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11. Where to go from Here

I awoke to a gentle shaking and a whispering voice calling my name. I opened my eyes to find Carlos standing over me, saying, "Steph, we're here."

I unfastened my seatbelt and stretched before I took Carlos' offered hand and climbed out of the parked car. I looked around and saw no sign of Ricardo. I assumed that he was already inside. I looked at Carlos and saw that he was carrying my bag on his right shoulder, and his left hand was still holding mine, from helping me out of the car.

I said, "Thanks Carlos," and let go of his hand to close the car door. I then turned and followed Carlos into the house. As soon as Carlos closed the door behind us, Maria came into the entrance hall and pulled me into a tight hug. Holding me tight she said, "I'm so happy that you are alright dear. When Ricardo told me why they were going to your apartment, I was really worried. I was relieved when Ricardo came in and said that you would be staying here. You'll be safe here, I assure you."

"Thank you Maria. I really appreciate everything that you and your family have done for me over the past few days. If there is anything at all I can do, please let me know."

"Thanks but there is nothing more for you to do tonight Stephanie, except get some sleep. Carlos, can you please show Stephanie to Daniela's old room and then show her where the towels and everything are located?"

"Sure Mama."

I wished Maria and Ricardo goodnight and then followed Carlos upstairs. He pointed to the first door at the top of the stairs and pointed out Evelyn's room then Isabella's room, and then his parents' room. The next door he came to was the bathroom. He pulled me inside and showed me that the towels were in a small closet behind the door.

Next, he opened a door and said, "This room used to be Daniela's, but she now lives and works in Miami. It is the only spare room until I leave for good, but we all still refer to it as Daniela's."

Carlos walked into the room and placed my bag onto the bed. He then turned around and stared at me with a funny expression on his face. I waited for him to say something, but when he didn't I asked, "What's wrong Carlos, you look annoyed with me. Have I done something to upset you?"

Carlos walked toward me, not saying a word. When he was close enough that we were sharing the same airspace, he rubbed his hands over his face and said, "I was so worried when you didn't call me back straight away. Papa refused to let me drive because I was shaking so hard."

I was going to say something to reassure him that I was alright, but before I could say anything, he reached out and pulled me towards him, enveloping me into a strong and comforting hug. He held me for several minutes before saying, "I know we just met, but I was so afraid I might have lost you tonight. I was really looking forward to getting to know you and working with you this summer. The possibility that that might not happen scared me more than I want to admit."

I held onto Carlos, relaxing into the comfort and warmth I felt with his arms around me. I couldn't remember ever feeling quite as comfortable as I did at that point in time. I didn't want the hug to end, but I was unable to stifle a yawn, and Carlos pulled back and said, "You're tired Steph, I'll let you get some sleep."

Carlos looked me in the eye and said, "Goodnight Steph." Carlos walked out of my room, and looked back at me when he reached the door. As he reached out to close the door he said, "If you need anything at all, I'm in the room directly across the hall from you."

I smiled at Carlos through a yawn and said, "Thanks again Carlos, I'll see you in the morning."

After Carlos left, I rummaged through my bag and dug out my toothbrush and face wash. I went into the bathroom and got ready for bed, running into Maria and Ricardo on their way to bed. We wished each other good night and I returned to my room. After putting on the only pair of pyjamas I had left, I crawled into bed.

The last thought I had before I fell asleep was of the hug that Carlos and I shared that evening, wondering what it meant, if anything.

When I awoke the next morning, a quick glance at my clock told me I had slept in later than I had planned. It was already 7:55. I grabbed my shower things and had a hurried shower. After the shower, I left my hair to dry naturally after putting some curling lotion in it to tame the frizz. I put on a little bit of makeup and headed downstairs.

When I walked into the dining room, I was embarrassed to find that the entire Manoso clan had beaten me down. They were already in the middle of their breakfast. Maria stood when I came in and said, "Good morning dear, I wasn't sure what time you would be down, so I kept a plate warm for you in the oven."

I sat in the empty seat beside Carlos and greeted everyone. Maria returned moments later and put a plate of scrambled eggs, bacon and what looked like blueberry pancakes in front of me. I looked up at her and said, "This looks delicious. I hope you didn't go to any extra effort just because of me."

