At Crystal Blue, Pedro caught Felipe and Hamilton red-handed conspiring against his relationship with Daniela.Or so Pedro thought. Felipe wasn't so keen.That's why Felipe was the first to gesture, "Hey, man, I hope you don't think I'm—""I heard Mr. Lombardi clearly encouraging you to win over my girlfriend. Are you okay with that, Felipe?"Pedro slammed the door shut and approached the desk."Why are you only coming at me?" Felipe protested."Because if you're not up for such nonsense, I'll be at ease. You won't let Mr. Lombardi influence you no matter how hard he tries."Hamilton tried to explain, "Listen, Pete—""And what about you, Mr. Lombardi? Didn't we talk about this last year? You don't care about your daughter's wishes and plans. She fell in love with me, but you want her with Felipe. If she were in love with Felipe, would you want her with another guy?""That's not it, kid!" Hamilton frowned."OK, guys, that's enough!" Felipe ordered as the boss he was, "Hamilton, you bet
Kelvin is upset with Angela meddling in Josias' affairs. He's in his office at the Cardozo Perfumes branch.Seated at his desk, Kelvin can't focus on the paperwork and the monitor in front of him.He's scowling, leaning back in his chair, lost in thought...Angela was happy and content with him. Why did she have to call Josias and argue like that?And worst of all: why did she wait for him to leave to talk to his rival...?"Don't be ridiculous, Kelvin," He shakes his head and speaks to himself, "Josias isn't your rival. Melissa is his, and Angela is mine. The situation is as clear as crystal water."The door opened and Karen walked in, smirking mockingly."The secretary informed me. Let me guess: you and Angela are having trouble in your relationship that has just begun?""What are you doing here?" Kelvin straightened up in his chair, maintaining the scowl."I came to offer my sympathy." Karen smiles like a spider, "Angela can't forget Josias, can she?"Kelvin feels a light bulb go of
Felipe is nervously typing on the computer. Daniela can't help but feel like his keyboard keys are begging for mercy."Felipe, do you really need to type with such force?""Sorry, Daniela." Felipe takes a deep breath, rubbing his hands on his face, "I'm having a tough day.""Tell me what's bothering you." Daniela smiles gently.Felipe becomes defensive. "No. It's better for you to remain ignorant."However, Daniela's smile fades, and she rolls her eyes. "Let me guess: my father struck again?"Felipe remains silent.Daniela shakes her head. "Don't let it get to you. I know you'll never see me as a woman."Felipe abruptly stands up and strides towards Daniela's desk."What nonsense is that? I DO see you as a woman, Daniela!"Daniela is startled and leans further back, almost falling off her chair."I beg your pardon?"Felipe comically shakes his head, "Uh... I didn't mean it in that sense. I meant that you're more than just an accountant to me, Daniela. You're my friend. Of course, I'm
Josias and Angela face off once again."You're a damn liar who thinks of nothing but winning me over, huh?" Josias asks with utter disdain.Angela slowly stands up, unwilling to accept such abuse. "What is this? Why do you think you have the right to come here and insult me, expecting me never to retaliate? Your sense of humor is strange.""I'm not joking, Angela!" Josias shouts, "Do I look like I'm having fun?""No." Angela crosses her arms, "Anyway, do you believe me or not when I tell you that Melissa and Kelvin will never be 100% apart?"Josias gulps and tries to reason with the crazy woman, "Listen here, Angela: Kelvin and Melissa have twins to raise. I admit, that creates a bond between them. They've always interacted normally regarding Mary and Ignacio, never giving me any reason to doubt.""That's where they're smart." Angela insinuates, "But Karen found out their little secret. And you're angry with me instead of questioning your 'faithful' wife."Josias kicks a chair. "ENOUG
