Chapter 78

Friday, 11:32 AM

Esme looked at the wall clock in her father’s study. From what Almudena told her earlier on, her father wanted to see her at 11:30. Seating across her in a love seat was her father. Carlos was sitting beside her in a separate armchair. They were waiting for Doña Beatriz to show up.

To kill time, Esme’s rehashed the events of the previous evening, leading to this morning.

When they arrived at the hacienda the previous evening, Esme turned off the car’s engine and hurriedly alighted so she could open the door for Aurelia. Better to avoid another incident.

She took her lover’s hand and led her into the house. Turning back, she could see that Carlos was reclining against her car, his head bowed. He cut a pitiable image. If he were to be a painting, she would name it, “Contrite Carlos” as homage to Donatello’s “Penitent Magdalene” wooden sculpting.

They had met Don Alonzo and Doña Beatriz in the sitting room.

Aurelia just stood still and stared at them. For one minute, there was awkward silence.

Then Esme broke the ice when she said, “Father, Mother... Carlos and I have brought Aurelia back from the convent.”

Doña Beatriz stood from her seat, and Don Alonzo joined shortly. When the older woman got closer, she held her arms open to Aurelia.

Aurelia did not know how to respond. Her hand gingerly went around to hold the woman. “You’re welcome, Aurelia. Even though you’re not marrying Carlos, my feelings about you have not changed. You’re a wonderful nice young woman, and I’m happy you and Esme have found each other.”

Esme could not believe her ears. She was sure Doña Beatriz would be hostile against their union. Maybe her father had talked sense into her.

“Thank you, ma’am.” They broke the embrace at that.

“You’re welcome here, Aurelia,” Don Alonzo said and patted her on the shoulder. “You can stay here as long as you want. You don’t have to hurry anywhere. Whatever decision you make is all right with my wife and I.”

“Thank you so much.” Just then, Aurelia broke down.

Esme instinctively reached out and held her in her arms. “Please, excuse us?” she asked of her parents, who nodded at them.

In the bedroom, Aurelia averted her face as she undressed. Silently, she went into the bathroom.

But nothing was silent in Esme’s mind. Not seeing her lover’s body for a while made her feel some stirrings in her nether region. But she tamped it down. Now was not the time to allow lust take the reins of her thoughts.

Esme went on to bring out a nightdress from her walk-in closet.

She could hear water running in the shower.

Then she could hear Aurelia sob some more. Esme felt it would be better to let her cry out all the anguish she was feeling.

After bathing, Aurelia remained silent.

As Esme was done bathing, she came into the room to find Aurelia lying on her back, with her arms wrapped around her middle, and staring up at the ceiling.

Even when they had dinner, which Almudena had brought up to the room, Aurelia stayed mum. Esme felt she was processing the events of the past days. Villalobos was willing to lock her up in a convent. Carlos had betrayed her. Her mother had acted like a passive bystander. Surely, all that was meant to make a person locked up in their head.

Esme took down their plates to the kitchen.

There, she talked with Almudena and thanked her for being the one who set everything in motion. The older woman smiled beautifully at her, and said, “Rosaria would have wanted me to do just that, regardless of the consequences.”

Thanking her some more, Esme left the kitchen and went up to her room.

They lay in bed without saying anything.

Aurelia lay on her back staring blankly ahead of her.

Esme lay on her side taking her in. How she had missed Aurelia!

This silence between them did not feel awkward.

She understood why her lover would seem to have shut off.

But for reassurance, to make sure she asked, and not assumed, she tried asking Aurelia about her experience at the convent.

In few words, Aurelia had claimed it was not harrowing, not as evil as she would have imagined the situation. The only problem was that she was still in shock at her parents’ betrayal.

“I totally understand that. And I’ll respect your not speaking about it until you’re ready.”

“Thank you.” She turned to look at Esme. She went on, “I need time to sort through my feelings.”

Before falling asleep, Esme had asked if Aurelia would not mind being cuddled up.

Aurelia gladly scooted over to her.

They slept in each other’s arms.

This morning, Esme had woken to see Aurelia’s blue eyes raking her face.

“How are you feeling today?” Esme asked.

