Esteban POV
The feast of friendship was coming up, and I was meeting with Dona Paloma at her emporium at 10 pm. I was not too eager to be doing it with her. Once upon a time, I had been head over heels for her, but now we were not even friends. Plus, it's not like she even had a remote interest in me. I knocked on the door of her shop. It was locked, considering it had been closed for an hour. Dona opened the door for me, wearing the same dress as always, but with one difference; her hat was off and her hair down her back in loose, light brown, silky waves to her waist. Once again, I found myself wondering what of would be like to run my hand through that hair. I took her hand and bent down to kiss it. "Yes, yes, let's go already. The feast is tomorrow night. We have to come up with party favors, table decor, and-" "Dona," I cut in. "May I ask you something?" I continued after she furrowed he brow and gave a quick head nod, determined not to let her insert a cheeky remark. "Naomi thinks I need a girlfriend. She says if by tomorrow I cannot supply her a girl I have romantically kissed and will tell her that we kissed, she is going to set me up."
Dona Paloma POV
"So, what do you want... No. Just no. Not happen-" I never finished that sentence. I was cut off when Esteban leaned in and pressed his lips against mine, his eyes closed, his hand in my hair, his other hand in my neck. Somehow, I decided not to resist. I leaned in and kissed home back, my hand in his hair, my other hand on his lower back as I closed my eyes and pulled him impossibly closer, a strange sense of warmth resounding as I realized I may actually be enjoying this!
Dona Paloma POV
I was nervous as hell. Esteban and I had a meeting this morning, and he had left right after the kiss. I still don't know what I was thinking. Worse, I didn't know what he was thinking. He could have hated the kiss, and never want to talk to me again. Or even better, he could have liked it, and want to do it again. I still don't know what I was thinking! The magister of trade and the chancellor?! This could never work out! I had been just fine hating him, and now I was allowing myself to fall in love! After my parents and older sister Addison had been killed in the flood, I had promised never to attatch to anyone again! But, maybe, just maybe, lying to everyone and breaking the rules and caring about someone might be worth it? I was just starting to realize, maybe I didn't hate him. Maybe I didn't even want him to be my friend. Maybe I wanted him to be... My lover.
Esteban POV
Does Dona like me? Did she like the kiss? Or was she just trying to mess with my mind? Did she want revenge for a crime I didn't know I had committed? Would she even bring the kiss up? Would I never know her thoughts? That would honestly be worse than her shooting me down. Then In would at least know where she stood. If she didn't bring it up today, I would. I really loved her. I did, really. I knew it would most likely not work, due to our titles, but I was still willing to try. At least Miss Turner was happy.
I walked into her store, with the spare key I had swiped on my way out last night. Locking the door behind me, I sat at the table where Dona had papers galore spread out, and she was surrounded by boxes of decorations and things. "How did you get in here? Did you take the spare keys last night?" She stalked over to me and jerked the keys out of my hand. "Why ask a question of you already know the answer?" I clapped back. She rolled her eyes. "Now, Dona-"
"Call me Sia." She cut in. She must have noticed the shock on my face, because she hurriedly went on to explain. "Only in private, alright? My real name is Hortensia. I let people I care about call me Sia. I don't know how you felt about what happened last night, but I really enjoyed it. So please. When it's just the two of us, call me Sia."
Dona Paloma POV
What the hell had I just done? He had hated it! I was going to get made fun of now, and then he was going to tell everyone, and I was going to lose everything, again, this time for real. Elena truly jinxed the Feast of Friendship. I thought. Whatever I expected Esteban to do next, kiss me again was not it. But, that was what he dids. Just the sane way as before. My hair was still down, to remind me of the kiss, and it worked out perfectly. I kissed him back just like before. Only this time, it was sweeter, because I knew it was real.
Six Months Later
Esteban POV
I glanced at the clock. Five minutes past midnight. I could go now. I pulled a black cloak around me and slid through the hallways of the palace and hurried through the city streets. I had to get to the store. I pulled the set of spare keys from my pocket and let myself in the back door. Since the feast of friendship, six months ago, Sia and I had been sneaking out to meet each other for dates in the middle of the night. Sometimes we went out, and others, we stayed in. It was 10 minutes to one. I had made good time. I pulled off my cloak and headed upstairs, to her room. I knocked on the door. It swung open almost immediately. "Steve! Great to see you!" Sia called eagerly, pecking me gently on the lips. She decided I needed a pet name too, so she decided on Steve, short for Stephan, the English translation for Esteban. She was wearing a lacy, light blue nightgown. Sia and I were smart people, but their had been one thing we did not think through. A little less than a month ago, Sia and I had... Lost control. "How are you, Sia? And how are you sweetheart?" I asked bending down to kiss her stomach. Yes, we were going to be parents. And we were still not engaged. Logistically, a live-totgether marriage was not possible for us, but we could still both care for the baby at bight, and share care in the day. We had decided not to get married, but we were still madly in love. We had told no one yet. It would come out eventually, and we were going to ensure that. We were going to announce it when we figured out the gender.
Sia POV
"The baby is fine, I am exhausted. I hate food I love, I can't decide on anything, and my stomach and head always hurt. How do women have more than one child?" Steve laughed and shrugged. Kissing me passionately, he breathed in my ear "I don't know, but I couldn't handle more than one either." I kissed him back, desperately, longingly. It was moments like these that made the horror of pregnancy all too worth it.
13 year later
"Hello, sweetheart! How was school today?" My father, Chancellor Esteban asked me when I walked into my mother's emporium after an exhausting day of sixth grade. "Not great. I got another D in writing, and a C- in reading. I got sent to the office today for bouncing up and down and distracting the others in class. I still have no friends." If most parents heard that summary, the child would be dead. But I have ADHD and dyslexia, so my parents feel sympathy instead of anger. They know I really do try. My mom is dyslexic, and my dad has ADHD, so I got the worst of both worlds. "Meg, honey, come here." My mom takes my hands. "It will get easier." And my parents wraip their arms around me and life is good again.
A/N- feel free to PM me with requests! Please only send me Eleteo, Esteoma, and other ships NOT involving Elena or Mateo.