The Long Weekend
TrinityI set my cell phone down with a sigh. Seemed Roman was right. There was little I could do today for Olivia. It would be after two by the time we got back to Biloxi, and according to Olivia’s mom, the cleaning was done.
Roman’s lips twitched at me. “Hard to tell if you got more bad news, or if you’re sighing because I was right and getting back to the office won’t change anything.”
I pouted at him. “Don’t get annoying now, Roman.”
Before I could get up from the where I sat on the bed, he stalked to me. He bent at the waist as his hands landed on my thighs. “I’m not annoying, sugar. Especially not if that’s your convoluted way of not admitting I’m right.”
My lips curled into a wan smile. “Fine. You’re right. I’ve done everything I can from here. Plus, I’ve been ‘assured’ it won’t happen again, though I don’t buy it.”
His head tilted, his eyes lighting with something I couldn’t quite put my finger on. “So, no need to rush back?”
I shook my head. “No.”
He smiled. My stomach filled with warmth.
“Are you going to argue against spending the rest of the weekend here?” he asked. The tone of his voice said he would dig in if I did.
“No. I’m here, and I’m down for whatever you want, I suppose.”
He grinned. “Glad I could persuade you.”
I shook my head. Roman didn’t need me to tell him how very persuasive he was. After all, it was no surprise being Marie’s son. Marie could talk Lucifer into wearing long underwear.
My eyes slid to the side and back to him. “So, you said you thought you’d treat me to a long weekend?”
“Mm-hmm,” he said, with a deep nod as he stared into my eyes.
I blinked. “I still don’t quite understand why that is, but I’m glad drunk-me was right about whatever she said,” I semi-fibbed. I didn’t understand what was driving the long weekend, but I understood he cared about me… even if he wouldn’t admit to it. I smiled. “What now?”
His grin became salacious. “Could get out the champagne while you get naked.”
I threw my head back and laughed. He ran his nose along the column of my throat. “Wasn’t being funny, cher,” he murmured there.
I righted my head and rubbed my cheek alongside his. “I know, Roman. Wouldn’t it be a good idea to get your bike back here first? Or do some daytime sight-seeing?”
He did a long blink, then his eyes caught mine. They were heated, to say the very least. “No. There’s time for daytime shit tomorrow. We woke up after five hours of sleep, and didn’t go back to bed. We’re going to finish that champagne, cross your fingers, it isn’t flat. Then we’re going to fuck and afterward take a decent nap. And by decent, I mean two hours at a minimum. Then, we’ll take the trolley into the quarter.”
I liked the sound of all of that. But curiosity was gnawing at me. “And then what? More Hurricanes?”
His head tilted, those eyes assessing me in the best way. “Maybe, but definitely get you a reading.”
“A reading? As in… a psychic?”
He righted his head. “Was thinking more like some Tarot or your palm being read.” Suddenly, he grabbed my hand. “Speaking of palms, yours can bring me some relief.”
As he pressed my hand to his crotch, I stopped along his fly to snag the zipper. “Unbutton, Roman.”
A strange sound, like an indecisive growl, came from his throat. “Don’t get used to telling me what to do, wife.”
I rolled my eyes. “Wouldn’t dream of it, hubs.”
He undid his button. I unzipped his fly, and to my surprise, his cock sprang free since he’d gone without underwear.
He chuckled. “I do like surprising you, Rin.”
I leaned forward and swirled the head of his cock with my tongue. He hissed and cupped the back of my head. I took him out of my mouth, but applied pressure with my hand action. “Think that goes both ways, Roman.” Then I took as much of him in as I could, but he stopped me and pulled away.
“Get naked, Rin. I’m in the mood to fuck you, not get sucked off.”
His jeans fell to floor, he tore his shirt over his head, and I wondered when he’d toed out of his boots. The sight of his well-sculpted ass sauntering toward the small fridge obliterated that thought.
God, I loved him.
He turned around, holding the champagne bottle. His eyebrow arched. “What’s the hold up, Mrs. Sanchez?”
My stomach dipped hearing him call me that. I whipped my shirt over my head and shimmied out of my shorts as fast as I could.
We polished off the champagne before he fucked me hard and fast. It was even better than the night before.
*** ***
Roman’s stubble against my breast woke me up. My fingers slid into his hair as I tried to encourage his lips toward my nipple.
He kissed the side of my breast with a low, rumbly chuckle. It was sublime. I could feel and hear his humor.
“Wake up, sleepyhead,” he murmured and took his luscious lips away from me.
