can scarcely bring herself to speak to me. Santos is a marvelous big brother and works to keep Fox and me entertained. He looked after the twins too. We didn't expect anyone to recognize us at the Caves, but it's a lot more fun to listen to music and watch people dance than it is to sit here alone in my room."
Unmoved by her scolding tone, he glanced at the photo and then her clothes. "Have you even been to bed?"
She hadn't been up long enough for the maid to clean her room and pointed to her unmade bed. "No, I just muss up the bed to make it look as though I did. And while you're being so damn critical, I want my white lace panties back."
Even with his deep tan, she swore he blushed. "You're not wearing them, are you?"
"No!" he shouted. He caught himself and looked toward the door, then lowered his voice. "I wanted them for luck, but I should have asked you for them."
"Yes, you should have. Do lace panties bring especially good fortune?"
He laughed. "They have been so far."
"You have a trunk full of them?"
"No, I was teasing you. I only have yours."
Growing suspicious, she rested her hands on her hips. "Did you need an article of my clothing to cast a spell?"
"I don't know any spells." He raked his fingers through his hair. "The only ones I ever heard about were con games played on tourists, or anyone else foolish enough to believe Gypsies' magic actually worked. Even if I did know a hundred spells, I wouldn't use them on you. Some men say American girls are more difficult than bulls. Now I believe it."
She poked him in the chest. "I'm not the one who started this." She checked her watch. "My father's day is planned with time for rest and visitors, and if I miss the breakfast shift, I won't be able to see him today."
Rafael crossed the room to open the door and caught Carmen Aragon listening on the other side. She took one look at him, and steam nearly shot from her ears. "You are not to entertain men in your room!"
"I wasn't entertained," Rafael assured her with a straight face, which upset her all the more.
She swept Maggie with a scalding glance. "I told you to get rid of the Gypsy clothes. I don't want to see you in them again." She wheeled around and walked toward her son's room.
Maggie shot by Rafael and overtook her. "Rafael was concerned by the tabloid, as you were. We stepped into my room for privacy. My father doesn't need to hear about this."
Her grandmother raised her index finger. "One more problem and you're gone." She passed by her son's room and went down the rear stairs to the kitchen, where she could be heard berating Tomas over the luncheon menu.
Rafael came up behind Maggie and spoke softly in her ear, "My grandmother may have sold worthless potions, but your grandmother is a..."
"I don't think there is a word in any language that accurately describes her." She turned to find him smiling as though he hadn't just compared her to a bull. At least he didn't sulk. She couldn't stand that. "Do you want to come into see my father now? I hate to have you wait out here while I visit him."
He held up the tabloid. "I'll wait and catch up on my reading."
Her father greeted her with an amused smile. "You look beautiful in more colorful clothes. You should wear bright colors more often."
"Thank you." She sat with him at the round table, took a small plate and a blueberry muffin. "I meant to ask you about my airline reservation. Is my flight home all arranged?"
"No, I left the day and time open so you could make your own arrangements on Monday." He sat back and regarded her with a slow smile. "My mother is upset you've refused to attend Sunday's corrida. I haven't heard Santos complain, but I'm sure he's disappointed. He's very fond of you."
"I'm fond of him too, but a bullfight is a bloody spectacle I'd rather not see. Does Santos know his great-grandfather died in the ring?"
"Yes, it's no secret. Juan Diego's death was seen as a tragic loss by the whole nation. Many women wore black for months in his honor. A few men too, I imagine."
Reminded of her conservative classroom wardrobe, she was startled to realize she already owned a widow's dark clothes. She blotted