Destruction and Rebirth

"Lead the way," I replied like I was ever going to pass up the chance to feel the inside of that velvet pocket of hers. I wasn't that damn stupid?! Her eyes always had this warmness and sultriness to them whenever we had sex. Telling me only I was on her mind and always would be as she eased off my lap and slid onto the bed. I couldn't help myself when that round, firm backside stared at me and those chocolatey lips showed themselves to my eyes.

"Nat?!" Catalina gasped as I buried my face between those firm cheeks. "Mmm... don't you dare stop," she moaned like I would ever. I made that little peach cream like a husband should as she returned the affection. She wasn't one to take and not give like I noticed the Bitch would do after everything went to shit. No, not Catalina; she would give as good as she got, and let me tell you, she could suck a golf ball through a garden hose. How I had that woman howling into the bed as I teased the hell out of her pussy.

I watched how those predatory eyes of hers were on me, well, my cock actually, as she zeroed in on her prey. Biting my lip to keep my voice down so as not to wake Alondra with my moans of bliss when Catalina inhaled my cock. Her head rocking along its length as I lay with my back on the bed. Feeling her hand working the base of my root while her lips and tongue teased and pleased the rest of my length.

"So baby, you ready to climb the stairway to Heaven?" Catalina asked, staring down at me while she held my rod against that hot, wet sex of hers.

"Oh, hell yes!" I uttered eagerly, ready to be back within that welcoming heat. I watched this knowing smile forming on my wife's lips as she eased up slightly; my fingers curled around our bed covering as my mushroom top separated her wet labia before she sank down its length.

"Then you just enjoy the ride as this angel takes you to your afterlife," Catalina cooed down at me as she began to rock her hips.

While I loved watching that woman riding me, yet I couldn't let her do all the work. That would be poor of me as a man. So rolling her onto her back, my eyes watching how that rich ebony hair of hers feathered out around her as she stared up at me with those love-filled eyes. Her mouth opened as my hard cock eased back into her hot little peach. Watching her breasts jiggle as I thrust into her. Feeling her folds tightening around my rod as it brought pleasure to my woman. How I loved watching that woman cum, especially when she cursed in Spanish when Alondra was staying at her grandparent's house. I learned so many new words that way! Yet not that night, no, that night it was simply the soft whispers of two people in love with one another whispering sweet nothings to one another.

As always, life moves on; Carson did call the next day, which I didn't mind, apologizing for not doing so that night, seeing how he forgot it would have been eleven at night on the east coast when he got off duty. He didn't want to call so late and wake up Alondra. Which I can understand, Alondra is hard to get back to sleep if she is awoken too soon from her slumber. By the time we got off the phone, two hours had passed, and I had yet to do a damn thing at work. Then again, as the boss, I could get away with it. After two weeks of Alondra asking when her sister was coming kind of got on my nerves. Well, she is four years old, so it kind of went with the territory. So, when the time came for Amber and David to fly in, I kissed my wife and slipped out of our condo early in the morning. Catalina wanted to go with, yet getting Alondra up at five o'clock on a Saturday morning was like asking someone to part the Red Sea -- impossible.

All through the drive to the Charlotte-Douglas airport, I was a nervous wreck. As I stood there waiting for my daughter's flight to come in. My eyes never left the arrival board as I paced. I noticed the TSA agents eyeing me. Yet, they never approached. Then the moment happened, the moment my eyes locked onto Amber's as she and David made their way through the crowd. I saw the man nod before Amber bolted into a run as she raced towards me.

"Dad!" Amber shouted in joy as she rushed towards me with open arms. I saw the tears glistening in the airport lights as they ran down her cheeks. "Dad?!" Her cry was muffled due to her face being buried in my chest as she hugged me hard. I admit I hugged her hard right back. After all, this was the first time I had seen my grown daughter in seven long years. I was not letting her go! We got some looks from people I didn't fucking care! We stayed like that for five long minutes. I noticed David was standing there patiently watching us. He had to be six foot one, given he was taller than I was and I was six feet tall. His brown hair was cut neatly and combed; it showed me he cared about the image he put out in the world instead of the unkept hair of her past boyfriends I remembered. His clean-shaven face showed a blue tenge to it. While his clothes weren't formal-formal, they did show he wanted to impress me. "Dad, I like for you to meet, David," Amber said, sliding her arm around her fiancée once she had left my arms.

