Chapter 2:-
The cars both came to a screeching halt. One upside down and smoking, the other sideways on and front-ended into a barricade.
The street was silent. No screams. No crying. Nothing.
Then, all of a sudden, the screech of tires and the sound of engines revving filled the silence. It felt as though hell itself was about to erupt from beneath them.
The car that had landed upside down burst into flames before the occupants could be reached. Their screams were an awful echo in the night.
The single occupant of the other car had escaped and was now limping away – straight into the strong arm of the law.
Next day, all the headlines read: 'Street Racer charged with causing the deaths of a young married couple. Daughter escaped unhurt when she was thrown from her parents car.'
Sofia jumped awake from her nightmare – the same nightmare she'd been having since she'd been nine years old. Her body was stiff from napping on the couch, and she creaked as she stretched and yawned.
It was still light outside and she could hear childish laughter drifting in from outside. She eased off the couch and headed out to the back porch. Sofia sat on the cool stone steps that led out onto her aunt's back yard where her daughter was playing in the last of the warm evening sun.
A thought struck her as she sat down – she hadn't realized you could feel happy and sad at the same time – she wanted to cry for the past, but when she looked at her daughter, her heart sang with joy. She'd been so sad for so long that letting joy and happiness back into her life still felt alien.
Watching Amber play in the fading sun filled Sofia with immeasurable happiness. There was something so unconditional about the love of a child for their parent.
"Momma, why's you sad gen?" her three year voice shouted when she saw her mother, breaking into Sofia's thoughts.
Sofia jumped up and skipped towards the slide, grabbing Amber and lifting her high into the air, spinning her around. "How can anybody be sad with you around, my carina?" She spun Amber round twice more before popping her back on top of the slide.
Her aunt smiled at her from the other side of the slide. "I'll go and get dinner ready now you're up. Did you have a good nap?"
"It was ok. Thanks," Sofia smiled. "What's for dinner?"
"I thought enchiladas might be in order. Nothing like comfort food…and to follow, Amber and I made as fresh strawberry tart," her aunt told her.
Sofia's aunt was the best cook in Mexico – if not the whole world. Her aunt's enchiladas were legendary.
"I pulled de berries hats off," Amber said proudly.
"I'm sure it will be the best strawberry tart ever," Sofia smiled, ruffling her daughters curls.
After dinner, Sofa bathed Amber and tucked her up in bed before reading her a fairy story about a princess who gets lost in the deep dark forest. The handsome prince comes along and rescued her, and they fell in love and lived happily ever after.
'If only real life were that easy,' she thought, as she kissed the sleeping toddler gently on the forehead.
Creeping downstairs, Sofia saw her Aunt Essie sitting in the lounge, stitching together a new patchwork quilt ad watching some talk show on TV. Her aunt made beautiful quilts as well as cooked amazing food.
Aunt Essie looked up from her sewing and told Sofia that there was a fresh pot of coffee ready in the kitchen waiting for her, along with another slice of strawberry tart if she wanted it.
Sofia said she'd take both out onto the porch as it was such a nice night.
The tart was good and it was just as the label described – tart. She ate it, all the while feeling guilty. She shouldn't keep eating so much – she still hadn't lost the extra weight she'd put on from having Amber.
Picking up the coffee, she wrapped her hands around the warming liquid and let her mind wander to more princely subjects.
Sofia would only admit to herself that she'd already found her prince – he just didn't know she existed. And who could blame him. She wasn't exactly model-material and everything about him suggested he went for the more porny-looking type of woman. Blonde, tall, slim and sexy. Not short, rather dumpy brunettes.
Ever since he'd arrived in town and taken over the run-down garage, she she'd offered to do his accounts for him, she'd taken on more and more hours working there just to be near him – Dominic Turetto.
Sofia knew which nights he ate out, which nights he spent in the local bar. And she made sure she was always there, hoping to catch a glimpse of him. She was beginning to feel a bit like a stalker – ok, a lot like a stalker.
Sofia sat and sipped her cooling coffee, wondering what Dom would be doing right now. It wasn't that she wanted him to be lonely…no, it was just that she wanted him to be with her.
Tonight was the one night he didn't go out and she often wondered what he did when he stayed home. She would never have believed for one minute that he'd be sat wondering what she was doing.
