Carlos laughs but sobers too quickly, giving me an intent look. “Maria Regina and I, we had a bargain. If she got pregnant again, I would stay home.”
I shouldn’t be surprised, but I am. I look away, not having any taste for my beer anymore. I can’t immediately calculate a way to make this work, because I rely on Carlos a lot.
My dad will have a lot to say about the wisdom of that choice, but I forget that for now.
“I’ll stay until September, as planned,” he says, leaning closer. “I won’t leave you in the middle of the season.”
I frown, deciding this is the moment I’ve been waiting for. “But would you move here, if you could? It would have to be next year, after the baby comes.”
“I have no money for this, Mike,” he says softly. He rarely calls me by my first name but he’s deadly serious. “I have no job for this,” he reminds me.
“What if I could get you one?”
He shakes his head. “Your father will never agree. Do not fool yourself that his mind can be changed.”
“But if it was?” I have to be sure if I’m going to go after this that Carlos would agree.
He studies me. “You are fair and I trust you. I would come here to work for you, but it will not happen, Mike.”
“If it could happen, would Maria Regina be happy to come here too?” I know the power of wives.
He smiles a little. “She asks me every year why we cannot all come here, why we cannot all stay here. She knows that I must have a good job for it to happen. She knows if it is not your fault that it is not so, but yes, she would come. Even with the snow.” He touches his beer bottle to mine. “We would all come.”
I nod. I don’t want to give him false hope, but I don’t want to lose his expertise either. “No guarantees,” I say and he nods understanding. “But I will try.”
“And if anyone can do it, Boss, it will be you. I will tell Maria Regina.” He nods. “She will be glad of this, even if you do not succeed.”
“I hope I do.”
“Me, too.”
We toast each other, share a smile and drink to success.
Carlos’ grin flashes. “You should find a wife, Mike, before Maria Regina comes and finds one for you.”
I laugh, feeling my neck heat as I remember thelook in Sylvia’s eyes.You.Who knew a single word could be so electrifying?
“Ah, he is smiling!” one of the guys says. He’s come out of the kitchen, probably to call us in for dinner. “There is someone for the boss.”
“Of course, there is,” Carlos agrees. “It is almost June, when Sigñorita Dekker comes. He always smiles for that.”
The guys laugh as we head inside and I smile, going along with the joke. Elke does come each summer and she’s a good friend, but it’s not more than that. It’s Sylvia that makes me smile, but they don’t need to know it.
What I need to do is figure out a way to convince my dad that Carlos should be offered a full-time position.
Tomorrow, I think as I get advice on what dish to try first. I smile a little more, which delights Carlos and launches a discussion in Spanish about Sigñorita Dekker.
Tomorrow.
14
SYLVIA
Where is my date bra?
Merrie said you don’t need it.
Neither do you.
