Make-Believe Marriage (5 page)

Chapter
III

Antônio arrived at 8 am,
Amanda was still in bed and was startled by the bell so early in the morning.

- I did not know you used
to get up early on Sundays. - She complained with a yawn.

- I wake up early just
when I have enjoyable things to do. Antônio smiled at the face that she made.

- What will we do today? -
She asked curiously as they had not agreed on anything.

- I'll take you to your
future home and the rest will happen. - He spoke and she looked at him
surprised.

- Did you buy a house? Even
before we set up the wedding! - She did not understand what had happened.

- No Amanda. I have a
house that was built some time ago, but because it is too big for me I decided
to rent it until the day I decided to go and live there. - Amanda pictured him with
his real family moving into the space he certainly had created with great
devotion and felt bad that he was postponing his life because of her.

- So it was your wish to
have your own family soon? - She asked.

- I will have... - Antônio
said realizing her insecurity. - … my family. You, Lucas and me. - He said
smiling.

- You are unique, did you
know that? You say those things so I should not feel guilty by exposing you
this way - whined Amanda.

- I'll be happy to see
that you are all well and safe; stop blaming yourself for everything. I said
I'm a pretty big boy and I know what I am doing. Right? Antônio wanted to be
able to tell her that everything was going as he had planned, but how could he
say that without causing anguish to that beautiful woman? His only way out was
to insist until she accepted the fact and stopped playing the martyr for
everything.

I didn‘t mean anything by it.
- He had the ability to remove a lot of bad thoughts that went through her
head.  

- I hope not, really! - He
joked. - I'll have to go on a trip for the next few days; if you need to talk
to me I'll be on this phone and on the mobile number you have - he said
changing the subject.

- All right. - Amanda
thanked picking up the card. - Do you want something to drink while I get
dressed? – she asked.

— No, thank you. I'm fine.
- Antônio replied.

Amanda took her bath in
record time not to have him wait too long and got dressed. She was putting some
light makeup on when she heard him walk across the room. Curiously, she hurried
to meet him. When she returned Antônio was already seated and watched her
intently giving the impression that he had approved her choice.

Despite having gone
through motherhood changes, Amanda, aged 27, still had elegant and perfect body
curves; she was certainly a beautiful woman and Antônio knew it well. Disguising
contentment he started a conversation.

- Your apartment has
always pleased me, it is very cozy. He said. - But I still think that living in
a house is best for a child. It has more space. He finished and Amanda agreed
with him

- I like it here a lot,
but I can get used elsewhere. - She explained and that is what he expected to
hear.

- You will like the house.
He had planned the decoration based on his and Amanda’s tastes, observing her
apartment. Not only because he had always yearned to share space with her and
her son, but also because Antônio felt good in her apartment. There was peace
and harmony there. Everything a home needed to be happy. Shall we?

Amanda followed him kind
of afraid. She did not know what to expect. In her heart she hoped that the
house was airy with nice colors at a safe and quiet neighborhood. Those would
be the necessary attributes to make her feel good in a new home. But inside her
Amanda believed she’d rather like Antônio’s choices. He was a wise man and
certainly analyzed the personality of people before putting up something simple
or extravagant. In her case she preferred the more traditional style and hoped
that this was also his taste.

Antônio parked the car in
front of an elegant two-story house in an upscale neighborhood near downtown. There
was a beautiful garden on the side. And on the other side a large garage had
been built; all had been paved with light flooring in abstract drawings. There
were many windows in the house, which certainly made it light and airy
throughout the day. A beautiful wooden door made up the external beauty and so
far everything was within Amanda’s expectations. Amanda was surprised when they
went in. The house was ready to move in, with new painting and furniture.

- The work of an excellent
and renowned architect. - She mentioned loving every detail.

- Did you have any doubt
about that? - He wondered taking her hand to get her to visit all the property.

The rooms were large with
carpets and curtains everywhere, providing a sophisticated character to the
environment. The furniture of each room was harmonized, matching all the
accessories and the colors of the walls. Antônio, like her, preferred warm
colors in contrast to the cold ones, so as not to tire the vision. And bore
future residents. The beautiful lamp placed on the corner remembered an old
movie that she had seen long ago. Two leather upholstery chairs in beige made
up the first living room. A beautiful sideboard with a Cora Coralina frame was
in the corner, near one of the fluttering curtains. In the other room, which
was separated only by large upholstery, a large TV and video room also very
airy. The white curtains in lace covered the dark windows from where you could
see part of the garden. A little further down, the last room was impressive
with a beautiful wooden table and worked chairs, possibly by hand, such as the
beauty of the design. In that room there were fabric blinds leaving the room a
little more formal and reserved. A sideboard with flowers and a large oval
mirror in the background was in the center, just behind the large table. Two
pictures, one on each wall, completed the lush and well made decor.

 Everything was marvelous
in her eyes. Realizing her approval, Antônio took her arm and took her to see
the rooms upstairs. A polished wooden staircase, and also worked, went up like
a snail and light from above showed almost everything that left her dazed. They
came to a large room with huge windows which also opened onto the garden. The
room colors were light, giving it an air of romance. A huge bed in the center
with beautiful small paintings adorning the bedside. The blinds were installed
across a glass wall where one could see the back of the house.

