My Love Betrayed (3 page)

“Yes, I can understand that.” I nodded.
“Especially since you’ve had the chance to travel.”

Rick just grinned. “C’mon, let’s go see our
pyramids.”

Knowing me well, he didn’t argue when I paid
my check. We made a brief stop at my room to
pick up my coat, though Rick thought I might not
need it. Rick’s car was parked nearby, and we were
soon on our way.

Teotihuacan is north of the city and a modern
highway goes right past the pyramids. The access
road from the highway, however, is of cobblestones. Rick said it had been built in 1968 for the
Olympics. He guessed maybe they had used
cobblestones because it was “labor intensive.”
Anyway, the access road was very bumpy.

As we pulled into a parking space, Rick said,
“First we’ll visit the sun and moon pyramids.
There are also some souvenir stalls. You might see
something you like.”

“Okay,” I said happily, ready to agree with
everything.

We locked my coat in the car trunk, as well as
Rick’s jacket. As Rick had predicted, it was a
warm, sunny day. His arm around my waist, we
slowly wandered past the stalls. Eventually, I
settled on a silver bracelet, which I wore, and an
onyx chess set, which I would buy on our way out. Then we climbed down the steps to the dusty road
that ran from the moon pyramid past the sun
pyramid. “The moon pyramid first,” Rick said
authoritatively.

There were a great many tourists. As Rick had
said, one could not come to Mexico City without
visiting Teotihuacan.

I suppose I should have realized I needed to be
careful, what with Mexico City’s high altitude. But
I didn’t want Rick to think I was a flimsy, fainting
female. So I said nothing, although, by the time we
reached the moon pyramid, I was feeling a bit
light-headed. Just breathe deeply, I told myself,
and you’ll be fine.

We stood at the base of the moon pyramid, and I
remember thinking that it was as impressive as the
mountains that rose in the distance behind it. Even
in the hot sun, I felt a chill as I wondered at the men
who had built such a massive monument.

Rick’s voice broke into my thoughts. “It’s
almost obligatory to climb the pyramid of the sun,
so we won’t climb this one.” I must have looked
horrified at the thought of doing any climbing, for
Rick grinned and added, “C’mon, girl, you can do
it!”

Okay. So sometimes I was too stubborn for my
own good. But after that, I wasn’t going to tell
Rick I couldn’t climb the pyramid. Instead, I
promised myself I would do it if it killed me. And I
started taking very deep breaths as we headed
toward the sun pyramid, with its many steps.

It wasn’t a bad climb. Rick stayed with me every
time I stopped to rest and kept encouraging me.
The view from the top was magnificent, and I turned to point something out in the distance. It
was then that I realized Rick was gone. Quickly, I
looked around, trying to spot him. And couldn’t.
First panic, then anger, chased through me. I
would not let myself get upset just because Rick
thought he was being funny! No doubt he expected
me to come running down the steps and practically
collapse in his arms.

Well, I wouldn’t. Let him wait for me.
Deliberately, I walked around the top of the
pyramid. Slowly. Several times. I pretended a
continuing interest in the view. I even struck up a
conversation with a young woman from Australia.
Then I slowly descended, taking lots of rest stops.
Rick wasn’t waiting at the base, but then I didn’t
really expect him to be.

Feeling a bit worn out, I sat on a bench, thinking
over exactly what I intended to say to Rick when I
saw him. Only, I didn’t. See him, that is, although I
must have waited close to an hour. Eventually, I
gave up and headed back toward the car. Now I
really grew worried. What if Rick’s car wasn’t
where we had left it? And where was Rick,
anyway?

I would have forgotten my chess set if the young
boy at the stall had not reminded me. Somewhat
impatiently, I paid for it and waited while he
wrapped the pieces, one by one. The boy eyed me
oddly, finally saying, “You look to see senor,
senorita?”

“Si!” I said quickly.

“Here soon,” the boy said firmly. “No reason for
the senorita to worry. You drink something cold,
yes?”

I nodded warily, not sure I trusted the boy. But I
did take his advice. One of the stalls sold cold soda
and mineral water. After the climb, I was tired and
thirsty and hungry. It was well past noon by now.
And it did help, the mineral water. I felt much
better afterward. If I couldn’t find Rick, and if his
car was gone (presumably with him in it), I could
probably find someone who would give me a ride
back to Mexico City. And if Rick’s car was where
we’d left it, and he didn’t show up soon well, I’d
look for some sort of security guard and ask his
help in finding Rick.

