Date: Mon, 23 Dec 2019 12:31:42 -0500 From: Eric Murphey Subject: Transitions First Christmas Chapter 9 I assure everyone that after the new year I will be working once again on Accidental Paradise. I just wanted to write this and get it done before Christmas. The last three chapters will hopefully be up Christmas Eve or day. Make a really nice donation to Nifty today. Transitions First Christmas Chapter 9 When Eric woke the next morning he has his new appendage straddling him and she has his shirt up and her head on his chest. He watches her a moment and thinks her light breathing is sweet. He carefully slides her off of him and heads to the restroom. He does the usual morning things. The three s's as some people like to say. Once is done with the shower he gets dressed in his normal attire. Slacks, an oxford today no sweater and some loafers. He grabs his phone and heads to the kitchen for that magical morning elixir. He glances at his phone to see the time. 545 it reads. He gets the coffee going and decides to treat the kids this morning. He gets out a box of blueberry muffin mix and as he sips his first cup of the day whips together the ingredients for the muffins. When hes halfway done he conks himself on the head with his hand and turns on the oven to preheat it. He gets out the cupcake pans and the papers for them. He measures in the batter once he is done the stove beeps at him to let him know its ready. Cool. He thinks. The kids are using my terminologies and now I'm using theirs. His thought continues. He pops the muffins in the oven and sets the timer. He thinks a dozen should be enough. But, with two boys who really knows. He pours himself a second coffee and sits down. He slowly sips on it as he reads the news. He just shakes his head at the bullshit they call news anymore. He puts his phone down disgusted and settles into his thoughts. He is thinking he likes having Luisa around. But, is convinced she would be better with a couple. Or at least a woman. But he really does want to keep her. He is falling in love with her. Shes such a sweet little thing. He wants to protect her from the world that she has had to live in and is worried she will have to return to something like it. The timer beeps letting him know the muffins are ready. He takes them out and sprinkles sugar over the top of them. He is feeling a bit antsy this morning for some reason and just doesn't know why. But, he feels that way often and its just too much energy. Years ago he jogged to release it. Now he still should but, it makes his legs and knees hurt too much. "What smells so good Dad?" Joey asks as he walks into the room. "Good morning buddy. I made some blueberry muffins for you all this morning." "They smell really good." "Have a seat and I will get you a couple." Eric says. He gets up and puts a couple on a plate puts a dollop of butter over the top of each and sits them on front of Joey. He then gets the boy a glass of milk to wash them down. Joey takes a bite and Eric sees his eyes smile. It doesn't take him very long and he is done with one and taking a slug of milk. He starts in on the second and that one is gone fairly quickly too. He looks at Eric and smiles. "Those are really good. Thanks." "Would you like another one?" "Yeah!" He says fast and loud. Eric gets his plate puts another muffin on it and a bit of butter. He sees his milk is nearly empty and pours him some more as well. As he sits back down Alejandro enters the room his nose in the air and sniffing. "You made muffins?" "Good Morning Alejandro. Yes I made muffins." "Yumm. I like them almost as much as French toast." "I know. I thought it would be a nice treat his morning." "Its always a nice treat." "Sit down my little man and I will get you some and a glass of milk." "Thanks Poppi." Eric brushes his fingers through his hair as he walks by him. He makes the muffins as he did for Joey and sits the plate on the table in front of him then gets the milk. Alejandro tears into them as Joey did. Joey is sitting looking content. "Are you still hungry Joey?" "No I'm good. I was just thinking how nice my life is now. Actually having people around me that actually care." "It does make life better doesn't it?" Eric responds. "Yeah. Dad are we going to keep Louisa? I want too." "Yeah Poppi. We should keep her." "Guys I am thinking the same thing. But, I think it would be selfish of us to do that. I think she would be better off with a couple or at least a woman. Because there are a lot of things girls go through I don't know anything about." "Like what?" "Like you will learn about it when you are older what." Eric says. "You mean their periods?" Joey says. "Yeah like that. Now go get dressed." "Don't want to talk about it do you Poppi?" "No not really." "Dad you love her don't you?" "Yeah I do." "We do too dad. We should keep her," "So Alejandro said the other day he wanted a puppy. I'm still thinking about it. Joey do you think you might want one too?" "Never thought about it. Maybe." "What kind are we going to get Poppi?" "I didn't say we were I said I'm still thinking about it. But. If we do we will go to the animal shelter and find one." "I want a big dog if I get one." Alejandro says. "Not me I just want a regular sized dog.." Joey says. "Poppi what kind are you going to get?" "I don't need a dog. I got two boys to look after. You guys are messy enough." "We aren't messy." Alejandro says giggling. Eric grins. "No you are good boys that clean up after themselves. Now why don't you do that now and go get dressed. Don't forget we are going to Maria's house for dinner." "We are going to Maria's?" Joey says excitedly. "Not your Maria. My Maria." Alejandro says. "Oh yeah I forgot." "They take Eric's hint and put their plates and glasses in the dishwasher. Then head upstairs to get dressed. Eric hears Larry's truck