Chapter Fifteen
The day was cold, wet, and gray as the plane dipped below the cloud line and made a final turn for the runway at San Francisco International Airport. Henna kept her eyes closed and her hands firmly gripped the armrests.
“Are we going into the water?” Eduardo sat at the window after she insisted they switch places before landing. “It looks like we’re going into the water.”
“I know.” Her eyes were squeezed shut and her heart thumped.
“It really looks like we’re going into the water,” Eduardo repeated. “There is runway somewhere up ahead, right?”
“Hopefully. Sometimes planes end up in the bay.”
“Isn’t it shark infested?”
“Eduardo. Stop talking.”
His hand wrapped around hers, removing her fingers from their grip on the armrest. “I’m a very good swimmer.”
She opened her eyes and looked at him. Their morning had started in Bermuda, and the day was going to end in San Francisco. Bringing him home with her seemed like a great idea when they were surrounded by pink sands and lilac scented breezes. As the wheels touched tarmac and the plane bumped to the ground, she had second thoughts. Home was where she lived. Home was where reality lived.
Why hadn’t she suggested they meet up in a couple of months after she’d had a chance to think and consider her options? Life with Eduardo eventually meant moving to Colombia. That was non-negotiable and she knew it.
The plane pulled up to the gate and they were the first off. Their bags were already on the carousel when they arrived. The benefits of flying first class were widely apparent. Simon was picking them up. That too had seemed like a good idea in Bermuda.
She turned on her phone as they walked into the arrivals hall. Simon was waiting with his cousin Meadow and their soon to be married friends Jasper and Milo. I’m going to kill him. Simon smiled, Meadow waved, and Jasper and Milo yoo-hooed. She might have to kill all of them. Or just ignore them. Just walk past the four of them and to a taxi.
Eduardo laughed. “Your friends?”
“Yes.”
“Am I the new monkey in the zoo?”
“Yes.”
“Come on. It’s going to be fine.” He put an arm around her and walked to her friends.
“Eduardo. Simon, Meadow, Jasper, and Milo.”
“Hi!” the four shouted in unison.
“Enchante!” Milo, a six-foot-four black man whose stage name was Queen Cleopatra and was the headliner at the Dragon club four nights a week, offered his hand to Eduardo. “So very pleased to meet you. My fiancé Jasper.”
“Hello,” Jasper purred. Jasper, otherwise known as Mr. Jasper or Mr. Jasper’s Tease and Talk Beauty Parlor for the Fabulous, was such a gay cliché the LGBT Alliance had considered placing sanctions against him for perpetuating stereotypes. Jasper took Eduardo’s hand and grinned. “Or Hola-la-la-la-la-la!!!”
Eduardo took his hand back. “Hello.”
“Seriously? Why don’t you just start humping his leg?” Meadow nudged Jasper to the side. Meadow was just like Henna. Mid-thirties. Driven. Successful. Educated. Alone. It took a lot of effort not to automatically give Meadow that pity look she knew so well from her own experience. Meadow was great. Maybe there was some destiny in her future. “Meadow. Really nice to meet you. My boyfriend is making dinner. He’s Spanish. I figured the two of you can commiserate about how crazy the rest of us are.”
Simon was last. If nothing else, having food poisoning had done wonders for that ten pounds he needed to lose.
“Simon,” Eduardo said. “Good to meet you.”
“Same,” Simon said. The hard part of bringing Eduardo to San Francisco had happened. He’d met her four closest friends. He’d been shown the true heart of her life and hadn’t cringed.
“The van is outside,” Milo said.
“You brought the van?” Henna asked.
Milo had a van. More specifically, The Queens of Africa, the troupe that made up his drag show, had a van. Henna had no objection to a van on principle. It was a practical vehicle that served a function. It was also purple and had a group shot of the three Queens of Africa emblazoned on the side.
“I was going to bring my car,” Meadow said. “But they hid my keys.”
Jasper pulled a set of car keys out of his pocket and handed them over. “The van is more fun.”
****
After dinner, Henna sat with Simon as their hosts cleaned and Eduardo took a call outside. “He’s seriously Eden’s father-in-law?” Simon asked again.
“Yes.”
“He does not look old enough to be a grown man's father. I'm going to be honest, I was sort of expecting a silver fox. Cripes. He looks younger than me.”
“You're too hard on yourself.”
“Sure I am. How's Eden?” He lifted his beer to his mouth and drank deeply. “Annoyingly happy?”
“Pretty much,” she said.
“So tell me what I really want to know. What’s up with Waverly?”
“She called Meadow to find out if she could legally have me committed. She thinks I'm having a nervous breakdown. I'm staying with Meadow by the way. I figured you needed some privacy. A thirty-five year old man in your guest room does not equal privacy.”
“Poor you,” she said. “Can Waverly have you committed?”