The car was where we had left it. So all I had to
do was find Rick. In the end, he found me,
nervously leafing through postcards as I debated if
he’d been gone long enough for me to ask for help.

“Hi, Ellen,” he said as if nothing had happened.

“Rick, where-” I began shrilly.

“Ellen, let’s go,” he said pleasantly as his hand
closed hard on my arm.

I put back the postcards and went with him.
Without a word, we strode to the car. Once inside,
I said, “Did you have fun? Was that your idea of a
joke? Abandoning me up there? Listen to me,
Rick, I didn’t come all the way from Chicago for
you to act like this!”

I went on like that for a while. Rick listened to it
all very patiently. When I ran out of breath, he said
quietly, “Ellen, nothing could have happened to
you up there. And I knew you had sense enough to
take it easy coming down.”

“But why?” I demanded. “Why did you leave me
like that?”

Rick flushed and looked very uncomfortable. Finally, he said, “Have you ever heard of
Montezuma’s Revenge?”

I stared at him for a moment before I
understood. I had heard of Montezuma’s
Revenge it meant his stomach was bothering
him. “But-but you’ve been here several months
already. I just thought it hit newcomers.”

He grinned wryly. “I know. After a while you get
careless, I guess. I ate some fruit in the park the
other day, and now I’m paying for it.”

“Oh, Rick, I’m sorry,” I said. Then I remembered the scene I had made, without even giving
him a chance to explain. “Rick, I must have
sounded like a shrew!”

“Yes, but a lovable shrew,” he said.

As he put the car in gear, I leaned back in the
seat and closed my eyes. I did have a big foot to
stick in my mouth, didn’t I?

We arrived back in town about three P.M.Rick
dropped me off at the hotel. “I’ll be back about
seven-thirty to pick you up for dinner,” he said.
“Dress warm. We’ll be eating outdoors!”

And with that strange comment, he drove away.
I entered the lobby, rapidly considering my
wardrobe. Rick hadn’t said whether pants would
be appropriate or not. But I’d take a chance on my
green pantsuit with a cream turtleneck. With a
coat over that, I should be warm enough for
anything.

I was so deep in my thoughts that I almost
bumped into someone. The elevator girl seemed
slightly amused as I gave her the number of my
floor.

Rick knocked on my door a few minutes early
that evening. I was still trying to decide whether to
wear the earrings he had given me. I asked his
advice.

“Honey, that’s what I gave them to you for,” he
said, with an easy laugh. Then, more seriously, he
added, “You look beautiful, tonight.”

“So do you,” I said. Then I laughed. “I mean,
you look very good. Handsome.”

Rick merely cocked his head, with a smile. He
was always good-looking and I think he knew it.
“Where are we going?” I asked as Rick helped me
on with my coat.

“Hotel de Cortes,” he replied. “Right across the
park. Watch your purse, the park will be crowded,
tonight.”

I nodded, not really understanding what he
meant. So when we got downstairs and stepped
outside, I was caught unawares. The park was full
of lights and laughter and people selling balloons.
Duck balloons, turtle balloons, balloons of all
sorts of complicated designs. Watching my face,
Rick laughed with pleasure and, hearing his
laughter, I laughed too.

Rick took my arm, promising, “We’ll come back
through the park, but right now I’d just like to get
over to the restaurant, okay?”

I nodded and we walked around the park. I
could see Rick’s point. There were an awful lot of
people in the park. Maybe later it would be less
crowded.

From the outside, the Hotel de Cortes was
hardly impressive. But then, it was a seventeenth century building, Rick said. Inside was a beautiful
courtyard, with flowers and plants, a lighted
fountain, and even a Christmas tree. Tables filled
the courtyard, but without crowding it. We sat in a
corner and chatted quietly as we waited for the
menu.

Eventually, it came and, as Rick ordered things
like avocado stuffed with shrimp, I wondered if his
choices were wise. After our waiter left, I said
something of the sort to Rick, who grinned and
said, “Don’t worry. I stopped at a drugstore this
afternoon and got something for my problem.”

