Sneak Preview: Idoya Valdez
The lights went out; a gunshot shattered the silence; the taxi driver cursed and jammed the gas pedal to the floor, forcing her the rest of the way into the back seat.
“Evaristo!” Sun Ni Lee shouted and jerked awake from another short nap induced by fatigue, stress and the long flight. She loved what happened at each end, but the flying time took a toll on her.
The passenger beside her grumbled, sighed from frustration and stared crossly at her. Sun apologized again and the captain recommended that the passengers pay any last visits to the restroom and then buckle in for landing at JFK Airport in 45 minutes.
Sun did that and applied a small cover of her fuchsia lipstick. She returned to her seat and longed to be on the ground where she could use her cell phone and try to contact Evaristo again. Something had to be wrong, but no one would pick up the phone to give her an answer. She knew so many phone calls to his house was wrong, but fear and worry overrode her obeying the rules. He had been too depressed all the while she was with him this time. She did not know how to contact his children, and she would die before she communicated with his wife. She sat in silence; her fuchsia colored nails drumming the seat handles until the descent started. From the time to returning to her seat and the time the wheels hit the ground, she had decided to accept the worst case scenario. She was on her own in the world.
“Maybe it’s the best for me. Perhaps I need a break from Evaristo and get on with my life,” she whispered to herself.
Not necessarily on my own, she thought. I have Jim waiting for me. That’s what he does. He’s always waited for me to say yes and share my life with. him. Maybe I’ll just give him what he wants and see what happens.
She took a taxi from JFK to Manhattan and tipped him nicely at Jim Bradford’s apartment building. She entered with her suitcase and smiled at the security guard who welcomed her back home, along with a compliment about her performance in Lima. She sucked up the praise and entered the elevators.
Once inside the apartment door, she leaned against it and breathed deeply. The familiar scent of his rooms filled her head and her wildly beating heart settled into a more reasonable rhythm. She left her suitcase in the hallway, deposited her keys on the hall table and went straight to the bathroom. She washed herself quickly and dressed only in panties, slipped beneath the sheets with Jim.
He rolled over to wrap her in his arms and kiss her hello. “Welcome home, love. Was the flight boring?”
“From Peru, always. You make it worthwhile though. Miss me?”
“That’s a given.” He moved his arms and hands down her back. “Whoa. Your skin. It’s not covered. Are you okay?”
She giggled. “Of course I’m okay. I’ve been thinking. I know you told me that’s dangerous, but over the last 4 trips away from you, I’ve been thinking about us. I know you love me. And I’m tired of waiting and putting you off. So, while flying home, I decided to give us what we want. I’ll marry you, accept your last name. Then we need to grow out of Manhattan.”
“We do?” He slid his fingers around her body and down to her panties and back to outline a breast. He enjoyed her warm skin like he yearned to do so long. “I’ve often suggested that. Where do you have in mind?” His hand nudged the breast and she moved to let him caress it.
“I’ve looked at a small place overlooking the ocean in the Philippines. It’s on the north side of Manila and in a good and quiet neighborhood. I’ve made some sound investments, and I can afford to buy it. It’s still on the market. We can stay there and raise a family for a couple of years and then move on to anywhere. During the stay in the Philippines I’ll have a good business going, and there’ll be no limit to what we want to do. What you think?”
He rolled a nipple between thumb and forefinger and slid his hand upward to rest his fingers against the side of her throat. He could feel her pulse throbbing in her veins.
“I find it hard to think clearly with a scantily clad beautiful woman in my arms. I’ve waited for this for how many years? Why did you change at this moment in time?"
“What do you mean by that?”
Her heart raced, and he felt and heard the subtle breaks in her voice as well as the scent of nervousness and fear in her sudden change in body chemistry. “I mean, why now? Why did you make this sudden decision? Yes I want it. I’ve wanted and tried to get you to go sexual for years versus living as friends. What happened in Lima?”
“Lima was just the turning point, honey. I’ve been thinking about this for a while. It’s just there that I decided and you know me. When I decide, I also make a move to make it happen. So, that’s why I’m here with you, with only panties in the way, and they’re easy to remove anyway.”
“You’re lying.” He unwrapped his arms from her and turned the light on as he sat up on the bed. He sighed at the wonderful sight of her body and then groaned. “Man, oh man. What happened in Lima to prompt this? You know what I am. You know how skilled I am at understanding who’s lying and who’s not. I’ve told you. You’re lying to me, Sun.”
“I want to give you what you want.” She nearly sounded like she begged him. “I never expected this.”
“Yes, you’d give me what I want, and maybe there would be a family, but for how long? How long before you disappeared back into this life? This is in your blood. And for all I know, maybe some other men are in your blood. And you’ll be gone. If you’d done this 5 years ago, no problem. What happened in Lima?”
“Nothing!” She sat up and crossed her legs on the bed and he stood to pull on his pants. “Look, maybe it was just my biological clock that set off my alarm. I don’t know. I was miserable the whole time I was there and couldn’t wait to get back to you after I made my decision. Can we just talk about it?”
“No! Get dressed and go! I never thought it would end like this. Your heart is beating like crazy. Your breathing is causing your voice to break. And you’re acting like a nervous flighty teenager getting ready to lose her cherry. That smacks of lying, and I won’t start a marriage that I’ve wanted for years with a lie! Tell me what happened in Lima to cause you to do this right now? Will you? If you will, I’ll listen and try to help you.”
“This sucks!” She stormed to the bathroom and emerged shortly, dressed as when she arrived.
He kept his voice neutral and held out his hand. “I’d like the key, please.”
“I’ll keep it for a while. Maybe you’ll grow up and consider this some more. I’ll be in touch. I’ll let myself out and lock the door. Bye.”
She passed the security guard again.
“Leaving so soon?”
“Yes. Been evicted after so many years.”
“You need a room? A place to stay? I have a place for you.”
“No thanks, Garcia. I’ll be back once he grows up or lonely, I’m sure. Have a good weekend.”
She walked outside and groaned at the sky while waiting for a taxi to stop. She called her friend while she waited.
“Lisa, this is Sun. Sorry to wake you, but Jim just evicted me, and I’m tired and I don’t want to deal with driving through Harlem this time of the night. Can I crash with you?”
“Of course you can stay with me, and you don’t have to phone ahead. Just show up. You know I love you like a sister. Come on. Do I need to make some coffee? You sound rough. Do you want to talk tonight?”
“No thanks. It’s been a lousy pageant, a terrible flight and now a dreadful argument and eviction with Jim. I need sleep most, and I’ll talk you ears off when I recover from jet lag and lack of sleep.”