Marco (The Men of Indecent Exposure #1) (16 page)

And that wasn’t something to be taken lightly.

Marco

A blend of coriander, sage, and cilantro heavily scented the air when Brynn and I walked in, still holding hands. Hers was small and soft, and I was careful not to squeeze too tight. I knew she wasn’t as fragile as I made her out to be, but babying her just felt necessary. More than once I’d been told I’m too overprotective, but, the way I see it, I just like knowing that those who are important to me are well taken care of.

Brynn fit into that category for more reasons than one.

Now that she was showing, it was even harder to keep my eyes off of her. She was already a gorgeous girl, but there was just something about knowing my seed grew inside her; knowing she carried the most precious gift a man could ever receive. I glanced back over my shoulder, stealing one last look while I could. She smiled and followed as I led the way toward the loud conversation of my sisters and mother in the dining room.

With Max busy helping his brother move, my father was most likely still hiding out in the garage, waiting where it was safe until there was a more even balance of testosterone to estrogen. Eventually, I’d make my way out there to speak to him and let him know Brynn was here. He was just as excited as my mother was to meet her.

Dinner wasn’t for another half hour, so that would give Brynn a chance to meet everyone and get settled. She seemed to finally calm down as we walked through the house, even as we approached the archway leading into the dining room. There, my mother had filled the seat beside my father’s at the head of the table. Next to her, my niece, Rosalina, typed a text to God-knows-who, and across the way, Lorna and Lucia stared, first at me and then their eyes shifted toward Brynn.

Her fingers tightened around mine.

I held my breath, too, honestly hoping no one did or said anything stupid. If they did, I was ready to strike. This wasn’t easy for Brynn to come on our territory. I came fully prepared to defend her in whatever ways I felt necessary. It was my sisters I was concerned about, but if they knew what was good for them, they wouldn’t try me.

I’d even gone the extra mile to let them all know ahead of time that Brynn’s black. My people aren’t prejudice or anything like that, but I wanted to avoid that initial look of shock I was sure they’d give when first meeting her. Of course, my sisters called me stupid for thinking that was necessary, but anything I could do to make this easier on Brynn, I would do it. My hope was that she’d come here today, meet and fall in love with my people, then she’d feel comfortable with them being involved in our daughter’s life. I wanted her to know my family would love and be good to her just like I would.

The chair creaked when my mother stood and came closer. To my surprise, she completely bypassed me and went to my left where Brynn stood. I felt relieved and Brynn seemed to, too, when my mother cast a warm smile her way.

“You must be this ‘
Brynn’
I keep hearing so much about,” Ma greeted her, being as friendly as I hoped she would. And it wasn’t forced.

Brynn smiled back. “I am. It’s so nice to finally meet you, Mrs. Rios.”

The next second, Brynn’s hand was stolen from me when my mother took it, walking her the rest of the way into the dining room where my sisters had apparently been waiting on springs to meet her. They literally hopped up almost as soon as Ma nodded, giving them the go ahead. They were catty at times, operating like some sort of secret society, but once you were in, you were in for life. Based on their warm reception, the odds were in Brynn’s favor.

Rosalina bypassed a handshake, going right in for a hug, placing a hand on Brynn’s stomach after. I cringed a little when she did that, hoping Brynn didn’t mind. She didn’t seem to, though. Smiling, she endured the same treatment from my two sisters who were already here. Thinking about it, I inquired about the youngest.

“Where’s Marcela?” I moved further into the room after that, dropping down into my father’s seat since he wasn’t inside yet.

Lucia released Brynn from the last hug to be given and then turned to answer my question. “She has some studying to do, but she’ll be here. Probably only for dessert, though.”

At the mention of dessert, I slid Brynn’s dish across the table.

Lorna peeked at it through the clear, plastic wrap on top and then leveled a look my way—a playful one.

“You made this?” she asked, raising an eyebrow. “All by yourself?”

I shook my head and pointed at Brynn, giving credit where credit was due.

With no shame, Lorna peeled back the covering, took a spoon from the basket at the center of the table and dipped it into Brynn’s bowl. I covered my face with my hand, feeling heat flash across my forehead at her behavior.

“I hope you like it,” Brynn said through a smile, sounding kind of shy.

Lorna nodded and gave a thumbs-up as she chewed. “It’s delicious!”

Brynn laughed, and again, I was glad she wasn’t offended by my family.

Lorna disappeared with the bowl—either to refrigerate it or to sneak another taste—and I caught my mom staring at Brynn. My shoulders tensed as I wondered what she’d say next.

“You’re five months, is that right?” she asked.

“Yes, ma’am,” Brynn answered.

“Sit. Please,” Ma insisted, waiting until Brynn was in a chair to continue. “And you’re blessing me with another girl,” came my mother’s words, accompanied by a content smile.

Another polite, “Yes, ma’am,” left Brynn’s mouth.

“Have you two thought of any names?”

Brynn glanced my way when my mother asked the question and then shook her head. “Um… no. We haven’t really had a chance to think of—”

“My mother’s name is Perla,” Ma cut in. “I think it’s a beautiful choice.”

My face felt hot again when she started being pushy. That meant she felt comfortable with Brynn, though, which was both a good
and
a bad thing.

“We’ll discuss names when we’re ready, but thanks for the input,” I interjected, hoping to stop my mother before she got too far ahead of herself.

