Beneath These Fields
Page 16
She gestured toward the counter, waving her wooden spoon and talking a mile a minute. Ellis saw Seu Jorge step out of the kitchen, but not before shooting a backward glance—and a wink—at Dona Nenna.
Ellis filled two mugs of coffee, but before he left, he tapped Dona Nenna on the shoulder and placed a kiss on her forehead. She beamed up at him, and unable to resist, he waggled his eyebrows and brushed his Cupid’s bow with his thumb and index finger, where his mustache should be.
She scowled and waved her wooden spoon dangerously close to his head. Ellis fled the kitchen, laughing to the sound of what he was sure were less than polite words from Dona Nenna.
He reached the porch, still chuckling, and sat on the wooden bench, setting both coffee cups next to him.
The sound of voices drew Ellis’s attention, and he turned to see his former assistant, Pedro, his wife, Angela, and Rudá’s sister, Ina.
The two women could not be more different. Ina was all skinny long limbs and messy black hair she always tried to tame into a braid but usually failed. Angela was curvy and maybe a foot shorter, with long blonde locks that flowed down to her waist. But they both loved bold colors and talking about everything and everyone—and the more wine they drank, the louder they spoke. They got along better than anyone expected, and Ellis always felt his heart fill with warm feelings at seeing them together. He adored them.
Pedro followed them, carrying dozens of shopping bags. After Ellis had quit and moved, Pedro decided to cash in all his vacation time to follow Ellis and help him get adjusted to his new reality—Pedro’s words, not Ellis’s. He’d also decided he’d be the one to choose Ellis’s new car, now that he was a proper farmer—also his words.
The two women talked animatedly and waved as they passed Ellis in a blur of color and hair, on their way into the house. Pedro stopped in front of Ellis, smiling and happier than Ellis ever remembered seeing him.
“Did my new car survive?” Ellis teased Pedro about his crappy driving skills.
“Yes, your green monster is intact. I also bought a few things for dinner.” He shook one of the bags, and Ellis heard the sound of clinking bottles. He chuckled and shook his head, looking at his former assistant, his friend, fondly. “Oh, and also….” Pedro scooted forward and whispered loudly, “I might have a strictly platonic crush on your boyfriend’s sister. She has impeccable taste in shoes!”
Ellis laughed and nodded. Because she did. “Are you and Angela still thinking about renewing your vows?”
“Yeah, we just have to pick a venue. We’ll think about it when we get back.” Pedro shrugged.
“I was thinking.” Ellis fiddled with the coffee cups, embarrassed. “Maybe you’d like to do it here? At the farm? It’s not really that fancy, but I’m sure we could repaint som—oof!”
Pedro and the dozens of bags he carried enveloped Ellis in a hug, smothering him. Ellis wrapped one arm around Pedro, returning the hug, and shielded the mugs with the other.
“Are you sure? I mean, don’t change your mind, because I’m taking you up on that offer, but are you sure?” Pedro asked into Ellis’s shoulder.
“I’m sure. You’re more than welcome to have it here,” Ellis said honestly.
Pedro stood and cleared his throat. Ellis thought he saw tears wetting the other man’s lashes, but he decided to be a gentleman and not mention anything.
“I have so many ideas! I need to tell Angie!” Pedro exclaimed and turned to walk into the house. He stopped in the doorway and turned to Ellis. “Thanks, boss. Really.”
“Not your boss anymore,” Ellis called after Pedro, but knew he’d probably be ignored.
Ellis chuckled and settled into the bench, sipping his coffee. Duke ambled up to him, tail wagging, and nosed his knee, resting his humongous head on Ellis’s lap. He whined softly, and Ellis rolled his eyes, giving in and patting the big brute on the head.
It amused Rudá to no end that the big dog seemed to have a soft spot for Ellis and that Ellis, for all his posturing about not liking the dog, seemed to have a soft spot for Duke as well.
Duke settled down by his feet and yawned. Ellis sipped more of his coffee and waited. Five o’clock on the dot, Rudá parked the big old black truck and made his way up the steps.
His dark eyes stayed glued to Ellis, and Ellis felt his stomach do a little flip. He sighed contentedly, watching the muscles bunch underneath Rudá’s shirt and the jeans shift as he climbed up the steps.
