Escape to Paradise. Pamela Yaye

he was the cause of his father’s downward spiral made Santiago feel sick with guilt.

       “When are you going to move home and help me run the resort?”

       “When you stop throwing your friends’ daughters at me.”

       Mrs. Medina slipped an arm around her son’s waist. “Find yourself a nice girl from a nice Mexican family and I will!”

       Santiago chuckled when his mom wagged her finger at him. Then, she sighed dramatically and launched into her famous I-want-grandchildren-before-I-die speech. The one she repeated faithfully every week. To get his mother off his back, he considered telling her about Claudia, but thought better of it. Besides, what would he say? Hey, Mom, I met a stunningly beautiful woman at the airport who I felt an instant connection to, but I stupidly chased her off.

       While his mother talked, he replayed every minute of his conversation with Claudia in his mind. He wondered where she was and what she was doing. Was she reclining by the pool at her hotel? Or fighting off the men at the bar while she sipped her drink? No doubt about that. He’d seen firsthand the kind of attention she drew, saw how grown men tripped and stumbled over themselves in her presence. Not that he blamed them. Claudia had it all—flawless skin that had a soft, natural glow, eyes that penetrated, and an endearing shyness that made him want to protect her, hold her, take her in his arms and make everything wrong in her life better.

       “I’m just not ready to take that step,” he admitted, hoping to put an end to her complaints once and for all. “I’ll get married and have kids in God’s time and not a moment sooner.”

       His mother sniffed, rubbed her fingertips slowly under her eyes.

       “I’m sorry, Mom. I didn’t mean to upset you.”

       “You didn’t. It’s just, now that your sister’s gone, you’re all I have left. And it kills me only seeing you once or twice a year.” Wearing a sad smile, she patted his cheeks as if he was a little boy rather than a grown man. “It would mean the world to me if you returned home.”

       Hearing the anguish in his mother’s voice made Santiago feel lower than the gecko slithering outside the window. He cleared his throat, but the burning in his chest only intensified. The stench of his guilt was stifling, thicker than smoke, and suddenly the staff lounge felt smaller than an airplane bathroom.

       “I promised your father I wouldn’t say anything, but if I have to speak my mind—”

       “Ramón, there’s a problem out front I need you to take care of.” The female clerk standing in the doorway bowed slightly. “I apologize for interrupting, Señora Medina, but I was wondering if you’ve seen Ramón. I can’t find him anywhere.”

       “Tomorrow’s his daughter’s Quinceañera, so I let him go early,” she explained, waving her inside. “Rosario, there’s someone special I’d like you to meet.”

       Knowing what was coming next, Santiago braced himself for impact. He only prayed his mother wouldn’t ask the clerk out on his behalf. The last time she did, he’d been tricked into escorting a chatty fashion designer to a black-tie event.

       “This very handsome, very single young man is my son, Santiago. He’ll be returning to Cabo soon to take over running the resort, and I’m depending on you and the rest of the staff to show him how things are done around here.”

       Santiago frowned. Moving back to Cabo? To run the family business? No way, no how. There were too many memories, too much pain. And every time he saw the hate in his father’s eyes he was reminded of that tragic summer night. It was hard enough waking up each morning as it was; he didn’t need a daily reminder of what a screw-up he was, too.

       “I’ll try my best, Señora Medina.”

       “Now, what’s going on out front? You look upset.” Ana stuck a hand on her hip. “It’s not that South African diplomat again, is it? That horny old man is testing my patience, and if he propositions another female maid I’m tossing him out on his rear!”

       Rosario explained the source of her troubles. “I feel bad for Ms. Jeffries, but I’m apprehensive about granting her request. The last time I allowed a couple to stay in a suite without a valid credit card, they pilfered the mini bar and trashed the room.”

       “I remember. That’s why we revised our check-in policies last year,” Ana said with a fervent nod. “How long is she planning to stay?”

       “A month.”

       “I see. All right, let her pay in cash to cover the cost of the incidentals.”

       “I suggested that,” Rosario explained. “She refused.”

       “If she doesn’t have a hundred dollars in her bank account, then how can she afford to stay here for a month?”

       “I was wondering the same thing.”

       “I’ll get to the bottom of this.” Ana stepped forward, then swiveled around and grabbed Santiago’s arm. “On second thought, you go handle it. It’s about time you got your feet wet, and what better way to get acquainted with our policies than by manning the front desk?”

       “This is not exactly my area of expertise,” he pointed out, taking a giant step back. “I’m a business consultant, not a hotel manager. I don’t know the first thing about operating a resort.”

       “Don’t worry. Rosario will be right there to help you.” Ana pecked his cheek. “I’m going home to finish dinner, but I’ll see you in an hour.”

       A wave and she was gone, fleeing the lounge at breakneck speed.

       Rosario laughed. “Your mom is quite the woman.”

       “You can say that again.”

       “Shall we go?”

       Santiago nodded and reluctantly followed the brunette down the hall. He’d only arrived an hour ago, but his mother had already duped him twice. God help me, he prayed, releasing a tortured sigh, because at this rate she’ll have me married off by the end of the week!

      Chapter 5

      “She was just here,” Rosario said, gesturing to the red wingback chair she’d left Ms. Jeffries sitting in. “I don’t know where she could have gone.”