Maria laughed and said, "Don't worry Stephanie. I usually cook something like this for breakfast on Sunday mornings."

I looked down at my plate and took a bite of the eggs. I looked at the scrambled eggs more closely and saw that they had chopped vegetables and herbs mixed in with the eggs. I liked them very much. I finished the rest of the delicious breakfast and offered to help with the washing up. Maria gratefully accepted my help, and after 10 minutes of effort, the table was cleared and everything else was cleaned up and put away.

"Thanks for your help Stephanie, but don't feel obligated to help every time. Please relax and enjoy the rest of your day. Carlos tells me that you two are going to take the girls shopping and you are going to try and replace some of your destroyed clothes."

I nodded and said, "There are a few things that I need to buy, but the rest can wait until I get my insurance check. Oddly enough, my winter clothes and my undergarments took the brunt of the damage. I can definitely wait to replace my sweaters and long underwear."

Maria chucked at this and said, "You're probably right. The weather tends to be a little warmer this time of year. You and Carlos can take my car today. If I need to go anywhere, Ricardo will be home to take me. Have fun dear."

I thanked Maria and headed upstairs to finish getting ready for shopping. As soon as I reached the landing at the top of the stairs, I was bombarded with questions from Evelyn and Isabella about what time we were leaving and where we were going.

I looked at the excitement written on the girls' faces and said, "I'm not sure what time we're leaving. That depends on when our chauffeur is ready. As for where we're going, where would you recommend?"

A deeper voice than I was expecting answered, "I'm ready to go when you ladies are, but since I'm driving, I get to choose the place, and it's a surprise."

Both Evelyn and Isabella groaned, but the quickly retreated to their rooms to gather their belongings.

I looked at Carlos and said, "If you want, you can just drop us off and collect us later. I don't want to bore you with a day of shopping."

Carlos laughed and said, "I have a few things I need to buy for myself. We can split up when we get there."

I asked, "Where is there?"

"I was thinking about going to the outlet shopping mall in Elizabeth, just off the New Jersey Turnpike. I've never been there, but it's supposed to be nice."

"Sounds good to me, and I'm sure the girls will be happy with the choice. I have been there and there are lots of things to look at."

We told the girls about our destination and they seemed really excited. It only took them another 5 minutes before they were ready. We all climbed into the car and Carlos laughed when he turned to see both of his sisters in the back seat.

"Normally when you girls drive anywhere with me, you fight over which one of you gets to sit in the front seat. How come there was no bickering this time?"

Evelyn answered, saying "We assumed that you would want Steph to sit in the front, so we left it free for her."

"If one of you girls wants to sit up front, I'm willing to let you," I said.

Carlos shook his head and answered for them, "They're fine in the back, just where they are Steph."

I smiled and settled in for the journey, making a mental list of the things I needed. I knew I needed to make a trip into Victoria's Secret, but I dreaded the thought of dragging the girls and Carlos with me. Perhaps I could pull Carlos aside and explain my requirements so that he could accompany the girls while I did that aspect of my shopping.

When we arrived at the shopping centre, we all got out of the car and Carlos said, "I have a few things that I need to do. I can leave you ladies to do your thing for the next hour. I suggest that we all meet back here one hour so we can decide what to do for lunch. While we're eating, we can decide where to go and what to do next."

We all readily agreed, and Carlos split off from us as we entered the mall. The girls and I looked in several shops. They excitedly wandered around the Disney Store and then helped me pick out two nice business suits from Neiman Markus and several blouses from a few different shops.

When it was time for us to meet back up with Carlos, the girls had spent their birthday money and I was the new owner of enough clothes to tide me over until the insurance money arrived. The only things I was missing were those pesky undergarments.

We met up with Carlos at the appointed time and location. He was carrying a few bags, and when we were close enough, he and asked, "Why don't we put our shopping in the trunk of the car and then go to Applebee's for lunch?"

We all agreed by simply nodding and followed him to the car. Once all the bags were safely stowed, we made our way to the restaurant. The waitress that seated us couldn't take her eyes off Carlos. She led us to a booth beside the window and practically dropped the menus when he held out his hand to take one. Evelyn and Isabella climbed into one side of the booth, leaving Carlos and I to share the other side. This time, Carlos and I were facing the front of the restaurant, so he was able to clearly see the waitresses watching our table. In an attempt to hide his discomfort at the attention he was receiving, Carlos asked, "Were you successful in your shopping ladies?"

