Family
Rafael watched Lucia Barba as she gave instructions to all the volunteers at the fair of the charter school she ran. She was in her element and so far everything was going smoothly, at the school at least. Rafael had been there early as instructed to help his mother set up, and he was making the most of the breather to get another shot of caffeine. Things weren't going so well with him today.
The plan had been that Nick would be coming with Rafael, and finally meeting Lucia. This meeting had been postponed a number of times, mainly due to Nick's work schedule, but also due to Lucia's hectic life. But today was the day that things had finally come together. Except they hadn't. Nick had got an urgent call yesterday and had to cancel his evening with Rafael, and late at night Nick had texted to say he would have to meet his boyfriend at the fair, rather than go together.
Rafael was trying not to wonder if Nick was avoiding meeting Lucia, as he really believed they had gotten over that problem. In the last couple of months, not only had they come out to the SVU squad, but also to quite a few of both of their friends, and only last week Rafael had disclosed their relationship to the DA, with Nick's approval. They had been spending most nights together, and things were going really well. Rafael couldn't imagine his life without Nick in it now. It was really only Nick's family that wasn't fully informed about their relationship now, and this meeting with Lucia would be the next step in disclosing to their blood relatives. Nick wasn't as close to his mom and sister since he had testified against his dad, but the real issue would be his ex and children. There was no rush though. Rafael was satisfied they were moving in the right direction.
Lucia caught his attention and requested assistance once more as the fair opened, so Rafael was kept busy and distracted again until he heard his cell phone ringing. He saw Nick's name and face on the screen and quickly answered.
"Hi Rafi, I've finally made it. Where are you?"
Rafael's face broke into a grin, and he quickly explained to Nick how to get to him, then waited anxiously until he saw Nick round the corner. He wasn't alone. He was talking animatedly to a young girl who was holding his hand; Zara. Rafael had seen enough photos of her to recognize her instantly, although he had never met her. It looked as if that was about to change.
Nick saw Rafael as soon as he made it into the hall, and headed towards him. This hadn't been the plan for this weekend at all, but Maria had rung him the day before, and as a result of that, everything had changed. She explained that her mother had just had a stroke, and she wanted to travel to visit with her, as it was very serious and they weren't sure if she would survive. But it really wasn't suitable for Zara to go with her, so she asked Nick to take Zara for at least the next week, maybe longer depending what happened to her mom. Of course Nick agreed. He had made arrangements with his mom, and then drove to the airport to pick up Zara, who had been on the flight unaccompanied. It had been late by the time she was back to Nick's apartment and settled for the night, so he hadn't had chance to fill Rafael in on what was happening. He did text to tell him that he would meet him at the school, as he knew that Zara would need a decent amount of sleep after her long day.
Nick made it to Rafael and introduced two of the most important people in his life to each other. "Rafael, this is Zara, my daughter," he told Rafael, then turned to Zara. "Zara, this is my friend, Rafael. His mom runs this school and they are having a fair today, so there should be loads of fun things to do." Zara looked up shyly at Rafael, who smiled at her.
"Nice to meet you, Zara. Your dad is always talking about you." Rafael told her. She grinned up at her dad when Rafael said this.
Nick apologized to Rafael for not keeping him updated, and quickly filled him in on what had happened. Just then, Nick felt Zara tugging on his top, trying to get his attention. She quickly whispered in Spanish that she wanted the toilet. Nick looked round, not knowing where the restrooms were, but Rafael had heard, and told her they were in the next corridor, and started to lead them in that direction.
Zara looked at him, startled, and announced "You speak Spanish." She used Spanish with her dad around strangers if she didn't want them to know what she was saying, so was surprised that her dad's friend could speak it too.
"Yes, my family's from Cuba, the same as your dad's, so I can speak Spanish," Rafael told Zara, and then as they go round the corner, he pointed out the girls toilet to Zara, who quickly went inside.
Nick took Rafael's hand and squeezed it. "Sorry I couldn't see you last night, but it was late when we got in. I couldn't give up the chance to spend time with Zara, and things moved pretty quickly once Maria rang me. I know we hadn't planned for you and Zara to meet yet, but I thought this was best."
Rafael smiled. "No problem. I'm looking forward to finally getting to know her. The only problem here will be my mom."
Nick frowned. "Why? You can't tell me she doesn't like kids when she runs this school."
Rafael laughed. "No, she loves them, too much. The main problem she had when I came out to her was when she realized it would mean no grandchildren for her. I'm sure she'll like you, but the fact you come with an adorable daughter will be the icing on the cake. You'll never escape this family now if she has anything to say about it."
