When he stepped out of the elevator he was surprised to see Emma already waiting for him. She was wearing a pair of jean shorts, a black t-shirt, black Nike sneakers and a baseball cap. She looked stunning regardless of how casually she was dressed. She looked at him too and noticed that they were pretty much dressed alike except the baseball cap. Obviously when you looked that good-looking, why mess it up with a cap. She looked at her watch.
"You're late".
He blinked a couple of times and looked at this watch. "It's 8:01".
"Exactly. So, you're late".
"By only a minute".
"A lot of things can happen in a minute".
He leaned against the wall. "Like what"?
"Plenty of things. Like a wave crashing on you when you least expect it. In a minute your entire life can change".
He looked at her, she looked so damn serious. He was concerned she was going to hold it against him that he was punctual at all. But it was only a minute.
She burst out laughing. "I'm pulling your leg"!
"What"?! he said as he started to laugh.
"It was fun. You should have seen the look on your face".
"You're incorrigible you know that. I thought you were going to stand me up".
"Stand you up? I didn't know this was a date".
He suddenly felt awkward. Why had he used that term? He wished he could take it back. "It's not a date, I just used the wrong term. I mean come on, if I were to ask you out on a date, I wouldn't want to share you with about 50 crazy monkeys".
She tilted her head to the side as if she was analyzing what he was saying exactly but said nothing. Maybe she was reading into this way too much. Why would she even imagine that a guy like him would be ever so interested in her? He was the hotel owner, and this was probably something he did with every celebrity that stopped at The Marbella. Treat them well and they'll come back and pass on their recommendations.
"Right", she said in a neutral tone of voice. She then smiled. "Shall we get going"?
He nodded and pointed to his car, a grey convertible Lexus IS. She followed him and waited as he opened the door for her. It was a bit too gallant and date-like, but she let him do it. You could tell that he'd had a good upbringing. He was polite and had good manners.
They chatted a bit as they drove towards the Monkey Jungle and he pointed out some interesting places and things along the way. It had been a bit cool and windy when they had set out, so he had decided not to open the car roof.
When they got to there, they were immediately greeted by a man in his mid-fifties, short greyish hair and small round glasses. He was tall and thin and was wearing exactly what a explorer might wear.
"Rafael, how good of you to stop by", said the man as he hugged Rafael.
"Milton, I'm glad you could fit me in this early".
"Of course, I know that you enjoy some quiet time with them to see the improvements".
Milton then turned towards Emma. He took her hand in his and gently pulled it up to his lips and kissed it. Emma smiled.
"It's a pleasure to meet you Ms. Fontaine. We are happy to have you here today. Now, the park doesn't open until 9:30, so things will be nice and quiet. My wife Nancy is waiting for you in the Amazonian Rainforest exhibit".
He then turned towards Rafael. "You think you can stop in my office on your way out. I'd like to show you the future new tenants we've been able to save and bring over with your donation".
Rafael nodded and smiled. "It'll be my pleasure Milton. We'll see you in a little bit".
When they arrived at the Amazonian Rainforest exhibit, Emma couldn't believe her eyes. There were trees and monkeys everywhere. From what she could see there were three different types of monkeys. She was so busy looking at them interact and swing to and fro that she hadn't realized that Milton's wife, Nancy had joined them, with a few friends of her own.
Rafael put his hand on her arm gently to get her attention. Even though he was simply enjoying the fact of watching her amazement, he knew this would make things even more incredible.
"Emma, this is Nancy, Milton's wife".
Emma turned around and her face lit up. Rafael and Nancy knew it had nothing to do with Nancy's presence but the two Squirrel Monkeys that she was holding in her arms.
"It's a pleasure to meet you Nancy".
"Like wise Emma. I'd like to present to you Bonnie and Clyde".
A big smile found its way on Emma's face and Rafael could do nothing but echo it.
"Would you like to hold one"?
"Really"?
"Of course,", answered Nancy. "Now, I think I'll give you Bonnie, Clyde can be a bit picky and has a hard time with some people. Except Rafael here. They're good friends".
