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MARIA & BEN’S
Antonio closed the door and turned to find Maria sitting on the couch. "Where have you been, Antonio? Did you go see Gabi?" Maria’s voice was calm now. "I did," Antonio began. "She was out on the balcony and I watched her for awhile. She went in to bed and I went for a run." Antonio sat down beside Maria. "I don’t know if she’ll ever forgive me, Maria." Maria touched her brother’s shoulder. "Did you sleep with Heather, Antonio?" "NO!" he answered quickly. "I don’t know how it happened. We were in her hotel room and before I knew it, I kissed her. We started taking off each other’s clothes and then we were on the bed." Maria closed her eyes. "I wasn’t thinking of anything else…it was like I wasn’t even consciously there. Then she said my name." Antonio shook his head. "It was like it snapped me into reality and all of a sudden I realized I wasn’t with Gabi. I was in a hotel room with my shirt off on top of a woman in her bra. She was taking off my pants and I was going to let her." Antonio ran his hand through his hair. "I was going to sleep with another woman." Maria could see the pain in his eyes. "Why, Antonio?" "I wish I knew, Maria," he said sadly. "I love Gabi, I love her more than anything in the world. I was attracted to Heather. She was smart and funny…beautiful." Antonio fingered his wedding ring. "I don’t understand it Maria. I’m married and I take my wedding vows very seriously. I never wanted to cheat on Gabi. I’ve never even thought about it. Ever." "I know, Antonio," Maria smiled softly at him. "But why did you put yourself in that position with Heather?" Antonio shook his head miserably. "Maybe you were right...I am just like dad." "No, Antonio," Maria said defiantly. "You’re not. I was angry with you. I spoke without thinking. You’re nothing like daddy." Maria took his hand. "You are a good person, Antonio and I know how much you love Gabi. She knows too." "No, she doesn’t Maria. How could she? I almost...I...." his voice faltered. "But you didn’t Antonio. You didn’t sleep with her." Maria squeezed his hand. "You stopped yourself from making the biggest mistake of your life." "No, Maria," he whispered. "I made the mistake the second I let myself become attracted to another woman." "You’re human, Antonio. We all find people attractive. The mistake happened when you allowed yourself to act on it." Maria hugged Antonio tightly. "Give Gabi some time, Antonio. She’s very hurt right now. But she still loves you." Antonio remembered seeing Gabi in Ricardo’s arms on the beach. "What if she turns to someone else?" Maria sat back. "Why would she do that, Antonio? She loves you." "I hurt her, Maria. She may never forgive me." "Antonio, you can’t possibly think she would turn to Ricardo." His sister always knew him so well. "I saw them together this morning...on the beach." Maria took a deep breath. "I’m sure he was just comforting her, Antonio. He found out what happened and wanted to make sure she was alright." "Exactly! He was waiting in the wings to pick up the pieces of the mess I made." Antonio stood from the chair and headed to the stairs. "I’m going to take a shower." Maria watched her brother run up the stairs. THE TOWNHOUSE Ricardo and Gabi stopped walking just a few feet from the patio. "Thank you for walking with me, Ricardo," Gabi smiled. "It was nice to have some company." Ricardo touched her arm. "I’ll always be here for you, Gabi. We’re still friends, you know." He gave her a warm smile. "I’ve got to get going...I have to check in at the station." He started to walk away. "If you need anything, Gabi. Just call me." Gabi shook her head and walked inside. She headed upstairs to take a shower. Gabi stood under the warm stream of water letting it wash over her. She closed her eyes and her mind took her back to her honeymoon in Big Bear. She and Antonio were making love in the shower. She wrapped her arms around his neck as he lifted her up and held her against the wall. With her legs wrapped around him, he gave himself to her completely. Gabi could feel his hands on her, his lips caressing her neck. Gabi leaned against the wall as she slid down to the shower floor. She missed Antonio…she wanted him to hold her again and tell her he loved her. If only he still did. BEN & MARIA’S Antonio turned the water to hot as he slid off his shorts. He climbed slowly into the shower as the water ran over his tired, aching muscles. He tilted his head back as he pushed his hands through his hair. He leaned his against the wall with his hand as his mind raced to Big Bear. He and Gabi had climbed into the shower as they devoured each other with kisses. She wrapped her legs around his waist as he pushed himself into her bracing her against the wall. He closed his eyes and he could see how she had responded to his touch. He could hear her as she surrendered herself to him. He wanted to hold her and tell her he loved her. If only she wanted him too. It had been almost