Must Wait (4 page)

I arrive back at the Cantina. I see Parker sitting at the
bar. He waves over at me. “I see that you brought Olivia
home.”

I nod. “My brothers insisted since she is still new here.
Very nice lady, Parker.”
He smiles up to me. “Smoldering hot, isn’t she?”
I shake my head in agreement. “She seems very proper
in the way that she carries herself.”
Parker laughs. “It is only a matter of time. I will charm
her right into my arms.”
I laugh, knowing that he fully will win her over.

Over the last few weeks I hardly saw Parker and
Olivia. I was gearing up for spring planting with my
brothers while Parker was off showing Olivia around.
This is one of my busy times of the year when I drive
back and forth to Limon for supplies. As I offload the
truck, I can hear Parker’s motor bike coming up the hill.
He stops, letting Ramón off the bike. I throw another
seed bag into the storage shed as Parker runs over to help
me.

“Hey, man, no ball playing today?” I ask as I look over
at him.
He shakes his head. “Nah, too many day trippers
today.”
I nod. “Thank you for bringing him home. Where is
Olivia?”
He smiles. “Her daughter and her friend came down
for a visit. Olivia grabbed them off the beach and took
them in her Land Cruiser. She headed up the hill with
them. Looks like she has her hands full with them two
girls.”
I scowl. “Did she know that they were coming?”
Parker smiles. “Yes, she invited her down a few days
ago.”
I raise my eyebrows. “That was quick.”
Parker nods. “Yes, that is what I though too. Maybe
they have money and can purchase last-minute plane
tickets. I just hope the daughter does not convince Olivia
to go back home. Our friendship is really developing and
I can see that she does really care for me.”
I shrug at him as he throws that last sack at me to put
in the shed. I nod at him while he starts up his bike. I
wave him off.

The next morning, I take Ramón to school. I pull up
in front of the building. I follow him as he runs up the
stairs. I watch him going to his classroom. As I walk back
to my truck, I see Olivia’s Land Cruiser heading right at
me. The truck stops short kicking up dirt and gravel. I
hear Olivia screaming from inside the truck. The
passenger side door opens then Olivia hops out.

She calls over to me. “Sorry, Pedro. Katie still does not
know how to drive.”
I put my hand up to her and then the window rolls
down. I see a petite girl with her hair pulled back in a
ponytail wearing obnoxiously large black sunglasses.
“What the fuck, Mommy? No power windows either?
This is the biggest piece of shit truck ever. You should
have had your Lexus SUV shipped down here.”
Olivia runs over to the window. “Katie, please this is
where I work and there are children around. Watch your
mouth! Do you remember how to get back?”
She shakes her head. “No, I am hung over as hell.”
I walk over to the window. “Olivia, she can follow me
back up the hillside. I will lead her to your house.”
Olivia places her hand on my shoulder. “Thank you,
Pedro. Katie can be a little wild sometimes.” Olivia
pauses for a second. “Katie, this is Pedro. He will lead
you back to the house.”
“Whatever! Can we go? I want to get back to bed. This
is too early to wake up.”
Olivia shakes her head then turns to smile up at me.
“Thank you, Pedro. I owe you one or maybe two.” She
runs up the stairs meeting Parker with her morning
coffee.
Katie shifts forward in the truck watching them then
she smiles really big. “I see Mommy got herself a new
man. Much yummier than Daddy.”
I put my hand on the Land Cruise door. “No they are
just friends. Your parents are still married.”
Her head stares down at my hand. She slowly moves
her face to look up at me. “Not for much longer. She
needs someone who is going to be nice to her. Daddy is
not a nice man. Let’s go, please. I want to go back to
bed.”
I nod, stepping away to my truck. I climb in and I can
hear her blaring music over the radio. She follows me as
we pull out on to the road. I laugh, seeing how Olivia has
her hands full with this daughter of hers. The girl has a
nasty mouth too when she spoke to her mother. She was
very condescending, even to me. I glance out the rearview
mirror and she is following my truck rather close. I can
tell that she can’t drive either. I pull up to the front of
Olivia’s house and put my truck in park. She comes to an
abrupt stop again. I watch her as she slides out of the
Land Cruiser. She is tall, but so petite with that little
frame of her. She is not even fully dressed. I think she has
pajamas on. Kind of the same thing with the little shorts
and tank top attire like what Olivia was wearing when we
woke her up a few weeks ago. She waves me off as I
watch her open the door of the house. The dogs plow in
to her as she curses out at them. I laugh, watching her
scream at them to get back in the house. I keep shaking
my head staring at this girl whose pale milk skin turns red
in anger. She has the dogs back in the house and waves at
me before she closes the door. I still cannot believe that
this is Olivia’s daughter. Katie is so unruly, completely
not like Olivia.