He laughed. “No. Leaving her was the sanest thing I've done in years. But just to be on the safe side, Meadow's looking into it for me.”
“I never should have introduced you two. I wholly blame myself.”
“I blame you, too.”
She looked up at Simon.
He gave her a smile and put an arm around her shoulders. “I'm just messing with you. You know, just between us, the thing with Eden…” He shook his head a little. “Might have broken my heart a little. I'm kind of glad I didn't have to be there, pretending to be happy for her.” He finished up the last of his beer then set it down. “What the hell was I thinking?”
She put her head on his shoulder. “You would have made an awesome brother-in-law.”
“You know I would have,” he said. “Now I'm alone. Fuck me. Waverly is starting to look good again. I must be desperate.”
“Your destiny will find you. You should meet the bruja. She'll give you a picture of the girl of your dreams.”
“I'm going to keep that in mind. I may have to get the hell out of town quickly if Waverly starts sending lawyers after me. God help me, she might really try to have me committed. Not that I couldn't use the rest.”
Later, after the dishes had been washed and they’d had too much wine and a taxi had taken her and Eduardo to her house, Henna walked him up the steps to her bedroom. “You’ve met my friends,” she said as she turned on the light. “Feel free to run.”
“I like your friends.” He left their suitcases near the door. “I like this side of you. I have to say I never thought you’d have friends like Milo and Jasper.”
“Gay friends?”
“Outrageous friends. I figured all of your friends would be more like Meadow. She’s a lot like you. Very serious on the outside, but I imagine very passionate on the inside. Tony is very nice by the way. I admire him. I know what it’s like to be a young father, and he’s managed without the advantages I had.”
“What about Simon?”
“I can understand why Simon would consider a homosexual relationship with Tony.”
She laughed loudly. “What?”
“Never mind. Simon is a good man,” Eduardo said. “He is a very good man with a large heart. A lot of compassion. That is apparent. I can see it in his eyes and his hands. I’m going to invite him to Colombia.”
“I thought we were going to wait a month to see how things go before we decide whether or not I go to Colombia.”
“Henna,” Eduardo said. “Whether you go to Colombia or not, I’m going to invite Simon, Meadow, Tony, Jasper, and Milo to visit. They’ve been very kind and welcoming to me. I don’t know that you realize how much they love you and want you to be happy. If you insist on sabotaging what we could have, that is your prerogative. But I think they see how good we could be together. I think you know how good we are together. You just need something that only you can give yourself to make you believe being with me is the right choice.” He passed her on the way to the bathroom, stopping to kiss her. “Don’t stand in your own way. Now I’m going to shower then take you bed and make sure you don’t start believing good sex happens only in Bermuda.”
She very nearly told him that she was tired and could use some sleep. Nearly. She wasn’t going to stand in her own way. “Can I join you?”
He grabbed her hand and walked with her into the bathroom. She followed Eduardo to the bathroom and without waiting for an invitation stepped into the shower behind him. The water was colder than she liked it, and without a word Eduardo adjusted the temperature to make it more comfortable for her. His back was still to her as his body blocked the direct stream of water so she had to content herself with pressing her body against his and letting the water that ran over him run over her. She took the soap and lathered it against Eduardo's back. Every muscle, scar, and mark on his body was known to her.
Her soapy hands smoothed over the hard muscles of his ass down to his firm thighs then back up, sliding between his crack. A small sigh inaudible over the rush of the water escaped his lips. She nudged the middle of his back, and he leaned forward, spreading his legs slightly as he pressed his hands against the tiles, ducking his head so the stream of water splashed down his back.
As her hands drifted over his ass, massaging and spreading his cheeks, his cock stirred and grew hard until the tip rubbed against his stomach. Eyes closed, he craned his head back and let the water hit his face as she dropped to her knees behind him. Her teeth nipped at his ass playfully, placing a smile on his lips. She placed her hands between his thighs, gently urging him to spread them farther apart. His head dropped forward and his forehead pressed against the wall between his hands as he braced himself for what was to come. Fingers grasped him in the curve of his cheeks, just above his thighs pulling him apart. The feel of her breasts against his calves, combined with the gentle probing tongue that ran a line down his crack, sent a surge to his cock, making it grow until the tip thumped against his stomach.
She nudged his legs apart until she could reach between them and suck on his balls. One, then the other, was drawn into her mouth. Again, his head tipped back and his teeth bit into his lip. At first, she just kissed around his ass. Small, fluttering kisses, with just a bite of teeth. She placed her hand on his dick and started masturbating him. Not gentle little strokes, but the firm tugging he liked. Then her tongue found its way to the opening of his rectum.
