Intensity

by Eden Fortae

  Just as she was about to follow him, Anthony came running back up the steps with a bouquet of a dozen red roses. There was no doubt in her mind that the little boy knew nothing about the significance of those flowers. That they held meaning despite his uncle’s claim. Nor that Antonio knew they would have a positive impact on her.

  Kya took the roses noticing the card attached to them only when they were in her arms. “Is your Uncle Tony down there?”

  “No. He—”

  Christian swooped in and scooped the little boy up in his arms before he could give her a full answer. He lacked the same innocence as the child but still smiled boyishly. Beneath the morning’s light and without the aid of alcohol present during their other encounters, his hazel eyes truly startled her. They appeared to be looking right through her.

  “Sorry about him.”

  “No need to be. If my sleep is going to be disturbed, I’d rather it be by a cutie such as this one.”

  Christian shook his head with a smile. “You’re the latest victim of the dimples, I see. Go ahead and go back to sleep if you can. My girl will be up to bug you soon enough.”

  “I believe it.” They shared light laughter while he turned to walk away.

  Before Kya closed the door, she heard the failed attempt at a whisper.

  “We practiced those lines, chump! I’m going to tell Tony you were flirting with his lady.”

  “What’s flirting?” Anthony’s giggles followed immediately, then were drowned out by the closing of her door.

  Kya rested against it, staring down at the bright flowers in her hands. Not only was Antonio behind it, but once again he had other people doing his dirty work. She did not know what to think about that or how to feel. Pulling the card free only caused more inner turmoil. Was this another part in his game or was it true feelings displayed through three words neatly printed in fancy script? If she let it be known that she wanted nothing to do with him, would he go away for good or just come harder? With those three words staring back at her. Hidden in them, was the answer to her own question.

  “I miss you.”

  SIXTEEN

  Going back to sleep was a no-go after her cute visitor and three words that she continued to reread behind her closed lids. The final straw came with the sun reflecting off of the fancy glass vase, onto her face. As she sat up, she grabbed her sketchbook and used the unexpected gift as her muse.

  The sharp lines and unique designs gave Kya an idea for a gown that flared out in the same fashion at the bottom, hugged the body all the way up, and was adorned with lace at the top. When she was done, Kya signed her name with the date skillfully hidden in the drawing. It was a trick she came up with when she was younger as a means of protecting her ideas. After that, she gave each gown a name. Usually, one that spoke to her vision behind it and was the first to come to mind. However, she was at a loss with this particular one.

  His name reverberated like a scream in an empty room, but there was no way in hell she was going to name that dress after him.

  Deep down, she was still mad. At least, she wanted to be. The dagger of deceit he shoved beyond her heart to her soul left wounds that were still raw when she thought about it. The same thing happened when it came to Karrina as well, but unlike her brother, she was bold enough to apologize and plead for forgiveness. Kya was still hurt over her friend’s role in it as well but had begun to heal.

  Quickly, she scribbled the first thing that came to mind after him and closed her book. Leaving it on the bed, she eased out of the bedroom and toward the main floor. The innocence of a child’s laughter greeted her first and as she saw Anthony sitting at the breakfast bar, his tiny face decorated by a milk mustache, she, too, had to smile.

  “I heard this little flirt came to your room with a gift this morning.” Karrina made a face at him in which he mimicked. “Flowers or jewelry?”

  “Flowers. How did he know I was here?”

  “How do you think?” Her eyes flitted to Christian with a dramatic roll. “His girlfriend told him.”

  Kya followed her line of sight to Christian’s boyish smile and innocent shrug. That choice of a reaction meant he was not denying it and Kya could respect that at least. Now knowing how close the two were, she wasn’t surprised.

  “Sorry. If someone in our circle needs help, we help.”

  “Such bitches.”

  “Ohh, Aunt Rina!”

  “Ohh, nothing! You didn’t hear anything.”

  “Yes, I did! You said the bad ‘B’ word!”

