AT THE OFFICE
Due to Sandra's crying, Mariana puts out a 911
call to Betty. Sandra notices Mario approaching
and quickly gets up out of her chair and acts as
though she is looking for something on Mariana
desks. Mario notices that she has been crying and
inquiries to the reason. Sandra informs him that
she is ill with the flu. This answer seems to
satifsy Mario as he turns his attention to the
approaching Armando.
Mario wants to know about Betty's reaction to the
card and if Armando was able to speak to her.
Armando answers that Betty's reaction to the card
was that it was "nice" and she informed
him that he could not take her home because she
has plans with her friends. Mario asks if she is
taking the car and could it possibly be that she
has plans with Nicolas. Armando says no. Betty
asked him if he had a problem taking El Cuartel in
the Mercedes and if he did, she and El Cuartel
could take the bus. Mario tells Armando that he
needs to take Betty out that evening. Armando
would like to know how he thinks that is possible
since Marcela is home. "It is too
risky", he says. He states that he doesn't
have an excuse to give her.
At this point the elevator opens and inside is
Patricia and Marcela. Armando and Mario hurriedly
begin a conversation in regards to a cocktail that
Armando does not want to attend with Mario.
Marcela asks if Armando has a commitment with
Mario. Armando answers that he does but that he
does not want to attend. Marcela is happy because
she and Armando need to speak. Armando says fine
and that once he returns from a client's he will
go to her so that they can speak.
Marcela tells Patricia that she can tell that
Armando has plans for that evening. Patricia asks
if she plans on ruining them. Marcela does not
know. She tells her about Daniel invitation to the
cocktail launching his new project. Patricia asks
if she plans on inviting Armando. Marcela asks if
Patricia will attend the event if Armando refuses.
"Me!", Patricia answers. She tells
Marcela that she wouldn't attend even if she were
dead. Marcela begs her. Patricia tells her that
she has been invited to dinner and she does not
plan to cancel. Marcela wants to know who invited
her. Patricia does not want to answers and has a
big smile on her face. Marcela begs for her to
answer her question. At that moment, Betty passes
by on her way to Sandra's desk. Patricia tells
Marcela that the invitation is from Nicolas Mora.
Right away the look on Marcela's face changes and
it is obvious that she is not happy with the news.
Marcela wants to know what she is talking about.
Patricia tells her that she plans on taking
Betty's boyfriend away from her. Marcela graps
Patricia by the hand and takes her to her office.
AT SANDRA'S DESK
Betty wants to know what is occurring. Sandra
tells her about her conversation with Mario. Betty
tells her not to worry that she could not keep
promises to both of them. She thanks her for
keeping her promise to her. Mariana wants to know
what was in the package that Mario is so worried
that she might have seen it. Betty says that she
does not know, but it must have very important and
that is why she returned it. Betty says the
subject is closed. Mariana tells Sandra that her
intuition tells her that Betty knows what was in
the package.
IN FRONT OF ARMANDO'S OFFICE
Jenny is speaking Efrain and is telling him that
she is upset with him and that she is going to
have to shut off her cellular telephone. Sophia,
Aura Maria (wearing sunglasses, Sandra and Mariana
approch where Jenny is standing. Jenny tells
Efrain to hold and greets Sophia. She tells Efrian
that she greeted Sophia because she knows decency
and that she is calm. Sophia is excited because
theere is a possibility that she may get to keep
her house. She is even more excited because Efrain
has not bothered to pay another dollar of support.
She tells El Cuartel that la pupuchurra may be
looking for Efrain's pajamas that have strips.
Since he has not paid support there is a
possiblity that he could be put in jail. El
Cuartel is filled with excitement. Aura Maria gets
excited and starts her regular screaming and says
that they will have to go and celebrate and that
Betty can take them in the Mercedes. As Aura Maria
is telling her plans, jumping up and down, Freddy
approaches from behind without Aura Maria noticing
him. Bertha tries to warn her but she does not pay
attention. Freddy wants to know if she plans on
going out and in Betty's car. She tells him that
they are just going out so that Mariana can read
their cards. She puts her arms around him and he
takes them off and walks away. She follows him and
wants to know why he is upset. He tells her that
she is going crazy over Betty's car. She says that
she is not.