Paolo and I finished working early so we decided to go
to the Cantina for some lunch then wait for the children
to be dismissed from school. We are talking about the
schedule that we are facing with planting season. He sits
up tall in his seat looking past me towards the beach. “I
must have died and went to heaven.”

I turn glancing at what he was seeing. “Oh, that is
Olivia’s daughter and her friend.”
I watch Paolo bite his bottom lip. “I have not seen
two such lovely girls in such a long time.”
I laugh at him as I watch the girls sit at the bar. “Yes,
they came in yesterday.”
He shakes his head. “That blonde one is built exactly
like Olivia. Look at her breasts, so large and round. Oh,
yea!”
I turn my head to look and caught her smiling at me.
She walks over to the table, taking off those pathetic
sunglasses. “Pedro, right?”
I smile up. “Yes, you are correct, Katie.” My mouth
falls open as I notice her shocking beauty. Her eyes are
crystal blue, twinkling back at me. My eyes fall to her lips
which are so plump and pink. I shake my head. “Wow, it
is amazing how much you look like your mother.”
She laughs. “Yes, I hear that a lot especially from my
father when he isn’t brooding. I wanted to apologize for
this morning. I was extremely hung over and I was very
rude.”
I scowl then smile. “And you almost ran me down
too.”
She places her hand over her mouth. “I forgot about
that too. Very sorry, Pedro. That look you just gave me
reminded me of my father.”
I stare up at her and she starts shaking her head.
“You just did it again, Pedro. Don’t do that around my
mother or she will melt at your feet. My father would give
her that look when he wanted her in bed with him.”
I raise my eyebrows at her. “Um Katie, I really do not
think I needed to know that information.”
I hear Katie’s friend walk up behind her.
Katie turns to look at her. “Oh, Noelia, this is Pedro
and…”
I look over at Paolo drooling. “This is my older
brother, Paolo.” I turn back looking at the girls.
Noelia smiles. “Nice looking men they have here in
Costa Rica. Too bad I am not straight.”
I watch as she runs her hand down Katie’s back,
resting her hand around her hip.
Katie nods. “Well, I will let you men get back to your
lunch and sorry again, Pedro.”
I smile up at Katie as she backs away to sit at the bar.
Paolo looks over at me. “Oh my, Pedro. Did that just
really happen?”
I stare over at his confusion. “What? Did I miss
something?”
He laughs. “Yes, the girls are a couple.”
I open my eyes really wide. “Oh, wow, you are right.
Now it makes sense why Noelia touched Katie in that
way.”
He nods his head uncontrollably. He keeps looking
back at the bar and over to me. He shakes his head,
smiling ear to ear. “She keeps looking over at you, Pedro.
Why don’t you invite them over to sit with us?”
I look over at the girls and my eyes lock with Katie’s
eyes. I call over to her, “Katie, would you and Noelia like
to join us?”
She smiles grabbing her drink as she walks over to the
table taking the seat beside me and Noelia sits next to
Paolo.
She leans in to me. “So, tell me about my mommy and
that man?”
I stifle back my laugh. “I told you that they are just
friends.”
She searches my eyes. “Could it maybe more if she
wasn’t married?”
I shrug since I am at a loss for words as I stare into
her perfect eyes. She smiles taking a sip of her drink never
breaking her stare. I feel myself getting nervous and my
eyes dart down her body. I turn my head to try to focus
on Paolo’s conversation with Noelia. Then I hear her
speak to me again, “Tell me about yourself, Pedro. What
do you do?”
Turning my head trying not to stare at her, “I grow
coffee beans.”
She giggles. “Is that it, Pedro?” I absorb the way she
speaks my name, finding her voice very sexy. She moves
her blonde hair away from her face, tucking it behind her
ear. I look down at her mouth as she wets her lips with
her tongue.
I shift in my chair facing her. “Tell me about yourself,
Katie.”
She laughs. “I attend law school in the States. Noelia is
my roommate at school. You met my mother. My brother
died last year in an accident and my father is a controlling
asshole. Oh, I am 21 years old and I am single.”
I crinkled my forehead at her. “Single? I thought you
and Noelia are an item?”
She laughs. “Pedro, please do not make those faces at
me. You make me feel like I have been naughty and you
are displeased with me. Noelia and I mess around. We are
not exclusive.”
I am confused. “I make you feel naughty? Maybe that
is because when you are with someone you are supposed
to be exclusive.”
She throws her head back laughing. “I am still finding
myself. Not sure what I like, so I need to experiment to
figure it out. Men worry me because I see how my father
is with Mommy. I am not sure I can settle for a man
trying to dictate my life. I want a partnership.”
I nod. “So, you will sleep around until you figure it
out?”
She shakes her head. “No, I do not sleep around. I
mess around. I never had intercourse.”
I am perplexed. “So, you mess around, but you are a
virgin? How can that be possible?”
She laughs. “You are silly, Pedro. There are many
things you can do while messing around?”
I look down at her not believing that we are having
this conversation. She is really screwed up in the head.
She is crazy. She takes another drink. “Pedro, do I make
you nervous?”
I smile. “Yes, very. I am not used to women being so
forward and open speaking about their sexuality.”
She taps her finger on my knee. “You will be fine,
Pedro, as long as you do not make angry faces at me. I
find it hard to control my thoughts when you do that.”
I shake my head at her in shock of what she is saying
to me. “How much have you had to drink today, Katie?”
She smiles. “Two and believe me it is not the alcohol
talking. You have very gorgeous eyes, Pedro.”
I look away from her, not knowing what to say. I take
a drink of my beer. I look over at the clock to see the
time. I am eager to change the subject. “School should be
letting out soon.”
She looks confused. “Why do you care about school?”
I turn back to her. “My son goes to school as well as
Paolo’s children.”
She raises her eyebrows. “Son, okay. How old are you
Pedro?”
“I am twenty eight years old.”
She smiles. “How about your wife?”
I stare straight ahead not wanting to look into her
eyes. “She has been dead for many years now.”
She places her hand on my knee. “Ouch. I am sorry,
Pedro. It must be hard raising a child on your own.”
I feel the heat of her hand tingling up my leg
intensifying my nervousness. I look into her shimmering
blue eyes. “I have my family and friends helping me. I am
really not alone.”
She removes her hand from my knee taking another
sip of her drink. “That is good. So how long did it take
you to move on?”
My eyes opened really wide at her question. “I never
moved on. I love my wife.”
She laughs.
“Fuck, Pedro, are you a hopeless
romantic?” I glare at her and she laughs. “Pedro, you are
making faces at me again. Please do not do that or I will
not be able to control myself?”
I tilt my head. “Then do not make me angry. Oh, look
here comes the children from school.”
She glances over her shoulder then leans into me,
kissing my cheek as she stands up. “I will see you around,
Pedro. Noelia, ready to head back to the beach?”
Noelia nods as she stands up leaving Paolo and I
behind. I am still feeling the warmth on my cheek from
where she kissed me. I place my hand over the spot,
confused, but wanting to feel her lips again.
Paolo looks over at me. “Odd bunch of sexy girls.
Very forward. Noelia was telling me that she is into Katie,
but Katie may not feel the same way.”
I shake my head. “I do not get them.”
Paolo laughs. “They are Americans, you know. You
should invite them to the bonfire up at your house.”
I shrug, knowing that it is a really bad idea having
those girls around. They are too wild.

