“What do you think, Valeria?” Billy asked slyly. “Would you have liked to know that Kate was in town?”
“You, young man, are a trouble maker,” spouted Mrs. Loya. “You should mind your own business instead of trying to stir up trouble just because you’ve got the hots for my daughter.”
“I don’t have the hots for your daughter,” rushed Billy. “I—“
“Don’t try to insult my intelligence, Booby.”
“That’s Billy,” he said with irritation.
“I don’t care,” she snickered. “I don’t like you and I think you should leave. She’s about to have a baby! What kind of jerk what come over and get her upset?”
“I didn’t mean to—“
“Of course you meant to! Selfish skunks like you never consider other people. Now leave! Leave now!”
“I’m sorry,” he mumbled as he left.
“Yeah, you’re sorry,” sniped Mrs. Loya as she guided her daughter to a bench and sat her down.
“Don’t pay attention to what that hot pants Casanova said.”
“How do you know he’s a Casanova?” asked Valeria.
“C’mon, he’s got womanizer written all over him. Kissing my hand—eek. I’ll have to disinfect it when I get home.”
“I’ve never liked him either.”
“You’ve got taste.”
Valeria stared off into space as if contemplating a thought. “Why didn’t Lorenzo tell me about Kate?”
“He probably has his reasons.”
“But—“
“Now listen to your old mother, talk to him before jumping into any conclusions. That’s a main ingredient of a successful marriage, mija—communication.”
“I’ll talk to him,” mumbled Valeria.
Chapter 55
“Why didn’t you tell me Kate was back in town?” demanded Valeria, hurt and anger coloring her words. Her intentions had been to heed her mother's words but once she was face to face with Lorenzo, her words came tumbling out without her being able to stop them.
He hated seeing her so upset. “How did you find out?”
“Never mind that. Why didn’t you tell me?”
“Why does it matter?” he asked, wishing she’d calm down.
“I feel betrayed,” Valeria rushed.
“Betrayed?”
“Yes, betrayed.”
“Why would you feel betrayed?” he asked, trying to talk soothingly to her.
“Stop playing games with me. Why didn’t you tell me that Kate was back in town?”
He sighed. “I thought it would be better not to tell you.”
“Why?” she demanded.
“I didn’t want to complicate things with us and even if Kate is in the past, you’re emotional now with this being the last stage of pregnancy. I didn’t want anything upsetting you.”
“Are you sure you’re not having any regrets?” Her words hung in the air like dust particles wondering where to fall.
“Regrets?” he asked, puzzled.
“Yes, regrets about her. She’s the woman you should’ve married, right?”
“No, not right,” he stated, irritated. “If I had wanted to marry her, I would’ve done it a long time ago.”
“Are you being honest with me?”
“Where’s this jealously coming from?” he asked gently.
“I’m not jealous,” she blurted.
“You’re not?”
Valeria sighed. “Maybe a little.”
“A little?”
Valeria didn't want to stay on this subject. Feelings. He was right about her emotions being all over the map during her last trimester.
“Talk to me, Valeria.”
“You talk to me.”
“What?”
“You tell me how you feel about me.”
“How can you ask me how I feel about you?” he questioned, annoyed at being asked such a silly question.
“Lorenzo,” she said impatiently, “what do you expect? I don’t know how you feel about me.”
He shook his head, irritated. “How can you not? It’s obvious the way I feel about you.”
“No, it’s not.”
He frowned. “Even my parents knew how I felt about you when we went to Acapulco.”
“Really? Is that true?”
He frowned louder than before. “Valeria, your questions are getting more ridiculous by the minute.”
“When did you start having feelings for me?”
He eyed her carefully. “Since the first time I saw you.”
“What?”
“You heard right.”
“You’re talking about the first day of school when we met in front of my classroom?” she asked in disbelief.
“Yes.”
“Really?”
“I know I was in a relationship with someone else but , , , I can’t explain it. I can't explain how it happened so fast.”
“I have a confession to make,” Valeria said solemnly.
“Yes?”
“Now that I look back—the same thing happened to me.”
His dark eyes reached hers. “It did?” he asked quietly.
“Yes.”
"Great!"
It wasn't so bad getting everything out in the open both thought. It wasn't so bad understanding where things stood. It wasn't so bad knowing where the start button had been. The question remained as to where everything would go.
Chapter 56
Comfortable. The word was a perfect description of Valeria's and Lorenzo's state as they watched a sitcom on television. Valeria leaned back on Lorenzo's shoulder as his hand rested on her womb. When there was a knock on the door, she looked at Lorenzo with curiosity and he did the same.
“Expecting anybody?” she asked.
“No, what about you?”
“No.”
Lorenzo stepped to the door still wondering who was calling on them at this late hour. As soon as he opened it, he gaped at the visitor, his face in full surprise.
“Hi,” said the person from the other side of the door.
“Kate,” Lorenzo blurted, flabbergasted.
“I need to speak to you.”
“I’ll leave both of you alone,” uttered Valeria who had just regained her own voice. After the talk she had had with him where he had admitted his feelings, she realized she had to trust in him.
