Chapter 7
The following morning, Antonio frowned at the curt message on his phone, mentally groaning at the interruption. He wanted to be here, to see Astra again this morning. She’d been so tired on the drive home from the pub last night that he hadn’t offered her a post-dinner brandy.
And yet, he hadn’t been able to sleep, knowing that she was so close by. Around two o’clock in the morning, he’d considered moving her and her assistant to one of the hotels in the village. But as soon as the thought finished forming, he rejected it. Not because he wanted Astra close by. It was simply because…he didn’t have an explanation.
But now, seeing the message, he knew what he needed to do. Before he could reply, the phone rang. Answering it, he closed his eyes briefly, knowing who was on the other end. “Si!” he snapped in place of a greeting.
Listening, he nodded, then agreed to the meeting that was inevitable. “I agree to your terms,” he replied, satisfaction rolling through him at the higher than expected price. “I’ll be at my office in an hour and we can sign the contracts.”
He heard the soft footsteps before Astra spoke. “You’re leaving?” she asked and she looked as if he’d just slapped her.
“Si. I have a business meeting in,” he glanced at his watch, “less than an hour. I will have to hurry if I’m going to make it.” He started for the door, reaching for a set of keys, then paused. “Was there something you wished to speak to me about? I thought we’d gone over most of the details last night.”
Astra reached out, her delicate fingers touching the chair in front of his desk as if she needed the support.
“No,” she replied quickly, shaking her head and causing that lustrous cascade of dark hair to shimmer in the overhead lights. “Nothing that can’t wait.”
Still, he paused, looking into her eyes. “Are you sure?”
She gave him an overly bright smile that seemed false, but shook her head again. “I’m sure. Go to your meeting. I’ll have several of the events scheduled by the time you get back.”
He nodded, then wondered if he should cancel the meeting. But this was about the last of his father’s businesses that he wanted to sell off. Once that was done, he could come back here and start getting the castle ready to sell. He wanted everything from his father’s illegal businesses out of his life.
“Bueno,” he said with a firm nod. “I’ll see you in a few days then.”
And then he turned, forcing his feet to carry him out of the kitchen. Instead of into her arms. She didn’t want his attentions, he reminded himself. She’d proven that repeatedly. Even last night, Astra had kept her distance from him, never once straying from the topic of the various events she’d planned. Thankfully, she wasn’t one of those people who thought that her ideas were superior to others and she was more than willing to shift direction once he gave her more information about his vision for the village.
Still, he sat in his car, gripping the steering wheel until his knuckles turned white, fighting against the urge to head right back into his office and demand to know what was bothering her.
None of his business, he told himself. If she had a problem that was outside of their business relationship, she could confide in her assistant. He knew she had several good friends back in Philadelphia. So she could call one of them for advice if she needed help.
Setting the car into drive, he forced himself to leave the garage. Once out on the open road, he pressed the accelerator harder than was necessary, needing to get away from Astra as quickly as possible. Because her pull was nearly stronger than his self-control.
Astra watched as Antonio sped off down the road, biting her lip with concern as he drove faster than she thought wise. He wasn’t going to die, she reminded herself. The man was strong and healthy and powerful and he couldn’t die. Not in a car crash, not…ever! The thought of not having Antonio in the world somewhere was too painful a future to contemplate.
Turning, she nearly bumped into Eldora. “Oh!” Astra gasped, stepping back so as not to run over the older woman. “I’m so sorry. I wasn’t watching where I was going.”
“You’re overwrought,” the dour housekeeper declared. “I will make you some tea.”
Astra was startled by the offer. “That’s…very kind of you. But I don’t want to put you out. I’m just going to gather my notes and work out the details with Macie so she can start her programming magic,” she said with a playful smile. No response from Eldora. Astra tried again, attempting to be friendly despite the housekeeper’s sullen demeanor. “We won’t get in your way.” Astra didn’t mention breakfast. After last night’s horrible dinner, she didn’t want to eat anything that the housekeeper cooked. She was a horrible cook!
Eldora turned, ignoring Astra’s protests. “It’s no problem. I’ll bring tea out to the terrace in a moment.”
Then Eldora headed to the kitchen and Astra followed, not sure why. But she opened her mouth to protest even as the housekeeper lifted a heavy teakettle, filling it with water.
Astra watched the woman for a long moment, not sure what to say. She didn’t want any tea. She just needed water in order to help counter the jet lag. Plus, she couldn’t drink caffeine. Touching her stomach gently, she walked out of the kitchen. In the great room, Astra found Macie chewing on a protein bar.
