Red Collar

by Cartharn, Clarissa

  “Right,” she chuckled, nodding her head. “And you know this because you have five sisters?”

  “Si, senorita,” he grinned. “You can’t fight experience.”

  Twenty minutes later, they were strolling through the park, burrowing eagerly into their tubs of cold, delightful ice-cream. Lorenzo ravished his cioccolato scuro gelato in no time. He was the first man who she had seen devour chocolate delightfully. She had otherwise, always associated the dark divine delish to the whims and craves of women, particularly on those trying times of their month.

  She still had a long way to go with her tub of crumbled sundae.

  “I’m sorry you had to pay for this,” she said, indicating at her sundae. “You already put up so long with me; you didn’t need to buy me ice-cream. And a Dino’s does not come cheap too.”

  “Don’t worry about it, bella dama,” he shrugged. “I’ve been hankering to eat a Dino’s Gelato for such a long time and you were the perfect excuse. Dino’s ice-cream is like the best ice-cream in the world.”

  She grinned. “It’s not like you’ve the seen the world yet. There may be better ice-creams out there, you know.”

  “ Maybe. But for now, Dino’s is the best ice-cream in the world,” he repeated with more fervor than before.

  She gave him a wide smile, trying to stifle a laugh.

  “Just do it, bella dama,” he said, flatly. “If you hold it too long like that, you’d faint from a gas build-up.”

  She threw her head back and laughed her heart out.

  He watched her, amusedly.

  She looked at him. Her tears of joy was clouding her vision and she wiped them away with the back of her hand. “Thank you, Lorenzo.”

  “For what?” he asked, puzzled.

  “For being here for me. For this walk, this ice-cream,” she said. “It must have dug a hole in your wallet. I’ll pay you back, I promise.”

  He shrugged. “Nah. It’s okay.”

  She tilted her head curiously at him. “But what do you do by the way? You can’t be in high school. You work?”

  “Si,” he said. “I work as a steward at Green Oak Pizzeria. But I also sometimes get to assist the chef with the menus. That part, I love the most.”

  She could see he was extremely proud of what he did.

  He rambled on about his dreams. “One day I will have my own restaurant. And I will cook beautiful, delicious Spanish meals. Chorizo, paella, empanada, churros with chocolate dipping sauce, my mama’s traditional tortilla…”

  “You know how to make all that?” she asked in wonderment.

  “Si,” he replied, proudly. “I make them all in my mama’s kitchen. And when we have our annual family fiesta, I take charge of the menu.”

  He held her arm and pulled her to the edge of the park. “There,” he whispered, pointing to a small boarded up retail outlet. “I want it to be right there. It would be perfect, right by this beautiful park. Parents would come take their children for a run, to play and when they are tired, they will come to my restaurant. I will have chairs and umbrellas out the front like they have in Europe. Si, when I have enough, I will buy that place, no matter what the cost.”

  She watched him stare dreamily at the outlet and in that moment, she straightened her spine and said determinedly, “Let’s go.”

  “Where?” he asked, surprised.

  “Let’s go check it out. I know for a fact that that store’s been shut up for so long, the agent would be more than happy to show us around.”

  “But I can’t afford it yet, bella dama,” he said, startled.

  “But at least you get to see what’s inside,” she persisted. You would like that, right?”

  “Si, I would,” he replied, sadly. “But the agent would never believe I could afford it.”

  “Not if I say I’m gonna rent it,” she retorted.

  He looked at her and laughed. “Bella dama, you are not prepared today to impress an agent.”

  She pulled at Clayton’s oversized shirt and huffed.

  He twisted his mouth in deep thought. “Okay. But first you must change.” And tugged at her arm towards Sam’s Mart.

  *****

  Clayton veered his car through the streets. His thick brows unified in deep thought. Kate riled him to his core. Riled him, tormented him and now he wanted her more than ever.

  “Turn left at the next left turn,” the female automated voice over in his navigator instructed him.

