by K. Aten
“Carlos! I’ve missed you, little man! How is your papa and mama?”
Carlos grinned and proudly showed off his two missing front teeth. “Mama’th in the pool with Papa, Rotha, and the couthins.
“Tía thays that yer gonna be thad and that I thould bring you out to the veranda when you get here.” He suddenly noticed Jamie standing off to the side and stepped back. “Who’th that? Ith that yer girlfriend?”
Kelsey took Jamie’s hand and drew her forward. “This is Jamie, she’s not my girlfriend. She’s just a good friend who came with me because she knew I’d be sad about our abuela.”
“Oh! Thad, right! Mi tío thad to come back right away cuth you would be muy thad.” He pulled Kelsey’s free hand and she in turn pulled Jamie. Kelsey felt nauseous, sure that she had missed her opportunity to say goodbye. Jamie felt a little sick herself, nervous to meet Kelsey’s family.
They wandered through the sprawling two story house until they came out in a large open kitchen. From there they went through a set of French doors that led out onto a covered veranda. There were a couple older people seated at the far end of the tiled space but there were more than a dozen adults and children playing in an in-ground pool. An older redhead stood out among the sea of dark hair and sun-burnished skin in the backyard. She spun around when they came through the door and put her hand over her mouth. “Alannah! I am so sorry.”
Kelsey teared up and gripped Jamie’s hand tightly within her own. “Oh, Mama, is it too late then?”
Her mother dropped her hand and looked perplexed. Despite the fact that Kelsey and her mother were so very different, Jamie immediately recognized the expression the older woman wore. She smiled inwardly recalling that same head tilt with crinkled brow on her best friend. “Too late?”
Sure enough, Kelsey gave her the same look in return. “Are we too late, is mi abuela gone? Carlos said I would be sad when he answered the door so I thought she had died before we got here.”
“Dead? Aon! Of course she is not dead. I merely thought you’d be sad to find out you came down here for nothing. Mama is feisty and ready to come home. They’ve no clue why she had such a dramatic turnaround, but we are all giving thanks for it.” Kelsey breathed a sigh of relief and Jamie started to sweat. The blonde abruptly realized that without the purpose of Kelsey’s grandmother’s impending death, there was nothing to prevent the focus from going on to the one person who was not part of the family. She became acutely aware of their joined hands as Kelsey’s mother turned bright green eyes on her. “And who is this? You made no mention of a girlfriend, Kelsey. And d’ya always greet your mam so cold?”
Kelsey immediately dropped Jamie’s hand and threw her arms around her mother. Then she went over and did the same to what Jamie assumed was her father. He had stood up during the initial exchange between the confused women. Then she turned back to Jamie and pulled her forward. “Mama, Papa, this is my friend Jamie. She came down to keep me company because I thought I was going to have to say goodbye to mi abuela.”
Jamie had no experience with meeting someone’s parents so she just stuck out her hand toward Kelsey’s mom. “Hello, Mrs. Ramirez, it’s very nice to meet you. I can see where Kelsey gets her beauty and spirit from.”
Kelsey’s mother took Jamie’s hand into both of her own and leaned back a bit. “Oh now, let me take a gander at ye.”
“Mama, don’t gawk!”
The older woman smiled. “You can call me Kaitlyn, and that handsome man over there is Manny. Not that yer not a fine thing yourself!”
Kelsey sighed and close her eyes. “Mama, please!”
The redhead turned toward her daughter. “What? I’m just making an observation. What’s the matter?” Jamie’s head was bouncing back and forth between mother and daughter and Kaitlyn had yet to remove her grip. While maintaining that grip the redhead leaned over and whispered to her daughter. It was not a quiet whisper because she had to speak loud enough to be heard over the kids and adults playing in the pool. “Why’s she not yer mot then? She doesn’t look the moran or manky. She a cute hoor?”
Jamie startled. “What?”
“Mama, no! And she can hear you and what you’re saying sounds really bad in American English!”
Kaitlyn looked decidedly unapologetic. “Then she shouldn’t be earwigging!” Jamie’s face turned red and she attempted to extricate herself from the redhead’s grip but Kaitlyn was pretty strong for an older woman.
