Page 88 of V-Day
“Frantically,” Cristián admitted. “It got to where I had to check my phone to remember which city I was in.”
“He reached number three on theNew York Timeslist this morning,” Chloe added.
Duardo rested his hand on Cristián’s shoulder. “The Minister of Agriculture actually quoted you, last week, right there in the cabinet room.”
Cristián grinned. “I wrote it to keep you on your toes, brother.”
Duardo nodded. “Because four heads of state sitting at my dinner table tonight won’t do that.”
“Mexico, United States, and…?”
“Canada and Argentina.” Duardo’s smile was easy. “They’re not here because I won the election again. They’re here for the deals they can make tomorrow. I keep reminding myself of that, so I can focus on shifting them away from resources to services.”
“They still want the silver,” Cristián summarized. “Ihavebeen away too long. They don’t want the new computer chips?”
The chips used Vistarian silver and were built in a factory on the west coast. More factories were being built to meet the growing demand.
“They will want them once we show them what phones can do when they have one of our chips,” Chloe said.
Adán Caballero moved up to Duardo’s side. “Cristián! You’re back!”
“Oh, hey, you forgot the other head of state at your dinner table, Duardo,” Cristián said. He shook Adán’s hand. “Congratulations on the Oscar, Adán. Again.”
Parris Graves floated over to join them. She wore a soft green chiffon ballgown, and her hair was loose and curling over her shoulders. Bright red lipstick finished the outfit.
Chloe nudged Cristián with her elbow as he stared at Parris.
Parris laughed. “I know, it’s not fatigues,” she admitted. “Or dress blues.”
“Do you still wear a uniform even at the White House?” Chloe asked curiously. “Aren’t you an advisor now?”
“Military Intelligence advisor,” Adán said proudly.
“Which means I still must prove to the officers in the room I have bigger balls than them. The Colonel pips really help with that.”
“It floors me no one has connected you two together, still,” Cristián said. “They’re still calling Adán an eligible bachelor.”
Parris laughed. “He never was that, even when he was single.”
Adán laughed.
“Is that…Garrett, over there?” Cristián asked, looking at the clean shaved sandy-haired man in a tuxedo and blinking. “Wow, he looks different!”
“He’s a walking testament to his own therapies. There’s virtually no scarring on his face anymore,” Chloe said.
Duardo nodded. “He’s started a new tourist trade with his therapy center up in the mountains. They’re booked over a year ahead on elective surgeries for non-Vistarians, despite raising the price a dozen times over to control the demand.” He waved at Garret, who nodded.
Garrett moved around the edges of the lounge room. On the way, he picked up Carmen’s hand. Carmen excused herself from the group she stood with. Calli and Nick, who were also part of the group, looked up. Calli smiled and tugged on Nick’s jacket and the two of them came over to where Cristián and Chloe stood.
“You were looking grim,” Duardo told Garrett. “Problems?”
Carmen sighed.
Garrett glanced around the small group. “It’s all family here,” he told Carmen.
She pursed her lips. “I just found out. I’m pregnant.”
Chloe frowned. “And that’s a problem?” she asked gently.