  He swore under his breath. He had never been to this part of the city. He grimaced at the state of the dilapidated buildings, rugged side-walks and just a general gloominess that hovered over in the atmosphere.

  “Where is this thing bloody taking me?” he grumbled.

  His thoughts traced back to the events this morning. She had stood there in his living room, refusing to disclose why she needed to return home. He would have forgiven her if she had only told him she had a family. He would have given them a clean break and let her go without a word. By keeping silent, she had indirectly deceived him. She didn’t give him a choice on the affair. She should know people had principles and such conduct was offensive to those principles.

  It was her personal life, his rationality told him. But then there was nothing impersonal in an affair. People got hurt. From her conversation, he knew she had lied to her partner. She was at work, she had said. She needed to sort out some stuff at work. He let out a frustrating puff of air.

  Such people could never be trusted. She could never be trusted. And yet, here he was taking her on a six day trip to see his family. He was losing his senses.

  “You have arrived at your destination,” his navigator announced.

  “Where arrived?” he grumbled.

  He peered through his windscreen at the small, littered car park located next to the rather crowded discount store.

  “This is Sam’s Mart?”

  He shook his head unbelievingly. He had expected it to be bigger. But he was beginning to believe that it could very possibly sell such tee shirts as the one Kate wore last night. At first he had thought she had printed onto it to spite his face, refusing to implore the viability of such a thing ever making a sale via a registered business. But Sam’s Mart? He gave it a second glance. Yes, it could sell such tees.

  He parked his car but hesitated to step out of it. He had come all the way from his cleaner, luxuriant corner of the city to Sam’s Mart because he had felt guilty about throwing her shirt. Now that his temper had eased, he wanted to buy her another. He didn’t understand why but she crept under his skin, sparking an urge to hold and caress her. He wanted to part amicably with her and give it to her as a gift as a way of showing his respect. He didn’t want to judge her for her choices but he refused to be a part of that choice.

  He stepped out of his car and made his way towards the store. It was devoid of any extra elegance, the aisles were narrow and there were wire crates of clothes selling at an offensively low cost. He stepped further into the dismal abyss of the store, looking hurriedly for a similar tee shirt.

  Hanging on a rack were tee shirts with slogans. One caught his eye, impressing him immediately. He picked it out and read it. Dangerously Cute. It would suit her, he thought.

  “That’s pretty,” someone said from behind him.

  He turned to find a handsome, tall Hispanic young man beside him.

  “I think I’ll take one of those too,” he grinned. “But she’s quite small.”

  Clayton sifted quickly through the rack. “It seems this is the only small left.”

  The man shrugged. “Oh well, hopefully there’s another as cute.”

  Clayton paused. “Is it for someone special?”

  The man gave him a small, shy smile.

  Clayton gave the shirt one last glance. “Here, take it. I’ll just get another.”

  The man took it gratefully. “You sure, man? It’s okay, really. There’s so many others here.”

  Clayton shook his head. “That’s fine. Unlike you, I�
�m not buying it for anyone special.”

  The man smiled. “Thanks, man.” And darted off into the neighboring aisle. “Hey, bella! Kate!” he called out.

  Clayton froze. He knew he shouldn’t. Kate was after all such a common first name. What were the odds she would be in this store at the same time as he was?

  His feet moved swiftly and softly towards the man. He didn’t understand why he was following him. He supposed he wanted to appease his curiosity.

  “You can take that shirt off, now,” the man said. “Here, wear this and I’ll pay for it at the register.”

  “But…,” the woman began.

  “No buts. Just do it. I’ll be in queue. So hurry.”

  Clayton turned the corner just in time to see the woman dressed in his blue Armani tee heading for the change room. His heart dropped. But he needed to be certain. He stood in the corner of a shelf waiting for her to emerge. And when Kate popped out, her hair was beautiful and loose at her shoulders. She was dressed in the tee shirt he had picked out and foolishly given to her boyfriend. He seethed. Kate always had her hair up and tightly wound in a chignon. He hated it. She never wore it loose as she did now. His temples throbbed with chagrin.

