The Passions of Santos

Chapter 1

As the President of North Ecuaduras, Santos rarely went out in public without his lavender military uniform. He was famous for his generosity, his public speaking skills, and his leadership abilities--but mostly, he was famous for his appearance. Santos felt presentation was everything, especially in politics, and he never left the house without combing his hair, dusting off his lapels, and checking his teeth in the mirror. So you can imagine how frazzled he felt when he fell off his horse and into a treacherous mound of manure.

Our story begins on a Saturday, like any other Saturday--only, on this day, Santos decided to go out for a ride. Normally, he was accompanied by an entourage of people, but today, Santos wanted to be alone. He was frustrated, you see, by the people in his life. Nobody understood him for who he really was. Yes, he was El Presidente, but he was also a human being, with strengths and weaknesses and fears just like everybody else. As much as Santos loved being admired by his countrymen, he was tired of feeling like a statue. He was craving something real.

It is possible that Santos fell off his horse intentionally. Perhaps, deep down, he wanted to roll around in the mud and feel the earth between his fingertips. But in the moment, when Santos tumbled off his stallion and into the muddy ground, he was not thrilled. His face was covered with dirt and his freshly cleaned, lavender military uniform was completely ruined. When Santos tried to stand up, he instantly slipped and fell into the mud once more. Then, his horse caught sight of a deer and ran off into the distance! And so, on this Saturday, due to a series of very unfortunate events, the President of North Ecuaduras found himself stranded alone in the middle of the woods.

Hours later, Santos was still walking home. He had no compass or sense of direction and was most certainly lost. It is not very often that a president must navigate his way home alone, let alone on foot! Only one person rode by in the three hours Santos was walking, but he mistook Santos for a beggar and continued riding. Apparently, without his lavender military uniform and clean face, Santos was unrecognizable. But that was the least of his problems. Santos knew the sun would be setting soon, and he worried for his life. He was on a strict protein diet and needed to eat highly nutritious snacks every two hours otherwise he would surely perish.

Moments later, just as the sun began to creep beneath the treetops, Santos noticed a beautiful figure up ahead. He could not see her face, but from the back, he could tell she was striking. He stared longingly for a moment, as his heartbeat quickened. Then, he stepped towards her. Even though she was 100 feet away, he could already feel the physical chemistry between them; the hairs on his arms stood straight up and beads of sweat percolated on his forehead. As he moved forward, he stepped on a particularly crunchy leaf, causing the woman to turn around.

Here, beneath the swaying trees and setting sun, is where our love story begins. From the moment Santos and Blanca caught each other's eyes, they fell madly, passionately in love. With their eyes locked, they walked toward each other, slowly, each step causing their heartbeats to accelerate with delight. When they finally reached each other, no words were necessary. Santos held Blanca's face in his hands, gazed into her deep brown eyes, and kissed her passionately. He then pulled back, to look into her beautiful eyes once more.

"Who are you?" Blanca asked, her eyes filled with awe and wonder.

Santos had a choice: he could tell her who he really was and risk having her treat him differently, the way the rest of the world did. Or, he could make passionate love to her beneath the setting sun, and tell her later. Not surprisingly, he chose the latter.

After they made love, Santos and Blanca stared at each other for hours, amazed by their mutual passion. For Blanca, this was her first love, and she knew she would never have a love like this again. Santos had experience in this department, but his heart pounded for Blanca harder than for the twelve women he'd loved before her.