Freddy tells Aura Maria that now that she has a
friend that has Mercedes she is ashamed of having
a boyfriend that is a messenger. She tells him
that it is not so and for him not to make things
up. She tells him that some of the girls are
having problems and that Mariana is just going to
read their cards. He tells her that when she
arrived he was surrounded by three models,
however, he left them to give her an official kiss
as her boyfriend. He tells her to have Mariana
read her cards well because he is sure that there
will be no Freddy in those cards. He tells her
that she is hiding something behind the dark
glasses.
Aura Maria jumps in Betty's office and wants to
know what time they will be leaving. Betty stares.
Aura Maria asks if she has forgotten about the
card readings. Betty tells her that they will
leave around 6:00. Aura Maria asks if she as
advised her boyfriend of her plans. Betty says no.
Aura Maria asks if he might not give permission
and if he gets jealous. Betty says no and that she
and Nicolas have a modern relationship. Aura Maria
gives Betty her version of the plans for the
evening. After the card readings, they will drop
off Sofia and Inesita at their respective homes.
Afterwards, with the car that they have they will
be able to pick up any guy that they want. Betty
tells her that she had not of that. Betty looks
worried. Aura Maria tells her that she is charge
of driving and to leave the rest to her.
IN MARCELA'S OFFICE
Patricia is telling Marcela that Nicolas kept
calling and insisting that she go out with him
until she could no longer turn him down. Marcela
says that she cannot go out with him because he is
Betty's boyfriend. Patricia says that she is not
going to let that group of witches make fun of
her. She tells her that she is not the one the one
that they make fun of and throw it in her face
about his wealth, his having a business and cars.
Marcela tells her that they may be witches but she
is stupid. She tells her that the only reason that
she is going out with him is so that he can solve
her financial problems. Patricia looks shooked.
She tells her that her suggestion makes her ill.
She tells her that she shouldn't answer her and
it's if Marcela doesn't know her. Marcela tells
her that she does know her. Patricia tells her
that they are just going out to dinner and all
that she plans on doing is to flirt, put him down
on her feet and then goodbye. She says that she
has to do it to show El Cuartel that they cannot
make fun of her. Marcela tells her that she does
not like what she is planning. Patricia tells her
that she doesn't care that she is going to go out
with him. Patricia wants to know why is on Betty's
side if Betty is her worst enemy. Marcela answers
that what she is doing is not right. Marcela asks
what time they plan on going out. Patricia gets
all excited and starts swinging her hair when she
tells her of their plans. She says that she is
going to look "divina". She then asks
Marcela to lend her one of the outfits that she
brought back from Palm Beach.
BETTY'S OFFICE
Nicolas calls and wants to know when Betty is
coming home. Betty tells him that she will be
leaving soon. He lies to her and tells her that he
will go and pick up the car at her house in order
to put it in his mother's store room. Betty tells
him that she will not be going straight home.
Nicolas gets excited and wants to know why. Betty
tells him that she is going out with her friends.
He tells her that she can't do that. Betty wants
to know why. He tells her that she cannot drive
well willand that her father will be upset with
her. (As he is telling Betty this he is looking at
Patricia's picture and caressing it with a brush.)
Betty tells him that she can always leave the car
in the company's parking garage. Nicolas says no
that it won't be safe. Betty asks how would he
know. Betty wants to know what is going on.
Nicolas tells her that he is worried about her.
Betty adds, "and the car". Nicolas tells
her that is not so. Betty tells him that if she
arrives home early she will call him. Nicolas
turns to Patricia's picture and tells her that
they have serious problems. He tells the picture
that he doesn't think that she would ride a bus.
He tells it not to worry that he will come up with
something and that he does not plan on not making
the date. He takes her picture to the mirror and
kisses it.
BY SANDRA AND MARIANA'S DESKS
Marcela comes by and asks for Armando. Mariana
answers that he is stillin product. Patricia is
getting ready to go home. She tells Marcela that
she plans on taking a taxi and borrows money from
Marcela to pay for it. As Marcela is giving it to
her she tells her to be careful with what she
does. Armando and Mario arrive and Marcela tells
him that Daniel invited them to a cocktail party.
Armando wants to know if he was invited. Marcela
says that she would like for him to go with her.
Armando tells her to go ahead and they will meet
up later. After Marcela leaves Mario tells Armando
that this is his opporunity to take Betty out.
BETTY'S OFFICE
Betty is talking to Aura Maria and is telling her
that she will be leaving shortly. As she is
talking Armando walks in and after Betty hangs up
he tells her to break her commitment with her
friends. Betty asks, "What?" She reminds
him that she had told him about her previous
engagement and that she has a car so there is no
need for him to drive her home. He tells her to
cancel it that they are leaving. She tells him
that it would be best if they left it for next
week. Armando approaches her desk and sits down.
