by M. Malone
"But when I was growing up, girls didn't have many choices to get ahead in life. If your father hadn't been a handsome American who could afford to support me, my mother would have never allowed us to get married. She would have probably pushed me to marry one of the wealthy men in a nearby village. Much older wealthy men. I was always so grateful that your father had money because it meant I could be with the man I loved instead of just the man who could afford me."
Mara hugged her mother back. Despite the fact that she was no longer a child and it shouldn't have mattered, a part of her was pitifully relieved to know that her parents really were happy together.
"Your young man loves you and can give you a wonderful life, yes. But that is not why you're here. You're here because you love him. You're lucky to have found each other for that reason alone."
Carolina stood. "Now let's get this dinner together. The Townsends will be here soon. You said their family isn't close but I think tonight perhaps we can start to change that."
Chapter Fourteen
SOMETIMES WHEN YOU were expecting calamity, karma decided to screw with you and give you harmony instead.
As he looked down the dinner table that had never before been used, Trent marveled over the changes Mara had made in just a few short hours. He wasn't sure where the centerpiece in the middle of the table had even come from but somehow Mara had made things look elegant and inviting.
At the other end of the table, his mother and Carolina were engaged in conversation. Next to him Mara caught his eye and gave him a tentative smile. They were both completely surprised and pleased at the turn of events. They'd been expecting a repeat of the awkwardness when he'd first introduced Mara to them. However, his mother and Carolina seemed to be getting along well. They were both shrewd women who knew exactly what they wanted for their children. Although their interests might not be perfectly aligned, they seemed to recognize and respect the quality in each other.
Mara got up to finish putting the finishing touches on dinner.
"Pretty fancy set-up," Matt commented.
Since Matt and Penny were still in town, they had come over to lend their support. His friend had made the effort to dress up, which Trent knew was a major concession for him. After years of wearing fatigues and combat boots, Matt didn't do formal well. But he'd made the effort by putting on a collared shirt and khakis for the occasion.
Penny sat on his left side, making a valiant effort to include his father in the conversation. Carolina had been especially pleased to have the whole family together, since she could now start wedding planning in earnest with them all in attendance. Matt and Penny were especially behind according to her and Trent had witnessed Matt rolling his eyes more than once at his mother's badgering. Trent had tuned out after a certain point but he assumed that was what she and his mother had been talking about so animatedly.
"This is all your sister's doing. If it was me, we'd be eating fast food from paper plates."
Matt snorted. "You're a long way from paper plates now." He glanced over at Trent. "But yeah, that does sound more like your style."
While Mara was bringing out the food, Trent uncorked the red wine his mother had brought, a South African Bordeaux blend. He circled the table, filling glasses for those who wanted it. When he got to his father, he stopped. Were you allowed to drink after having a heart attack?
"Dad, can you have wine now? Dad?"
His father was staring at Mara, puttering around in the kitchen. His brow furrowed. "She looks so familiar," he muttered.
Trent followed his father's gaze. Mara stood in the kitchen, her hair bundled up high on her head as she arranged food on another plate. The hairstyle made her look younger.
Much younger.
Oh no. Trent sucked in a sudden sharp breath. His grip on the wine bottle tightened as he turned back to his father. "Wine?" he asked loudly.
James turned around and looked up at him, startled. "What was that?"
He held up the bottle in question and at his father's nod of assent, filled it halfway.
Mara brought the last plate and put it down in front of her father. Then she sat down to his right and squeezed his hand on top of the table. The bun on top of her head wasn't secured with a band, so he tugged at it until her long hair unwound and cascaded over her shoulders. As he ran his fingers through the long strands, her cheeks pinkened.
"You always have a thing for my hair. Behave yourself," she whispered indulgently. Then she turned to the rest of the table. "Dinner is served, everyone. Please enjoy."
"This looks fabulous, mija. You've truly outdone yourself this time." Carolina cut into her steak and took a delicate bite.
"It really does look amazing, baby. Thank you." Trent cut into his own food but before he could take a bite, his father dropped his fork and started coughing.
"Dad, are you okay?"
His father was slowly turning red, his cheeks distending slightly as he coughed. He took a long drink from his wine glass. "It's just a little spicier than I expected." He promptly dissolved into another choking fit.
"James! Are you having another heart attack?" His mother jumped up from her seat and stood at his father's elbow.
Trent took a tentative bite of his own food. It was definitely a little spicier than usual but nothing he couldn't handle.
James cleared his throat and took another sip of wine. "No, it's fine. I was just taken off guard."
Mara looked horrified. "I'm so sorry. I should have made something more bland. I have more of the plain chicken breast."
Antonia sat down again and took a bite of her own steak. "Oh dear. Perhaps you shouldn't eat this, James. You just got out of the hospital. This might be a bit much for you so soon."
Mara leaned over to Trent. "This is awful. And things were going so well."
Suddenly Carolina spoke up. "Spicy food is good for a man. It's an aphrodisiac."
The entire table went still. Matt snickered. Trent had to take another bite of food to smother his own grin. Mara was constantly lamenting her mother's blunt ways but Trent found it funny more often than not.