- Come see something. - He
picked up her hand again and they went to the closet that opened up to a door. When
it was opened a huge closet emerged next to a beautiful bathroom with a bathtub
that fit two people together and more. Amanda admired so much beauty.

- This will be our room. Did
you like it? - He asked.

- It is beautiful,
Antônio. I have no words to describe such beauty. - She said jubilant. Amanda
had forgotten that home would not be hers for too long. It seemed that the
house would be her blossoming place for many years. That was the feeling that
consumed her every step she took there. Looking again at the space suddenly
something caught her attention, almost breaking the spell. - But will we share
the same bed? - she asked self-consciously.

- Do not worry, when we sleep
together I will use that sofa bed. - He pointed at a corner.

- All right. - She said
knowing that it would be less problematic for both.

- Come with me. I want you
to see Lucas’s room. Down the hall he opened a door and they went in.

- It is beautiful
Antônio!! - She remarked in admiration. As in the previous room, it was all in plain,
discreet shades, including the furniture. There were toys on the various
shelves taking part of a wall. The child’s wallpaper caught her attention
because it had characteristics of her child. “That must have been a
coincidence," she thought. A computer and a study table stood in the
corner, ready to be used. But it was with the bathroom that she was enthralled.
The walls were fun. The tiles were all decorated from the floor to the ceiling.
There was also a bathtub with toys around it. It was a space where any child,
even those who did not like bathing, would be happy and feel like real
children.

- It is all very beautiful
Antônio!! Where did you get inspiration to do all this? - She wanted to know.

- Your son helped me a
lot. - He confessed. - Although I have none and cannot have children, I know
how to observe the likes of a child - he boasted.

- Maybe one day you can
adopt one. - She said changing the subject, knowing that even as an old piece
of information, Antônio still suffered from it.

- Would you accept him? -
He asked surprising her. “Why did he want to know her opinion?" she
wondered.

Of course I would. There
are so many children in need of a home, I would adopt one for sure. - She
replied.

Great! - He exclaimed. Amanda
smiled spontaneously when he pulled her to continue the exploration. Shall we? -
He suggested.

- Gentlemen first. - She
pointed and followed. - Amanda was looking forward to seeing more of the
beautiful house where she would live for as long as the agreement existed.

The other rooms were also
very beautiful, each with its own bathroom, airy and with a couple of chairs at
one of the ends. In the small kitchen everything was planned and modern. The
utensils were all organized and clean.

- Do you have someone
coming to take care of the house? - She asked realizing that everything was tidy
and in order.

– Yes. My employee comes
here twice a week to clean. - He explained.

- Your house is beautiful.
- She said when they were getting ready to leave.

- Our house. - He
corrected. Although she knew the unreality of the situation, Amanda had been
happy to see that he tried at all costs to make everything look as truthful as
possible.

- Now I'll take you to
lunch at my house. I think you have never given me this honor. - He remembered
making a face at her. “The promised day," Amanda thought.

- I was never invited. -
She joked when they went out together.

- If you had been, you
would not have accepted either - Antônio defended himself, opening the car
door.

- Maybe I would. - Amanda
replied. Or maybe not. - They both looked up as a couple about to be at their
home and briefly that complicity between them appeared normal to Amanda's eyes.

- Let's pretend that we
believe this. - He spoke skirting the car, got in and went to the other side of
town.

Amanda already knew his house.
She had been there with her son for a couple of times. This would be the first
time that just the two of them would be together.

- So today I will try your food. - She remarked as they went in
the garage and Antônio parked the car.

- In fact we are actually
going to eat the food that Dora left ready - he explained - I never considered
myself a good cook – he confessed.

- I can say the same. -
She had also decided to make her weaknesses clear.

- So I believe that my
cook will be welcome in our home. - Amanda found the sentence strange. Was he
saying or asking?

- There is no doubt that
she will be welcome, of course. She agreed.

Amanda was invited to sit
while Antonio went over the kitchen to put the food in the oven to heat. The
house where he lived was a lot smaller than that where they would live. Antônio
would give up that beautiful and comfortable space to go and live in his own
home, and Amanda felt guilty about it. How would he feel at the end of the
agreement? When they had talked about it, he had said that the house was too
big for him to live there alone, but he would be alone in it, sooner or later,
and maybe he wouldn’t find a place as good as that one in the vicinity, which
would be her fault. He deserved to have someone better than her to spend his
time, she thought. Upset, she kept looking at the few photographs he had
displayed with the family.

Lunch had been better than
she had expected. The food was really swell. The pasta was delicious. After
lunch, Antônio showed her a few projects he had been working on and others he
was preparing. Among the projects was the house where they would live. Watching
the details of the project, Amanda could see it was new, it had been drafted a
few months back and seemed to have been changed several times, as if ideas kept
popping up from a single observed point in time. Interesting: that conclusion.

– Amanda. – he said
bringing her back to reality. – I entitled myself to draft a few possible dates
to hold the ceremony. – Antônio said, handling a piece of paper over to her.

– Great Idea Antônio. We
have been talking about the wedding, but we have forgotten all about the date.
– She remarked picking up the schedule. – How about in two months? – Amanda
asked after reviewing the text.

– Don’t you think it is
too long? - He said sorry for mentioning that date. The last date he had set,
just not to appear rushed, since all the others were for earlier dates.