Chapter 143 - Settling in - mddos
Veronica
"Take care. Simon, you said the house wasn't furnished, or at least that's how it looked in the photos. When we arrived today, we were surprised to find it furnished."
"That's what Cebolla told me. Ma'am, don't feel bad about what happened with Juan. I heard about his transformation."
"I don't want to think about that. I don't want to see that idiot ever again. Simon, please arrange for the horses to be moved. I want Hathor close by; she's already in her sixth month."
"I'll get everything coordinated before I leave. Once I'm done with Barranquilla, I'll send Mo... Arnold and Churrusco. I want them to help with the ranch and take care of things. Cebolla can handle the care, but an extra hand doesn't hurt."
"Simon, it's essential that Gladis travels and brings copies of the documents she had in the library, or whatever she managed to save. Please tell me if Galaxia, Gala, and Galo made it."
"I'll keep you informed. Take care."
"Simon, the only thing left to do is the shopping. I'll go with Miguel to buy some things in town. This ranch is beautiful; it has my husband's touch everywhere. Say hi to Luisa for me. Are things good between you two?"
"Yes, moving slowly but well. We're having dinner with her cousin tonight, and she's surprised by what Miguel said about his transformation."
"Luisa has a cousin in Colombia? And don't make fun of me."
"Yes." I heard his laugh.
"Simon, talk to Raul. Tell him my job offer is still on the table. He's a chemist, and I need him. I have two projects in mind for the Palmera, Frutal, and La Múcura farms."
"Alright, I'll talk to him."
"Thanks. Take care."
…………
Roland
I couldn't think about going back home. I needed to calm down, so I came to the cabin. I had equipped it yesterday because I knew Veronica would arrive soon. My intention was to kidnap her and stay here for a couple of weeks since I couldn't take her anywhere else, and I wanted to save a special permit for later. I sighed. Nothing was going as I had planned.
I felt so insecure and regretted not seeing more. Now I didn't know if they kissed for long or if she regretted it. The only thing in my head was that I crawled for three hours to see her, and the shameless woman just laughed and ended up kissing that jerk. I threw my sixth beer can into the trash.
That idiot won't take my woman from me, and you, Veronica, will pay for kissing another man. I felt like a fool, being faithful to you. The only thing in your favor, which exonerates you from infidelity, is that you think I'm dead. But now I'll play a little with you until my anger passes. I can be very childish... I'm burning with rage!
Three hours had passed since it happened, and I hated the urge to see her again. Is this what love does, Lord God? Turns one into a fool? All these months without seeing her, and she kisses another... I couldn't judge her; she hadn't committed infidelity. She thought I was dead and was free to be with anyone she wanted. But what about the promise that there would be no one but me? You're lucky you don't know that Luisa is my sister.
Otherwise, your attitude would be pure flattery. Anyway, I'll make you pay for kissing someone else. Starting tomorrow, you'll hear from me. I hadn't eaten anything. I went to the fridge, took out some deli meat, and made something to fill my stomach. After eating a sandwich, I grabbed another beer and went to the bedroom. I called my mother and told her I'd be sleeping at the cabin. It was a habit when I wanted to be alone.
Amón was in the stable next door, a place for two horses because the idea of the cabin was to spend time together. I needed to think. I looked at the ceiling. I need to talk to you, Lord God.
"For once in this story, let something go the way I want. Don't let Veronica stray. Did you hear me? I hope so, Lord God."
Veronica thought I was dead, and with malice, I began to hatch a plan. I'll show myself only to her. She'll think I'm a ghost. I wanted to see her reaction. I'll give her another name if necessary. I'll invent whatever it takes to make her want me again. Oh! Beautiful, you shouldn't have kissed him.
Time slipped away as I thought about how to approach her. I'll make her see me and ignore her, act like I don't know her, like she's a stranger. Everything will depend on you, Veronica. In a few days, you'll be in my arms. And then, we'll live until death do us part.
……
Veronica
Blanco was a small town, and the anger had dissipated. Miguel accompanied Juan to pick up his suitcase from the hotel, then dropped him off at the bus station so he could head to San Antonio. That was as far as my friend's help went, mainly because he couldn't leave us alone and unprotected for too long. We had also retrieved our belongings; our intention was to see the house and figure out what we needed to buy.
In the meantime, we would stay at the hotel. What a surprise to find it furnished. According to Miguel, Juan was very sorry for giving me that peck, and yes, Ines was right, it was just a peck, but he still didn't respect the agreed condition. The good thing was that I wouldn't see him again. Maybe later, but for now, I didn't want to see him at all. The four of us set out in the truck to find a supermarket. We needed to do some shopping. We had lunch at a restaurant, and then Miguel drove through several streets. It was much bigger than I had imagined.
From his behavior, it seemed like he was memorizing where the fire station, hospital, stores, restaurants, gas stations, etc., were located. I imagine he had trained himself to have a photographic memory. Diana sat beside him as the co-pilot. I had seen them being very affectionate. In the back, I sat with Ines and my baby, who was in a very good mood.
We arrived at a supermarket and got busy shopping. I acted as the translator for Diana and Ines since they didn't know the language. Miguel spoke it perfectly. We filled five carts. There was nothing in the house. It was true that it was furnished, but we didn't find even a glass or a bucket, and the fridge was off. Miguel carried the baby in his carrier. We would also need to buy clothes, equip the baby's room. Thankfully, we had the truck, and we filled it with all our purchases.
Tomorrow, we needed to place an ad to find workers. During our tour, Miguel pointed out an employment agency. I told him we needed to go there to hire staff. Additionally, we had to buy at least a couple of horses to explore the land, as well as cattle and other animals. Ines asked for chickens. Tomorrow would be an important day; I already wanted to have many animals.
El Renacer would be one of the most prosperous ranches in this region. We returned home, and Miguel took care of setting up the baby's room next to the one Diana had taken. Although a crib was a luxury for now, the other one would be in the mother's room. Meanwhile, we got the kitchen going, turning it into a normal kitchen rather than the magazine-like one it looked like now. We realized we had missed many things. Diana made a list to go back tomorrow.
"The baby is getting chubbier every day," I said.
"That's what the pediatrician said at his last appointment, and that's just from breastfeeding. Though he's within the normal range, he's not obese."
"He's getting close," said Ines.
"Ines, how many people do you need to help you, both in the kitchen and with the house chores? You'll just supervise."
"I've always had four people in the house, and this ranch is four times bigger."
"Then, two to help in the kitchen and six for the rest of the house."
"Let's start with that number and see if it's enough. I don't like overloading the staff. Also, we'll need stable hands, a foreman, and field workers," she said.
"Yes, I'll wait for Churrusco to arrive. He'll help me with the staff. For now, let's focus on the house. Simon will be here in a week, and we'll organize El Renacer."
"Honey, I'm hungry."
Miguel arrived, and Diana got up from her chair to offer to assist Ines, even though she still had her arm in a sling. The two of them started preparing dinner. It was already ten at night, and I was tired. I said goodnight and locked myself in the master bedroom with D'Artagnan. It was huge, the spaciousness in Roland was overwhelming. I stored the shopping bags in the closet, planning to organize them tomorrow. Right now, I just wanted to take a shower and get under the covers.
I turned on the air conditioning, searched in the suitcase for one of Roland's t-shirts. Thankfully, I had packed the three that I had left of my husband. I was exhausted and didn't last a minute before falling into Morpheus's arms. Tomorrow would be a new day.