaro hates the month of May, every day of it and not just the day I was born. I pull up in front of the Cantina to see Ryan staring at his laptop. Ramón runs ahead of me looking for Rosalie. I walk up to the bar and Ryan glances over at me nodding his head. Ryan is on a video call with headphones on and he is engrossed in the conversation.
Rosalie comes out of the back with my birthday cake. She places it down on the bar.
Ramón jumps up in to my arms. “Daddy, it is an ice cream cake that she made for your birthday.”
I look over at Rosalie as she smiles. “Really, Ryan taught me how to make it.”
Ryan glances up from the screen, looking over at the cake. He gives Rosalie the thumbs up before going back to his call.
Ramón sits on to the bar stool. “Rosalie, when I turn ten year old will you make me a cake like this? Oh yum, let’s eat the cake now before it melts.”
Ryan puts up his hand telling us to wait. “Hold on a minute.” He leans over with his phone taking a picture of us and the cake. He presses a few buttons then puts the phone down. He goes back to his screen speaking firmly, “You would think that Katie, because you are a woman. But you are wrong, the Supreme Court opinion did not side for the State of Colorado. You need to get your emotions out of the facts or you are going to get eaten alive in the court room. You need to be tougher, Katie.”
I glance over at him as I look to Rosalie. “He is talking to Katie? Where is Olivia?”
Rosalie smiles. “In New York with her costume designer. Ryan is leaving in a few days to go meet her. Then they are going to Katie’s graduation. He is prepping her for the bar exam. He and Henry have been grilling her for days. They do not want her to take any breaks and take the test immediately. Ryan is also mad. Katie had a party in her beach house. Someone accidently scratched his car in the garage. Olivia saw it this morning when she arrived there.”
I nod and walk behind Ryan grabbing the other bar stool that is to the left of him. I pick it up and place it next to Ramón so I can sit down.
Ryan turns to look at me sitting then sits back in his chair. “Yea, it is him. Did you want to say hello, Katie? He hasn’t called you in a while, huh? For cake, it is his birthday.” He unplugs the headphones while he stares at me very oddly. He speaks firmly to me, “I think you better talk to her. You have a big issue on your hands.”
I tilt my head at him then I look at the screen. “Hi, Katie. Sorry I haven’t called. I have been busy.”
Ryan hovers over me with his arms crossed, watching Katie on the screen. Ryan starts looking angry.
Katie can see him next to me. “Pedro, call me next week. Alone, without him around. I have to get back to studying before his temper explodes.”
I nod. “Bye, Katie.”
She screams out, “Happy birthday, Pedro. Bye.”
Ryan’s nostrils are flaring as he sits back down at his laptop and plugs in his headphones. He growls at the screen. “Talk to me, stupid girl. Damn you, Katie.” Ryan’s eyes bore into me as he glances back and forth between the screen and I.
I look over at Rosalie and she shrugs at me. Ramón and I eat our cake as Ryan slams his laptop closed.
Rosalie yells at him, “Cool down, Ryan. What did Katie do now?”
Ryan s
tands up, brooding. “Nothing yet, so she claims.” He turns to me and I can see his jaw clenching. “Pedro, you better remain my friend. Stay away from Livi and Katie.”
I stare up at him. “Have I done something wrong? I am sorry if I did.”
Ryan glances at Ramón. “We will talk later about this. Not around your son. Got me, Pedro?” Ryan storms off with his laptop.
I look at Rosalie. “Do you know what that was all about?”
“I have no clue. I will call Henry and go up to the house to speak with him right now. I have not seen him like that since I first met him.”
Ramón and I go home for the night.
Paolo arrives at the house early the next morning to get some work done after the kids went to school. We are talking in the kitchen, planning out our workload. I hear a truck pull up outside and assume it is Lasaro. The house door swings open as Ryan lets himself into my house.
He takes a few steps towards me as he looks over at Paolo. “Leave us, Paolo. I need to speak with Pedro.”
