One Summer with the Sinner (Monteverde Series 5)

3

Chapter Three

VANE JASON

               "Welcome back to town, amigo!" My childhood friends, Harvey and Maverick, both clapped me on the back before they comfortably settled themselves on the pool chairs beside mine. The sun was high up and I loved how prickly its heat has become. The water from the pool glimmered invitingly, but I decided to stay dry for the meantime so I can properly catch up with the two of them. We haven't seen each other in about four years.

               "Kumusta naman ang buhay artista sa Espanya?" tanong ni Maverick.

               "Busy schedule and a lot of controversies, too."

               "Yeah, I heard. Rhodora follows you on all your social media accounts, Vane. Masyadong updated sa buhay mo ang kapatid kong 'yun. Nagpapahingi pa nga sa akin ng autograph mo nang malamang umuwi ka," saad naman ni Harvey. Napahalakhak siya bago sumimsim mula sa nakabukas na bote ng beer na ipinahanda ko na bago pa man sila dumating.

               "The last time I was in Spain, saglit lang tayong nakapagkita. Majority of my stay in that country was spent with my family in Barcelona. I just did a quick city tour in Madrid and paid you a short visit."

               "You meant your ex-wife, right, Maverick?" pang-iinis ko na ikinangisi niya.

               "Man! I went to see the kids and not Lindsay! She has a new boyfriend! Siya pa ang may ganang palitan ako agad? Can you even believe the audacity of that woman?"

               "We can. Ikaw lang naman ang hindi nakikinig sa amin ni Vane simula pa lang. When you first introduced that lady, we told you straight away that she's going to be a big pain in your fucking ass, and did you listen? No, Mav."

               "Look where that stubbornness got you, man." I popped off the cap of another beer as I replied.

               "Hey! Bakit naman ang buhay ko ang pinag-iinitan ninyong dalawa? Vane is getting married all of a sudden and he didn't even introduce his future wife."

               "I'm marrying for partnership, alright? It's not like there's any romantic feelings involved."
                "Aba, marrying for business. How classic! Ano 'to, teleserye?"

               "Harvey, you know how my Mama gets. She's been acting crazy lately and even threatened to sell off her share of the company if I do not relent. Ang tagal kong hinihintay na maipasa sa akin ang kumpanya, tapos ibebenta niya lang out of a whim?"

               "Kaya mas naiintindihan ko na mas malapit ka sa Papa mo, e. What kind of businesswoman would put that much at stake just to have her only son follow her orders? It's not like you guys are Chinese! Hell, you aren't even half the Asians that we are."

               Napahalakhak ako. Maverick is right. My mother, Maryam Elizabeth Howard, is British-Filipino. She was born in Exeter, United Kingdom but her family relocated to London during her teenage years. My father, Javier Blanco Clohessy, who was half-Spanish and other half British, studied college in London, in the same university she was in. They became instant friends and hit it off immediately. After graduation, he flew back to Bicol and for a time, they lost communication.

               A few years and failed relationships later, my mother, who was already a successful businesswoman that time, decided to fly to the Philippines to try to penetrate a different market. She worked on expanding her business and was always out meeting investors. My father went to attend a convention in Manila where the two of them crossed paths again.