pulling up and heads to the door to let him in. As he opens the door Larry is about to push the door bell. "No sneaking up on you is there?" "No sir. Living on the end of a street when you hear a car it sticks out." "I can imagine." "Come on in. You want a blueberry muffin this morning?" "That actually sounds great. I smell them did you make them?" "Yeah just a while ago." "A regular Betty Crocker you are." "Its a box. I just mix it up." "Smells good anyway." Eric makes the man a coffee and adds some butter to the muffin sits it on a plate and puts it in front of him. He takes a bite. "Damn Eric that's good. You say that's a box mix. My wife makes them and they aren't this good. What kind do you get so I can tell her." "Krusteaz." "Yeah I am sure telling the wife." He says and takes another bite. "You want another one?" "Nah I had breakfast already the wife has me on a diet. She says if people ask me to play Santa because I look like him its time I lose weight." Eric just laughs as he sits down and takes a sip of coffee. "The guys are nearly done with the garage. Probably be done today." "That's good. You got any other jobs lined up?" "Yeah we got a couple remodel jobs I bid on this week. I hate the winter months my crew has to suffer sometimes from lack of work." "Yeah its a rough business your in." "Yeah I should have sold Big Macs huh?" "Been pretty good to me." Eric looks over and sees Luisa standing in the door way staring at Larry. "Come here punkin." Eric says. She just stares at Larry as she walks into the kitchen and Eric pulls her up onto his lap. "Good morning Princessa." Eric says kissing the top of her head. "Good morning Eric." She almost whispers. "You want a blueberry muffin and some milk this morning." "OK." She says just slightly louder. Eric slips her onto another chair and goes and makes a muffin for her and some milk. The entire time she is staring at Larry. Eric sits the muffin and milk in front of her. She glances at him. "Thank you." "Your very welcome." She slowly peels off the paper and is still looking at Larry. She takes a bite and lets out a mmm sound in appreciation. "Eric makes good muffins doesn't he?" Larry says. "Yes sir." she says taking another bite. Then a small drink of milk. "Are you Santa?" Larry lets out a hearty laugh. "No sweet heart. But, I do talk to him and sometimes I help him when he is too busy." "Oh." "Is there anything you want that's special for Christmas so when I talk to him I can let him know?" "Santa doesn't visit me. Cuz I'm bad." She says glumly. "I talked to him yesterday and he said that his computers were wrong about you and hes making it up this year with lots of presents." Larry says. "Really?" She says super excited. "Really. I cant lie seeing as how I'm friends with Santa." "I just want one present if that's OK?" "I would love to tell him what you want." "I saw it. One of the girls at my school has one and it looked so fun to me. Its a Barbie and she is a doctor and it has a little baby with it. Do you think that costs too much for Santa?" "No sweet heart I am sure Santa will have that for you and lots of other things too." Larry says obviously taken in by the Princessa. "No I don't want anything else. So Santa can have toys for other little girls too." Larry smiles at her and says. "I know Santa and he isn't going to want to just give you one present. He wants to make up for his mistake." "That's OK I can give them to other girls for him. Just like Alejandro and Joey did." "I suppose you could. But, I think that might make Santa a little sad if you gave them all away. But I know he wouldn't be sad if you gave some you didn't like as much away." "OK I will it that way then." She says smiling returning to her forgotten muffin. After she finishes it up Eric asks her if she wants another. "No I'm full. Thank you though." With this she gets up and puts her plate and glass in the dishwasher. "Eric will you help me pick out a pretty dress for today?" "I would be honored to help the Princessa any way I can." He says. "Your silly." She giggles "I know." He says kissing her cheek. "You run upstairs to your clothes room and I will be up in a minute." "OK." She says smiling and tears off up the stairs. "She is so adorable. Is she your new daughter?" "No. The boys want to keep her here and to be honest I really want to as well. But, raising boys is one thing. Girls are well different." "Tell me about it. I got one daughter and she needed more attention then all the boys. But, I do love her. Shes the apple of my eye." "I can see how that happens. I just cant tell this one no. Which is bad because she needs limits set." "That's true. I cant tell my daughter no for shit." :How old is your daughter?" "Shes the baby and shes 19. Shes away at college now. So whats going to happen to that little sweetie?" "My friend Joy is trying to find her a foster home for her." "Aye. Foster homes I have heard some not nice stories about them." "Yeah that's true. But, Joy is very vigilant in her job and doesn't want foster parents that just want to warehouse kids for a check . She wants people that actually want to make a difference in a child's life that hasn't had such a great start." "Hmm. Well I better get to work." Larry says standing up. Eric gets up and he heads upstairs to help Luisa get dressed. She is looking at the dresses hanging in the closet. "Which one is the best for today?" She asks. "Well. For now I got plans and a dress is just not going to work." "Your going to fuck me know aren't you?" She says. "No silly. We are going outside to play." "Oh." Eric pulls out some panties from the drawer as she strips to nothing. He hands them to her. She slides them on. He finds a sweatshirt and hands it to her. He helps her with this because she is struggling. He gets her a pair of socks she slips on her cute little