The Sanctuary (Playa Luna Beach Romance) Read online

  Cassie felt her fury quicken, heated by the flames of the fire and the sight of him, so forlorn. “You should have told me from the beginning. Why did you let me go on about the vaquita, let me show them to you? You don’t deserve it.” She grabbed the stick back out of the ground and rearranged the logs in the fire pit, again sending embers toward the sky.

  “If you could just calm down for a moment, I will tell you everything.” He stood to his full height, squaring his shoulders, his jaw stronger. Circling the fire pit, he stood close enough to her to reach slowly for the stick she was holding. “I’d prefer if you were unarmed when I do,” he said, a slow smile growing. “Will you give me that chance?”

  Cassie dropped her eyes to the fire, her hand releasing the stick into his. She felt the warmth of his touch as he took it, her heart softening. “I want to hear everything, Alejandro. Why did you lie to me?”

  Taking a deep breath, Alejandro sat back down in his chair by the fire. He leaned back, stretching out his legs toward its warmth. “I have spent my life being groomed for the position I hold now as CEO for Costa Azul International. My family has been in construction for generations, and I am the only son of my parents, and the only grandson of my grandfather.” His hands seemed to have nowhere to rest as he folded his arms across his chest.

  “I was sent to the best schools in the United States, and spent summers apprenticing under my father. This project here in Rancho Del Sol was to be my debut as CEO of the hotel division of the larger family company, Costa Azul International.”

  Cassie’s eyes grew wide as she made the connection. “Costa Azul International owns half of Mexico,” she said, her hands flying to her mouth. “That’s your family’s company? I thought you just worked for them.”

  “Yes, and it’s not just Mexico we own half of,” he said, with a wry smile. “My grandfather started with oil and mineral rights and moved on to telephone rights when the time came. He bought all the available property he could decades ago, waiting for the right time to develop it.”

  “I had no idea,” Cassie said, her chin rested on her folded knees. She stared at the fire as she ran back through her memory of this company. It was one of the biggest family-run businesses on the planet. The crushing knowledge of the size of her opponent brought heated tears once again.

  “My grandfather is fundamentally a kind man, Cassie, but a product of his generation. He wants what’s best for his country, for the people of Mexico. This particular piece of property, though, is special. It’s the only reason emotion is so high surrounding it. I am forbidden to deviate from the plan. It is sacred.”

  “If he owns half of Mexico, what’s so special about this property?” Cassie asked, her brows furrowed now. Her tears had slowed, and her curiosity was getting the best of her.

  “Many years ago, when I was small, the family suffered a major rift. My mother was not an only child. She had a beloved brother, Pablo, and they were running the business together, with my father and grandfather. It was a group effort, and plans began to develop the property here, in the Baja. It’s a beautiful spot, and my grandfather wanted to help the local economy as well as provide access to its beauty for all people.”

  Cassie leaned forward, as Alejandro’s voice had grown soft and low. She waited, as he stared at the flames dancing, the piece of sulphur she had placed in it dripping purple and green.

  “Surveying began here, and my Uncle Pablo was in charge of the initial process. He moved to Rancho Del Sol to begin the resort.”

  “I had no idea anything had been started before. What happened? Why isn’t there a 5-star resort there now?” she asked. She began to pace as questions flooded her mind. She had never heard this before, and she thought she knew everything about her local area.

  Alejandro stood also, shoving his hands in his pockets as his voice grew stronger. “My uncle met a woman here. My grandfather is a kind man, as I said, but very traditional in the ways of our culture. The woman was not an educated one, and their union was forbidden.”

  “What difference does it make? They were in love,” Cassie said softly.

  Shaking his head, Alejandro said, “It means everything here in Mexico, Cassie. People from the United States don’t understand the depth of our traditions. Things are changing slowly, now, but at that time, my grandfather would not allow his son to do what he perceived would be throwing his life away.”

  Her heart fluttered at the pain in Alejandro’s eyes. “Did he ever marry?”

