Say it, Lisa. Just say it. Tell him you love him.
What if he didn’t feel the same way? What if he’s just being nice and I read too much into it because my ex set the bar so low that any small act of kindness felt like a proclamation of undying love? But…honestly? This was no small act of kindness. He’d rearranged his family vacation to do this amazing, special thing for me that my ex-husband didn’t think to do for me during my darkest times.
As much as I wanted to tell him how I felt, I didn’t want to ruin the day. I would tell him after Abuelita’s, or maybe I’d just chicken out again.
"Nothing." I took a deep breath and smiled. He buckled CJ into his car seat while I said goodbye to my dad.
“I really like him for you, Lisa.” He gestured to Cole. “I see why your mother is so excited. Although, she’s gonna be mad that I got to meet him before she did. Maybe she’ll start coming with me again.”
"I like him, too, Dad." It was all I could say. I could barely admit my feelings about Cole to myself, much less explain them to my father.
"He likes you, too. He looks at you the way I used to look at your mother when I was following her around campus like a lovesick puppy. I never had a chance." He smiled and shook his head. I knew he was missing my mother.
* * *
I stared out of the window at the lush greenery on the way to my grandmother's house, thinking about my father's words.
He looks at you the way I used to look at your mother.
I turned to look at Cole, and he caught my eye and smiled, his eyebrows raised in question.
“Are you ready for the best food you’ve ever eaten in your life?” I asked.
“With that introduction, I can’t wait.”
"There's always lots of carrots in the soup." I smirked at him. "I know how much you love carrots."
"Ha ha," he said as he wrapped my small hand in his large one as we pulled away from the clinic.
* * *
“¡Viejita!” my grandmother called when we pulled up to her house in Guaynabo. My eyes welled with tears when I laid eyes on her. She looked almost exactly the same as she had the last time I’d seen her. The older version of my mother’s heart shaped face grinned at me as Cole and I climbed out of the SUV.
“My grandmother calls me a little old lady because I liked to help her do housework when I was little and always told my siblings and my cousins what to do.”
"So, you've always been this bossy?"
“Excuse you? I have superior organizational and leadership skills. I don’t hear you complaining.”
“You never will.”
“Stop.”
“Stop what.”
“Stop flirting with me.”
“I’m not flirting.”
"Yes, you are, and it's confusing."
“Lisa, I—”
"Te extrañé mucho, cariño." Abuelita squeezed me so hard that it was hard to draw breath, but I didn't care. I missed her, too. We hadn't hugged like this in three long years, and I would stay like this as long as she wanted. When she finally released me, she turned her attention to Cole and CJ. "¿Es este el abogado sexy que tu madre me sigue diciendo?"
I rolled my eyes. My grandmother had just called Cole the sexy lawyer to his face and let him know that the women in my family talk about him regularly.
Cole grinned, and his cheeks flushed pink.
“¡Abuelita!”
“¿Que, que?” she asked. “Es la verdad.” She shrugged.
Just because it's true doesn't mean it needs to be said out loud is something I should have printed on a t-shirt to wear whenever I'm in the same room with any member of my family.
“Abuelita, esto es Cole y Cole, esto es mi abuela, Ana.”
Cole stepped forward and bent with CJ in his arms to give my grandmother a kiss on the cheek.
“Encantado de conocerte. Lisa me ha hablado mucho de ti. Tengo muchas ganas de comer tu asopao. Tu nieta dice que es lo mejor.”
My eyes were probably straining from rolling so much. Cole was laying it on thick, telling Abuelita how much he was looking forward to her soup and that I told him that it was the best. She, of course, hung on his every word.
“¡Tu hablas español!” she said to Cole before turning to me. “¿Por qué no me dijiste que tu prometido podía hablar español?”