tootsies. He then pulls out the pair of overalls he got for her. Because well kids look damn cute in overalls. He helps her get them fastened and he buttons the sides for her as well. He helps her pit on her new boots after that. She is looking at herself in the full length mirror and smiles. "Now go tell the boys to get dressed to play outside Princessa. I should have told them that earlier. But. I decided just a few minutes ago that's what we are doing." She tears off like children do and he hears her shouting at the boys to hurry. Bossy little thing. But adorable as shit for sure. Eric is heading to his room to change into some jeans and a sweatshirt. He has his pants off when Luisa walks in. It doesn't phase him and he continues. He puts on some jeans and then pulls out his Red Wings hoodie and puts on a t shirt then the hoodie. Fucking Red Wings he thinks. Cant even beat Columbus this year. They really messed up hiring Babcock he destroyed a great team. "Punkin grab my boots out of the closet for me please." "Sure." She says smiling and gets them as Eric changes from dress socks to knee high white socks. She lifts up his foot and tries to put it on him like he did for her. But, just cant get it to work right. Eric grabs the top of the boot and pulls it on. She does however tie it as he slips on his other boot. Which she ties. Both in double knots. That's going to be fun he thinks when they are covered in ice. But, he just smiles and thanks her for her help. Eric walks back to Luisa's clothes room and he gets her parka he got for her and cuts off the tags. He pulls out the knit hat and gloves and does the same with those. He helps her put them on and they go to get the boys. They are all ready and they too have on their Red Wings hoodies. Eric thinks one day hes going to actually introduce the boys to hockey. Now they just think the hoodies are cool. Which they are. The boys put on their parkas, hats and gloves as well. They all follow Eric and he grabs his stuff by the garage door and they walk out to the garage and get the sleds. Much to the delight of the boys. "We are going to have so much fun." Alejandro says. "Yeah we are." "What are we doing?" Luisa asks. "Going sledding little girl. Its great fun you will see." "I haven't ever done it before. I saw it on TV though." "Then you are in for a treat." Eric replies. Before they leave to go Eric lets the crew know the house is open if they need anything to go on in. But, to lock in if they leave. They are good with that and Off they go to the golf course to start their fun. "You are going to have fun Louisa." Joey says to her as they are walking. "Yeah Devils backbone is so cool." Alejandro says. "Devils backbone sounds scary." She answers. "It is at first. But its real exciting you'll see." They all head first to a smaller hill to let Luisa try sledding first. It makes sense seeing as how the fun hill is at the back of the course. They only brought three sleds because well that's all they have. Eric sits down and Louisa gets between his legs. That way he can steer with his feet. They start down the hill and all he hears is her. `WHEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" Eric is just laughing and smiling at her response to the first trip. Once they reach the bottom the boys fly by them and stop a bit ahead. "I take it you like it." Eric says. "Yeah lets do it again." "OK by me. Do you want to try it by yourself this time?" "Not yet. Maybe next time." So they all haul the sleds up the hill and take off again. Louisa did not lose her excitement and was screaming all the way down the hill again. "Gosh Eric that's sure fun." "Ready to try yourself yet?" "No I like riding with you. Besides if I go by myself you wont get a turn." "Princessa I do love to sled. But, I have done it for a long time. I can just watch if you want to try yourself." Eric says as they are working their way back up the hill. Eric shows her that if you are pulling a sled up a big hill sometimes its easier to walk up at an angle instead of straight up. "Dad can we go to a bigger hill now?" Joey asks. "After the Princessa goes down on her own." "OK Dad." Eric lays the girl on the sled belly down and he pushes her off. She flies down the hill and even from the top Eric can here her squeals of delight. Once she gets to the bottom she gets off the sled and is hopping around from excitement. Eric can see her huge smile from the top of the hill. The boys zip up next to her on their sleds. They all start up the hill and Eric sees Luisa is having a little trouble getting up the hill pulling the sled. She starts to go at an angle and he sees Alejandro start pulling her sled up for her. Eric thinks. Such a good boy smiling as he watches. After they are half way up Joey takes the extra sled from Alejandro and pulls it the rest of the way. Once they get to the top she is still all smiles. "That was sooooo fun. I never had so much fun before." She says dancing around like little girls do. Well children in general do. "You want to try a bigger hill now?" Eric asks. "Yeah. Eric takes the sled and they start walking to a bigger hill. The kids are all chattering away and just talking about sledding. When they get to the next hill its about twice as high. "I bet I go real fast on this one." Louisa says smiling. "Yeah you do. But Devils back bone is way faster." Alejandro says. The boys wait patiently for Eric to get Louisa set up on the sled and push her off. Again with the whee all the way down. Once she is halfway the boys take off and are shouting too. Eric just laughs and smiles watching the kids have fun. All kids should be bale to have fun like this. People suck that abuse kids and hurt them. This is what its all about. Hell its should be like this for adults too. Just have fun and don't hurt anyone. Louisa struggles to pull the