Destiny and a Bottle of Merlot

by Bria Marche

  “I don’t think Sasha did, but I know Martha does,” she said, smiling at Josh. “What if little Josh is your son?”

  A long pause filled the space between the question and Josh’s answer. “Six months ago, I would have fought it tooth and nail. But now, if he is, I’d be a proud dad and step up. We’d spend time together. I’ll admit, I’d be pissed that I missed the first nine years of his life. But in hindsight, what kind of dad would I have been? The truth is, if I could do it right the first time, my kids with be with you, and only you. I want us to have a family together, Sasha. I guess meeting little Josh woke me up. Having a family really gives a person something to live for, and other people to be responsible to. It would be nice to have a wife and kids to come home to every night.”

  “Do you think I’m wife material?”

  “Honey, you’re wife, mother, seductress, goddess and damn it, I’ve died and gone to heaven material, all rolled into one.”

  “You’re sweet and funny.” Sasha took Josh’s hand and kissed each finger. “Did I tell you the soil test came back as acceptable to grow Concord grapes?”

  “No. I guess we didn’t talk much last week. Anyway, that’s great news. I guess we better study up on the whole process. I know your dad will help you, but we do need to get the ball rolling. As soon as spring comes we need to till up the ground around the concrete slab. It’s going to be exciting.”

  “That’s for sure. We’ve got a lot to do with the house and the wedding garden. I should say I’ve got a lot to do.”

  “No you shouldn’t. You were right the first time. We have a lot to do, but the library comes first. There’s nothing we can do outside until spring anyway.”

  “Can we go to Home Depot today and pick out paint for the library?”

  “Sure, babe, but breakfast first. I’ll make you a deal. I’ll walk the pooch if you start the bacon.”

  “Deal, but I need some more of you before we go downstairs.”

  Sasha set the coffee cups on the nightstand. She straddled Josh and bent down to kiss him. Her full, warm breasts lay on his chest. She kissed him deeply, swirling her tongue in his hot mouth. He moaned and slid her robe off, exposing her naked body. Josh flipped Sasha over and straddled her. He caressed her breasts between his hands and licked her nipples, causing small shockwaves to surge throughout her body. Sasha spread her legs so Josh could enter her hot, wet spot. She couldn’t wait to feel him inside her again. He obliged, and filled her deeply. A cry of ecstasy sounded as she pulled him closer. They rocked back and forth until they both exploded in hot, frenzied satisfaction. They lay side by side, spent and happy. Kismet began to whine. Eight o’clock was her time to go outside, and she was more than ready.

  “Okay, okay I get the message. Women… I swear,” Josh teased as Sasha gave him a slap on the butt. “Ouch, that hurt. Give it a kiss… please?” His eyes twinkled playfully with hers.

  “Big baby. Go walk the mutt. I’ll start breakfast. You have to promise to wash my back when we shower later.” Sasha slipped on her robe, tied the belt and threw a pillow at Josh.

  “With pleasure, my love.”

  Sasha’s phone rang as she placed the strips of bacon across the hot griddle. She wiped her greasy fingers on a paper towel and answered. “Hey, Tina, what’s up?”

  “Yum… I smell bacon. I’ll be right over,” Tina joked.

  “It’s uncanny how you know those things, girl. You’re totally freaking me out,” Sasha said.

  “So anyway, what’s going on for New Year’s Eve? Nobody has mentioned anything to me.”

  “Me either, but I can find out.” Sasha jabbed at the bacon with a fork.

  “Well, I want to have a party. I never host parties, and it’s my turn. Will you guys come?”

  “Of course, it will be a blast. Count us in. Are you going to call everyone or should I?”

  “Naw… I’ll take care of it. Go fry your bacon. Out.”

  “Out.” Sasha loved having this group of friends. They were like sisters, and she felt very blessed.

  Josh walked in with Kismet. “What’s with the smile?” he asked.

  “Nothing really. Tina invited us to her place for New Year’s Eve. I said okay. I’m just happy, that’s all. Life is good.”

  Josh snuggled up to Sasha’s back and kissed her neck. He distracted her long enough to reach around and steal a piece of bacon off the griddle.

  “Hey!”

  “Damn that’s hot,” he cried out, as he tossed the bacon onto the counter.