Paolo shakes his head. “I am not going to leave him here alone with you.”
Ryan growls. “Fine. Stay then. Pedro, give me your phone. I do not want you talking to Katie anymore.”
I hand him my phone. “I am sorry, Ryan. What happen?”
He works his jaw. “She had that look in her eyes, that prowling fierce stare when she looks at you. I know it damn well. She loves you, but you do not love her back. She told me that she made some major mistakes with you and that you will not forgive her. You only want to be friends. Our family is too crazy to be around your son. I never want you to speak to her again. It only hurts her.”
Paolo steps forward toward Pedro. “I told you a long time ago that you should have married her when you had the chance. You blew it, brother.”
Ryan snaps his head at him. “What are you saying, Paolo?”
Paolo steps closer. “They were in love. They planned on getting married. Pedro set her free to finish school. He thought that was the best option for her.”
Ryan looks back at me. “Is this true, Pedro?”
I look up at him. “Yes, I do love her but she scared me too much. I am not going to lie, your family scares the hell out of me. I have been watching her mature. She has stopped being so nasty.”
Ryan smiles at me. “I told you that day on the beach that she would drive you mad.” Ryan takes a few steps back from me.
Paolo looks over at me. “Pedro, what is your plan to get her back?”
Ryan throws an envelope on the table. “Happy birthday. There is Pedro’s game plan right there.”
I pick the envelope up from the table examining it, “A plane ticket to New Jersey?”
Ryan nods. “Yes, you are going to fly home with me, then join Livi and me as we drive up to Cambridge. You will surprise Katie with your presence. I do not think you should miss your future wife’s graduation from Harvard Law School and do not tell Livi I said that either. She doesn’t think you two are right for each other. I will have to work on her.”
I shake my head. “I can’t go.”
Paolo puts his hand on my shoulder. “I got Ramón. Just go to her and see what happens.”
I nod in shock.
A few days later, Ryan and I land at Newark airport. This place is crazy with all these people running around. Ryan and I get through the lines. He is walking so fast.
He turns to me. “Come on, Livi is circling in my Mercedes.”
I follow him down the escalator out to the street. We wait a minute then Olivia pulls up in the nicest car I have ever seen. Ryan points to me to get in the back as Olivia runs to the passenger seat. Ryan inspects the scratch on the car as he gets behind the wheel. He speeds off. Olivia is silent and she glares over her shoulder at me.
Ryan looks over at her before she even says anything. “Shut the fuck up, Livi.”
She glares at him. “What the hell, Ryan? You brought Pedro with you. You did not discuss this with me.”
Ryan drives like a maniac. “Shut up, Livi. Leave him alone. Anything else I should know about before getting back to the beach house? Like has anyone been driving my CL65 AMG coupe beside you?”
She stares at him. “Look, you spoiled asshole. I bought you this car and I will drive it off the Driscoll Bridge if I want.”
Ryan starts laughing. “Honey, you would die if you drove it off the bridge.”
“Yup! You will lose your cash cow and your precious car. Then you would have to go back to work in order to survive.”
Ryan smiles over at her. “Nah, I would just move in with Pedro. He will take care of me. Wouldn’t you, Pedro?”
I think of something witty. “I see where Katie gets her bi-sexual traits from.”
Olivia chuckles and looks back at me and I smile at her.
Ryan shifts in his seat. “Pedro, do not make me regret bringing you along and for the record. I only like women, just one woman.” He reaches over, squeezing Olivia’s knee hard.
About an hour later, we pull into a garage. We get in the house and it is amazing. It is huge and all white inside. Looks so clean. Ryan brushes past Olivia as he goes to the kitchen. I follow Ryan as I take in this house.
Ryan digs through the refrigerator growling. “Do these fucking women ever eat?” He pulls out a bunch of items, throwing it on the table.
He yells, “Livi, where the fuck did you go?”
She walks into the kitchen, wearing a bathrobe. “What, Ryan? I was going to take a bath.”
He scowls at her. “No later. What do you want for dinner?”
