Chapter 36 #2
I grab us each a water and lead Luna outside.
“Wow,” she whispers the second we step onto the patio. “Gogo does not play.”
“She likes to flex her matriarchal muscles. See what you’re made of.”
“She actually mentioned my hips.”
“Which, for the record, tested very well.”
Luna cuts her eyes at me, trying not to smile as she takes a long sip of water.
We cross the yard, opening into the hot midday sunlight, shaded by old oak trees and bordered by Gogo’s vegetable and herb garden.
My father stands at the braai in shorts and a navy t-shirt.
The soccer crest on his chest and gold lettering across his shoulders speak to the pride he carries for the Philippine Men’s National Team, playing in Manila tonight.
Despite the dominance of basketball in his home country, he stays true to the Azkals.
He’s holding tongs as boerewors sizzle beside chicken skewers marinated in calamansi, garlic, ginger, and lemongrass. A fusion of South African and Filipino flavors. Food diplomacy is Dad’s love language.
He glances up and gives us a wave.
“Dad,” I say when we reach him. “This is Rayne. Rayne, this is my father, Angelo.”
He wipes his hands on a dish towel before offering one to her. “It’s good to finally meet you, Rayne.”
Luna takes his hand. “You too, Angelo.”
“I see you survived Gogo.”
“I think so. Though I suspect the real test will come in my kitchen skills.”
“Just follow her lead. She likes being the boss. That’s why I stay out here,” he says, lowering his voice conspiratorily.
Luna laughs. “It smells amazing.”
Dad monitors the skewers, turning them when they have that perfect charred edge. It’s the kind of precision that explains both his engineering brain and my inability to half-ass anything.
“DK tells me you’re running for mayor.”
“I am,” she says, with a slight pause as if she’s expecting him to express his concerns about us.
He doesn’t. Instead, he adds, “He also says you’re a force to be reckoned with.”
“When you run against the best, it keeps you sharp.”
Dad nods, clocking the mutual respect I told him we share. He cuts a piece of chicken from one of the skewers and hands it to her on a napkin. “Try this.”
She pops it into her mouth. “Mmm… that’s incredible. Lemongrass?”
“I think you’re going to do just fine, Rayne.”
She smiles, and everything clicks.
This feels right. Like I knew it would.
“Before I throw you into the deep end with Gogo,” I say, “let me show you upstairs. Dad, I’ll be back to help.”
“Take your time,” he says, content in his happy place.
I grab her bag from the hall, and we climb the stairs past family photos and old graduation portraits. She pauses in front of a picture of me back in 2009 that I’d rather erase from history. My hair is tightly tapered at the sides with a wide, voluminous strip running down the center.
“Okay, DK.” She laughs. “I see you with your frohawk.”
“And we keep moving,” I say, tugging her along.
“That’s alright. I have two days to get all up in your business. I’m sure your mom would happily break out the photo albums.”
She’s not wrong, but I’ll delay that ambush for as long as possible.
Luna’s still laughing when I open the door to my old room, beside Neo’s, where I’ll be staying—Gogo’s rules.
The walls have been repainted some kind of linen color, but the teakwood furniture remains the same, along with the bookshelf still half full of spy novels and the spelling-bee and debate trophies my mother refuses to retire.
“Look at you, all smart and nerdy,” she says playfully, trailing her fingers across my engraved name as she looks around. “So, I’m the first girl to be in your bed.”
“Yep.”
“I like that. But too bad I’ll be all alone in it.”
“I want to show you something.” I open the adjoining door, and her eyes light up.
“Ooh, a shared bathroom.”
“I prefer to think of it as a strategic portal,” I say. “To be used for planning meetings. Emergency consultations. Very official.”
She walks toward me, her breasts softly swaying beneath the ribbed bodice. “Sounds professional.”
“Extremely.”
She curls her fingers into my polo. “I’m in need of a little consulting.”
I catch her by the waist and, bending my head, tug her nipple into my mouth, drawing on her through the cotton weave with long, deep sucks. I hear her gasp and feel her body submit. The way Luna gives herself to me so freely is the greatest gift I’ve ever received.
I kiss her, and like always, it spins wild fast. Heat rises up to grip me. I slide my hand beneath the stretchy neckline, thumbing the beaded nipple I’d dampened.
“Did you bring toys?” I murmur, giving it a little pinch.
“Yes…” She softly moans. “But your family—”
“Are on the other side of the house. No one will hear us. Just don’t be screaming like you do.”
“Then don’t make me.”
I grin and give her nipple another tweak. “Be ready for me tonight.”
“DK,” she breathes, the edge of her teeth dragging the corner of her bottom lip into her mouth.
“Bro!” Neo’s ill-timed voice calls from downstairs.
I groan, reluctantly removing my hand and smoothing her top back into place.
We return downstairs to find Neo in the kitchen and Gogo standing in front of him with her hands planted firmly on her hips.
“You are an hour late,” she scolds.
Neo turns on the charm, kissing her cheek. “I had to get the cake, Gogo. The one with the custard layers from that bakery you like. Traffic was a nightmare, but I suffered through it just for you.”
Gogo tries to stay stern, but she’s already softening. “You’re a menace, boy. Wash your hands and show Rayne I did not raise a pack of hyenas.”
Neo winks at Luna. “See? I’m the favorite. In case you want to switch brothers.”
“I like the one I have, thanks.”
Gogo pats her cheek. “Smart girl.”