Blossoming Flower (Wildflowers Book 1) Read online

  “When did you last see him?”

  “Last year, sometime,” Flor replies quietly, not wanting to remember the awful week at the fazenda she had spent with Felipe, her father and his then girlfriend, Talia.

  “And your mother?”

  “Shortly after.”

  “Hmph. Seems children hating their parents still hasn’t gone out of fashion.” Poppy turns to face Flor and crosses her arms. “You’ve been spending all your time here in the States?”

  Flor nods. “I just finished my third year at Belle Grove.”

  The woman doesn’t respond for a while. Flor looks up to see her staring off at some portrait on the wall. The sharp blue eyes shift back to the young Brazilian girl. “The school that went bankrupt?”

  “Sadly, yes.”

  “Have you made arrangements for where you’ll go in the fall?”

  Again, the girl nods. “Smith.” It took pulling every string she could from the small circle of what’s left of the de Lima family friends and a sizable donation toward a scholarship fund, but the prestigious women’s college accepted her. Belle Grove shutting down was a wake-up call to Flor that she wouldn’t be able to hide out much longer, and if she had to buy a degree, it might as well be from a reputable institution that wasn’t at risk of going bankrupt.

  “That must’ve cost you,” Poppy chuckles. “Being that you’re a late transfer.”

  “I managed,” Flor replies flatly.

  “And how exactly are you managing?” Poppy narrows her blue eyes at Flor. The girl takes a deep breath, realizing that she will have to get to the point sooner or later.

  “With what little is left of my trust, which, after my father’s companies went bankrupt, left me with just cash and treasuries,” Flor answers honestly, feeling compelled to be straightforward with this virtual stranger.

  Poppy nods. “I can imagine. Exactly how much is left?”

  “About twenty percent of it.”

  She can tell by the look on the older woman’s face that she was quickly calculating the figure. “So you have about eight million left?” She doesn’t bother disguising her shock.

  “Had,” Flor replies. “My mother needed some help.”

  “How much help?” Poppy’s tone is derisive.

  “Enough to buy her a condo on Miami Beach, new boobs, a facelift, a car, a new wardrobe and to cover her lawyer’s fees after the divorce.” Flor folds her arms across her chest and bites down on her lower lip to keep from crying. Her mother’s spending spree with Flor’s money was an incredible betrayal. Her mother hadn’t learned anything from what happened, instead opting to carry on the fantasy lifestyle to which she had been accustomed. Of course, she argued that she needed it if she were going to marry a rich man. That’s her mother, always thinking ahead and only about herself.

  “Well, I guess everyone has their way of coping in a crisis.”

  A laugh escapes Flor, along with a tear. She quickly flicks it away with a finger, hoping Poppy didn’t notice.

  “And what about you? How are you coping?”

  Flor shakes her head. “School, I guess. It’s all I have right now.”

  “What are your plans after you graduate?”

  “Veterinary school. Equine medicine specifically.”

  “Oh,” Poppy nods patronizingly. “Well, that’s certainly a change from your family’s legacy.”

  “My father was clear that I should do whatever I’m most passionate about, and it’s always been horses. I’ve been riding since I was three years old. I never had any interest in business, and considering what’s happened, I certainly have no desire to pursue it now. It’s not as if there’s much of a legacy left.”

  “No, I guess there isn’t.” Poppy gets up, walks to her desk and leans against the edge. Grasping onto the edge, she asks, “You seem to have it all figured out.”

  “I’m trying,” Flor replies. “It’s unsettling though.”

  “Which part?”

  “Not having a home or much family support.”

  “You have some money. That will afford you a decent life.”

  Flor shakes her head. “After what my mother took, and paying for my education out-of-pocket, plus having to set up my own practice, it may take all I have left.”

  “How much, precisely, did your mother take?”

  “Six and a half million.” Flor shifts under the weight of Poppy’s stare.

  The matriarch clucks her tongue. “Well, to be fair, she probably doesn’t consider that to be much money. What about your grandmother?” She asks, referring to Gustavo’s mother, Tatiana.

  “She’s busy supporting the rest of the family and paying my father’s lawyers’ fees. Although she said she’d help me out if I move back to Brazil. Apparently, the world isn’t a safe place for a single girl.”

  Chapter 4

  “If you’re here for money, all you need to do is ask,” Poppy says, pressing a button beneath the dinner table. Within a minute, her housekeeper arrives to refill their wine glasses.

  Flor shakes her head, as she chews the last of her salmon. She forced herself to eat slowly and savor every bite even though she had been starving, her last meal having been a small bag of almonds on the bus. While these meals may have been the norm at home and at boarding school, they’d become increasingly rare in her life as a frugal student.

  “No thank you, Mrs. Baron. I didn’t come here for money.” She points to her now empty plate. “Or even dinner.”

  “Poppy, dear.”

  “Of course.” Flor says, noticing that Poppy had hardly touched her food.

  “As I said earlier, before I moved to Belle Grove, my father told me that if I ever needed someone to talk to, you were the one to see.”

  “Your father flatters me,” Poppy replies disingenuously. From the way she carries herself and her self-assured manner, Flor could easily see that Poppy is someone of great influence and power. And that she knows exactly how and when to wield it. You have to pity the person who crosses her.