Before Nancy could do anything, Clyde jumped from her arms and climbed up Emma's legs, torso and up to her shoulder where he decided to set camp and check out her cap.
Nancy laughed. "Impressive. He must have sensed something in you". She handed Bonnie to Rafael and took a few steps back, giving them some privacy.
"You're not upset are you"? asked Emma as Clyde slowly started to lift her cap off her head.
"Are you kidding? On the contrary it's another thing we have in common and trust me being liked by Clyde is a very important thing".
Bonnie was dangling from Rafael's arm as if it was a branch. She was clearly enjoying herself.
"Looks like Clyde found breakfast", said Rafael smiling.
"What are you talking about"?
"He's picking things out of your hair"!
"Haha, very funny. It's lint from the inside of my cap".
"I don't know".
She nudged him, and they started to laugh. When Clyde had finished eating the lint from her hair, he came and put his arm around her neck and looked at her.
"How long have Bonnie and Clyde been here"? she asked Rafael.
"It's been six years. They were the first of the monkeys that Milton and his team were able to rescue".
"With your donations"?
"Mine and some others, but yeah".
"I find what you've done amazing. I wish others would do the same".
"Do you donate your time or money to a particular cause"?
Before she could answer, Nancy came near them. "I'll take them back, they need to have breakfast before the park opens officially".
Emma pet Clyde and then let Nancy take him. "Thank you so much for giving me the opportunity to spend time with them".
"It was our pleasure. Maybe you'll come back some day", said Nancy sincerely as she took Bonnie from Rafael.
"I'd love that very much. What you do here is exemplary. If that's alright with you, I'd like to make a donation"?
Nancy smiled as she felt touched. "Milton will be more than happy to talk to you about that".
"Do you want to walk around before heading back? The park doesn't open for another twenty minutes"? asked Rafael hoping she would say yes.
"I'd love to".
They set out foot through the rest of the Amazonian Forest and into the Wings of Love. Now it may sound romantic and straight out of a county fair love tunnel ride, but it was simply a sanctuary for captive parrots that had been displaced or whose owners couldn't care for them anymore.
"Oh.. you were asking me about causes, before Nancy interrupted us. I try to give more time than money. I go every month to local hospitals and shelters for kids and women who are victim of domestic violence. I also donate to a few cancer foundations and to SADS Foundation as well".
"SADS foundation"?
"It stands for Sudden Arrythmia Death Syndromes".
"Because of what you had"?
She nodded. "Yes. Over the years, donations have allowed amazing medical progress and what used to be a very complex and long operation for some of these pathologies, well now, they've become standard surgeries and new ones have also been developed that are less evasive".
"You're truly amazing".
"Aw come on. I'm sure you don't just donate here either. You also must have causes that you hold close to your heart".
"True".
"Then you're amazing too".
He smiled and suddenly, as they were walking, their hands brushed against each other.
She slowed down her pace until she stopped walking. He too stopped.
"Thank you, Rafael".
"What for"?
"For this. I had a great time. And it's been a while since I've been able to say that". She paused for a few seconds as they searched each other's eyes. "And if this had been a date, it would have been perfect".
Rafael took a step closer to her. "Really"?
"Really". She said as he got closer and she could feel his body touch hers.
He put his hand on her back and very gently pulled her in closer. He kept his eyes locked on hers as he brought his face closer to hers. Slowly their lips got closer to the point that they were softly brushing each other.
Petra walked into Rafael's office and was surprised to find it empty. He wasn't in his penthouse and no one had seen him that morning. She walked back out of the office and looked at his assistant Brendan.
"Where is Rafael"?
"I don't know".
"What do you mean you don't know? Look at his bloody agenda"!
Brendan took out the agenda and looked at it.
"There's nothing in his agenda for this morning".
"And he didn't mention anything to you about where he might be"?
"No".
Petra rolled her eyes. "You are useless".
She grabbed her phone and dialed Rafael's number.