Mara just covered her face with her hands. "Mom!"
"Don't look so shocked," Carolina chided. "These children think they know everything about love. They forget our generation did it all first. And still does. They should take advice from their elders as we were taught to do. Isn't that right, Antonia? You have a strong, virile man too. I'm sure you know about what it takes to keep a man happy."
"Oh god, make it stop," Mara moaned from behind her hands. "Mom, I'm sure Mrs. Townsend doesn't want to talk about her private life!" To Trent's father, she said, "I'll just go to the kitchen to get you another plate, sir."
To everyone at the table's surprise, Antonia picked up her own wineglass and said, "Actually, I agree. We definitely know what it takes to keep a man happy. These young girls these days have no idea."
Trent's mouth fell open. Then he turned to Mara. "If you're going to the kitchen, then I'm coming too. Or maybe we should just leave the penthouse completely. I can always buy another one."
At his comment, Penny giggled before clamping a hand over her mouth. Her blue eyes sparkled as she looked across the table at Matt, who shrugged.
"Family dinners, Simmons-style. Trust me this isn't as bad as they can get." Matt looked at his mother sitting next to him who was busy blowing George a kiss.
Mara laughed, a high-pitched nervous sound. "I beg to differ. This is pretty bad, I think."
Carolina made a rude sound. "Nonsense, Marina. I'm simply stating the facts. Not everyone knows that spicy food builds a man's animal instincts."
James looked across the table at Carolina. Then he looked down at his plate again. "It does?"
"Oh yes." Carolina looked over at her husband who raised his wineglass in a mock toast.
Mara slid down slightly in her seat. "This has to be a nightmare."
With one last hesitant glance, James cut into another piece of steak and raised
it to his mouth. After chewing for a few minutes, he declared, "You know this is really quite good." He looked over at Antonia and smiled, a private, slightly lecherous smile that made Trent very glad he didn't have a full stomach.
After a moment of mental gagging, he glanced over at Mara. "I feel like I'm watching a horror movie. My parents are flirting with each other," Trent stated.
"Well, my mother is talking about 'keeping a man happy' and 'animal instincts' in the middle of dinner. I am beyond mortified. What are your parents going to think?" Mara whispered back.
Trent looked over at his father, happily chewing his food. "I think they'll probably go home and do things that will make me want to claw my eyes out if I imagine them. So I'm not going to worry about it."
Mara looked over at him, her eyes huge. He was sure if he had a mirror right now that he would look just as disturbed.
Trent was in the middle of cutting his own steak when he got his second shock of the night.
"Mara, where did you learn to cook?" James asked, looking very much like he actually wanted to know the answer.
Mara looked just as surprised as he did at his father's sudden interest. Surprised and delighted. The rest of the table went completely silent. Even his mother looked shocked.
Mara recovered quickly, glancing at Trent before answering. "From my mother. She was always the best cook in her family and she started teaching me at a young age." She smiled over at Carolina, who preened under the attention.
"Mara used to bake with this plastic pink kiddie oven. Even then everything she made was great." Matt grinned at his sister, who relaxed slightly.
"I had so much fun with that stove," Mara said wistfully. "Although I'm sure that thing was a fire hazard!"
"Well, everything is delicious." James looked over at Trent. "My son is a very lucky man."
George took Carolina's hand and kissed it. "My baby girl definitely took after her mother in more than just her beauty. We did good, huh?"
Mara blushed. "Dad! Well, I'm having a wonderful time here. I've been spending a lot of time cooking and I'm even thinking about doing a cookbook."
"You are? That's exciting," Penny said.
Even Matt looked over at her. "I didn't know you were thinking about doing that."
Mara speared one of her carrots on her fork. "It's just something I've been thinking about lately."
Carolina clapped her hands together in delight. "Oh, how wonderful! That would be perfect for you."
"Make sure you put your mother's arroz con pollo in there," George suggested. "The way Carolina makes it is slightly different than the way I'd had it here in the States. It's a little spicier than what I was used to."
Carolina was nodding along as he spoke. "Oh yes. Where I'm from, that's just the way we season things."
Antonia took another delicate bite of her steak. "What part of Colombia are you from?"
"A little town near Barranquilla. It's on the northern coast. We like things with a little more spice." Carolina winked across the table at her husband.
"More than this? This is about all I can handle." James chortled. "I've never been able to handle spicy foods too well."
Mara suddenly went still. "You don't like spicy food? At all? That's … well, I'll have to remember that." She blinked several times and then took a long sip from her wineglass.
She hadn't eaten much, Trent noticed. She'd been nervous about everything being perfect for this dinner but all things considered, he thought things were going well. As well as could be expected, anyway.
Trent leaned over and whispered, "Are you okay?"
She didn't meet his eyes as she said, "Perfect. I just learned a lesson, that's all."
He looked at her strangely but before he could ask what she meant, he heard his father ask Carolina how much spice was recommended for "vigor" and decided he hadn't had nearly enough alcohol to deal with this dinner.