  Sasha laughed out loud. “Serves you right, bacon thief. Breakfast will be ready in ten minutes. How do you want your eggs?”

  “Over easy, ma’am.” He picked up the cooled bacon from the counter and popped it into his mouth. He kissed her. She licked the bacon grease from his lips.

  After breakfast, they lingered in the hot shower together enjoying the pulsing jets against their skin.

  “Suds me up, you promised.”

  “My pleasure.” Josh lathered Sasha’s back. He caressed her shoulders, squeezing the knots out of them. He stroked her neck. His hands slid up and down her beautiful, slippery body.

  “That feels so good, Josh. I hope you’ll do that forever.”

  Chapter Twenty Nine

  The New Year’s Eve party would start in a few hours. Everyone wanted to stay close to home with the weather forecast predicting five inches of new snow. Tina loved the idea of hosting her first party with the entire group of friends. She bought party favors earlier in the day. An assortment of hats, streamers, noisemakers and a few fireworks were dumped out on the kitchen table so she could arrange things properly. The staircase banister had dozens of helium balloons tied to it, and confetti found itself sprinkled across the dining room table. Tina bought six bottles of champagne and a mixed case of wine. Aaron promised to make bar-be-cue ribs at home on the grill. They would need warming up later in Tina’s oven. Potato salad, plus vegetable and cheese platters were Vic and Max’s responsibility. Mario offered to bring a case of beer. Sasha and Josh volunteered to bring the snacks, and Karen was in charge of the desserts and a fresh bag of coffee.

  Tina sent a group text to everyone. “Just in case the weather is too bad tonight to go home, or everyone is too drunk, pack an overnight bag. The more the merrier, but Vic’s making breakfast!” She laughed and hit ‘send.’

  Mario showed up at Vic’s house early-afternoon. He didn’t want to risk driving the two hour distance in bad weather. Potato peels flew as Vic prepared the potato salad, and Max shopped for vegetables and assorted cheeses.

  “Hey, bro,” Vic said, as she puckered up for a big kiss. “Put the beer in the garage. It’ll stay plenty cold out there. How was the drive?”

  “The roads were okay, just a lot of cars today. I’m glad I got an early start.”

  Max walked in with arm loads of groceries. He leaned in and kissed Vic as she worked. “Damn, the grocery store is nuts already. Hey, Mario. Good to see you, man. Grab a knife. You can help get these cold cuts ready for later.”

  The party began at six. Everyone arrived on time. The snow began to accumulate, and the forecast changed for the worst. Max and Mario were staying in Tarrytown no matter what. The latest predictions estimated 8-10 inches of snow. Nobody at Tina’s house cared. They were enjoying themselves in the safety of Tina’s welcoming home. Even Reggie and Kismet joined in on the festivities.

  Huge quantities of food filled the dining room table, and glowing candles accented the room. A chilled bucket of champagne was ready to be poured. Before anyone could dig into the delicious looking ribs and potato salad, they each had to go around the table and make a toast. Later, they would play games and reveal their New Year’s resolutions. The toasts were made to good health, good food and good sex. Laugher rang out and glasses clinked together.

  The ladies cleaned up the kitchen while the guys moved furniture to the outer edges of the living room to create an open space. Tina turned on sultry blues to get the vibe going. The f
irst game was about to begin. Tina explained that she would stand in the middle of the room holding four long ribbons at their center. Four people would be on either end of the ribbons. Tina wanted the men on one side and the women on the other. Everyone had to grab a ribbon by the end and hold it. When Tina let go, whoever was holding the same ribbon by the ends, had to dance with each other. The music genre would be in a hat. When it was the couples turn to dance, they had to pick the music type out of the hat, and dance for the entire song. Everyone booed and laughed at the silly game but agreed to do it. It was going to be a night of many games and a lot of drinking. When everyone was coupled up, it was Mia and Max, Aaron and Sasha, Karen and Mario and Vic and Josh.

  “That isn’t fair. Tina doesn’t have to take part,” Sasha pouted.

  “I’ll go the next round, or you guys can pick a different game. I’ll make sure I’m in it,” Tina said, laughing. “Okay, who wants to go first?”

  Vic volunteered to start the dancing.

  “I don’t know how to dance,” Josh whined.

