Seeds of Tomorrow

23

Evie was late to arrive at the party, and Rocco hurried to greet her at her car. "I was starting to think you were going to show," he admitted, wrapping his arms around her.

"I wouldn't do that to you," she assured him, standing on her tiptoes to kiss his lips.

Hand in hand, Rocco took Evie around to introduce her to the family she hadn't yet met, all the cousins, aunts, and...(insert heavy sigh) his Abuela Gladys. Now Gladys was a sweet woman but she was a talker and as previously mentioned, a chismosa. The woman was a gossip.

Rocco made sure to forewarn his girl that they should do their best to avoid the old woman at all costs explaining that she was very kind but once she started talking, it was impossible to get her to stop.

The pair entered the foyer of the house where his little cousins, Rowan-Holly and Brooke's son, Serafin and Sergio were bashing each other with pool noodles and screaming at the top of their lungs.

Holly rushed in demanding that Rowan settle down or else someone would be hurt. And wouldn't you know it, as she said those words, Rowan tripped over Sergio and fell to the floor howling in the overdramatic way that kids do.

"This is exactly what I told you would happen," she scolded, pulling the red-haired youngster up by his elbow.

Sergio appeared to be on the brink of tears, "I'm sorry, Rowan," he told him, his round eyes glistening. Unlike the soft-hearted Sergio, Serafin was ready to get back to the action, striking the younger boy with his foam noodle and immediately being scolded by his mother.

"Did you not just see what happened?!" Madison bellowed, "Both of you go outside before you break something!"

The two brown-eyed boys nodded in unison, shoving past Rocco and Evie as they scampered through the front door.

"Ayiyiyi!" Madison massaged her temples.

"You go outside too," Holly told Rowan sternly, giving an exasperated glance to the other woman.

"Do you want to take another child home with you?" Madison shook her head.

"Only if you want to take a teenager or two," she teased.

"Oh god, no. I'll pass!"

The two women laughed before catching that Rocco's new little girlfriend was in front of them.

"Oh my gosh!" Madison gushed, "You must be Evie!"

Holly gasped, putting a hand to her cleavage, "Aw, we have all heard so much about you!"

Always the nosey woman, Gladys heard the commotion, hobbling from the kitchen to the foyer pushing her little pink walker.

"Oh Rocco, es tu novia?" Gladys gushed, grinning and exposing lipstick on her teeth.

"Si, abuela, esta es Evie," he replied slowly, still working on his Spanish.

"Ella es muy hermosa, una niña muy bonita! Oh, I am so happy for you, Rocco, finding such a nice girl!"

Rocco wrapped an arm around Evie's shoulder proudly, looking down at her, "I really did get lucky with her."

They'd lucked out, his aunt Marisol had been able to redirect Gladys before she began dumping her bingo gossip and ranting about her adult children.

"I got us edibles," Rocco grinned at Evie, locking the door behind him.

Evie rubbed her hands together, "Yay!"

He reached into his dresser drawer, handing her three wrapped chocolate pieces, and took three for himself, "Sorry about my family," Rocco told her, unwrapping the first chocolate.