  His hands clenching, Alejandro said, “Pablo defied my grandfather, marrying his love anyway, there on the beach in Rancho Del Sol, before there was a resort of any kind. My grandfather cut him off from the family, both contact and money, and we have never heard from him again.” He stood taller now, his amber eyes glowing in the light of the flame.

  “Alejandro, I’m so sorry,” Cassie said as she grabbed Alejandro’s hand. “You’ve heard nothing about him at all, in all these years?”

  “We’ve heard some stories, but not many. My Uncle Pablo was a master craftsman as well as an expert businessman. I had heard he built churches, and later houses, of the ladrillo brick as in this house,” he said, gesturing toward Taylor’s house behind them. The beautiful arches, with their whale-tail artistry, danced by the light of the fire. “I would be proud of whatever he did.”

  “He never came back? You never found him at all?” she said, heartache cracking her voice as she spoke.

  “My mother was bereft. He was her little brother, and they were very close. She tried to find him once, but my grandfather found out, threatening to banish her and her family from the business as well. From that time forward, we were not allowed to speak of him in my grandfather’s presence, and my mother’s heart was frozen.” He lifted Cassie’s hand to his cheek, his touch warming her to her core.

  “My heart has been frozen as well since then, Cassie. It wasn’t until I saw you on the beach and had the pleasure of meeting you that I had ever felt drawn to anyone in that way. When I was honored by you sharing your passion for the vaquita, something bigger than any company, that my heart began to beat again.”

  Alejandro held Cassie’s hand to his lips, gently brushing her palm with his kiss. “By the time I realized the company had denied you the water rights for the sanctuary, I couldn’t bring myself to tell you. I hoped you felt the same way about me, and I didn’t want to risk losing you.”

  She pulled back her hand as if it had touched a flame. “I don’t understand. If you’re the CEO, why can’t you decide about the sanctuary?”

  Alejandro turned and walked toward the cliff. He gazed intently at the beach below, and then turned his sights up toward the stars. “My mother knows Pablo was married on that beach, and that’s the last place she’s ever heard from him. She is intent on leaving it untouched, as a memorial to him. She is immovable on this issue, and refuses to speak about it. She was the one who sent the denial before I’d even seen it.”

  Cassie gasped, the vision of the cold woman on the dais in front of her. “Your mother?”

  “Yes. She believes she is doing the honorable thing on behalf of her beloved, lost brother. I have not been able to deter her, and I have tried. I’ve been trying for three days now, and she will not discuss it any further.” Turning toward Cassie, he brushed away a wisp of hair blowing in the warm night breeze. “She controls the board, and this afternoon they voted against the sanctuary. I’m so sorry.”

  Cassie had been standing too long, and her leg buckled once more and the flames came closer as she fell toward them. Alejandro grabbed her waist as she fell, bringing her toward him with one swift pull. She threw her arms around his neck, grabbing tightly for balance. Her pulse raced after her near miss with the fire and as her breath returned to normal, she rested her head on his shoulder.

  “I don’t know what to do, Alejandro,” she whispered, her warm tears wetting his shirt.

  Alejandro enveloped her in his embrace, rocking her softly. She felt his chin resting o
n the top of her head as he reached under hers, tilting her face toward the moonlight, toward him. He stood still, his eyes searching hers. Slowly, she stood on her tiptoes, pulling his head toward hers.

  His eyes flashed as he leaned into her, his warm lips soft on hers. His arms tightened around her waist as the kiss deepened, his scent make her wonder if her knee would give out again. Her head spun as she gave her heart to him in a way she never thought she could, to anyone.

  He pulled away from her abruptly, his hands still on her waist, making sure she was steady. Taking a step back, he took her hand. With a slight bow, he said, “I promise I will make it right, Miss Lewis. For you, for the vaquita…and for me.”

  He brought her hand to his lips once more, lingering for a moment. “Buenas noches, Senorita. I will see you tomorrow at the press conference?”

  “I wouldn’t miss it for the world, Alejandro.” She watched him walk to his car in the moonlight, the flames of the bonfire now turning to ash. She looked out over the ocean, wondering what he could possibly be able to do now.

