Santa Fe Fortune & How to Marry a Matador

snapped shut.
    “I think I’m going to lie down,” Jessica said, appearing a bit disheveled. Her hair was tousled from the wind, her complexion lightly flushed. Her blue eyes were cloudy and troubled.
    “Are you all right?” Ana María inquired.
    Jessica blinked, then stared at her, her color deepening.
    “It was just a bit of a ride.”
    “I knew Fernando shouldn’t have—”
    “No, please,” Jessica interrupted. “It’s okay. It’s not that I’m sick or anything. Just tired.”
    Ana María studied her sympathetically. “Of course you are, dear.”
    Jessica headed for the stairs with a zombie-like gaze, then began her slow ascent.
    “Can I bring you some tea?” Ana María asked. “Decaffeinated?”
    “Thanks, but no,” she said in a warbling voice.
    Now, Ana María had heard of lovers’ spats. But it seemed a bit early in this brand-new marriage for them to be developing problems already.
    She considered talking to Fernando but then thought better of it. Best to leave him alone and give him time to sort things out. Whatever the cause, it was sure to be something minor. The lovebirds would settle things by bedtime, if not before.
    Ana María’s gaze followed Jessica up the stairs, a gentle melancholy taking hold. Ah, to be young and in love, like these two. Ernesto may have been gone awhile, but it wasn’t so long that Ana María had forgotten.

    Dinner was a somber affair. Ana María sat at the elegantly set table, staring at the two empty chairs beside her. Though their places had been set, neither Fernando nor Jessica had appeared for the meal. Fernando had claimed he wasn’t hungry, and Jessica—feeling woozy—had petitioned to have a tray sent up to her room. Whatever had transpired during their ride had clearly driven a wedge between them. Then again, misunderstandings often happened early in a marriage. Fernando and Jessica were just now getting to know each other as husband and wife. This put them in a different place than lovers. Once you’d bound yourselves to one another for eternity, you started to view certain things differently.
    Ana María knew the young couple had many details to work out, particularly with Jessica coming from the United States. A sudden panic seized her. Surely, they weren’t considering moving to America? What a disaster that would be. Fernando in New York, a vast ocean in between them. And what of the grandchild? Clearly, it would be best for him or her to be raised here, on this beautiful hacienda with its stable of horses and the freedom to roam the land. Of course, Jessica’s family would be disappointed with her moving so far away. But it seemed she’d already made that choice, didn’t it? Nobody married a Garcia de la Vega without knowing what that meant. There was a weight of responsibility, not just in maintaining the family name but also in continuing its vein of philanthropy that had proved a boon to the poorest regions of this country.
    Ana María took a sip of wine, considering what she might do to help. For one thing, she could make Fernando’s new bride feel more welcome here. For another, she could ensure that Jessica became so taken with La Esperanza del Corazón that she would never want to leave.

    There was a sharp knock at the door, followed by Fernando’s husky request. “Jessica. A moment, please.”
    Jess set down her fork, realizing her efforts at eating were failing anyway. While the roast pork and potatoes in a sherry glaze was delicious, she’d scarcely been able to swallow two bites. Ever since the end of their ride and Fernando’s pronouncement that he’d set her free, she’d been inexplicably depressed. The fact that he’d refused to meet her eyes afterward had only deepened that effect.
    While he hadn’t said it so many words, it was clear that Jessica had wounded him. Could he have really meant what he’d said? That he’d developed actual feelings for her?
    Jessica slid her tray back on the dresser top and quickly adjusted her hair in the mirror.
    “Come in!” she said, angling toward the door.
    He stepped into the room, appearing more handsome than ever, despite his brooding expression. “I’ve only come to get my things,” he said.
    He was still angry with her. “Fernando,” she said softly. “You do know we’re doing the right thing?”
    “Which thing is that?” he asked with a flat stare.
    Jess felt her breath constrict as she doubted the sincerity of her own words. “Going to Seville.”
    He