  “I did not. I said ‘benches’ like the kind on the bus stop.”

  “No! You said the other word!”

  Karrina narrowed her eyes at the kid then held her hand out to Christian. On cue, he pulled his wallet from the back pocket of his jeans and gave her a dollar to pass on to her nephew. With the largest grin, Anthony accepted. He slid off the high stool, fumbled with the money while trying to get it into his own pocket before he ran off to watch TV.

  “The kid is going to get rich off of me, I swear.”

  “Not if you learn to watch your mouth.”

  “Watch my mouth? You weren’t saying that last night and you better remember you told me to watch my mouth when you want me to use it on you again.”

  Initially, Kya just stood back and watched the exchange as if it were to study the relationship between the two. However, Karrina’s last jab hit a juicy note that pushed her to take up residency on the vacant stool, chin situated in the palm of her hand, eyes, and lips both displaying amusement.

  “Remember it and what? I’ll break you, and you know it.”

  “Is that a challenge?”

  “Yes, Chris, is that a challenge?” Kya piped in with a grin. “A better question, are y’all going to settle this right now? Because I can get Anthony upstairs and come back so I can enjoy the show. The way my sex life it set up right now, I could use a live show.”

  The couple stopped and looked at Kya with the same expression of shock, then burst into laughter.

  “You’ll fit in just fine around here, Kya.” Christian pulled Karrina into his arms trying to get the kiss she was turning away from.

  “Stop! Get off me, pendejo! You told me to watch my mouth.”

  As hard as she tried to fight it, he easily overpowered her being several inches taller and pinning her arms to her side with little effort.

  “You don’t listen to me any other time, but you’re going to do what I say, now?”

  “Yup!”

  “Brat.”

  “Your Momma!”

  Christian’s nostrils flared, but it was apparent he was still playing around as he whirled Karrina around and bent her over in an attempt to spank her. She dodged his hands but left herself open for the kiss he was looking for all along. When he pulled his lips back from hers, she slapped him on the chest, her cheeks flushed.

  “I have to make a run. I’m taking Anthony with me.”

  “You didn’t ask if I want to go.”

  “No girls allowed, Aunt Rina!” Anthony yelled from the other room. Suddenly, Kya felt terrible about her sex comments, wondering if the child had heard her. Then again, she supposed he would have come to her with his hand out if he’d heard any bad words.

  “You heard the man. No girls allowed, baby. We’ll see you later, though. Did she tell you about tonight, Kya, or do I have to?”

  She eyed her friend suspiciously, waiting as she gnawed on her bottom lip nervously.

  “My Dad surprised us with his release, so we did not have a chance to throw him a proper Welcome Home party. My mother wanted to have something tonight. You’re invited.”

  The news of Javier’s release had meant nothing to Kya. Not even when she considered the bad blood between him and her father. The issue was theirs. In her mind, she bore no responsibility for his incarceration and felt nothing towards the fact that he was free. The extension of an invite to be within his space was a different story.

  From what she read, Javier was n
ot to be messed with. He was ranked with the most notorious drug lords of all time, right alongside Pablo Escobar. Several low budget films and documentaries were created to portray his life, empire, and fall since the family had not consented to a big screen movie. All of those shows involved the speculation of multiple murders the law could never pin him for. The thought of being near him put a little bit of fear in her. She could not deny it but tried to hide it.

  “Invited by who? Why would I be invited?”

  “My Mom. Apparently, Tony talks to her about you, and she knows you’re here. I wasn’t going to say anything to you, because I didn’t know if you were ready to be around him yet. Obviously, the conspiring has gone over my head.”

  Again, she gave Christian a dirty look. In response, he kissed her on the cheek and then patted Kya’s shoulder on the way out. “Look, you know you don’t have to go. I would love for you to be there to meet the rest of my family, but I understand why you wouldn’t want to.”

