I still ask Sophia to pay for the material, plants, and any service he requires with the card I gave her. By Saturday, he receives everything he needs for his project. I was planning to do some office work, but earlier in the week she warned me she wouldn’t be working on Merkel’s during the weekends.
My woman is impressive. She handles her regular tasks, runs a company, and still has time for us.
Today, she and her friends volunteered to work on the Candy and Sweets Festival. This isn’t just any festival, she explains to me. It is one of the most visited weekends of the year, and Aldry’s is sponsoring the event.
Since I can’t use her as an excuse to avoid getting dragged to work for them, I offer to help Emilio with his garden. I don’t have any experience, but I can carry bags of dirt, haul rocks, and dig holes. As long as it is not for my grave. We start around eight in the morning, and by noon I’m exhausted.
Who knew this would be ten times more tiring than the New York Marathon?
“Let’s take a break. I’ll make us some sandwiches,” he offers, staring at his work.
It’s been four hours, and so far we’ve only accomplished planting the trees and flowers, setting the fabric to stop the weeds from growing, and laying the rock on top of that. We still have a lot to do, but the place is already looking great.
“Where is Mrs. Aragon?” I ask when we enter the kitchen.
I don’t see her often. Some days I feel as if she’s avoiding us while others I realize that I visit at the most inconvenient times, like in the morning while she’s doing her morning exercises, or the evening when she’s already in bed. Natalia Aragon goes places during the day; I know because there’s always a picture of her on social media.
Like her daughter, she’s a force and everyone adores her. It wouldn’t surprise me if the next time her parents visit they stay for a longer period. I’m sure Sophia would love that. I didn’t understand her fixation on visiting them every morning or having to spend Sundays with them. My family was never this close. If I had breakfast with my grandfather it was because he needed to discuss the company. Now, I’m the one who suggests coming to visit them.
“She’s with Sophia and her friends,” he answers while slicing the homemade bread. “The girls came to pick her up earlier. They were gushing about some festival. It’s good to see her full of energy again.”
“Sophia made the same observation the other day. I’m glad this arrangement is working well for her. I hope it’s the same with you.” I take a bite of the sandwich, and it’s delicious. “You should’ve been a chef. I told you already if you want to set up a restaurant, I’ll invest.”
“I am a trained chef,” he answers with a proud smile.
“Sorry, Sophia doesn’t talk much about her family,” I say, but really, I’m thinking why in the world didn’t I ask her about her life.
We spend most of our days together, and I’ve never taken the time to get to know her. Well, I know a lot of things about her personality, like how much she likes shoes, or flowers, or doodling while she’s on the phone. She loves listening to music and dancing to it. I’ve caught her several times swaying her hips, moving her feet, and singing. Knowing how she’s the only thing who makes sense in my world matters, but I want to learn everything about her.
“I owned a restaurant in Manhattan,” he states. “Lazo, Latin Cuisine.”
“One of my favorite places,” I confess. Sophia orders takeout for us from there at least once a week. “You sold it?”
He nods and exhales. “To my son-in-law. He bought it for my daughter, Eva, who refused to let it go.”
“I had no idea it was in trouble.”
“That was long ago,” he says, waving his hand the same way Sophia does when things are no longer relevant.
“I spent years in the kitchen and running that place, neglecting my family. My wife and I worked hard to give our kids the best we could, including our niece and nephew who lost their parents when they were young. My wife took care of her store and the children, I…” he sighs closing his eyes momentarily. “When I almost lost her I realized that she was the only one that matters. If I ever have to choose again between my business and the love of my life, the love of my life comes first. So I let everything go and stayed by her side. That’s when I realized that my wife was married, but she had been lonely for years.”
“Is that why you don’t work?”
He shakes his head. “As a family, we decided that taking care of Natalia would be better than hiring a nurse and selling the house. It was only for a few years since the doctor said her health would deteriorate. Of course, I wanted to spend whatever time she had left by her side.”
“I’m glad she’s still around.”
“Sophie,” he says, smiling. “She’s the warrior of the family. She won’t let her go without a fight. She is always searching for a new treatment, therapy, or medicine that can keep her mom with us at least for a little longer.”
“No surprise there,” I say, wiping my mouth after finishing my sandwich.
His gaze becomes serious and he says, “She’s sacrificed a lot for us. I keep telling her to stop. My daughter never gives up on anything or anyone. While she devoted her time to her family, she lost a lot.”
“What did she lose?” I ask, wondering if we can recover it and if I’m the problem.
“Mostly friends and love. I was afraid that this move would break her, but it’s the first time in years that I’ve seen her happy.”
Hearing him say that gives me a sense of accomplishment that I’ve never felt before. Maybe I did something right, and I could do a lot more. Every time I kiss her I’ll remind her she’s loved, that she matters to me.
“Your family seems to like her, and the town has nothing but great things to say about her.”
“She’s part of the family,” I assure him.
“Be careful,” he warns me. “She’s strong, but underneath there’s a soft soul. Don’t break her.”
“I wouldn’t dare, sir,” I promise him.
“It’s time to go back to work,” he states. “You have a lot to learn. After this, I might teach you how to change the oil of a car.”
“Why not teach me how to cook?”
He glances at me and smiles. “With time. You have to start with the basics. I can see you were raised by a nanny.”
“And boarding school.”
He shakes his head the same way Sophia does when she’s about to undertake a difficult project. “You’re a lot of work, but I can teach you what they neglected to do.”
By three, my brothers come over to help, and around six, Emilio is calling us all for dinner.
“This is the part of the show where I leave,” Beacon says around eight, taking Grace by the hand.
She’s been visiting more often and hating us less than she did when she learned about us. We like her, in general. She’s cool, except for the part that even though she’s a professional musician, her dad trained her in tactical operations and she could kill us in our sleep.
Beacon turns to Vance and asks, “Are you coming with us?”