Claire doesn't know what to say. Or what to expect. Where's Matilde Tan? Where's the grand iron lady, the matriarch of the Tan clan? She came here fully expecting to meet ugly things. Instead, what she encounters is someone who makes her jaws drop.
"Hello, Gabriel!" The man is all smiles as he gives Gabriel a big hug. "It has been a long time."
Gabriel laughs, then turns to her. "Claire, I'd like you to meet Miguel, my younger brother."
"Your—" Claire's brow is knitted in confusion even as Miguel shakes her hand, if too enthusiastically.
"So you're the incredibly lucky girl," Miguel says, his eyes holding her gaze.
"I…I'm not…I mean…"
"I know," Gabriel says. "Not what you expected. But that was what I was trying to tell you a while ago."
"Mom couldn't make it," Miguel offers. "She has to spend a few more weeks in that hotel in Switzerland to calm her nerves. Her ulcer is acting up again. Her doctor recommends staying away from stress as much as possible."
