Mrs. Rios stepped aside, smiling after the brief greeting she'd just given my brother and Mona. Mona reached me first with a hug, but Ced stared with wide eyes. Of course he did, though. This was his first time seeing me since finding out he'd be an uncle. Frequent phone calls kept him in the loop and aware of how things were progressing, but seeing me was different. At this point, I most certainly looked like a woman on the verge of delivering.
Mona released me and I saw a brief visual exchange between she and Marco, but no words. They'd met before kind of, at the club, but a formal introduction was still in order. For now, I just wanted to get to my brother.
His dark arms stood out against the hem of the crisp, white Polo he wore atop khaki shorts. His frame had always made him look like he should've been on a football field rather than inside a courtroom and I, again, found myself thinking that would've suited him better when he pulled me into a tight hug. It was only tight around my shoulders for obvious reasons. We lingered there and I couldn't even put into words how good it was to see him again. Having him so far away, especially now, wasn't easy. It would've been nice to have my family here experiencing this with me, but the Rios family being in my life had honestly lessened the sting of me being here in Houston without them.
"I miss you, Sis," he said. "So much."
"Feels like it's been forever." And it did. I hoped that once he finished with this latest case, he'd get to come home more often.
We separated and there were three sets of eyes on us-Mrs. Rios, Mona, and Marco.
"Mrs. Rios, this is my brother, Cedric, and his wife, Mona," I said, introducing them.
"It's very nice to meet you," Mona replied, moving in to hug Mrs. Rios lightly.
"We're so glad to finally get to meet Brynn's family. She's such a sweet girl," Mrs. Rios said back, passing a gentle glance my way when she did.
Cedric spoke, too, sounding like a corporate professional even in a relaxed setting. He was like that with everyone except Mona and I.
Next, I turned to Marco. "This is my sister-in-law, and best friend, Mona." They pretended to be meeting for the first time.
"I've heard a lot about you," Mona piped, laying it on way too thick if she was trying to keep things on the hush from my brother.
"Same," Marco said with a smile, moving to shake Mona's hand. "It's nice to finally meet you."
The two released one another's hands and then it was time for the moment of truth. I glanced up at my brother, evaluating his dark features before taking the next step.
"Ced, Marco. Marco, Ced."
Please, don't embarrass me in front of this man's momma. Please, Ced …
I held my breath, finally releasing it when my brother's large hand extended toward Marco. He was friendly, but not overly so. He gave just enough to let Marco know they weren't beefed out, but reserved enough to let him know he wasn't out of the woods yet. If I had to guess, Ced would be watching Marco like a hawk today.
I slid my hands down my thighs, wiping my sweaty palms against my jean capris. "Well … I suppose we should go back outside with the rest of the guests," I said nervously, feeling the slight hint of tension where we stood in the front hall. Everyone agreed we should head out, but, feeling bad, I stopped Marco before he followed the group.
Glancing down at the light grip I had on his hand first, his gaze lifted to mine next. I wasn't in the best head space, but I had the presence of mind to know I didn't want him to be upset by my brother giving him the cold shoulder.
"Don't pay him any attention, okay?" I said softly, getting that swoony feeling again when he stepped closer to hear me whisper. "He's just protective," I added.
A gentle smile touched Marco's lips and I was glad to see he wasn't taking it to heart. He stood before me, front and center and took my other hand, too.
"You're forgetting I grew up in a household with almost all women," he said back just as quietly as I spoke. "I practically wrote the book on how to keep dudes away from my sisters. Don't worry," he added, "he'll come around eventually. He just needs to know you're in good hands."
At those words, his palms left mine and moved to warm my shoulders. His dark eyes went there next as one fingertip pushed the strap of my tank aside, easing it beneath the one to my swimsuit.
"I think you should get in the pool with me." After the statement left his mouth, he pressed his lips to my shoulder-hot, softness that stole my focus. "What do you think?"
That heated stare passed over me again. "I'd love to, but I don't wanna get all wet and mess my hair up before we open presents, but after?" I asked.
He nodded with his bottom lip clamped between his teeth as his attention shifted to my breasts.
"Besides, Mona wants to hear about my new job, so I'm gonna go sit and chat with her and Ced for a while. You go hang out and have fun with your friends, though," I added, encouraging him to have a good time without me.
His chin dipped once as he uttered a distant-sounding, "Okay." It sounded that way because his thoughts were no longer on our conversation.
My gaze synched with his. Standing still, now holding my hips in his hands, we revived the kiss that had been interrupted earlier, picking up right where we left off. These moments of intimacy, ones where we connected on an even deeper level than when sex was involved, made me feel bound to him.
I couldn't seem to pick a side and stay on it. He made me come undone. My thoughts were all over the place, but mostly, I just wanted to be with him. That's all-everything else aside-I wished things were simple enough for the two of us to just … be.
Chapter Twenty-Eight
Marco
You'd never know I spent the last hour in the pool. The sun's heat had dried my body and trunks completely. Pulling my cap back on after my shirt, I went to take the seat my mother set beside Brynn's in front of the gift table.
So many gifts, all wrapped in bright paper or placed in colorful bags, but mostly pink of course. Even my boys brought something.
They weren't far from where I sat, finding three chairs near the front of the crowd. And I called it a crowd because that's how many people turned out for us today. Family. Friends. All to help us celebrate our daughter.
Brynn smiled toward my mom's camera when prompted to do so, but it seemed a little forced. In fact, I'd seen that same effort go into several of her smiles today, although, I wasn't sure why. Could've been the heat. Could've just been the fatigue she seemed to have such a hard time shaking lately.
… Or maybe she'd overheard Carlos's absentminded comment.
She walked up right after he made it and I couldn't gage how much of our conversation she caught, but I prayed she missed most of it. Well, all of it, seeing as how the latter portion was probably the worst.
Carlos mentioned how we'd all made the mistake of sleeping with women who visited the club. That wasn't a lie, but it was something most of us avoided, especially those of us who'd been in the business for a while and knew how messy things could get. In fact, avoiding that messiness was precisely the reason we didn't even tend to hang out locally. Hence, our habit of frequenting The Alibi. That distance from our club was the lure. So, for Brynn to hear Carlos bring this up-if she heard-was unfortunate. That version of myself, the version that didn't care a whole lot about what I did and the consequences, was long gone. Even before I met her, that particular practice was one I'd already put a stop to.
"Okay, why don't you two start with this one," Lorna said with a grin as she handed the first gift to Brynn, cutting into my thoughts. With my mother running things, my sisters all had their assigned duties.
A silver-wrapped box, topped with an elaborate turquoise bow crossed my line of sight. The tag attached read: "To Baby Girl Rios", because we hadn't decided on her name yet.
Brynn stuffed the now tattered paper into the bag Lucia held beside her-apparently, this was the job Ma had assigned to her. The bow was collected by Izzy who, with the help of Rosalina, taped it to the back of a paper plate with the intentions of making it into a hat for Brynn to wear once they were finished with it.
Out of the box came a fluff of pink, white, and turquoise tissue paper. Clearing it away, Brynn pulled out one item after the next-blankets, socks, bibs, and the smallest pair of shoes I'd seen in a while. Since Izzy was that little.
"Oh my gosh," Brynn said with a smile, fawning over the sparkly sneakers. "These are so cute! Thank you!" she said, directing her gratitude toward my cousin Gloria and her husband. A kiss was blown Brynn's way as Gloria smiled back, letting her know she was more than welcome.