“She’s great for a lot of reasons. So’s her wife.” I slid the sandals from Owen’s feet before putting him in his crib, and he barely stirred. “The museum was exhausting for him,” I explained, “but he loved it. They have an enclosure with an albino alligator, and Owen ran back to it at least a dozen times. There’s also a walk-through rainforest habitat, and he thought that was pretty great.”
Mr. Suarez rested his hands on the crib’s railing and watched the sleeping toddler as he said, “It sounds fantastic. Maybe we can take him back while I’m here, so he can visit his alligator friend again.”
“I’d like that. Do you know how long you’re staying?”
“I initially thought it would just be for a day, so I could yell at my son.” He said that with a grin, which crinkled the corners of his dark eyes. Lucky looked so much like him that it felt like I was getting a glimpse into his future. “He dropped a huge bombshell on me this morning, and he chose to do that over voice mail. I don’t think I’m so hard to talk to, but maybe I’m wrong.
“Then I went into Elie’s bedroom and saw the picture of him with you and the baby. That was when I realized I’ve been out of the loop, as they say, and I thought we should meet.” Mr. Suarez turned to me and met my gaze as he said, “You love my son, yes?”
“Very much.”
“He loves you too, this I know for a fact. So, you two will get married one day, which makes this little angel my grandson. I have just one child, and when I found out he was gay I thought that was it, no grandchildren for me. But I was short-sighted. I didn’t think about adoption, or a case like this where he went out and found himself a whole family.”
I whispered, “Oh god, I hope so.”
“What’s wrong?”
“Owen’s maternal grandparents are suing me for custody, and everything’s riding on the paternity test I took today. If the results come back saying he’s not my son, I don’t know what I’ll do.”
My voice was shaking, and Mr. Suarez patted my back as he said, “No, don’t worry, son. We’ll get you good lawyers and fight this with everything we have.”
“Lucky did that yesterday,” I told him. “He hired the best lawyers money could buy, as soon as I told him about the custody hearing. Then he rushed to get here, because he knew I needed him. He’s wonderful about taking care of me.”
“No wonder Elie’s been so miserable. Why did he leave the man he loves to come run a company that’s never interested him?”
“Because he loves you too, and he never wanted to disappoint you.”
He sighed and shook his head. “It makes me sad that he keeps so much of what he’s feeling from me. But it’s good I came here, because already, I’m starting to see the whole picture.”
“You two really need to talk. He has some ideas he’d like to pitch to you, and I hope you’ll hear him out.”
“Yes, he mentioned running the company from San Francisco in that voice mail. I have no idea how that would work, but I suppose we could figure something out. I certainly understand why he wants to be here, with you and the baby.”
“There’s more,” I said, when I saw the sadness in his eyes. “He wants you to move here, too. Your son loves you so much, Mr. Suarez, and he wants you close by.”
“He said that?”
“Yes, he did. I’m speaking out of turn right now, but I hope you’ll consider it,” I said. “It would mean a lot to both of us if you were here.”
He leaned against the edge of my dresser and asked, “But what would I do in California? I thought even after I retired, I’d still have a hand in running the company.”
“You will, and you know where you’ll be desperately needed? The brand new west coast offices of Suarez Global Enterprises. Lucky still needs training, right? And when you’re not at work, we have lots of world-class golf courses for you both to despise.”
He chuckled at that, and then he said, “It’s a lot to think about. I’ve lived in Miami since I was ten years old, and maybe I don’t do so well with change. Plus, I need to hear this from Elie. I want to know he really wants me here, and it’s not just his guilt talking.”
I picked up the baby monitor and nodded. “I understand. Let’s go downstairs, Mr. Suarez. We should think about some dinner, and I hear there’s a bottle of your tequila in the house. I’d love to try it.”
He seemed surprised. “You’ve never had our tequila before?”
Then he mentioned the brand name of one of the most famous tequilas in the world, and I exclaimed, “Oh! I didn’t realize that was your product, and of course I’ve had it. Who hasn’t?”
He paused at the top of the stairs and turned to me. “Elie really doesn’t talk about the company, does he? I realize it’s never been his passion.”
“I know he’s very proud of you. He calls you a genius, and he’s told me how you built the company from nothing.”
He grinned and pointed out, “You dodged the question, but fair enough. There’s much I need to discuss with my son. It just seems easier to talk to you, somehow. Elie isn’t as forthcoming.”
“That’s because I haven’t spent my whole life worrying about disappointing you, sir. It makes it much easier to speak freely.”