  He watched her join her boyfriend in the queue. They were laughing as they shared a joke between themselves. And like an idiot, he had been forlorn about the way things had yielded between them this morning. Kate didn’t care. She was clearly glad to be back with her lover. Bella, he had called her. Only lovers addressed themselves in such endearing terms.

  How could he have been so foolish? Coming all the way here to buy Kate a cheap tee shirt? He was acting like a possessive lover when Kate didn’t even belong to him. She had warned him that he would never have her heart. He didn’t like it then. And he hated it even more now.

  He waited for them to leave the shop and then rushed out of the cruddy store. Still tensed, he sat heavily into his car. For a long while, he stared silently out his window. He knew his body still yearned for her, to ravish her all over again.

  He turned his engine on and veered roughly out of the car park and towards his home. His swore vehemently under his breath. He would have her, and he would then cast her aside like a bad habit.

  *****

  “Cristo! It’s as I imagined,” Lorenzo exclaimed, darting to the back of the dusty store. There were tables scattered randomly about with, their sides hooked by its accompanying chairs. The bar table at the end indicated that the store once operated as a diner.

  Kate marveled at him, watching his dark eyes gleam as he measured the dimensions of the vacant retail outlet.

  After a convincing act with the real estate agent that she was looking into opening a restaurant, they finally managed to get a key and rushed over excitedly to the boarded-up store.

  “You really want to do this?” she laughed.

  “Bella dama,” he hugged her, carrying her off her feet, twirling her in the air. “Thank you so much!”

  She laughed again, blushing.

  He finally let her down and ruffled her hair fondly.

  “Wow, that’s some excitement,” she chuckled.

  “Si, bella dama,” he said. “But one day, you will see, I will have a restaurant here. I know because this tells me I will get it.” He pointed to his heart. “If you have the will power, and you work hard for your dreams, nothing will stop you from achieving them.”

  “Where there’s a will, there’s a way.”

  “Por favor? Si, bella dama,” he said, nodding. “That too. Don’t know them fancy lines, but something like that.”

  She smiled. “Why do you always call me dama? Isn’t that some fancy term for ladies of upper class?”

  “Si,” he said. “Because when I first saw you, I thought you were very beautiful. Like one of them fancy royals. And you live upstairs like a real royal.”

  She giggled. “Well, thank you, kind sir,” she said in a posh accent. “But I certainly did look like a drab today. I really appreciate you buying me this tee.”

  He waved his hands. “I did it for me. No way was the real estate agent gonna give you the keys in that shirt you were wearing. And I really wanted to see this place.”

  He glanced at her. “You also should wear your hair down more often. You look very pretty like that.”

  She flushed. “I just thought it might me look much older and confident with it down. Make my act look more believable.”

  He shrugged. “He was hitting on you, senorita. That’s why he gave you the keys.”

  “Well, you better stay close to me when we do return. I’m afraid surviving one pendejo is all I can take in a day.”

  He chuckled. “Si, senorita.”

  She sighed, her thoughts returning to Clayton.

  “You thinking of your boyfriend again, senorita?” he asked, frowning.

  She looked down at her hands and leant against a table. “I have to go away for a few days, Lorenzo. And I’m kind of worried for my brothers and sisters who would be all alone. My mother isn’t well either. I just don’t know what to do anymore.”

  He strolled over to her side and sat on the table top. “Is it work related?”

  She nodded silently. “If I go, I might be able to afford a liver transplant for my mother. You see, she suffers from cirrhosis. But my siblings are under age and I don’t want child services knocking at my door when I return.”

  He looked at her thoughtfully. “Go,” he said, flatly. “I’ll keep an eye out for your family. I will also tell my mama. She will be happy to help out.”

  She glanced up at him eagerly. She didn’t want to raise her hopes. “But you haven’t asked your mom, yet?”

