Chapter Eleven

 

 

Filipe stepped out of the shower and checked his phone once more. He still hadn’t heard back from Celeste. His messages to her had gone unanswered on Wednewday, and the calls had the same result. He finally found some time to breathe and now he couldn’t find her.

How many hours had he slept? Probably not as many as he needed. Despite a vigorous scrubbing, the smell of smoke persisted. Whether real or still ingrained in his brain, he couldn’t tell.

He took a towel and rubbed his hair dry, then passed a hand over his chin. He hadn’t shaved in two days, but spending precious minutes in front of the mirror instead of finding Celeste didn’t appeal to him. Besides, wasn’t the three-day scruff look in fashion right now? He’d blend right in.

In the closet, Filipe found a stark white button shirt and put it on, his mind wandering to the craziness of yesterday’s incident.

The fire had started at the back of the parking lot, where the electrical charging stations were located. For reasons yet unknown, one of the stations had broken into flames that quickly spread to a vehicle charging.

Fortunately, nobody else was around the area at the time and there were no injuries. The car was a total loss, as were the five charging units, and the parking lot would have to be repaved in that area. Considering how fast it all happened, those were minor inconveniences he could live with.

Once the firemen put out the fire, and the police arrived, it had taken a while to get the bureaucracy of the incident sorted and the report done. The insurance adjuster had shown up a few of hours later, and by the time Filipe dropped into bed, he’d been exhausted. Ross would take care of containing the media this morning, even if Filipe still had to go in front of the cameras for a brief press conference. It was better to take charge from the beginning and control what was being said than wait for the media to put their own spin on things. That never worked well, and sometimes it even backfired. Filipe groaned. Wrong word there. He’d better think of what he was going to say first.

He didn’t hear back from Celeste all morning. By lunchtime the tow truck had come to take away the burned car, the electric chargers had been removed by the manufacturing company, and the burned lot had been cordoned off. Filipe checked in with Ross, and since nothing else required his attention, he walked over to the aquarium.

Part of the construction team had returned and were busy removing some of the equipment they needed for another job. Filipe’s lawyer was still working on clearing the violations, and soon the architect would have a new plan for a complete renovation with the intent to reopen to the public. Filipe waved at the workers as he made his way to the main building.

His mouth twitched in a small smile. He could imagine Celeste and Lucas’s reaction when he told them of the news. Just thinking of their joy warmed his heart.

Celeste was nowhere to be found at the aquarium, and when he asked the other keepers, none of them had seen her since the day before. Where was she?

Alice Vieira walked out of her office as he passed by, and he braced himself for another awkward exchange.

But she didn’t step uncomfortably close like last time. “Senhor Romano, how are you today? Everything all right? I heard about the fire in the hotel’s parking lot.”

Filipe stopped. “Yes, everything’s fine now. No injuries, and the fire didn’t spread past the parking lot.”

“Thank goodness,” she said. “It could have been a tragedy.”

“I’m looking for Celeste Ferreira. Have you seen her today?”

For a moment, her face turned into a shrewd expression, but she quickly replaced it with a more neutral look. “She’s no longer working at the aquarium. I found her keys and badge on her desk with a note saying she left.”

Filipe’s heart skipped a beat. “Left? What do you mean?”

She shrugged. “I mean she’s gone. That’s all I know. Did you have a question I can help with?”

A cold shiver ran through him. “No, thanks.” He turned to leave, anxious to find Celeste and know what was going on.

“I got that meeting scheduled like you asked,” Alice Vieira said after him.

“Send the details to my email,” Filipe said over his shoulder. He had to get out of there as soon as possible.

Why was Celeste gone? Where was she, and why hadn’t she called him?

Filipe pulled out his phone and tried her number again, frustrated when it went straight to voice mail.

His thoughts tumbled in his mind as he hurried to his underground private parking space and got into his car. He needed time to think away from the hotel and the aquarium.

Why had she left? It didn’t make any sense.

Filipe drove out of the resort and headed south along the coast with the windows down and the breeze blowing his hair. He took the exit to the national road, anticipating the traffic on the freeway as the end of day approached and not caring that the alternative route took longer to get somewhere.