A string of soft moans slipped from between his lips as her tongue swirled and circled around the sensitive opening. His stomach muscles started to clench as one hand milked his cock while the other grabbed and tugged a handful of his balls. Her tongue withdrew as the hand that had been playing with his balls released them. One squirming finger began to massage and circle the pucker of his ass. As her finger penetrated his rectum, he sighed and his eyelashes fluttered. He wanted more than her wiggling finger, but that would have to wait until later. That probing finger found his prostate. Henna knew what it took to make him come, and she did it.
When he came, it was with a hard shudder as thick jets of cum shot from his cock, splattering against the smooth shower tiles. He slapped his hand against the wall as a shout erupted from his throat. While the spasms subsided, her finger slipped from his ass. He stood, turned around, and pulled Henna into a rough embrace. He lifted her and wrapped her legs around his waist. With a swift thrust, he filled her. She held tight to him as he moved swiftly in and out of her. With her eyes closed, it didn't matter if they were in her home or the hotel. The feeling of being together didn't change with the location.
The constant and familiar movement worked to slowly and steadily build a level of pressure inside her that made her orgasm overflow more than explode from her body. Without releasing her, he turned off the water, wrapped a towel around them, and carried her to bed.
His fingers moved wet tendrils of hair from her face. “Good sex just doesn't happen in Bermuda.”.
****
When the alarm clock went off at six the next morning, Henna knew reality had arrived.
“Turn it off,” Eduardo mumbled.
She turned off the alarm and slipped out of bed.
“Come back to bed,” Eduardo mumbled.
“I have to go to work,” she said. “Vacation’s over.”
She stood under the shower, letting the water wake her up and wash away the vacation hangover. What did she know of her day? She had patients from eight until one. Then a break. Then more patients. The door to the bathroom opened as the deep conditioner worked. Eduardo put a mug of coffee next to the sink then lifted his own to his lips.
“You made coffee?”
“I think so,” he said, sniffing at the cup. “You don’t have a French press.”
“You mean one of those plunger things?”
“Yes,” he said.
“I don’t have one of those.”
“Tell me about your day.”
“Patients from eight until six.”
“Do you get a lunch?”
“In theory.”
“Time?”
“I have a break in appointments between one and three.”
“Okay.”
“But I’ve been gone for two weeks.”
“I’m taking you for lunch. I’ll be there at one.”
“Might be tricky.”
“Do your best. I’m getting dressed then I’ll drive you to work.”
“You want to drive my car?”
“It's that or carry you on my back.”
Her car. The first true test of whether or not she was ready to really let a man into her life. “Are you a good driver?”
“Henna,” he said. “It's just a car.”
****
Henna spent her morning seeing patients until it was her turn to be a patient. Simon unpackaged the prepared injection of birth control that would last her the next three months. Time enough to think about the future.
“You let him drive your car,” he repeated. “You must be in love.”
“I am in love.” She pulled up her skirt, giving Simon access to her thigh. She looked away from her thigh to the collage of pictures of each baby he'd delivered on his exam room wall. There had to be five hundred babies on that wall. Perfect to focus on when getting a shot.
“Have you been having unprotected sex?” Simon asked.
“I really don't think that's any of your business.”
“Henna. Look at me.”
She turned and looked at him. He held up the shot. “Just trying to do my job.” He might have been her best friend, but he was still a professional.
“Right,” she said. “Yes. We aren't exactly using condoms anymore.”
He put the shot down. “Pee or blood? Choose your bodily fluid.”
“You're really going to give me a pregnancy test?”
“Yes. Your period hasn't started. I'm not going to shoot you up with hormones without confirming you're not pregnant.”
“I never get a period when I'm on injections.”
“Blood or pee?”
She hopped off of the exam table and snatched a specimen cup off a stack before going to the bathroom.
Ten minutes later, she sat on the exam table.
“Henna...” Simon broke the silence.
“Don't talk,” she told Simon. “Do not say a word.” She pulled off her white lab coat then quickly rolled up the sleeve of the deep purple silk blouse she'd put on that morning.
Simon didn't say a word as he prepped her arm then drew a tube of blood. “I'll put a rush on it.” He dropped the tube into a plastic bag. “We'll know this afternoon.”
Her phone vibrated in her pocket. She checked the screen. “Eduardo.”
“I'll give you a minute.” Simon left the room with the bag.
She answered the call.
“I'm here to take you for lunch.” His voice sounded odd and somewhat surreal over the phone. There was distance between them.
“I don't—”
“Henna. Please. I want to see you. I don't want you getting pulled back into your work and forgetting about me. I miss you. Come have lunch with me.”
“I miss you, too,” she said. “Where are you?”
She found him sitting on a bench, just as he said. Next to him, a large bag from a local place she often bought her lunch rested. Everything about him was familiar. She knew every line of his face and the way his clothes molded to his body. Why did he seem so foreign and out of place to her?
“You have a strange look on your face,” he said.