Josias is heading home. He wasn't feeling well, and as a precaution, he had arranged for Hector to drive for him in advance.In the back seat, he took deep breaths and tried to calm himself.Hector watched his boss through the rearview mirror and commented, "Don't worry, boss. That viper only has venom to spit.""You described Angela perfectly." Josias chuckled.His phone rang. It was Pedro."Hello, Pedro.""Uncle Josias, we need your help!"Josias quickly went into alert mode, "Calm down, Pete! What happened?""My dad had a heart attack because of Hamilton Lombardi!""Your dad had a heart attack?"Josias repeated the information on purpose for Hector to change the car's direction.And that's what Hector did. As he spun the car in a radical maneuver, he drove at full speed towards General Hospital.Pete heard the tires screeching on the asphalt. "Um... Uncle Josias, were you already heading home?""Don't worry. I'm heading to the hospital right now, Pete!" Josias declared."Thank you
Josias showed up at the hospital and asked the nurses at the reception about Beto."Excuse me, I'm looking for information about the patient Roberto Reis.""Mr. Rocha, patient Roberto Reis is undergoing surgery," The nurse replied after checking the computer."Is it serious? Did it have to come to this?" Josias reacted in shock."Unfortunately, Mr. Rocha, the patient was very weakened." The nurse was compassionate."Is his family here?""They're all waiting in that lounge." The nurse points to the door.Josias nodded. That lounge seemed to have become the private property of Josias and his circle.Upon entering, Teresa sighed in relief. "Oh, Josias, thank God!""Hi, Uncle Josias!" Maycon and Frank greeted him as they played Uno.Pedro was with them to distract them. When he saw Josias, he stood up. "One moment, boys."Josias massages his temple. "Can someone explain to me why this tragedy was Mr. Lombardi's fault? Pete, I thought everything was okay between you and Daniela.""Not ever
If he were weak of heart, Hamilton would have the same heart attack as Beto.Josias appeared as a cartoon character, emanating a powerful and at the same time scary aura.Hamilton was shirtless and in shorts, feeling unworthy in front of the gentleman in a suit and tie."Mr. Rocha! What the heck are you doing here?""Watch your language, Mr. Lombardi. We need to talk honestly." Josias responded seriously."And since when do we need to be honest? I never lied to you!" Hamilton glanced at the crooked door, "And who will take care of the repair?""Could you please stick to the conversation?" Josias asked with an imperial voice.Hamilton shrunk on the couch. His hand grabbed the remote control and turned off the TV.Josias continued standing, with his arms crossed. "Why did you lie to Beto about your daughter succumbing to Felipe's charms?"Hamilton turned pale and momentarily speechless. "I didn't lie! I told the clearest truth!""Mr. Lombardi, you better confess the truth to me and not
Josias decided to get to the bottom of the conflicting story."Felipe, there's something wrong that I would like to solve. It's being said out there that you're in love with Daniela Lombardi and that you're willing to steal her from Pete. But I see that you want to work separately from her. How do you plan to win her over if you intend to stay away from her?"Felipe was shocked by the accusation."Uhm... maybe the truth is what you are seeing. I don't want to win over Daniela Lombardi.""But Mr. Lombardi has been pressuring you to do so, right?" Josias insisted, "He categorically said that he saw you and Daniela interacting romantically.""That's a big lie!" Felipe yelled desperately.Felipe started to pant in anxiety. He had decided to work in the penthouse fearing that a situation like this would happen.It's good that Josias is seeing his intentions firsthand!Why did Hamilton decide to lie about something that doesn't exist?Josias continued, "I'm glad for that, Felipe. Because of
