An update, it's a Passover miracle.
I'm afraid it hasn't been easy for me to write this. As much as I want to finish the story I struggle with it, I know what's going to happen and still, I can't seem to write as much as I want to. So I'm sorry about that. I still love Rollaro but they have taught me not to ship anyone ever again
lesson learned : )
"Amanda, you remember Silvia"
Amanda wasn't sure if she was surprised to see the woman walking into their house, a part of her was expecting something like that but with Nick saying he didn't want to get involved…well, that ship has sailed.
Nick gave her an apologetic smile, he should have called her and not sprang this on her, but it was too late.
"I hope it's ok that I'm here" Silvia said quietly.
"Of course, it's fine" Amanda nodded "do you want a drink or something?"
"Maybe I could take a shower" she was feeling out of place and a part of her wanted to flee, but she had no where to go.
"Sure" Amanda smiled "I'll show you where you can put your things. You can sleep in Zara's room, that's Nick's daughter"
"Yeah…I know"
"Oh…" Amanda realized Nick's father must have told her about them "this is it" she opened the door and quickly showed her around "make yourself comfortable"
"Thank you"
"Sure" Amanda smiled again and returned to the living room.
Nick was standing by the fridge, he was lost in thoughts and didn't notice it when Amanda walked over to him and touched his shoulder.
"This whole thing could be one of the reality shows you hate…" she tried to make a joke.
"I'm sorry I didn't call…I should have talked to you first"
"That would have been nice, but…that's fine" she gave him a quick kiss, this business with his father was really affecting him "so what happened?"
"She can't afford staying at the hotel, he was paying for it and…I thought to pay for a few days but…you've seen her, she's completely alone and I thought maybe if she stayed here she'd feel like she can do this. I told her it's for a night or two…"
"So no reality show then?" She grinned "keeping up with the…"
"It's not funny" he caressed her cheek "this whole thing is messed up, I don't know what I'm supposed to do, even if he goes to prison…I can't support her or… I offered to give her some money"
"No one's asking you to, this is not your responsibility Nick, and whatever you wanna do, we're together in this, ok?"
"You sure? You're not going to change your mind?" he gave her a serious look.
"You're stuck with me for good" Amanda leaned against him and he caressed her back.
He wasn't stuck with her, he loved her, he wanted to be with her, he couldn't be without her.
"I love you" he said and touched her chin, wanting to look at her but wasn't sure what to say. Those three words…I love you, what does that mean? Nick wasn't a philosophical man, but sometimes when he looked at her he felt something that I love you didn't even begin to describe.
"I think I'm gonna go to bed" Amanda pulled away but grabbed his hand.
"I'll join you soon, ok?" he kissed her palm and let her go.
A few minutes later Silvia walked out of the shower and Nick asked her if she wanted something to eat but she declined and said she was going to sleep. The house was quiet, even Frannie was asleep and Nick turned off the lights, leaving only one lamp on in case Ethan decided to get up in the middle of the night. Nick stepped into his son's room, the boy was sound asleep, the book he loved was next to him, he probably looked at the pictures after they said goodnight. He placed it on the small table which was mostly used for storage and not for it's original purpose.
Nick walked out of the room and carefully shut the door and walked to his bedroom. Amanda was already in bed and she smiled when Nick walked inside, he left the door open and got under the covers, moving closer to her.
"Goodnight babe" Amanda rested her hand on his chest
The first thing Amanda saw when she opened her eyes was Ethan's smiling face.
"Mommy I'm up" he said.
"I can see that" she checked the time on her phone "but baby it's only five, too early, go back to sleep"
"No, I'm up already" he shrugged and smiled even widely.
"What is it?" Nick asked.
"Daddy I'm up" Ethan moved over to his dad.
"Maybe you could lie down with us, it's very early and we'll try to catch some sleep" Nick caressed his hair and the boy nodded and lay down between them.
"Close your eyes buddy" Amanda kissed his cheek.
"I close" the boy nodded but he was wide awake and a few minutes later he opened them and looked at his parents "mommy"
"Yeah baby?"
"I'm not sleepy mommy"
"How comes you're not sleepy when I am?" she tickled him and Ethan giggled.
"Mommy tickle daddy!" Ethan shouted and Amanda chuckled.
"Yeah? You want me to tickle your dad?" she grinned at the boy.
