Fierce Pride (37 page)

“They barely know each other,” Libby exclaimed.

“Try teaching in high school,” Maggie replied. “Teenagers feel everything deeply and fall madly in love in the wink of an eye. A week is a lifetime to them. Clearly something just clicked between them.”

“Love at first sight,” Rafael agreed. “It can happen to teenagers.”

“Is that supposed to be helpful?” Santos shot back at him. “Why didn’t your mother call me, Maggie? I’m Fox’s guardian.” He poured whiskey for Rafael and chilled white wine for the sisters.

“She thought it would be better to approach you through me,” Maggie explained. “Coming here brought back so many sad memories, and she’s overwhelmed.”

Overwhelmed herself, Libby understood completely. She’d worn the pale orange top and the matching skirt that blurred orange to red to inspire an upbeat mood. She made herself comfortable on the sofa, crossed her legs, smoothed the skirt over her knee and bounced her foot. In a way, she welcomed a problem they hadn’t foreseen. “What’s the age of consent in Britain?”

“Sixteen,” Maggie answered. “We looked it up, but it’s only thirteen here.”

“We know.” Santos lowered himself into the vacant black leather chair. “What does your mother expect you to convince me to do?”

“Whatever you can to discourage Fox so he won’t be so eager to have Patricia come to London. That way, Patricia will think it’s his idea that she stays home rather than our parents’.”

Libby looked at Santos, who was clearly perplexed, and shook her head. “No one should ask Santos to break up a teenage romance. I think we should all stay out of it. Patricia can’t go to London if our mom and dad won’t pay for it. Can’t Patricia grasp something that basic?”

“Patricia has money saved,” Maggie said. “She couldn’t pay for school, but she could fly to London, stay in youth hostels and find work there.” Rafael refilled Maggie’s wineglass, but Libby hadn’t taken a sip from hers.

“And spend the weekends in bed with her Brit boyfriend?” Santos raked his fingers through his hair. “Fox is only seventeen, and he’s too young to lose himself in an American girlfriend. He’ll go to university because his mother expected it of him. She didn’t care whether it was Oxford or Cambridge, but he can’t let his schoolwork slide next year. I’ll talk to Patricia and make her see how badly she’d hurt Fox if she went to London and he did too poorly in school to enter university next fall.”

“What are you going to say to Fox?” Rafael asked.

“Nothing. He can’t know we were talking about him behind his back, so I won’t admit to knowing anything about what’s happening between the two of them. I won’t offer advice unless he asks for it, but I probably won’t see him again until Christmas.”

“He’ll find out you were in on it someday, and he’ll be furious then,” Libby interjected.

“I don’t need you to protect me,” Santos argued.

Libby lifted a brow, regarded him with a knowing smile, and he rolled his eyes rather than acknowledge she already had. She continued, “I’ll tell Patricia what high expectations Fox’s late mother had for him. If she really cares for him, she won’t want to ruin his future.”

Maggie looked up at her husband. “It does make more sense for Libby to call Patricia. Fox doesn’t consider himself part of the Aragon family, and I’d hate to see his relationship with Santos ruined. If Patricia thinks she’s doing what’s best for Fox, she’s the heroine of the story. Now what’s happened here? Have the police caught whoever held the mirror?”

“There’s a good chance they have,” Santos answered. “We have reservations for a seafood restaurant up the coast. Let’s go and talk about Granada while we eat. I’ve had enough problems for the evening.”

Libby finally tasted her icy-cold wine. “This is awfully good.”

“I’m glad you like it. The Aragon Trust invested in the vineyard. They just sent us a case,” Santos replied. “There were vineyards in Spain when the Romans arrived.”

Libby took another sip. “I don’t believe ‘arrived’ is a strong enough word.”

Santos nodded toward the door. “They stormed across our land intent upon slaughtering the Carthaginians. Is that better?”

Rafael winked at Maggie and took her arm as they left the den. Ready to follow, Libby placed her glass on the coffee table. “Convincing Patricia to behave responsibly might not be as easy as I made it sound, but I’ll keep working on it.”

