Chapter 326 - Beginnings - mdfour
Roland
Arriving home and seeing four smiling kids running toward you is priceless. I covered them in kisses.
"Daddy, are we going to ride Zeus now?"
That was Dante's horse, the offspring of Amón and Hathor, a purebred black stallion. Enrique's horse was Poseidon, the first foal of Pomposo and Chocolate, a beautiful white specimen. Liam's horse was white with black spots, the second foal of Amón, named Ares.
My precious princess had a light brown purebred, the second foal of Chocolate. All my children had learned to ride, and today I had promised them a ride. I was dying of exhaustion, but I couldn't let them down, especially when they were already dressed for riding.
"They insisted on dressing like you," said my wife, giving me a kiss. "You look tired."
"We spent the whole night organizing the skeletons of the organizations to figure out how to rescue the children."
Those honey-colored eyes sparkled. My daughter was the spitting image of my wife, and maybe that's why I'm so smitten with her. The love I have for Veronica is different, but for Victoria, I'd do anything to keep her alive.
"Are you joining us for the ride, Mrs. Sandoval?"
"And miss seeing them finally mastering their horses? I had special saddles made for them to keep them secure. I can't wait to see Liam."
My son took the longest to learn. For weeks, I rode on Ares's back with him until he got it. He would get frustrated seeing his siblings do it while he couldn't. It took a lot of work and more training hours, but he finally did it.
"That's right, today is our little one's debut."
"I prefer you call him that rather than 'tagalong.'" I gave her a kiss.
"I'll have some coffee with whatever, take a quick shower, and meet you at the stables. Are the horses saddled?"
"I'll tell Duber to do it. Kids! Dad's going to shower and meet us at the stables."
My three sons put on their cowboy hats and boots. Liam followed his brothers, with Dante leading the way. I've noticed he always positions himself in front of the stairs, with Liam at the back, ready to catch him if he slips. Since his brother fell a couple of times as a baby, protecting him has become a habit. How can someone be so much like you?
I took a military-style shower, and in ten minutes, I was in the kitchen eating the cheese sticks Inés made. I brushed my teeth in the first-floor bathroom and headed out to see my family.
"That was quick. Did you wash properly?" I was about to answer when she raised a finger, seeing my expression. "There are kids around." I leaned in close.
"I don't mind if you inspect my dick to see if it smells or tastes good." She blushed and looked around to see if anyone heard. I laughed.
"Daddy! Please, can you lift me?" I picked up Dante and placed him on Zeus. He grabbed the reins.
"Dante, you even got your arrogance from him," said Veronica. I picked up Enrique and kissed his cheek.
"Behave, Poseidon."
"Daddy, I know how to control him." I looked at my wife, who raised an eyebrow.
"Like father..."
"Uh-huh."
I picked up my princess, who had a braid identical to her mom's. Victoria adored animals and often scolded her brothers for killing bugs. The three boys waited for Liam, who was holding his mother's hand.
"Ready, Champ?"
"Yes, Daddy."
Despite everything, he expressed himself well. He was the only one who had sessions with a speech therapist. He adjusted his glasses, and I gave him a couple of kisses. He smiled; that's Liam, all sweetness.
When I lifted him onto his horse, we had trained his horse very gently. My little one proudly took the reins. Veronica was already on Playa, and I was saddled on Ocean. The other two horses were either mating or resting, and when Chocolate was pregnant again, I would mate Playa.
"Where to?" asked my wife. Liam was between Veronica's horse and mine, while the rest of our kids were ahead.
"To the grandparents' ranch. Let them see us arrive on horseback. Besides, Santiago should have arrived by now. Duber!"
"Yes, boss?"
"Take Inés to the Alondras ranch. We're invited for lunch."
"Yes, sir."
Today was a day to spend with family. With the peace of having completed a cycle, today I closed a deal and negotiated another.
……
Kevin
I had heard that being a parent was amazing, but it's more than that. It's the accumulation of many feelings. Two weeks after Aníbal woke up, my son Cristofer was born. "And it's been three months since I accepted to join the Checkmate group."
I can't get enough of looking at him. This year, I'm not going to study anything. With the team, I have a lot to work on, the investigations, and most importantly, taking care of my son while my wife goes to college.
The truth is, I love watching my little one, that tiny being who is a part of me; now I understand the bosses and the big boss. You get so soft with a child.
"Take a picture of him," Carlina hugged me around the waist and kissed my back.
"I have tons."
She smiled, stood next to me, and I put my arm around her shoulders. We stayed mesmerized, watching our son. We lived in a giant shared apartment; Patricia had her room, Alfredo another, we had one, and now our son's room, but our son sleeps next to our bed until his mother feels safe that he won't choke. Are all mothers like this?
"Love, remember I left my car at the shop this morning."
"You can have mine. I'm traveling with Arnold today, Alfredo will stay to take care of you all. Actually, Guadalupe will spend the week here."
The Delgados lived in another apartment. They study in the morning, just like Carlina.
"The flight is early morning. We'll be in Spain tomorrow. I'll miss you this week, beautiful."
"You know Patricia took the job at the psychiatric clinic this week. Her schedule changed, so she didn't take her car today. Can you pick her up before you leave? It's night, and I don't like her being alone, especially after what happened to Lupe."
"Sure, although she can come with Alfredo. He also switched to night classes... Though I don't know what he's studying." We exchanged glances and understood, Carlina smiled.
"They're about to explode. I would have told Rino to shove it a long time ago."
"Watch your mouth! Pato is in love."
"You taught me those words and more," I confirmed. "Your suitcase is ready."
I took my son out of the crib, my nose brushing his soft cheek. I'm so scared of not being a good dad; I didn't have one. He moved a little.
"Send me videos of him."
"Of course."
Cristofer came to heal many wounds, not just his mother's but mine too.
"Did you talk to your sister?" She shook her head. They haven't spoken since what happened.
The doorbell rang. We left the room, and I signaled to Lili, the woman who helps us at home, that I would get it. She went back to finishing dinner. When I opened the door, it was Mojón with his family. Those two are identical, distinguished by Demetrio's short hair and Dayana's long hair. Each parent carried a child, almost two years old. The nanny dragged two suitcases.
"I left my suitcase in the car," Arnold said. I greeted everyone, and so did my wife. Our mission was to take photos and get into the clubs. Since we worked perfectly in these places before, the Boss entrusted us to check out three clubs. We'll focus on that country first.
"Lili!" The forty-something woman came out smiling. "Can you make dinner bigger, or should we order something?"
"Don't worry, ma'am. We'll all eat."
"Thank you, dear." Carlina went with Lupe and the kids to the guest room.
"Did you know about this?" I heard Guadalupe ask my wife, who shook her head.
"You know how they are. I just found out we're staying together."
"And Alfredo?" I looked at Arnold.
"He's studying at night now," he frowned. "Patricia started working this week," he confirmed. "And today she managed to change her schedule, so from the psychiatric clinic, she goes to the university, and magically, our illustrious doctor too."
"He's worse than me. He's provoking Gustavo until the wizard gets mad. We need to be at the airport by midnight, and I need to leave a thousand instructions. Let's go get them."
"Aren't you going to have dinner?" I checked the time. "I agreed to pick up Patricia in an hour."
"Let's eat and go."
We left after dinner, said goodbye to our wives and kids. I took my suitcase and put it in Arnold's car.
"Did you pack the suit?"