“Where did you get that?” Astra hissed.
Macie chuckled and pulled a protein bar out of her other pocket. “Here. Last night’s dinner was horrible. I’m not eating anything else that woman cooks.” She handed over several oranges as well. “I’d rather survive on fruit and protein bars instead of endure another meal from that sourpuss.”
“I’m with ya,” Astra replied, ripping open the protein bar packaging. “The pub down the street is fantastic. Just put everything on the company credit card and we’ll consider it a business expense.”
Macie beamed. “Have I mentioned that you’re a wonderful boss?” she teased.
Astra rolled her eyes. “Flattery will get you everything,” she replied. “Come on. Let’s go out onto the terrace and work out the details for the first few events. Over dinner last night, Antonio and I discussed the events and he wants to take things in a slightly different direction.”
“Ooh! A challenge!” Macie grabbed the tote bag with her laptop from the chair where she’d dumped it. “Let’s do this!”
They found an ornate, iron table at a corner of the terrace and spread out their computers and notes and started planning.
At some point, Eldora came out with a tray filled with two tea cups and a pot of tea. But as soon as Astra poured a cup, she nearly gagged at the smell. “I swear, that woman is trying to poison us!” she hissed, keeping her voice low so that they wouldn’t be overheard.
“Just dump that vile stuff into the flowerbed,” Macie urged. “There’s a coffee shop down the street from the pub. We’ll go there later and I can fill up on caffeine while you can get some herbal tea.”
Astra froze, staring at Macie, who continued to input data into a spreadsheet. “Why can’t I have coffee?” she asked, her voice still low.
Macie didn’t bother looking up as she replied, “Because you’re pregnant and shouldn’t have caffeine.”
That was true, but…? “How do you know?”
Macie snorted, her fingers flying over the keyboard without pause. “Because you’ve stopped drinking wine and coffee, have gained some weight, all of it in your stomach, and you’ve been wearing big sweaters to hide your growing baby bump.” She glanced up and grinned at Astra’s shock. “I’m a very clever assistant, you know.”
Astra held her breath for a long moment, then let it out in a rush. “I’m sorry that I didn’t tell you.”
Macie shrugged. “I figured you had your reasons.” She eyed Astra for a moment. “And the main reason was that you only put it together recently, am I right?”
Astra hesitated, then nodded. “Yeah. I figured it out about two weeks ago.”
They were quiet for a long moment, then Macie offered, “Congratulations?”
Astra laughed and nodded. “Thanks. I’m actually excited.”
“Do you have plans for after the baby is born?”
Astra shook her head. “Not yet. I’m working on it though.” She tapped her pen thoughtfully against her notebook. “I think I might need to focus my event business in Philadelphia instead of traveling around the world. At least, for a while.” She paused and peered at Macie. “Would that be horrible?”
Macie grinned. “It would be pretty nice, actually. My mother passed away several years ago and I inherited her old house. It’s a big house outside of Philly with a barn and lots of character. I’ve recently started playing with the idea of moving out there and fixing it up.” She tilted her head slightly, as if considering the possibilities. “It might be nice to stay in one place for a while, to be honest.”
Astra sighed with relief, then leaned in and hugged her assistant. “Thank you!”
Macie laughed and hugged her back. “You’re an amazing boss. Just let me know what I can do to help. We’ll get through this together.”
“Is this where the party planning is?” a new voice called out.
Astra and Macie looked at the door to find a beautiful woman with dark, curly hair and big, dangly earrings smiling at them. The smile seemed oddly forced, and the flowered sundress wasn’t really appropriate for the chilly weather. Macie and Astra weren’t sure what to say.
“I’m Maria,” the woman explained, stepping forward on four-inch heels. She reached out, extending her hands and Astra inhaled sharply, hoping that the woman’s voluptuous breasts wouldn’t fall out. It was so low cut, the woman’s nipples were in jeopardy of peeking out over the neckline if she took too deep a breath.
“Maria, it’s a pleasure to meet you,” Astra replied. She shook the woman’s hand, then gestured to Macie. “This is my assistant and computer expert, Macie.”
After Maria shook both of their hands, she took a seat in one of the chairs. “You finished off the tea?” she said with a frown, then looked at them expectantly.
Neither Macie nor Astra were willing to admit they’d dumped the tea in the garden. There was something odd about the smell and neither wanted to risk it.