“Thank you,” Santos replied, “but you don’t have to keep me out of it.”

“What sort of advice have you given Fox in the past?”

Chagrined, he shook his head. “Obviously nothing valuable.”

The restaurant was on the coast, and they had a glorious view of the sea from their booth. The seafood on the menu had been caught that day, and while Maggie and Rafael ordered the paella
,
Tomas made the seafood rice dish so well, Libby wanted something different. “What about the
parrillada de mariscos
. Is that good?” she asked.

“It’s a variety of shellfish grilled on a barbecue,” Santos explained. “It’s always good, or the
suquet
. It’s a fish and seafood stew with saffron, wine and tomatoes. Why don’t you order one, and I’ll order the other, and we’ll share?”

“Fine, both sound delicious.” Libby waited until the waiter had taken their orders and served their wine before she spoke to Rafael. “I didn’t have a chance to say how much I admired you for telling our parents about your past. It could have cost you dearly.”

“No, it couldn’t,” Maggie quickly denied. “I would have kept talking until they realized how much I love him.”

Rafael hugged his wife. “Prison time is too important to hide, and I would have kept talking too.”

Santos leaned back and gazed out the window. “Rather than complimenting your honesty, she’s trying to force me to say more than I want to tonight.”

“That’s a stretch,” Libby argued. “I’m not always thinking of you.”

Maggie laughed at them. “If Libby admires honesty, maybe you should reconsider whatever it is you’re not saying.”

“Not tonight. More wine?”

Libby laid her hand over her glass. “I’m fine.”

“Would you come to the restroom with me, Libby?” Maggie waited for Rafael to stand, and slid out of the booth. “I saw the sign when we walked in.”

Libby knew what was coming but went along quietly. The restroom was as handsomely decorated as the restaurant in white and marine blue and had a lounge with padded benches placed in front of long mirrors. Maggie took one and patted the space beside her.

“I don’t care what Santos is hiding. Don’t tell me. He has too much on his shoulders, and being injured in the ring has to be more difficult for him than he’s letting you see. Give him some slack, and it will all work out in time.”

Maggie had no idea how dangerous the secrets were, but Libby understood the concept. “What was it Mom always advised? Let men think they’ve won the argument, but then do as you please?”

Maggie turned to touch up her lipstick. “I thought giving in was more of a way to end an argument for the time being, but we might be thinking of two different things. Santos must see his world as completely out of control. Don’t add to his problems.”

“I’ll be gone soon,” Libby reminded her. “Maybe nothing I say matters to him anyway.”

“That can’t be true, not when I can almost see the sparks flying between you two. Make every minute you’re here count.”

Libby nodded and stood. “I think I already have, but there’s a difference between not wanting to share details of your life with strangers who read the tabloids and not telling your family the truth.”

“I agree, but Santos has a different understanding of family than we do. Let him call for shots for a while.”

Libby led the way out, but Maggie had no clue some of those shots might be real. As they returned to the table, she could see from Santos’s wary glance that he’d expected her to provide her sister with every juicy detail. She just shook her head, slid into the booth and, once he’d retaken his seat, she rested her hand on his thigh. “Maybe while you go to therapy tomorrow morning, I could see more of Barcelona with Maggie.”

“That would be fun,” Maggie agreed. “I want to look for a larger apartment and check out the American schools. I could keep you busy all day.”

“I should be home by noon. You could stay for lunch with us, if Rafael doesn’t need you.”

“I have to be at the university. Now, if it isn’t part of what you don’t wish to tell, did you meet with Orlando Ortiz?”

Santos clamped his hand down on Libby’s. “Yes, we went to see him. Had lunch with him and your mother in their condo, and I signed a poster for your half brothers.”

Rafael looked ready to breathe fire. “They aren’t brothers to me.”

“You’re the one who’s going to med school. Do you want to debate biological fact?” Santos countered.