sled up the hill. Both boys offer to help. But, she refuses the help and they still walk next to her anyway just in case she changes her mind. Once they reach the top Eric asks her. "Why didn't you let the boys help you pull it up?" "Cuz its not fair. I get to ride down and they have to work to bring it back up. So I can do it." "But. Your so little and they don't mind helping." "Maybe later but I can get it for now. Will you ride down with me this time Eric." "Sure punkin." They get on and ride down. Having great fun. After this hill they decide its time for the Devils backbone. Legend has it that a boy once was sledding down and broke his back. Now if this is true or not fuck only knows. Its been told for generations. Eric remembers hearing it when he was a boy and he heard another boy telling Joey and Alejandro about it last time. Once they get there Luisa looks down at the narrow path and watches other boys and girls zip down the steep narrow path. Its great fun because its very steep then a slight break in the hill of about 10 feet of flat then even steeper hill. "I don't know if I want to do this one." She says a bit frightened. "You don't have too if you don't want to. But, its only fair to let the boys ride down a few times first." Eric says. "Yeah." She says not taking her eyes off of the hill. "Go ahead boys and start." He lets them know its OK to go. "You sure Poppi?" "Yes go ahead I will wait here with the Princessa." "OK." Is all he said and he tosses the sled down and jumps on top and zooms down the hill followed by Joey. Luisa is watching. "They go real fast huh?" "Yeah its fun. You want to ride with me a time or two and see if you like it?" "I don't know maybe." "Its OK if you don't want to. I understand. Its a pretty big hill for such a little Princessa." She watches the boys pull their sleds back up and the other ones going down. Its nonstop action. Someone is always going down the hill. Once the boys get up Joey asks her. "Are you going to try it. Its lots of fun. If you want you can ride with me." Joey says. "I will take you down too if you want." Alejandro adds. "No I think I will try with Eric first." She says. "OK but, if you change your mind I don't mind." Alejandro adds. They both head back down the hill. "You sure you want to try?" "No I'm not sure really. But, everyone else looks like they re having fun so I want to try it at least once. If I like it that's cool. If not at least I will know." "That's a very grown up attitude to have." Eric says complimenting her thoughts on it. The boys are about halfway up and she says. "Lets try it now before I get too scared to try." Eric sits the sled in position and he climbs on. She sits between his legs and he pushes off with his hands. They start sailing down the hill. Eric sees Louisa has her gloved hands over her eyes. About halfway down she takes them off and looks straight ahead. They are really moving now. Once they reach the bottom she looks around to Eric. "That wasn't so bad." "You want to try again without your eyes covered?" "Yeah. But, I don't think I want to go down by myself." "That's OK too. You can ride with me and you know the boys offered too." "Yeah lets try it again." They head back up the hill and Louisa tries to help Eric with the sled but its just too heavy and steep for such a little thing to do. Eric doesn't mind and pulls it up. Once they reach the top she is ready to go again. They start off and she has a death grip on Eric's arms that are wrapped around her. As they are zipping down he can feel her grip lessen. At the bottom she is starting to giggle. "I kinda liked it that time." She says. "I'm not forcing you to try it. If you want to stop that's OK." "No I want to try it again. Is that OK?" "Of course sweetie. Lets get back up the hill." Her and Eric ride down three more times together and each time she is more excited then the last. The last time down she says to Eric. "I think I want to ride down with Alejandro and then Joey." "That's fine. I don't mind taking you down." "Yeah but your kinda old and I don't want to make you tired." Eric just laughs at her. "I'm not that old silly." "Yeah but, I kinda want to ride with them. Is that OK?" "They offered I'm sure its OK." They get to the top and see Alejandro pulling up his sled. Eric waves him over. "Buddy Louisa wants to ride down with you and Joey for a while because she says I'm too old and she doesn't want me to get tired." Eric figures e would laugh instead he says. "Yeah Poppi you are pretty old." "PSHAW!" Eric huffs. Which does make Alejandro laugh. "I was just teasing Poppi." Alejandro says still giggling. The two of them get on the sled. But Alejandro has her lay down and he lays on top of her. He told her its because he never steered with his feet before. Makes sense to Eric. Better to be safe then sorry. So they take off and Eric watches them fly down the hill. Once they reach the bottom Eric sees her smiling. They both put a hand on the sled and pull it up together. As they are going down Joey is coming back up. Eric calls him over. "Louisa wants to ride down with you boys for a while." "Cool." was his only response. They watch them pull up the sled together. "Dad I really like Louisa." "I do too son." "I wish you would let her stay." "I wish I could. But, I know she would be better with a woman in the house." "That's dumb. Your a good dad I know you would be a good dad for her too." "Maybe. But, I just feel like she needs a good strong woman to show her how to grow up and be a good strong woman herself. Because we do want whats best for her right?" "Of course we do." "I cant teach her how to be a strong woman and teach her about all the crap that comes with being a woman now can I?" "You could try." "Yes I suppose I could. But, its always important to know your limitations son. I don't think I can