Forever Summer (19 page)

“
Abuelita
says they might have rides and animals and
payasos
.”

“Rides, animals, and clowns?”

“Oops, yes clowns.  We shouldn’t mix our Spanish with our English, should we?”  Gabe set his daughter down, and she grabbed his right hand in hers and Summer’s left hand and led them to the house.

Araceli greeted them at the door and asked if they’d had a good day.

“Sí, Señora, gracias.  Me gustó la comida mucho, especialmente el guacamole. 
Muy sabroso.”

“I am glad you liked your lunch,
mija
.  Please, Summer, call me Araceli.”  The woman smiled at her with genuine acceptance and friendship. 

“
Abuelita
, Summer is coming to the carnival with us.”

Araceli smiled at Summer again then looked at her granddaughter.  “How wonderful,
mi vida
.  I know she will watch over you well.”  The woman looked back up at Summer smiling again, then gave her a nod of what could only have been approval and excused herself to go find her husband.

Gabe exchanged the BMW for a Jeep Cherokee explaining that the car was a two seater, and the jeep would be better suited and safer.  Also, although he’d never been bothered by the paparazzi in this area before, if they found him, they would have relative safety and privacy behind the tinted windows of the four wheel drive.

After Gabe had settled Marisol in her car seat and started pulling out of the courtyard, Summer put in a CD of children’s songs sung in English, then in Spanish, and she and Marisol sang along with it, Summer pointing out the vocabulary in the two languages and connecting the two.  After the first song, Gabe started laughing.

“What’s so funny, Gabe?”

“Nothing, nothing.”

“It’s my singing, isn’t it?”  That sent him into fits of more laughter. 

“You did warn me.  I’ll make a deal with you.  I’ll sing with Marisol, and you can talk in between the lyrics and tell us which words are the same in the two languages.  He looked at her with laughing eyes, thinking he couldn’t remember the last time he’d laughed so much in one day as he had with Summer this day.

“Fine, fine.  I know singing is not my gift, although I would say it is one of Marisol’s.  Your voice is pretty when you sing,
Chiquita
, just like your dad’s.”

“Thank you.  Summer?”

“Yes,
Chiquita
.”

“Summer, remember the first time we met, and you told me you didn’t want a boyfriend?”

Summer and Gabe looked at each other, and Summer looked back at Marisol as Gabe kept driving.  “Yes, baby, I remember.  Why do you ask?”

“I was just wondering if you’d changed your mind.  Papá is very nice, and you like how he sings, and he is happy when you are close by.  I would like you to be his girlfriend instead of Celia.”

That got Gabe’s attention.  While Summer was trying to regroup, he addressed his daughter.  “
Mijita
, Celia is not my girlfriend.  What made you think she was?”

“Well, Papá, she is always around you, and she came on the tour with us.  Also, … she told me she was going to marry you someday, so I should be nicer to her.”

“What?!  Marisol, I am not going to marry Celia, and she is not my girlfriend.”

“Good.  I don’t like her, and she doesn’t like me.  Since you don’t have a girlfriend, why don’t you ask Summer to be your girlfriend?  She is nice, and I like her a lot, and she likes me, too, right Summer?”

“Of course, I like you, honey.  How could anyone not like you?  You’re smart, and sweet, and you’re so much fun to be around.”

“ So, Papá, since Summer is so sweet, and she is very beautiful and smart, and you are not going to marry Celia, why don’t you ask Summer to be your girlfriend?”

“Marisol, I think that is an excellent idea.  Summer, will you be my girlfriend?”  He smiled a glance over to her, and she seemed to be thinking it over.

“Hmm.  I really wasn’t planning on having a boyfriend, Gabe.”

Feeling as though she’d already won half the battle, Marisol shifted her focus along with her persuasive skills over to Summer.  “But Papá is very, very handsome, don’t you think?  You like how he sings, and he’s not a brat.  Plus he is rich and he has a lot of houses and cars.  He even has his own plane.”

“And my teeth are very strong, too.”  Summer let a giggle slip out at Gabe’s sarcasm.

“Well, I guess we could be boyfriend and girlfriend and see how we like it, but only under one condition.  I will only be your girlfriend if I can keep on being Marisol’s teacher.”

“Then, we have a deal, Summer.  You can be my girlfriend and Marisol’s teacher at the same time.”

“Yay!  I thought you were going to ask for the plane, and I didn’t know if Papá would give it to you, because we need it to get to all his concerts.  So, do you agree, Summer?”

“I absolutely do agree,
Chiquita
.  It’s settled.”

Marisol clapped her hands in victory.  “Papá, you have to hold her hand now, and when we get out of the jeep, you have to kiss her.  That’s how they do it in the movies.”

“Just what movies have you been watching, Marisol?’

“
Cinderella, Sleeping Beauty, The Little Mermaid
.  You can be the prince, and Summer can be the princess.”

“You can be a princess, too, Marisol.  I don’t want to be the only princess.  It’s more fun it you’re one, too.”