"Yes!" he laughed and looked at Nick who pretended to be asleep.
"Shhhh!" Amanda placed a finger on her lips and sat up so she'd be able to reach Nick "can you help me?"
Ethan nodded happily and they both attacked him with tickles. Nick acted surprised and laughed, much to the boy's delight.
"Is this a way to treat a sleeping man?" he laughed when they let him go "what if I…" Nick's fingers reached Amanda's body and he was on top of her in seconds, Ethan climbed on his father's back and giggled while Amanda laughed.
"Ok…ok" she said after a few seconds "I think we can get up now, this little one has left us no choice"
"I want to play today!" Ethan let them know, his arms around Nick's neck.
"Today you are working" Nick said seriously "we are going to paint the wall, finally"
"And make a cake, ok daddy?"
"If you want, we can try to bake a cake" Nick smiled at Amanda who rested her head back on the pillow.
"I miss abuela" Ethan said.
"We all do, but she's on vacation" Nick explained.
"Playing with Frank, yes?" he asked.
"Probably" Amanda chuckled, a gesture that earned her a stern look from Nick "looks like you are going to have a lot of fun…" she was about to say something else when her phone buzzed and they all looked at it.
"Mommy, your phone is calling" Ethan got down off of Nick's back.
"Let's go to the living room to check on Frannie and I need to tell you about our guest" Nick held Ethan's hands so he could jump off the bed and they walked to the other room.
"Rollins" she answered, sitting up again "yeah…damn it…" she took a deep breath "I'm on my way"
"I want a big cake" Ethan raised his hands "like this"
"That's one big cake hijo, I don't think we can handle that, what about a baby cake?" Nick offered.
Amanda walked out of the bedroom dressed and ready to leave.
"You have to go?" Nick asked.
"Yeah, gotta go to work" she walked to Ethan and picked him up "I will be back later and you…" she kissed each of his cheeks "bake me a tasty cake and help your dad"
"A baby cake" Ethan hugged her.
"I think a chocolate cake is a better idea" she winked at Nick and gave him a kiss "love you"
"I love you too mommy" Ethan smiled.
"Lucky me" she kissed him "I love you so much"
After breakfast they took Frannie for a walk and Nick took the opportunity to tell the boy about their guest.
"Her name is Silvia and she is staying with us for a few days" he said.
"She can help paint" Ethan offered.
"No, she's a guest so no, but you will help, right?"
"Yes" Ethan jumped excitedly "but cake first, ok daddy?"
Nick smiled at the boy and nodded "let's head back home" he didn't want to stay away for too long.
When they walked into the house Silvia was standing in the kitchen, she seemed a bit disoriented.
"Good morning" Nick shut the door behind him "how are you doing? Feel free to have anything from the fridge or…"
"You're our guest" Ethan waved at her.
"Right, I'm Silvia" she smiled at him.
"I'm Ethan and this is Frannie and this is my daddy" he touched Nick's leg "I'm making a cake and paint and you can't help"
Nick caressed his hair and smiled "we're gonna bake a cake and paint the wall later"
"What is it?" Ethan noticed her belly and pointed at it "you have a baby?"
"I will have a baby boy" she touched it and smiled.
"What's his name?" the boy asked.
"Easy with the questions pal, let's let Silvia have breakfast, you and I will wash our hands and bake the cake, sounds good?"
"Yes, chocolate cake"
"A chocolate cake, no problem"
Baking wasn't one of Nick's skills, but he could read a simple recipe and follow it's instructions. Thankfully, Ethan didn't need anything complicated, he enjoyed pouring things in a bowl, stirring the batter and waiting for the magic to happen and a cake to come out of the oven.
"It's hot Ethan, don't touch the oven" Nick was handling the dishes while Ethan was sitting on the floor, watching the cake.
"Can I help with anything, I can wash the dishes" Silvia offered.
"It's ok, you can just rest or…" he wasn't sure what to say, she seemed so fragile, as if a single wrong word would break her.
"You want cake too?" Ethan asked and smiled.
"I'd love a piece" she smiled at him as he turned his attention back to the cake.
"Daddy I want to eat it"
"Patience kiddo, when it's ready"
"He stays home with you?" Silvia asked "no preschool?"