“Do I?” She sat next to him, with the bag between them. “It's strange seeing you here.”
He shrugged a little. “Don't think I don't know you're trying to talk yourself out of me. I know you better than you think you do.”
“What's wrong with me? I love you. I do. I'm really my own worst enemy.”
“And I'm your staunchest ally.” He opened the bag and handed her a salad. “Don't worry. You'll get used to me being in your space soon enough.”
“How is my car?”
“Fine,” he said. “I've driven though Paris at rush hour. I think I can handle San Francisco. I bought you a present.” From inside the bag, he pulled out a box and handed it to her.
She looked at it for a moment. “You bought me a coffee maker?” Sure enough. It was a French press. Slowly, one millimeter at a time, her head turned to him. “Did you learn nothing when I told you about the blender?”
The grin on his face told her he had. “Open it up.”
Inside was a French press and a box from Tiffany. “Clever.” She took out the box and pried it open. “Oh.” Inside was a ring. A giant rock of a ring that sat like a shiny blue pillow on a circle of platinum.
“It should fit.” He plucked out the ring and picked up her finger. “I took one of your rings with me.”
“I love sapphires, but—”
“It's a diamond,” Eduardo told her. “It's a blue diamond. Not a sapphire. It's as rare, precious, and beautiful as you are.” He slipped the ring on to her finger. It fit perfectly.
“I'm not ready to get engaged.” The ring sparkled and sang to her. A small wicked part of her wanted to shove it in her sister's face and chant something diabolical and childish like mine is bigger than yours.
“Did I say it was an engagement ring? No. It's just a ring. A present from me to you to show you how much I care for you. If you don't like it, I'll get you another present. Maybe a toaster. Or a microwave.”
She laughed a little then tried to stop. The laugh wouldn't stop. It grew until there were tears running from her eyes. Eduardo put his arms around her. “Why are you crying?” he whispered into her hair.
“Because I love you,” she said. “And that scares the hell out of me. What happens if you stop loving me? What if it doesn't work out?”
“At this point, aren't we already in too deep to worry about what if? Our lives are already tangled together.” He pulled her tighter to him, and her arms draped over his shoulders. The blue diamond on her finger sparked and twinkled like a star.
“You really have no idea,” she said. “I love my ring. How did you manage this so quickly? Don't tell me they have giant blue diamonds in stock.”
“I have my ways.”
“It looks like an engagement ring,” she said.
“Do you want it to be an engagement ring? It can be if you want it to be.”
“I might like that,” she said. “I think I'd rather know now that you want to marry me for me instead of some other reason.”
“Do you want to marry me?”
“Yes,” she said. “I do. Not anytime soon, but yes. Someday.”
He kissed her on the cheek. “When you're ready, just let me know.”
After lunch, she sat in her office, watching the sun reflect off of her ring and bounce against her wall. There was no point in trying to get any work done. The four stacks of files on her desk would have to wait.
Just before she was due to see her first afternoon patient, a knock on her door roused her from contemplation of her ring and the way the sunlight caught it. Simon walked in, wearing scrubs instead of the polo shirt and chinos he'd had on that morning under his lab coat. Someone had gone into labor. There was a reason she liked being a fertility specialist. The hours were much better and the patients she didn't shift to Simon when they were pregnant, generally gave birth on her schedule.
“Why do you think women like to have a woman gynecologist, but a male obstetrician?” she asked him. She looked at him and tried to see him as a pregnant woman might. Tall, solid, warm eyes, caring smile, big hands that wouldn't ever drop a tiny baby. She knew who was going to deliver her baby.
He had a paper in his hand. “I've thought about that, and I have a couple of theories. Mostly, women think that a man is going to be more sympathetic than another woman. Another woman is just going to tell them to suck up the pain and push. A man is going to feel guilty about the fact it was a man that got her in that position in the first place. Maybe be a little nicer. Who knows? If I figure it out, I'll tell you. Do you want me to tell you what you already know?”
“Go on.”
“You're pregnant,” he said. “Based on your blood levels, implantation occurred about ten days ago.” He offered her the paper which she took. She was pregnant. No doubt about it.
“I'm pregnant. How the hell did that happen?” Lucky sperm. Unbelievable.
“The usual way I suspect,” he said. “No method is a hundred percent.”
“You're going to lecture me on birth control?”
“Nope,” he said. “I'm going to do whatever you need me to do. Just let me know what that is.”
“I'll do that.”
“Nice ring. I wonder how many shots of espresso that cost.”
She looked at the ring on her hand. “It's a blue diamond. As rare and precious as I am. That's a quote. Not me being a snot.”
“You are rare and precious.” He pulled his phone from his pocket. “I've got to go.” Simon gave her a kiss on the head, then left her alone with the results of her blood test and the four stacks of files that needed to be reviewed.
“I need to go, too,” she said.