Chapter 12
After everyone had eaten, Annie helped them get their belongings to the guest rooms. Luke and Nick stayed downstairs drinking hot toddies with Marti. Hair of the dog and all.
Nick turned to Marti and started, “My love, Preciosa, I have a surprise for you and I hope you like it.”
“A surprise for me? For Christmas?” she asked.
“Not just Christmas, but it did tend to fall at this time of the year. See that handsome young man over there?” He pointed to Luke.
“Uh, yeah?” she answered, confused.
“I would like to formally present to you, although I wish it were under different circumstances and not after a long night of no texts, calls or freezing ass cold….Mr. Lucas MacDonald, our new assistant.” A broad grin spread across his face. “Luke, this beautiful lady is Marti, your new boss.”
Marti sat frozen for a second, confused. “Assistant? Boss? What’s up with Ellie?”
Nick turned to her and put his hand on her thigh, “Ellie, my dear, no longer works with us.”
“Oh no, you didn’t! You fired her?”
“Not fired, just moved her to the Vegas office with Jesse. She no longer will be a thorn in your side, hija.”
Marti turned to Luke, gesturing her hand toward him. “He’s gonna be my thorn?” She asked, nodding her head. “Glad to meet you. I noticed a 007 accent. Where are you from? England?”
“‘Ay now. Do I really sound like that old bloke?” He let out a slight chuckle. “No one has ever told me that. Yes, I am from England, London actually. Came out here to study and Mr. Vargas proposed an incredible offer I just couldn’t refuse. Now that bloody car trip from hell….I could have done without that.”
“Blood?” she quickly looked at Nick, “There was blood? Y’all were bleeding?”
Nick laughed as he slid up next to her, “No honey, that’s an English word, people use it to emphasize, no blood. No one was bleeding. I promise.”
“So now I get to learn Spanish and English? How cool for an ole country girl like me!” They laughed.
“So, he will be working at corporate, not the house. I am taking some time off to be with my wife.”
Marti squealed and grabbed him, “Oh honey, thank you, thank you so much!” She let go and turned to Luke. “So glad to meet you Luke, this is gonna be so cool, oh my gosh! Thank you, honey.” She leaned over and kissed Nick on the cheek, she was beaming, “Thank you honey. I gotta tell Annie, does your mama know? Does Jimmy know? Shit! That’s so wonderful!”
His eyes twinkled as he let out a laugh. Marti was ecstatic to see the sparkle return, the one she saw in Vegas, the one she fell in love with.
“Yes, they know. That’s why I have been so busy in Memphis. It wasn’t Vargas, it was you. I have been making some big changes in my life, in my schedule, to be with you.” He looked at Luke, “can you give us a minute, man?”
“Sure,” he replied, not knowing where to go or what to do. Nick noticed the awkward look on his face. “You know what? I think I’m going to take Marti for a ride. You can stay here; I’ll get Annie and find out which one of these hundred rooms you can stay in tonight.” He chuckled. “One thing about this house, there is room for everyone.”
As he got up and walked across the room, Marti watched him, her thoughts on what an amazing man he turned out to be. Maybe things were going to be alright. He ascended the stairs and turned to look at her, she saw his face light up with a crooked grin and a wink. She exhaled, her heart racing, as he went looking for a place for Luke to lay his head.
Marti composed herself and looked over at Luke, smiling, “So you’re my new assistant? From England?” She felt a little awkward with him alone in the living room. He was a handsome man and really smart, or so she thought he was, coming from Harvard and all.
“Yes, it seems that I am.” He smiled. She noticed he had a bright smile and his blue eyes twinkled when he talked. She figured he must be a little younger than she was and he was as tall as Nick if not a bit taller. Yes, she thought, he’ll do. “That’s great! Ellie was about to send me to the funny farm.”
With a nod, “Yes, ma’am it is great. I look forward to working with both of you. Vargas is a very respectable company and I think we can do great things with it. I am happy to have the opportunity to be a part of it.”
Marti stood up, Luke stood up as well, “You don’t have to stand, we are all family here, and we are very happy to have you. Let me go check on him, he gets sidetracked and God only knows where he is in this house.” She turned to run upstairs, calling out, “Nick? Annie? Hello?”
Nick stepped out of Annie’s bedroom quietly, just as Marti was walking down the hall. She froze in her tracks a second and her heart skipped a beat “wha- ?”
“Shhh,” he whispered, “Mamá and Jimmy are asleep. They had a very long night. Luke will be in the room down the hall to the left.”