  Ironically, Antonio was the least of Kya’s concerns. Of course, there were still issues between them but said issues did not even come close to what she felt at the thought of coming face to face with the man and family her father worked so hard to break down. Not going seemed like the safest idea. Not going also made her look like a coward and a coward she was not.

  Determined not to let her worries swallow her whole, Kya followed Karrina into the house with her big girl panties pulled high. The entire time she was getting ready, she coached herself, sifting through every reason in the world to have no fears or concerns. During the silent moments in the car, she did the same.

  Pulling up, she felt a heaviness in the pit of her stomach. It grew with each step, only to dissipate when she watched Karrina greet her mother and then when the mildly aged woman approached her with her hands out. Kya was taken aback by the woman’s youth. If one looked beyond the stress lines around her eyes, you’d think she was a sibling rather than the parent. She was a clone of Karrina, but with straight hair cut neatly around her shoulders. Her body shape put that of a lot of young girls to shame, and her unpainted face spoke of real beauty.

  “Hola, chula.”

  Understanding the first word, only, Kya accepted the woman’s hands.

  “It is nice to meet you, Mrs. Cortes finally.”

  “Elia. You call me Ma or you call me Elia. None of that formal stuff.” Her accent was so thick that Kya had to play back everything to ensure she heard her correctly. As with most Spanish speakers, Elia rolled all of her R’s, and everything that had an “E” sound to it was dragged.

  “Yes, ma’am.” The nod in agreement sufficed. However, she dropped just one of Kya’s hands while continuing to hold on to the other.

  “You were supposed to be here before everyone to help out, Rina.”

  “I know, I know. Beauty takes time, Mommy.”

  “And so does my barbecue pork. All of the small stuff is done. Your father decided he wanted to grill steak for the shredded beef, but ay dios mio he is going to kill us all. Where is Christian?”

  “I don’t know. He said he had to make a run. Took Anthony with him. They haven’t been here yet?”

  “No. And Tonito worked today so he said he would be a little late.” At that, she squeezed Kya’s hand. Was that her way of saying she knew? That she understood? No, if she understood she would not have extended the invitation.

  “I’ll call after I speak to Daddy.”

  “And tell him to back away from the fire?”

  Kya bit back the urge to smile at her seriousness.

  “I’ll try, Ma.”

  Karrina motioned for Kya to follow her through a wide corridor out to a large backyard that was divided into two sections; a smooth stone patio area and lush green grass that ended at a planted tree line on one side and a short wooden fence on the other. The grassy area was simple with a flower bed along one part of the fence and a mini playground perfectly situated.

  Along the patio area was furniture designed for both style and comfort, enough table space for a large family and several lounge chairs. A grill pit matching the stones on the ground sat just at the line where the patio and grass met.

  While Karrina fleetingly introduced her to the few people that were already there, it was evident that their destination was to the man towering over the attached counter with a butcher’s knife in his hand.

  “Hi, Daddy,” Karrina said in a sing-song manner. “Ma is worried you’re going to set the yard on fire like you’re not used to lighting cigarettes with battery foil and an electric outlet.”

  As he laughed, it blew Kya’s mind to lay eyes on the man she heard so much about. That ruthless killer she had been reading about couldn’t possibly harbor the humor that she was currently witnessing. Setting the knife down, Javier wrapped his arms around his daughter as best he could without his hands. He smiled, kissed her on the top of her head, and rested his own against hers. Yet, when he looked up a Kya, she could see the coldness that lay dormant behind dark eyes. More following the next words.

  “Daddy, this is my friend, Kya. Kya, this is the other reason why I’m so sexy.”

  A full-on view was enough to induce shivers. Looking at him was like staring at Antonio twenty plus years into the future. They had the same eyes, same facial structure, and the same nose. At first glimpse, the only noticeable difference was Javier’s greying hair, combed back and naturally curled at the nape of his neck. His body was also a little bigger than Antonio’s. Muscular in a way that revived her fear.

  “Nice to meet you, Sir.”