"David Callister," he said, holding out his hand to me.

"Nathan Hal," I greeted, noticing the firm grip he had.

"Dad? Where are the other two?" Amber asked, looking around for Catalina and Alondra.

"You know how hard it is to get a four-year-old up at five in the morning on a Saturday when cartoons aren't involved?" I asked with a pointed look. "Catalina stayed at home with her."

"Right," Amber had this bashful look on her face when she said that.

"These all your bags?" I asked, looking down at the one David was managing to hold in one hand due to the extended handles of their rolling suitcases.

"Yes, sir," David answered politely.

"Come on, my car is this way," I said, nodding towards the exit. Halfway to my car, my phone rang in my pants pocket. "Hey, honey," I answered after seeing my wife's ID on the screen.

"Hello, mi Amor, has their flight come in yet?" I heard her moving around the kitchen over the line.

"Yeah, walking to the car now. We should be home in half an hour, depending on traffic," I said, pulling out my key fob and listening to the sound of my car unlocking as we neared.

"Okay, I'll get breakfast going and the coffee. Can Amber eat eggs?"

"Yep, let me ask David," I said, turning back to them who were following behind me. "You're not allergic to eggs, are you?"

"No, love them," David answered with a toothy smile.

"He can eat eggs," I said, knowing what she was planning on making.

"Good, it will take a while for the veggies to cook, so we'll be waiting for you three to get home. Drive safe, baby." I heard the love in her voice as I heard her chopping the veggies for her version of a Mexican omelet.

"Always, honey," I replied as I hit the trunk button on my key fob. "Te Amo." I could see in my mind's eye how red those cheeks were.

"Yo también te quiero."

"Dad, when did you learn Spanish?" Amber asked as David laid their bags in the trunk of my car.

"After I asked Catalina out on our first date," I said truthfully.

"Oh?" Amber's eyes went wide when I said that, "You must have really liked her to do that."

"Yeah, I was totally smitten with her; just don't tell her that," I said with a warm smile on my lips.

"Does she know you did?" Amber asked as David closed the lid of the trunk.

"Yeah," I answered as I moved along the side of the car to the driver's door.

"Did you ever do that for..." My eyes cut hard to my daughter as she almost spoke the Bitch's name.

"I did everything to make that... woman happy. Yet that wasn't enough for her to not give out what she shouldn't to every man she could," I said heatedly.

"Sorry, Dad, it's just... never mind, forget I ever brought it up," Amber said, shaking her head. "Let's chalk it up to a brain fart. I promised myself I wouldn't bring up the past; I'm sorry I couldn't keep..."

"It's fine, Amber, as long as you don't bring that... up again," I said, catching myself before calling her mother a bitch, which she was.

"I promise, I won't." I saw she believed those words she spoke.

"Well, get in, I'd rather not miss breakfast," I said, which was true, I did tell you Catalina can cook, and I never missed a meal of hers.

"Dad, didn't you get a house?" Amber asked as we pulled into the parking garage of my condo complex.

"Been there, done that, living here I don't have a lawn to mow and keep up with everything else," I said, popping the trunk after cutting off the car. "Plus, it's close to work, and I'm not buying a house in this city. The taxes are outrageous!" I said in feign shock.

"So, David, you two looking to buy?" I smiled wickedly when the young man struck his head on the underside of the trunk lid. "You're not going to tell me the two of you are living together out of wedlock?" I asked, pretending to be a stuck-up prude. Which I wasn't; I just found it amusing to torment my future son-in-law. I mean, what father hasn't done that to the man about to marry his daughter?

"Dad?!" Biting my lip when that tone I haven't heard in seven long years left Amber's lips. It was the same tone she used when I did the same thing to the losers she dated as a teenager. However, I can't say David was a loser; a father needs to ensure that the man is good enough for his daughter. "Don't pester David; he's a good man." Amber had this stern look on her face as she crossed her arms. It kind of reminded me of the Bitch when she would get mad.

"Couldn't help myself," I said, shutting my trunk.

"It's fine honey, your father is just sizing me up; I would do the same," David said, giving me a nod.

"Smart boy, maybe there is hope for him," I mused to myself. "If either of you need to workout while here, there's a gym on the ground floor. Not hard to find; if anyone gives you trouble, just tell them your guests of 1003," I said as I led them into the building proper. Seeing them nod in understanding.

