Page 134 of No Merciful Corruption

I cannot wait to meet them.

* * *

The family tree goes like this.

Salazar married Aurelia and they had four children: Lisandro, Horacio, Leticia, and Jimena in that order.

Lisandro had three children, Horacio had two, Leticia has four, and Jimena had eight but three of them died. Which makes for twelve living grandchildren, both biological and adoptive.

That isn’t even counting the children and grandchildren from Abuelo’s siblings, Maria Leticia and Teodoro. At our wedding, there were at least fifty name cards with the surname Narvaez and even then I’m sure I’ve miscounted.

His family is so entertaining. There has been more than one arranged marriage, a long-lost cousin, a priest gone rogue, a kidnapped nun (unrelated to the priest incident though it is odd that such similar incidents took place twice), an attempted hostile takeover of a smaller Narvaez company between siblings, and a duel over a girl’s honor. And that’s only the stuff I can think of off the top of my head.

I love being married into this family. It’s like turning on Televisa and never knowing what kind of novela you’re going to get. It’s the wild, wild west out here except it’s a coffee plantation in the Colombian Andes. Never mind the goings-on of the family tequila company in Mexico, I love going there. Might as well be inside an episode of Destilando Amor.

“I can’t wait until the baby is born.”

Sofia sets her plate down beside mine and sits down.

“Have you guys thought about names yet?”

“I think I’d be fine with Alejandro Jr. if it’s a boy,” I say. “But Alex hates the idea. He said one of him in the world is enough. No need to create more trouble.”

Sofia laughs. “He would say that.”

Early this morning the fog cleared and the sky opened up to a beautiful baby blue. The sun is warm without feeling hazy and despite the humidity, a light crispness still clings to the air. Because of this, we all decided to take breakfast on the outdoor patio overlooking one of the estate’s massive gardens. Allegra runs through the maze of flowers and shrubbery while being chased by Antonio and the usually stoic Arias. She’s the first child born in Alejandro’s generation and the cousins have taken their aunt and uncle duties very seriously.

Anastasia and Osvaldo fight over the last of the scrambled eggs while Lettie whispers conspiratorially in her cousin Belinda’s ear who giggles. Diego speaks to the other cousins in a loud, boisterous voice until Karina exits from the French doors with Tias Leticia and Jimena at her side. She listens intently to what they’re saying before glancing around. The tables lined with food and the white tent above the tables to protect them from the elements. Allegra playing in the maze, a few of the cousins and Tio Horacio riding on horseback in the distance, and finally, Diego.

They hold gazes for a long while before Tia Jimena captures Karina’s attention and they sit down at a table together to drink coffee.

The Narvaez family all bear a strong resemblance to one another. They may not look identical or have one distinguishing trait which they all have in common but they each look familiar to one another. Whether it’s the same complexion, the same eyes, or something as simple as the way they smile. The only one who sticks out a bit is Lettie.

Alejandro always says how much she resembles his mother but I’ve met Gloriana and while they do look alike, Lettie definitely seems to be the outlier. If anything, she kind of resembles Abuelo the most.

“Do you really think they’re going to get divorced?” Sofia asks, snapping me out of my reverie.

I’d say of all Alejandro’s cousins, Sofia, Esperanza, Anthony, Arias, and Sebastian are probably the ones I’m closest to. They visit the most often and we spend the most time together. I like the other cousins too but I just gravitated toward this group more.

I shrug in response. “They’ve been saying they would since last year. Although, something changed this year.”

She lifts her brows in response as she drinks her orange juice. “Oh?”

“Usually they run hot or cold. In love or in hate. We can always tell when they’re on again and when they’re off again. But ever since the holidays they’ve been suspiciously…neutral.”

“Neutral?”

Sebastian joins us and drops his plate on the table as he hacks into a piece of bacon. “Who’s neutral?”

Sofia impatiently waves off her brother. “Wait, so what happened?”

He lifts a brow. “Are you gossiping? Have you even prayed before your meal?”

We both shush him before continuing.

“Yes, neutral,” I say. “I can’t figure them out this time around. I’d say they were serious about divorcing except I caught Karina doing the walk of shame from his bedroom this morning.”

Sofia gasps. “You didn’t!”