  “The pleasure is all mine.” He, too, had a thick accent. So strong and alluring due to the depth of his voice. To someone who had no reason to be cautious, the way he said each word could best be described as seductive. “Those pictures on TV did you no justice. You’re far more beautiful in person.”

  Only a stone-hearted bitch would find a reason not to blush. And only a fool would be flattered enough to drop their guard.

  “Princesa, I forgot to grab a few onions and the limes. Get them for me?”

  “Of course. Kya, want a drink while I’m at it? My Ma makes this punch that’s everything but juice.”

  What Kya wanted was not to be left alone with this man, but a drink could help since it was clear Karrina did not need a shadow.

  “Definitely.”

  “Alright. For Ma’s sake, make sure my Dad doesn’t kill us.”

  “Don’t let them scare you. I am not that bad.”

  The puns were almost laughable. If they could read her mind would they have found it as funny as she did? Kya doubted it. She stood where she was, fighting her nerves with swift brushes of her hand along her long peach dress, counting the seconds until Karrina returned.

  “You like Cuban food, Kya?”

  “I’ve never had it.”

  “Really? I can understand you not having it with Rina. She doesn't know how to do anything but makeup and be pretty, but Tonito has never even taken you to any of the places in the city?”

  The slight tugging at her lips morphed into a small smile. Karrina’s makeup skills were so on point that she could turn the ugliest man into Miss Universe, but that was as far as it went.

  “No. The one time we went out in public together the night ended with cameras in our faces. He wasn’t too happy about it so we stuck to private dates.”

  “I heard about that.” He replied, turning over the thick cuts of beef filling the air around them with a mouthwatering aroma. “I also heard your father is in law enforcement. That he and I are something like old friends.” At that, he turned to Kya, picking up the knife. The stare he gave her was as frigid as arctic winds. Deep. Threatening. Kya tried not to show how intimidate she was. Keeping her muscles loose, she nodded. “Is he aware of the company you keep?”

  “Yes.”

  “And how does he feel about that?”

  He retorted as if he was anticipating her answer and expected it to be a cut and dry one. Little did Javier kno
w that the ice water on any situation was the mentioning of Robert. Suddenly, the potential weapon in his hand meant as much to her as the man in question.

  “What he feels is what he feels, and it has absolutely nothing to do with me. Even if I cared a drop about what he thought, I choose who’s in my life. Not him.”

  Javier stilled. He gave her one last appraising glare then broke into a genuine smile. As if that were enough for him, he went back to grilling. With a pair of silver tongs, several long slices of beef were pulled from the smoking rack. With a clean knife, he sliced into one of the others that had been taken off previously and motioned her over with his head. Karrina walked up with the onions and limes, earning another kiss from him.

  Just as he did with the beef, Javier cut the lime, squeezing its fresh juice over the slices he made and gave some to both girls.

  “The reason I gave you this piece, Kya, is because a good steak needs time to rest. If I were to give you a piece of the ones I just removed from the grill, you would be able to taste a difference. You listening, Rina? You could learn something.”

  “Learn what? I don’t need to know how to do anything but kick ass and be pretty.”

  Javier and Kya shared a look before he chuckled and shook his head. Kya followed with light laughter that grew at the sight of her friend’s frown. Rather than filling her in on the inside joke, Kya took the red cup from Karrina and whiffed the drink. Already, she could tell it was strong as hell and bound to have her on her ass if she didn’t drink slowly.

  Out of nowhere, a warmth started at her hip and then spread across her belly before it completely overtook her back.

  That cologne. The gentle way she was held against a hard body. The unforgettable bulge was bringing back memories like bright bursts of fireworks.

  His lips pressed against her ear. With it, she felt what had to be the beginning of a beard.

  “Hello, Kya.”

  Two words.

  That morning he weakened her with three, and now he was killing her with two. She wanted to be mad. From the bottom of her heart, she wanted to whirl around and slap his skin off, but his grip on her tightened, and those lips that had touched the most intimate of places pressed into her jaw slowly and sensually.