Bona Fide Baby

Chapter 25 - Living On The Breadline

Omar glanced at the seat next to him. Xiomara had her eyes close, her head leaning back against the headrest. He lifted his hand from the gearbox to squeeze her exposed knee. A small moan escaped her luscious lips, but she didn't wake.

For dinner tonight she had chosen to wear a short skirt that flared out at her hips and left the lower part of her legs bare. He really liked her taste in clothes, and now that he'd gotten a chance to think about it, he didn't want her wearing any of the things Natalya ordered.

Not that Natalya had horrible taste, but Xiomara deserved to have her own things. Her style was too beautiful for her not to show it off. Even with the pregnancy cramping her style, she'd managed to look absolutely beautiful tonight. And he'd told her so, but instead of accepting his compliment, she'd been worried about how tight her shirt was.

"I feel like my boobs are on full display," she said. "I need to get myself some new bras."

After her comment he'd been unable to keep his eyes off her cleavage. He loved how honest she was when talking to him. He never wanted her to think twice about speaking her mind, and yet at the same time he'd had to bite down on his tongue to stop himself from offering to buy her new clothes. She would have rejected that offer, the same way she'd rejected his offer to have her move in with him.

Later that night she'd gone on to prove him right. If she wasn't ready to accept a simple meal from him, then a whole new wardrobe was out of the question.

"What are you having?" he asked so that he could gave their order to the waitress when the time came.

"The grilled chicken breast," she said.

He nodded, but couldn't stop himself from asking, "Did you choose that because it's the cheapest thing on the menu?"

She bit down on her lip. "Why I chose it doesn't matter."

"Choose something else, baby. Something you really want to eat. Money isn't a problem. I asked you out on a date. I will pay. It's that simple. Now choose something else."

For a moment she looked uncertain, contemplating whether to change her order or not. She glanced down at the menu and then back at him. "That's exactly what I meant when I said we come from different worlds. It isn't fair."

"To whom?" The waitress came up to their table then and he motioned for her to stay back.

"To you. I can't do nice things back to you. Not only that, I like taking care of myself. I work hard for what I have, and if the chicken breast is what I can afford, then that's what I'll have."

"Xiomara, no."

"No what?"

Irritation was written all over her face, but he didn't care. He reached for her hand from across the table and dropped an open mouthed kiss on the back of her knuckles. "It would make me really happy if you would just give me a chance to be your man. If I want to spend a thousand dollars on you tonight, it's my choice. Stop fighting me on the trivial stuff."

"Trivial? What does that even mean?"

"Unimportant stuff."

"Unimportant to you maybe." She tried to pull her hand out of his hold, but he tightened his grip and narrowed his eyes at her. She sighed, eventually conceding and changing her order.

Sometime later during desert, she opened up to him about her family. He was surprised to learn that she had six siblings, including Esmeralda. She tried her best to steer the conversation away from herself and her feelings. Unfortunately for her, he was a good listener, and he picked up on a few things she wouldn't have directly disclose to him.