More than a Maid

by Reeni Austin

  "They're cowboys," Cara said, swooning.

  Katie smiled as she watched her shirtless husband in his cowboy hat, shoveling, sweat glistening along his ripped body. "We need popcorn for this."

  Cara and Katie shared a laugh.

  After a little while, Cara said, "I guess it wouldn't be so bad if we moved here."

  Marcy's eyes widened. "Really?"

  Katie echoed her tone. "Yeah… really? I thought you didn't want to."

  Cara shrugged. "There's just something about a sexy man performing physical labor, I guess."

  Katie said, "I hope that's not the only reason. Because I'm sure you could talk him into wearing a cowboy hat and using a shovel in Manhattan. Like, behind closed doors, if that's what does it for you."

  Chuckling, Cara said, "No. Victor said he didn't know he missed this kind of work till we came here to visit. He looks so happy right now."

  Marcy took a deep breath. "I'm gonna go clean something."

  The girls continued their conversation as Marcy headed to the living room. She picked up a rag and a bottle of Windex she left there earlier, then marched to a window, cleaning it furiously. Anything to distract from the pain.

  To make her situation worse, If Cara and Victor decided to move here, Marcy would have to hear about Ramon the rest of her life. She would always be reminded of the short, amazing time she spent with him. And how she had screwed it all up.

  With no one around, Marcy let herself cry as she cleaned, stopping occasionally to blot her eyes with a paper towel.

  I should've just stayed in Newark, she thought.

  * * *

  On Thursday morning at six o'clock, Victor knocked on the front door of Mrs. Perry's house. He waited patiently until the door slowly opened.

  Edna Perry stood before him, clutching her walker, shorter and smaller than he remembered. Smiling sweetly, she blinked up at him from behind thick, round glasses. In a scratchy voice, she said, "Hello there? May I help you?"

  Victor returned her smile. "Hello, Mrs. Perry. I'm Victor Barboza. Ramon's brother?" He held out his hand.

  "Oh! Of course you are." Her handshake was weak, but friendly.

  "You probably don't remember me. It was a long time ago and you had a lot of students over the years."

  "I remember you." She motioned for him to come inside. "I think the last time we spoke was when Ramon graduated."

  Victor walked into the living room and said, "Yes. You wanted me to persuade him to go to college. Sorry I couldn't help with that."

  "That's all right, dear. He's turned out to be an exceptional young man." She started toward the kitchen. "Care for some coffee?"

  Ramon suddenly rushed into the room, glaring at Victor. "What are you doing here?"

  In a casual tone, Victor said, "You told me I could come over here late this week to start helping you. It's Thursday. I figure that's late enough."

  Smirking, Ramon said, "That was before—"

  Mrs. Perry interrupted him. "Ramon, would you like some coffee? I'm about to brew a fresh pot."

  Ramon gave her a sympathetic grin as he approached her, then placed a gentle hand on her back. "I already made some. Can't you smell it?"

  She brought her hand to her mouth as her eyes danced around the room in confusion. "Now that you mention it…"

  Ramon said, "I think you need some rest," as he took her arm, trying to guide her out of the room.

  Her face lit up. "But we have a guest!" She turned to Victor, nodding toward the sofa. "Please, have a seat. And tell me how you take your coffee?"

  With a pleading expression, Ramon looked in Victor's eyes, then he put his arm around Mrs. Perry. In a soothing tone, he said to her, "I really think you need to rest. Remember what the doctor said?"

  "Oh, shoot," she said, dejected. "But I never get visitors anymore." She gave Victor a look that was so hopeful, it made him sad.

  Ramon chuckled. "What about me, huh? I visit you."

  She grimaced at him. "You know what I mean."

  Victor stammered for a moment. "Uh… we could sit and have coffee if you like?"

  Ramon's eyes pierced his and he said, "No," before she could respond, then added, "Maybe in a few hours."

  Mrs. Perry let out a heavy sigh. "I suppose you're right." To Victor, she said, "Will you be here for a while?"

  Without looking at Ramon for approval, Victor answered, "Yes. I'll be here all day."

  "Good." She smiled.

