Episode 5

(Mia)

The next morning, I woke up thinking it had all been a dream, the most beautiful dream of my life.

As I left my room, I realized that part of that dream was real and was standing right in front of my door, waiting for me with the most wonderful smile; his teeth were so white and perfectly aligned, and that smile was complete perfection.

Valente was there...

"Let's have breakfast, beautiful, and then you can show me the estate; I want to see it," he said with such confidence, as if we had known each other for a long time.

"Were you waiting for me to have breakfast?" That was all I could say; truly, in my mind, all I could think of were his lips kissing me, his hands touching me and brushing against my skin, just like I had dreamed.

I fixed my eyes on his hands; they were just as I had imagined—large, strong, and sexy.

"Yes, darling, I want to have breakfast with you, and I want to go out with you because I want to get to know you better," he said, leaning close to my ear, and upon hearing his voice so near to me, I froze, enjoying the sensation of his warm breath.

This only intensified the spell I was under.

There was no turning back...

I was already in his hands...

After breakfast, with Valente's eyes on everything I did, I decided to go out as he had requested.

First, I went to my room to change into a swimsuit; I wasn't going to go out without stopping by the waterfalls.

After that, I went to the kitchen, where Sofia was; my Nana wanted to greet her and ask her something. Since the night before, she had been giving me that lovingly lethal and warning look that only she knows how to give.

"Good morning, my precious Nana. Why are you so serious with me? You know I love you very much, and the last thing I want is to see you upset," I said, hugging her and kissing her cheek.

"Look, sweetheart, I know I’m not one to tell you anything; I’m just your servant. My family has served your parents and grandparents for years. I respect you, love you, and I care about you just like I do my own daughter.

So I have to tell you that I don’t like the way the Montiel family has intruded into your life.

I have to confess something, and that is that this Eugenia seems familiar to me. I have a feeling that I’ve seen her before, but believe me, no matter how hard I try to remember, I can’t.

And I don’t like it; I have a bad feeling in my mind. I don’t like that woman, nor her husband, and I dislike even more how those two men have just shown up. I know your father trusted them, but for some reason, I don’t.

And I don’t trust those two boys either; they’re very elegant and good-looking, and it’s obvious they’re of your social standing, but I sense bad vibes from them, especially Efrain Montiel.

I don’t like his gaze; I don’t like how he looks at you, and I don’t like how he looks at my daughter Daniela.

Even less do I like how Dani looks at him; I’ve talked to her, and the same goes for you, I trust you both in your sensibility, but I don’t trust them.

As if that weren’t enough, that Efrain is a conceited man; every time he gives an order, he does it with arrogance, and look, my dear, none of your servants have ever been treated like that by anyone in your family.

That Valente behaves a bit more politely, but in the end, they’re just like their parents—arrogant." My Nana tells me, and I remain silent, thinking about how my Nana was the woman my mother trusted the most.

Mom always said, "I can only trust my greatest treasure, my children, to Sofia; only she can care for them as I do."

Remembering my mother’s words, I hug my Nana and say to her,

"Nana, if you remember where you know Eugenia from, let me know because I’ve never seen her at any of the company gatherings I attended; I never saw her or her children, and that’s strange. It also strikes me as odd that she’s always speaking ill of lawyer Marco Soler." I tell my Nana, and she ponders.

"Oh, my child, all of this is so difficult to discern."

I always knew that your father trusted lawyer Marco, and while I had seen Mr. Oscar a few times, I never knew they were such good friends, let alone partners. Knowing your father as I do, how protective he was of his children, he would never have entrusted that man to look after you.

"Yes, Nana, I know you're right, but the documents are real; the lawyer says so, and all I can do is wait until I turn 18."

Thank you for worrying; I promise I will take care of Daniela and myself.—I said, giving her a kiss on the forehead.

After that, I stepped into the living room to find the most beautiful blue eyes in the world fixed on me.

"Sorry for keeping you waiting, but my Nana needed to talk to me about something very important."I said with a smile, and I could see the awe in his eyes as he watched me smile.

Honestly, among all the Montiels, Valente played his role the best.

His way of looking at me made it feel as if I truly made him feel what he said and showed.

That morning, walking down the path, I felt like I was on cloud nine; my eyes couldn't help but watch every little thing Valente did—the way he spoke and moved his hands, his gestures, his prince-like bearing, so well-mannered and gallant; I had never known anyone his age like that.

We walked a long way, talking about so many things; with him, everything was so spontaneous—conversing, laughing, and even playing; I was a young girl who had been the center of attention for my parents and grandparents, used to being indulged in everything and having everyone's attention.

Now I think about how much he must have laughed at my teenage antics or how bored he must have been with me; I suppose he was used to his older friends, and I was almost a child.

That day, we walked so much that we didn't even notice when we had arrived at the waterfalls of the most beautiful river I had ever seen; surely today, after nine years, it is still beautiful, and that river is one of the things I miss the most.

When we got there, as I always did when I arrived, I took off my clothes, leaving only my small swimsuit, ready to dive in and swim.

Valente stood there, astonished, watching me...

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