Page 47 of Sin and Seduction

“Anything,” I say, sipping my red wine and looking into her golden eyes.

“Look after her, please. I know it’s a lot to ask, with your graduation and restaurant preparations, but I need some peace of mind while she’s away from me. The boys are hard on her. She needs a soft landing to fall on in this pregnancy. And perhaps a job to learn some work ethic,” she says as she sips the rest of her wine and pours herself another glass.

This makes a thought pop into my head.

“You know, I’ve seen how she is with people. She’s charming and understanding. I still haven’t thought much about a service manager for the place yet. Javier will be in charge of the kitchen with me, and I’ll be busy with cooking and marketing. I could use the help with customers,” I suggest, and Camila nods.

“I think it’ll be good for her. She’s planned and helped coordinate many of the events that I’ve hosted. She’d also be a great asset for your business’s event planning,” she suggests, and I smile.

“I think I would like that a lot. I’ll bring it up to her on the way home tomorrow.”

I start marinating the chicken and vegetables as Camila sets her wineglass down and walks over to me, placing a hand on my shoulder.

“You really are a godsend, Esmeralda. My husband would have respected you,” she says earnestly, and I smile.

“Everything I do is out of love. Now let’s have a nice, last dinner together,” I say, and she laughs and cooks with me the rest of the afternoon, putting our troubles in the back of our minds for the time being.

* * *

We leave Columbia the next morning. Camila cried and held onto her daughter before hugging me close. I promised her I would watch over all of her children, even though the men laughed at that. To be honest, they worry me more than Gabriela does. They’re so impulsive and hot-headed, you never know what mood you’ll come across. I can already tell there will be a lot of bickering between them all, but I plan to put Gabriela to work until this baby comes.

The plane ride back to California is long and tiring. I had a chance to be alone with Gabriela so I could speak with her about my plans to involve her in the business. She instantly became excited and agreed before I could even give her details. Seeing her smile again made me happy, and the excitement for my new business overshadowed my fears of the Diego Flores mission. Ignorance truly can be bliss.

I fell asleep the rest of the way home, waking up in my husband’s arms as he kisses my eyelids and my smile.

“Welcome home, baby,” he says, and I stretch and stand on wobbly legs.

We walk out from the jet, and Dante shakes hands with his new security team, who await us as well as Sergio. They walk us to the house, and I stare at the beauty before me. My new home is perhaps the most beautiful and perfect thing I have ever laid eyes on.

It is large and covered in white stone balconies on each of the four levels. There are many archways that lead around the house and also one that leads to the door. The walkway has several small fountains that lead the way up to the door, rose bushes trailing on either side of the path. We walk along the path and to the large double door. Dante walks us inside, and all I can see are the elegant vaulted ceilings and the large, crystal-dripping chandelier before the grand staircase.

There are many old and regal paintings on the walls, the floors made of beautiful, dark hardwood. I see a dining room to my left that opens up to a large kitchen. To my right is a living area and another room further down.

“The left side of the main floor has a large dining hall and a kitchen that leads to an outdoor eating area and bar. The right side has two family rooms and an indoor pool. The second floor has two wings with a total of four suites. Gabriela will stay in a large suite in the east, and the others are available to staff if they want it, but most of them have their own places and will be working in shifts. The entire top floor is ours,” Dante explains as we all tour the main area of the estate.

The dining room is all wood and antiques; I love it instantly. The kitchen is larger than the one in the LA house. It has a large kitchen island with stone countertops and barstools all along it. There are two sinks and a double oven in the wall. Large, ornate cabinets are built into the walls, and there are so many expensive appliances that I can’t even count. The view is what gets me. The entire wall is made of arched glass windows that give a spectacular view of the ocean and the city of San Francisco. A glass dining room set sits against that wall, and I can instantly picture myself sipping coffee quietly here every morning.

“I love it,” I turn and say as Dante smiles.

“You haven’t even seen the rest of the house yet,” he says, but I shake my head.

“I don’t need to. I love it. This is home,” I say, and he walks up to me and kisses my wedding ring.

“Our home,” he says.

19

Esmeralda

The restof the tour went well.

The pool hall is absolutely spectacular and is filled with archways, windows, and old paintings. Another gold and glass table sets the length of the pool, and I can see myself sitting there each night reading and sipping wine. We all part ways to go to our suites, and Dante climbs the staircase with me to the top floor where we will reside. Our suite is a large bedroom, set with two walk-in closets, an even larger bathroom, and a walkout balcony that overlooks both the city and the ocean.

I stand now with my hands on the balcony, looking at the ocean. The sun has set, and the ocean breeze blows my hair away from my shoulders. I breathe in deep and close my eyes, missing my mom even more now that I’m back in California. Each time I look at this ocean, I will think of her. A piece of her with me always now. Dante walks up behind me and kisses my shoulder before wrapping his arms around me.

“The interior designer comes tomorrow. You’re welcome to use the old furniture here, but I figured you’d like to make this place feel more like home,” he says, and I turn around to kiss him deeply.

“You’re here with me. That’s the only sense of home I’ll ever need,” I say, and he holds my face in his hands and stares at me longingly.

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