Where had their judgment gone? Alex and Benedict had initially been skeptical of his engagement when he’d announced it to them a month ago. Benedict, in particular, had skated all too close to the truth. But now, for some strange reason, they seemed to want to bring Sarina—or Sara, as they thought she was—into the family fold.
Too many people stood to lose too much by her actions. He had to do something to force her hand and he had to do it tonight. There was no other option left to him.
Twelve
Rina was relieved that conversation over the dinner table was wide ranging and relaxed, however it became more and more difficult to acknowledge everyone when they called her by her sister’s name. Especially when it was Rey. More than anything she ached for him to call her by her own name, but she knew that was impossible. No matter what Sara’s decision was, Rey was strictly off-limits.
As the evening progressed, she noticed how Benedict began to look more and more drawn. It wasn’t until Abuelo had retired upstairs for the night, aided by Javier, that Alex and Reynard turned their full attention to their younger brother.
“How are you, really?” Reynard got straight to the point.
Benedict flicked a look at Loren and Rina and shook his head infinitesimally. “Tired, sore. It’s only to be expected.”
“What you need is to get away from here. I hate to say it, but keeping up appearances for Abuelo is going to do your head in, Benedict.” Alex sat back and twirled his glass of port between long fingers.
Rina watched him, interested that for all the brothers’ similarities, they were each very firmly carved individuals. She knew there was little more than twelve months between each of the brothers but Alex clearly took to heart his role as head of the family, appearing older than his years.
“And where am I supposed to go, Alex?”
A trace of bitterness laced Benedict’s tone. Rina noticed Rey’s brows draw together in concern. Clearly this was not Benedict’s usual demeanor.
“He’s right,” Rey added. “The media are bound to follow him wherever he goes around here. It’s not as if he can hide out at the resort or any of our neighboring countries. Besides, he needs to follow his rehabilitation program. He won’t be able to do that if he’s constantly being hounded.”
“What about New Zealand?” Rina blurted before she could think twice.
Four sets of eyes swiveled toward her.
“New Zealand?” Alex asked, raising one brow in a manner all too similar to his brother’s. “Don’t you think that’s going a bit too far?”
“Isn’t distance what he needs?” Rina lifted her chin toward Alex before flicking a look to Benedict. She’d expected him to appear annoyed, or at least be ready to shoot her suggestion down in flames, but there was a thoughtful expression on his pale face.
“Sara’s right,” Loren interjected. “No one would follow him there. He could go by private jet. It would lessen the risk of his travel plans being detected and ensure his travel is more comfortable.”
“But what about the personal trainer he’s hired?” Rey interjected.
“We do have personal trainers in New Zealand, you know,” Rina commented, semi-teasingly. “It might be the other side of the world, but it is quite civilized.”
“Why can’t he come with me?” Benedict spoke and all heads snapped toward him as if pulled on the same cord.
“You’re serious about this?” Alex asked, a note of incredulity in his voice. “But you should be here. Close to home. What if—”
“What if nothing. There’s no more the doctors can do for me, I’ve told you as much. Besides, I can recuperate in New Zealand just as easily as I can here. Better, probably, because I won’t need to worry about you all.”
“And the vineyard?” Rey asked, sending a confused look in Alex’s direction.
Alex merely shrugged his shoulders, deferring to Benedict who immediately started to speak.
“The vineyard has managed without me all this time. What’s another month? It’s not as if I can actually work there anyway, I’m still too damn weak. Besides, I can work on a computer from New Zealand as effectively as I can here at home. Maybe now that things are financially looking up a bit again, I can complete that research into the new wine varieties I started to explore four years ago.”