Chapter 43: Chapter 43

Kate did not deny Nick of her promise to please him. They kissed as they crossed the distance of their way to the bedroom. But as she was not so comfortable to dive deeper into the depth of "doing the deed" all the way. She politely declined Nick's intention to return the fun.

"Are you worried about mom, too?" Asked Nick.

"Sorry, babe..." Kate wrapped her arms around her beloved man. "I don't know why, but I am not comfortable. I haven't seen mom with anyone else than your dad, and I don't know Ismael well enough to fully trust she will be just fine," Kate explained earnestly.

Nick had the same worry. And he understands the anxiety in Kate's mind about her mom. He knew what trauma Kelly had been through. A trauma that had been in her system for more than a decade, almost two that she had not been able to be intimate with anyone, not even to her husband, and now, she is suddenly doing it. She might have a sudden panic attack, and Ismael may fail to persuade Kelly to indulge. Nick was worried, too, but as they had started and Kate did not deny him his release of pleasure, he wanted to please her too. He was trying to push the worry into the back of his mind. Until Kate declined to continue, and so, he did not insist.

"Don't worry about me," Nick assured Kate. "We can stick to your original plan about waiting to see if the date went as we hoped for or not, then we can seal the weekend getaway on our own," Nick added. He was not in a hurry. He can wait, and he will wait when Kate is ready. They have come this far. What is another night more of patience if the result would be for their peace of mind? He was positive Ismael would win Kelly's approval, yet, they had to wait and see. They have to wait for the following day.

Nick pulled Kate to his chest and hugged her from the side as they leaned on piles of pillows.

"What do you think about Ismael?" Asked Kate.

Nick and Kate have agreed to give the man a chance, but he still needs to know the basics about any dark pasts that the man may have. He has sent someone to have Ismael's background checked, but as they only thought about doing the checking when they planned about this getaway, the result has not arrived yet.

"Well, as far as I can see, he is good. But we still have to wait for the PI results," Nick replied. "I just hope, whatever there is that we may find about him in his past can be dissolved by whatever connections they may create from tonight. If there is, I still hope there is nothing we won't like about him."

Nick sighed.

"Let's hope for the best. Maybe I am just being paranoid worrying about things I should not even bother about,"

Kate groaned. "But I cannot help it. I'm so sorry..." Kate let her worry out as she closed her eyes lying beside Nick.

"I feel like we are parents to mom while she is the teenage daughter we have and starting to date," Nick chuckled as he sniffed Kate's hair.

"You should have seen how she blushed when we were preparing the snacks in the kitchen before we left home in the afternoon," Kate joined Nick's laughter with a giggle. "I felt exactly the same with what you just said."

Kate told Nick about their conversation in the kitchen, and they both gleefully mentioned whatever they could notice on Kelly as well as what they saw on Ismael.

"They look cute together," Kate nodded her head slightly. "I never thought I would ever have the chance to set my mom on a blind date, and I feel crazy to hope she gets laid tonight even by a man we don't even know much about."

"We have to be positive. Doctor Dion said she might not have any chance to regain her memory as some part of her memory might have been permanently removed along with the tumor. We are literally making her create new memories," Nick softly uttered.

He was partly hoping the good doctor's findings would materialize. Nick hopes that Kelly will never have to remember any of those awful memories she has had with all his heart. The chance of it happening was too slim, but Nick did not want to give up even in the slightest. He cannot say he hated all of it as it resulted in having Kate by his side, but the process was too painful for the mother. Nick is very thankful Kelly did not find it in her fragile heart to

give up the life she had in her womb or Nick would never have had the chance to even know, meet, love, and be loved by this beautiful soul beside him. There are so many reasons why Nick is overprotective towards these two ladies in his life. And he is willing to do anything and everything for the mother and daughter to be happy. To never regret having any connections with the Eudovic through marriage but became family more bound than blood alone.

The two snuggled in their sleep. And as they were tired, along with the cozy temperature of the environment, Nick and Kate had shared the warmth of their bodies, naked under the covers. A phone call awakened them.

"What time is it?" Asked Kate as she buried her face down her pillows.

Nick squinted his eyes as he checked the digital clock on his phone screen before answering the call.

"Babe, it's almost seven," his voice was still raspy when he answered Kate and then the call.

"Mom?" Nick heard Kelly's voice. "What? Wait..." Nick jumped out of bed, put some warm clothes on, and went to open the door.

"Come on, you two, it's breakfast time," Kelly and Ismael came in with trays of food in their hands. "Where's Kate?"

"Good morning, Nick!" Ismael greeted with a smile. "Kelly felt bad that we did not see you both before going to bed last night, so we got up early to bring and have breakfast with you both," he eagerly explained.

"Good morning!" Nick greeted back, also with a smile. "Wait, I will get Kate. She must have been tired. She is still snoring in bed," Nick tried to see if his joke would get him any hint about what happened to the two elders. He shot Kelly a quick glance as she set the tables. Then he turned his eyes to Ismael. To Nick's amusement, the two blushed. He pretended he did not see anything and walked back to the bedroom. But his pace quickened when he was sure they weren't looking at him going towards Kate. He was like a grasshopper, hopping his way into the bed with unspeakable joy.

He jumped on the bed to hover above Kate, and with suppressed voice, he reported what he noticed from the pair of love birds in the kitchen right now.

"Baby, wake up! You have to see this!" Nick was holding his mouth to press the laughter boisterously coming out of it. "I think they did it!"

Nick told everything he noticed from Kelly and Ismael to a wide awake and equally excitedly listening mien of Kate.

"Really?" Kate asked with her hands folded above her mouth. Just like Nick, she was suppressing the laughter to burst out of her.

"But I could also be wrong, you know. You have to come out and see for yourself and help me read their nonverbal reactions," Nick pulled Kate out of the bedroom. He could not wait to take her out and have breakfast with Kelly and Ismael, so Nick lifted Kate to do her morning routines in the bathroom, joined her to get washed up, and hurried to go to the kitchen.

"Baby, I feel too cold. Can I have a piggyback ride to the kitchen?" Kate asked ever so sweetly.

Nick bent before her and granted her requests without so much fuss.

"Hop in!"

"Yay! Let's go find out! Are we lucky enough this weekend?" Kate roared in a bright burst of laughter as they crossed the distance to the kitchen. It wasn't more than a twenty-step walk, but it was enough to feel and express how it was to dote and be doted.

"Good morning, love birds!" Kelly greeted the two youngsters as soon as they arrived at the table and took their seats.

Nick and Kate's eyes met. They seemed to understand something privately, and their smiles widened. Kate did not keep her reaction to herself for too long.

"I think we should greet that back to you," Kate picked a bread from a plate and intentionally avoided Kelly's questioning eyes. But she looked up and greeted the two elders. "Good morning, love birds!"

Ismael and Kelly seemed to react in the same way that they hid their faces by looking at their plates with their head deeply bowed down. And when they looked up again, they were flushed and smiling sheepishly.

Nick and Kate did not hold their merry giggles and lifted their mugs of coffee.

"Happy Weekend Getaway!"

Kelly and Ismael had no choice about feeling abashed, but they soon joined the joyous laughter of the young couple at the table with them.