Paintings on the wall

Thursday night i was to meet him once again in madrid, with my hair straightened my excitement and nervous mixed with everything of the week that had been run through my mind i was in a blind state of panic and my head actually exploding until i prayed with a friend, so as i left chocolates in hand white coat blowing in the breeze i felt somehow composed.

I arrived late again but he was there calmly standing outside the restaurant texting on his phone he greeted me with two kisses and then asked if would like to speak to my mother, with a mix in tenses i said i hadnt spoken to her but managed to say youhavent spoken to her, he thought i was angry and as timing had it i had to wait while he took a call, i stood looking in the restuarant window trying to understand some of the menu other than the most expensive steak. As he came of the phone i said what i ment to say in slow and thoughout spainsh, it was just the two if us tonight and we were both tired, he had flown in at 5 am gone to the office at 8 and worked until we'd met, he would finish dinner and go back to his work, only to fly back out tomorrow morning. He was literally spending his only hours with me. wow, 80 hours a week a wife 3 kids and now a secret daughter, no wonder his heart was bad.

We sat in a deserted restaurant floor in the back corner as the restaurant owner came and attended to our every wim, we ate the finest meats, cheeses, followed by steak and red wine. He told me about his roots, the paintings on the wall were of his home region, they were beautiful and surreal and i hoped we would be able to go as he had mentioned and see it all. I asked after his life, whether he was happy, and what was important to him.

He gave me a gift, a new motorola flip camera phone, he was not only taking the number to phone me but to pay for my calls by credit card. It was simply real, dinner it felt so different from last time, it was just the two of us, father and daughter, we were here doing what i had come to do, build a relationship.