The simple answer was that I didn’t know Cole could speak Spanish until a few hours ago, but I was stuck on the word prometido—fiancé. My grandmother didn't seem to know that my engagement with Cole was fake. Of course, Mami wouldn't tell her mother that her newly divorced and oldest granddaughter was pretending to be engaged to win a court case. It barely made sense to me. I looked at Cole, who seemed to be reading my mind.
“¿Y quien es esta muñequito?" She turned her attention to CJ, which eased some of my tension.
The little doll, who always seemed to be a good judge of character, allowed my grandmother to take him from Cole’s arms and bounce him while singing.
“Que linda manita
Tu tienes bebe,
Que linda, que bella,
Que bonita es.”
She waved her hand forward and backward, and CJ mimicked her by waving his chubby arm, transfixed as she sang the verse over and over again. Cole put his arm around my waist and squeezed me into him before planting a kiss on my head. The gesture didn't go unnoticed by my grandmother, who beamed at us before turning and walking towards the house, singing with CJ in her arms, waving her hand back and forth.
* * *
My grandmother refused to let go of CJ for the rest of the afternoon. She somehow managed to serve us dinner with one hand with CJ balanced on her hip. Admittedly, she'd had over a half a century of practice. He sat on her lap as we ate, picking finger-sized chunks of carrot out of her bowl.
“How is it?” I asked Cole.
"This is the best soup I've ever had," he said, barely suppressing a moan. "My friend's mom used to make this when we were kids, but this is better. I don't know why." He ate another heaping spoonful and grabbed a chicken leg from his bowl and took a bite.
"¿Que?" Abuelita questioned, and I realized we were speaking English. I repeated what Cole said about her soup, and she beamed a smile at my prometido. He wrapped his hand around mine and squeezed.
She told us that fresh chicken was her secret, which I knew meant the chicken leg Cole was munching on was probably still walking around attached to a live chicken when we landed this morning before my grandmother broke its neck.
Abuelita noticed Cole wasn't drinking the malta she put in front of him. He picked it up, took a sip, and smiled. Malta most closely resembles beer without the alcohol and has a thick heavy taste like molasses. It was very sweet and best when it was cold.
“You don’t like it, do you?” I whispered, trying to suppress a smile.
“It’s fine.” He was obviously lying.
“It’s okay if you don’t like it. It’s an acquired taste.” I giggled.
“Will she get offended if I don’t finish it?”
"Oh, definitely. If you don't drink and eat everything Abuela puts in front of you, she will take it very personally."
“How can you drink this?” He took another sip and smiled at my grandmother.
"I've been drinking it since I was a kid. I love it." I chuckled at his incredulous expression. "You've been very good to me today, so I'm gonna rescue you." I waited until my grandmother wasn't paying attention, and I switched my empty bottle for Cole's full one.
“Thank you,” he said with a grateful sigh.
"No. Thank you." I looked up at him.
“For what?”
"For today, for last week, for everything," I whispered and glanced at Abuelita. She was laughing at CJ, who was trying to put his finger in her nose. "And thanks for not correcting my grandmother. I know we'll have to tell her eventually, but she looks so happy."
“She does look happy. Let’s make her a little happier.” He grinned at me.
"What do you—" I was interrupted by Cole pressing his lips to mine. His kiss was strong and soft. He may have been putting on a show for my grandmother, but it felt as real as any kiss we shared, with a lot less tongue, of course. We separated to see our dining companions staring at us, smiling.
CJ clapped his hands and yelled, “Tiss! Mo tiss!”
Cole turned to me with eyebrows raised. “Well, do we give the people what they want?” He turned to my grandmother. “¿Debería besar a tu nieta otra vez?”
Abuelita laughed. “Claro.”
We kissed again to cheers, and my grandmother served us her coconut rice pudding that she usually made for special occasions.
* * *
After hugging, kissing, and promising to return soon, we climbed back in the SUV. CJ was still upset because we wouldn't let him inside the chicken coop and refused to give goodbye kisses. I also suspected his behavior had a lot to do with his impending naptime.