  Sensing her loneliness, Victor thought for a moment then asked, "Mrs. Perry, I don't know if Ramon told you but we're having a birthday party for my son this Saturday. You're more than welcome to come."

  She let out a tiny gasp and said, "I'd love that!" Then she gazed up at Ramon. "Would I finally get to see all the people you tell me about?"

  Victor expected Ramon to have an excuse as to why she couldn't attend, but instead, he nodded and said, "Yes."

  Beaming, she patted his arm and said, "Good." Then she waved goodbye as Ramon escorted her out of the room.

  Victor went to the kitchen. He had just poured himself a steaming mug of black coffee when Ramon came in.

  A smile barely crept across Ramon's lips. He yawned and went straight for the coffee pot. "It was nice of you to invite her to the party," he said as he reached for a mug.

  Victor knew better than to show his pleasure over the fact that Ramon hadn't immediately kicked him out of the house. Calmly, he said, "Sure. She seemed so lonely, I couldn't resist. Sorry if I shouldn't have done that. A birthday party with a slew of hyper four-year-olds probably isn't the ideal situation for her."

  Shrugging, Ramon said, "Nah. There'll be plenty of adults." As he stirred sugar into his coffee, he said, "I wasn't being mean to her just now, in case you were wondering." He glanced at Victor for a second. "She didn't sleep well. She's on a new medication that makes her act a little strange and she needs to sleep it off." He grinned as he brought his mug to his lips. "But she gets so excited when people come over."

  Victor took a sip of his coffee. "So, what happened to her? It hasn't been that long since high school. She seemed so much younger back then."

  Ramon looked at him thoughtfully. "Didn't she tell you?"

  Victor knew she was Marcy by the way he said it. "No. She didn't tell me nearly as much as you think."

  "Hmm." He looked away and sipped his coffee. "Mrs. Perry's health's deteriorated a lot the past few years since her husband died. It started with diabetes, then osteoporosis, then some anxiety problems." He sighed. "It's aged her a lot. I think it was because she had to look after everything on her own for so long. But she's doing much better since we got people to come in and care for her."

  Victor swallowed against a lump in his throat. He could never tell Ramon about the day last week when he sat in a car with binoculars and watched him greet a home health care worker. He asked, "What about a nursing home? Wouldn't that be easier?"

  Ramon blew a dismissive breath out of the side of his mouth. "I'm not real impressed with the ones I've seen. I've considered it, though. Still looking."

  Victor turned from him slightly, blinking to eliminate the fresh tears that filled his eyes. He always suspected this side of Ramon existed, but seeing it first hand was overwhelming. After a long sip of his coffee, he cleared his throat and gently asked, "Does she have any children? Any family who can step in and help?"

  Ramon shook his head. "No. They had one kid. He died when he was six. Travis." Eyes widening, he nodded behind him to a picture on the wall. Then he lowered his mug and said, "I need to get to work."

  Victor put his hand on Ramon's arm and said, "Well, I'm here to help you. And don't try to stop me."

  Ramon rolled his eyes.

  Victor said, "I'm serious. Please, just accept it. It'll make things easier on both of us."

  With a tiny flinch, Ramon said, "We'll see how it goes. Okay?"

  "That's fine. I promise, I can do this. You take care of things outside today. Let me sit behind the desk
and sort out the boring stuff." He smiled, and Ramon chuckled.

  Ramon said, "All right. I'll let you do that. Today." Then he quirked a mischievous brow. "But I may need you to come out there and clear another ditch for me."

  Victor shrugged. "All right."

  Ramon's eyes perked up. "Hey. Where's Armando's lazy ass? Or is he too sore from yesterday?"

  Inwardly, Victor smiled. Not only had his stubborn baby brother finally acquiesed a bit, but his teasing was a good sign that he was happy to have him there. Victor sighed and said, "Give Armando a break. He's supposed to be on his honeymoon."

  "He can bring Katie. I'll put 'em both to work. It'll be like a dude ranch."

  Victor smirked. "Yeah. Dude ranch honeymoon. That's romantic." Then he slapped his brother on the back as they headed out of the kitchen. "Come on. We gotta lot of work to do."

