‘What?’
‘I’d like to stop for flowers.’
‘What for?’
She looked pained—and stiff. ‘Your mother’s birthday, for one, and the fact that I’m visiting someone’s home and don’t have a gift.’
‘I told you I have it covered.’
‘And given your attitude to money I’m sure it’s very generous, but I would prefer to give something more personal.’
Cruz ground his teeth together, praying for patience.
Five minutes later he swung the big car onto the side of the road in front of a group of shops. When she made to get out of the car, he stopped her. ‘I’ll get them. You wait here and keep the door locked.’
‘But they’re supposed to be from me.’
‘Believe me, my mother will know who they’re from.’ The last time he’d given her flowers he’d picked wild dahlias by the side of the road when he’d been about twelve.
* * *
Not long after that Aspen was relieved when Cruz pulled into the circular driveway of a large hacienda, with fat terracotta pots either side of a wide entrance filled with colourful blooms.
She stepped out of the car before Cruz reached her side and saw his scowl grow fiercer as he unloaded a box of brightly wrapped presents from the back.
‘You told me you were giving your mother money,’ she said, confused.
‘I am. These are for my nieces and nephews.’
That surprised her, and she wondered if maybe he had a heart beating somewhere inside his body after all. The thought lasted for as long as it took for his eager nieces and nephews to descend on him in a wild flurry.
It was as if Santa had arrived and, like that mythical person, Cruz was treated with deference and a little trepidation. As if he wasn’t quite real. Aspen saw genuine affection for him on the faces of his family, but it was clear when no one touched or hugged him that all was not quite right between them.
For his part, Cruz didn’t seem to notice. His cool gaze was completely tuned in to the delighted squeals of his six nieces and nephews as they unearthed remote-controlled cars, sporting equipment and several dolls. That was when Aspen realised that the gifts were either an ice-breaker or possibly a replacement for any real affection between them.
‘This is Aspen,’ he said once the furore had died down. ‘Aspen, this is my family.’
Succinct, she thought as each one of his family members warily introduced themselves, clearly unsure how to take her. Deciding to ignore the way that made her feel and make the best of the situation, she smiled at them as if there was nothing amiss about her being by Cruz’s side.
‘These are from both of us,’ she said, handing Cruz’s mother the elaborate posy he had purchased and watching as her gentle face lit up with pleasure. She must once have been a great beauty, Aspen thought, but time and life had wearied her, lining her face and sprinkling her thick dark hair with silvery streaks. She gazed up at her son with open adoration and Aspen could have kicked Cruz when he barely mustered a stiff smile in return.
An awkward silence fell over his sisters until his brother, Ricardo, took charge and led them all out to the rear patio, where the scent of a heavenly barbecue filled the air.
Cruz’s youngest sister, Gabriella, who looked to be about nineteen, hooked her arm through Aspen’s and took it upon herself to introduce her two brothers-in-law, who each had a pair of tongs in one hand and a beer in the other.
Gabriella pointed out the small vineyard her mother still tended, and the lush veggie patch in raised wooden boxes. Three well-fed dogs lazed beneath the shade of a lemon-coloured magnolia tree and the view of the ocean from the house was truly spectacular.
‘Cruz has never brought a girlfriend here before,’ Gabriella whispered.
Aspen smiled enigmatically. She knew the label hadn’t come from Cruz but she wasn’t about to correct his sister and embarrass them both. And, anyway, ‘girlfriend’ sounded much better than mistress to her ears, even if it did mean that she had terrible taste in men.
Returning to the patio, she found Cruz sprawled in a deckchair at the head of the large outdoor table, with his sisters and his mother crowded around him like celebrity minders who were worried about losing their jobs. One after the other they asked if he was okay or if he needed anything with embarrassing regularity, offering him food and drink like the Wise Men bestowing gifts on the baby Jesus.
The two brothers-in-law had cleverly retreated to tend the state-of-the-art barbecue, and Aspen tried her best to appreciate the amazing view of grapevines tripping down the hillside towards the azure sea below.