Translation of Love (27 page)

He tucks the tattered underwear in his back pocket and readjusts his pants. Once we’re both presentable, we make our way downstairs and find Caroline on the phone in the kitchen. She hangs up as soon as she sees us and smiles. “So, what do you guys think?”

“We love it. Draw up the paperwork, we’ll go in a million under the asking price, but let them know it’s a cash sale. That should sway them.” I love how in control Victor sounds as he makes his demands. Caroline looks like she’s just seen God, not to mention a fat commission check. We leave the house and I wait in the car while Victor finalizes some things with Caroline. When he finally joins me in the car, he looks uncomfortable and I’m wondering what has happened.

I look at him questioningly. “What’s wrong?”

“I just got a call from my mom.”

“Oh boy, what now?” I ask, scared to hear the answer.

He shrugs his shoulders like he’s dumbfounded. “She says that she wants to have lunch with you. She wants to apologize for jumping to conclusions about you. She said that you two got off on the wrong foot and she would like to spend some time with you.”

I don’t know if I’m buying this repentant act of hers, the woman is a beast, she’s proven it time and time again. “Well, that’s a complete about face.”

He lets out a sigh. “You do not have to go, Love. I want you to be comfortable and if the idea makes you uncomfortable, then you shouldn’t go.”

“Well, if she’s asking, I probably should go. I mean, what if she really is trying to bury the hatchet. I probably shouldn’t piss her off.”

“Alright, but if it gets out of hand or you feel uncomfortable, you call me and I’ll come get you. I’ll have Rob drive you to the restaurant so you don’t have to ride with her.”

“What are you gonna do while I’m gone?”

“I think I’ll just take a nap and wait for you to get back.”

I nod, and then turn my head to look out the window. My instincts are telling me that I shouldn’t trust what she told Victor but what am I supposed to do, she’s his mom and if I plan to be in his life, I have to at least try to get along with her. It would just make it so much easier for everyone involved if we could co-exist.

By the time we get back to the hotel, it’s just about time for me to leave to meet Victor’s mom. I freshen up a bit, put on a new pair of underwear and reapply some make up. Rob is waiting for me in the lobby and drives me to the restaurant where Lucia is waiting for me.

Once I’m inside, the hostess walks me over to the table where Lucia is already seated with a cocktail in hand. I square my shoulders preparing myself for battle just in case, giving her the most genuine smile I can muster as I take my seat across from her.

“Hello, Mrs. Garza. Thank you for inviting me to lunch.”

“Hello, Elizabeth. Thank you for agreeing to this.”

“You’re welcome.” The waitress comes and takes my drink order. I want to stay clear headed so I order a soda. Not the most sophisticated choice, I know, but I really don’t care. Once the waitress is gone, Lucia speaks.

“As you know, I’ve been managing Victor since his career began. I know my son and I know that he cares for you. I just hope that you understand any issues I have with your relationship are purely out of concern for my son’s future.”

I can hear just a hint of animosity in her voice. Instinctively, I put my defenses in place. “Of course, I understand how you must feel, but I was under the impression that Victor’s future as a singer is limited.”

She snickers at me. “Yes, well, why is that Elizabeth? Why would a young man who’s at the prime of his career just decide one day that he doesn’t want to do it anymore? Why would he give it all up, the women, the fame, the money?”

I control the urge to roll my eyes. “So you think that I’ve somehow managed to convince him to retire?”

She tilts her head. “Haven’t you?”

“No, ma’am, I haven’t. Victor’s been talking about retiring since I met him. It’s what he wants and that has nothing to do with me. He’s tired, he wants to settle down and set up a recording studio with Alex.”

She sucks her teeth and rolls her eyes at the mention of Alex’s name. “Alex has always tried to lead Victor astray but not until he met you has he actually acted on it.”

I sigh, not knowing what else to say. This conversation is disintegrating quickly and I need to do something before we battle it out here in public. “Look, Mrs. Garza, I don’t want to fight with you. I love your son, and I’ll support whatever he wants. If he wants to record ten more albums or do nothing at all, I’ll support him. I would never try to stop him from doing something that makes him happy.” The waitress comes back with my drink and I hope that maybe her interruption will be enough for us both to calm down. Once the waitress is gone, Lucia speaks again.

“If you want to do what’s right for Victor, Elizabeth, you would leave him alone.”

I shake my head. “I won’t do that! I love him.”

She smirks at me. “Just like you loved Brian?”

I can feel the heat rising, filling me with anger. “Brian? What does he have to do with any of this? That relationship ended years ago.”

“I’m prepared to make it worth your while. I will write you a personal check for two million dollars if you leave tonight and leave my son alone.”

My eyes nearly bug out of my head. “Are you crazy? I don’t want your money! My God, this is your son you’re talking about. How could his career be more important to you than his happiness?” I push my chair out, preparing to leave.

“I have worked too hard to take my son to the top. I will not let some little gold digging whore take it all away from him.”