“So,” I sighed. “What now?”
“Well.” Cole took my hand. “Now we’re gonna meet up with Adam and Kimmy. Then the rest is a surprise.”
“More surprises? I thought I was in charge.” I glared at him.
“The day was yours. The night is mine.”
“Cole, what is all this? Why are you doing this?”
"I know that technically I'm your ‘employer,’ and I'm paying you for everything you do for us, but I don't want you to take for granted that I understand what you're sacrificing for us. I wanted to bring you here because I know how important this place is to you, and I want you to know how important you are to us."
“Oh.” It was the only thing I could say without bursting into tears. My eyes stung and I quickly turned my face to the window, gripping Cole’s hand as the driver pulled away.
* * *
CJ was still asleep when we met up with Kimberly and Adam. Part of Cole's plan for the night was for CJ to have a sleepover with Auntie Kimmy, so we left him in his car seat and climbed into their SUV.
“Alone at last,” he said as he slammed the door and turned to me. “Lisa, I had all of this romantic stuff planned for tonight.” His arm flexed to reach into his hair to start ruffling it, but I caught it and squeezed.
He took a deep breath.
"I wanted to bring you here and find the perfect place and the perfect moment, but the problem is every single moment today was the perfect moment to tell you that I love you, and I can't wait anymore." He looked me in the eye. His were glossy with emotion. "I'm in love with you."
My eyes stung with tears. Cole just told me he loved me. I wondered how long we'd been orbiting around each other, pretending when we were actually in love. How much time had we wasted? A chuckle I couldn't repress bubbled out of me and grew until I was laughing with fat tears rolling down my cheeks.
"This was not the reaction I was expecting." Cole's suntanned face paled, and he loosened his grip on my hands.
I squeezed them and pulled them into my lap. I kept trying to talk, but I’d only end up wheezing with laughter. Finally, when I was able to take a breath, I pressed Cole’s hands into my chest. “Cole,” I managed to say between giggles. “I’ve been trying to figure out how I was going to tell you I love you all fucking day.”
“Well, shit.” His face split in a wide grin. “All fucking day?”
“Yeah.” I nodded and leaned forward. “All fucking day.”
Cole closed the distance between us, and our mouths met. His fingers slid into my hair and wrapped around the nape of my neck, pulling us closer together. This wasn't the chaste kiss we shared at my grandmother's kitchen table. This kiss was the fulfillment of every unsatisfied desire from the last two months. I didn't have to fantasize about Cole's kisses or his hands exploring every inch of my flesh. He was mine. This kiss was full of passion and promise.
The car jerked to a stop, and we separated.
“We’re here, sir,” the driver announced.
"So, what are all these romantic things you had planned?" I smiled at him and pressed my fingers to my lips, which already felt sore.
"Well." Cole brought one of my hands to his lips. "I made dinner reservations at a very fancy restaurant, then we were going to take a private cruise for two around San Juan Bay, and then I booked a two-bedroom suite with an oceanfront view for the night."
“Two bedrooms?” I asked.
Cole shrugged. “In case I struck out.”
“How long have you been planning this?”
“A while.”
"Would you be upset if we skipped dinner and the cruise, and instead, went straight to the hotel suite and ordered room service?" I raised my eyebrows and tucked my bottom lip between my teeth.
Cole pulled me into his lap, brushed a thumb over one of my nipples, and it stiffened immediately. "You're in charge."
25
cole
The hallway was deserted when we stepped off of the elevator, so I hoisted Lisa onto my shoulder, ran to our suite, and opened the door one-handed.
She squealed when I tossed her on the bed, and I crawled on top of her before she could bounce a second time, kissing her and pushing my tongue between her lips.
“How long do Kimberly and Adam have CJ?” she panted when I moved on to the shell of her ear and sucked the lobe between my teeth.
"All night." I dragged my lips over her throat. "Are you really thinking about CJ right now?"