“How did we leave you two alone?” Maggie asked. “You may enjoy goading each other, but Libby and I’d rather have a pleasant dinner together. Do we need to ask for a separate table?”

“No,” Rafael answered through clenched teeth. “Who was driving Ortiz’s SUV?”

“Your mother,” Santos answered. “She claimed she wanted to look at the Hispano-Suiza. I believe her. Libby was right; it was a coincidence, nothing more.”

Libby made it a point to show the restraint Maggie advised and was proud of herself for not offering a single comment while Santos spoke. She didn’t make it a brooding silence, but instead a calm, thoughtful quiet. The meal was one of the best she’d ever eaten, and she and Santos traded bites with teasing laughter while Rafael appeared deep in thought and replied to Maggie’s remarks with little more than nods and shrugs. It was an odd evening, saved by the
crema
catalana
.

The icy-cold egg custard was topped with a golden layer of grilled sugar and so luscious Libby was tempted to order seconds. “Have you eaten this before, Maggie?”

“Yes, at the ranch. I should learn how to make it. Maybe Tomas can teach us, and you can make it for everyone when you get home.”

Home
. Jarred by the word, Libby had to struggle to find a smile. “I should learn how to cook more than desserts, though. But you’re right. We ought to learn all we can from Tomas. Or will that cause him additional work, Santos?”

“Of course not. We’ll just eat your lessons for dinner.”

“If they’re edible,” Rafael murmured under his breath.

Libby giggled at his joke and couldn’t stop until Santos hugged her tight. “I’m sorry. I’ll bet you do that all the time, Rafael. You look so serious and then you’ll say something humorous, and it’s so unexpected it’s twice as funny.”

“I wasn’t trying to be funny,” Rafael insisted.

His innocent expression sent Libby into another fit of giggles, and Maggie began to laugh and couldn’t stop either. After paying their bill, Santos rose and grabbed his crutches. “We better go before they ask us to leave.”

“This was really fun, Santos. We’ll treat you next time,” Maggie promised.

When they reached the beach house, they picked up the wedding presents they’d left there and said good night.

Santos and Libby went into the den. “I’ll never understand what she sees in him,” he said.

“You don’t have to,” Libby insisted. “I should call Patricia and get it over with fast.”

“Fine, but if she balks at slowing things down with Fox, let me talk with her.”

“I will.” She pulled her cell phone from her purse and perched on the arm of the sofa. “It’s early evening in Minneapolis. Let’s hope she answers.”

“Libby!” Patricia greeted her warmly. “Let me guess, Mom’s begged you to convince me to cool it with Fox. Well, I won’t, so tell me what’s happening in Spain. Is Santos as great in bed as he looks?”

Libby closed her eyes and sighed. “Even better, but that’s not the point. Fox is a seventeen-year-old kid, Patricia.” She paused to speak to Santos. “Where’s Fox’s father?”

“He was a photojournalist and killed in Bosnia at the end of the war. Fox was a few months old and doesn’t remember him.”

“Patricia, Fox has lost both of his parents. If he gets too attached to you, he’ll be devastated when you break up with him, and you know you will.”

“Maybe not. He could be the
one
.”

“Wonderful, I hope he is, but after his senior year, his mother wanted him to go to university and have a career. If he spends next year screwing you, he won’t have the grades to go. If you do care for him, you’re going to have to make some tough choices, but you need to stay on your side of the Atlantic, and let Fox concentrate on school. Give him time to grow up and be the man his parents hoped he’d be, the man he should be.”

Libby held her breath and looked at Santos. When Patricia didn’t immediately respond, she tried again. “Just think about what I’ve said. If you two are meant to be together, then you will be, but don’t make it now when it could wreck Fox’s whole life.”

“All right. I see your point,” Patricia answered softly. “I wouldn’t do anything to hurt him.”

“Good, keep thinking about his future. Love you, good-bye.” She ended the call. “Patricia actually seemed to get the idea. I thought it would take half a dozen calls to get through to her.”