"I wasn't going to say anything, but you look, good Dad, I don't remember seeing you so thin," Amber said as we walked towards the elevator.

"Well, I had two kids to raise, and going to the gym was a distant second in making sure you and your brother had what you needed," I answered, pressing the call button.

"Can I ask, Mr..."

"Call me Nathan," I interrupted.

"Can I ask, Nathan, when you married your new wife did you delve into the Latinx culture... did I say something wrong?" I saw David look at my daughter when I had a scowl on my lips.

"I'm going to say this once, so let this be a warning to you, do not, I repeat, do not call them that. They hate that word. It's like calling a black man or woman the 'N' word. It's either Latino or Latina, nothing else. Understood?" I said firmly.

"I meant no offense," David profusely said.

"I know, but it's better me telling you this now than you saying it in front of Catalina or her family; you wouldn't walk out alive. They really hate that word. They feel it's as if the white man is trying to erase their culture because people today want to push their views on a group of people who know exactly who they are," I said, paraphrasing the rant I heard Catalina having about it to her cousin when we were dating because a few people kept calling her that at work. Seriously, could they not tell she hated that word? Some people are just idiots, I guess.

"I understand; no wonder Pablo constantly gives me the stink eye." I heard David whisper from behind me as I stepped onto the elevator.

"Catalina and Alondra can understand English and speak it; if the two of you can't speak Spanish, don't try," I said, seeing their nods in the reflection of the elevator door as I pressed the floor button for my condo.

The moment I entered the home I shared with Catalina, my face lit up seeing my wife and daughter, who were still in their PJs, standing there waiting for me to return. With my customary kiss in and the hug to my legs that Alondra gave me, I stepped aside to let the two people who have been the most important people in my life for the past five years gaze at my grown daughter and her fiancée.

"Amber, David, I'd like you two to officially meet my wife Catalina," squeezing Catalina into me, "and my daughter, your sister, Alondra," I said, watching my eldest daughter lowering herself to her knees before holding out her arms to Alondra.

"Hello, baby sister; I'm so happy to see you." I heard my daughter whisper as she hugged Alondra and gently rocked her.

"Hello, Mrs. Hal," David said, holding out his hand to Catalina.

"Catalina, please, a family shouldn't stand on formalities," Catalina said; I noted how David was taken aback when Catalina hugged him. "Nat, why don't you show them to their room, and I'll get the omelets started."

"I hope you two are hungry because you won't be after breakfast," I said, leading the two of them to our guest bedroom with Alondra running in front of me. "What are you doing, you little goof?" I asked in a teasing light as Alondra danced in front of the room.

"Nothing?!" Alondra replied with her trademarked toothy smile.

"When your done unpacking, there's coffee in the kitchen if you two want any," I said, standing in the doorway with Alondra beside me, holding my hand.

"We will; we skipped breakfast to make our flight on time," Amber said, laying her suitcase on the bed.

"Good, because Catalina likes cooking large meals. Reminds her of her childhood; we'll let you two get settled. Come on, honey, let's give them some privacy," I said, lightly patting Alondra's hand.

"Si, Papi," Alondra replied as she gazed up at me.

"He seems nice," Catalina said offhandedly as I walked into the kitchen while Alondra went to watch her 'My Little Pony' show.

"He does, a rather polite fellow," I answered as I got mugs for all of us.

"It smells heavenly in here," Amber said from behind us. I would have thought she would have unpacked. "Couldn't wait for that coffee, don't want to pass out before breakfast," she said as if she read my mind.

"Thank you," Catalina said, taking pride in her skill as a chef.

I saw her eyes lighting up as I set the fresh cup before her. "Creamer is in the fridge, or there's milk, and here's the sugar," I stated, pushing the small dish that Catalina places it in for guests in case they do partake of a good cup of java.

"Thanks, Dad, this is just what the doctor ordered," Amber sighed as she inhaled the scent of the coffee. I noted how she mouthed a thank you to Catalina, who nodded in return when she set the creamer down before my daughter. Who wasted no time in getting her coffee just the way she liked it. "So good," Amber moaned into her cup.

