AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Are there any pieces you want to have brought from your other house?” Jaicon asked between stores.
There weren’t. Like the house itself, what we filled it with would be ours alone.
We packed the truck with as many pots, pans, dishes, and linens as it would hold. While we were gone, I’d asked Maria, the head of the ranch’s housekeeping staff, to fill the pantry and refrigerator with the same staples she would’ve for any guest on my property. Finally, on the return trip to Alamos, we stopped at a market to pick up the ingredients for curry.
Throughout the day, one of us would stop the other to embrace, kiss, or just to stare into each other’s eyes.
We were driving out of the city on our way to Alamos when Jaicon spotted a place I’d visited several times since I made Mexico my home full time.
“Is that a temple?” she asked.
“It is. Would you like to stop?”
“I feel as though we’re supposed to. Do I sound like I’ve gone off the rails?”
“You know the importance of listening to your intuition as much as, or more than, anyone else.” I pulled onto the road leading to the sacred place and parked.
“There’s a store?” she asked, pointing to a sign that read, “Tienda de Regalos.”
“One I have visited many times.” The shop carriedmurtisof varying sizes and was where I’d purchased them for both the temple and the meditation center.
I watched Jaicon peruse the shelves, studying the description of each of the sculptures.
“I would like to purchase that one,” I said, pointing.
Jaicon read the description out loud. “Ganga represents the eternal power of Brahman that gives life, nourishes life, purifies life, facilitates renewal and rebirth, and liberates life.” She looked up at me. “Ganga is the goddess of forgiveness.”
I nodded. “There is another over here. Tell me what you think.” She followed me to a set of shelves. “The elephant-headed Ganesha is the lord of beginnings and the remover of obstacles.”
“I’m not sure what to say,” she whispered.
I leaned in closer. “Have I upset you?”
Jaicon shook her head. “I just feel like I shouldn’t have a say in what you place in your wife’s sacred room. If that’s what these are for.”
I raked my beard with my fingers. “When you asked me if the room was to honor Rosa, do you remember my response?”
“I’m sorry. I do not.”
“I said ‘in part.’ What I meant is the sacred room is to honor the Goddess Mahadevi. She is the supreme deity and combination of all the goddesses.” I led her to where the goddess’s sculptures and paintings were displayed. “Some consider her the spiritual mother of all. She forgives our mistakes so our lives can blossom like the lotus flower she holds.”
“That is a beautiful tribute, Tryst.”
I leaned forward and kissed her cheek. I wouldn’t say it now because I sensed it would make her uncomfortable, but the sacred room in the meditation center honored her too. It honored all women.
Rosa was the first I’d loved as a man loves a woman. For many years, I believed she would be the only. Then the gods and goddesses brought Jaicon into my life and me into hers.
A feeling of peace washed over me. I’d never experienced this phenomenon outside of a temple, but at that moment, I had total clarity, and Jaicon was the reason.
We belonged together. We belonged to each other. She was mine, and I was hers. We were standing in a temple’s gift shop, surrounded by deities, and all I could think about was joining our bodies together, becoming one as we were intended to be.
I leaned forward again and kissed the soft flesh beneath her ear. “Jaicon, let’s go home,” I whispered.
Her eyes drooped, and her right hand clung to my arm. Desire had overwhelmed her like it had me. The power of it could not be denied. “Please, Tryst.”
Our purchases could wait for another day. Loving Jaicon could not.
I was in a daze,driving toEl Lugar de Curación.It felt as though the truck represented a cocoon that Jaicon and I would soon emerge from. Life was about to change for both of us. As soon as we set foot in the house, I now knew without any doubt or hesitation I’d built for us. Jaicon and me. Had she never returned to my life, it would’ve sat empty. But then, I knew she would, and when she did, I had to be ready. I worked tirelessly to create a dwelling that was hers and mine alone. A place where we could make love without the ghosts of the past surrounding us.