She puts her hand up. “Make what you and Pedro want to eat. I am not hungry. I had a long day and I just want to soak in the tub.”
He bangs a pan on the stove. “No, I said later. You will eat then I will join you. Show Pedro around Katie’s home.”
She pinches his side and he jerks back from her. She points her finger in his face. “Be nice to me, Ryan, or I will find where Katie hides the duct tape.”
He smiles as he bends down to kiss her.
She looks over at me blushing. “Let me show you around, Pedro.”
She shows me all three of the large bedrooms and the massive bathrooms. The bathtub is big enough for five people. She takes me back downstairs past Ryan and out to the deck. She leans on the railing pointing to the water. “That is the Atlantic Ocean, Pedro. Why are you here, Pedro? Why did Ryan bring you with him?”
I stare at her. “I miss Katie.”
She softly shakes her head. “We have been through this before, Pedro. Remember how hurt you were? This here is Katie’s life. Wild beach parties. Scratching her father’s car. She is very spoiled and immature.”
The door opens and Ryan steps out with a bottle of wine and three glasses.
He looks over at me and pours the wine. “She bothering you, Pedro?”
I smile. “She is reminding me about how Katie hurt me before.”
He hands her a glass. “Livi, you need to leave him alone. He is following his heart.”
She takes a drink. “She is going to destroy him. I do not want to see him get hurt again.”
Ryan reaches out tugging her hair. “Stop, honey.”
She glares up at him. “That duct tape. I will find it, then I am going to tape you down to this chaise lounge.”
Ryan smiles. “After dinner, baby, after dinner.”
She bites her lip. “I was not going to have my way with you. I was going to leave you out here so I can get some sleep. We have an early day tomorrow with a long drive. Plus, I do not think Pedro is going to be comfortable here tonight with you screaming out. I can’t tape your mouth, Katie will see the irritated skin tomorrow.”
I felt my face flush at her words.
Ryan steps towards her and runs his hand down her back. “Pedro won’t mind. He was once married too, you know. He knows what it is like.”
“No, I do not think he does.” She looks over at me. “Do you, Pedro?”
I stare at her as she wa
lks past me going back into the house, leaving me with Ryan.
Ryan looks over at me. “Are you really that bad, Pedro?”
I look out to the water so I did not have to see his stare. “Yes, I am that bad. I did not have much time with my wife. We married, she got pregnant and that was the end of sex for me. She would not let me touch her. I really have no clue. The only experimenting I did was watching Noelia and Katie on the screen of my phone and the few times Katie touched me. I learned how to touch her back from the books that Olivia and Rosalie gave me to read.”
Ryan sits down on the chair. “My God. What has Katie gotten herself into with you? All those times you and Katie were sneaking around, what were you doing?”
I shift my eyes, shocked by his question. “We held each other mostly.”
Ryan slaps his forehead. “Livi might be right. Katie is only going to hurt you. I know that she is a virgin and all. But, boy, she has been around if you know what I mean. I wonder if you are just some conquest for her or if she really loves you. Ah, time will tell right. You need to move past this hurdle tonight. I know what we will do. Pedro, follow me.”
I follow him back into the house into their television room. He points for me to sit on the couch. I sit down, watching him kneel down digging through a cabinet. He sits down on the floor, smiling as he looks though DVDs.
“Girl on girl, that is all the porn Katie has in her collection.”
I learn forward. ‘Katie owns porn?”
Ryan tilts his head at me then he looks up at the ceiling growling. “That whore is taking a bath without me. I told her no.”
He fiddles with the DVD putting it into the player. He powers on the television and throws the remote control at me. “This should keep you occupied for a minute. I have to go deal with Livi. I’m going to see I have anything else to watch besides girl on girl.” He storms off, pounding his feet up the stairs.
The DVD is making me cringe then I hear screams from upstairs. I stand up facing the stairs. Olivia is yelling at him. He starts to descend the stairs and she is chasing after him in a soaking wet towel.