Nick let out his breath, relieved. Maybe having Zara with him would take the pressure off Lucia liking him. Although he had never met her, he had heard from Liv that she was quite a formidable woman, and so he had been a bit apprehensive about meeting her.
Just then, Zara got out of the restroom, and the three of them headed to a smaller room, where there were activities for younger children, at Rafael's suggestion. Zara soon was sat watching magic tricks from one of the entertainers provided, while the two men caught up more.
"So, do I need to make myself scarce while Zara is here?" Rafael asked, wanting to have some idea what to expect.
Nick looked a bit uncomfortable. "No, not really. My mom is going to watch Zara while I'm at work, and I'll have her the rest of the time. But I don't want you to think you need to avoid her while she is here. I, um, I spoke to Maria last night, about us. I knew Zara would go back home talking about you, and would be asking questions about you, so I thought it would be best to just be upfront." Nick sneaked a look at Rafael, not sure if he would be upset about Nick telling Maria about their relationship when they hadn't discussed it
"How did Maria react?" Rafael was worried about her reaction, but Nick seemed to be okay, so he thought she couldn't have been too bad.
Nick smiled. "I told her I was in a serious relationship, and she wanted to know the name of the woman I was seeing. She was a bit shocked when I said Rafael, but was okay though. She's not homophobic, but just concerned whether Zara might get teased or confused by her dad dating another man not a woman. I will talk to Zara in a few days, after she's had chance to get to know you a bit. I want you both to get to know each other. We need to be discrete in front of Zara, so no kissing or other PDA, but I have no problem with you staying over some nights."
Rafael was pleasantly surprised. He had always been concerned about Nick's family and how they would react. He imagined everything from Maria refusing to allow Zara to meet him and trying to change Nick's custody arrangements, to Nick insisting they stay apart when Zara was in New York. For Nick to have disclosed to Maria and planning to tell Zara about him soon, it proved to Rafael that Nick really had got over his concerns about their relationship. He couldn't stop the grin on his face, and it was only the fact that they were in public that stopped him reaching for his boyfriend. Nick recognized the look on his face and laughed. "Hold that thought until Zara's gone to bed tonight. You can prove to me how much you love me then."
"Don't worry, I will," Rafael replied.
Rafael's cell phone rang, and he picked it up, seeing his mom's name. "Hi mom…. Yeah, Nick's here, and he's brought his daughter with him." Rafael moved the cell away from his ear as he heard his mom's high pitched exclamation. Nick heard it too and smiled, seeing Rafael's eyes roll with a look that said 'I told you so'. "We're in the children's room, by the magician's stand. Zara's enjoying the show."
Rafael finished the call. "I give it about 2 minutes before she gets here. She's probably running down the hallways, something she wouldn't let her students do. I hope you're prepared for this."
Nick just grinned at him.
As Rafael had predicted, it was only a couple of minutes later that Lucia caught her son's attention as she made her way rapidly towards him. "Here you are, Rafael. I believe you have introductions to make." She was looking Nick up and down, assessing his suitability to partner her son. Nick met her gaze and gave her a friendly smile and shook her hand as Rafael introduced them.
"It's great to finally meet you Nick," Lucia said, glaring at her son as if it was his fault that their schedules hadn't met up in order for the meeting to happen sooner.
"You too, Mrs Barba," he replied.
"Call me Lucia," she insisted. "Did Rafael say you had your daughter with you? Where is she?"
Rafael laughed. "Good grief mom. Can't you be satisfied for 5 minutes with just meeting Nick? You'll give him a complex!"
"Nonsense! Anyway, I'm sure if he's dating you, he's got a thicker skin than that. He'd have to have. You're not the easiest person to live with," Lucia responded tartly. "I know quite a bit about Nick as you talk about him frequently, but you never mentioned he had a daughter. So I'm curious."
Rafael mumbled under his breath and Nick could hear something about pots and kettles. He decided to rescue his partner from his mom, knowing what mother-son relationships could be like.
"Zara's grandmother on her mom's side is ill, so she will be staying with me for the next week or two. She lives with her mom in LA most of the time. She's sat on the second row, in the red jacket." Nick pointed out Zara to Lucia, who immediately moved to get a better look at her.
"She's lovely. It must be so nice to have a child. Your mom must be happy she has a grandchild. I haven't been so fortunate," she added, glancing at Rafael as she said so.
"Don't start, mom," Rafael muttered to her. "So how are things going in the main hall so far?" He thought changing the subject would be best.
Lucia smiled. "Great. I think today will raise quite a bit of money which we desperately need for next term."