do it as well as I want it to be done." "So your saying that if you don't think you can do something why try?" "No that's not at all what I am saying. What I am saying is that when a person like Luisa is involved its better to let someone that knows what they are doing do it. Instead of me guessing and getting it all wrong. I don't want to mess her up worse then she already is. Do you understand now?" "I think so." "Let me put it another way. If I wanted to try to build a model ship. I've never done it before. I should try because if I fail and do a crappy job no one is hurt except maybe my pride. If I try to raise Luisa and do a crappy job, She is affected and not in a good way. Is that better?" "Yeah I understand now." "I'm glad you do. Because I really love her and I do want the best for her." "I know you love her Dad. I bet if we had thirty boys in the house you would love them all." "Yeah I would of course. But, we would need a bigger house." Eric says smiling. "Nah we could make it work." "What you think I need more sons. I honestly think two is just right." "Maybe we will see." Eric is thinking. Whats to see two is more then enough for him to worry about. Once Alejandro and Luisa get to the top Joey says. "Finally, I get to ride with the Princess." Which makes Louisa giggle. Eric just smiles thinking> I do have a couple of great boys. Louisa gets on as she did with Alejandro and they zoom down the hill Alejandro behind them. The boys and Louisa go back and forth several times. Eric has lost count how many. They all get to the top of the hill together and he asks. "You want to try it by yourself now?" "No Poppi we like her riding with us." "Yeah Dad its more fun that way." "But. Shouldn't we give her a choice?" "I guess." Joey says. "No I like riding with the boys. Its funner that way and I'm not scared at all now." She answers the question. Eric is thinking they have been out for a couple hours another couple runs then back to the house. Its almost lunch time and he knows if he lets the boys decide they will be out here until toes fall off. Its Alejandro's turn to go down the hill with Louisa and they start off. They are about halfway down when a teenage boy isn't paying attention plows into them sending Alejandro and Luisa flying off the sled. Eric can feel his heart in his throat. Once they land they slide down the hill a few feet. He watches a second no longer and they aren't getting up. Eric is running down the hill full kilter. He slips and falls a few times but quickly regains his footing. Neither of them have gotten up yet. He is mortified at the thought either is hurt. They are laying together where they stopped. Once Eric is closer he hears them. He isn't sure what it is and he gets closer and they are giggling. Once he gets to them they look up. "What are you doing Poppi?" "I saw you get wrecked and you didn't get up. I thought you were hurt." "Nah we are OK." Louisa answers. Eric lets out a huge sigh of relief. He still feels his heart in his throat though. "I think we are done for the day." "Poppi come on one more ride please." Against his better judgment. OK his fear he says one more ride. They get to the top and Joey is there. "Man I seen you guys crash. That looked awesome." "It was kind of scary. But way cool too." Alejandro answers. "I didn't think it was cool at all." Is all Eric says. What he wants to do is throttle the idiot kid that hit his babies like that. As he is thinking that the teenage boy walks up to them. "I'm really sorry. I didn't mean to hit you guys are you OK?" He says with true remorse in his eyes. "Yeah were cool." Alejandro says. "Next time watch what your doing. You could have hurt me. I'm just a little girl you know." Louisa scolds him. The teen gets on his knees in front of her. "I'm really sorry. I promise I will pay more attention from now on. Will you forgive me. I got a little sister about your age and I would feel awful if something happened to her. So will you please?" She just wraps her arms around his shoulders and hugs him. She whispers something in his ear that makes him laugh hysterically. "I like you. Your funny." He says. He walks away and Eric sees he is with his family and sees the little girls he was talking about. He waves to them and they wave back. "What did you say to him?" Joey asks. "I don't him not to be a dick." This makes them all laugh. "Louisa. You really shouldn't say things like that. Maybe say don't be a jerk next time." "OK." She says smiling. He knows she wont. She knows she wont. The boys know she wont. But Eric accepts the white lie as truth. "OK Joey Eric says this is the last ride so lets get going." She orders him. But, in a nice way. "For real Dad?" "Yeah buddy its almost lunch and we have been out for a couple hours. Last ride." Joey knows he wont win if he tries to argue and may lose the last ride if he does so he agrees its the last ride. Eric watches then take off down the hill half terrified this time. Once they all reach the bottom he breaths s sigh of relief. They all walk back to the house. The boys and Luisa riding down the hills on the way. Because why walk down a hill when you got a sled. How silly a thought is that. Once they get back they see a car Eric doesn't know in the driveway. Larry sees them and he walks over to catch them. "My wife is in your kitchen. I have no idea what shes doing. But, I told her you were here alone with three kids and your housekeeper is on vacation. She told me shes coming over and.... Well I don't try to argue with my wife. I learned a long time ago even if I think I win. I don't." "OK Good to know." Eric has met Larry's wife a few times. Shes a great lady. She is so fun and always has a smile on her face She a little rotund woman but, full of life for sure. Like Larry shes a little older then Eric probably 50 or so. But, he