“A little bit,” she laughed. “That was a long time ago, but the skills have come in handy.”
“Do you need some help?” Nick offered.
“I’m used to doing this. But if you could take Dominick’s plate back to the table with him, that would be great.”
“Sure, I can do that.” He grinned. It was nice to be trusted with something so small, and it definitely caught his attention. Rosalinda was starting to warm up to him, and he watched her smile as Dominick followed him back to the seat.
“Mom’s happy,” Dominick said with a smile.
“Yeah, she actually gets to get her own meal without an issue.”
“She spends a lot of time doing stuff for me,” Dominick nodded. “She always smiles, but she falls asleep on the couch a lot.”
“Is she very tired a lot?”
“Yeah.” The boy nodded, and looked down at his food. “Egg rolls are great.”
“They are. What’s your favorite?”
“I like pudding. They have all the flavors here.”
“Really?”
“Yeah. All the flavors.” The kid nodded. “It’s really good.”
“You must really like pudding, then?”
“Yeah.”
Rosalinda came up to the table with her own plate. “What are you boys talking about?”
“Pudding!” they both said together.
She chuckled. “Dom was telling you about all the flavors, wasn’t he?”
“He was. He really likes pudding.”
She grinned. “He really does. He always picks this place.”
“Must be his favorite.”
“It is,” Dominick interrupted. “I love it here. And they all know me, and make sure they have pudding whenever we show up.”
She smiled at a memory. “Once, we showed up and they didn’t have pudding. Someone went to a nearby store and bought him pudding cups.”
“What flavor?”
“Chocolate!” the kid announced. “That’s my favorite.”
Rosalinda nods. “He loves chocolate pudding. He keeps trying to get me to buy it for the house.”
“But she won’t,” Dominick pouted.
His mother laughed. “We don’t need to keep a bunch of other snacks around. It’s a good occasional treat.”
“Sounds like she’s trying to keep you out of the sugar,” Nick noted, silently agreeing with Rosalinda.
“She hates sugar.” The boy stuck out his tongue.
“I don’t hate it,” Rosalinda protested.
“Do too.”
“I do not, I just don’t think it’s something you should have a lot of.”
Nick grinned. This was probably one of the most amazing things that he had seen in a long time. Every word the pair shared seemed to reach further into his heart. As they sat and ate, they were chatting passionately about something as mundane as pudding. It was one of the best days that Nick could remember, and everyone seemed to be in a great mood. The awkwardness of earlier visits had disappeared, and they felt like a family at the table together.
Nick was surprised at how easily it had all come to be; that he belonged here, with this woman and their child, whom he had just met.
“What’s wrong?” Rosalinda asked.
“Huh?” Nick looked over at her.
“You seem distracted. Is something wrong?”
“Sorry, was just thinking,” Nick offered a smile. Something about being with Dominick and Rosalinda made him happier than he had been in a long time. “What were we talking about?”
The woman giggled, reaching across the table and brushing her hand across the back of his. It made lightning rush over his skin from the spot that she touched. In fact, it made his entire arm tingle with energy. “You’ve got your head in the clouds.”
“There are worse places for my head to be. I’m just having a great time,” Nick said, “and I was thinking about that.”
“Were you thinking about Mom?” Dominick spoke up.
“Maybe,” Nick said, purposefully vague. He didn’t want to answer that question to the boy. Not yet. It wasn’t the time.
But Dominick wasn’t going to relent that easily.“Are you in love with my mom?”
Nick gulped, and glanced at Rosalinda. A part of him wanted to nod, but he chose not to respond. At least, he told himself that he chose not to respond instead of being stuck in the possibilities that those questions brought up.
Rosalinda stared at him wide eyed for a moment before turning to her son. “Let’s not worry about that.”
“I wanna worry bout it.” Dominick pouted.
“Sweetie, things aren’t always so easy to define one way or the other,” Rosalinda said, shaking her head.
The kid frowned. It must have been easy for him to see that they were avoiding the question, but at his age, he didn’t have a way to call them out on it. He just didn’t have the words to do it. Nick was grateful for that. It would be much better without them being cornered by a child.
Nick glanced over at Rosalinda and spoke up. “Your mother is right; people don’t just fall in love.” He was nervous. He didn’t know what to say. He hadn’t really raised children before, other than babysitting for family on occasion when he was a teenager.
“But you’re thinking about it?” Dominick looked hopeful.
Rosalinda sighed. “It’s confusing adult stuff.”
“I hate confusing adult stuff,” Dominick said, and crossed his arms.
“If you pout, it’s gonna be hard to eat pudding,” Rosalinda laughed. She was extremely amused by it all.
“Fine. Pudding.”
Rosalinda got up, and went to go get a bowl of pudding for the kid while Nick sat with him. Dominick stared the older man down from across the table with squinting eyes.
“What’s up?” Nick asked.
“I won’t tell her if you love her.” The boy spoke with such confidence. His arms were crossed, and he had the same steely gaze that his mother could have been famous for with half a chance.