He tells her that he knows that she has a car, but
that they need to talk. She begins to interrupt
him and he gets upset and starts yelling. He tells
her that they need to talk and that they will find
a place to ptalk. He tells her that she needs to
make him her priority, not Nicolas or her friends.
He says that if she no longer wants anything to do
with him that she needs to tell him so to his
face. He tells her that she has to have respect
for what they have. While Armando speaks, Betty
just stares. She tells him that he is going to
have problems with Marcela. He answers that
Marcela will be HIS problem and that he has
already made arrangements with her. He tells her
that he will not accept any excuse and that he has
been trying to speak to her for a long time. Betty
won't look at him. He tells her that if she wants
to stay quite, that is fine. He will take that as
a signal that she no longer wants anything to do
with him and that they will both go their own
ways. She can do whatever she likes.
Betty begins to talk with a firmer voice. She asks
him if it bothers him that she may keep his
company and spend his money. He tells her that he
will not respond and tells her that they need to
go somewhere else to talk. Betty gets out of her
chair and tells him that she will return his
company. She tells him that she will call Nicolas
and tell him to bring all the books. Armando wants
to know if he will now have to discuss their
relationship with Nicolas. He says to call him. He
is sure that Betty has told him everything that is
going on between them and broken her promises to
him. Betty turns around and says, "Oh, I am
the one who has broken all the promises. I'm the
one deceiving you". Armando and Betty stare
at each other. Armando wants to know what he is
suppose to think with everything that she is doing
to him. He asks once more that they go somewhere
to talk. Betty tells him that she will cancel her
commitment and that they will leave. Armando very
upset gets up and leaves. After he turns around
Betty sticks out her tongue at him and then
focuses on her candle.
IN ARMANDO'S OFFICE
Marcela comes in to say goodbye. Marcela wants to
know if he found out anything about Betty's
boyfriend because Daniel was worried about the
Mercedes. Armando tells him that he has already
checked him out and for her and Daniel to calm
down because everything is fine. (Betty is
listening to all of this in her office.) Marcela
wants him to go look at some apartments the next
day. She kisses him goodbye and he does not return
the kiss. Marcela tells him that he does not have
much longer to get the other woman out of his
system or her.
BETTY'S OFFICE
Armando walks in and asks if she is ready to
leave. Betty tells him to go ahead and leave and
that she will be leaving soon. He looks puzzled.
She tells him that he has his car and she has
hers. He asks if she means that they will be
leaving in separate cars. She says yes. He tells
her that they will be leaving together in his car.
Armando leaves her no choice. Betty tells him that
she needs to make a call. Mario comes in and asks
to speak to Armando. They go to the conference
room. Betty hangs up and goes to listen to the
conversation.
CONFERENCE ROOM
Armando informs Mario that he has convinced Betty
to go out with him. Mario is excited and tells him
that this is the night to get Betty back. He tells
him to take her out to eat, dance, make love to
her. Do what is necessary. Spend any amount of
money that is necessary. Make whatever sacrifice
is necessary, but the monster needs to arrive at
work tomorrow in love with the President. He tells
him that they are running out of time and Betty
needs to fix the report. Armando says that he is
totally aware, but he doesn't know where to take
her. Mario suggests a place that is out of the way
and dark. He says that to the monster this place
will seem "divino". Betty hears the
whole conversation and walks off furious.
AT BETTY'S HOUSE
Nicolas arrives in his new suit. He turns around
so that her parents can get a good look at him. He
wants to know if Betty has called and what time
she plans on arriving home. Dona Julia says that
they have not heard. Nicolas says that she had
plans on going out with her friends. Her mother
says that she would not go without advising them.
Don Hermes says that she does what she wants. He
says that he is able to go pick her up but that
she rather be in the Mercedes. Dona Julia asks
where the car is, has it be stolen. Nicolas says
no, that it is worse. Betty took it to work. Don
Hermes wants to know how irresponsible can he be.
Betty calls home to let her parents know that she
will be late. Nicolas wants to know what time she
will be home. He asks that she come home soon.
Betty tells her mother that she will be attending
a dinner with Armando. She tells them that Armando
will be bringing her home and that she will leave
the car in the parking garage. Nicolas rushes to
speak to her and to tell her that he will pick it
up. Armando comes for Betty. Nicolas is upset that
Betty has decided to put the car in the garage. He
finally convinces her to let him pick it up.