  “Just do whatever I do. I’m Puerto Rican, and baby, can I dance. Pick something good, Josh,” Vic said, laughing.

  Josh reached in the hat, stirred the slips of paper around, and pulled one out. He furrowed his eyebrows as he read it out loud. “Shit! We have to fast dance to rock music.”

  Everyone burst out laughing at the face he made. Tina put on Van Halen’s ‘Everybody Wants Some.’

  Vic screeched with laughter. “I friggin love that song. C’mon, baby, let me show you how it’s done.” She grabbed Josh’s hand and pulled him into the center of the room. The rest of the group filled their glasses and plopped down on the furniture to watch the show. Tina started the music.

  Vic began slowly, thrusting her hips to the intro of the song. As it sped up, her hips began to gyrate in a frenzy of fast spins, grinds and bumps against Josh’s butt. He ducked just before he was decapitated by her flailing arms. Josh bounced around on one leg looking like a wounded shorebird, having no idea how to keep up with Vic. Tears and roars of laughter had everyone ready to wet themselves. Aaron and Sasha went next. They chose the 50’s genre. Tina picked The Brian Setzer Orchestra playing ‘Jump Jive An' Wail.’

  “Yay! I love to spin and bounce around like that. You have to pull me under your legs and flip me over your back. Can you do that, Aaron?”

  “Uh… I don’t know. How about we try something a little less dangerous? I’ll pull you under my legs and then let’s just spin each other around.”

  “Okay, if that’s the best you can do.”

  Next was Mario and Karen. They chose Latin music. Mario was in his element, being Puerto Rican. Latinos had that natural hip movement. Tina chose to play Marc Anthony’s ‘Live My Life.’ “Do you know how to dance Cha Cha? It’s kind of like Salsa except a little slower,” he asked Karen.

  “Of course not, but I bet you’re going to teach me.” She grinned widely at him. “Should I just mimic whatever you do?”

  “Yeah, just follow my moves.”

  “Karen would love to follow your moves, bro,” Vic yelled out.

  More laughter erupted as Karen turned a deep shade of red. “Vic, remind me to kill you when we’re done,” she said.

  Mario stood side by side with Karen and showed her the steps. “I’ll go slowly. It’s an eight step dance. We can just fool around. Oops, wrong choice of words.”

  The group felt no pain with amount of drinks and laughter going around. Mario and Karen finished the dance and everyone cheered.

  “I’ll teach you Latin dancing whenever you want,” Mario whispered in Karen’s ear when the music stopped.

  The only couple left was Max and Mia. “Go ahead, ladies first,” he teased, as Mia dipped her hand into the hat.

  “That’s easy for you to say, dork. There’s only one slip of paper left.” Mia reached in and pulled out the final piece of paper. It read slow dancing. She felt her face begin to flush.

  Tina picked one of her very favorite songs to play to Mia’s dismay. Mia already felt nervous just at the thought of dancing with Max, let alone a slow song. Damn it, how did I end up dancing with Max, and a slow song, no less?

  The music began. It was Luther Vandross’s ‘Here and Now.’ Max reached for Mia’s hand and pulled her close. Their eyes met, then Mia quickly looked down. She put her arm around his back and lay her head against his chest. His heart pounded against her temple. He held her hand softly, and they melted together as if one, while the music played. Everything else faded in that few minutes, even the hecklers, laughing and telling them to get a room. Luckily, everyone was tipsy enough not to notice the genuine connection Mia and Max still had with each other.

  “Alright, wasn’t that fun?” Tina asked, as the music ended. “What’s next?”

  Thank God that’s over, Mia thought, as she filled her wine glass.

  Max gave her a subtle wink and grabbed a beer for himself. “Let’s play Twister,” he suggested.

  “Yeah, that sounds like a riot,” Sasha agreed, with a hiccup. “We’ve already cleared the floor.”

  “Okay… why not.” Tina got the game out and they began playing, laughing and falling over each other in the unstable condition they were already in.

  Karen fell on top of Mario, who in turn fell over Aaron. “Dude, you’re getting way too personal right now,” Aaron yelled out, when Mario’s butt was close to touching his face.

  Sasha ran for the bathroom, laughing. “I’m going to pee my panties any second. I’ll be right back.”