would never ask. They go on the house and smell something wonderful. "Well its about time you got back. You little ones go get your coats and stuff off and go sit by the fire. I started one in the living room for you. You Eric should know better then to keep them out this long. Its cold out what were you thinking?" The kids do as they are told and he hears Alejandro giggling. "Poppis in trouble." He says in a sing song voice. "How are you Mary?" Eric finally says after his chastisement is over. "Just great. Thanks for asking. How are you doing with three little ones in the house?" "We are doing just fine. I can manage just fine." "I am sure you can." She says getting the milk out of the fridge and pouring some in a pan. Eric gets the hot cocoa mix because he knows this is what she is doing. He gets out mugs for the kids and pours himself a cup of coffee that is on. "Larry very smitten with that little girl you know." "Is he now?" "Yeah you should have heard him carrying on about her this morning on the phone. Asking if he was Santa. He is all heart you know." "Trust me I know." "He is so lost since all of our kids left the house. He doesn't feel like he has any purpose anymore." "I know that feeling. When I retired I thought I would do all kinds of stuff. Turns out I didn't do much but get addicted to the Young and the Restless." "I love that show." She says smiling. "Then I got Alejandro and now Joey. I tell you I really want to keep that little girl. But, she has been through so much and frankly I don't know shit about girls. I was an only child and wasn't really around girls except Joy. So I just don't think I could give her a proper upbringing." "You may be right. But, I think you would raise her just fine. You got a good heart Eric Murphey." "I think she needs a strong woman in her life to guide her. Not three dumb ass boys in this house." She is stirring the milk which is hot now. She pours some in the three mugs. Eric stirs in the mix and puts the mugs on a tray. They both walk into the living room and Eric hands a mug to each child and he and Mary sit down. The boys quickly take a seat next to Eric and Luisa looks kind of confused as what to do. Finally she walks over and sits on Mary's lap like that's the place shes supposed to be. Eric and Mary chat a while. As they are Mary is playing with Luisa's hair and has it braided in a minute. She un braids it and does it a different way. She decides she likes it like that and pulls out a rubber band and puts it on her hair. They continue to chat for a while and the kids just listen. A timer goes off in the kitchen. "I made you a roast with some potatoes and carrots. I saw you had a nice big roast. I figure you can have it for lunch and then the left overs for dinner." She says getting up to go check on it. "I could have done that." Eric says. "I'm sure you could have." She says as she leaves the room. Eric gets up and follows her grabbing the kids now empty mugs. She is getting the roast out of the oven and it smells heavenly. Eric starts sitting plates on the table and grabs an extra for Mary. "Oh honey I'm not eating with you. I got a to of things to do today. But, you all enjoy it." "Please have lunch with us. I would be honored if you did. Besides you cooked it." "I appreciate the offer. Ill take a rain check lots to do before Christmas you know." Eric calls in the kids for a savory lunch. Mary kisses all the kids on the cheek and gives them a big hug. Off she goes in a flurry. "I like her." Alejandro says. "I like her too buddy. I've known Larry and Mary for a long time." "Shes nice." Luisa says. "Yeah she is. She made us this big meal too." Joey says licking his lips. Eric serves the kids and then himself. The meal is absolutely amazing. Eric is a good cook. But, he doesn't hold a candle to this. "Poppi we cant have this for dinner. We got to go to Maria's tonight." "That's very true buddy. But, we can have it for lunch tomorrow." "Yeah." He says smiling. "We need to get changed and go shopping. We need to get Maria and her mom a present." "Yeah we do." Alejandro says. Once they finish lunch Eric puts the left overs in containers and puts them in the fridge. The kids clear the table and put everything in the dishwasher. Luisa making sure she does her part too. Eric just smiles at them working together. Maybe he should keep her. He thinks. Shes just so dam sweet. They all go change and Eric helps Luisa get dressed. She declares she has to put on new panties to go with her new dress. She goes through them to find a pair that matches the dress. Eric just shakes his head and thinks. Girls. He helps her put on her dress some hose and a pair of her strappy shoes. She looks adorable as he knew she would. Especially with her hair braided. Eric goes to check on the boys. He sees they have both put on some slacks instead of jeans a polo and a sweater along with their dress shoes. He heads to his room Luisa trailing behind. He strips to his boxer briefs and grabs a nice pair of slacks and an oxford. He puts on the shirt and then the pants. Its just easier that way. "Why font you pick out a sport coat for me Princessa." "Sure." She starts fingering through his plethora of jackets. Sh decides on a hounds tooth and says that's the one that matches best. He says fine and slips it on. He puts on some dress shoes and makes sure he has his billfold and money clip. They walk downstairs and the boys are waiting on the couch by the piano. "Ready?" "No." Alejandro says. "Why not?" "We got to get Carlos presents." Eric slaps his fore head. "Silly me. Well you know where they are go grab them." They race of and grab the gifts, and are back in a jiffy. They all walk to the garage and Eric says truck and they all pile in the Escalade. He makes sure they are all buckled in and they take off. They get to the mall and find a