Chapter 22: Trio Routine Establishment, Part 1

The soft morning light crept through Eli’s bedroom windows, filtering through half-open blinds to cast pale gold across the rumpled sheets. Carla lay draped across his chest, her dark hair fanned against his skin, one bare leg hooked lazily over his hip. Her breathing was slow, steady, and content. Eli’s hand traced gentle circles along her lower back, savoring the warmth of her body pressed into his.

The house was silent except for the hum of the HVAC and the occasional creak of settling wood. The soft thrum of the security system sat quietly in the background, faithfully monitoring every corner of the house—every camera, every sensor feeding back to Mama Caceres’ monitors next door.

Eli was fully awake, though still happily pinned under Carla’s sleeping weight. These mornings had become more frequent, almost their default rhythm now. Carla spent more nights here than at her own house. And with Mama, things had ... shifted. Comfortably. Naturally. Somehow.

He shifted slightly to ease his arm from under Carla without disturbing her. She stirred, blinking her eyes open and smiling sleepily up at him.

“Good morning, mi amor,” she whispered, voice thick with sleep.

“Morning,” Eli whispered back, brushing her hair behind her ear.

Carla’s eyes flicked toward the small camera tucked discreetly into the corner of the ceiling. A mischievous smile crept onto her lips. She stretched with exaggerated slowness, pressing her curves against Eli’s side in full view of the lens.

“She’s watching,” she murmured.

Eli chuckled softly, his free hand resting over the small of her back. “I know.”

Carla rolled her hips against him, her playful grin widening. “Maybe she needs an invitation.”

Without another word, Carla reached for the small remote on the nightstand, tapping the programmed sequence of button presses they’d agreed on. Across the system, a quiet signal was sent. An invitation. A welcome.

Mama Caceres had insisted on keeping the camera access active, even after joining them. It was, in her words, her way of feeling connected—of maintaining the quiet control that once soothed her nerves. Now, it was part of their language.

Within minutes, soft footsteps approached from the back entrance. A gentle knock sounded on the bedroom door before it cracked open.

Mama stepped inside, wearing one of her soft cotton robes cinched at the waist, her hair pulled back into a loose bun. Her eyes met Carla’s first, exchanging a knowing glance, before drifting to Eli, then lowering for just a breath toward where Carla’s leg draped possessively over him.

“Good morning, babies,” she said softly.

Carla shifted, sliding partially off Eli and extending her hand to Mama, who took it and moved closer to the bed. Mama’s fingers briefly traced over Carla’s arm before her hand settled against Eli’s chest, the three of them forming a warm, quiet triangle of touch.

“You didn’t have to come so early,” Carla whispered playfully.

Mama smiled. “You called.”

“We missed you,” Eli said, his voice warm, filled with truth.

Mama’s hand pressed lightly against Eli’s heartbeat, and for a moment the three simply sat together, breathing in the soft morning light.

Their routine had fallen into this rhythm more and more. What had started as occasional help when Carla struggled to keep up with Eli’s seemingly endless stamina had become something far deeper. There was no formal arrangement, no schedule. Just understanding. Just need.

Carla remained his center—his anchor—but Mama’s presence no longer felt supplemental. She was part of the rhythm, as natural as breathing. A silent partner who could soothe, support, and balance the waves when Carla needed rest. Or when Eli’s appetite proved, once again, to be more than one woman could handle alone.

And yet, despite the depth of what they shared, certain lines remained. Mama and Carla’s touches toward each other never crossed into full intimacy. Their caresses were soft, comforting, sometimes lingering, but never sexual. Theirs was a partnership built on shared love for Eli, and for each other as mother and daughter, but never more.