Lethargically, I rolled onto my back and opened my eyes. “Why did you stop? I was plenty awake.”
He whipped the covers off us. My eyes widened while I tried to shoot lasers at him. “What did you do that for?”
He chuckled again. Not near as good, since I couldn’t feel that one.
“Time to get up, sugar. It’s nearly four o’clock. Gotta get down to the quarter before the tourists snag all the good readers. Don’t want just anyone to read your palm.”
I swung my legs over my side of the bed, muttering, “Wouldn’t want just anyone to make me a voodoo doll either, I’m sure.”
The roar of Roman’s laughter brought me up short, and I watched him over my shoulder. He was a sight to see when he laughed like that.
When he had his laughter under control, his lips were tipped up at me. “You are an adorable grouch when you wake up, but you don’t want a voodoo doll of me, Rin.”
“As good as I was sleeping, I wouldn’t be so sure.”
“Right.”
I stared off into space for a moment. “Though, a voodoo doll of cousin Clive might not be so bad.”
His arms wrapped around me and he pulled me on top of him as he landed on his back on the bed. “No more mention of your family or mine, understood?”
I grinned. “Understood.”
Forty-five minutes later, Carla held my hand in hers. Her eyes were intent on the lines there, but I couldn’t help but speak.
“Um, I’m sorry. I don’t mean to break your concentration, but can I ask you a question?”
Her bright blue eyes looked into mine. “Of course.”
“Forgive me if this is wrong, but why don’t you go by ‘Madame Carla’ or something like that?”
She laughed. “I only do that for the drunks and the tourists. Not to mention, I charge them double, though my boss doesn’t know I do that,” she winked at me.
I nodded. “Okay, sorry—”
As she shook her head, she shook my hand slightly, too. “Don’t apologize. Roman, he gets a discount for being a frequent customer.”
I shook my head. “What?”
She grinned. “I’m kidding.” Her finger traced a line on my palm. “You come from a long line of hard workers.”
My head tilted, and I tried not to look skeptical.
She dipped her chin. “I’m not referring to your parents. Your grandparents, and their parents are who I’m talking about.”
I gave a half-nod.
With her half-grin, I knew she sensed my skepticism.
“You have fire hands. Do you know what that means?”
I pressed my lips together as I shook my head.
“You have a long palm with short fingers. Those with fire hands are passionate, industrious, and confident. This all sounds good, but because you’re so driven by your desires, you can lose sight of your tact and empathy.”
“Wow,” I whispered, as I thought back to how driven I’d been by my desire to tell Roman about his mother. It had absolutely made me forget to empathize with Marie.
She continued to tell me more about myself and my linage based on my palm. As we wrapped up, I grabbed my wallet to give her a tip. She shook her head.
“No need, miss. Your husband took care of it. Though, I have a question for you.”
“Yes?”
“Do you want children?”
I couldn’t stop my lips from pulling down and out in a strange grimace since she’d caught me so off guard.
“Well…”
She shook her head. “I don’t mean right now. Some women, they know, children are not in their future. I sense your ambivalence.”
“I am certainly that. I’m not really in a position—”
Her finger came up between us. “It’s all fine. I just wanted to tell you, you’ll be a wonderful mother to all of your children.”
I shook my head. “What? How many… I mean, what are you talking about? ‘All of my children’?”
Her smile was downright coy. “More than one child in your future, and you along with your husband will be excellent parents.”
My head turned enough for me to look at her from the corner of my eye. She took it the wrong way.
“Don’t worry. It won’t happen anytime soon. But, don’t fret when it does.”
Easy for her to say!
I left the small room where Carla read my palm. As I went back into the main shop, I wondered why Roman hadn’t been in there with me. He came toward me from the other side of the room.
“How was it… wife?”
My head tilted a little. “Definitely a unique experience. Thank you for that.”
His mischievous grin lit his eyes. “She tell you that you’d have children… but it wouldn’t happen soon?”
My jaw dropped, and I looked both ways, like someone might hear him. “Yes! How did you know?” I asked in a whisper-scream.
He smirked. “Educated guess, darlin’. Let’s leave it at that.”
My eyes narrowed. “She said you’d already tipped her. I bet you told her what to tell me.”
He wrapped an arm around my shoulders and guided us out of the shop. “Sugar, I wasn’t that far from you at any point. I overheard everything she said. And she’s right. You’ll be an excellent parent.”
My body went stiff at the way he said that. Like he wouldn’t be the co-parent of my child. Luckily, I stumbled over a crack in the sidewalk, causing Roman to miss my rigid body at his words.