"Thank you, my cousin owns a coffee farm in the highlands of Mexico; he sends us a couple of bags a month knowing how your father really loves his coffee, as do I, but my cousin really likes your father," Catalina said, shooting me this knowing smirk. It wasn't that the man liked me; okay, he did, but that's only because I saved his business from going under when a disease wiped out his crop two years ago. Hey, I wasn't complaining, I'm a silent owner of a coffee farm, and I get free coffee, so I say that's a win-win in my book.

"He does?" Amber shot me a glance.

"Oh yes, your father is a very kind man," Catalina said, buttering me up. Shooting me this coy smirk as she rolled the omelet up after lining the middle with the caramelized onions, the roasted peppers. She took out the seeds to cut the heat down and the roasted tomatoes before plating it. Watching her making a much smaller one for Alondra. We both knew Alondra wouldn't eat all of it if she was given a full-sized one. I couldn't help it; my eyes couldn't look away as Catalina bent down, causing her pajama pants to become taut along her ass as she pulled the croissants from the oven. What can I say? I love ogling my wife's body. I think that's why she does things like that. My eyes flickered up as David ambled down the hall. I think he took over unpacking so Amber could chat with us under the disguise of coffee. "Now, Nat, make yourself useful and carry these to the table," Catalina said in a teasing voice as she held out two plates to me.

"Alondra, come to the table," I said in a fatherly voice, seeing my daughter glued to the TV.

"Si, Papi," Alondra uttered, sliding off the couch and scurrying over to the spot she always sat in. "Gracias, Papi," she said, peering up at me with that loving smile of hers when I set her chocolate milk before her.

"You're welcome, honey," I whispered into her hair as I placed a kiss on the top of her head. I noted how Alondra nodded vehemently when Amber asked Alondra if she could sit beside her.

"Oh, this is so good," Amber moaned from behind her cupped hand.

"I hope it isn't too hot for you. Your father doesn't like a lot of heat," Catalina said in a motherly voice as she gazed across the table at my eldest daughter.

"No," shaking her head, "adds a little kick to it," Amber said in a polite manner.

"I wouldn't mind a little... thank you," David said with a smile when Catalina held out the bottle of El Yucateco Black Label Reserve Chili Habanero Hot Sauce she ordered from Mexico to him. "It's hot, so use sparingly; I was raised on it, so I'm used to it."

"Thank you," David said, taking the bottle from her. I watched how David did a taste test of it on a little bite of his omelet.

"You okay?" Catalina asked, rubbing David's back as I watched the heat getting to him.

"Never better; what is this called again?" I thought he was mad as he added more to his omelet.

"El Yucateco Black Label Reserve Chili Habanero Hot Sauce," Catalina said matter-of-factly. "I order it from Mexico, it's not the hottest sauce out there, but it is hot. Do you like it?"

"Oh yeah, better than Tabasco sauce," David said with a nod.

"Good, then you'll love our family get-together; they all bring their own with them," Catalina said with this rather happy smile on her lips.

"We're going to Ashville tomorrow to the zoo. Would the two of you like to join?" I asked, seeing Alondra getting excited in her seat at the thought.

"Only if we won't be an inconvenience to you three," Amber replied, looking around the table at us.

"Amber," dabbing her lips, "you aren't an inconvenience to us; you're family, so never think that," Catalina said in that motherly voice of hers. Like I said, she does come from a large family, and I knew she was never comfortable with just the three of us in the house. Don't get me wrong, she loved us dearly, yet I knew she wanted more. All week I could see how excited she was to have a full house.

"So, how did the two of you meet?" Catalina asked, slipping her legs beneath her as she sat in her chair on our balcony while sipping her morning coffee.

"David here was already working at the store when I got hired to work in the pharmacy as the assistant manager," Amber said, sitting across from us at the small round table we placed out there for such times while Alondra enjoyed her cartoons.

"Worked your way up the ladder, huh?" I stated, to which David nodded. I can respect that of a man. "What're your plans going forward?"

"I think that in a few years after I get some more experience under my belt, try for a more corporate job at the company," David said with me nodding along approving of his plan.

"Do they have a program to help you train for such a position?" Catalina asked, slipping her hand into my lap and squeezing my thigh.

"They do, but I want to make sure they won't turn me down, hence why I'm going to wait a few more years," David said before taking a sip of his coffee.

"Sounds reasonable," I nodded. Knowing if he was a manager in my bank region, I too would be looking for someone with a little bit more experience managing a branch before thinking of adding them to the corporate ladder.