Author's Note: I will write Diego and Victoria shopping in another story. Definite potential there. But for now, everyone is back from Santa Paula.
Zzz
Teresa smiled as she hung up the last of Victoria's new dresses. She shook her head in amazement. "I can't believe this is all you bought," she told Victoria, who was on the other side of the room arranging some more of her things they were unpacking. The sun had set long ago, and Victoria wanted to get a few things organized before she tried to sleep. Teresa had taken her to store after store after she'd managed to separate her from Diego in Santa Paula. Victoria was glad to have found another friend. Teresa spoke of Spain often, but like Diego, she loved California now. She could be Victoria's mother, and Teresa seemed to think that idea was just fine.
Victoria was happy to let Teresa talk. Though it was late, she was way too wired to sleep. She was in Diego's bedroom. Diego had kissed her goodnight not ten minutes ago. He had been very thorough. "Think of me," he'd said as he left her to go to his temporary bedroom far, far away from her. At the time, she had thought that was an odd statement. Now, though, she didn't think she'd ever stop thinking about him. She didn't have to wash dishes. She didn't have to sweep the floor or even make up her own bed. All she had to do was think of him.
She heard Teresa laugh and looked over at her. She blushed when she figured Teresa had been calling her name for some time. "I think you and Diego are going to be very happy together," the old woman said as she reached up to kiss Victoria on the cheek. Victoria looked down as Teresa pushed something into her hands. She didn't remember buying this, she thought as she unfolded a shirt. A man's shirt. She looked around the shirt at Teresa, confused.
"For your wedding day," Teresa explained. Victoria still looked baffled. "Not for you, for Diego. It's one of the shirts he bought yesterday. I think it will look very nice next to your green dress." She placed a basket on the vanity next to her. "And I thought this thread would look very beautiful," Teresa said as she mentioned several different colors. "I didn't unpack a sewing kit from your things yet so you can use mine." Teresa didn't notice the shock or horror on Victoria's face as she said goodnight and left her new mistress alone to sleep off the long day.
Victoria stared at the sewing basket as if it held a snake. The bride was supposed to embroider her husband a shirt to wear on his wedding day. Her knees gave out and she collapsed onto the soft stool Diego had purchased for her this morning. What did she know about sewing? She picked up a soft ball with lots of sharp things sticking out of it. Well, she knew those were needles. She put it back, afraid to break it. She held up the shirt again, a beautiful blank canvas for a bride to show her love and devotion to her future husband.
She looked around the room. Diego had given her so much. She bit her lip, pressed her knuckles against the stinging in her eyes. Show no fear. She peeked into the basket again. Reached in and grabbed a pretty green thread. Picked up the pin cushion full of deadly looking needles. Well, she wasn't thinking of the bed anymore! She picked up the basket and the shirt and went to the chair Alejandro had given her, which she trulydid love. She set her tools on the ottoman Diego hadn't managed to break with his kick, and ran a hand down the fancy embroidery on the back of the chair. How hard could it be?
zzz
Ten hours later, Felipe knocked on her door. Diego was out fencing with Sebastian, but Mendoza had come to see Victoria. Mendoza had skipped the trip to Santa Paula at DeSoto's suggestion. Victoria had papers for Mendoza and Felipe knew they had a lot to talk about. He was about to turn away from her door, thinking she was still asleep, when he heard a crash. He knocked again but heard no sound. He opened the door slowly, concerned, but not wanting to intrude. He opened the door wider when he saw Victoria sitting on the floor in front of the fire. She was picking up pieces of a lamp, which probably caused the crash he'd heard. Relieved she wasn't hurt, he looked up at her face. Then he took a step back, in the way all boys and grown men are terrified of one thing.
Victoria was crying. Not soft, quiet tears running down her cheeks. Her face was red and splotchy, her nose was running and she clutched something in her hands that she was concentrating very hard on. She was also wearing her dress from last night. Felipe panicked. It didn't look like she had seen him. He could sneak away and go get Diego. He backed out of the room and closed the door. A second later he was dashing through the house. In such a hurry to find Diego, he ran into Mendoza full speed. They bounced off each other and Mendoza managed to grab the boy before he fell to the ground.
"What's wrong?" Mendoza asked. Felipe paused long enough to say Victoria was crying before he raced off again. Mendoza looked after the boy, then toward the hall he'd come from. He set his hat down on a table and went to find Victoria.
He knocked on a door and crept inside when he heard a miserable answer. Victoria was definitely crying. Yes, he was a man, and yes, it did terrify him. But Victoria had changed his life. Or she was planning to, because she was going to give him a living outside of the army. He approached her slowly, as if he would a rabid animal. When she didn't attack, he sat down on the floor next to her. He waited while Victoria tried to collect herself. It looked like she was crying over her sewing. He didn't think she was the type to cry over a few needle sticks, so he looked at her oddly. When Victoria saw his frightened face, she laughed.