I laughed when both Evelyn and Isabella launched into an excited explanation of their successes. Carlos looked over at me grinning and said, "How about you Steph? Were you able to find anything?"

I nodded and replied, "Yes, I made a pretty good start. Your sisters have a really good eye and helped me a lot by pulling out my sizes when I found something I liked."

The waitress reappeared and took our drinks order, and as she walked away, she looked back over her shoulder and managed to walk right into another table. Both Evelyn and Isabella laughed at her, but Evelyn recovered first and said, "My poor handsome brothers always manage to attract the attention when they're out and about. If you weren't here Stephanie, I'm sure it would be even worse. "

I looked from Carlos to Evelyn and asked, "How is my presence making a difference?"

Evelyn laughed and said, "Well, from the perspective of a stranger observing our table, it looks like you are Carlos' girlfriend. If you weren't here, I'm sure we would have additional servers and they would stick around a lot longer. You're basically his shield when you're around."

Carlos laughed, looked at me and grinned. He reached his arm around my shoulder and said, "Come here Babe, if we're going to pretend you're my girlfriend, we're going to have to up our game."

Carlos still had his arm around my shoulder when the waitress arrived with our drinks. She took our food orders, and tried to make surreptitious looks at Carlos between each order she wrote down. When she left the table, she glared at me and I grinned back at her thanking her as she walked away.

My cheek caused the three Manosos to laugh as I tuned a dark shade of pink. Carlos leaned toward me and said, "I should bring you out with me more often. The look on that girl's face was pretty amusing."

The girls started talking amongst themselves. When it seemed they weren't paying us any attention, I said, "Carlos, after lunch, can you stay with the girls so I can make a quick trip to a store? I don't think it's really suitable to take them along with me and it would be extremely uncomfortable if we all went together."

Carlos nodded, but asked, "Which store?"

I blushed and replied, "Victoria's Secret."

"Darn, I'd love to go that store with you, but I can't really leave the girls alone. How about we wander around and you can call me when you're finished."

I laughed and agreed to his suggestion just in time to watch our waitress and another girl bring our food. When the four plates were placed in front of us, the waitress asked if we needed anything else. Carlos looked up at her and said, "No thanks, I think we're good." As soon as he said that, he kissed me on the cheek as he picked up my napkin, laying it on my lap.

We talked while we ate, but not about anything in particular. When the bill came, Carlos insisted on paying. We argued over it for a few moments, but when the waitress was nearing our table to collect our payment, Carlos shut me up by placing a quick kissing on my lips.

My eyes opened wide at this, but Carlos covered my reaction by hugging me towards him as he handed the waitress the wallet filled with cash.

As soon as the waitress left, Carlos let me go and continued on as if nothing had happened. Both the girls were looking at us like they wanted to say something, but the stern look on from Carlos must have kept them quiet.

When we walked out of the restaurant, we separated. Carlos and the girls went one way and I went the other. I was fortunate that Victoria's Secret was close to the restaurant, so I didn't have to go very far. I walked in and picked up five matching sets that were in the sale rack. I found a cute pyjama set that had a pair of jersey shorts and a matching tank top, and when I was waiting to pay, I noticed a cute little sexy sleep shirt, so I added it to my pile. I paid with my credit card and then left the store, calling Carlos to find out where they were.

"Hey Steph, we're actually just around the corner from you at the Armani store. It's just before H&M. Evelyn saw something in the window and though it would look good on you, why don't you come join us and find out?"

I agreed and walked around the corner and saw the store straight away. Standing in the window was a very smart pants suit. It was really tailored and looked spectacular on the mannequin, and as soon as Isabella saw me looking through the window, she rushed out to drag me in the store.

"Look Steph, that suit is marked down from $590 to $90. It's really nice and made from a mixture of fine wool and silk. I think you would look good in it."

I was surprised that it was marked down so much and that they had a suit in my size, so I was persuaded by the girls to try on the suit. Carlos even encouraged me and handed me the blouse that Evelyn picked out.

