Reincarnated as a Fisherman and a Dad Chapter 218
By nightfall, Karlos's birthday party had officially come to an end. All the neighbors and guests had filtered out of the front yard with full stomachs, leaving behind only a few leftover dishes that Maya planned to store in the fridge for the coming days.
Only Joseph and his family remained in the house. Venus and Gavin were still wide awake, happily playing hide-and-seek and giggling with their little cousins, including Jenny and Marlon, who were Andres's children.
"Penelope, Brother, thank you so much for everything," Maya said sincerely. Even though they had used disposable plates and utensils, large family gatherings always needed plenty of cookware and serving trays that needed scrubbing. Joseph had taken charge of the kitchen, ensuring that by the time the party wrapped up, every single dish was washed and put away.
Joseph and his family had arrived early that morning to pitch in with the cooking, and their immense help had made the day run smoothly.
"We're family, we're always going to help each other out," Penelope waved her hand dismissively with a warm smile, and Joseph nodded in agreement.
The couple was genuinely happy to see Maya living so comfortably and thriving. After watching Karlos steadily improve his livelihood over the years to provide a wonderful life for Maya and the twins, both Joseph and Penelope had completely changed their tune about him.
Karlos proved to be a devoted partner and a fantastic father. Even Venus and Gavin now looked up to him with genuine respect. Karlos was no longer viewed as a struggling outsider, he was a respected, successful man in his own right.
"Oh, before I forget, here's our birthday gift to you, Karlos."
"A gift? Nah, you really didn't have to. I'm getting too old to expect birthday presents," Karlos said, looking pleasantly surprised as Penelope handed him a small, neatly wrapped box. Attached to it was a card with handwritten words: Happy Birthday, Karlos Alejandro. From the Reyes family.
Reyes was Maya's maiden name. Maya Reyes.
"It's nothing extravagant, but I figured it's something you'd actually use. Joseph was the one who picked it out," Penelope explained.
"Babe, go ahead and open it," Maya encouraged, noticing Karlos hesitating. He rarely ever received gifts, so he wasn't quite sure how to react.
"Okay." He nodded, carefully tearing away the wrapping paper to reveal a heavy-duty, waterproof flashlight. A wide grin broke across his face.
"This is incredibly practical. Thank you so much."
As a fisherman who headed out to sea almost daily, a reliable flashlight was an absolute lifesaver.
"I knew you'd appreciate it. Having spent years on the water myself, I know how vital a good light is. That model is exceptionally bright, and I made sure to include rechargeable batteries to make it even more useful."
Karlos turned the flashlight over in his hands, admiring its rugged, durable build. He instantly fell in love with it.
"Well then, we really need to head home now. It's getting late." Joseph had a full workday tomorrow, meaning he needed to get to bed early.
"Take care, and thank you again, Brother."
"Alright kids, time to head out. Jenny and Marlon, you guys need to get back home too, your parents are probably looking for you," Joseph called out to the children. In his hand, he carried the bottle of wine Karlos had gifted him, looking forward to savoring a glass later that night.
A few minutes later, only Karlos and his immediate family remained. It had been an eventful, heartwarming day, one that Karlos knew he would cherish forever.
"Looks like the little ones are completely tired out. Let's get them into their cribs," Maya smiled softly, looking over at the twins, who had fallen fast asleep right there on the living room couch. Playing hard all day had exhausted them, and the moment night fell, they had crashed instantly.
Now that the children were fast asleep... it was time for Karlos and Maya to celebrate in their own way.
"I almost forgot, I still haven't given you my actual present... Here." Maya handed him a small stack of handmade cards with a mischievous glint in her eye. She blushed slightly, having personally written every phrase on the cards detailing various intimate acts and positions she loved... Truth be told, it wasn't really a gift for Karlos, it was just as much a gift for herself.
"These are one-time-use vouchers. Once you play a card, it's gone for good," she reminded him playfully.
Karlos curiously flipped through the stack, letting out a low chuckle. The cards were filled with cheeky, explicit prompts like sloppy toppy, 69, and several other adventurous ideas.
"So I'm officially allowed to do all of this to you?" Karlos asked, raising an eyebrow.
"M-Most definitely," Maya stammered, a flush of excitement creeping up her neck.
"Alright, let's pick this one first," Karlos selected a card and handed it back to her.
"Ohh... you're very naughty," Maya giggled as she read the word Cunnilingus written across the paper.
The couple thoroughly enjoyed their private time together... Though, as it turned out, the cards were completely used up by the third week. In reality, the vouchers were mostly just for fun, since the couple practically experimented with all kinds of intimate things nearly every single day anyway. If Karlos ever wanted to try something new, Maya was always more than willing, cards or no cards.
The novelty items were just another playful way to spice things up, though they certainly didn't dictate their already active, passionate sex life.
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"Sharon, I heard your boyfriend just resigned from his job. What's going on with that?"
A female worker at the local sardine factory cornered Sharon, pressing her for gossip about Domingo.
"I don't really know," Sharon brushed it off casually... Though she had heard through Domingo himself that he wanted to transition into business rather than continuing life as a truck driver. That exact revelation was the moment Sharon had started seriously contemplating breaking up with him.
Sharon had never seen much of a long-term future with Domingo. She had only agreed to date him in the first place because he was generous with his money, every time he returned from a delivery run, he brought her nice gifts.
Overall, though, Domingo was painfully ordinary. He had average looks and an average height, though his salary had been comfortably above average, which was undeniably a major plus. But the moment he threw away his steady job to chase an unproven venture, Sharon instantly lost whatever interest she had left in him.
It didn't help matters that Domingo had a notoriously difficult mother. Whenever Sharon visited his family home, the older woman would lecture both Domingo and Sharon endlessly about household expenses, constantly preaching that they needed to tighten their belts because starting a family was no small feat.
To be completely honest, Sharon had never had any real intention of building a family with Domingo anyway... She had simply been biding her time, waiting for a wealthier catch to come along. Unfortunately, she wasn't particularly gorgeous enough to easily attract rich men, being entirely average herself.
[Thank you for reading this novel.]