“Kait, you’re coming on too strong, mi amor. Let Kelsey’s girlfriend go. The poor thing’s losing feeling in her hand.” Kelsey had talked about her parents a lot, but hearing Manuel Ramirez speak in person was unexpected. While he wasn’t very tall, he wore laugh lines well on what was still a very handsome face. But his voice was startling and unexpectedly deep. Of course Kelsey’s mother surprised her even more, but she didn’t have time to dwell on it because Manny was pulling her into a hug as soon as Kaitlyn let go of her hand. “Thank you for coming down with our Kels. I’m glad she has someone special in her life up there.” When he was done hugging Jamie he turned to his daughter. “Why don’t we all sit down for a bit and you can tell me about what you’ve been doing lately and how you and Jamie met. She is the engineer, yes?”
Kelsey made one more attempt to set the record straight about her and Jamie. “Yes, Papa, but Jamie and I are—”
He practically glowed as he interrupted her. “I’m so glad it all worked out and you’re no longer alone! Now come and sit with us. I’ll send Carlos for tea or lemonade if you prefer. You can introduce Jamie to all your cousins later.”
Jamie tried to keep up, she really did. She didn’t understand half of what Kelsey’s mother was saying but she certainly understood that Kelsey’s dad was under the impression that she and Kelsey were dating. And Jamie was not at all opposed to the idea. She glanced over at her friend and Kelsey’s face was a little pinker than normal. Jamie turned to Kaitlyn and Manny Ramirez and gave them a hundred watt grin. “I wouldn’t mind sitting for a bit. It’s quite a lot hotter here than back home.” The truth was that all families scared the bejeezus out of her, especially her own. But Jamie was determined that she would win Kelsey over, one relative at a time if that was what it took.
She shocked herself as thoughts of a future with her beautiful friend rolled through her head. She knew that what she felt for Kelsey was much deeper than anything she’d felt in a very long time. But it wasn’t until their time on the plane that Jamie realized how far Kelsey had gotten inside. She was addicted to the stubborn Irish-Latina woman and she wanted more of everything from her. Jamie knew the sexual attraction was there. It was obvious with every heavy glance and long pause between them. She just had to hope that Kelsey felt something deeper too.
Before long they were seated in the shade of the veranda. Kelsey and Jamie both had iced lemonades and Kelsey’s parents had sweet tea. Manny’s deep voice cut through the heat like thunder. “So Kelsey has told us that you met through a telephone application. How does that work exactly?”
Kaitlyn rolled her expressive eyes. “Oh love, when will ye get with the times? It’s a smart phone app, all the kids have them!” She looked at Jamie. “So which dating app was it? Knowing my darling Kelsey, it was something funny. This one time she showed me some ‘˜Farm Gurls 4 U’ app and let me tell ye, I was glad te be married and straight!”
“Jeez, Mama! Enough already! We didn’t meet on a dating app, we met through a driving app. It was one where you could leave a voice message for your fellow drivers to warn them of road hazards.”
Jamie tried not to laugh. Kelsey’s mother was hilariously embarrassing and she enjoyed seeing her friend’s face so red. She decided to cast the poor woman a line since it looked like she was drowning under her mother’s love. “She’s right. We started chatting via the app. Then one day I got a flat on the side of the highway and Kelsey just pulled up behind me and changed my tire.”
Manny gave her a strange look. “You don’t know how t
o change a tire?”
“Um.” Jamie looked at Kelsey for help. Kelsey whispered the word “prissy” under her breath. “I technically know how to change a tire, sir, but—”
“No, no, no, do not call me sir. You can call me Manny, or even Papa when you’re ready.” He finished his interruption with a wink and Jamie swallowed hard.
“Okay, um, Manny. You see I know how to change a tire. I’ve just never actually done it before. And when Kelsey stopped to help me out she just kind of took over. There was nothing left for me to do but hand her the tools.”
Kaitlyn and Manny both nodded but it was her father that answered. “Si, she is like that. I think she gets it from her mama.”
Kelsey’s mama swatted him on the arm. “Oh you! You just say the sweetest things!” Jamie looked back and forth between them, thinking that Kelsey’s parents were not at all what she expected. Kelsey slumped down in her chair just a little and wished she had some vodka for her lemonade.
