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“Mamá?” Mia says from deep in the house.
“Well, come on!” I wave my hands to the men who are still fumbling on the porch.
My brothers shrug off their jackets and basically throw them at my hands. Little punks. I tuck them into the entry hall closet. Then I walk back to the kitchen. It’s bursting. Music, laughter, hugs, sizzling sounds from the stove, wine glasses clinking, my mother and Carmen speaking so quickly I can barely catch what they’re saying.
This really has been it. My ultimate day. All of my favorite people, doing my favorite things together, in my home. I start to tear up. Bittersweet tears this time. But Luna calls me over to ask about setting the dining table—which is lined down the center in more gorgeous flower arrangements that match the other one—so I gather myself.
Tyson yells at everyone to get out of the kitchen. They start to file into the dining room as Luna and Mia finish setting out placemats.
My father clears his throat. “And the senator?”
“He’s, um, on his way,” I say, hoping it’s true.
“He’s here,” Mark says from the kitchen. My body freezes, even my heart and lungs. He’s here. I’ve had the notes and texts, but haven’t actually seen him in days. Part of me wants to run and leap into his arms. The other part isn’t sure what he’d want. Does he actually like PDA when there aren’t any cameras? Wait.What do I want? Hell, I don’t know!
Mark appears in the dining room and stalks right to me. He grabs my head and smashes his mouth onto mine and wraps his other arm tight around my back. He opens his lips a little bit to suck, nibbling at me, just the tiniest bit. He hums into my mouth and that’s it. My knees give out. But he holds me up.
“Gross, you guys!” Mia says, and everyone piles on.
Mark hugs me tighter and moves his mouth to my ear. He whispers,"Debería haberte besado todos los días. Todos los malditos días. Perdóname.” I should have kissed you every day. Every single fucking day. Forgive me.He kisses by my ear and pulls back.
“I got flour on your suit,” I say, sounding breathy and weird.
He looks down at the white smudges on his perfect gray vest. He shrugs, “My wife is a baker.” He turns out, keeping his arm around me. “Sorry I’m late, everyone, please, sit.” He quickly gives me a peck on the cheek and then pulls out my chair next to his at the head. “Ty, Carmen, you come eat too. Don’t try and scurry away now when you’ve been drinking and dancing in my kitchen all day long.”
It’s so natural, all of us around Mark’s table. He and Papá and my brothers talk about soccer, of all things. Luna and Mamá catch up as much as they can. Luna has been tense at times, but we’ve had a no-family-business-talk policy in place for today and it’s worked well. Ty and I argue over the spices he chose for the sauce.
Better than all that is Mark’s hand on me. It’s constant. On my thigh, on my neck, holding my hand under the table and over the table. I don’t think he’s stopped touching me since he walked in.
It’s heaven.
Today has been heaven.
After dessert, Mark stands.
“Alright, everybody out. I haven’t seen my wife in five days.” Everyone pretends to be offended. Luna and Mia tease me. Ty and Carmen fuss about the state of the kitchen. “Yeah, yeah, out with you.” Mark starts literally herding them to the door.
I glance at the clock in the entry, it’s eleven! I can’t believe it. Seems like only minutes ago Luna rang the doorbell. Mark shuts the door and collapses his back onto it.
He looks up at me. His face is…nervous?
“So? How’d I do?”
I wince. “Close.”
“Damn, it. What’d I miss?” His eyes search mine, almost frantic.
I walk up to him, close enough that the tips of our shoes touch. “You. How could it be my dream day when I went the whole day without you? Dummy.”
His head kicks back. He’s genuinely surprised and confused. Then he smiles.
“Dummy, huh?”
“Yea-aaahhhh!” I screech as he swoops me up into his arms. He cradles me in his hold all the way up the stairs.
“Me.” He mutters as he pushes into my room. “Unfuckingbelievable.”
He carefully lays me down on my bed. He lingers above me, running his nose along mine.