It took Nick by surprise. “What?”
“I won’t tell her that you love her.” The boy stuck with it. He was stubborn.
“I wouldn’t say that yet.”
“You’re Prince Charming, right?”
“I wouldn’t say that,” Nick shook his head. “It’s a little more complicated than that.”
“That’s what you adults always say when you don’t want me to know.” Dom looked more stubborn.
“Your mom’s about to be back,” Nick cautioned, trying to find a way out of there. This was all so complicated, and he didn’t have a lot of experience with kids. Especially with smart kids who had him cornered.
“Are you in love with Mom?” Dominick wasn’t giving in that easily.
Nick leaned in really close to the boy. “Maybe a little,” he admitted.
Dominick squealed.
“Shh, you can’t tell her. It has to be a secret.”
Dominick got a solemn look on his face as he nodded his promise and held out his hand, one pinkie finger sticking up. It was the most important pinkie promise of Nick’s entire life, and he took it seriously.
Just in time, Rosalinda was back and she was carrying pudding. “What are you two guys up to?”
“Nothing.” They both spoke entirely too fast.
Rosalinda looked suspicious. “Are you two plotting something?”
“We would never plot against you,” Nick said, as he put on his most innocent smile.
Her eyes narrowed for a moment. “How come I don’t believe that at all?”
“Probably because you’re the smartest woman I know.” He tried to go for the compliment this time.
She sighed heavily and sat down. “Don’t tell me, then.”
“Sorry, Mom. It’s a secret,” Dominick grinned at her.
This made her smile. “All right. Keep your secrets. I give in. I brought pudding.”
“Pudding!” Dom reached for it. “Gimme.”
&nbs
p; “Ask nicely,” she said, pulling the bowl away from him so that he couldn’t reach it. “Remember how you’re supposed to talk to people.”
“Please, may I have pudding?”
“There you go.” Rosalinda passed it over to him and he happily dug into the food.
17
Streaming and Cuddling
Rosalinda looked over at Nick. They had been sitting on the couch close together for a few minutes. Dominick had fallen asleep on the way home, and Nick had carried the boy in and put him to bed.
She would keep that tender moment in her head for eternity. It was the most amazing sight that she had ever seen. She had never expected to let someone into their lives, but it had happened like it was the most natural thing in the world. Nick belonged in Dominick’s life. They adored each other, and had already become thick as thieves.
She glanced up at Nick, whose body was close to hers, but he was looking ahead at the television even though it was off. It was as though he was lost deep in thought. “Are you okay?”
“Yeah, I’m fine,” Nick sighed, settling closer to her. “This is perfect.”
“Is it?” She glanced around the evidence of her son scattered around the living room. Toys and crayons on the floor. A sink with dirty dishes in it. An entire house in serious need of a good dusting, and a floor that perpetually existed in need of a good vacuuming. “Look at this place.”
“It looks like a place where people love each other,” Nick said. You’re a single mother. You do everything you can.”
“I feel like I could do more,” she sighed.
“Not without some help.” Nick glanced in her direction, finally. “I don’t mind helping. Do you want me to help you clean up?”
She froze. It was such a strange offer, but one that she appreciated.
“I don’t have to, if you’re not comfortable with it.”
“It’s not that,” she shook her head.
“Then what is it?”
“I don’t know. I guess I just never thought I would be asked something like that.” She shook her head. “I don’t know what to say.”
“How about you just let me do the dishes?”
“Let me help, at least.”
“I can do that.” Nick picked himself up off the couch.
Rosalinda followed him into the kitchen. “Thanks for doing this.”
“It’s not a problem. I had an amazing time tonight. I would love to help you out.”
“Don’t act like it’s all fun.”
“You’ve never had fun washing dishes?” He grinned at her. ”I know you probably had to have had fun at least once in the past.”
“That was when I was a kid, and my mom could make anything fun.” She rolled her eyes.
“You do the same thing for Dom, don’t you?”
“I try to, at least. He’s a smart kid, though.”
“You mean he usually sees right through it?”
“A lot of the time, yeah,” she confessed with a laugh. “He’s super cute about it, too.”
Dominick laughed. “That sounds about right. Everything he does is super cute.”
She paused for a moment, then went ahead and said it. “He gets that from his father.”
Nick grinned. “You think I’m cute, then?”
“I used to.” She was teasing him.
Nick got a flirty look on his face. “What’s it gonna take to get to be cute again?”
She laughed loudly. “I don’t know.”
He moved closer, and her voice caught in her throat before she could say anything else. “I really had a great time tonight,” he said.
This was it. She knew what was coming. He was going to kiss her, and she wanted that. This time, there would be no student to walk in on them. This time it could go even further. It only took a moment after his lips descended on hers for her to decide that she wanted that, too. More than anything, she wanted to wake up next to him.
