Page 21 of Sin and Seduction

“My sweet boy!” she cries, squeezing him tightly as he gives me wide eyes, and Gabriela chuckles behind us.

“Hello, Maria. It’s great to be home,” he mutters, pulling back as she pats his body down, tears in her eyes.

“It’s been too long, my boy. Your mother and I have missed you so much,” she says, dabbing the fresh tears from her old and kind eyes.

“You’re never this excited to seeme,” Oscar says as he walks into the house with his partners.

Maria rolls her eyes and invites us in, stopping to give Gabriela a kiss on her cheek.

“I trust that you’ve been on your best behavior,” she says to her, scorn filling her voice as Oscar lets out a sound mixed between a scoff and a laugh.

“As always, Maria. Now, if you will all excuse me, I’ll be in my room,” Gabriela says, taking her luggage with her up the large, winding staircase.

“Say hello to your mother, child!” Maria yells after her, and Gabriela waves her off, disappearing from the room.

“Maria, I’d like you to meet Esmeralda. My fiance,” Dante says, taking my hand and bringing me to her. We decided not to mention our sudden marriage since we’re planning a wedding anyway.

Maria looks me over, her eyes kind but assessing me no less. She offers me a small smile before pulling me in for a warm hug. Her body is warm and plush, her hug feeling like that of a mother’s. It makes me tear up, but I push my sudden sadness away as we pull apart.

“There now, let me have a better look at you,” she says, touching my hair and holding my cheek in her hand. This woman is very personal, but I welcome it.

“Mujer hermosa,”Beautiful womanshe says. “Dante, why have you been hiding her?” she asks him, her eyes narrowed as he shrugs, handing the luggage to the men as they leave the room with it.

“Business matters,” is all he says, and she waves him off.

“Maria has been working for our family since I was a child. Though, she’s more of our pestering aunt than our housekeeper,” Oscar grumbles, and Maria shoots daggers at him.

“Come, let's see your mother,” Maria says to the men, pulling me with her as we walk down the stone hallway to the back entrance of the house.

She pulls us outside to a large, stone patio. I can see the view of the ocean now, but there’s so much more land than I thought there was. It almost looks like the backyard of Dante’s castle. I can see why he designed it; it was his home away from home. She seats us in the large sitting area, a glass table set with teacups, and a large vase of flowers sits in the middle of the lounge chairs. I hear a fountain and look ahead, admiring the large, stone water sculpture as Maria offers me a cup of tea. We all sit and chat idly until the backdoor opens again.

A woman in a long, flowy white dress comes out, and one look at her youthful face tells me she’s Dante’s mother. Mostly because she looks exactly like an older, female version of her son. I can see where his and Gabriela’s striking good looks come from. No offense to Oscar, but he probably looks like their father. Her eyes are golden, large and lined with black eyeliner. Her hair is jet black and wavy, cascading down her back. Her face is small, her lips full. I see no wrinkles or flaws. She looks like she could be in her forties, like she could be Dante’s twin sister and not the woman who birthed him.

She greets us with a small smile, kissing Dante and Oscar’s cheeks as they rise to greet her. Maria hands her a cup of tea, and she sits down across from us, eyeing me up and down. I feel hot under her stare, nervous and fidgety. She doesn’t look rude or judgemental, but that doesn’t make her any less intimidating.

“Mama, this is Esmeralda, my—”

“The daughter of the man who killed my husband, yes, I know who she is,” she interjects, stopping Dante as my eyes widen and my knees shake.

She knows...how does she know?

“Both of you were never great at keeping things a secret, something you inherited from your father, I presume,” she says, sipping her tea and setting it back down.

She crosses her legs, and I see her perfectly manicured toes peek out from her long dress. I feel sweaty all of a sudden, even more so because she won’t stop staring at me.

“How is your father, little one? Still murdering like a brute in all of California?”

“Mother!” Dante hisses, but she shrugs.

“I’m not wrong. What I want to know, however, is why you thought it was a good idea to bring her here,” she says, her expression cool as her eyes move from me to Dante.

“Because she—"

“Because we’re engaged to be married, and he wanted to introduce me. Also, because I needed to get away since my own father murdered my mother in my arms on his driveway a few weeks ago. That was only the third time I got to meet him. But don’t worry, your family is safe because your son shot him in the head as I held onto my lifeless mother’s body,” I interrupt, sipping my tea and sitting back in my chair.

I know it was abrupt, I can tell by the widening of her eyes, but if I am going to be in his world, I have to learn how to navigate it. I have to be strong and smart, and what’s better than matching someone else's energy?

“This is true?” she questions, looking over at Oscar, who nods solemnly.

---