  Chapter Seventeen

  Cassie and Taylor scored a front row seat after they pushed their way through the throng of reporters standing outside the door. Taylor pulled Cassie through them once again as they heard shouts of, “Any statement, Miss Lewis?” from at least 20 different directions. The commotion left them breathless and they took their seats, both laughing.

  “That was bizarre,” Taylor said, turning her head to the back of the room where the photographers covered the doorway. “I feel like Beyonce or something.”

  “Well, you don’t look like Beyonce,” Cassie said, grinning. She was grateful to Taylor for the levity, as her heart had been heavy all night. She couldn’t sleep, and morning hadn’t come soon enough. The butterflies in her stomach hadn’t subsided with daylight, and the program she held in her hands was twisted beyond recognition.

  “So, what do you think he’s going to do?” Cassie said, leaning back in her seat and eyeing the dais at the front of the room. It sat empty, with 10 minutes until the press conference was scheduled to begin.

  Cassie leaned forward, her hand on Taylor’s knee. “I don’t know. I have absolutely no idea.” She glanced around the room, recognizing many sympathetic faces from the ceremony yesterday, their presence gratifying.

  “Do you believe he can fix this?” Taylor said, her eyes full of questions.

  “I have absolutely no doubt he will, and I can’t quite explain why,” Cassie said as her heart warmed with the memory of his touch. His sincerity had moved her, and she utterly believed he would make this right.

  The door behind the dais opened, and the sound of electronic camera flashes became almost deafening. Taylor grabbed Cassie’s hand as they watched the Board of Directors walk in and take their seats on the platform, its purple velvet cloth in front stamping them with regality. Alejandro’s mother, comfortable in this arena, sat down coolly, turning her gaze directly to Cassie. She smiled slightly, nodding, and turned toward her son as he entered the room.

  They both leaned forward as Alejandro followed the group in a few steps behind. His Armani suit had “business” written all over it, and she had to look twice at him to remember his face as it was last night in the firelight. Searching, she tried to read his expression. Her heart sunk as she realized he wasn’t smiling.

  The group took their seats, and Alejandro walked to the podium, blinking as the photographers took picture after picture. “Ladies and gentleman, thank you for joining us today. On behalf of the Board of Directors, I would like to thank those of you who sent messages regarding the vaquita sanctuary. All opinions were received and weighed before coming to a decision.”

  Alejandro spoke a bit about the resort again, and the ecosystem surrounding it, and Cassie couldn’t help but think he was stalling. His eyes remained steady on the door at the back of the room as he spoke, and she wondered when he would get to the point.

  He ended his overview of the issue, his face changing completely, a look of utter relief washing over him. He smiled, his joy obvious as his eyes flashed at what he had spotted.

  Turning to the back of the room, Cassie glimpsed Diego standing there, his hands in front of him holding his hat. He smiled at Alejandro, his expression guarded, as he moved a few steps closer. He was almost unrecognizable to her without his blue jeans, cotton shirt and fishing hat. The hat he held today was that of a Latin gentleman, and the expensive suit he wore made him look like an entirely different man. If she had run into him outside, she wouldn’t have known who he was.

  She looked back to the dais, where Alejandro’s mother was whispering with the woman on her right. She suddenly turned to Alejandro as the murmurs in the audience grew louder, capturing her attention. She had stopped listening when Alejandro began to speak of the vaquita, and now, she peered toward the back of the room, shielding her eyes against the bright stage lights the photographers had set up.

  “Before I announce the decision of the Board of Directors regarding the water and shore rights for the vaquita sanctuary, I’d like to introduce someone to you. Ladies and gentlemen, it is with great honor I present to you my uncle, Pablo Vasquez.”

  Cassie gasped as Senora Vasquez jumped to her feet and immediately crashed to the floor. Alejandro jumped to his left just in time to catch her before she hit the ground, laying her gently on the carpet. “Water, please,” he shouted, as he loosened the buttons around his mother’s neck. His uncle and his father arrived at the same time with water, their eyes meeting as they rushed to help the woman they both loved.