  CHAPTER 21

  It was Friday, the night before Isaac's party. Ramon—who was still keeping his distance from Marcy—assured everyone the previous day that everything was all prepared and set to go off without a hitch. But that did little to reassure Cara. She was up until the wee hours of the morning, finalizing her back-up plans. Until now, Isaac's birthday parties had been fairly minor events in his life. But this year was different. He had looked forward to this day for weeks and she was terrified of letting him down.

  Adding to her fears was the fact that Ramon's plans regarding food had changed. He told Patty the only thing she needed to prepare was cake. Of course, that didn't stop Patty from having plenty of food ready to prepare at a moment's notice if necessary.

  As Cara lay awake in bed, she asked Victor, "Why won't Ramon tell us what's going on? Do you see why I find him so frustrating?"

  "Yes," Victor said. "But you need to quit worrying and get some sleep. It'll be all right. I've never known him to go back on his word. Never."

  "You don't think he's gonna try to cook the food himself, do you? Remember that disgusting breakfast he made?"

  Victor laughed. "I hadn't even thought of that." Then he got serious. "Please, stop worrying. No matter what happens, there'll be plenty of food and Isaac's gonna have a great time. He'll have his presents and—"

  Cara gritted her teeth, thinking about the promise Victor made to Isaac. "Oh, you and that stupid race car! It wasn't supposed have an engine. There's another thing I have to worry about."

  In a calming voice, he said, "For the hundredth time, you have nothing to worry about. Do you really think I would've bought it if I didn't know it was safe? You can out walk that thing." He pulled her to his side and kissed her cheek. "Please calm down, querida. It's not good for the baby."

  They stayed up talking for a while longer and eventually dozed off.

  ***

  Several hours later, at dawn, they were awakened by the hum of a motor outside.

  Victor squinted at the first ray of sunlight peeking between the curtains. He whispered, "You awake? You hear that?"

  Cara rolled over to look at him. "Yeah. What is that?"

  "Sounds like an air compressor. They're probably out there getting ready for the party." He gave her a quick peck on the lips then swung his feet to the floor and rushed to the window. He parted the curtains and looked outside with his hand over his eyes. Then he gasped, and exclaimed, "Carajo!"

  Cara got out of bed and quickly joined him, knowing he only cursed in Spanish if it was something really surprising. She looked outside and instantly brought her hands to her mouth. "What in the world?"

  Victor craned his head as he scanned the yard. "Didn't he say, 'a couple' of those inflatable bouncy things? I see," he paused, counting, "three, four… five?"

  Cara set her jaw firmly, shaking her head. "See that blue one?" She pointed. "Is that a water tank beside it? It's a water slide." She grunted and stomped her foot. "Damn it! The parents all asked me if they needed to bring bathing suits but I said no. This is exactly why Ramon should've told me what was going on." In a huff, she went to the dresser to change clothes.

  "Don't be too hard on him, okay?" Victor said. "He just wants Isaac to have a nice party."

  "I know. I get that." Cara pulled a shirt on over her head. "But I need to know what else he's got planned. This is ridiculous."

  A minute later, they were both rushing down the stairs in their slippers to find Ramon.

  As soon as she reached the bottom floor, Isaac ran to her from the kitchen.

  "Mommy, Mommy, Mommy!"

  Cara smiled at him and scooped him up in her arms. "There's my birthday boy."

  He squealed and hugged her neck. "Did you wook outside? It's the bestest!"

  She groaned a little. "I saw it." She kissed his cheek, then lowered him to the floor. "And I need to find Ramon."

  Isaac stretched his arms up to Victor. "Bictow! Did you see it?"

  Victor hoisted him up. As they chatted about the activity outside, Cara marched to the front door, greeting Tom and Patty with a wave as she strode past the kitchen.

  She threw the door open and stormed outside, telling herself to calm down. After all, Ramon was only trying to do a nice thing. But it did little to allay her annoyance with her soon-to-be brother-in-law… who had consequently broken her best friend's heart.

  Dew dampened Cara's slippers as she hustled down the porch steps and into the front yard. She headed toward the side of the house where two of the inflatables were already blown up. The others lay in heaps on the ground.