  Tina called out to the group. “Hey you guys, it’s almost midnight. We need to get our party favors, confetti and champagne ready. We’ve only got ten minutes before the ball drops.”

  Everyone scrambled. The girls banged on the bathroom door for Sasha to get out so they could have their turn. “Tina, I’m using the master bathroom. Sasha’s hogging the other one,” Karen yelled.

  “Go ahead, just hurry up.”

  Tina passed out the baggies filled with confetti to everyone. The dining room table held nine glasses of champagne. The girls picked out the best party hats to wear, leaving little choices for the guys. They all held noisemakers, ready to go. The countdown on TV was at three minutes. Aaron toasted his best friends. They all drank and filled their glasses again. The couples snuggled close together.

  “One minute!” Sasha screamed, as Josh wrapped his arms around her.

  “Ready… go,” Karen said, as they counted down the final seconds together. “Ten, nine, eight, seven, six, five, four, three, two, one. Happy New Year!”

  Couples, and wanna-be couples, kissed. The girls kissed each other. The guys man-hugged. Everyone kissed the dogs, and blew noisemakers. Confetti filled the air, landing in the glasses of champagne and sticking to everyone’s skin. The guys threw firecrackers out the front door, and laughed when the loud bangs made the girls scream. The house was a shambles and nobody cared. Champagne flowed, and the dogs went to sleep in the laundry room.

  At one o’clock Karen suggested dessert and coffee. Two cherry cheesecakes and a blueberry pie waited on the kitchen counter. Everyone took a small slice of each. They gathered at the dining room table, half drunk and slurring their words as they ate. The coffee perked them up, but nobody was going home anyway. One by one, they began falling off like a flies bombed with insect repellent. Karen and Tina stumbled to the master bedroom and fell across the bed. Sasha and Mia somehow ended up in the guest room, sleeping together on top of the blankets, fully dressed. Mario slept on a chair in the dining room, his head twisted in an awkward position on the table. Max fell asleep on the living room floor with one couch cushion, and Aaron snored on the couch with the other two cushions. Vic lay on the bathroom floor, snuggled up with the bathmat and Josh slept on the recliner. All in all, the party was a huge success.

  The first set of eyeballs opened at nine o’clock with Reggie licking Aaron’s hand. Aaron evidently ate his cheesecake with his fingers, not remembering why. “Ugh… g
ood morning, boy.” Reggie licked his own nose, cocked his head and whined. Kismet joined in. She was way past due for a potty walk. Aaron lifted his head to assess the carnage. It could be worse. “Dude, wake up. Your dog needs to pee.”

  Josh snorted, smacked his lips together a few times and began snoring.

  “Josh, wake up, man. Kismet has to go outside.” No response. Aaron got up and slipped on his boots. He looked out the window. Holy shit, is there the snow, and it’s still coming down. He tiptoed around, trying to remember where the leashes were. He found them next to everyone’s overnight bags that were never opened. Aaron laughed as he held his throbbing head. What a night. He opened the hall closet and found his coat among the rest. He clipped one leash to Reggie and the other to Kismet. “Hey little girl, I think I need to carry you outside. You might end up buried in the snow otherwise. C’mon, let’s go.” Aaron disappeared in the whiteout with both dogs.

  Other bodies began to stir. Each person slowly woke, wondering where they were, and how they ended up sleeping where they did. Tina was the first brave soul to do something other than moan. Within a few minutes Mia joined her.

  “They say two brains work better than one when you’re hung over, don’t they?” Mia asked, as she zombie walked into the kitchen. “What the hell is all over my clothes?”

  “Hell if I know. It looks like a mix of blueberry pie and coffee, or it could just be vomit,” Tina said.

  Mia ran for the bathroom, falling on top of Vic when she flung the door open. A grunt, followed by a loud screech echoed through the house as Mia hit the floor, still groveling for the toilet. It was bad enough to fall on Vic, she didn’t need to puke on her too. Vic groaned and swore at her in Spanish while she tried to push Mia away. The remaining zombies gathered at the bathroom doorway to watch the commotion in progress. Mia’s head was in the toilet, and Vic was on all fours crawling to the door as fast as she could.

  “What the hell? Whatever… who wants coffee?” Tina asked, as the zombies turned around and followed her back the kitchen.