I carried the suit into the change room and immediately knew why the suit was so cheap. The inner seam of the trousers had frayed. I thought about it and was sure that it could be easily repaired, so I didn't let that bother me.

I put on the blouse, which was cornflower blue and buttoned it. When I pulled the jacket on, it felt like it had been made especially for me. Despite the tears on the inner seams of the trousers, they also fit perfectly. When I stood back from the mirror to take in my reflection, I was amazed at how good the suit made me look.

I could hear the girls begging me to show them the suit once it was on, so I nervously walked out of the changing room. As soon as the girls saw me, they exclaimed how much they liked the suit. Based on the look on Carlos' face, he also liked it, so I decided then and there that I should buy it. Maybe Molly's mother could fix the seams for me.

I went back into the changing room and emerged moments later holding the suit. I wasn't sure if I should get the blouse, but the sales woman assured me that it was also on sale, so I figured 'why not?'

When I went to the cashier, I was pleasantly surprised to find out that the store was adding an extra 20% off of the lowest ticketed price. In the end, I only paid $100 for the suit and the blouse, making it less expensive than the suits I bought a Neiman Markus.

I was very happy with my most recent purchase and thanked the girls for dragging me in there. They were happy to help and had already contacted their mother about the seam before they showed the suit to me. "We texted Mama a picture of the seam damage and she said it would be easy to fix."

I smiled and said, "That's what I figured when I saw it. I will ask my friend Molly to take a look when I see her next."

Isabella looked confused and asked, "What do you mean? Mama said she could fix them in about 5 minutes."

I looked at the girls and replied, "Oh, I can't ask her to do that. Your family has already done so much for me."

Carlos rolled his eyes at me, a gesture that was repeated by his sisters. He looked at me and said, "You didn't ask Steph, she offered. There's a difference."

I looked at each of the Manosos in front of me and resigned myself to accepting another generous favour. I said, "If nobody else has anything to buy, why don't we go home? I have to start a new job tomorrow and I think I fancy an early night."

Everyone agreed, I picked up my bag from Victoria's Secret, and Carlos carried my suit bag that held my Armani suit.

When we arrived at the house, it was only around 2:30 and Ricardo and Maria were not home. We carried our bags into the house and the girls promised to show us their purchases down in the sitting room in one hour. I was relieved to have a bit of time to relax, so when Carlos suggested that we rest for a bit, I jumped at the suggestion. I wanted to unpack my purchases and lay down for a little while. Carlos left and went into this room and closed the door.

I left my door open because I was planning on making a trip to the restroom. Before that though, I wanted to unpack the suits I got from Neiman Markus and hang up my blouses. I was just putting the last blouse on a hanger in the empty closet when I sensed that I was not alone. When I turned and looked behind me, Carlos was standing in the door. He was watching me and was blushing so hard that I laughed out loud.

"Carlos, what's wrong?"

Carlos stuttered for a second and then said, "Steph, I'm really sorry, but I ended up with one of your bags. Somehow it got mixed up in my Abercrombie & Fitch bag."

When I looked at the bag in his hand, I also blushed. He was holding my Victoria's Secret bag with two fingers as if it might contain something contagious.

"I promise, as soon as I saw what it was, I didn't look inside, well not really. It was on its side and I had to push something inside that had fallen out."

I saw the look on Carlos' face and burst out laughing. When I caught my breath I said, "It's OK Carlos. It's not like there was state secrets in there, it's just underwear."

He was looking at his hands when he said, "I know it's just underwear, but that's something private and I shouldn't have interfered. I can think of better ways to see a girl's underwear."

I blushed and said, "It's OK Carlos, let's not talk anymore about this or I fear we both might blush ourselves into a permanent state. I'm sure you can hide it better than my pale skin can."

Carlos placed the bag on the bed and avoided looking me in the eye as he backed out of the room. When he got to the door, he looked up at me and smiled a sheepish grin and said, "I'll see you downstairs whenever you're ready."

I nodded and just as he escaped out of sight, I had a thought. "Hey Carlos?"

He popped his head back around my door, so I asked, "Now that you've seen my underwear, will you tell me what you bought?"

Carlos thought for a moment and then motioned for me to follow him. He walked into his room but I was reluctant to follow. I'd never been in there before so I was a bit hesitant. He looked at me standing in the doorway and said, "I don't know why, but I feel a little embarrassed showing you what I bought. It's not that it's anything out of the ordinary, but I've just had odd experiences with shopping and women."