Rudá stopped and leaned against the rail. He took off his hat and rolled it between his hands. Hair stuck to his sweaty forehead, and dust covered most of his clothes and exposed skin. But to Ellis, no one had ever looked better.
“Hey.” Rudá flashed Ellis the dimpled smile he loved so much.
“Hi, handsome,” Ellis said, smiling.
There stood a man, hat in hand, dust covering his clothes and dirt on the soles of his shoes. There stood his love. His heart.
Rudá ambled up to him, and Ellis held up the second mug he’d brought with him to the porch. After a quick pat to Duke’s head and a lingering kiss to Ellis’s lips, Rudá sat and took the mug.
Ellis leaned down and pulled Rudá’s legs onto his lap. The other man scooted closer, until he could rest his elbow on the back of the bench behind Ellis’s shoulder.
Ellis took a deep breath and sighed in pleasure. He loved the dusty-sweaty and coffee scent of Rudá.
Rudá chuckled and brushed Ellis’s hair behind his ear. He still hadn’t cut it and was giving serious consideration to letting it grow a bit.
“How was your day?” Ellis asked, squeezing Rudá’s thighs.
“Tiring. Filled with too much paperwork and suppliers who think I don’t know the difference between five mil and six mil poly bags.”
Ellis laughed and gave Rudá a quick peck on the lips. Rudá pulled him back for a deeper kiss and Ellis went willingly.
They sat there for a while, kissing and having coffee. The sun began to set, and a cool breeze blew across the patio, bringing with it the scents of the farm.
Ellis’s heart was full, so full he sometimes worried it would burst.
“I love you,” Ellis said.
“I love you too,” Rudá said without hesitation. “Missed you too. Your, um, hands.”
“My hands?” Ellis arched an eyebrow.
“Yes. They’re very talented, and I think you should consider giving your boyfriend a massage.” Rudá waggled his eyebrows.
“That so?” Ellis asked.
“Yep. I do believe a nice thorough massage is in order.” Rudá smiled mischievously.
“Okay. One massage, coming up,” Ellis said, pushing Rudá’s legs off his lap and getting to his feet. Duke grumbled at being dislodged but got up and ambled into the house. Probably in search of the food Dona Nenna kept sneaking him.
“Now? Don’t we need to shower first?” Rudá asked, taking Ellis’s hand and standing up as well.
“Oh, we will. Don’t you worry.” Ellis smiled and led Rudá into the house. No, not house. Home.
Their home.
WARD MAIA was born and raised in Brazil and has seen almost every corner of that great and beautiful country. With a M. in Geology and Metamorphic Petrology, spending time in underground labs was more commonplace than interacting with real humans, which lead to the creation of entire fictional universes. The heroes that populate those universes are usually flawed and find love in unexpected places.
Having travelled throughout the country from North to South, Ward now calls the northwest of Brazil home. Alongside a grumpy sixteen-year-old poodle (that insists on always having the last word) and hundreds of paperback novels, Ward lives five minutes from the beach and enjoys drinking copious amounts of coffee and feeling the ocean breeze while writing about unexpected places and people.
Twitter: @_WardMaia
By Ward Maia
Beneath These Fields
Summer Santa
Published by DREAMSPINNER PRESS
www.drea
mspinnerpress.com
Published by
DREAMSPINNER PRESS
5032 Capital Circle SW, Suite 2, PMB# 279, Tallahassee, FL 32305-7886 USA
www.dreamspinnerpress.com
This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of author imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.
Beneath These Fields
© 2019 Ward Maia.
Cover Art
© 2019 Brooke Albrecht.
http://brookealbrechtstudio.com
Cover content is for illustrative purposes only and any person depicted on the cover is a model.
All rights reserved. This book is licensed to the original purchaser only. Duplication or distribution via any means is illegal and a violation of international copyright law, subject to criminal prosecution and upon conviction, fines, and/or imprisonment. Any eBook format cannot be legally loaned or given to others. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without the written permission of the Publisher, except where permitted by law. To request permission and all other inquiries, contact Dreamspinner Press, 5032 Capital Circle SW, Suite 2, PMB# 279, Tallahassee, FL 32305-7886, USA, or www.dreamspinnerpress.com.
Digital ISBN: 978-1-64080-975-8
Digital eBook published January 2019
v. 1.0
Printed in the United States of America