“Not bad. A little better.”

“Are you sure about that?” Esme squeezed Aurelia’s arm affectionately and said, “I know you need time to think about everything that has happened. But I am here for you, no matter how long it takes.”

Aurelia turned to hold her gaze. “Thank you, baby.”

“You’re welcome.”

“Esme?”

“Yes, my love?”

“Will you make love to me?”

Esme swallowed. She did not know what to say to that. She croaked, “Now?”

“Yes,” Aurelia muttered against her lips. “I need something to make me feel grounded, in a way. I feel so disconnected from everything. I don’t want to think I’m going crazy.”

Esme leaned into her and kissed her lightly on the lips.

Frenzied kisses soon ensued.

Then Esme was kissing her way down Aurelia’s body.

Soon, Aurelia was coming apart while Esme made love to her.

Esme kissed her way up, and stopped at Aurelia’s lips.

“I have missed that,” Aurelia said, tears brimming in her eyes.

“I have missed everything about you, darling.” Esme’s index finger moved a lock of Aurelia’s hair from her face.

“I thought I would never see you again.” Aurelia burst into a fresh round of tears.

Esme lay on her side and held Aurelia in her arms.

As sobs wracked Aurelia’s body, Esme held her tightly, placing kisses on her temple, and telling her it was all right. “The worst is behind us, my love. We’re safe here.”

Aurelia went on to say that accepting things, not fighting against things that were not in her control, was what kept her sane in all those hours she spent at the convent. “The sisters were not that bad. Asides the Mother and two other Sisters, no one knew my reason for being among them. I just felt a certain kind of hopelessness. Like, I would never see again. I knew my father would lie to you, tell you something that would make you hate me. It was so painful to think of all that.”

“I would have known he was lying, and I would have done everything in my power to find you.”

“True. I believe that you could do that, would do that.” Aurelia sniffled. “What hurt was that my dad did that. I knew the man was an idiot, but I didn’t think he would be willing to do something like this.”

“I’m sorry, darling.”

“Thank you for getting me out of there.”

“Now, we are free. And we can go anywhere we want.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yes. We can start working on our visas.”

“I don’t have the travel documents I need.”

“Let’s not sweat about that, my love. Let’s stay in this present moment, and be together. All that would fix itself at the right time.”

They sighed in tandem.

“I love you, Esme. These past few days made me realise that much.”

“And I love you so much. You’re the love of my life, you know that?”

They simply stared at each other. Neither of them saying any word. Only enjoying the silence between them.

They stayed that way for a while, sharing little kisses here and there. It was though they were trying to reacquaint themselves with each other’s bodies.

Then they heard a knock on the door.

Aurelia startled.

“I’m sorry, babe,” Esme whispered against her mouth. “You are safe here. That must be breakfast.”

And just as Esme had said, it was only Almudena at the door with a large breakfast tray.

“I know you know Almudena, but she is like family to me, like my own mother,” Esme said with a big smile as she moved her arm about Almudena’s shoulders.

The older woman blushed and said, “You’re welcome, Aurelia.”

Esme could tell Aurelia had let down her guard when the crease between her eyebrows smoothened out.

Aurelia soon became her usual bubbly self. She chatted with Almudena.

Esme loved that the two had gotten along. Something about it felt like introducing Aurelia to her birth mother. Esme’s heart swelled with so much affection for the two women.

Before leaving them, Almudena told her Don Alonzo wanted to see her at 11:30 that morning in the study.

When Almudena shut the door behind her, Aurelia said, “Should I make you come before you go?”

“If I didn’t know better, I would think the convent made you slutty,” Esme said as she sat opposite her on the soft, comfy bed. She smiled at Aurelia.

“Can you blame me that I can’t keep my hands off you?” Aurelia said, bringing her lips to hers. “I’ve been away from you for so long.”

They found a way to move the breakfast tray filled with eggs, bacon, pancakes, toast, and tea to one side before Esme straddled Aurelia’s thighs.

Now, as her father and Doña Beatriz sat across her and Carlos in the study, Esme squeezed her thighs together as she relieved the throes of pleasure Aurelia had plunged her in about an hour ago.