In an effort to get to know Kelsey’s parents a little better and try to understand how two very different people ended up married, Jamie asked the obligatory question. “So how did you two meet?”
The redhead looked solemn for a second. “My daughter probably would not have told you but I’ve been disowned by my side of the family, the O’Brian’s. It was because I decided to stay in the United States and get married to my Manny. But when I met him, it was love at first sight.” She shrugged and gave Manny an affectionate look then turned back to Jamie. “The only one who stayed in contact was my aunt Kelcie and she died a few years ago, rest her soul.”
Kelsey’s papa took over the tale then, giving his own background. “I was living in Michigan at the time, having served my hitch in the army and learning my trade. When our time was up, Charlie and I opened up our own auto shop in his uncle’s old garage. Kait and I only moved back to Texas when mama’s health took a turn for the worse and she needed someone to care for her. That’s when I sold my stake and moved down here where I started the garage I have now.” He paused to take a sip of his tea then a soft smile came over his face. “So anyway, Kaitlyn came into this little bar near the shop, all alone mind you. And immediately said ‘˜it’s fuckin’ freezin’ out’ and that she’d ‘˜murder a fuckin’ pint’. I was shocked, of course. I mean, here was this beautiful woman swearing like the guys I served with in the army. She was nothing like mi madre.”
Jamie snickered a little at his description of Kelsey’s mama. Within her first few minutes in the older woman’s company she could tell that Kaitlyn Ramirez was probably a lot to handle. Kaitlyn herself laughed loudly at her husband’s imitation of her. “After graduating university, I had my heart set on traveling around the US. I went to school with an American lass and there were so many things I wanted to see. My parents were completely against it but I had been working and saving money on the sly while I went to school. I was very close to my aunt Kelcie and she was the one who helped put the trip together. The hotel I was staying in was a complete kip and I decided to go out for a dram of fresh air. I was a bit of a chancer back then and I found myself alone in a bar near the airport.” Jamie raised her eyebrow at the “back then” comment but otherwise remained silent. “Anyway, I went in to use the toilet and maybe bum a fag and when I looked around this dark and handsome man was at my elbow. While not very tall he was certainly a fine thing! He asked if I was lost or needed a ride in that deep voice of his. I asked him how far he was willing to take me.” She paused and looked at Jamie with a smirk. “D’ye know?”
Jamie swallowed and Kelsey chuckled at the look on her face. “Yeah, Mama, I think Jamie knows.”
The blonde nodded. “Yes, so I’m assuming that was the love at first sight part?” Both Kelsey’s mama and papa nodded and graced each other with the sweetest smile and Jamie hoped that she’d get a similar look from her friend someday soon. “Thank you for telling me your story Kaitlyn. That was very, er, sweet.”
Just as a lull hit their conversation, Kaitlyn suddenly sat up straight and slapped the arm of her chair. “You know what we need? We need to have a party to celebrate Mama’s homecoming!”
Manny looked at his wife as if she’d gone nuts. “But Kait, we are already having a welcome home party tomorrow, after I go pick her up from the hospital!”
“No, tu madre is not allowed to have alcohol so we will have to keep it hidden tomorrow so she doesn’t get into the cups. But tonight we could have a real party to welcome the girls proper!”
Kelsey’s papa rubbed his forehead, looking very much like he was getting a headache. His voice was soft. “Aye yai yai, you are too much sometimes.”
“Please, mo shíorghrá? We can hang those new rainbow lanterns to show the girls how much pride we have, and you can cook on the grill.” She turned to her daughter. “Maybe for tomorrow you could make some of your abuela’s tamales.” Jamie thought she called him mo sheeorgruh with a rolled r at the end. She assumed it was Gaelic but didn’t speak the language so she continued to follow along as best she could.
Kelsey scowled. “You know I don’t like to cook, Mama.”
“I’ll help her. I love to cook!” Jamie jumped in and offered without a second thought. She had multiple reasons for it. First and foremost she didn’t want to wander too far from Kelsey’s side and be stuck on her own with her friend’s family. She also just wanted to be by Kelsey’s side because she felt a physical pull to be near her. Lastly, she really wanted to learn how to make authentic tamales.
