With a Little Help From My Friends

Karim sighed as he got off the phone with his ex-girlfriend, rubbing his temples in frustration. I just want my daughter to spend and extra few days during the holidays and she won't allow it unless I pay extra child support, he thought angrily.

He put his phone to charge and poured himself a glass of Scotch and watched as a moving van unloaded furniture in front of the house next door. A young blond boy about seven years old in jean shorts and a red t-shirt with a red, blue and white eagle on front talked excitedly to the workers while a red-haired toddler girl looked about curiously, holding onto his hand. She's about the same age as Melia, he thought.

Karim went out onto this balcony to get a better look and saw the movers going into the house, a woman whom he took to be the children's mother directing the men. She wore jeans and a black t-shirt with a black kerchief around her head, the jeans clinging to her ass. I have to know her, he thought.

Ausra had finished directing the men and was putting away the children's clothes when she heard a knock on the door. "Hola, Senora. Yo soy tu nuevo vecino, Karim Benzema", he said in accented Spanish.

"Hola, Senor Benzema. Etes-vous Français?", she asked.

"Oui, how did you know?", he asked in surprise.

"I know who you are, and you have an accent. I am Ausra Naryshkina Moore and these are my children Alexey and Zaria", she said.

Karim was in awe when he heard her flawless French, spoken with an upper-class Parisian accent instead of his own Lyon accent. "Vous etes Francaise?", he asked.

"Non, je suis russe et lituanien, monsieur Benzema", she said as he looked even more awed.

"Maman va travailler pour Real Madrid, elle sait beaucoup de langues", said Alexey proudly.

By now Karim was not surprised the boy spoke French after hearing his mother. "Oui, are you a physio?", he asked.

"Non, I am going to handle the foreign PR. I did that for the Washington Capitals and Quebec Nordiques hockey teams. I am going to make some tea, would you like some?", she asked.

"Oui, madame", he said.

Karim watched as she plugged in an electric kettle and added water, preparing two cups with loose tea leaves while the children watched a Spanish cartoon on TV. "I am going to enroll Lyosha in a Spanish school, he already knows English, Russian, French and Swedish", she said.

"Sensationnel!", he exclaimed.

"His father is Swedish and he visits in the in the summer, he is a hockey player. And we speak Russian at home", she explained.

Karim noticed the simple gold wedding band on her finger. "My husband John was killed by a drunk driver last September?", she whispered.

"C'est affreux! Je suis désolé", he said.

Ausra nodded sadly as she poured the hot water over the tea leaves. "Merci, but I'm learning to deal with it. My father was the one who got me the interview with Real Madrid, he thought I needed a change of scenery for myself and the children", she replied.

"Who is your father?", he asked.

"Sergei Naryshkin, he is part owner of CSKA", she replied.

Karim let out a whistle. "Wow. I had no idea my new neighbor is Russian royalty", he joked.

Ausra chuckled. "We used to be royalty until the Communists, Dad made his first fortune playing hockey and then invested in Moscow real estate and bought a majority stake in CSKA. I have Russian citizenship although I was born in the US, I renounced my American citizenship when John and I moved to Russia after his career finished, we met when he played on the Nordiques. And are you French and consider yourself French?", she asked.

"I am French, French as that bitch Marine Le Pen. I was born in Lyon, am a citizen, speak French and play for the French national team. Just because I'm Muslim and my family was from Algeria doesn't make me any less French", he growled.

"Je sais, people didn't think my sister and I were American because are parents were from the Soviet Union and because we have funny names. I'm a Russian citizen and she is a Canadian citizen", said Ausra dryly.

"Bien, madame Moore. And please call me Karim, may I call you Ausra? It's an unusual name", he said.

Ausra handed him a cup of tea. "Ausra is the Baltic goddess of dawn, my sister Laima is named after the goddess of fate. Trust me, you don't hear those names in the US", she chuckled.

"Oui, but it is a beautiful name", he said.

Ausra couldn't help the blush on her cheeks as her stomach did a little flip-flop. Is he flirting with me?, she wondered.

"You are a beautiful woman and we are both single, my ex lives back in France with our daughter", he said bitterly.

"Que mal, Karim. You show us around Madrid and I would like to meet the guys", she said.

"Of course, Madrid is a wonderful city. You'll meet with the guys during training camp, if you need someone to watch the kids the guys will help you find a nanny", said Karim.

"I did a lot of traveling when I worked for the Caps and then the Nordiques, but I've seen every major city in America and Canada", she said with a laugh.

"I've been to New York and Vegas and Miami and LA, those are great", he chuckled.

"I've been to Winnipeg, Columbus, Raleigh and I was born in Pittsburgh, I've seen the buttholes of both Canada and the US", she quipped.

Karim had to smile at her quick wit, thinking she looked more beautiful when she smiled. He could see her hair was red under the kerchief and her sharp Slavic features and brilliant green eyes reminded him of a fox, her intelligence adding to the impression. "I haven't been to that part of the US, perhaps you can show me around", he teased.

"Believe me, there is nothing to see there except drunks and country music", she laughed.

"I don't think I've seen places that bad in Spain, Spaniards like to party and have swag. You do know we have that preseason tour, we play Man City and Liverpool in England", he said.

"Oui, I know both places. I have a cousin in Manchester and Dad took us to Liverpool one year because he's a huge Beatles fan", she replied.

"But you have to get a nanny before the trip. You won't have much contact with the guys unless you're arranging an interview, the guys are pros. Sergio and Marcelo can be big pranksters, but if you're chill they'll leave you alone", he said.

"I've dealt with athletes, if you roll with the punches they'll respect you. And I can cuss them out in their languages", she quipped.

"Je sais, vous êtes très intelligent. Do you have anything for dinner?", he asked.

"Non, I just have milk and cereal and coffee. I have to do grocery shopping", she replied.

"Come over and I'll cook, I have three sisters and my maman taught me to cook. Takeout is boring after a while, do you like Arabic food?", he asked.

"Oui, Lyosha and Zasha don't have any allergies and aren't picky eaters. I will return the favor one day and cook you Russian food", she said.

"Tres bien, Ausra. I will see you and the children later, au revoir", he said, kissing each her cheeks before leaving.