"Oh, Mendoza, what am I going to do?" Then she put her project against her face and started crying again.
Mendoza pulled the fabric away from her face. "Whatever we are going to do, stop crying on the shirt. You don't want to ruin your pretty stitches." Mendoza tugged until she released the fabric. He held it up. A man's shirt. Ah. He looked at the stitching and cringed. He composed himself, but Victoria had seen his face.
"It's already ruined," Victoria sighed miserably. "What do I know about embroidery? You've seen the clothes Diego wears… I can't—"
"Victoria!" Mendoza cut her off, his mouth dropped open in shock. She was so stunned by his exclamation she froze, then wiped her face on a handkerchief he handed to her. She leaned back against the vanity in defeat.
"I know. Have you ever seen something so horrible?"
"The Victoria Escalante I know does not give up. What is all this crying about?"
"Mendoza, do you see this?" She grabbed at the shirt he was holding and pointed at her juvenile attempt at stitching.
Mendoza looked, too. "Yes, I see it. What I cannot believe is you sitting here crying like a little girl!" Victoria wasn't expecting to get scolded this morning, and her eyes narrowed.
Mendoza smiled. "That's better."
Mendoza pushed her hands away from the place they gripped the fabric and rearranged his own grip to show her the stitches properly. "Now you see here? You don't want to use this much thread. You see the big hole it left?"
Mendoza chuckled at her vehement yes.
"And see here where the shirt is wrinkled?" He ran a thumb over the puckers, and told her to hush when she groaned. "You just pulled the thread too tight. And for this fine of cotton you should use a smaller needle. You need all your stitches to go one way, not all directions like this." Mendoza said, stroking another area of the fabric. When he didn't get a response this time, he turned to look at her.
"What?" Mendoza shrugged at her astonished expression.
"You know how to do embroidery?" she asked, clearly dazzled.
Mendoza settled himself against the vanity next to her. "Sure." Victoria laughed, but it turned into another groan. When she just stared off into space, bumped her shoulder gently with his. "Everyone cannot sew. Everyone cannot cook your tamales. What does it matter if you do not know how to embroider a shirt? If you want to do this for Diego, I can teach you."
"Where did you learn how to sew, Mendoza?" Victoria asked, defeated.
"I grew up in an orphanage. We made clothes to sell at the market," Mendoza said as he picked at a few of Victoria's stitches. "And see here, this knot is not right. But it is easy, I will show you."
Victoria turned to stare at him in disbelief. "Plus I had lots of practice with Zorro running around carving Z's in things. I do not mind so much." He folded the shirt, hiding the stitches and stroking a clean area of the fabric. "But you do not give up. You can do anything. Do not let me hear you say 'you can't' ever again, do you understand me?" Victoria smiled as he pointed a finger at her. "No wonder you had trouble. You need a hoop. I will go find you one. You can practice on this shirt, and I will get Amanda to steal you a new one. You clean up your face."
Mendoza stood, walked to the bowl of water and wet a cloth for her before walking toward the door. "Mendoza," Victoria called to him. When he stopped and turned, "Thank you." Mendoza smiled and opened the door.
They both gasped as the door was pushed in from the other side. Then Victoria laughed as Mendoza, easily a foot shorter than Diego, struggled to shove Diego out of the room. After some shouting and arguing, Mendoza was back in the room with his back against the door and an angry Diego on the other side of it.
The door vibrated against Mendoza's back and he smiled at Victoria. "Diego, you cannot come in. Go away!" Mendoza shouted through thin barrier of wood. The door vibrated again and he started to think standing between Diego and Victoria was not a very safe place to be—door or not! Victoria managed to get to her feet, and smiled as she watched Mendoza bargain for her privacy.
Victoria raised her voice to assure Diego that she was fine when the pounding stopped for a moment. Everyone held their breath when silence stretched.
"Mendoza, open the door." Mendoza cringed at Diego's tone, threw her the shirt he'd dropped on the floor in the scuffle, and opened the door as little as possible. After some more bargaining, Mendoza slipped out and she was miraculously left alone. Victoria looked at the shirt, balled it up and hid it in one of her trunks. Then she went to rescue Mendoza. If Diego killed him, she'd never get the shirt done in time for the wedding.
zzz
Author's Note: So I thought this would be a funny scene. Being the only woman in a family of quilters, I would understand Victoria's horror. Hope you enjoyed, hope you review.
So do people like M but not MA? Opinions? Guess my other story is considered MA. I didn't know there was a difference :) I'll edit it to post here, but I'm looking around for alternate places to post the full story. If you have any ideas, let me know.