Marisol beamed her agreement, and Gabe reached over to take Summer’s hand in his.

****

The carnival was great fun.  Marisol got to ride a pony along with several kiddy rides.  Her father was too tall to ride them with her, but Summer fit just fine and wasn’t the least bit embarrassed to join Marisol on the carousel, the miniature bumper cars, and the mini-race cars.  She did, however, draw the line at the pony ride.

Gabe’s contribution was to win prizes in several booths for both of the girls who were now in his life.  Marisol and Summer advised each other on which prizes to choose.  Around ten o’clock, Marisol started getting tired and asked her dad to carry her.  Not long after he picked her up, she fell asleep in his arms, and they decided to go home.  While Gabe carried the baby, Summer carried their prizes.  Both adults managed to balance everything effectively enough to still hold hands on their way to the jeep, both content to stay quiet, enjoying the peace and tranquility of the night after a very pleasant day.

Just as they reached the parking lot, the quiet was shattered by flashes and questions called out asking who the woman was with Gabe.  The paparazzi had found them.  Gabe took Summer’s arm and tried to shield her from the worst of it as he rushed them towards the jeep.  He unlocked the door before they reached it and told Summer to get in while he settled Marisol in the car seat.  He stayed calm, but she could see how tense his face was as he locked his jaw and refused to answer any questions.

“Come on, Gabriel, you always stop to talk with us.  Who is the mystery lady?  Is she someone special, maybe a permanent fixture in your and Marisol’s life?  What’s her name?”  The men continued to flash their cameras and bombard them with questions until Gabe got in the vehicle and tore out of the parking lot, several cars following behind him.  He called ahead and instructed his body guards to meet them at the entrance to the villa, so they could keep the reporters from entering the courtyard.  Although they usually respected the boundaries of private property, he wasn’t willing to take a chance, considering what a hot story this was bound to be within hours.

 “I’m sorry, Summer.  I guess my secret vacation spot is no longer a secret.  Are you alright?  What are you thinking?”

“You really want to know?”  Gabe steeled himself and nodded.  “I’m thinking that I’m extremely grateful that they didn’t catch up with us this afternoon instead of this evening.  I would’ve hated to be plastered on the cover of every gossip magazine without any clothes on.  Not that I’m looking forward to seeing myself in the press in any capacity, but at  least any pictures they got of us together will be fairly tame in comparison.  Unless of course, they really were using those telescopic lenses you were talking about earlier.  Then, I really will be upset.”

“That’s it?  You’re not upset now?”

“Well good God, Gabe, it’s not like this came as a total surprise.  I was really enjoying the anonymity we’ve had the last couple of days, but I’ve been on tour with you, remember?  I was there every time we snuck into a back entrance, every time you hired extra security, and every time you called in the bodyguards, so I’m not that shocked.”

“I’m very relieved you’re taking this so well, Summer, and surprised.  I should tell you that it’ll be much worse for you now.  On tour, you were just another employee, but now you’ll be considered a love interest, and they won’t only be trying to take pictures of me, but they’ll be hounding you now, also.  They can be relentless.  Most of the time, it’s not so bad.  I throw them a bone from time to time, smile for them, even stop and allow them to take pictures.  In exchange, they usually leave Marisol and my parents alone for the most part.  Eventually, I’ll strike a similar deal where you’re concerned, but for awhile, it’s likely to be a little crazy.  I’m sorry.”

“Just part of the territory, I guess.  I don’t like it, but I’m a big girl, and I’ll handle it.  What do you want me to say, if anything, if they corner me?”

“In the first place, I’m going to try to make sure that you’re never cornered.  I’d like you to take someone with you when you go out from now on, at least for awhile.  Things will die down before too long.  I’m more of a European and Central and South American celebrity, and of course in my home country of Mexico.  The European press can be a pain, but the Central and South American press usually only bother us when I’m visiting their countries. 

“What about the villa now, Gabe?  I’m guessing they know about it, too.”

“Without a doubt,
cara
.  I’ve called ahead to have security at the gates to close up after we drive through, but our privacy is very limited, I’m afraid.  Although I was joking about the telescopic lenses this afternoon, they do exist, and if they can’t get close enough, they’ll shoot us from far away.  I’m sorry,
cara
, but as the Americans say, it looks like the honeymoon is over for us.”

“Must you always reference marriage and weddings and blond grandchildren and now honeymoons?  I prefer to avoid those topics if you don’t mind.  I’m still trying on boyfriend and girlfriend for size.  Speaking of which, I may have a hard time with the ‘L’ word where boyfriends are concerned, but where your daughter is concerned, I’m afraid I’m completely lost.  She was just precious tonight as she played matchmaker and brokered the deal for us to choose each other.” 

“Like father, like daughter.  She knows a good thing when she sees one.  Marisol and I have very good taste in girlfriends, although it has never been put to the test until today.  I swore I would never introduce her to anyone until I met someone I wanted to potentially have a future with.  And before you launch into another speech, may I remind you that I only used the word ‘future’.  I didn’t say anything about marriage or weddings.”