  Chapter Eighteen

  “Clear the room,” Alejandro commanded, gesturing to the assistants in the back. As they shepherded people out the back door with efficiency, an assistant motioned for Cassie and Taylor to exit with the others. “”They stay here,” Alejandro said, turning back to his mother’s side.

  Senora Vasquez’s eyes fluttered, opening wide as her brother bent over her. Her hand reached toward his face, her palm resting on his check. Tears spilled as she drank in his smile. “Pablo, I never thought I’d see you again. I’d given up all hope.”

  “Nina, father kept us apart in more ways than you know. Even after my wife and son were killed, he wouldn’t let me return and inflict shame on the family.”

  Sitting up, she never let her eyes leave her brother. “Oh, Pablo, you lost Maria? And you had a son?” she wailed, grasping him in a tight hug.

  Pablo explained his wife and their young son had been killed in a boating accident. Bereft, he had spent several years building churches and homes in the south campos, lovingly crafting the ladrillo structures dotting the landscape.

  “It was the way I chose to mourn, Nina. I had to create beauty, as Maria created beauty for me.” He held her hand tightly, brushing back her black hair with affection. “I tried to contact you, but father intercepted.”

  “What? Why would he do that if Maria was gone,” she said, her knuckles white around Pablo’s hand.

  “He decided I could come back if I agreed to work again for the company. He insisted it was the only way I could erase the shame. Maria and I had such a quiet life, and to me, her memory was not shameful. I declined, and he forbade me from contact with you and your family.” Pablo stood as Nina lowered her eyes and shook her head.

  Pablo turned his kind eyes on his brother-in-law, taking him in a warm embrace. Turning to Alejandro, he said, “And this young man’s courage is what brought me here today.” He wrapped his arms around Alejandro, smiling widely. Alejandro returned the embrace, his eyes bright.

  “I couldn’t help but replay the story in my mind, of Uncle Pablo’s decision to leave the family and marry Maria. I had heard he had built beautiful homes, and when I saw the house in Playa Luna, I wondered if it had been built by Pablo. Then, after spending the day with him on the water, I noticed the resemblance to Mother,” Alejandro said, taking a seat by his mother.

  “He found me last night, at my home. He shared with me your p
lans to set aside the space designated for the vaquita sanctuary in my honor and that of my beloved Maria. I came today to tell you the highest honor to my wife and son would be allowing the sanctuary. If the vaquita survive, that would be something she would have been very proud of.”

  Cassie’s head spun, the shock of seeing Diego as Pablo still rippling through her mind. Alejandro took her hand, giving it a squeeze. As Cassie squeezed back, Taylor patted Alejandro on the shoulder. “Way to go, Detective Vasquez,” she said, her blue eyes twinkling.

  Senora Vasquez stood, leaning on her husband’s arm and crossed the dais. She reached out her hand to Cassie, smiling. “Miss Lewis, it appears you have your sanctuary after all. Would you consider naming it after Pablo and Maria? That would make me very happy.”

  “It would be an honor, Senora,” Cassie said, with a slight nod of her head. “I can’t think of anything more wonderful.”

  Pablo again embraced his sister, his brother-in-law and all the family members on the dais. Alejandro turned to Cassie, his eyes gentle. He put his hand under her chin, tilting her face to his. Her eyes filled with gratitude, she reached up to kiss him, their warmth reaching deep into her heart.

  “Ahem,” she heard behind her. She turned, and Senora Vasquez motioned to assistants at the back of the room. “Please usher the public back in. We have a vote to take.” With a nod to Cassie, she resumed her seat as the Chairman of the Board of Directors of Costa Azul International.

  Chapter Nineteen

  The stunning brick pillars were the first thing Cassie noticed as she neared the beautiful house on the bluff, its arches enclosing a dramatic patio that overlooked the sea. She had been allowed to watch from afar as it grew, brick by brick, but Alejandro had kept her from seeing more than that until now.

  Alejandro slowed as they came closer, pulling the jeep to a stop at the bottom of the short road that lead from the beach to the dune. “Stay here a minute,” he said, hopping out of the Jeep and jogging toward the house. As he disappeared behind the tall front door, she sighed, her eyes closing as the warm gulf breeze caressed her face.