“Actually, I need to talk to the both of you,” declared Kate.
“What about?” Valeria questioned.
“Can I come in?” Kate said from the doorway.
Lorenzo eyed Valeria with a concerned look.
“Sure, come in,” Valeria responded. Leading Kate to the living room, Lorenzo sat next to Valeria on the loveseat as Kate took the sofa.
“What do you need to talk to us about?” questioned Lorenzo, the look on his face still showing his complete bewilderment over the situation.
“I’m here to apologize,” Kate blurted.
“What?” Valeria and Lorenzo expressed in unison.
“I kept you apart.”
“What do you mean?” queried Lorenzo.
“I understand now that you and I were never actually meant for each other, Lorenzo. We held on to something we really shouldn’t have.”
“You did?” asked Valeria, wondering if her ears were playing tricks on her.
“Yes, we did, but it’s different for you and Lorenzo.”
“What do you mean?” asked Lorenzo.
“You two belong together.”
“You think that Lorenzo and I are meant for each other?” asked Valeria, still trying to comprehend the new turn in events.
“I know you are.”
“I’m not sure I understand what’s happening here,” declared Lorenzo.
Opening her silk purse, Kate pulled out some audio recordings. She quickly placed them on the cocktail table and nervously rushed her words. “I could try to explain but it’s easier if you listen to these.??
?
“What is this about?” asked Lorenzo with bewilderment.
"What?" questioned Valeria with an uneasy feeling in her stomach.
“Just listen to recordings carefully," Kate stated. "You’ll be surprised.”
Chapter 57
“I’m free! I’m free,” Kate cried out to Gary as they ate dinner on the balcony of their shared apartment with the darkness of night surrounding them and two bright candles lighting their content faces.
“I’m so glad you did this.”
Having left Valeria and Lorenzo with the recordings freed her from all the guilt that had threatened to suffocate her for the past months. The secret was out and she could finally breathe. Kate had told them that they should listen to the recordings of her sessions with Valeria without her and then if they wanted, she would later join them to answer any questions.
“I’m also free from Enzo,” she murmured, her eyes in a full sparkle and her voice in a song.
It still seemed like an impossible dream—the way everything had happened. After Gary had learned about Belisaria's confession to Kate, he had shown up at her hotel wearing his impeccable suit and groomed to perfection.
“Come to dinner with me,” he had entreated.
“I’m not ready for something like that,” Kate had blurted nervously, the invitation had completely taken her by surprise.
“You have to eat, don’t you? We can stay here in the hotel if you want. It probably has a good menu.”
“But—“
“We have to talk,” he declared, his sandy hair in perfect place and blue eyes staring intently at her.
“We do?”
“Yes.”
“About what?”
“Come with me and you’ll see,” he stated.
“But—“
“Do you want to keep staying in your room, licking your wounds? Do you?”
“No,” Kate mumbled. “Not really.”
“Let’s have a bite to eat.”
They stepped into the hotel restaurant, ordered their food, and Gary asked her about what she had been doing in New York City when she had left El Paso. Kate had tried to keep her mind busy with Broadway shows and the like in one of the most cosmopolitan cities in the world. Midway through their meal, she broke down and brought up what she had been so curious about that she had agreed to dinner with him,
“Earlier, you said we had to talk,” Kate stated.
He nodded.
“What about?” she asked.
“Us.”
“Us?”
“I’ve been in love with you for a very long time,” he said nonchalantly.
“What did you say?”
“I love you.” His tone was still matter of fact.
“You can’t be serious,” she blurted.
“Why do you say that?”
“You barely know me.”
“We’ve been in the same building for years,” he stated. “And I also know you through Belisaria.”
“I can’t deal with this right now,” she mumbled, grabbing her purse to stand up.
He put his hand on her arm. “Don’t go,” he murmured gently but firmly. “Hear me out.”
Kate got on her feet. “I can’t—“
“Do you want to keep pinning away for a man who broke your heart?”
“No,” she said quietly.
“Then hear me out.”
She nodded, sitting back down. “What do you want to say?”
“I know how you feel, Kate. Before you, I loved someone who didn’t love me back. She really did a number on me—using me for my bank account while cheating on me. When I found out, I threw her out of my life, but I couldn’t erase the scars. I thought I would never be able to get over her, but then I met you. I thought my luck had finally changed until I found out that you were living with a man, and you were completely in love with him. Now that he’s out of your life, I’m not going to let you get away from me without a fight.”
“Gary,” Kate said, taking a breath. “I appreciate what you’re saying, but I don’t know if I have it in me to start a relationship after what happened with Enzo.”
“At least give us a chance.”
“But—“
“Kate,” he said impatiently, “I know I’m not Enzo, but let me tell you who I am. I’m hardworking, honest, and respectful. I’m not embarrassed to tell you how much I love you, even when you’re telling me you’re still hung up on somebody else. My name is Edgar Forster and I’m laying everything I am at your feet.”