After a few minutes on the road, he made his way closer to the beach until he found a place to park. Filipe exited and leaned against the hood of the car, watching the water.

Despite the clear sky, the waves churned over themselves as they crashed on the surf. He was the same as the rough sea, smashing over and over into himself, trying to make sense of Celeste’s departure.

The irony wasn’t lost on him. Whether purposefully or not, she’d done to him what he’d done to her so many years ago, and Filipe couldn’t blame her for it. He only wanted to know why and, once they talked, hopefully convince her to stay, to tell her how he felt and help her see how good they could be together.

He stayed awhile, yearning to lose himself and forget his responsibilities, wishing he had a wetsuit and board with him right then. Maybe that wasn’t a good idea. The way his despondency distracted him, keeping himself firmly planted on land was a better alternative.

As the sun plunged into the ocean in the early evening, Filipe drove back to the SoliMar, resigned to Celeste being gone for now and already planning to go to her apartment.

When he drove by the aquarium on the way to the hotel, a group of people walked around the perimeter, and a few extra cars lined up at the visitor’s parking. After parking back in his private spot, he took the service stairs to the lobby.

Ross stood at the check-in desk in front of a large tablet, a deep frown creasing his forehead.

“What’s going on at the aquarium?” Filipe asked.

Ross jumped up from his seat. “Where have you been? I’ve been trying to call you for the past thirty minutes.”

Filipe reached in his pocket and drew his phone out. The screen was black. “Looks like the battery died.”

Ross approached Filipe and placed a hand on his arm. “Why do you have a car with a built-in charger if you keep forgetting the cord?” He steered them out of the room and across the lobby. “Come on, the boy is missing. We’ve been looking for him at the aquarium and just barely called the police. They should be here any minute.”

“What boy is missing?”

“The head keeper’s. Celeste Ferreira’s son.”

The shock passed through him like a bucket of cold water. He stopped. “Lucas is missing?”

Ross continued on, then returned to pull Filipe along with him. “I think that’s his name. His mother is out of her mind.”

Filipe didn’t wait for the rest. He took off running in the direction of the aquarium, past the road and the approaching police cars, past the gate and the people milling around, until he saw Celeste standing by the door of the main building.

As soon as she noticed him, she set off in his direction. Filipe opened his arms, and she ran the rest of the way until they met in the middle, tightening their embrace around each other.

“He’s gone, Filipe. I can’t find him,” she said against his chest.

He pulled away from her, took her hand, and grasped it tightly. “What happened?”

“I picked him up from daycare and told him we were driving straight to the hotel to give you the notebook instead of going home. But when we arrived he insisted on stopping here to see the swans, which were not outside. He got upset when I told him I didn’t have the keys and we couldn’t go inside.” She took a deep breath and squeezed her eyes shut for a moment. “He ran away from me and hid behind the building, and when I went after him, he was gone.”

“How long has he been missing?”

“Not even a half hour yet.” She grimaced. “I should have prepared him better about this being my last time at the aquarium.”

They sprinted toward the main gate, where the policemen had just arrived.

“Alice told me you left.” He held on to her hands, afraid to let go of her.

Celeste slowed down at his side. “I didn’t leave. I was fired because I’m unqualified and I love you.”

Filipe glanced at her, unsure he’d heard her correctly. Given her emotional state, maybe she hadn’t even realized what she’d said to him. As much as he wanted to know, this wasn’t the time. Finding Lucas came first.

A plainclothes detective approached them. “Dona Celeste, what can you tell me about your son’s state of mind the last time you saw him?”

Celeste’s shoulders slumped. “He kept asking about the swan that left, and he was upset that I didn’t have a key and badge to access employee buildings.” She pulled out her phone and brought up a photo of Lucas on the screen. “This is the most recent photo I have.”

The officer motioned over a uniformed policeman, who took Celeste’s phone and left with it. Another policeman approached the detective, and they conferred for a minute.

“We’re going to bring the dogs in,” the detective said. “Do you have a piece of clothing he’s worn recently?”

“I might have something in the car,” Celeste replied as she walked toward the parking lot with the policeman beside her.