  Flor folds her napkin and places it on the table. “I need a job for the summer, something to tide me over until school starts.”

  “You came all this way to ask me for a job?” Poppy sips her wine, her fourth glass. “A phone call certainly would’ve sufficed, although I don’t know what I could offer by way of experience for a future veterinarian. What about finding something through your college?”

  “Opportunities and resources are limited. Foreign students are usually the lowest in terms of priority. In any case, anything worth having on campus has been taken.”

  Poppy sits back and studies Flor’s face for a moment. “Have you ever considered modeling? Aside your stunning features, you have the height and the body for it.”

  The young woman tucks her dark long, wavy hair behind her ear. If she had a dollar for every time she’d been asked that, she wouldn’t need a job. Besides, the idea of exposing herself so publicly never appealed to her. Rather than explain this, she merely shakes her head.

  “How old are you? Twenty? Twenty-one?”

  “I’ll be twenty-two in November.”

  “You’d be starting out a bit older than other models, but I could get you into a reputable agency here in New York.”

  The Brazilian beauty tenses. “I’d rather not be here in the City, if that’s possible. In any case, modeling isn’t an option. It’s time-consuming and detracts from school. I’d planned to study for the GRE this summer.”

  Poppy scoffs. “The hubris of youth makes you take your beauty for granted.” She pushes the invisible button and then leans her forearms on the table. “If you don’t want to model, what would you prefer to do? Surely you must have some idea.”

  She stops speaking when the housekeeper enters. “Could you please bring out a dessert for our guest.” As soon as the woman turns to leave, Poppy smiles and says, “Surely you can afford the calories if you’re not interested in modeling.”

  Flor mirrors her expression, uncertain of w
hether to take the insult personally. Finally, she decides to let it drop, having learned over the past four years not to take anything to heart. Poppy can lament the loss of her youth and her beauty all she wants, just like her mother does. Flor knows better than to let the woman reclaim it by living vicariously through her.

  The young woman pushes away the slice of tarte tatin just placed in front of her. “Frankly, Poppy, I understand you have horses. I was wondering if you could take me on so I can work the stables. I’d feel better working for a family friend than for a stranger. Also, I was wondering if you’d let me board my horse there for a time. I looked into boarding her near campus, but the nearest available place is over an hour away. I don’t have a car, and I think it would be too much of a commitment to keep up while I finish school.” It was an extremely difficult decision for Flor to make because she couldn’t imagine not having Daisy near her, but she figured it would only be temporary.

  Poppy looks back at her wide-eyed, as if this was the last thing she’d expected Flor to say. And perhaps it was. The beautiful, young daughter of the de Lima family, whose father was once the tenth richest man in the world, wants to work shoveling hay and watering horses? How desperate can this girl really be? Or just a little bit crazy?

  “Let me make a few phone calls this evening, and I’ll see what I can arrange for you. In the meantime, Anita will show you to your room. The remodel on my daughter’s old room was completed last year. I’m sure you’ll find it comfortable.” She pushes back from the table and stands, appreciating the irony that Flor will be sleeping in the former room of her father’s ex-lover.

  Chapter 5

  Flor descends the stairs of the penthouse feeling refreshed. She hadn’t slept this well in months. There’s something to be said for Sferra thousand thread count sheets. Yet another item from her former life she’s having to learn to live without. She wanted to stay in bed a bit longer to continue enjoying the silky feel of the sheets on her skin and to hide from her fate, but she didn’t want to impose on the Baron matriarch any more than she’d had already. Staying the night wasn’t even part of the plan. She had intended to stay at a hostel near St. Mark’s place, but once Poppy gave her a guestroom, she didn’t think the woman was the kind of person one refuses.

  Flor had fallen asleep wondering just what kind of connection her father had to Poppy. It’s still difficult for Flor to reconcile his sullied public image with the one she had of him as a devoted father. Being away in Europe for most of her childhood, she had little insight into her father’s life. Sure, she knows plenty now—embezzlement, insider trading, and stock manipulation to name a few of his financial crimes. On a personal level, so much had been revealed during her parents’ divorce about his numerous affairs and girlfriends around the world. Not once did Poppy figure into any of his known indiscretions, either professional or personal. Flor dismissed the notion they’d ever had an affair since her father preferred younger women.

  Poppy appears out of nowhere as soon as Flor reaches the bottom of the stairs. She’s wearing a sincere smile and appears fresh-faced, although the young woman can see tired eyes beneath the make-up. “I trust you slept well.”

  “Very. Thank you,” Flor replies. She doesn’t bother to return the question, knowing full well Poppy won’t answer with the truth. While she demands honesty, it’s clear to Flor that she’ll rarely, if ever, offer it herself.

  “I have a few things to address this morning. Anita has set the table for you. Once you are finished, we can speak in my office.” With that, Poppy turns and walks away.

  “Well, that didn’t take long.” Poppy looks up from her desk.

  Flor shakes her head. “I wasn’t very hungry.” She wasn’t about to tell Poppy that she was too nervous to eat.