Rosalina looked up from her phone and laughed.

Ma glared at me teasingly and then shifted her gaze back to Brynn. “Did Marco tell you this will be my third grandchild?” she asked with pride.

Brynn nodded. “He did, actually. And not a single boy,” she added with a smile.

My mother laughed. “
Aye dios mio
. Sometimes, I ask God what I did to deserve this,” she teased. “Girls are just so high maintenance.”

Brynn agreed quickly. “I’m already having nightmares about having someone else’s hair to do every day.”

“Don’t let Ma scare you,” Lucia chimed in. “Raising Rosalina was a piece of cake… right up until she learned how to talk,” she joked, smiling at her daughter when she glared across the table.

I sat there, listening to their back and forth for a while before my mother dismissed me in a not-so-subtle way. “Go! Get out of here,” she added, shooing me. “Go find your father and do something manly. We’ll take good care of your Brynn until you get back.”

I smiled at the way she worded that—
my Brynn
—and then shot Brynn a look, making sure she was truly comfortable before I left her. I’d made a promise before bringing her in today and I intended to keep it. She looked more than content being fawned over by my mom and sisters, so when she gave me a nod, I headed out to the garage. On my way, I shot her a quick text, letting her know all she had to do was message me if she needed rescuing.

The smell of motor oil and saw dust was welcoming and familiar—the aroma of my father’s sanctuary. His head popped up from behind the Cutlass and he smiled when he saw me coming toward him. The sound of sandpaper running over wood came to a stop.

“You made it,” he said enthusiastically as he placed whatever he was working on aside, setting it on top of his workbench when he stood.

We hugged briefly and then I shoved my hands inside my pockets.

“And your lady friend?” he asked next. “She’s with you?”

Again, I nodded, aiming a thumb over my shoulder toward the house when I spoke. “She’s inside with Ma, Luce, and Lorna.”

A broad smile stretched his face. “And they’re on their best behavior?” was his next inquiry.

I laughed a bit. “As much as can be expected. Brynn hasn’t come running out of the house screaming, so I suppose that’s a good sign.”

He laughed and then stood beside me with his back resting against the car. The word “So…” came before a loaded pause and I turned toward my dad to see what it meant.

“So?”

He nudged me with his elbow. “A few months have passed since finding out you’re gonna be a dad,” he started. “Is it starting to feel real yet?”

I thought before speaking. There was a good stretch of time that all this felt like a dream—at times a bad one, before I came to my senses—but now the idea of being a father had actually grown on me.

“Yeah, it definitely feels real,” I said, as a smile broke through. “I think seeing her, the baby, during the ultrasound made it even
more
real.”

I thought back to that day and remembered what it was like to see those tiny hands and those tiny feet. I’d never wanted to protect anyone more in my life.

My dad grinned big as he thought back. “I remember going with your Ma to all four of you and your sisters’ ultrasounds. It was… it was incredible,” he added. “I know technology has come a long way since then, with the 3-D imaging and all of that, but it was enough just for me to get to see that you all were safe and sound.” Another nostalgic pause crept in and he stayed with that thought when he spoke again. “There’s something about bringing a life into the world that changes people.

I agreed with that wholeheartedly. If I had to guess, Brynn and I would both be evolving throughout this process, even more than we already had.

Coming out of his own memory of the life he and my mother made for themselves, my father lifted his brows suggestively, drawing a laugh out of me with the expression.

“And what about Brynn? I know you’ve been saying you two are just working on being friends, but,” he paused and nudged me again, this time smiling, “you know… has anything changed?”

Several thoughts crossed my mind, none of which were definitive. Had things between Brynn and I changed since I first found out she was expecting? Yes, drastically. There was no more animosity between us and I was always thinking about her; wondering how she was doing, wondering
what
she was doing, but we weren’t moving toward anything solid. My father’s question lingered inside my head and I wasn’t really sure how to answer it, so I just said what was on my mind.

“I care about her,” I confessed. “And now that I’ve gotten to know her, I like her.”

“See?” My dad grinned. “That sounds like progress to me.”

I shook my head, though, not wanting him to get the wrong idea. “She and I are clear on where we stand. We’re friends. I care about
all
my friends. I mean, she’s carrying my little girl, so yeah… naturally, I care about her more than my boys, but…” I paused in the middle of my rationalization, wondering if I was making excuses for some of the things I’d been feeling lately, like not being able to think about anything other than Brynn most days. Even with Elena last weekend, my thoughts were on Brynn’s big, pretty eyes, her curves, our baby.

I lowered my head and I swear my father was reading my mind.

“Are you sure it’s not more than that?” The question was asked, but I didn’t get the impression he expected an answer. It was more like he wanted me to think deeper, harder.

His hand came down on my shoulder and I looked his way. “A man’s desire, a
good
man’s desire,” he corrected, “is always his family.”

I let that sink in and he went on.

“And while, yes, your mother, sisters, nieces, and I are your family, Marco… you’ve also started your own.” He pointed toward the house where Brynn was. “It doesn’t always matter how things come to be. Sometimes the more important thing is what you do with what you’ve been given.”

*****

Brynn

Dinner smelled delicious. My eyes wandered over the spread in front of me and I remembered Marco saying his mother went all out like this
every
Sunday. Cooking for a family this size was a chore, so it was clear these gatherings were a labor of love.