The scowling face turned from Kaitlyn to Jamie. “I really don’t want to cook.”
Jamie smiled. “Perfect! I’ll do the cooking and you can just tell me what to do.”
Both Kaitlyn and Manny started laughing and her mother’s heavy brogue rolled out with the laughter. “My daughter, it looks as though you’ve finally met your match!”
“Si, she does seem perfect for you, pequeño.” Manny’s deep voice held nothing but humor and affection for his daughter.
Jamie leaned toward Kelsey and whispered into her ear. “Your dad calls you little one? You’re taller than he is!” Kelsey just shrugged her shoulders. She didn’t want to admit that she had no idea what her father had called her for as long as she could remember. She knew what “No hablo español” meant and she considered that pretty good. Jamie looked at the quiet woman and narrowed her eyes. “Really, Kels? I cannot believe you are half Hispanic and you speak no Spanish!”
Kelsey blushed. “Hey, I took Spanish in high school! Two years! Plus, I’m half Irish and I speak no Gaelic so, eh, two years of Spanish is pretty good.” Jamie snickered as Kelsey held up two fingers, knowing her friend probably had no clue how to say two in Spanish.
Kaitlyn shook her head back and forth with a sad look. “Para lo que han servido esos dos años” Jamie cracked up laughing at Kelsey’s befuddled look and received a punch to the arm.
Manny’s face lit up with a delighted grin. “You speak Spanish, Jamie?”
She nodded. “Si, senor. Not great but I can still follow along if I have to.”
Kelsey’s gaze moved back and forth between her parents and thought they were half besotted with Jamie themselves. She sighed, clearly aware that she had been beat. “Fine, Jamie and I will make tamales tomorrow. Do we have everything we need for both parties?”
The older woman thought for a second. “Actually, the press is fair empty. Would ya like te do some shoppin’ with me?”
The younger Ramirez made a face. “I’d rather eat gravel, Mama, you know that. Actually, can we put our stuff in the spare rooms? I thought maybe I could introduce Jamie to the cousins.”
“Um, actually.” Her father’s deep voice brought everyone’s head around again. “We’ve got your aunt Roselyn and uncle Tuck staying in the big spare and little Carlos and Rosa are going to be on the pullout in the den. So you and Jamie will have to be in the small spare. We didn’t realize you’d have company. I hope that’s okay.” Kelsey could feel her breathing start to increase e
ver so slightly. The small spare only had a twin bed. Not only would both their feet hang over the end but she would have to sleep pressed tightly against her best friend. She flashed back to the night of Burke’s birthday party.
Her own mother interrupted her lascivious thoughts. “No worries though lass. There’s a good sturdy lock on that door so the cousins won’t be bothering you and Jamie!”
Kelsey shook her head slowly back and forth. “What about mi abuela’s bed tonight and maybe we can just stay at the hotel just down the road the rest of the time.”
“Mama has a hospital bed now. Neither of you can sleep in there. Please, Kels, I would like to have my daughter near me for a few nights. I have missed you!” Kelsey could never could say no to her mother. The woman was surely full of leprechaun magic.
Jamie didn’t understand what the big deal was. A room was a room. Before she could ask, her bladder had finally gotten its fill of lemonade. She leaned over and whispered into Kelsey’s ear for the second time since they’d arrived. “Kels, where is the bathroom?”
Kaitlyn gushed. “Oh, Manny, look how cute they are! Do you remember when I was that cute?”
“Si, but you are no longer that cute.” Before Kaitlyn’s fiery temper could make itself known he continued. “You are beautiful now and I much prefer beautiful, mi amor.”
Kaitlyn blushed and Kelsey was sure she gacked a little inside, even though she was used to such displays from her parents. She stood and without a thought about how it may look to her family she held out her hand to Jamie. “Come on, I’ll show you to the bathroom and we can put our stuff in the spare room upstairs.” She was rattled about the prospect of sleeping so close to the woman who had dominated her dreams, but she didn’t want show it in front of her parents or Jamie. The last thing she needed was to make them worry more after what they had been through with her abuela. They wandered through the sprawling house until they came to a bathroom near the back on the opposite side from the veranda. “Here you go. I’ll just grab the bags out of the trunk—”