Filipe watched her go, wishing he knew where Lucas was to bring him home, watching the policemen walk around the perimeter calling out his name.

“What about the hotel?” he asked the younger officer. “Have they searched in the hotel yet?”

The policeman relayed the question into the radio. After waiting for the answer, he said, “Only outside.”

Filipe set off at a brisk pace, intent on finding Lucas and delivering him to Celeste safe and sound. If this was partly about the swans, like it seemed it was, there was one place he could think of where Lucas might have gone, and Filipe had to give it a try.

When he arrived at the hotel, he crossed the lobby past the entrance and kept going to the small back room with shelves along two walls and several stuffed chairs in the center. At the farthest end, a round table with a decorative skirt was tucked between the window and the shelf. On top sat a library lamp that had been turned on and pushed to the edge, and to the side, facing the window, at an angle not visible from the door, the skirt had been hiked up as if it were the flap of a makeshift tent.

Underneath the table, lying on his belly, Lucas slept on top of the magazine article about swans, with his head resting on the crook of his elbow.

Filipe sat on the floor next to the sleeping boy and gently touched his arm. “Hey, Lucas.”

After he called his name twice, Lucas rolled to the side and stretched. He yawned and slowly opened his eyes. “Hi, Filipe,” he said in a sleepy voice. “What are you doing here?”

Filipe’s tension eased out and he smiled. “I should ask you the same thing, buddy. What brought you here?”

Lucas slipped out from under the table into a seating position, and pulled the magazine onto his lap. “My mom said we were leaving, so I had to come get this magazine. You said I could have it.”

“You’re right, I did say you could have it. I’m sorry I forgot to bring it to you.”

“That’s okay. I got it now.”

“You gave your mom a scare, taking off without telling her.”

Lucas’s shoulders slumped. “I wanted the magazine,” he said again. “We couldn’t get inside to see the swans. Is she mad?” His voice lowered at the question.

“No, she’s not mad. How about we go see her so she can stop worrying about you?” Filipe stood and extended his hand.

Lucas clutched the magazine to his chest, then grabbed Filipe’s fingers with his free hand and pulled to a standing position. “That’s a good idea. My mom worries a lot.”

Filipe’s mouth twitched in amusement as they exited the small library. “I bet she does.”

Lucas nodded and looked up at Filipe. “She said she was worried about you.”

Filipe met Lucas’s gaze. “We can’t have that, can we?”

 

* * *

 

At the sight of Lucas holding on to Filipe’s hand in the hotel lobby, Celeste brought a hand to her mouth, and tears gathered at the corners of her eyes. A wave of relief swam through her. She ran to them and knelt in front of Lucas, gathering him in her arms.

“I came to get the magazine, and I fell asleep. I’m sorry, Mamã,” Lucas said. “It’s about swans.” He pulled back a little and held up a crinkled magazine from between them.

“I’m just glad you’re okay, Lucas.” She kissed his cheeks.

After another hug, Celeste stood and grabbed Lucas’s hand, then turned to Filipe and put her arm around his waist. “Thank you,” she said, her voice choking with emotion.

Filipe returned the hug and whispered in her ear. “He’s all right. Take a breath now.” He guided her and Lucas to a nearby sofa, and she sat, pulling Lucas onto her lap, determined to never let go of him again.

Lucas raised a hand and touched her face. “Are you crying because of me?”

“They’re happy tears, baby. I’m glad to have you back. That’s all. Why don’t you show me your magazine?”

Lucas opened the pages across their laps. “It has lots of nice pictures about swans. Black and white ones, and some are gray. See?”

From the corner of her eye, she noticed Filipe talking to the detective. They looked in her direction a few times but didn’t approach. After a few minutes, the detective shook Filipe’s hand and left.

Filipe walked over to them. “Let’s go up to my suite before this gets out to the media.”

“Do we need to go to the police station tomorrow?” sShe asked Filipe.

“No, it’s all done. If anything else comes up, I’ll ask Ross to take care of it.”

Celeste followed, relieved she didn’t have to deal with anything else at the moment. Everything else could wait.

