It was a simple funeral, with a banquet afterward. It was a solemn affair and they spent most of the afternoon talking to people she had never met. Many of them were Morino's relatives.
They returned to the hacienda that evening exhausted. Dinner was soup and crackers and then they all retired for the evening. Carmen undressed and put on her nightgown while Alex went down to get a book from the library. She was sitting at the vanity table brushing her hair when he returned. He handed her a book.
"I thought you might enjoy that."
She picked the book up and read the title.
"The Incredibly Versatile Goat." She glanced up at Alex. "That's a strange book for your father to have in his library."
His gaze skipped over her face and settled on her eyes.
"Is it? I thought it said volumes about his interest in you."
She lay the book down. "Alex, I don't want to start this thing about him and me again. It's disrespectful to both of us."
He retrieved the book and sat on the edge of the bed.
"I didn't mean it that way. I meant he thinks so much of you that he even bought a book so he could be knowledgeable about the subject when he talked to you."
She looked at him in the mirror. Did he actually believe that or was it a quick save? Hearing that she once had a goat dairy might have piqued his interest, though.
Alex stood and placed the book on her nightstand. He removed his jacket and laid it carefully over the back of the chair. Long brown fingers loosened and removed the tie and then unbuttoned his shirt. His expression was reflective as he removed the shirt, folded it and laid it on top of the jacket. Bronzed skin contrasted in an attractive way with the white muscle shirt. His arms and chest were more muscular than they used to be. Did men get that way as they matured? He was still lean, though, with that flat stomach.
She looked away. What was she doing? When they got back home, he would leave again. There was no point working herself up to something she couldn't have. She stood and retrieved the book.
"I guess I'll read this for a little while before I go to bed."
She focused on the book while Alex dressed in his pajamas. The book was about all the different goat breeds and uses of the goat, beginning with a history of the goat.