Chapter 2

7 pm came in a blink of an eye. Lara had barely settled down as she had to take that goddamn tour around the house. Each passing minute, as they moved from one room to another, she realized how pointless the tour was. Except for a few redesigns and re-painting here and there, everything was the same. Needless to say, the tour was completely useless. But to fulfill all righteousness, and not get on the bad side of her mother early on, even if she had reserved anger for Veronica somewhere in her, she decided to be mature and follow the schedule.

So, by now, she was sitting behind the large mahogany table that had all sorts of dishes laid out on it.

The dining hall was awfully silent. The only sounds that emanated were from mouths munching on either the salad, pork, rice, or one of the many other delicacies. And it remained like this for the next fifteen minutes. No one spoke. Not even a hello.

How can a family be this awkward?

Lara didn’t mind. If she could live down eating this dinner in complete and utter silence, she would. But just when she began to actually believe that it could happen, her younger brother and the last of the Martinez, Diego, emitted a chuckle.

All heads swiveled in his direction, and when he noticed everyone was looking at him, he smiled gracefully. “I just remembered the first time Mom had to kill one of her pigs. It was for the housewarming ceremony. One would think she lost a child. She even wore black outfits for an entire week!”

Diego successfully managed to get at least seventy percent of the occupants of the table to laugh. That was his intention; to relieve some of that thick tension hanging over their heads and get his family talking.

“I remember her dedicating the entirety of the week to mourning that rascal animal only to have us devour it the next day.” Leonardo, the first of the Martinez said, and another round of laughter filled the dining hall.

To everyone’s surprise, the man at the head of the table spoke, “I have got to say, the pig tasted divine.” That did it. The whole room burst out in laughter, including the self-indulgent Veronica Flores Martinez.

Lara suddenly found herself becoming comfortable. The thought of laughing and eating with family didn’t seem so much like a pain in the ass anymore. She had even forgotten all about sitting across her menace of a mother whose eyes perused her as though she had stolen a million-dollar-priced item from the house.

Ricardo, her father, cast looks of pride on his five children seated around him but his gaze rested on Lara’s small heart-shaped face for reasons unknown to her. Uncomfortably, she shifted in her chair, and lifting her wine glass, she sipped some of the liquor from it thinking and hoping that he would avert his gaze when she didn’t berate him. But he didn’t.

Setting the wine glass back on the table, she smiled, “What Dad?”

Ricardo shook his head. “Nothing baby. You just look so beautiful.”

Lara blushed, tucking a strand of curl behind her ear while her father continued. “Amongst everyone seated here, I haven’t seen you in the longest while. You’re a woman now,” his smile was so huge, like that of a proud father. “A very beautiful woman.”

True that. Last he had seen his daughter, nine years ago, she was barely maturing. And now, she looked like a whole new different person. His daughter. His beautiful Larissa.

“I have missed this. Having dinner as a family. I haven’t felt this much joy in a long while.”

Ricardo was getting all emotional but Malena, Lara’s elder and only sister, the psychologist in the house, knew better. Their father was setting the bar to deliver some really heartbreaking news. Something she presumed was the reason for the exquisite and unnecessary larger-than-life dinner in the first place. The reason they called the entire family together after nine long years. The reason her baby sister, Lara, even bothered to show up in the house again.

Making a throat-clearing sound as she reached for her wine, Malena gazed at her unusually quiet mother who was still giving Lara the stink eye, before sipping from the glass. When she set the wine glass back down, she spoke in that very formal tone she had grown accustomed to. “Father, in my seven years of expertise, I have mastered the art of knowing when someone is levitating.”

All her other siblings turned their focus to her.

“That is how I know that you want to give us some news. And I’m betting it isn’t good news. Because why then would mother not have said a single word the entire night?” Ricardo chuckled nervously then tilted his head in the direction of Veronica who was non-stop sipping from her wine. His expression screamed, “Who is going to tell them?” And that only got them very curious. When he realized that Veronica was not planning to speak, he decided to break the news.

“Your mother and I are getting a divorce.”

 Now that was something. Definitely something. Ricardo and Veronica getting a divorce? In a million years, Lara would never have imagined. Her parents, to her, were the ideal of how a couple should be. They loved each other’s shortcomings, each other’s excesses. So what on earth prompted this decision?

“Before you say anything, hear me out.” Ricardo raised a hand to stop the feat of questions that were surely coming. “I love your mother. I have spent the last forty years loving her and would spend the next forty years still loving her. But this is something we have sat down together to decide. We think it would benefit us if we part ways. We’re doing this amicably. No hard feelings. We’ll still very much be your parents who love you all so much. Please understand this decision.”

 The room was awkwardly silent. For a whole five minutes, neither of them said a word. While her father was staring at all of them expectantly, her siblings were suddenly found dumbfounded, and her mother. . .

Veronica didn’t look like she gave a shit. And that angered Lara. She had imagined that when she gets married, someday, it would be just like her parents. Now they were breaking up? What did that mean for her in the love and marriage department?

Eyes narrowed to slits, through gritted teeth, Lara spat out at her mother, “Aren’t you going to say anything?”

Her mother remained silent.

“Goddammit say something!”

“Language, Larissa!” Her father cautioned.

Just then, Maid Alma came into the dining hall holding a ridiculously large bouquet. “I’m sorry to interrupt. These flowers came in from Mr. Tristan Aguilar. They are for Ms. Lara Martinez.”

Lara drew back in surprise. Flowers? She had zero suitors. Plus if she had, they certainly didn’t come with that name. “Are you sure they are for me?”

Alma nodded. “It has your name on the card.”

“What does the card say?”

Alma read out, “Welcome to San Luis, Ms. Martinez. I can’t wait for our date!”

Okay. Now Lara was well beyond surprised. She didn’t have a tinder account. So it definitely wasn’t one of those stupid weekly match-makings. This, this was something else. And she had no idea what was going on. “Who the hell is Tristan Aguilar?”

Finally, like a cat let out of the bag, Veronica Flores Martinez exclaimed gloriously. “Your fiancé.”