“It was delicious,” Astra lied. “And thank you so much for offering to help with the village festivities. But we’re all set.”
Maria’s fake smile faltered slightly. “Well, how about if you tell me what you’re planning? I’m very close,” she explained, adding a secret smile, “with Antonio and I can run everything by him to ensure that you’re on the right track.” She leaned back in the iron chair, smiling benevolently. “We…have an understanding.”
A short man stepped out into the garden, an eager smile on his face. The smile faltered when he noticed Maria. “I am…” he paused, his eyes narrowing on the younger woman. “What are you doing here?” he snarled.
Maria’s shoulders straightened and there was an awkward look that swiveled from the man to Macie and Astra. “Why wouldn’t I be here?” she asked, offering a fake laugh. “I’m here all the time. You know that, Jeb.”
There was a flurry of conversation in a different language between the two and Astra assumed that they were speaking in the local dialect. Astra spoke French and Spanish fluently, and was conversant in Mandarin and German. But when someone broke off into a dialect, she was completely lost.
Finally, the two turned back to Macie and Astra, looking uncomfortable. “Jeb used to be the Marquesso’s chauffer before…well,” she waved a hand dismissively. “Well before all of that nasty business was discovered.”
Astra barely restrained her mouth from falling open. The “nasty business” that Maria was referring to was Antonio’s father being arrested and convicted of money laundering, drug trafficking, human trafficking, and a host of other charges. The man had been sentenced to nearly a century in prison. His conviction had made international news and his absence from the village was the whole point of her and Macie being here.
“I was his personal advisor,” Jeb corrected firmly, leveling a glare in Maria’s direction before turning to Astra. “I can assist you with any of your endeavors.”
Astra wasn’t sure what to say. “Well, thank you so much for your help. However–”
“We can definitely use the help with this one,” Macie interrupted, pointing to a line item on Astra’s notebook. “The more people we can get, the better this will be.”
Astra looked at the notation, then nodded. “ You’re right.” She looked over at Maria and Jeb. “I have a vendor who is sending us willow branches. We’ll get as many people together as we can to make–”
“Gardening?” Maria gasped. She glanced at her manicure, then shook her head. “No. I don’t do gardening.” She stood up. “Antonio wants you to throw parties. Not force the villagers to handle gardening chores.” She pointed at Astra. “I suggest that you focus on the entertainment factor.” She pulled her purse higher onto her shoulder. “Also, I will send you a list of the important people in Madrid and London that should attend Antonio’s functions. They all know me, so they’ll be expecting invitations.”
She started to turn away but Astra stopped her. “I don’t think that’s the vision Antonio has in mind, Maria.”
The woman turned and glared at Astra for a long moment, then laughed. “Trust me. Antonio and I have already discussed how he should be entertaining now that he is taking over his father’s title. He needs to further his acquaintance with the right people.”
“I was under the impression that Antonio wants to bring the locals together. He didn’t mention anyone outside of–”
Maria sliced her hand through the air fast enough that even Jeb stepped backwards, fearful of getting in the line of fire. “Are you seriously going to argue with me about this?” Maria paused for a moment, before continuing. “Even if Antonio wants to entertain the locals, he can do that on a smaller scale.” She sneered at the notes on the table. “I’ll send you some recommendations as well as the invitation list. You’ll be interacting with the Spanish aristocracy and the wealthy business people.” She sighed, shaking her head. “In fact, don’t bother. I will take charge from here.” She gave Jeb a sidelong glance. “I’ll be doing it soon enough anyway. I might as well start now.”
A moment later, Maria swept back into the castle and Astra heard her call out for the housekeeper.
There was a long silence while Astra stared at Macie, then looked over at Jeb. “Well, umm…” she started, but there were no words. In all of Astra’s time organizing various types of events, she’d never had someone so completely dismiss her skills.
“Ignore her,” Jeb replied. “If Senior del Campo explained what he wants, then go with that. Maria will just…” he made an unflattering sound with his lips, then turned to walk away.
When they were alone again, Astra looked over at Macie and they both burst out laughing.
“I’ll call Antonio just to let him know that we’re getting interference,” Astra said as they gathered up their notes.
Macie nodded. “I’ll start making calls and gathering supplies. This is going to be an interesting challenge. I’m looking forward to these events. They’re very different from what we’ve done before.”
Astra agreed. It would be a great way to expand her profile and her offerings, especially if she was going to be more city-oriented in the future.