When they arrived at Filipe’s suite, Lucas let go of her hand and ran inside. The suite opened to a wide living room and small kitchen area, all decorated in white and blue with a large yellow sofa in front of a flat-screen television and a dining table by the balcony that faced the beach. In the morning the view would be quite spectacular.

“Your house is so big,” he said to Filipe. “Can I watch TV?”

Filipe chuckled. “If it’s okay with your mom.”

“That’s fine,” Celeste said. Lucas was past his regular bedtime, but after the last two hours, she didn’t care as much about enforcing rules as she did on other days. They’d earned a reprieve.

Lucas ran to the sofa and jumped on it. Filipe picked up the remote control and switched on the wide screen to a cartoon channel, looking to Celeste to check with her first. She nodded at him and made her way to one of the straight-backed chairs at the narrow island, just content to watch them. Her hands were cold, and she clasped them.

Her heart was slowly returning to its normal beat, and the tight band in her chest had loosened its hold on her heart. All the what-ifs flashed through her mind, but she didn’t want to linger there and pushed them all away. It had barely lasted two hours from the time Lucas had run away from her until Filipe brought him to her—the longest hours of her life. If she lived to be one hundred, Celeste never wanted to go through that kind of anguish again.

Filipe sat by her. “I’m going to order dinner. What would you and Lucas like?”

“I want pizza,” Lucas piped up from his seat on the sofa with a grin on his face.

Celeste smiled. “Of course you do. As long as you eat some salad with it,” she added.

“Got it. Pizza and veggies.” Filipe dialed a number on his phone, and half an hour later a knock sounded at the door. After tipping a young guy, he rolled in a food cart full of covered dishes.

Celeste rose, eager for something to do to occupy her hands. Along with three kinds of pizza and fresh-cut veggies, there was a covered dish with white rice, grilled chicken tenders, and a platter of thick-cut potato fries.

She took a slice of olive pizza onto a plate for Lucas and added sliced tomatoes and cucumbers. “How did you get all this done so fast?”

“I called the hotel chef. He’s getting things ready for next week’s grand opening,” Filipe said.

Filipe sat on the floor with Lucas, and they ate at the coffee table in front of the sofa. Celeste loaded a plate with some fries and cucumbers and sat on a stuffed chair by them, pecking at the food. The interaction between Lucas and Filipe as they ate and commented on the animal show on the screen warmed her heart, a small smile pulling at the corner of her lips.

It was a domestic scene, a family vignette at dinnertime—mother, father, and son enjoying one another’s company, like so many families did. Only they were not a family, and Filipe was not the father. Or husband. She sighed.

When Lucas fell asleep, Filipe carried him to the bedroom. Celeste went on ahead, drew the sheets back, and removed Lucas’s shoes. She covered him with a sheet and bent to kiss his forehead.

Once in the living room, she picked up the plates and stacked them on the cart. She’d been planning to talk to Filipe—why was she so nervous now?

She moved to the sofa, and they sat close enough for their knees to touch.

“I went to see Dona Vitória, Senhor Xavier’s widow, and got his notebook,” she said. “With everything that happened with Lucas, I didn’t have the time to look through it, but I have a feeling you’ll find some answers in it. I’ll get it for you tomorrow. It’s in the car.”

“Even if I don’t find what I need, there will be some changes at the aquarium. It’s about time I act like the owner I am and hire staff I can trust.” Filipe reached for her hand. “I was waiting to do a grand gesture to surprise you and Lucas, but I might as well tell you I’ve decided to reopen the aquarium to the public.”

Her heart jumped, and she threw her arms around his neck for a quick hug. “Thank you, thank you,” she said, tears emerging again. “You won’t regret it, Filipe. I know your advisers said it’s not financially sound, but if there’s anyone who can turn that around it’s you.” The conviction of her own words warmed her chest. “I can’t wait to tell Lucas. He’ll be so happy.”

Filipe nodded, smiling. “Will you stay the night?” Filipe asked. “You can sleep with Lucas. It’s a big bed. I can take the sofa, or I’ll go to the room next door, if you’re more comfortable with that.”

“Don’t go.” She didn’t want him to leave. “I’ll stay with Lucas in the bedroom, if that’s okay with you. I don’t want to drive back home tonight.” Her apartment was only thirty minutes away, but she wanted to stay. Here, next to him, she felt safe, for her and Lucas, and that was a feeling she didn’t want to let go of.