Nick asked her about the running of the school and within minutes the subject of children was forgotten as Nick and Lucia got into a lively conversation about schools. Nick had visited quite a few in the area when Zara had been living in New York and told Lucia of his experience of the one that Zara had attended. When the magic show finished, Zara rushed back to her dad, and Nick introduced her to Lucia. The older woman had a big smile on her face as she listened to Zara explain how the magician had made the coins appear from mid-air and the rabbit had disappeared.
The foursome walked over to a table by the cafeteria, and Rafael went to get them all drinks while they got to know each other a bit more. Then Lucia had to leave to do her duties around the school, but not before thanking Zara for coming, and telling Nick he had a lovely daughter, and she hoped to meet them both again soon.
Rafael heaved a sigh of relief when his mom finally left them. "Sorry about that crack about grandchildren. She just can't help herself. One of the perils of being an only child I'm afraid."
Nick laughed. "It's not a problem. You did warn me so I expected it. It's a good reason to keep in with me," he teased. He then turned his attention to his daughter, asking her what she wanted to see next.
The three of them spent the rest of the time at the fair together, visiting the stalls and then watching another show later on that Zara wanted to see. Rafael had arranged to clear up some things for his mom at the end of the day, so told Nick his intention to stay behind when they left. Zara hadn't seen her dad for a month before this, so he wanted to make sure she got time alone with him, and didn't resent Rafael for being there. He would have chance to catch up with Nick later or another day. He gave Nick a quick hug and bent down to Zara's height to say goodbye to her, telling her how happy he was to have met her.
Nick walked away, looking back and Rafael and miming that he would call him later. Rafael nodded and smiled at him and then watched as they made their way towards the exit.
Later that evening, Rafael made his way to Nick's apartment, having had a text from him saying that Zara was in bed if he wanted to come over. Rafael wasn't about to refuse. Nick let him in and as soon as the door closed behind Rafael, Nick pushed him against the door and leaned in for a heated kiss.
Rafael pulled away, looking over Nick's shoulder towards the bedrooms, knowing that Zara would be there, and could conceivably walk in on them.
Nick laughed. "Don't worry, she went out like a light and she's a deep sleeper. I'm not expecting to hear anything from her until morning. It would probably be a good idea if you weren't here when she woke up, as I want her to get used to you before telling her about us, but we should be okay until then." He pulled Rafael to the sofa and then once they were both sat down, leaned in again for a steamy make-out session.
Very soon both men were breathing heavily and fully aroused, and Nick suggested they move things to the bedroom. Rafael nodded and they were quiet as they walked past Zara's bedroom to enter Nick's, closing the door behind them. Nick stripped Rafael's clothes off him then pushed him down to the bed, telling him in a husky voice, "I want you to make love to me. I need you inside me, now."
Rafael swallowed. Even after all this time together, he still found it a turn-on when Nick got bossy in the bedroom. He watched as his lover took off his own clothes, and then rummaged around in the top drawer of the dressing table to find the well-used tube of lube. He leaned up and gave Nick a scorching kiss as his lover joined him on the bed, and then molded their bodies together. They rolled around on the bed, fighting for dominance as they aimed at each other's hot spots with kisses and caresses. After a few minutes, Rafael uncapped the tube and coated a few fingers in the slippery contents before his hand headed down Nick's back to his ass. By this time, neither of them needed much prep as they were both well used to opening up for each other, so it was only a short time later when Nick pushed Rafael's hand away.
"Now Rafi, I can't wait any longer." Rafael lay on top of Nick, feeling his legs wrap around his waist, and Nick lined up his lover's cock so when Rafael pushed forward, he slid into Nick in one long glide. Nick groaned, before silencing himself, remembering his daughter was in the house. Rafael kept eye contact as he started thrusting, both men moving together in a dance they had perfected over the last few months.
Their movements got quicker as their arousal built, and Rafael leaned forward and took Nick's mouth in a deep kiss to try and keep quiet the sounds he wanted to make. One hand snaked between their bodies to fist Nick's cock, and it was only a minute later when both men came. Rafael slumped down on Nick briefly before he managed to get control of his limbs enough to withdraw and move to the other side of the bed. He took Nick's hand in his and kissed it, gazing into his eyes and letting him see all the love he felt. Nick smiled back. He felt the same way. They quickly cleaned up using the pack of wipes they had handy for that purpose, then Nick insisted they put on boxers just in case Zara did come in during the night. They snuggled up under the covers, their limbs tangled up with each other.
Both men were happy. They were in love and had gotten over the issues that had initially plagued their relationship, and now they were making their own family. It was just what both of them had dreamt of, but had never believed would happen. Patience and plenty of love on both their parts had got them to this point, and they were both optimistic for their future, together.