  She quickly found Ramon behind a large yellow castle, talking to a man she didn't recognize.

  Ramon did a double take when he saw her. To the man, he yelled, "I'll be back," over the blare of the machines. Then he trudged her way with a sheepish grin, as though he knew exactly why she was angry.

  Cara nodded for him to follow her to the front yard where it was quieter.

  Once there, she turned around, fists stuck at her hips, and said, "What is this?"

  With an arched brow and an indifferent shrug, Ramon said, "So, I fucked up, huh?"

  His casual attitude made her fantasize about choking him.

  "Yes," she said. "You led me to believe there were only gonna be two but I counted five."

  "So?" His eyes narrowed. "Plenty of kids never even get to have birthday parties, at all. And you're complaining about this?"

  She huffed an annoyed breath out of her mouth. "Yes, I know that. And I've gone to great lengths to keep my son from being spoiled, which is one of the reasons I don't like this." She lifted her arm, motioning toward the side of the house. "And I see a water slide. The parents all need to know about that in advance because the kids need to bring swim suits."

  "So? Don't you have their emails or phone numbers? Send 'em a group text message. Shouldn't be that hard."

  She sighed. "What else do I need to know, Ramon? What kind of food are we having? You're not cooking it yourself, are you?"

  His lips flattened, and his eyes took on a hard stare. After a long pause, he said, "I got three food trucks on the way."

  "Food trucks? Does that mean everyone's paying for their own meal?"

  He rolled his eyes. "No. They can order whatever they want. I'm paying for it. There'll be Mexican food, hot dogs, hamburgers, ice cream…"

  She sighed. "Any other surprises?"

  "No. Well, besides the ponies. And a few pinatas."

  "Ponies? How many?"

  "Three."

  She took a deep, calming breath. "You know, I was up most of the night, worried about what was gonna happen today. This is all very thoughtful of you, but please, never surprise me like this again." She glared at him.

  Ramon met her glare and briefly lifted his arms to his sides. "Fine. Excuse me for trying to give your son a nice day." Then he scoffed. "Don't make him suffer because you hate me."

  "I don't hate you. I just think maybe you're not always the best influence."

  Snorting, Ramon looked down at the ground, his voice heavy with sarcasm. "Yeah. I'm a monster, right?" Then he met her eyes wit
h an intense stare. "Your son's confused, Cara. That's why he's acting up. He's never had a daddy before." He smirked. "You know, he's a smart kid and you need to be honest with him. You don't need to—"

  Blood instantly boiling, she raised her hand, interrupting him. "All you did was waltz into his life as the doting uncle who does all the fun stuff, and now you spoil him with this lavish party?" She looked at him in disbelief. "Do you really think you have a right to give me parenting advice?"

  His eyes widened. "I may not know what it's like to raise a kid but I know exactly what it's like to grow up without a father."

  She stammered for a moment, surprised. Remembering earlier that week when she saw a tear run down his face at the thought of losing Isaac's friendship. Her anger quickly diffused, and a piece of her heart softened toward him; his relationship with Isaac suddenly made sense. "I'm sorry, Ramon. I know that was hard for you and your brothers. But Victor's gonna be a great father. I'm very thankful for him. And I'm thankful that you've been so good to Isaac, too."

  He shrugged. "That's all I was tryin' to do today. Be good to him."

  "I know. Thank you."

  Ramon straightened his posture and stared down at her as if he was deep in thought.

  She waited a little while under his steely gaze before asking, "What?"

  He took a step forward. Silently, his eyes pierced hers for a bit longer. Then he bent down, and in a firm tone, said, "Promise me something. If you know who Isaac's real father is, don't lie about it. It doesn't matter how bad you think the truth is. It's a hell of a lot better than letting your son believe a lie."

  Cara went cold inside, but she stayed perfectly still, not wanting him to see her true reaction. The only person she had ever told the truth about Isaac's father was Victor, who swore to take the secret to his grave. She now wondered if Victor had told Ramon. Cara looked deep in his eyes and asked, "What makes you think I know who Isaac's father is? Why would you say that to me?"