THE RELUCTANT MAFIA BOSS

CHAPTER18

After breakfast, Enrique helped me in the garden. He helped when I changed the soil on the pots, and he also assisted me when I decided to hang some of the ornamental plants on the patio.

After the tedious work of gardening, I permitted Enrique to take a quick nap before we would proceed to the coconut plantation to get some coconut fruits as he promised. Since I had enough sleep last night, I wasn’t tired at all, so I stayed on the patio to enjoy the fresh air and, of course, the beautiful scenery.

I was occupied with my phone when suddenly, the wind became chilly towards my skin, and I shivered in the cold. It has always been cold in the cottage because of its location, but I felt a storm was coming.

When I looked up at the sky, it was pitch black, and enormous clouds were moving in my direction. As the clouds spat forth their droplets of water, I raced for safety inside the cottage.

As the rain became stronger, I could hear the rain murmur through the glass. It sounded like a swarm of angry bees buzzing around. The rain became more fierce every minute. Raindrops drummed against the asphalt roof shingles, and because there was so much rain, the sound became one long, whirring hum.

I served myself with a cup of hot coffee while looking outside the window. An hour later, the loudness eventually faded away, and the drips became a melodic chime. I expected the rain to stop, but it didn’t! The downpour continued until it was too late to go to the plantation. I had no choice but to cancel it.

When Enrique woke up, he was surprised to learn that it rained heavily while he was sleeping. I just assumed that he was probably tired. “The trees should be slippery now after the rain, so we have to postpone going there,” I informed him.

“I agree. Since I have nothing else to do, maybe I should cook for our dinner,” he announced.

“Oh really? You know how to cook?” I inquired.

“Just a few dishes,” he replied while shrugging off his shoulder.

“Alright. Can you make some fried chicken? It’s a good partner for beers,” I suggested that we should have a drink after dinner.

“Sure thing, but in case you will be bored, you can always come to the kitchen to help me,” he implied that I should help him with the cooking.

Of course, it wouldn’t be a problem for me, so I nodded my head in agreement. “I think I can help you to marinate the chicken,” I said and immediately followed him to the kitchen.

In the cottage, I wasn’t his employer, and he wasn’t my staff. Instead, we were friends who decided to support each other during painful times. I just hoped that he would immediately forget about Ava, or I would be forced to admit the truth.

“How are you feeling now?” I asked him while he was crushing the garlic we would use to make the spicy garlic buttered chicken later.

“What do you mean, Tyler?”

“I asked about Ava,” I replied without mincing my words.

All of a sudden, Enrique stopped what he was doing and stared into nothingness. “I miss her so much,” he answered.

I had to bit my bottom lip to stop it from quivering. “Forgetting her now will save your heart,” I told him.

“Don’t worry about my love life, Tyler. I can manage,” he declared, and then he continued crushing the garlic with more force than earlier.

“I’m going to take a nap now. Just wake me up when dinner is ready.”

“I thought you’re going to help me with the cooking!”

“You can do it,” I said while giving him a hand gesture that he could do it without my help.

“Alright, go ahead.”

So I went to my room, and once inside, I was free to let my tears flow. I’ve been telling myself several times that I shouldn’t let his feelings for Ava got the better of me, but it just hurts!

I lay on my bed and stared at the ceiling for too long until my eyes hurt, and I had to close them. A few moments later, I was already drowsing to sleep. I was almost there when I heard Enrique screamed in the kitchen. I had no choice but to check what’s going on.

“I heard you scream,” I told him when I entered the small kitchen.

“I saw a cockroach!” He exclaimed.

For a moment, I stared at him in disbelief that someone like him would be scared of a tiny insect. Then, “Ken, it’s just a cockroach!”

“You have to kill it, Tyler!”

“My God, are you kidding me?” I asked, but when I looked at him, his expressions were serious. I could always take my slipper and crushed the cockroach with it, but it would be messy and so brutal. I walked towards the cupboard that contained our insect killer. Katerina was also scared of cockroaches, so there’s always an insect killer spray inside the cottage. I took it and sprayed a little amount directly to the cockroach, and when it died, I swept it away.

“Can I take that into my room?”

“Are you serious right now? It’s not befitting your position to be scared of an insect,” I scolded him, but the damn bastard didn’t even change his mind and took the bottle of insect killer next to his side. “Guess what? It would be best if you didn’t keep it beside food. It’s dangerous.”

“Sorry,” he said, and then he transferred the bottle to a place where it was convenient for him to get it.

In the end, I didn’t leave the kitchen until dinner was served.  Enrique cooked the beefsteak to perfection, and we ate it along with rice and sautéed vegetables. He just smiled at me when I appreciated his cooking.

“Excuse me for a minute, I’ll just check the fried chicken,” he stood up.

While he was working in front of the stove, he became more attractive to me. If only I could follow him and hugged him from behind. “Is it done?” I asked when he rejoined me on the table.

“A few minutes more, then it will be perfect!”

“For beers?”

“Yes,” he replied.

As per our agreement, we had beers at the patio. We sat across from each other while holding a canned beer, and he agreed with me that chicken was best paired with beer.

“Did you believe I was promiscuous?” I questioned him after drinking so much beer when I was courageous enough to ask him a sensitive question.   

He said truthfully, "Yes."

He should have told a lie! I tried to get up, but he pinned me down with his legs. Finally, I told him, "Perhaps I should go to bed now; it's already late."

He grumbled, "It's still early." Then, finally, he asked if he might stay for a bit.

“And what are you going to do?” Finally, we were done, and I was already a little tipsy, so I asked him.

“This,” he said, and with no warning, he took over my mouth with his own. He has a great kissing ability! Instead of gagging, his tongue slid inside my mouth and excited me!

I pushed him away as I recognized what was going on within my body, but he was so strong! “Ken, this isn't right. We're both drunk,” I told him.

He pleaded, “Just once, Tyler.”