a week since Antonio left and Maria had called Gabi several times a day every day. Antonio had been giving Gabi space. Maria updated him every time she spoke to her. He didn’t want to force the situation. Maria picked up the phone for her daily call. As Maria was dialing, Antonio came into the room and sat down on the couch. Maria waited anxiously for Gabi to pick up. "Hello?" Gabi’s voice was pained and soft. "Gabi? Are you okay?" Maria said quickly. Antonio nearly jumped off the couch when he heard Maria’s question. "Yeah, I was just painting the baby’s room and..." Gabi began. "You were what?" Maria shrieked. "What was she doing?" Antoino whispered frantically. Maria waved him off. "I was painting the nursery and I went to step off the ladder and..." "The ladder!" Maria exclaimed. "What ladder?" Antonio demanded quietly. Maria hushed him with her finger. "What happened Gabi? Are you okay?" Maria was concerned. "I’m fine, I caught myself but I think I might have hurt my wrist." Gabi winced as she tried to bend her wrist. "It’s kind of swollen and it hurts to move it. Ricardo’s here and…" "I’ll be right there." Maria hung up the phone. Antonio was all over her. "What happened? Is she okay? What ladder?" "Calm down, Antonio." Maria said softly. "Gabi was painting the nursery and she stepped off the ladder…" "What?!" Antonio said incredulously. "I’m going over there..." Antonio turned for the door. "Antonio, let me go," Maria grabbed his arm. "I’ll take care of her." "I have to make sure she’s alright. I can’t believe she was on a ladder!" Antonio was panicking. "She could have been hurt…what about the baby! What if she was unconscious and no one knew?" "Antonio...Ricardo is with her." Maria hated to tell him, but she didn’t want him to go over and cause a big scene. "Ricardo?" Antonio felt a punch in his gut. "Well, he’s not taking very good care of her, is he? Letting her climb on ladders and paint," he snarled. "What an…" "Antonio!" Maria interrupted him. "Let me go see how she is. I’ll call you if it’s anything horrible." "If Ricardo’s there....it’s horrible," Antonio said smugly. Maria patted his shoulder and walked out. Antonio turned around and flung his magazine angrily at the wall. "He sure isn’t wasting any time." Antonio hissed as he shook his head slowly. "I sure opened the door for him, didn’t I?" Antonio knew Ricardo was worming his way back to Gabi and he wasn’t about to just stand by and let it happen. Gabi may never forgive him for what he did, but there was no way in hell he was going to let Ricardo raise his son. He turned with determination and stormed out the door. THE TOWNHOUSE Antonio peeked in through the patio doors. "Hello?" he called out. "Gabi? Maria?" No one answered so he ventured inside. The house was quiet. Antonio looked around. He missed coming home to Gabi every night finding her munching away on yet another bag of microwave popcorn. He smiled sadly and walked to the stairs. He made his way up to the nursery. The floor was covered with plastic. The ladder stood next to the wall with a full tray of paint and a roller. Antonio smiled at the color Gabi had chosen. It was the most beautiful shade of pale yellow. There were strips of border lying on the floor with yellow suns and stars and blue moons. The cat and the fiddle…Gabi’s favorite children’s book. Antonio climbed the ladder without hesitation and picked up the roller. If it was the only thing he ever got to do for him, he was going to paint and wallpaper his son’s nursery. He worked swiftly but carefully as if he were painting the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel. His heart was full as he lovingly prepared his son’s room. "Be careful," Maria instructed as Gabi stepped from the car. "I’m fine, Maria. The doctor said it’s just a bad sprain." Gabi rolled her eyes at her sister-in-law as she held her splinted wrist. "It feels much better actually." "That’s just the Tylenol talking, it’s gonna hurt in the morning." Maria opened the door for her. They hadn’t left any lights on and the emergency room wait had been interminable. Maria flipped on the light to illuminate the living room. "Why don’t you go upstairs and lay down and I’ll bring you something to eat." "Maria, I’m not an..." Gabi began. "Go, young lady," Maria snapped. "And don’t give me any lip." Gabi laughed as she headed upstairs. "Okay, but I’ve got to get the nursery painted..." Her voice trailed off. "Gabi, are you okay?" Maria called out. When Gabi didn’t answer, Maria bolted up the stairs. "Gabi?" Gabi was standing in the doorway of the nursery. Her eyes were full of tears as she admired her son’s nursery, freshly painted and wallpapered. All the painting equipment had been removed and the plastic was off the floor. Maria smiled as Gabi stepped into the room. She spun slowly taking in the entire effect. She looked at Maria as she took a deep breath. "Antonio," she whispered as the tears rolled down her cheeks.
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