“Why were you in Annie’s room?” she whispered loudly. She knew she shouldn’t jump to any conclusions, this was her husband and best friend, but she wasn’t stupid and anything could happen.
“It’s a surprise, a big Merry Christmas surprise.” His eyes sparkled and melted like chocolate and the thought of anything going on between them left her mind as quickly as it came.
They got Luke settled in upstairs and then grabbed some heavy coats and went outside in the wet snow. Nick helped Marti into the car teasingly grazing his hand across her breast and a kiss that made her insides melt. Her hangover had subsided with the toddies and the peaceful afternoon, and she was sober enough to know what was happening and right now, she ached to feel his warm, naked body next to hers.
As they drove along the slushy road, Marti looked at him and her thoughts were on the last few weeks. He had gone back to Memphis to work, while she stayed here in Mountain View to ‘find herself’. What she found is a clawing at her heart for an older man who made her heart sing and her lady parts tingle. She also realized she was a needy, bratty woman who probably needed her ass spanked or at least some real therapy.
He looked at her and lifted his brow, a grin slid across his face, “What are you thinking about?”
“You.” She grinned. “Where are you taking me?”
“It’s a surprise, but we are almost there.” He turned down a dirt road lined with huge oak and magnolia trees covered in snow, their branches empty for the winter. The road curved up to a big manor-style house and as they pulled right up front, she noticed the walk and drive covered in snow, like no one had been there for a few days.
“Whose house is this? Why are we here?” She cocked her eyebrow, confused, especially since it was Christmas Eve and almost night time.
“Come here, Princesa,” he murmured as he got out and opened her door.
The air chilled her face as she walked up to the double front doors. She looked around wondering why they were there and who lived in this magnificent house. “I know, I remember! This is the Moss place. Uhm…” she snapped her fingers, “Yeah, Helen and Frank Moss. My mama went to school with their kids. They’ve been gone a long time, though.” She looked up at him as he pulled out a key and unlocked the door. “Nick! Why do you have a key?” She whispered loudly, like someone would hear. “You can’t just walk into someone’s house!”
He bent down and wrapped his arm around the back of her knees and another around her neck and lifted her up, over the threshold and carried his bride into the house.
“Nick! What are you doing?” she was shocked and scared someone would come down the stairs and send them away. “People have guns around here, you’re gonna get us shot!” Then it finally dawned on her, the fresh clean snow, and the key, him lifting her across the threshold. He held her tight in his arms and she looked at him, raising her eyebrows a couple times. “Is this my Christmas present? Is this it?” her in his arms and a huge smile on his face.
“Yes, Preciosa, I promise, no one is gonna shoot us… This is out new home, Merry Christmas!” he set her down and when her feet hit the floor, she turned to him “What? Our new home? For us?”
“Yes, Preciosa, Merry Christmas, I didn’t go back to Memphis thinking about Vargas. I was negotiating a beautiful house for my Princesa, some place where she would be the Reina. La reina. My queen.”
She jumped up into his arms and kissed him, “Oh honey, oh my God!” Pulling his hand, she asked, “Where’s the lights? Let me see! Let me see! I love it!”
He reached over by the front door and turned on the light. The whole room lit up and Marti’s eyes grew big and her hands went to her mouth “Wow. Holy Jesus, this place is beautiful.” She walked through the foyer and into the living room; the whole house was furnished with antiques from the 1800’s in cherry wood and oak. There were Tiffany lamps and crystal chandeliers. Hardwood floors with Persian rugs at their feet. And the den had a fuzzy faux fur rug right in front of the fireplace. For making love by firelight, she thought.
“I wanted you to feel at home, here, among your friends and your family.” He smiled, glad she liked it and very happy to have her in his life.
“Fuck. Nick, this is beautiful. Oh my gosh.” She turned to him and held him, her arms wrapping tightly around his waist. He bent to kiss her, his warm lips crushing hers. “God, I’ve missed you.”
“Me too, baby doll, me too.” He whispered through the kiss. “Come here, let me show you something,” as he led her up the stairs and into the master bedroom. It was completely furnished with a king-size four poster bed and plum colored velvet accessories. “Aaah!” she squealed and pulled him to the bed. She threw off her coat and pulled off her boots and fell onto the huge bed. She winked at him and asked “Are we alone? No butlers around?”
He chuckled, as he took off his coat. “No. No butlers, just you and me. Let me shut the door and let’s see what Santa has for you tonight.” He winked and smiled.
“Oooh, Santa…?” she crooned, raising her finger to her soft lips. He practically flew down the stairs to close up the house. He had something real special for the christening of their new house tonight.