Twenty minutes later, Parker and Olivia walk into the
Cantina laughing with each other. Parker sits next to
Paolo and Olivia moves to the seat next to me. Parker
stares at Olivia, smirking like there is some big secret
between them. “What is going on with you two?”

Parker laughs and I glance over at Olivia blushing.
Parker smiles wide. ‘We ran into the girls when the kids
were playing ball. Katie was begging me to fuck her
mother.”

I gasp, looking down at Olivia. “What is wrong with
that girl?”
She blushes again. “She is a virgin and talks a big
game. Plus, she does not want me going back to my
husband.”
Parker shifts in his seat. “She said to me that your
husband is abusive and you are in denial.”
Olivia puts up her hand. “Not true at all. I hurt him
with not listening to him. Our son died because I defied
his rules, letting my son go off with his friends. Katie just
wants me to be happy is all.”
I look over are Olivia. “Did he hurt you?”
She shakes her head. ‘No, never like that. Just
emotionally hurt for the both of us.”
I stare off. “Katie is too forward with men.”
Olivia smiles. “I know, Pedro. She talks a big game,
but I know she is looking for Mr. Right. Her liking girls
thing is a phase for her.”
Paolo looks over at us. “Tomorrow the local men will
be playing fútbol in celebration of the planting that is
soon coming. After the game, we all head back to Pedro’s
for a bonfire. You and the girls should come and cheer us
on and then go to the bonfire to enjoy the evening.”
I watch Olivia nodding and she glances over at me.
“Sounds fun. Pedro, should I bring anything to the
bonfire?”
I smile down at her. “Nah, it is all covered.”