Armando wants to know if there is a problem. She
says no that Nicolas was worried about where she
planned on leaving the car.
Betty wants to ask Armando for one favor. He asks
what it is and she says that she wants to pick the
place. He says fine and when she mentions El Meson
de San Diego he refuses. He tells her that it is a
restuarant where his class of people go to, people
that are his friends, people that know both him
and Marcela. She asks what is the problem, won't
they just go to talk. He says yes, but that he
wants something more intimate. She tells him that
she doesn't care to go to one of those dark dance
clubs that he always picks. Besides, she had plans
to go out to a nice place with her friends. She
tells him that it would be best if they wait until
next week when she is in a better mood. She tells
him that she understands how uncomfortable and
embarrassing it must be for him to go to a place
like that with someone like her. He agrees to go
to the restaurant.
IN THE LOBBY
El Cuartel is waiting for Betty. Aura Maria is
ready to go. Betty tells her that she needs to
accompany Armando to a meeting. Aura Maria is
upset that Betty will leave them all dressed and
no where to go. Armando is just staring at Aura
Maria. Inesita says that she thinks it is best.
She did not like the idea of going in that car at
night. Aura Maria wants to know what car Betty
will be going in. Betty says Armando's. Aura Maria
gets excited and asks to borrow the car. El
Cuartel starts in on Aura Maria. Sophia tells her
to start walking because she has her son at home.
Freddy comes out of the elevator and wants to know
what is going on. Aura Maria rushes to his side
and tells him that she told El Cuartel that they
should go out some other evening because she
wanted to be with him. Freddy falls for the story.
AT BETTY'S HOUSE
Nicolas is very impatient adn is pounding the
table. Dona Julia offers him something to eat. He
tells her no because he has a good dinner waiting
for him. SHe notices what he said and tells him
that he has dinner waiting at home for him. After
Betty's parents leave the room he takes out
Patricia's picture and kisses it and gets some
money.
IN PATRICIA'S BATHROOM
Patricia is talking to her father about her date.
She's wearing a short, tight, black leather top
and skirt combing her hair. She tells him that he
works for a solid company and that he has money.
It's big date
night for Nícolas and he's off to Ecomoda to
collect the Benz. He approaches the building and
Wilson looks him over. Nícolas first shows off
with a fake phone call and then introduces himself
and his purpose, but Wilson makes him prove that
he is who he says he is. Nícolas shows him his
ID, noting that the photo is from when he was
"poor". He shows off his watch and
Wilson asks if it's a toy. However, Wilson is
impressed with the Benz's remote control—though
Nícolas only manages to open the trunk! He asks
Wilson to shut it and he hops to it. Nícolas
tells him that he Betty will give him a tip
tomorrow and enters the car and is off to
dreamland, coattail dragging out the door!
Armando and Betty pull up in front of the
nightclub — he with his long-suffering look and
her noting it quite clearly — he notes that the
place is crawling with "his kind of
people" and he tries to put her off. She
tells him to trust in her good luck. Some goofy
mime in sparkly whiteface and zebra-topped hat
opens the door for her. Armando gets out and
scarcely waits for her to join him before he
enters the outside terrace of the club. He's
greeted left and right and he pretends as if he's
alone, not introducing Betty. She gets fed up with
this after the first 4 or 5 people and shows him
up by introducing herself. Armando cringes — he
doesn't even have the grace to look shamed by his
behavior… yet.
Inside, they're seated at a nice table. It's
bright, well lit, and a trio of men are
singing/playing a light rock/pop type song.
Armando takes a seat and doesn't pull out the
chair for Betty. She looks at him, disapprovingly.
"Sit down, please," he tells her
abruptly, and she pauses, "Betty, sit
down…" chides Armando. Before she does —
the waiter has pulled out the chair for her —
she asks Armando if he'll loan her his cell phone.
He looks annoyed at the request, "Why do you
want it? What now, Beatriz?" "I need to
call home," she responds. He looks
suspiciously at her as he pulls it from his back
pocket and hands it over. She leaves and he orders
a whisky, for now.
Nícolas, meanwhile, has pulled up in front of
Patricia's apartment building and is calling her
to let her know he's arrived. While he's waiting
for her, he does a quick check of his
"date-worthiness." He sniffs his pits
and dusts them with some talcum powder he handily
has in the glove box of the car; and then dusts
his shoes liberally also. Next is some cologne,
which he dabs on with his fingers. He checks his
breath and finds that he could use a mint, but
with no mints at hand, he takes a swig of the
cologne. It's nasty, but he persists and decides
he needs more freshening so he takes a bigger swig
and spits out the excess out the car door. The
cell phone rings, startling him, and it's Betty.