He caught me and led me to Café du Monde. We drank coffee and ate beignets sitting outside, but thanks to a brisk breeze, we wound up wearing most of the powdered sugar.
I shook my head at my lap. “This is sacrilege! Powdered sugar should never be wasted like this.”
His eyebrow jumped for a second. “I don’t know, darlin’. I think we should buy a bag of sugar and dump it all over you. That would never be a waste.”
I shook my head. Visions of his tongue licking my torso invaded my mind. “You’re crazy,” I whispered.
His lips tipped up, and he winked.
*** ***
In the past four years, I’d made many changes in the family business. The offices were now housed away from the casino and hotel proper. An upscale spa had replaced the floor of offices. Our financials looked better than ever because of that and a few other changes suggested by Dad and even Mr. Daughtry, who had joined the board of directors.
Roman and Marie loved our new house even more than I did. While he hadn’t said as much, I got the distinct impression Roman loved seeing his mother every day. Somehow, Marie knew when to give us our privacy. Even though she lived in the ‘cottage’ on the other side of the house, it was difficult to keep secrets from her. Then again, she and I still had our coffees and teas each day. She was no slouch at reading me and my moods, so she always knew when things were up.
Still, I had a big secret to tell my husband. The problem was, I didn’t know how I wanted to do it.
I leaned against the jamb of the master bathroom doorway and watched Roman sleep. He had one of his arms cocked over his head on the pillow, the other arm outstretched toward my side of the bed. His knee was hiked up and poking out from under the white down comforter. He had his head turned to the side, so he wasn’t snoring.
As I watched him, his body gave a sudden jolt, and he woke up. Since his head was turned toward my side of the bed, when he didn’t see me there, he went up on an elbow and looked toward the bathroom.
“What are you doin’?”
I fought a smile. “Nothing.”
“Bullshit,” he said, his voice croaky.
It came to me, how I could tell him.
“Do you remember the ‘long’ weekend you treated me to in New Orleans after we got married?”
He plopped back down onto his pillow, closing his eyes. “Yeah.”
I didn’t believe him, but I let it go.
“The palm reader and you eavesdropping on her questions to me?”
That got me his eyes. “The fuck?”
I chuckled. “Do you remember the palm reader?”
He shook his head. “Yeah, but her questions…” His head stopped shaking as realization hit him. His eyes focused on me intently. “Are you telling me…”
I shook my head. “I’m asking you a question, husband.”
“Trinity Morgan Sanchez, get over here right now.”
I scrunched up my nose. “I think I’m good here.”
“Don’t make me get out of this bed, sugar.”
I stepped closer.
He growled. Then he sighed. “Are you serious? Come here and tell me your news.”
I grinned. “I didn’t say I have any news.”
“Woman!”
I climbed on top of him, over the covers. His arms locked around me and rolled us. It reminded me of the first night in New Orleans when I was under the covers and he rolled us, only now it was reversed.
His fingers smoothed the hair along the side of my head. He stared into my eyes. “You tellin’ me, you’re pregnant? We’re gonna be parents?”
With a smirk, I shook my head. “No. The palm reader said, ‘we’re going to be excellent parents.’”
He huffed out a chuckle. His forehead lowered to mine. “We’re going to be parents.”
“Yeah,” I whispered.
It thrilled me that he was so excited. Yet, here I was… the new definition of terrified.
“I want to howl, I’m so happy,” he said.
“You’ll wake up your mother.”
“For this, she wouldn’t mind.”
“Even on a Saturday?”
He smiled. “Yeah, but rather than howl, I’m going to make love to you instead.”
“I love you, Anton Roman Sanchez.”
“Damn sure love you more, Trinity.”
*** ***
Nine months later… New Orleans
Carla held the heavy envelope in her hand. With care, she slid her finger under the flap and withdrew the ivory card stock.
Carla,
Thank you. Aurelia Marie and David Arthur were born healthy and your prediction was accurate. My wife and I are excellent parents.
So far.
–R
Carla shook her head with a smile. Little did Roman know, she hadn’t given his wife a prediction. She’d read Trinity’s palm, and the signs were all there. Passion, industriousness, confidence. All the signs of a good woman. Also, the signs of a woman who wouldn’t be denied her carnal urges with her man – especially not a man as sexy as him. Together, it stood to reason children would be on the way. She hadn’t predicted twins. But it didn’t take palmistry to know Trinity and her husband would be excellent parents.