"Carlos, just show me or I'll start imaging all kinds of weird things."

"OK, here goes." He opened one bag from Tommy Hilfiger and showed me a pair of blue jeans that were a medium blue colour and looked quite nice. He then pulled out the Abercrombie & Fitch bag and showed me a pair of really nice charcoal grey dress trousers. From the same bag, he pulled out a long sleeved white dress shirt that had subtle textured stripes in white.

The next bag had no logo on it so I couldn't tell where it came from, but it contained a nice pair of black dress shoes.

"That's a pretty good haul there Carlos. I especially think that white dress will look nice. I see one last bag Carlos, are you hiding something?" I asked teasingly.

Lastly, he pulled out a Calvin Klein bag, but refused to show me the contents. "I think I'll plead 'Victoria's Secret' on the contents of this bag."

I blushed at his comment and agreed that it was best if he kept the contents to himself. I watched as Carlos started to put his new clothes away in the closet. I was going to go back to my room, but I was curious about something.

"Carlos, you mentioned that you have had odd experiences with shopping and women. What did you mean by that? That is if you want to tell me."

Carlos turned and sat on the edge of his bed and said, "Whenever I went shopping with Lucida, she always tried to get me to buy clothes that didn't really suit me. I was just a student so why did I need a suit and a bunch of neckties or the latest fad outfit?

"It got to the point that if I needed something, I'd go alone, but Lucida always was around when I got back. Many times she complained about the things I bought, saying that they weren't suitable for me or weren't very flattering."

I looked at him and thought to myself that Carlos could wear a plastic bag and probably make it look flattering, but those trousers and that shirt would definitely look good. After finishing my thoughts, I heard Carlos chuckle and say, "I'm not sure plastic bags are really in this season Babe."

I looked at him like a deer caught in headlights and blushed. I asked, "Did I just say that out loud?"

Carlos chucked and replied, "Yeah Babe, you did. You should really learn to filter your thoughts before they get to your mouth because a guy could take something like that the wrong way."

"The wrong way? How could you take that comment the wrong way?"

Carlos stood from the bed and slowly walked over to me and said, "Like this," and as he got closer, he leaned in as if he was going to kiss me.

My head was screaming for me to run, but the rest of me was rooted on the spot. Fate however, stepped in and interrupted us before our lips met.

"Carlos, we're home," his mother yelled from downstairs.

Carlos looked at me with an apologetic look on his face, leaned his head out the door and replied, "I'll be right down Mama. I'm just putting my things away."

Maria called up again and said, "Tell Stephanie to bring me her new suit. I can fix it before I start dinner if she wants."

I looked at Carlos and blushed, not wanting to let on where I was at that point in time, but Carlos saved me and replied "I'll tell her on my way down. Be there in a minute."

As Carlos stepped back into his room, I stepped towards the door. He looked at me and said, "I'm going to finish what I started Steph, but when the time is right."

I didn't know what to say so I just nodded and walked back across the hall to my room.

True to her word, it took Maria about 5 minutes to fix the hem on my trousers. After I hung the repaired suit back up in my closet, I went down to the sitting room to watch the girls show off their purchases to their Papa and big brother.

Their show-and-tell lasted about 30 minutes, and when it was over, I excused myself. I wanted to find Maria, whom I assumed was in the kitchen slaving away. I was right, and when I walked in, she looked up at me and smiled. "Is there anything at all I can do to help Maria? I feel pretty useless just sitting around."

"Trust me dear, you've done more today to help me than you can imagine. When you took the girls to the mall, Ricardo and I had some time alone, which we greatly needed, especially today of all days. We went out for lunch and then we took a nice walk together. Ever since Carlos went to college, we've had little alone time, so we are ever so grateful for that."

I smiled at Maria and said, "If you ever want some alone time, please call me. I would be happy to entertain your girls for a day or even overnight. They are wonderful girls and we had a lot of fun today."

"Ricardo and I might just take you up on your offer Stephanie. That's very generous of you. Now why don't you go rest in the sitting room and I will come in and join you in a few minutes. Once I put this casserole in the oven, there's little to do until supper time."

More to come...