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Valentina walked onto the porch carrying a cup of coffee.
“Have a good night’s sleep?” Lois asked, not looking at her but smirking.
“Yup,” she said and took a sip from her coffee, sitting down on the chair next to her sister. Val looked out at Kenny as he played with the basketball set.
“You could have stayed there with them. You didn’t have to come home.”
She looked at her sister. Lois turned toward her, smirking.
“I thought you might get upset and thought Kenny would be, too.”
Lois took a deep breath and exhaled. “Sis, you’ve sacrificed so much for us. You don’t need to anymore. I want you to be happy, and if doing four Green Berets does it for you, who am I to disapprove?” she stated sarcastically then wiggled her eyebrows up and down. They both burst out laughing. Valentina tucked her legs underneath her bottom and shifted in her seat.
“Uncomfortable?” Lois teased.
“No,” she replied and gave her a sassy look.
Lois shifted toward her.
“So, how was it? Totally fantasy come true, or overrated and awkward?”
“Definitely not overrated and awkward. It was…beautiful,” Valentina whispered and looked out toward the yard and then to where the Brazos brothers resided. They really didn’t want her to leave last night—well, four o’clock this morning—but she really had been worried about Lois.
Lois stared at her.
“What?”
“Were they gentle with you?” she asked very seriously, and Valentina’s heart ached for her. She reached over and touched her hand.
“They were very gentle, passionate, and caring, more than I could ever imagine any man being.”
“They’re so big, though. What if they aren’t like they claim to be? What if they get angry and hit you, then what? You can’t be foolish and so trusting.”
She shook her head.
“I trust my gut, and I trust what’s in here,” Valentina told her as she put her hand over her chest.
“One day, when you’re not so fearful, or when the right man comes along, you’ll know what I’m talking about, and you’ll know what’s true.”
Lois shook her head and pulled away. She stared out at the yard.
“No. Not me. I could never have happiness like that. Could never trust a man to get close to me, never mind touch me.” Her sister looked so sad and scared, and it killed Valentina inside to see her suffering like this.
“With time, Lois. With therapy and building that self-confidence up again, you’ll be able to let that guard down and let a man love you. Not with fists, with put-downs and with power and control, but with love and compassion. A real man doesn’t manipulate and scare a woman into submitting to them. A real man wants to please a woman, protect her from harm, and take away any hurt she may have, so she’s never sad or discouraged. With time, all wounds heal,” Valentina whispered and leaned back in her chair and watched Kenny with Lois. Maybe, one day, her sister would meet a man—or men—that could love her, heal her, like she deserves.
* * * *
“She took off. Just up and left those kids at the home and disappeared,” Gus told Valentina when she got into work. Valentina was shocked.
“How the hell did she do that?” she asked.
Gus had his hands on his hips. He was a big man. Tall, about six feet, with wide shoulders. He was in his fifties, an attractive man and supposedly an awesome boxer. He looked her over and glanced at Texas Ranger J.R. Cummings.
“Tell her,” he said to J.R.
She looked at J.R. He was in his thirties, a good-looking guy who apparently knew Gunner, Wes, and Garrett really well.
“She knocked out one of the employees that is on duty there in the evenings in case the women or children need anything.”
