Chapter 38
Andera’s Pov.
I hadn’t laughed so much in one day as I had today. At some point, Rosa came into the kitchen to check up on me and her brother.
She frowned when she saw the both of us with flour on our clothes.
“The kids are watching cartoons in the living room.” she had said, then left.
Rosa’s warning still rang in my ears, but Carol was good company and fun to be with, at least when he wasn’t taking sneaky
glances at my legs; he was cool to be around. Funny and cheerful. I couldn’t help but warm up to him.
“Now behold my masterpiece,” Carol said with a mock bow and then opened the oven to bring out the chocolate cake.
“Our masterpiece” I corrected. “We both made this cake together”
“Did we? You just left all the hard work for me; your tiny efforts barely count,” he teased.
“Can I just taste it already?”
“Alright, but only because you begged me”
I fake rolled my eyes. Carol took a slice of the cake and fed it to me. I let out a moan of satisfaction when the moist cake melted in
my mouth. It tasted great. I wondered if mine would have been this good.
My eyes fluttered open to find that Carol’s expression had changed. His face was unreadable.
“What?” I asked, but he didn’t respond, instead, he brushed the corner of my lips with his thumb, removing a crumb of chocolate
cake, then he did the strangest thing, Carol put the thumb into his mouth and sucked on it.
I couldn’t laugh this time, he pulled out his finger, his onyx eyes held mine.
“Tastes even better than I imagined”
I backed away. Taking his words, absorbing them, realizing what he had meant. I am no kid; Carol wasn’t talking about the taste
of the cake; that look on his face was back again, this time even more intense.
I threw my thumb over my shoulders.
“I should go check up on my kids”
His eyes didn’t move away from my legs. But he bobbed his head up and down. I walked out of the kitchen, feeling Carol’s eyes burn into me. I wanted the day to end quickly, so he could leave
My discomfort had eased when I watched my little girl chatter away. She was back to being her usual self; Timmy had lightened up, too, happy to see his sister better.
Rosa introduced Carol to Tim and Tiffy before we started our meal.
+20 Bonus
“Hi, my name is Tiffany, but Mommy and Aunt Rosa call me Tiffy, and so do all my friends, except Sybil, of course,” she said as
she extended her small hand to Carol for a handshake.
Carol’s eyes sparkled with amusement; his lips twitched by the side.
“My name is Carol; it is nice to meet you, Tiffy.” he shook her hand.
Timmy hadn’t been as friendly as Tiffany.
“Call me Timmy.” He said as he sat down to eat.
“I’ve forgotten how good your cooking skills are, Brother” Rosa moaned in delight as she ate the cake. Carol smiled at the compliment.
“I’ll be cooking for us more often now. I’m sure Andera would love to have more of my coaching.” He said with a wink. “I saw a culinary book on the kitchen island, piece of advice, throw it away, let the pro teach you how it’s done“.
Rosa and I said nothing, we only stared at Carol.
“You wouldn’t have that time. When you’ll be so busy capturing the Seattle landscape” Rosa said quietly.
Carol’s eyes met mine, unwavering, he twirled his tongue around his fork.
“Who said I wouldn’t, for a beauty like Andera…Mi prenderò dei rischi”
I didn’t understand the meaning of the last word he said in Italian, but I felt a shiver run down my spine. I turned to Rosa for interpretations.
She snarled at her brother. “Lasciala stare Carol, è mia amica.” Carol had only laughed.
“Can any of you please explain or rather still, speak in a language I can understand.” I took the last slice of my cake.
Rosa opened her mouth to speak but Carol beat her to it
“I said, for a beauty like Andera I’m willing to take risks, and she asked me to leave you u alone.”
The sudden dryness of my mouth had nothing to do with my dessert. I had enjoyed Carol’s company for a while, but I’m not looking forward to being closer than that. He strikes me as the kind of man who only wants to get into a woman’s pants, that’s not what I need in a man. And there’s also Rosa’s warning of how her brother cannot commit to one woman
A flirt and a cheat? Never.
“If Aunty Rosa asks you to leave my mommy, then leave her alone,” Timmy said boldly, puffing out his small chest. Tiffany looked from me to Timmy then Rosa and Carol, confused about which side to pick
I had to suppress the smile that was tugging at my lips. Timmy would grow up to be a man who commands respect, it’s only sad that the person he got that trait from wouldn’t be around to see it.
Chapter
Geez, how did my mind wander so far… Carol…his thinly veiled flirting…the tension between him and his sister…
“Carol,” I called, purposely not addressing Timmy, I would do that later, not in front of Carol.
+20 Bonus
“I appreciate the help you are offering, but I’m a rather busy woman, I have a company to handle and two adorable kids to take
care of. I do not think there will be a chance for you to put me through your skills, and even if we did have any spare time, I would
rather you commit to your reason for being here in Seattle. The cake was sumptuous, by the way; on that, everyone can agree.”
Rosa, Tiffany, and even Timmy gave a corresponding nod. Carol’s eyes lightened as if I just challenged him.
“Beauty and brains. Wonderful” He muttered.
We said nothing as we finished up and cleared the plates away
Timmy and Tiffany settled on the couch in the living room to watch more cartoons; they were singing a song on the TV when I
walked Rosa and Carol out.
Rosa pulled me into a hug
“I’m sorry for the tension between you and your brother; it’s my fault,” I whispered; she chuckled slightly.
“He’s like that around women, losing his focus until he can have them, then moves to the next one. He will get over it and belie me, he’s not angry at me for telling you the truth.”
“Okay. That’s a relief.”
Carol was next. I was expecting him to pull me into a hug too, but rather, he bent down and kissed my temple. His breath brush
my hair.
“Presto.” He whispered, and then without a second look, Carol walked away.
I watched them both leave, then I took my phone from my pocket to check the meaning of what Carol had said.
Soon.
Presto meant, Soon.