"His grandma usually stays with him, but she's on vacation" Nick replied, staring at the clean sink "come on, go get a game, we'll play while we wait"
"I can't wait!" Ethan jumped up and down.
"Alright buddy" Nick picked him up "if you don't want to play we are going to start working, we have a wall to paint"
"And a cake to eat" he giggled and hugged Nick.
"The paint we're using is safe, it's lead free and…everything free I think, like most things are today…" Nick chuckled.
"It's alright, but if I could help with something…I can't just sit here and do nothing" Silvia smiled shyly.
"Guests can't help" Ethan said.
"Thanks for the offer" Nick caressed Ethan hair "but we can't ask you to help with painting"
"I can help with the cake, maybe make a frosting" she offered.
Ethan's eyes widened "yes!" he exclaimed "I want frosting"
"Ok" Nick nodded "ask nicely"
"Please we love frosting thank you" Ethan smiled excitedly.
Nick knew the boy had a sweet tooth, just like his mother, he always waited for the dessert and the mention of a cake, cookies or ice cream always made him excited. Nick loved seeing that smile, it always made him happy, knowing his son was thrilled, even if it was about sugar.
"Only if it's not a bother" Nick didn't want her to feel like she had to help.
"Not at all, I want to help" she walked to the kitchen.
Nick brought the paint and moved things away from the wall so they could paint it. He handed Ethan a brush and showed him how to use it while he used the roller.
"Daddy, look" Ethan pointed at the spot he was done coloring, wanting to show his father what he did, proud that he was helping.
"Good job buddy, now you can continue"
"It's wet daddy" Nick looked down and saw that Ethan's finger's where white from the paint.
"That's why we shouldn't touch it" he smiled "we'll wash our hands later, don't touch anything"
They continued working for a few minutes when Silvia took out the cake and Ethan turned around to look at it.
"I want to eat it" he said.
"Not yet, it needs to get cold first, we'll finish with the wall and then we'll have a piece"
"And you need to wait for the frosting" Silvia smiled.
"I want to color up" Ethan looked at Nick and pointed to the ceiling.
"I'm gonna do that, it's high" the small ladder had been waiting there since the previous day.
"Please daddy, I want to paint with this one" he pointed at the roller in Nick's hand.
Nick chuckled "alright, let's put down the brush" Ethan handed it to him and Nick placed it on a newspaper "here, I'm gonna lift you up and you can paint higher" he gave the smiling boy the roller and raised him up.
"Look daddy" Ethan turned to look at Nick and touched his forehead, leaving a smudge of paint on the skin "very good, but how about you continue with your mission"
After a while Nick was satisfied with their work, the wall was painted, the floor stayed clean and Ethan…well, he could use a bath, but he wasn't going to be very patient about the cake much longer and he tried so hard Nick thought the boy deserved a treat.
"Let's just put everything away and wash our hands before the cake"
"We made it" Ethan's eyes were glued to the cake and Nick picked him up to take him to the bathroom.
Once their hands were clean Silvia gave each a piece and Ethan finished his quickly "I want more" he said.
"After dinner, we need to save some for mommy and right now you need to take a bath, but we did a very good job, it's tasty, thank Silvia for making the frosting"
"Thank you" Ethan smiled at her.
"Go play in your room and I'll be right there to give you a bath, we painted more than just the wall today"
"We painted me" the boy pointed at himself and rushed to his room.
"He's so sweet" Silvia was playing with her spoon.
"Thanks, he really is…he's a good kid"
"You're a good dad, I can tell he loves you, he wants to be like you" she said.
"He can do better" Nick chuckled and looked away for a second "you know, people can do better, sometimes we think that there's only one way, but…" he couldn't put the words together "look, you need to think about your son, he's the most important thing in your life, and he's gonna love you but he's gonna depend on you and you need to be there for him, do the right thing for him"
She nodded and was about to say something when Ethan ran back into the room, without his shirt.
"Daddy I'm waiting" he touched his knee.
"Ok, come on, we need to wash the paint off of you" Nick kissed his cheek.
"I think I'm gonna go rest for a while" Silvia said "I'll put the cake in the fridge"
"Thanks" Nick smiled.
After the bath they had lunch and Nick turned on the TV and they watched cartoons, Ethan was getting sleepy, and with him waking up so early this morning, Nick wasn't wide awake himself, Ethan's head was leaned against his father's chest and Nick closed his eyes as he tightened his hold on the boy.