  The blond woman points to a tan leather chair across from the desk that wasn’t there the day before. Flor crosses the room and sits down.

  Poppy lowers her tortoiseshell reading glasses. “I made a few calls. You’re serious about working at a stable?”

  Flor nods eagerly. “Experience at a ranch or stable would be good for my application to veterinary school.”

  Poppy sits back in her seat and regards the girl carefully. “You understand that I keep my horses out at my property in Southhampton.”

  Flor sucks in a breath. She should’ve known. The Hamptons are the last place she’d like to be this summer. Well, there and Brazil. She’d know too many people, among them her mother who would most certainly make an appearance.

  Poppy exhales, acknowledging what Flor must be thinking, and relieved that the young woman wouldn’t want to be there. The last thing she needs is for her husband, William, to notice or pursue the young Brazilian beauty. Poppy pinches the bridge of her nose, remembering his brief affair with their daughters’ riding instructor fifteen years ago. “Of course I’d be happy to board your horse for you, no charge of course. Give me the details of your stable, and I’ll send someone to collect her this week.”

  The girl’s heart sinks at the reality of being apart from Daisy. She’d tried to prepare herself, but now that it’s becoming more real, it hurts. The mare has been the most consistent creature in Flor’s life, aside her crazy, breathless roommate Izzy. But with a horse comes an innate understanding, a calm she hasn’t found anywhere else.

  “That’s incredibly generous of you. It would only be temporary. I promise.”

  “Of course, dear. We’ll keep her as long as you need. And you are welcome to visit her at any time. No need to check with me in advance either.”

  “Thank you so much,” Flor replies.

  Poppy smiles. “I find it ironic that you come to me looking for work on a ranch when your family owns a rather substantial one down in Paraná. From what I understand, they have several hundred horses on the property.”

  Flor’s heart nearly stops at the idea that Poppy could send her to Brazil.

  “I sympathize, dear. Whatever this issue you have with your parents is your own, and I don’t want to get involved.” Although the moment Flor arrived on her doorstep, she became involved. More than she’d care to admit. Gustavo found another way back into her life. “However, when I spoke to your father last night . . . .”

  “You called my father?!” Flor erupts. Tears immediately prick her eyes. She never wanted him to know she had come to see Poppy. That would mean she needed something, and she didn’t want him to think that she couldn’t handle her life on her own.

  Poppy remains still and waits for Flor to regain her composure, which takes only a minute. She has to give the girl credit for her fortitude.

  “Naturally, dear,” Poppy says in a patronizing tone. “I couldn’t make any decisions affecting his only daughter without consulting him.”

  Flor takes a deep breath. “What did he say?”

  “He expressed his preference for you to visit him at your family’s fazenda, but he understands if you’re not ready.”

  Flor looks at her incredulously. “I’m not.”

  Poppy purses her lips. “I didn’t think so. Although as a mother, I must say that it would benefit you to spend a bit of time with your parents, your father at least. No matter what he’s done, none of it had to do with you.” Having had her own issues with her mother, Poppy knew better than to encourage Flor to see hers. Mother/daughter problems are way out of her field of expertise, despite her numerous experiences in dealing with them. Maybe one day she’ll be able to make up for the damage she had wrought in her daughters’ lives. Then again, like her own mother, perhaps it’s just best to not bother at all and let them move on—without her.

  “Maybe not, but it affected us didn’t it? Perhaps he should’ve thought about that.”

  Poppy nods, agreeing fully. She had warned him, and now everything his father, Gustavo Sr., had worked for has been dismantled piece by piece.

  “I’m sorry, Poppy, but I didn’t come here to be lectured about how to treat my parents. They were good to me, at least my father was, but I ca
n’t worry about it right now. All I can think about is getting into graduate school.”

  “That’s what I explained to your father. But if I can offer a bit of advice, find a way to forgive him so that anger and resentment don’t turn into something bigger. It will eat at you in more ways than you can imagine.” Poppy should know. She’s been a phantom in her daughters’ lives because of the decisions she’s made. While they may have accepted what she’s done, they haven’t come to forgive her.

  Flor stares back at Poppy, tiring of the conversation. She’s heard that enough times the past few years. But only she can know when she’s ready.

  Sensing the girl’s impatience, Poppy says, “I have a friend, well, more like a distant acquaintance who has a place out West.” This was the point of contention with Flor’s father that kept Poppy on the phone with him for more than an hour. When the young woman mentioned her interest in horses, Poppy knew immediately why her father would send Flor to Poppy. He’s one of the few people who knows she has a ranch, and how she came to own it. His silence will cost her, although not as much as previous times since there’s less at stake. If only Gustavo Sr. didn’t trust his son with so many secrets. Her former lover was as open-hearted as he was trusting. Both were his strengths and weaknesses, as many good qualities tend to be. She sighs at the thought of him. She can no longer allow herself the luxury of wishing for a different outcome for them, but she can’t help but wonder all the same what would’ve happened if she had gone to Brazil to be with him.

  Flor nods at her benefactor, her excitement growing by the second.

  “They’re fully staffed, but I assured the manager that you’re willing to do whatever is needed, especially since it’s just for the summer.”