cool like mix between back pack and purse for Maria. She will love it he thinks. He also finds her a nice billfold for it as well that matches perfectly. They look in vain for an hour for a gift for Maria's mom. Eric thinks that Maria had told him that her mom just got a little Honda Civic she is super proud of. He thinks I got it. "Come on guys I know what we can get her." So first stop they went to a national chain that changes oil and he got her 4 complete oil changes. Also they check all the fluids and fill them up too. Then he went to the car wash and got her a gift card with 20 washes on it. He even got her one of those tacky pine scented trees as a joke. He is thinking this is enough for a year. They all head over to Maria's house for dinner. Alejandro is so excited to see Carlos he can hardly sit still. Eric has asked him several times if he wants to have him over but he always says no for some reason. Eric isn't going to argue. Maybe hes so excited because he knows how happy Carlos will be with the games and the game systems. Once they finally arrive they knock on the door and are greeted very warmly. They all get hugs even Joey that they don't even know. Well, Maria has met him once. But, he is Eric's new son so he is family if he likes it or not. Eric thought it might be weird going to his old house but, its so different it doesn't even feel like the same place. After Maria's mom is done hugging him he puts his nose in the air. "I smell tamales. I smell Pozole and oh my is that Pavo I smell too. You really shouldn't have." "For you Mr Eric the world." "Stop it your going to make me get a big head." She leads Eric into the kitchen and he sees everything else. "Oh my goodness. Ensalda de Noche Buena." (Christmas Salad Its amazing if you've never had it) She hands him a steaming cup of Ponche Navideno. Its a hot drink made from Mexican hawthorn or tejocotes. He takes a sip. "Oh now your just spoiling me." "You deserve it. You help so many people and expect nothing for it." "Why should I expect anything for doing something that's right?" "That's why everyone loves you Mr Eric." "Now sit down lets visit for a while." That they do they talk for over an hour about anything and everything. They talk about the kids and about little Luisa a guest at Eric's house for now. He tells her some of what the poor thing has been through but, not all. She tells how she got a promotion at work and he is simply thrilled for her. She tells him how her sister is starting a cleaning company and that she is actually investing in it. So her life is going absolutely fantastic. Eric asks her if she knows Joeys Maria's mom. She says she does. Eric talks to her about how messed up the situation is and she calls her sister and tells her about her. So its decided that Joeys Maria's mom will be working for Maria's moms sister. Instead of the crap jobs she has. So she will be making a hell of a lot more. Because cleaning companies don't exactly at times go by the letter of the law. Where as Eric has no choice he could lose his franchise. Not worth the risk for him. After a while longer chatting Lupe who is Maria's mom tells him they better feed everyone before they eat the walls. So they go and round up everyone. The boys were all playing together and Maria was playing with Luisa. She had pulled out some of her old dolls to play with her. Maria is such a sweet girl. They all gather around the table. Lupe asks Eric to say grace over the food as he is the guest of honor. He tries to back out of it but she insists. "Dear heavenly father. I want to thank you for all the blessings you have entrusted to me. I am trying very hard to be a good steward of what you trusted me with and not a consumer with it. I thank you also for all the wonderful people that are in my life. I want to thank you of course for Maria and her wonderful family. I also give my most heart felt thanks for my boys you have entrusted me with Alejandro, and Joey. I also thank you for bringing Luisa into our lives. She is a ray of sunshine on a cold winters day. Of course thank you for all this wonderful food before us. I ask that you bless the hands that prepared it for us. That you open the windows of heaven and pour the blessings out on this wonderful little family. Thank you for all you do for us. Amen." Followed by a chorus of Amen's by everyone present. They all dig in like none of them have eaten in weeks. Lupe keeps getting up and getting more food on everyone's plate. "Mr Eric I know you love my chicken tamales most." She says as she puts two more on his plate. Hes already had 3 and feels like hes about to explode. But, its so good he doesn't care. The boys and even Luisa are just filling themselves to the limit. Once they are all full as ticks they all just lean back and sigh. "Lupe you have outdone yourself. This was one of the best meals I have ever eaten." "Yes ma'am thank you so much it was very good." Joey says. "I don't think I ever ate so good." Luisa says. "Miss Lupe thank you for making tamales. They are my favorite and Poppi. Well, he don't make tamales. You know cuz hes white." Which makes the entire table bust out in laughter. "I can make them. Oh wait no I cant. I can buy them though." Making everyone laugh again. "Poppi can we give Carlos his present yet?" "Yes you can give him his presents." "Yes!" Alejandro and Joey race to the front door where they left them and everyone else follows out and sits in the living room. Carlos opens the one game system. "Mami look this is just what I wanted. This is so cool." Then Alejandro hands him another package. Which has the games in it. He opens it and its the games for the other system. "Oh these are for X box. "Its OK Carlos." Alejandro says sitting the next box in front of him. He opens it and its the newest X box. "Way cool. Now I can play those