"Does anyone want more wine?" he asked, looking down the table. "Or perhaps something stronger?"
* * * * *
OVER THE NEXT few weeks, things slowly approached some kind of normal. Matt and Penny had flown back home the day after their dinner. Mara's parents had stayed on a few more days and he had taken them on a tour of the city, showing them the Statue of Liberty and the Empire State building one day and then the next having a driver drop them off in the middle of Times Square. Carolina had been thrilled.
At one point Mara had leaned over and whispered, "I preferred your private tour,” and it had taken all his willpower not to rush them along so he could take her back home and get her under him.
Once her parents had returned home, they'd quickly settled into their new routines. Mara had finally agreed to resign from her job and was beginning to treat the penthouse like it was her home, too.
He spent time during the day checking on his investments and considering several new ventures while Mara perfected a few recipes she'd always wanted to work on. The phenomenal smells coming from the kitchen usually tempted him to quit work by late afternoon and then he'd spend the next few hours watching Mara make magic in his kitchen.
His place had never seemed more alive.
It was a Thursday afternoon and he was going through all the mail he’d been ignoring for weeks when he came across a heavy envelope stamped with his family crest. He ripped it open, reading the time and date on the front of the invitation inside.
"What is that?"
He looked up, surprised. Mara was on the other side of the kitchen counter stirring something that smelled like heaven. "Oh, it's nothing. Another one of my mom's charity things."
Mara paused, her hand on the big, wooden spoon. "What kind of charity thing?"
He read from the invitation. "It's a benefit for the hospital. All proceeds go to funding the Townsend Grant for asthma research."
She made a small sound. "Sounds like a great cause. Shouldn't we go? It would probably mean a lot to your mom to have the whole family there, right?"
"I usually just send a check. I don't think she's actually expecting me to show up."
Mara resumed stirring. Then she pulled out a cake pan and poured in the mixture. He watched her as she angled the pan to get the mixture to settle just so. It was oddly relaxing to watch.
"Is Avery going to be there?"
Trent paused, something about her tone of voice triggered his internal alarms. Then he dismissed the feeling. Mara had never been the jealous type.
"Probably. Why?"
She shrugged but the way she didn't look up when she did it made him think it mattered. A lot.
"Just that she seems to be at all the family events. She's there and I'm not. Shouldn't it be the other way around?"
"Whoa. Where is this coming from? You've never seemed bothered by Avery being around before?"
She pushed the pan back and forth and then dropped it on the counter several times. He thought she might have dropped it a little harder than was strictly necessary.
"Did you know before our dinner that your father doesn't like spicy food?"
Trent shrugged. "Not exactly but he's a conservative kind of guy. My father is pretty white bread as far as … well, everything."
"See, I figured you would say that. Because Avery told me that he liked spicy food. She made it a point to say that I was lucky I could cook interesting cuisine because that would really impress your father. So, like an idiot, I chose to listen because I wanted to make a good impression. Instead I almost ended up giving him another heart attack!"
Trent's fingers clenched around the envelope in his hand. "She said he liked spicy food? Did she say 'James likes spicy food' or did she specifically say my father? Maybe she meant my brother?"
Mara shook her head. "I knew you would do this. Come up with some way that I must have misinterpreted her. It has to be my fault, not hers, right? Why are you defending her?"
The accusation was dangerously close to what James had said to him a few weeks ago. He held up his hands. "I'm not defendi
ng her. I was just saying …"
At her death glare, he decided it was time to change tactics. Mara had been incredibly good-natured about his friendship with Avery so far but he had to expect that there would be some areas where they clashed. It was inevitable. And Mara was incredibly territorial about stuff like this. Keeping her away from family events when Avery was free to attend sent the wrong message and he could easily see how she'd be offended by that.
"If you really want to go, then we'll go but I have to warn you that these things are boring. I didn't think you'd be interested in another night of hanging out with my parents."
Mara crossed her arms. "You know, your parents actually seem like they've loosened up a bit. If they can deal with my mother and her inappropriate sex talk at the dinner table then I'm starting to think that they aren't the reason you don't want us to go anywhere. We can't just hide away up here forever. I feel like I haven't met any of your friends."
"You're my friend," he responded automatically, then sighed since he knew that wasn't what she meant. "Maybe my friends are assholes?"
She turned to put the cake pan in the oven and set the timer. Then she came around the counter and looped her arms over his head. "Am I such a hick that you don't want to introduce me to anybody?"
"What? Mara, that is not the reason. If anything, I don't want to see how many of my old friends will hit on you the second my back is turned."
"Nice. Some friends you have."
She might have thought that he was making excuses but Trent knew all too well, that his friends hitting on her was a virtual certainty. His brother usually didn't go to these events either but if he did, Trent would be keeping her away from him, too. "Well, for most Upper East Siders, morality is a fluid concept."
"Charming. I can't wait to meet the gang."
"Fine. Let's do it. Maybe it won't be that bad. It's probably going to be mainly my mother's friends and whoever else has nothing better to do than drop $2,000 a plate for dinner on a Saturday night."