Josias visits the Rocha Hotel since he didn’t have a day off for the staff. In the management room, Eugenio gathered David, Benjamin, and Sybil. “Why is that mere cook present at this meeting?” David asked disparagingly. “Because that’s how our boss ordered it,” Eugenio replied dryly. “I didn’t say anything and didn’t call this meeting, so if you’ll excuse me...” Benjamin and Sybil were horrified to see David leaving the meeting just like that. However, when he opened the door, David came face to face with his father. “David, where do you think you’re going?” “DAD!” David exclaimed, extremely surprised. “I didn’t know you were coming!” “Didn’t Eugenio tell you I was coming?” Josias asked with a scowl. David understood who the ‘boss’ was. Benjamin and Sybil felt vindicated. Josias sat down at the desk, taking Eugenio’s seat, while the manager remained humbly standing. “Very well,” Josias began the meeting in a formal tone, “I’m here just to make things crystal clear. First
Melissa and Mary visit the Mountain Café.“A guava juice for me, Mr. Mountain!” Mary requested, smiling sweetly.“Of course, my princess!” Rodrigo replied, thinking Mary was very adorable. “Neil will make a delicious cup for you.”“Thank you. But the princess is Carol,” Mary responded, striking a serious pose.Melissa and Rodrigo laughed heartily. Mary is something else...“Rod, how has it been managing the café in your father’s absence?” Melissa asked seriously.Rodrigo served a baked chicken pastry with ketchup to Mary. “I'm getting by, Melissa. Josias was here earlier, more concerned about my loss than his own, as always. Isn’t he supposed to be resting?”Melissa nodded. “My husband is like that: he only relaxes when all of us are relaxed.”“An impossible mission because of certain people.”Neilton approached with the glass. “Who ordered a guava juice?”“I DID!” Mary grabbed the glass and went to a table.Melissa leaned forward, “Neil, Rod, how are Daryl and Diane? Behaving?”“Cont
At João Paulo’s house, he and Josias were about to have a significant conversation.“Walter, do you want to go with your mom to the kitchen?” João Paulo asked, looking at Helen. “I think she made some walnut cake.”“It was carrot cake,” Sandra replied, already getting up from the couch.“You got it.” Helen appeared and picked up Walter in her arms. “Let’s let Dad and Uncle Josias talk.”“Bye, Uncle!” Walter waved goodbye to Josias.“Bye-bye, I want a piece later!” Josias chuckled.Once alone with João Paulo, Josias became serious. “Don’t let anything or anyone ruin this family scenario, little brother.”“I’m fine. No one wants to ruin anything,” João Paulo replied casually.“Well, I hope David hasn’t caused you any trouble.”“He probably doesn’t even know I exist, man.” João Paulo shrugged.“But I stopped by Café Montanha and found out that the Vasquez family has replaced the Mountain family as the ‘annoying people.’”João Paulo sighed in disappointment. “Yeah. They—”The doorbell ran
Josias visits Café Montanha for a coffee and finds Rodrigo there. “Rod, how have you been?” Rodrigo is taken aback. “How am I? You’re the one who suffered a horrific loss recently!” “But you also lost your father. We’re in the same situation,” Josias explained as he sat down on a stool. “I’m okay, Josias. Life has a way of cheering me up. For example, I’m back at the diner after Thierry decided to take his place at the supermarket.” Rodrigo smiled. “What about the photography studio?” Josias smiled back. “It’s still going to operate, and Thierry will make periodic visits. But he’s going to appoint one of the staff to manage the studio.” Rodrigo served a pizza pastry to Josias. “Thank you. Well, I hope everything is alright between you two. I need to visit Rosemary and meet Jean Luc — is that the name of the baby?” “Yes, the name of the supermarket heir. Meanwhile, Frank will be here or somewhere else.” Josias interjected, “If Frank wants to work at Rocha Constructions, count
At the Rocha Mansion, Josias receives a visit from Benjamin. “How have you been, Ben? Any news about your parents?” The two embrace. “Actually, that’s what I want to talk about.” Benjamin scratches the back of his neck. The embrace breaks. “Let’s go to my office.” The two gentlemen enter Josias’s imposing office. “Any problems with Adolfo?” Josias asks, becoming serious. “Not yet, but I hope not to have any,” Benjamin replies with some sadness. “You know, Josias, what happened with your father made me think about my family, about how important it is for all of us to be together in the final moments.” “That’s true. João Paulo can tell you that better than I can.” “I think you can say it too. Vernon was the father you never had.” Benjamin clears his throat. “So, I’ve been looking into some hotels and realized there’s a demand at the Rocha Hotel in Victoria.” Josias looks at Benjamin, understanding where he’s going with this. “You want to go to Victoria to be close to your pare