“Your name is Edgar?” Kate blurted, surprised.
“Everybody calls me Gary because I hate the name Edgar.”
She smiled in a contemplative form. “So your name is Edgar,” she murmured. “Enrique.”
“What?”
“Never mind . . . Let’s finish our dinner. What do you say?”
“I say great.”
That had been the beginning of Kate and Gary’s great love affair. When she looked back on the sequence of events, she realized there had been what Constance called synchronicity. The evening she had run into Gary and Belisaria, she hadn’t gone to Leonardo’s Bar and Grill to drink alcohol. After all, she was a therapist and knew the dangers of relying on alcohol to chase any troubles away. That night, she had been bitten with an overwhelming feeling that she needed to be at the restaurant.
Now months later, she knew why. Staring deep into Gary’s blue eyes on his apartment's balcony, she repeated her declaration, so he knew she meant every word of it.
“I’m over Enzo. I really am.”
"Are you, Kate?" Gary asked anxiously.
"I love you, Gary. I should've let Enzo go a long time ago to be with you."
Chapter 58
“This can’t be true,” cried Valeria when they had listened to the last of the recordings.
“I don’t know what to say,” said Lorenzo, clearly disconcerted.
“I’m crazy.”
“What?”
“I’m crazy, Lorenzo. I’m certifiable. That’s the only possible explanation.”
His dark eyes stared at her as he shook his head. “You’re not crazy, Valeria. You’re one of the sanest people I know.”
“Then how do you explain what’s on these recordings? It was clearly me on them saying all those crazy things while I was in hypnosis.”
“You don’t remember anything from the sessions with Kate?” he asked, his eyes firmly anchored on her.
“No, not this stuff. Just a whole bunch of things from my childhood.”
“A while back she kept asking me about reincarnation. Now I know why she was bringing it up.”
“She never told you anything about me?”
“Only that you had problems with commitment,” he said lightly.
Valeria frowned deeply. “She said the same about you.”
“Is that why you have problems trusting me?” he asked, his gaze dissecting her.
She pulled her sight away from his. “Is that why you have problems trusting me?”
“Val—“
“I guess that now that I’m officially crazy, it’ll be hard for anybody to take me seriously,” she commented, her voice cracking.
Lorenzo quickly put his arms around her, encircling her with his warmth. “You’re not crazy,” he stated, kissing her gently on the head. “I already told you that.”
“What’ll I do now?”
“We need to talk to Kate.”
“That’s a good idea,” stated Valeria.
“She can clear up a whole bunch of things.”
Valeria nodded. “When your parents mentioned the dreams—your nightmares were about the Mexican revolution, right?”
“Right. You also used to have nightmares about that war, right?"
"Right," she answered with a dry mouth."
"I’ve been having nightmares about the Mexican Revolution and a woman named Valentina since I was a child.”
“Valentina?” she gulped.
His eyes were solemn. “Yes. I could never quite see her face but that was her name.”
“So this stuff on the tape makes some sort of sense to you?”
“I guess it does,” he said, his eyebrows knitted together.
“But it’s so crazy!”
“Let’s talk to Kate,” he insisted.
“Yes, we need to talk to her.”
“It's the only way to clear some of this up.”
Chapter 59
When they arrived the next day at the apartment Kate told them she was staying at, Lorenzo hadn’t expected a man to be there, but it was Gary who opened the door. Kate promptly introduced him as her fiancé and Lorenzo gave him a smile, but Gary, in turn, eyed him with suspicion.
“That’s a beautiful ring,” Valeria told her with sincerity.
“Thank you,” Kate responded warmly. "I just got engaged last night."
“You deserve nothing but happiness,” Lorenzo assured.
“Thank you.”
“We’re sorry to barge in on you like this but we needed to talk to you,” stated Valeria, her face disconcerted.
Lorenzo nodded. “We need to talk to you about the recordings.”
“I’ll give you some privacy,” said Gary, kissing Kate before leaving the living room.
“What do you need to know?” asked Kate, calmly and unruffled.
“Everything,” blurted Valeria. “Am I crazy?”
“No, Valeria,” assured Kate. “You’re not crazy.”
“But how can you explain what’s on the recordings? Why didn’t you tell me about what was really going on during those sessions?” asked Valeria, her voice cracking.
“I never told you because I was struggling with trying to find an answer. I was dong what you're doing now—resisting the idea of reincarnation. You remember me asking you about it, don’t you, Enzo?”
“I remember,” he said quietly.
“I did explore the idea of some kind of psychosis like multiple personalities, but I quickly did away with it when I kept transgressing you.”
“Why did you stop the sessions so all of a sudden?” asked Valeria.
“I realized that Lorenzo was Leonardo and I couldn’t handle it. I made myself believe that what I found in the sessions was just a fluke.”
“A fluke?” asked Valeria.
“But it’s not a fluke, Valeria,” insisted Kate. “I really believe those memories inside your head are real.”
“A past life?”
“Yes.”
“How can you be a doctor and believe in reincarnation, Kate?” asked Lorenzo, frowning.