  “Bella dama,” he said, simply. “I am the head of my family. If I tell her, she will listen. And besides we’re neighbors. If she hears I had known about your problems and did nothing to help you, she’d have me by the ears. My mama, she has a bad temper, bella dama. So be kind to this soul and let me do what I can to help.”

  She looked at him amusedly. “How do you do that? You make it sound as if I would be doing you a favor and not the other way round.”

  “Si,” he nodded, sadly. “You will. You see, you put me into trouble the moment you spilt the beans on your family.”

  She laughed again. “Thank you, Lorenzo. But I will also call my friend to help out as well. So hopefully, it won’t be too much pressure on you. But now I have to do a week’s shopping before I go.”

  He sat up straight. “Let’s go.”

  “Where?”

  “To do your shopping,” he said, walking out of the store.

  “But I need to wait for my wages to come through,” she argued.

  He spun around. “When does it come through?”

  “By the end of the day,” she shrugged.

  “Fine,” he said, walking on. “You can pay me tonight. Right now, let’s go do your shopping.”

  Chapter 8

  “So that’s the story of my life,” she said with a sigh, as they walked back towards her apartment, their arms laden with her shopping.

  “Libby sounds like a handful,” Lorenzo said, frowning.

  “Libby is a great girl. Beautiful, and charming, if she wants to be.” Kate balanced her paper bag filled to the brim with her groceries. “I don’t blame her. She’s seen so much heartache and loneliness in her short life, she’s gonna have all that frustration bottled up inside of her.”

  “You’re protective of her,” he said, grinning.

  “She’s family. You protect your family,” she smiled back. “You must have seen her around. Slim, tall, blue eyes, blonde?”

  He shook his head. “We moved in only a couple of months ago. And most of those days I leave home early and arrive late. Certainly not the hours where I would be able to casually gallivant with high school kids.”

  “Where did you move from?”

  “New Jersey. Lived there all our lives. And then I got this job at Green Oak Pizzeria. Emilio, the chef offered to provide m
e cooking lessons if I worked extra hours. I thought it was the best opportunity for a poor boy like me. But of course that meant more travel expenses with a lesser wage. We were lucky to get this apartment,” he said, nodding at it.

  They were standing at the driveway, looking up at the lit windows of the apartments above them. They had spent the entire day together, returning home at dusk.

  “Who lives with you?” Kate asked, curiously.

  “Two sisters, my mama and sometimes the occasional relative,” he shrugged. “My other sisters are married.”

  He looked down, frowning at the bag of shopping. “You sure this is all you need? It looks quite little to manage for a week.”

  “It’s enough,” she said, rolling up her eyes and thumped his arm, softly. “They’re mostly easy canned and micro-waved meals. But I’ll also leave some money with Rudy and Libby, just in case.”

  She smiled and walked into the building, climbing up the stairs.

  “You haven’t tried the elevator?” he said, pointing at it.

  She screwed her nose and shook her head. “I don’t think so. They’re most likely not gonna work. Why bother?”

  “You live on the third floor,” he insisted.

  Her eyes brightened. “Wanna make a race for it? You- the elevator and me- the stairs?”

  He grinned and then rushed towards the elevator, pressing onto its button to usher it down.

  She was on the first floor landing when she heard the elevator doors open with its familiar croaky ding. She sped up, thinking amusedly that he would be there anyway despite all her efforts to win this frivolous race.

  She reached her floor almost out of breath and managed to catch Lorenzo climb out through its rustic metallic doors, a cloud of displeasure intermixed with disappointment in his face.

  She burst into a series of chuckles. “What happened?” she blurted, when she could.

  “Mrs Patterson from the fourth floor and her dogs happened. I let them in like the good gentleman I am and then I regretted it when she decided to not walk, but crawl into it.”

  “Come on, now, Lorenzo. Don’t be such a poor loser. You wouldn’t have minded it if you had won.”