I want to get up and smack the shit out of this lady but I have more respect for myself than that. “I’m sorry that’s how you feel about me. You couldn’t be more wrong.”

“This was a one time offer, Elizabeth. If you leave now, I will not offer you the money again.”

“My answer will never change.” I get up and leave as quickly as I can, nothing but anger coursing through my veins.

I exit the restaurant and find Rob waiting in the car. I jump in the backseat before he has a chance to get out and open the door for me.

“That was fast,” he says.

“Don’t Rob. That woman is the devil.”

“I’m sorry, Elle. I’ll get you back to Victor in no time.”

“Thank you.” I can’t believe the nerve of that woman. Who the fuck does she think she is? Trying to control the life of a grown man like that. Is she so blind that she can’t see that we make each other happy? I haven’t given her a reason to hate me. I’ve never hurt her son and I never will. Can money be that much of a motivator for her that she would cast aside the feelings of her own son in order to get what she wants?

I have to calm myself down before I get to Victor. I can’t have him seeing me upset like this. It’s only going to make him fly off the handle and I don’t want to be the reason he has more issues with his mother. If he decides that he’s done with her, it will have to be a decision he makes on his own.

We pull up to the hotel and I’m out of the car before Rob can even put the car in park. In the elevator, I try to rein in my emotions. I need to keep them in check. I don’t want Victor to know just how upset I really am. I’ll try to sugar coat the events of my lunch with his mother to soften the blow. Once on the fifteenth floor, I fish my card key out of my purse and open the door. Victor is splayed out on the bed, face down with a sheet covering him up to the waist. I have a perfect view of his beautiful, bare back. The sight of him calms me and makes my mind run wild with the possibilities.

I walk further into the room and out of the corner of my eye catch movement. I turn just in time to see Christina, walking out of the bathroom wearing nothing but a towel and a Cheshire cat smile on her face.

“What the fuck is going on here?” I question, my voice full of shock and anger.

She shrugs her shoulder as if to tell me that the answer is obvious. “I told you he’d get tired of you, didn’t I? It didn’t take long for him to get bored and call me.”

“You fucking bitch,” I yell at the top of my lungs, completely horrified by the sight of her in our room. There has to be some logical explanation but the proof is standing right before my eyes.

“Baby, what’s going on?” I turn to see Victor sitting up in the bed half asleep, rubbing his face with his hands.

How dare he call me baby after what he’s done with Christina behind my back. I don’t think I can control the rage inside of me right now and I’m not sure I even want to try. “You son of a bitch! How could you do this to me? You told me you loved me and then you turn around and you fuck this bitch?” I motion toward Christina who’s standing there with a smug smile on her face.

His eyes are wide open. I’m pretty sure he’s just now realizing that we’re not alone. I guess he assumed that the whore would have left by the time I made it back. But, of course, my lunch date was cut severely short, thanks to his crazy mother.

“Ellie, no! No! This is not what it looks like.” He shakes his head. “I have no idea what she’s doing here,” he says, stumbling out of bed.

“Don’t Ellie me you asshole! What it looks like is that you waited for me to be gone and then you snuck your lover into our room. Am I getting warmer?”

“Baby, please, do not jump to conclusions. I have no idea what the fuck is going on right now.”

Christina sighs and moves to stand next to him. “Oh God, Victor please! Stop lying to this poor girl, already. You’ve had your fun and now it’s over. She caught us red handed.”

“Christina, what the fuck are you saying? Why are you doing this?” he yells at her.

I can’t believe that he’s actually trying to cover this up. “Oh my God, I can’t stand the sight of you right now,” I say, tears threatening to spill over. Victor takes a step in my direction. “Don’t you dare! Don’t you even think about taking a step closer to me. I trusted you, I believed everything you ever told me and this is what you did with my trust. You betrayed me. I hate you. I never want to see you again.” With that, I’m done. I can’t stand to be in the same room as either of them. I turn around and, before anyone can stop me, I run from the room.

“Ellie wait.” I hear Victor calling after me but I don’t stop. Thankfully, the elevator doors open immediately after I press the call button. My cell phone starts ringing almost instantaneously. I dig it out of my purse and put it on silent. I wait till I’m safely tucked away in the rear of a taxicab and on my way to the airport to let the tears finally fall freely. I let myself cry for a few minutes, then I wipe away the tears and pull myself together. I just have to hold it together until I get home. Once at the airport, I purchase the first available plane ticket back home and only after the agent asks me if I have any baggage to check do I realize that I’ve left all of my belongings back at the hotel. Luckily, I have my credit cards and identification in my purse and that’s all I really need to get home. I can replace my clothes and my makeup.

While sitting in the terminal gate waiting for my plane to board, I decide to call Jordan. Newark Airport is an hour away from my house and I’m hoping that she’ll pick me up. Grabbing my phone out of my purse, I see that I have over twenty missed calls and nine text messages. I don’t even bother looking at them. I scroll through my contact list until I come to Jordan’s name. The phone rings once and she picks up.

“Holy shit, Elle, where the hell are you?”