The dishes were forgotten as his arms wrapped around her, and his lips pulled away only to deepen the kiss a moment later. Her own arms started to run up and down his back, eliciting soft noises from the back of his throat. They weren’t quite moans, but she was sure she could have him writhing in her arms in no time. She only pondered for a moment before she started to touch him, reaching under his shirt to feel his bare skin.
The contact seemed to send shockwaves between them. They both needed the touch of the other. She craved the feel of his skin in ways that she couldn’t explain, and probably would never be able to explain. A shiver ran down her spine as his hands worked under her shirt, tracing the contours of her back before slowly working around to slide up to her chest.
His touches lit fires in her that she hadn’t felt in a long time. Her breath caught in her throat as he pulled away. “The bedroom is in the back,” she offered.
Those words seemed to breathe a new life into Nick. He started to move them slowly, never releasing her while their feet stumbled out of the kitchen and down into the hall. Neither of them were paying much attention to where they were going, bumping into walls.
Rosalinda didn’t care, her shoulder bumping the corner into the hallway to the bedrooms. She took the lead, pushing him in the right direction, but ended up hitting a wall with her hands still in his shirt. “Sorry,” he mumbled into her lips.
“Almost there,” she grunted, as his fingers toyed with her nipple over her bra. “I don’t want to let go of you long enough to walk like a normal person.”
“I don’t either,” he groaned, as they finally came to the door. He let go of her long enough to open the door and then pull her inside.
Once the door was closed, he pushed her up against it, kissing her wildly. She moaned as his hands found hers and held her there. “I want you right now.”
“I want you, too,” he moaned into her lips. He started to work on her shirt, pulling it over her head. “You’re still just as beautiful.”
She blushed. “You haven’t changed at all.”
“I’ve been dreaming about you, all these years. I never thought I’d have a chance to touch you again.” His hands started to toy with her bra.
Rosalinda brought her hands up and tugged his shirt up and over his head, making him pause for a moment. But as soon as she was done, he moved back in to pull her bra off.
“God above,” she moaned as his warm hands started to roam over her bare breasts.
“I’m not even sure I can get to the bed at this point,” he groaned.
“We’re doing fine without it,” she moaned against his lips. He kissed down her neck and to her chest, slowly toying with her soft flesh. Her head fell back against the door with a light thud as his tongue found her nipple, and he began to play with her body. It was absolutely perfect. The moment brought back a flood of memories. His touch felt like it had never changed as he teased her body, bringing her entire being to a soft hum of ever-present desire. He kissed down her stomach, working his lips down to the edge of her jeans before pulling the shorts down over her legs, slowly easing her out of the barriers.
She stood there wearing just her panties, and a flush of embarrassment crossed her face, causing her exposed skin to flush bright red. Nick didn’t seem to notice, engrossing himself in slowly rolling her panties over her hips. She didn’t want him to stop, shifting to help him bare her body completely.
As soon as she was free of the fabric covering her body, she wanted more. More of his touch. More everything. She craved it. Needed it in ways that she couldn’t explain. His tongue ran down over her stomach and down to the nexus of her thighs. She groaned as his lips swirled around her womanhood. “Nick,” she called out his name.
“I’ve been dying to do this for so long.” His breath was hot against her tender flesh.
“I’ve been dreaming about you,” she confessed. “Since I heard you got back to town.”
He didn’t say a word, instead sweeping her up and into his arms to lay her on the bed. She moaned heavily as he crawled up her
body, and they finally came together as one person.
His kisses were on her neck as she writhed under him. With every thrust of their bodies coming together, her hands roamed over his body as spasms of pleasure ripped through her. They were grunting and moaning in uncontrollable ecstasy, until they crashed on that wave of desire together, climaxing at the same time until they couldn’t breathe.
She was panting when they finally pulled apart, and his arm remained around her.
“I…” He didn’t finish whatever thought was in his head.
“That was…” She could barely speak through her gasping breaths.
“Amazing,” he managed to finish her statement.
She nodded and settled into his arms, laying her head on his chest.
He was smiling down at her as she pulled closer to him, and she couldn’t think of a better way to fall asleep.
18
Empty Bed
Nick woke up alone, carefully stretching in the empty bed before he realized that he wasn’t in his own.
Rosalinda. He was in her bed, and he had spent the night here. She must have gotten up earlier than he had. He wasn’t sure if he was ready to get out of bed yet, but he could hear Dominick talking excitedly in the front room. He couldn’t quite make out what the kid was saying, but the kid must have gotten up.
He recalled all the stories about kids and impossibly early mornings. Dominick had to be the same.
Slowly, Nick pulled the covers off of his body and put his feet on the beige carpet. He was still naked, having slept that way next to Rosalinda after a night of making love over and over until they were both too exhausted to sleep. It was one of the best nights of his life, excepting the night years ago that they spent together.
He sighed and rose to his feet, clambering over to where his clothes had been tossed to the side. He dressed slowly, in dirty clothes from the night before. He hadn’t planned to spend the night, so he hadn’t brought anything with him to wear the next day. These clothes would have to do.
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