Filipe took her hand, and she met his eyes, full of hope and alight with anticipation. Surely hers were a mirror of his, anxious as she was to tell him how she felt and what she hoped for.

“What you said earlier—is it true?” Filipe asked.

He had noticed her words after all. “This is so not how I planned to tell you.” The nerves rose again, and she inhaled deeply for courage. “But yesterday Alice called me to her office and accused me of spending too much time with you, taking advantage of our connection, and breaking a company policy for it. She said I had feelings for you and challenged me to admit them. I didn’t admit anything to her, but she fired me anyway.”

Filipe groaned. “First, she can’t fire you. I own the aquarium. Second—let me get this straight. You risked the job you love for saying—” he hesitated.

“For saying I lo—”

Filipe stopped her and placed two of his fingers on her lips. “Wait. You need to listen before you go on.”

Celeste captured his hand and held it in hers, giving his fingers a squeeze, wanting him to know whatever it was he struggled with, it would be all right.

“I left after Eduardo’s funeral twelve years ago because I didn’t have the courage to face you. If only I’d gone with Eduardo that night, he might still be alive today. How could I have stayed and tried to have a chance at love with my best friend’s little sister after letting him die?” He shook his head, a sadness dimming his expression. “I couldn’t. I’d failed him, and I had failed you, and I certainly didn’t deserve to be happy.”

Celeste waited, hanging on to her patience as everything inside her screamed to tell him he was wrong. So wrong.

“But now, so help me.” He took a deep breath and squeezed his eyes. “I’m not that young, self-sacrificing guy anymore. I want to be selfish, and I want to beg your forgiveness. Because I love you, Celeste, and I’ll wait until you’re ready.”

“I don’t want to wait.” Celeste sat up straight, placed her hands on his shoulders, and kissed Filipe on the lips.

The familiar sense of coming home returned as she moved her lips against his.

His initial surprise quickly changed to complete participation, and Celeste’s heart melted at the heat between them. He took over the kiss, moving from the exploration she started to an assuredness that was new, yet familiar. He grabbed her by the waist and brought her flush against him, and Celeste wound her arms around his neck, erasing whatever distance remained between them.

There was no hesitation between them, no probing, no questioning. The firmness and affirmation from Filipe matched her own, and her heart beat a new rhythm. Celeste unclasped her hands and touched his face, then brought her palms to rest on his chest, feeling his heart beat in time with hers. The solidity of his body beneath her hands, his scent, his skin—the feelings and sensations exploded within her, surpassing any expectations she’d ever entertained.

This was Filipe, the man she’d fallen in love with at fifteen, whom she loved so much more now than she had back then. Yet he was not the same man from back then, and neither was she the same girl he’d left behind. What she felt for him now was much, much stronger.

Filipe pulled away from her mouth, and she groaned in protest, but the separation barely lasted as he angled his face and kissed her neck, then the hollow of her throat, and a new wave of sensations followed.

“Celeste.” His voice was thick with emotion as he pulled back to look at her intently. “I love you,” he repeated. “Please tell me there’s a chance for us.”

“I love you too,” she said. “I want this chance as much as you do. We’ll make it work.” She didn’t know how yet, but she knew they would.

Filipe closed his eyes and let out a shuddering breath so full of emotion and relief, Celeste’s chest heated at the feeling. He buried his face in her neck and inhaled deeply, tightening his hold on her. The embrace became as intimate as the kisses they’d just shared, and Celeste marveled at the closeness between them.

Even as they eased away from each other to breathe, Celeste wrapped her arms around his waist, and Filipe nestled her to his side and kissed her temple.

She looked up at him, and he smiled. “Celeste,” he said. His voice hadn’t yet recovered its steadiness, and she recognized the same emotion in herself.

“I love you,” she repeated with firm eyes and as much conviction as she could muster. “I don’t think I’ve ever stopped loving you.”

A slow smile appeared in his face, and his eyes crinkled at the corners. “I love you too. I always have, and I always will.”

Then he bent and kissed her again.