But all of that knowledge, all of that skill and improvement, wasn’t enough to earn him this. No matter how much he loved Hotel Villa, loved making it better, making it Estate and Lands’ “favorite place to get married outside of Manila.”
“Are you sure you still want to stay in that little probinsya of yours?” Vito asked Santi, like being relegated to the provinces (when Lipa was just as big as any city now) was a punishment. Like Vito would actually let him back into the fold of the Carlton ifSanticould just let go. “Say the word, and I can bring you back, hijo.”
Santi thought about talking with Kira earlier, how happy she was selling her chocolate to her friends, how she knew him well enough to understand him. He thought about Villa, and how he managed to make the old place a little more welcoming, made the place feel like home, for him and so many other people. He thought about the Laneways and sitting in Sunday Bakery with Gabriel, about the recent Christmas Party where he ate too much cupcake and hummed along to the karaoke contests.
“His” probinsya didn’t feel so little to him. But still. Manila was Manila, and you couldn’t be anyone if you couldn’t make it in Manila.
“What would it take?” he asked. Paths and possible outcomes fell away with every choice you made. This was Anton making his choice, his stand.
“What is it going to take?” he repeated, emboldened by his grandfather’s surprise. “For you to ask me back to the Carlton. Back to Manila. Back to the family.”
There was silence in the penthouse. His grandfather seemed to consider it. He was silent, staring out at the view, at the dust on the table, at anything but Santi, who was so nervous he could hear his pulse beating.
No wait. Those were his temples throbbing. He was getting a headache. Cool.
“Villa is already top of mind for hotels in the region,” Santi continued. “We’ve already more than made back your investment. What else would I have to do, for you to trust me again?”
How much would you sell your soul?a voice whispered in the back of his mind. He knew this was a deal with the devil. But what could you do, if the devil was the person who raised you, who taught you everything you knew?
“The Lai Group recently purchased a lot in Lima,” he said, and Santi’s stomach sank to the ground. Because of course he knew that. And because he was so smart, he knew what his grandfather was about to ask him. “Hotels would do well across mall lots like that, especially if they’re making it a commercial and office space.”
He had to have known. Somehow Vito had to have known that Santi had a stake in the Laneways, the only property left in the area. Why else would he bring it up? Why would the Carlton even want to be in Lima when they had a strong hold on Lipa?
“That’s what you can get me,” Vito said. “If you can get me that space, then I’ll let you back in. I’ll make you CEO, if that’s want you want. You’re a smart boy, you can figure it out.”
Santi felt like he’d been punched in the gut. Twice.
“You want the Laneways,” he said. Even if the mere thought of asking Kira to sell the Laneways to him already made his stomach churn.
It was a row of commercial spaces in an old warehouse. Santi wouldn’t be the first to say that it wasn’t the most innovative idea. But it was special, both to the people who set up businesses there, and the people that came to the Laneways. Even Santi had business on the Laneways—Sunday Bakery was shared with a business partner, but it was still partly his. His grandfather didn’t know about it, but suddenly the bakery, Kira’s chocolate shop, Sari’s cafe, Ate Tiana’s restaurant, all of that was in Vito’s crosshairs, and he couldn’t let it happen. Vito had already taken Lipa away from him before, had taken the Carlton away.
Was Santi really going to let him take this?
He wanted to sit down. Wanted to ask if there was literally anything else he could do. But one look at Vito’s face was enough to stop Santi from asking. Sentiment was unacceptable if money was on the line, which was one of the many, many reasons why the Santillans should never have the Laneways.
“I want you to get it into your head, hijo,” his grandfather said. “Lipa is meaningless. And until you get me that deed of sale, this penthouse will belong to Miro.”
Then he turned and walked away. Santi looked around at the suite, at the stunning view, and at the crystal chandeliers and the pretty coffee machine on the kitchen counter. These were things he should want for himself, and maybe he did. But he also felt tired, suddenly. Exhausted. And the evening had only just begun.
Chapter Four
December 26
Gemini Chocolates
The Laneways, Lipa
Today’s Horoscope: Twins are most powerful when they’re in sync, and you’re feeling that sync with the universe today, Gemini. The world is yours to experience and feel in the way you need. Don’t let the earth signs get you down.
When the Luz family moved to their big, new house in Haraya Subdivision, after years in the bayan, Kira had insisted on growing flowers on her windowsill. Her family, who all had gardens of their own, were only too happy to donate. So she had fragrant rosal from Lola Luz’s garden, small, delicate dama de noche crawling up to the roof from one of her Titas, and beautiful sampaguita that Kiko had given her as a birthday gift when she turned twenty-nine that year.
And while these plants loved the summer heat, Kira left her windows open at night in December, and the smell that wafted into her room in the mornings was always incredible. That, and the cool air, always made her December mornings special. She woke up to the heavy, musky scent of her rosal flowers, the birds singing in the mango tree in the Luzes’ front yard, and the wind whistling in the trees.
Yes, she was a Disney princess, basically. Now all she needed was a Disney prince with slightly sleepy eyes, fancy hair, surprisingly soft lips and—oh my god, it was barely 8 a.m., how was shealreadythinking of Anton Santillan?
She’d left Makati shortly after the wedding the other day. She would have loved to stay in Manila a little longer, actually spend time with friends she barely saw anymore (she couldn’t believe how many of her blockmates were already engaged/with child/moving in/moving away), but with the holidays truly setting in, there wasn’t time.
She realized that it wasn’t as easy, keeping up conversation with her friends—she no longer knew what the hot new food trend was (people were very into ramen, apparently), what people were lining up for (again, ramen).
