16. Alejandro

Chapter 16

Alejandro

Resisting the urge to break something, I pace the length of my room like a caged panther. My heart grows heavier with every step.

Normally, keeping my emotions under control is something I do with practiced ease because of my father's harsh lessons. But she is leaving. I want to scream…to shout…to howl!

My Emily is leaving, and I don't know how to stop her.

Grief-stricken, I sink against the wall.

I will come back to visit as soon as I can.

Her words trample my heart.

My instincts are demanding that I take action. Charge down the hall , they scream. Beg her to stay.

But it will be wrong if I do that. If she is going to stay, to choose me as her partner, it has to be her choice.

Not mine.

I open the door to the patio, step outside, and clutch the railing. The steel groans under my hands. I close my eyes, letting the warmth of the morning sun heat my icy-cold skin. I stand for a while so I can think, trying to push back the brutal weight of the emotions threatening to suffocate me.

Snippets of my Emily flash through my mind.

The first time I saw her.

The sound of her laughter.

The touch of her lips…her hands…her fingertips.

Emily building sandcastles with Mateo.

The last image had me snapping to attention.

I want her. I want children. A life. A home. With Emily, I want it all.

And there is no way in hell I was giving up now.

I take out my cell phone and place a call to Diego. "The Paradise Hotel chain belongs to you now, Diego. My attorney will bring the signed documents to you tomorrow." Before he can argue, I hang up.

Next, I scroll through my outgoing calls and click on a number. It ring sand rings and rings. Just as I'm ready to give up, a bright, cheerful voice says, "Hello?"

For the first time in hours, I smile. "Janie, it is Alejandro. I need your help."

I'm glad to be in a private room at the Madrid Airport because I'm so nervous, so terrified of what is about to happen that I don't want an audience.

I'm pacing again, practically climbing out of my skin…what if it doesn't work? What if I tell my Emily exactly how I feel and she tells me to leave? What am I going to do then?

There is no way I will survive a rejection from her.

"I don't know what's wrong with you people, but there is nothing in my suitcase," I hear Emily shouting in the hall. "You're making a big mistake. My plane leaves in a half an hour. I can't miss it."

I take a deep breath and wait for the door to open.

Emily steps inside and I snatch her off of her feet, crushing her to my chest. "I'm in love with you, mi vida . Head over heels in love with you."

"What?" she cries. "What's happening? Where are the customs people?"

"There are no customs people—only me. I could not let you leave without telling you what is in my heart. It is what I should have done last night."

"Alejandro…" She blinks up at me.

"You are my sun. My moon. My stars. You are my heart, mi vida ." I set her back onto her feet, take the ring from my pocket, and get down on one knee in front of her for the very last time. "You are the woman I want at my side for an eternity. Trust me with your heart, and I will protect it for a lifetime. With you in my life, mi vida , the sun will always shine. Will you marry me?"

I hold my breath. My stomach clenches into a knot.

"Is this actually happening?" Her blue eyes shimmer with tears. "Are you proposing to me for real?"

" Sí . Please, mi vida , say you will be mine."

Emily drops to the floor, grabs my head in both of her hands, and kisses me. She sits back on her heels, stares at me in silence, and then holds out her hand. "Yes, I will marry you, Alejandro."

I put the ring back where it belongs and then press my forehead to hers. "Thank you, mi vida ," I exhale on a whoosh. "Thank you. I was worried I had lost you."

"I was worried you didn't want me." Her cheeks turn my favorite shade of pink.

"I want you, mi vida . Always."

"Okay." She wipes away a tear. "But now what do we do? Do I stay here? Do you want to see where I live? What do we do?"

"We fly to America." I help her to her feet.

"You're going to fly back with me?"

"Yes."

"Now? But how? Do you have a ticket?"

"No ticket." I tuck her into my side. "I have something better. I have a private plane with a private chef. Come. We fly to Maine, and I feed you."

"Do you have dessert on your plane?" She leans up and kisses me on the cheek.

"You, mi vida , are the dessert."