Someone rings the doorbell at João Paulo’s house. The homeowner goes to answer after taking a shower and putting on clean clothes. But when he opened the door, João Paulo felt like slamming it in the visitor’s face. “Don’t be rude!” Erasmo exclaimed. “What do you want, you old bore?” João Paulo shot back. Erasmo barged into João Paulo’s foyer. “The mourning is over. Let’s pick up where we left off.” “Are you crazy? Who decides how long mourning lasts? We just got back from the trip!” “Not exactly, it’s been a day. Life goes on, my friend!” Erasmo replied mockingly. João Paulo remained serious. “But I don’t want to continue living this way, where fights and intrigues are the order of the day. Mr. Vasquez, you have a business to run, and I have a family to raise.” “But you found time to slap my son-in-law when he was here defending his family, didn’t you?” “Alan was extremely rude, but that was some time ago.” João Paulo frowned. “I don’t feel the same anger as before.” “So a
At the Vasquez Mansion, Alan could hardly believe that the people were thinking about more intrigues and disputes. “Guys, don’t you understand that I even forgot the reason I slapped Uncle João Paulo?” “Ridiculous!” Erasmo gestured. “You just maintained respect because it was a difficult occasion. But now, the mourning is OVER!” “Do you think João Paulo will rest, dear?” Sofia asked, sitting next to him. Alan shook his head. “If Uncle João Paulo doesn’t want to rest, then he is truly despicable. But my dad is back in town. He wouldn’t dare to do that.” The news should have been uplifting, but the members of the Vasquez family merely exchanged silent glances. With Josias present, it’s quite likely that he will put a stop to their fighting. Alan turned to Olivia. “In the meantime, we should celebrate the recovery of my dear mother-in-law!” Olivia and Sofia smiled awkwardly because of the secret they were keeping. “That’s right, let’s celebrate life!” Erasmo wrapped his arm arou
Josias Rocha and his family returned to Lagoon City. Those who were waiting for them stayed in the mansion and greeted them cheerfully in the foyer. “WELCOME BACK!” Melissa, crying, embraced her parents, William, and the twins fervently. Josias greeted them with a light smile. “Where’s João Paulo?” William asked. “He went straight to his house. His kids needed to rest from the trip.” Melissa wiped her tears with her fingers. “Alan went straight to his mansion. Especially now that his mother-in-law has woken up from the coma.” “That was a scare; I thought we’d have two funerals,” Simeon commented. Everyone headed to the living room. “Is Paris very beautiful, Mom?” Mary asked. “Yes, sweetheart, it’s stunning. We’ll go shopping together another time, okay?” “Do you have pictures?” Ignacio asked anxiously. “Yes, son, we took some pictures.” Melissa sat on the couch, pulling out a package from her bag. Josias sat in the armchair, taking a deep breath. William approached him.
At Café Montanha, Daryl walks in for a coffee and finds Rodrigo at the counter while Neilton serves the others. “Hey, are we back to the old tradition?” “Don’t be a clown, man.” Rodrigo laughs. “Yes, Thierry is at the supermarket, as we agreed.” “Hi, Neil. Can you make me a cappuccino while I enjoy a natural sandwich?” Daryl places his order. “Sure thing, Mr. Mountain.” Neilton heads to the back. Daryl sits on the stool. “So, how do you feel after getting back to your element?” “I don’t regret at all helping my dear wife at the supermarket, Daryl,” Rodrigo admitted while preparing the natural sandwich. “I’m not talking about regrets.” Daryl joked. “But it’s undeniable that after Uncle Francisco’s passing, you prefer to stay here, carrying on the legacy he left.” “Just like Crystal Blue.” Rodrigo smiled. “Hey, I’m aware that you’re looking to open another restaurant in Sunset Village. Do you think you can manage it? How’s the prospecting going?” Daryl picks up the sandwich but