She giggled. “Sorry, I just wanted to know how much time we had.”
I stopped and hovered above her, our noses almost touching. "We have all the time in the world, gorgeous." I inched backward and kneeled on the floor at the foot of the bed. "Why did you wear this dress?" I lifted the skirt to find the familiar purple lace panties she wore the night we made love at my house.
“Because it’s hot outside?” And I knew instantly that she was teasing me.
"I think you wore it because you wanted me to slide my hand up your thigh, like this." I smoothed a palm over her soft fleshy inner thigh. Slowly, I grazed a thumb over her sex. She moaned, and my restraint broke. I grabbed the waistband of her panties and yanked them over her legs. "Open up for me, beautiful."
Lisa separated her knees and used her fingers to inch her skirt over her waist until she was fully exposed to me.
“You shaved.”
“I thought I should be prepared.” Her eyes glittered as I moved closer. “Say something in Spanish.”
“Te quiero.”
“Something else. Something dirty.”
“¿Puedo besar tus otros labios hasta que me grites que pare?”
“Fuck yes,” she moaned.
Once I had her permission, I put my face between her open legs. Her intoxicating scent filled my nostrils, beckoning me closer and I couldn't believe how much I fucking missed this.
I started by planting kisses on her stomach, slowly licking, nibbling, and sucking my way down to her pussy. I massaged and kneaded the soft, warm flesh of her thighs as she moaned and tried to wrap her legs around my head, urging me closer to her warmth. I pushed her knees further apart, and she opened like a flower.
“Cole…”
Her whisper was a plea, and I wasn't going to keep her waiting. I lowered my face between her legs and went straight for her clit, gently teasing it with my teeth and caressing it with my tongue. She spasmed almost immediately.
"Oh my fucking God." She let out a deep guttural moan that made my dick throb. I released one of her thighs, freed my cock from my shorts, and began to stroke. I was leaking cum and used it to lubricate my palm as I continued to jerk off to Lisa's moaning. Her orgasms were rolling one after the other, and the spasms made her inch up the mattress.
“Come back here, beautiful,” I growled into her glistening wet pussy as I used my free arm to wrap around her waist and pull her back into my face.
“Cole,” she moaned. “I don’t know if I can take much more of this.”
I was twirling my tongue around her opening, but I paused at Lisa’s word
s. “Do you want me to stop?”
“Are you fucking kidding me?” she gasped. “No!”
I laughed, then resumed stroking my dick and feasting on Lisa. My tongue swirled around her tight little asshole. My mind flashed to the night in my bathroom and the bottle of lube in my duffle bag. I wondered what would happen if I gently pressed a finger into—
Before I could finish the thought or stop myself, I exploded, grunting and swearing, into my hand, and created a puddle on the floor at the foot of the bed. Two months was too long, and I had no fucking control when it came to this woman.
"Shit, Lisa." I rested my head on her thigh to catch my breath.
“Are you okay down there?” she asked. I lifted my head and looked at her. She was wearing a self-satisfied smirk. It was as if she knew she had the power to literally bring me to my knees without lifting a finger.
"I am, but you won't be when I'm done with you." I plunged two fingers of the hand that wasn’t holding my dick into her, slowly bending them in a beckoning motion massaging her G-spot. I tossed one of her thighs over my shoulder and pressed my tongue onto her clit. Her hands flew into my hair, and I knew what or I should say, who was coming next.
I kept my fingers in her and massaged her clitoris with my thumb so I could watch her in the throes of euphoria, being careful not to get kneed in the face again. It was a beautiful sight. Her eyes were squeezed shut, and she was writhing and moaning as the waves of her orgasm ebbed. I loved that I could make her feel this way. I gave her this pleasure, but it paled in comparison to everything she'd given me.
We undressed and held each other as we recovered from our orgasms. Lisa flopped in my arms, and I squeezed her into me and kissed her.
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