Chapter 23

Ricci

I look at my sisters after Manny leaves and groan as the two of them burst out laughing. “Shut it,” I grumble, picking at the blanket on my lap.

While he and Ivy were gone earlier, Lacie had helped me with a shower, so I am feeling a bit tired, but determined to stay awake as long as possible. But being clean for the first time since waking up, wearing the pretty gown that Manny’s mom and aunt bought me, combined with fresh, crisp sheets, has my eyes drooping.

“I think he really likes you,” Ivy softly says.

My eyes dart to hers as I slowly shake my head. “I’m broken, Ivy, remember?”

“You’re not broken, just slightly bent from the storms you’ve weathered,” she counters. “I’m not saying you have to jump into something with him this second anyway! Take your time, get to know him and see where it takes you.”

I’m about to protest again when Lacie pops in with her two cents. “We’ve only known him for a few days but already, he’s head and shoulders above Erik, Sissy.”

I grin at her use of the nickname they bestowed on me all those years ago. My name doesn’t really have any derivatives, yet the Billingsleys found pet names to call me; Button and Sissy being two of them.

“Maybe you’re right, I don’t know,” I confess. “But I like it here, like this town, and think it’d be a good idea to take some time to heal before I jump into anything with him or any other guy.”

“Can’t ask for more than that,” Ivy concedes. “Okay, so as far as furniture from the house, this is what I was thinking.”

* * *

I doze off only to wake up when I smell something absolutely delicious. Opening my eyes, I see a woman I presume is Manny’s mother, sitting with my sisters and talking quietly. “Hey,” I say while reaching for my water cup.

“Oh, I’m so glad you’re awake,” the woman says, coming over to me. “I know you gave my Manny a big scare,” she continues as she gently smooths the hair from my face.

“Hello, Mrs. Alvarez,” I reply, holding out my hand. “Thank you again for what you and your sister bought for me. Manny brought it up to the hospital and I can definitely say, the gown is very soft and comfortable.”

“None of that, sweetheart. Mrs. Alvarez is my mother-in-law, God rest her soul. You can call me Mama or Evangeline.”

“Then you’d have a Mama A in your life,” Ivy teases.

Evangeline turns to her with a puzzled look on her face. “What do you mean?”

“She called our mom ‘Mama B’,” Lacie replies. “You could be Mama A.”

I can’t help giggling as I retort, “As long as I don’t have twenty-four more ‘Mamas’ in my life, that should be just fine.”

His mother starts laughing before she walks over to the rolling table. “Let’s get some food in you, you’re too skinny, Ricci. I brought my enchiladas because Manny said you had no restrictions as far as what you could eat.”

Raising my bed so I’m sitting up, I nod. “I don’t. The doctor’s just keeping me now to make sure I regain some of my strength or something.”

She turns and her face is solemn when she says, “I don’t think you truly understand just how sick you were, Ricci. But when my Manny told me about you, I prayed to the Virgin Mother you’d get well.”

Not sure how to respond, I simply shrug. “I just thought I was coming down with the flu or something. I mean, I knew I had miscarried, of course, but I honestly didn’t know things could go so bad.”

I watch her bring me a plate piled high with food and know I’ll likely only eat a portion of it. She sets it down on the rolling tray next to my bed then adjusts everything so it’s right in front of me. Lightly touching my cheek, she smiles. “Well, I thank God he found you. I believe life is going to be different for you.”

Taking my fork, I put a bite of the enchilada in my mouth and moan as the flavors burst across my tongue. “This is delicious,” I mumble.

Ivy grins at me while chewing her own food and says, “Don’t talk with your mouth full.”

“Says the pot to the kettle,” Lacie retorts.

“Girls let’s eat and then we’ll figure out how to get the apartment set up for Ricci,” Mama A decrees, grinning at my sisters.

* * *

I gaze around the ‘apartment’ in awe at what my sisters, Manny, and even his family, managed to accomplish in just a few short days. While I was lazing around the hospital, eating their food that was supplemented by what Evangeline brought up every day, Ivy and Lacie went with Manny’s uncle, Jorge, and his brothers, Diego and Matias, and they brought back the furnishings from the house I grew up in. Not only that, but my sisters bought a new mattress and box spring for the bed, so even though the items are older, the bed itself is ‘brand new’, as are the linens and bedding, since Ivy did let me borrow her iPad and I ordered what I wanted, and had it delivered to the tattoo shop per Manny’s instructions.

My new home positively gleams; the windows sparkle and the hardwood floor looks so shiny, I briefly worry about slipping and sliding. As I wander around looking at all the little touches my sisters added, I can hear Mama A and Ivy in the kitchen area as they pull out the trays of food Mama A and Manny’s Aunt Juanita brought over as a housewarming.

“Do you like it?” Manny asks, coming up to stand beside me.

“It’s beautiful,” I whisper, staring up at the man who literally saved my life. “If I haven’t said it already, thank you for everything, Manny.”

“You’re more than welcome. I have to run downstairs since I have a client in my chair who’s taking a break. I just wanted to be sure y’all got settled okay,” he replies, grinning down at me.

“Maybe one day I can see what you do?” I question.

“Absolutely.”

With that, he turns, and I find myself momentarily alone, so I walk into my new bathroom to check it out.

* * *

Hours later, the food is gone, everyone has left, and I’m getting ready for bed. When I let Betty know I was finally home, she told me to take the next week or so before I came back to work. So, I’ll use my time exploring my new town.

And maybe getting to know the man responsible for all the good in my life a little bit better.