games." Alejandro sits the next package and its the play station games. "Mr Eric its too much. We cant accept so much." Lupe says. "I didn't do it the boys did it. So I cant take anything back. They insisted that Carlos have these. You don't want to break two wait three little boys hearts do you?" Eric says throwing a bit of guilt her way. "I know what your doing." She says. "Did it work?" "Did the boys really get those for him?" "It was there idea yes." "OK I suppose." She says which causes an uproar from the boys. Next is for Maria. She opens the purse slash book bag. "Oh my. I was just looking at this the other day at the mall. I wanted it so I decided to start saving for it. Thank you Mr Eric." She then opens it and is looking through and sees the wallet in it. She opens it and inside is a hundred dollar bill. "I cant take this." She says trying to hand it to Eric. "You better." Alejandro says. "Why is that mister man?" "Because Poppi says its bad luck to give a wallet without money in it. You don't want bad luck do you?" "I think its a silly superstition. But, better safe then sorry." She says tucking it back in. The boys hand Lupe her envelopes. She opens one and smiles then the other and smiles again. "I love when I get presents that are useful and thoughtful at the same time." "What is is Mom?" Maria asks. Lupe hands the envelopes to her and she smiles. "You knew just what to get her. This is perfect. She had me and Carlos out there cleaning it just yesterday. You know what its flippen cold outside." She says laughing. "Glad I could help." Lupe gets up and she gets a present for each one of the kids. She hands one to Alejandro one to Joey and one to Luisa. "These presents aren't as grand as what you got us. But..." "But, nothing. You didn't have to get them anything and I know that they will love whatever you got them." "Yeah we will." Alejandro says the others agreeing with him. Joey and Alejandro both got a matchbox car carrying case filled with new cars. Both were VERY excited about this and it showed. They were as excited as Carlos with the games systems. Luisa opens her gift and its a new baby doll. She holds hit to her chest giving it a hug. "See they are so happy because they know you thought about their gifts." "Mr Eric this one is for you." She says handing him a kind of flat package. He carefully opens it and starts crying. His kids all gather around to see what made him cry. Its a picture of Lupe, Maria and Carlos standing in front of the house. I Spanish it says. El dia que el Sr. Eric hizo nuestros suenos. Estamos enternamente agradecidos. "What does it say Dad?" After a minute or two Eric finally gets his voice. "It says the day Mr Eric made our dreams come true. We will be eternally grateful." He looks at Lupe who also has tears streaming down her face. "This is the best gift I have ever received. Thank you so much for it." "No thank you. We are so much happier here. Carlos is even doing better in school now. Of course Maria has always done well. But, now she is talking about going to college. All because of you." "No its because they have a great mom is why. They see how hard you work and how hard life is. They want it to be better for them and see how to do it. You could have as well. But, didn't have the opportunities they have." "Well, I have a surprise for you too about me. I'm going back to school in January. I want to get a degree in business. So that way I can do even better soon." "That's fantastic. Dd you know that the scholarship plan I have is good for family members of employees too?" "No it isn't." She says. "Yes it is just ask Maria." "It sure is mom. If you would have told me you were going back to school I would have told you." "The way it works for family members is that you pay up front the first semester. Once you show your grades and they are a B average then I reimburse that semester and pay the next. Then it keeps going on like that. But if you fail to maintain a B average I only pay half." "I am sure going to have a B average at least. But, not for that but because I want to do the best I possibly can." "Of that I have no doubt." "Now its time for Bunuelos." Lupe says. "I cant eat another bite." Eric says. "Oh you have to. Mom made them special for you. She knows you love them." Maria says. "I suppose I can find a little room." Eric says smiling. She goes and gets them all one two for Eric and they all eat and enjoy them. Lupe grabs her plate and walks to the porch Eric grabs his too and the kids all follow. Carlos and Maria bring their plate too. Joey, Alejandro, and Luisa are clueless. "Guys go get your plates." Eric says. They do as they are told and bring them to the front porch. "Mr Eric you first." "No its your house." "Please Mr Eric it would be an honor if you went first." With that he smashes the clay plate on the ground. All three of his kids look in horror as he does this. The Lupe follows, then Maria then Carlos. "Smash your plates guys and make a wish. Its tradition." They do so but, hesitantly. As their plates crash on the porch everyone but Eric's kids let out a cheer. Lupe was prepared and starts sweeping up the broken plates with the broom and dustpan she had set out earlier. They go back inside and visit for another half an hour and Eric says that they need to get home soon as he sees Alejandro yawning. They say their goodbyes and they all thank Lupe for the wonderful dinner. All say good bye with hugs. Maria always the sweetest girl has packaged up her old dolls for Luisa so she can have more to play with. Once they all get home they are all pretty tired from all the heavy food and just get sleeping clothes on and head to bed. Luisa doesn't even pretend to act like she is going to sleep on the couch she just crawls into Eric's bed. With a kiss and a love you goodnight they are asleep in no time.