The Imposter

Chapter Fourteen

The following morning, I woke up to a knock on the door. It was Jaime. He came and grabbed me by the shirt. “I don’t know what you have going on, but Mrs. Salazar wants me to let you know that Miss Kalani is off limits. Got that?” I nodded scared. I didn’t know what was even going on.

He stepped out. As he did, Daisy came in.“Is everything okay?” She asked. I still had a frightened look from Jaime’s wake up call. “I saw Jaime come in, did something happen?” I shook my head. “I just asked him to wake me up so that I could have breakfast with the family.” I tried getting up, but my head began to spin. Daisy helped me lay down. “Don’t worry, I told Samantha to bring you your breakfast here. You need to relax. What happened yesterday was not normal. Want to share what happened?” I knew that with her I could be honest. 

“It was related to what happened to me. The accident.” I felt tears coming up, but I couldn’t let her see that. She held my hands. “Don’t worry, you’re safe. We won’t let them  get near you. I promise.” I could tell that what she was saying was sincere. I thanked her. Just then, Samantha came in with my breakfast. She smiled like usual. But this time, as she came close to me, she said, “Mr. you have a visitor.” She laughed and walked away. 

A visitor? Who could it be? A few minutes later, Mrs. Salazar rushed in with Alana. My "mother" got on the bed and hugged me. She whispered, “Remember what I said. No feelings.” And walked out. 

There I was with her alone in the room. She smiled and I asked her to take a seat. I tried to get up, but she insisted on me laying down. She helped me with the meal I had before me. I couldn’t help feeling like a baby. But, I couldn’t lie, I loved having her near me.  

“So how are you feeling?” she asked as she grabbed my hands. “My father thinks that I should stay in bed all day, but I feel a lot better.” I tried to get up, but I couldn’t. “You should eat something. It will help you get better faster.” Nodding, I tried to get the fork, but she grabbed it out of my hand before I could even do anything. “No, I'll help you.” No way, I couldn’t let her do that.  “Please, it’s the least I could do, this happened because of me.” I didn’t refuse anymore, I saw it in her eyes that she was sorry. 

After I finished eating, I thanked her for everything. “Alana, this wasn’t your fault, it was just an accident. But thank you. Thank you for being there by my side. How did Felipe feel about everything that you did for me?" I could tell that the sound of his name didn’t please her. “I don’t care what he says. He was mad, that's for sure, but it doesn’t matter. My opinion, to him never matters, so why should I care for his?” There was anger in what she was saying. Was there something wrong with their relationship? It didn’t matter. I could never be with her. 

I got up from the bed and walked to her side. “What’s wrong? Don’t you love him?” She shook her head. “My parents are forcing this relationship. They say that his parents’ company and theirs together could make a fortune.” Unbelievable! How could someone put money before someone’s happiness? At that moment, I fell back. I realized that I was that cynical as well. I put my needs over everyone and it would end up hurting many. “I’m sorry” I said as I walked back to the bed. 

“Why are you sorry? It’s not your fault.” She rushed to my side seeing that I was feeling a bit dizzy. As she got close to me, her hands slipped and she landed on top of me. Our lips were so close. I couldn’t believe it. And I think she couldn’t believe it either. I saw her close her eyes and lean forward towards me. What was she doing? Was she about to kiss me? I wanted so badly to pull away, but it was as if she had a magnet pulling me closer and closer. 

At that moment, the door handle shook. Someone was at the door. We separated and acted as if nothing was happening. When the door opened, it was Mrs. Salazar. “What are you two doing?” she asked as if we were up to no good. Maybe she suspected something going on? Alana was the first to speak. “I was helping Esteban back into bed. He’s so stubborn. He got up and started walking around.” She bought it. “Thank you Alana, he can be a bit stubborn. Your mother just called. The chofer is on his way to pick you up.” Alana thanked her for the information. She looked at me and said goodbye. “I’ll call you later in the week to check on you okay?” I nodded and she left.

Mrs. Salazar closed the door behind her. “What did you two do ?” She wanted to know if there was more to what I was trying to play off. “If you’re wondering if we did something out of order. The answer is no. She felt bad for what happened. All she did was help me eat and we talked.” I regretted what I said, I knew that she would question the conversation we had. “And what exactly did you talk about?” I could see her facial expressions changing. Was she mad? “About her relationship.” That seemed to ease her. 

Valeria, 

I can’t believe it. I think I’ve fallen in love with her. But that can’t be. Mrs. Salazar will never let that happen. I wonder what the real Esteban would do? Would he let his emotions get the best of him as well? It’s her birthday in a few weeks. What do I get her? What do I get the girl who has everything? 

Erick