“Ton-ton, how on earth did you manage to get that painting?” Victor asked, like it was some big secret. He frowned at the painting, which had been in the Villa’s possession since before Santi was born. “Lally would never let it go to just anyone.”
“Lally knows it’s still in the family,” Santi explained, keeping his hands behind him to maintain his casual mien, all the while noticing a tic in his grandfather’s jaw. Oh hehatedthat. For someone who was in the hospital a few days ago, Santi was pretty sure he wasn’t supposed to be up and about and raising his own blood pressure like this.
“All this...decor,” Vito spat. “This is what you spent my money on?”
“I spent your money to make people spend their money here,” Santi said cooly. “I think you know as well as I do what Villa is worth to the Carlton brand.”
Which was true. Almost all of Carlton’s hotels were placed in major cities in the Philippines—they had more hotels in Manila than they did anywhere else. It was more expensive to run hotels in Manila, which meant that despite Santi holding the smaller hotel, he was earning more than some of Carlton’s locations.
“And you have no plans of adding more rooms, expanding?” Vito huffed. Santi still didn’t know what his grandfather was trying to do. Was he sizing up Villa’s value? Assessing its worth for some kind of grade he wanted Santi to chase? Maybe.
“No expansions.” Santi was firm in that. “Villa really is meant to be a boutique hotel. We’re happy with our 45% GOP. I believe the Manila hotels are at 30%? Adding more rooms would make it less personal, and its size is what a lot of our guests love about it.”
“That’s all you’re dreaming of? A tiny boutique hotel? I built alegacyat Carlton, Anton,” Vito said, shaking his head, and god, that actually hurt. What a thing for his grandfather to declare, that Santi’s desires, his happiness, had not been worth the money Vito had hoarded (for what?). That Santi himself wasn’t worth investing in. “My legacy will not include Lally Villa’s crumbling hotel. This was a waste of my money.”
Santi was sure Vito had said it to hurt, and some part of Santi wished that it didn’t affect him so much anymore.
“You would be much better off coming back to Manila, let someone else run this little place,” Vito continued, as if a hectare of property on the highway in the middle of a big city was “little.”
“And seeing as you have no plans to acquire that property in Lipa, you might as well just come back to Manila.”
“What?” Anton asked, his heart stopping in his chest. He wasn’t even sure he’d actually said it.
“You heard me,” Vito said, and Anton knew his grandfather was trying to be gracious here. “This is everything you’ve wanted right? I’m letting you come back.”
He should feel...well, he didn’t know what he should feel.
Elation? Relief? Happiness? But it felt nothing like being in the Luzes’ dining room that morning had felt. It felt different, and not quite right. Santi didn’t trust it. Didn’t trust them, it seemed.
His phone buzzed in his pocket, and he looked at the message.
Where did this rain come from??? Anyway, I’m on the way. Try to resist me until after we talk about the chocolate. ;)
This wasn’t right. What was Santi doing, staying here, taking this beating from his family when there was somewhere else he needed to be.
He thought about his morning with the Luzes, how they were all talking about going to Sunday Bakery’s opening at the end of April. The Luz-Angs were apparently planning tofly infor the occasion, which just blew his mind. They didn’t need to, but they wanted to. They had looked up tickets, which coincided with Holy Week, explained to Cassie that she needed to be ready for the coin tosses and to Santi that he should make sure to talk to this priest that was apparently their relative as well, did they need help securing candles for the blessed event?
And Santi’s family didn’t even know that Sunday Bakery existed.
“Well?” Vito asked Santi, expectantly.
“I don’t have an answer for you, Lolo. I have somewhere else I need to be,” he announced, looking away before he saw his grandfather huff, and his father still lost in thought.
Santi spotted his hotel manager watching them from a safe distance, and he waved her over. “If you have any questions, you can ask our hotel manager, Carol. I’m sure she knows as much about Villa as I do. Carol, if you can persuade them to try the Lobby Lounge before they leave, you can leave it on my tab.”
“Anton,” Vito said solemnly. “Think about this seriously. I managed to convince your parents to leave Lipa behind before. It will be easy to do it again. I’m only looking out for you, hijo.”
Santi tried to hide the sharp intake of breath he made when his grandfather said that. A part of him still believed Vito when he said that. That was the worst part.
Chapter Twelve
January 5
Around The Same Time
Today’s horoscope: You might just get carried away with a burst of renewed energy for work, thanks to Capricorn season. You might experience confusion in your personal relationships, especially when it comes to career, but trust in your partner will see you both through.
Kira jogged up to the entrance of Hotel Villa, and spied Santi looking all serious, his hands behind his back and everything, as he spoke to a group of adults who seemed to be both in awe and suspicious of him. It was enough of a strange combination for her to stop and swipe off the rainwater on her eyes.