Well, the druggist would know. As the waiters
moved among the tables, I leaned forward. “Rick,
thank you for bringing me here. I love this place.”

Rick smiled and took my hand. As he leaned
forward, I froze. “What’s wrong?” he asked
anxiously.

“Nothing,” I said, but I leaned back.

Seated at a nearby table was Senor Whitford,
from the hotel. He had just raised his wineglass to
me, with a mocking grin. Tossing my head slightly,
I said to Rick, “Tell me about your work here. It
must be fascinating setting up a new division.”

Rick looked puzzled and not at all pleased as he
answered, “Well, first I have to check over the
hardware. I’m no technician, of course, but I’m
more familiar with the stuff than most of the
people who are supposed to be. Then I’ve got to
work out the software. And you know what a
problem the different computer languages can be.”
I nodded, and he went on. “Well, I’ve also got to
train the people here to understand what I’m doing or they’ll never be able to cope after I’ve gone.
Plus, I’ve got to see that there are keypunchers,
etc.”

“About what I expected,” I conceded. “So
you’re pretty important here. Craig wasn’t sure if it
would really work out that way.”

“Oh, yeah,” Rick said, leaning back. “I can
pretty much come and go as I want. And the other
guys work under me. Only trouble is, the natives
don’t really respect my authority. They know that
when I go back, they’ll be able to do pretty much
what they want, and they aren’t willing to wait.”

“That could be a problem.”

“Sure is!” he flared.

“But it’s nothing personal, is it?” I asked, unable
to understand why he was so angry. “I mean, they
probably just don’t like Americans. Maybe they’re
jealous, that sort of thing.”

Rick stared moodily at the table. “Yeah, but it
doesn’t make my job any easier.”

I nodded sympathetically. The food arrived
then, interrupting our conversation for the moment. The meal was magnificent. I’d heard how
hot Mexican food was, and how full of refried
beans. Well, the hot spices were there if you
wanted them but the meals I ate in Mexico were
lightly seasoned, with tender meat or delicious
seafood. So much for rumors. Even the coffee and
pastries were excellent.

Carefully, I tried to avoid looking at Senor
Whitford. But I couldn’t help noticing he ate
alone. Anyone else, I might have sympathized
with. There was something so lonely about eating
by oneself. Besides, this was a perfect place for lovers. Like Rick and me, I thought as I sipped my
coffee. Again, it was as if Rick read my thoughts,
for he turned and smiled at me. His eyes glistened
in the dark, and I shivered under the intensity of
his gaze. In a way, it frightened me.

But he only said, “I’ll get the check, and we’ll go,
okay?”

I nodded.

A few minutes later, we left the Hotel de Cortes
and crossed over to the park. It was almost like a
carnival, I thought as Rick put an arm around my
waist to keep us from being separated. There were
several people selling steamed corn on the cob and
others with peanuts. I even saw cotton candy,
though not the man who sold it. There were plastic
toys and balloons and men dressed as Santa Claus,
who for a few pesos would pose with you in their
sleighs for a photograph. And everywhere there
were babies and small children, fiercely clutching
their balloons.

I laughed and Rick’s voice was in my ear,
“Pleased, love?”

“Oh, yes!”

“Would you like a balloon?”

I nodded, my eyes running over the possibilities.
Then I spied a huge one, in the shape of a
caterpillar. “One like that!” I said, pointing.

Rick nodded. “Right you are. Let’s find out
who’s selling them.”

Eventually, we found the woman, surrounded
by children and their parents. Laughing, Rick
bought a balloon and waited while she detached it
from the bunch. “Not as elegant as earrings,” Rick
teased, “but I see it gets a wider smile.”

Feeling very happy, we edged our way to the
traffic light and crossed over to my hotel. Rick left
me at the front door, explaining, “I have to be up
early. I took off today to show you the pyramids,
but I want to get some work done tomorrow.
While the place is quiet. So I’ll see you on
Sunday.”

I was disappointed, for I’d hoped we might have
a final cup of coffee together. But I smiled. “Okay,
Rick. I’ll see you then.”

The elevator girl laughed when she saw me with
the balloon, and I grinned. But a rough voice said,
in English, “Will you please make room for
someone else, Miss Steffee?”