Amanda left work early, she needed a break, their case reached a dead end the captain was being a pain in her ass. A few more hours with her family could only do her good. She opened the door and patted Frannie who was happy to see her.
"Hey girl" Amanda smiled at her.
She stood back up and noticed Nick and Ethan on the couch. They were both asleep, Ethan lying on his father. She grinned at the sight and the grin widened when she noticed the white stain on Nick's forehead, the wall looked good.
She walked to the kitchen to take a glass of water and noticed Zara's bedroom door was open, it seemed to be empty and Amanda walked inside, Silvia wasn't there and her things weren't there either.
She walked back to the living room and kneeled down next to the couch and caressed Nick's cheek, gently waking him up.
"Hey" she whispered when he opened his eyes.
"You're home early"
"Skipped work early, don't tell anyone" she smiled and kissed his lips "you two had a long day?"
Nick glanced at the boy "we worked hard, I'll put him it bed" he carefully stood up and walked to Ethan's bedroom.
"Where's our guest?" Amanda asked when he came back.
"What do you mean?" he looked at the other room and noticed it was empty.
"Her things are not there, you didn't know?"
"No, she said she was going to rest and…I don't know what to say" he shrugged, what made her leave without saying anything? There was no argument, she seemed fine. His wallet was in the bedroom and Nick walked over there and looked inside.
"Hundred and twenty dollars missing" he let her know when he returned to the kitchen.
"Want me to make a few calls?" she offered.
"Don't, I don't care about the money" he shook his head "I tried, but I can't do anything else, no one forced her to leave, so…"
Amanda could tell he wanted to change the subject and looked at the wall "I love what you did with the wall, your forehead…that's a different story" she walked over to him and touched the smudge of paint.
"Damn" he rubbed the skin "I'm gonna go wash it off"
"You know, I was going to take a shower, and…"
"Need me to soap your back?"
"That would be nice" she kissed him "even though I'd love to have sex somewhere else at some point"
Nick chuckled and pushed her against the fridge, ready to just take her there in the kitchen. But he knew they couldn't do that right now, maybe they should spend some time just the two of them. She wrapped her hands around his neck and he led them to the bathroom.
They removed their clothes and got under the water, hands caressing the other one's skin.
"I love you" Nick mumbled against her ear and captured her mouth again, not giving her a chance to respond. He picked her up and she wrapped her legs around him. She gave him a daring smile and he entered her, the sound of the running water muffling the moans. It didn't take them long to reach the climax and Nick helped her get back on her feet. He leaned against the wall and Amanda hugged him, kissing his chest.
"Let me wash that away" she rubbed the smudge of paint until it was gone "you ok?" her hands moved to caress his back.
"How could I not be?" he smiled.
"Thank you for the compliment" Amanda let out a quick laugh "but I'm serious"
"I'm fine, but I don't want to talk about it with no clothes on" he kissed her lips again "we should get out of here anyway"
"You have your way with me and just leave" she bit her lip and looked at him.
"Exactly" Nick kissed her one more time before letting her go.
Fifteen minutes later Amanda joined Nick in the living room and told him a bit about her case. She valued his opinion and it felt good to just get it off her chest.
"So the ADA said…"
"Mommy!" Ethan rushed to the couch.
"Hey baby, you slept for a long time" she hugged him.
"We made a cake and frosting" he said excitedly.
"No way! I think I should have a piece" she took his hand in hers and they walked to the fridge together and Amanda took out the cake "wow! This looks great"
"Silvia did the frosting but I did the cake" he said proudly.
"And your dad?" Amanda asked.
"Daddy helped"
They went to the playground together and played with Frannie. Ethan did ask about Silvia and Nick said she had to go back home. He was glad Ethan didn't probe, he had no answers anyway.
They had fun and most of the time Nick didn't even think about Silvia or his father. He had a good day with Amanda and Ethan.
After dinner the boy asked for more cake and told Amanda all about making it. Her phone buzzed and she walked to the bedroom to take it.
"Let's put the dishes in the sink hijo"
Amanda returned a few minutes later with a grim expression "Ethan, go choose a bed time story" she ruffled his hair and he left them alone.
"What is it?" Nick asked.
"Nick" she touched his arm "the phone call. It's bad, really bad"