“Mija, we have business to discuss,” he says to Celeste after they’re gone, his gaze sweeping across the three of us.
Celeste squares her shoulders and moves to face me, a strange gleam in her eyes that seems out of place for the somber mood this evening. “I promise I won’t be long. Let Leo take you to our room, okay?”
She leans in and drops a kiss on my mouth. I’m too surprised to respond at first. Other than her hand-holding this evening, this is the first sign of deeper affection she’s given me in front of her father. But it’s impossible not to kiss her back, so I slide my arms around her and deepen the kiss just a little before releasing her. She disappears with her father into his office just off the foyer, and it takes a pat on my shoulder from Leo to tear my gaze away from the closed door.
“What’s she keeping from us?” I ask.
“Whatever it is, she’ll tell us when she’s ready.”
I glance at him as he leads me away. “I wasn’t imagining that look. You saw it too, didn’t you?”
Leo laughs and shakes his head. “Mad Dog, you haven’t lived with the woman for the past few months. You can trust her, but she and her father are their own little cabal. Best to just get used to it. Now come on before you fall on your face. You look exhausted.”
42
Celeste
Papá closes the door behind me, and I head to the wet bar beneath the window to pour us drinks. I hand him his glass, then settle in the chair facing him across his big desk.
“I wish we didn’t have to wait to give him the news.”
“I know, mija, but we don’t want to test fate.”
I sigh, trying to ease some of the anxious tension in my belly. I don’t like keeping this secret from Maddox, but the situation is still too uncertain. Right now I just want to go to him, comfort him as well as I can, and be with my two men. “Thank you for allowing him to stay tonight,” I say, watching Papá for any sign of disapproval. There’s nothing but an inscrutable mask.
Papá nods and sips his scotch. “He’s grieving. It’s better to be with the ones who love him the most.” His brows furrow and he stares down into his glass, swirling the amber liquid before taking another drink.
I ask the question that’s been itching at my conscience all week. “Marcella was who you went to when Mama died, wasn’t she? Do you still love her?”
He raises his head and stares at me, eyes wide. I don’t think I’ve ever seen him so shocked, so I give him what I hope is a comforting smile.
“Papá, you didn’t think we wouldn’t put it together, did you? Maddox and I had this revelation a week ago. He was there for me after we learned about Mama’s death. Marcella was there for you. You have history with her, don’t you?”
He sighs and leans back in his chair, swiping both hands over his face. “It was a long time ago. I wasn’t thinking clearly the night we got the news about Lola, and Marci was always easy to talk to. If I’d been more in control, I’d have sought out Amador right away. Made him answer for what he did. But I needed . . .” He leans forward and shakes his head, grimacing as if it pains him to admit he’s ever been weak.
“You needed comfort. Love. Don’t apologize for it. Maddox needs that tonight, and I’m sure he appreciates that you’re allowing it. Though I have to say you’ve come a long way for someone who insisted the Santos brothers were so untrustworthy.”
The tender look is back in his eyes and he smiles. “You’ve taught me something valuable these past few months, mija. I admit it was difficult for me to accept at first, but I lost something crucial from my relationship with Amador when we agreed to divide our responsibilities the way we did. Our strength was as a trio. Not as two couples with your mother’s attention divided between us. The distance was what destroyed us, what ultimately turned Amador into the monster he is.”
“He loved Mama, so your insistence that love can be a weakness wasn’t wrong. I just think it’s a lot more complicated than that. It can be a strength if we let it. Maddox taught me that.”
He takes another sip of his drink, then regards me thoughtfully. “If all goes as planned, you’ll need to explain in more detail to Maddox what my expectations are. We need to know we can trust him not to go to his family with the news.”
“I will, and I’m sure he’ll understand. Gustavo’s still a wild card though.”
He waves his hand. “Gustavo won’t have a reason to leave Cancún for a long time, if Amador lets him live.”
“How did he even escape the hospital? His room was under guard.” Papá’s eyes have a wicked glint and I tense. “You let him go, didn’t you? Why?”
“I needed him to deliver a message to his master. I want Amador to know I’m coming for him.”
“Leo and Maddox aren’t going to appreciate that, Papá. If you want them to trust you, you should have come clean.”
“They want you, mija. They won’t argue with my decisions if they want to keep you. But I’m confident once you explain the plan to them, they’ll understand it had to be this way. I have no doubt there will be another opportunity to see Gustavo suffer once the operation to destroy Amador is fully under way.”
I’m not sure I agree that it’ll be that easy to convince my men this is for the best. I’m not even sure myself, though I’m aware there’s a much bigger picture. After my call with Senator Longo, I have a suspicion that it isn’t the feds pulling Papá’s