Draining her coffee, she set the mug down on the empty plate and sighed, pushing the loose tendrils of hair behind her ears.
After taking the crockery back into the kitchen, she peeked in on her aunt. "I think I'm gonna take a walk along the beach. Will you keep an ear out for Amber, please Aunt Essie? Do you mind?"
Her aunt looked up and smiled. Her sewing rested on her lap. "Of course I don't mind, sweetie. Enjoy your walk and don't forget to take a sweater or something in case it drops cooler later."
Aunt Essie secretly hoped Sofia would bump into that nice young mechanic on her beach walk. If they didn't get together by themselves soon, she was going to have to call 'the girls' together for a matchmaking scheme.
Sofia strolled aimlessly down the beach, not heading anywhere in particular but still she found herself heading in the direction of Dom's home and garage.
The beach was quiet at this time of night, except for the constant gentle lapping of the waves against the sand. It was like a song inside her head and she found herself humming an old lullaby from her childhood. Self-consciously, she looked around her only to realize she was standing directly in front of Dom's place.
The garage downstairs was in total darkness but lights were on in the apartment above. She was too far away to see anything but she couldn't help but wonder what he was doing inside there, all by himself. Although earlier, she had considered he might have found himself a blonde for the night, she knew he would be alone. He was a notorious loner who'd never looked twice at the majority of young women who went after him.
She imagined he must be very lonely – maybe even more so than she was because at least she had family living with her. He appeared to have no one else.
Sofia made the decision that tomorrow, at work, she would invite him over for a real home cooked meal. 'Hmmmm,' she thought. 'Amber and Aunt Essie could always go out for dinner…or I could ask him to a restaurant…' She laughed at herself. It was so easy to be brave all alone, in the dark. Of course, she'd never ask him out but it didn't hurt to dream.
Turning, she started to walk back in the direction of home. She was glad for the cover of darkness in case she met anyone she knew and they saw the deep blush that she knew she wore as her mind wandered over Dom's naked body in her thoughts. Wrapping her arms around herself, she giggled aloud at her imaginations…and found herself almost skipping across the sand.
Letting herself in the front door and carefully locking it behind her, Sofia smiled to herself, careful to leave her lustful desires on the other side of the door lest her Aunt Essie saw what was on her mind.
As she walked through the house, there was no sign of her aunt, and Sofia guessed that she must have gone to bed.
Wandering through to the kitchen, Sofia got an ice-cold coke from the fridge and sat down at the table. After unscrewing the lid and taking a sip, she thought how much better it would taste with a drop of tequila.
Dom got out of the shower, dried off and quickly pulled on a pair of jockey shorts. He padded bare foot through to the kitchen and got a cold beer from the fridge, popping the cap. Leaning against the work surface, he drained the cool contents quickly.
In the intense heat, his body was already misted with a fine sheen of fresh sweat, but he didn't mind. He loved the heat.
Sofia finished her coke and stood the bottle in the sink to be rinsed out in the morning. She checked all the doors and windows, and then switched off the lights before trudging wearily up to bed.
As she peeked in on Amber, she smiled inside. Amber was the one thing she had managed to get right in her life.
Closing Amber's door, Sofia's opened the one next door that led to her own room. Leaving the light off, she quickly changed into the shorts and vest top she wore to sleep in. Crawling under the covers, she lay for a while, trying to decide what to wear the following day. She wanted to look her best – even if Dom didn't notice her in that way.
Dom dragged his ass to bed. He flopped down on top of the covers with his head nestled snugly in his soft pillow. He had one hand under his head and the other over his stomach. His mind wandered freely over Sofia's black lacy underwear.
That's what he imagined she wore under the prim and proper clothes she came to work in. It was at that moment, he realized he was a little eager at the prospect of seeing her again tomorrow.
Sofia lay curled up on her side and closed her eyes. Visions of Dom's naked, muscled body filled her mind. She hoped she'd have one of her 'special' dreams tonight, oh God, she hoped…
Dom closed his eyes against the darkness. The last thing he heard was the swish of the curtain in the night breeze that had finally arrived to cool down the heat of the day. He soon slipped into a deep, dreamless sleep…