“I’m sorry, Abigail. You can’t tell me that is the first time he has acted like that around you. Especially as he calls you ‘Bonita.’”
I was even more confused than before. “What does him calling me ‘Bonita’ have to do with it? And yes, it is the first time. Except for when the photographer was manhandling me into the position he wanted, and Kye almost knocked him out.”
Mateus smiled again. “He’s never told you what Bonita means has he?”
I shook my head. I hadn’t wanted to know. I just wanted to think it was a term of endearment.
“Officially, it means pretty in Portuguese, but it is used a lot to mean ‘beautiful’ as a term of endearment. I can understand why it was the first word that came to his mind when he first saw you. You are beautiful, and Bonita is the perfect name for you. That alone told me that he was in love with you before he even told me.”
“He told you he loved me?”
I was shocked. How a man like Kye could ever love me, I would never know. Sure, I was a model, and most people would have said I was beautiful, but he was far too good for me. He deserved better.
“From the look on your face, I need to bang both of your heads together, because you both deserve each other. I couldn’t have picked a more perfect woman for my brother. And I can see you are already in love with him. You just have to be patient with him. He’s been through a lot since he was seventeen, some of which I don’t know myself, but I do know it still haunts him.”
Against my better judgement, I asked the question.
“What happened? What made Kye the man he is today?”
Mateus sighed. “It’s not really my story to tell. Some of it is, but not everything. I will tell you as much as I dare.”
I sat there and listened as he explained what had happened when Ricardo – Kye’s real name – fell in love with Sofia, but was too afraid to tell her. That he had met her as well and also fallen in love with her and asked her to marry him before Kye could tell Sofia his true feelings. Kye had found out about the relationship and engagement on the night he was going to admit his feelings to Sofia. There had been an argument between the brothers, and Kye had walked out and went to stay with his friend Davi until he was eighteen. Then, he had just left Madeira never to be seen or heard from again. Mateus had tried to reconcile with him many times, but Kye never returned his calls, letters, or emails. I felt terrible for both of them, but it made sense. All the barriers that Kye had built around himself were because he didn’t want to go through the heartache of losing another woman that he loved.
“What happened when he left Madeira? What has he been doing for the past eighteen years?”
“That part of his story isn’t really for me to tell. And I don’t know it all, anyway. All I do know is he got mixed up with the wrong people and ended up on the wrong side of the law. I think he has done some terrible things in his life. Things he truly regrets. I take it you know about Sienna?”
I knew all of that, of course. Kye had already told me. What I didn’t know was what had led up to that situation.
“Yes, both Sienna and Kye told me that he was partly behind her kidnapping and that he saved her life. It was the change he needed by going to work at King’s. What I don’t know, because he will never open up and tell me, is what he did in between. I guessed it was something bad. I know he is up most nights. I’m not sure he ever sleeps. I stood outside the study last night. I never knew he could play the piano.”
I saw Mateus’s eyes rise in surprise. Did he not know that Kye could play?
“What was he playing?”
I smiled at the memory of the music. He was an amazing pianist. He had brought the song completely to life.
“He was playing ‘Heaven Can Wait’ by Meat Loaf. I have never heard it played so beautifully. It’s one of my favourite songs. I wanted to go in and sit next to him as he played, but I thought he might see it as an intrusion into his privacy.”
Mateus shook his head in a way that worried me. “He has either got it really bad for you, or he is back in a dark place. Was he singing?”
“No, just playing the tune.”
“Well, as long as you don’t find him singing, he should be okay. The only time I would worry is if he is playing and singing ‘For Crying Out Loud.’ Please, if you hear that, don’t worry about his privacy. Go to him. Put your arms around him and hold him. He has always been a very quiet and moody person, but from what I understand, he has been in a very dark place recently. I couldn’t stand losing him, and I’m afraid we might.”
I was shocked at Mateus’s words. Kye seemed like such a strong man. That nothing could get to him. Knowing that underneath that was a vulnerable and lost man…I didn’t want to believe it.
“Are you sure? He seems so strong.”
“That is what he will make you believe. I will only ask one thing of you. If you truly love him, like I think you do, tell him. He feels that he cannot be loved. That he doesn’t deserve love. I know he does, and I know he loves you. He’s found the light he was once missing as well. He can’t answer whether that has come from God, or if you are his light. I’m praying it’s you. I’m hoping you can bring him back to his family. You’ve already brought him back to me in a way, and for that, I thank you.”
I could see the pain on his face. I reached over and squeezed his hand.
“I will try, and there is no need to thank me. I should be thanking you for coming here and telling me some of Kye’s story. Now, I’m guessing he will be back here soon, so I had better start lunch, or he will be wondering what we have been up to for the last twenty minutes or so.”
I got up from my chair and gave Mateus a kiss on the cheek before starting to get things ready for lunch. Just at that moment, Kye walked into the room.
“Great timing. I was just about to start lunch.”