She is in full panic mode and pleads with him to
come to the club to pick her up.
"What?!?" he exclaims. "Why?"
"Nícolas, come and take me away from her, I
don't know what to say to you…" "Wait,
Betty, who are you with, where are you?"
"With Don Armando," she tells him.
"He asked that we go out tonight to speak
about us," she continues. She tells Nícolas
how Armando proposed that they go to one of the
usual out of the way places and how she told him
that she didn't want to do that — she wanted to
make him suffer — and she asked him to bring her
to this exclusive club. "But since we've
entered he's been greeted by all these people and
he hasn't introduced me to anyone," she
complains, clearly upset by Armando's behavior. Nícolas
sees things clearly, "Sorry, but you're being
very stupid. Think of all the things he's done to
humiliate you. Remember what the letter said, how
he's suffered. No, what are you thinking?"
Betty is near tears, "I only wanted to make
him uncomfortable a bit, but to also respect me…
It's to speak of business and what's happening
between us, but I wanted to do it in a nice place.
But I was wrong… Take me away from here, Nícolas!
I want to go! If you won't come for me, I'll take
a taxi!" He encourages her to wait a minute.
He stretches out in the Benz and elaborates.
"It seems like an interesting plan." He
reminds her that they're together and this is an
opportunity to make Armando suffer her company as
a fea. "Remember?" "Yes," says
a tearful Betty. He continues and tells her Laying
it on thick — that he's gotten home, he's
putting on his pajamas (yawn) and he's going to
bed. She tells him that she'll call him later at
home, knowing she's really stuck with going ahead
with her plan, but he tells her to use the cell
phone — so as to not disturb mama. She pulls
herself together and heads out to Armando.
Back to Nícolas' date preparations. He takes a
Q-tip from his breast pocket and swabs out the
ears, and then (brace yourselves) he puts the used
swab back in his pocket! Finally, he blows his
nose and checks the nostrils to make sure that no
boogers lurk, then tucks the tissue up his sleeve.
He's just finished up when he sees Patricia
standing outside the building. He's struck dumb by
how great she looks — better than in his photo.
He hops out of the car and greets her. She puts on
full vamp mode and when he offers his hand to
shake she steps forward and plants a kiss on his
cheek. He'll never wash his face again! He opens
the door and she gets in. Inside the car, she asks
if she was late and he says no. She holds her
fingers to her nose because of his cologne-breath.
He tells her that he gave his chauffeur the night
off because he likes to drive and they're so
indiscreet. She asks where they will go and he
tells her he can't decide because he's so
demanding. She suggests Ile l'Noir and he concurs,
but needs to ask her how to get there. She looks
at him peculiarly.
Back at the club, Betty returns to the table and
hands Armando his phone. He asks how it went and
she says, "Good, you know how my father
is." He asks her to sit and she thanks him
again and apologizes for the delay. The waiter
asks her what she'd like to drink and Armando
begins to order her usual jugo de mora, but Betty
interrupts and tells the waiter she'd like a
vodka, straight up. This surprises Armando and he
notes the order. "Vodka? I didn't think you
drank? Why vodka?" "Well, Doctor, as
I've never been to a place like this before, it
seems to me a good occasion to have a vodka. Isn't
that so?" (Slightly evil grin on her face).
He replies, a pained look on his face,
"Yes… of course…"
Patricia is instructing Nícolas on how to get to
Ile l'Noir. He puts on some music
("Andiamo" from "la Boheme")
at full blast. He asks if she likes it, but it's
too loud. She asks him to turn it down. She next
asks him what Betty thinks about him being out. He
tells her that he told her that he had a business
meeting, besides, she's involved in something for
Ecomoda.
Armando starts to broach the topics in front of
him: he wants to know what crime he's committed
for her to treat him with such distance. She
stares at him with a fixed smile. It's given him
such fear and he hopes that they'll leave,
"Pues… bien," he says, with a shy
smile. He offers up a toast, for business and for
their night. She lifts her glass and drains it, to
his amazement, then orders another. "Betty!
What are you doing?" "I was toasting
us… for our night together… (haw haw)!"
He wants to begin to speak about the car and Terra
Moda and them, but a woman comes up behind him and
greets him effusively. She kisses him and flirts,
"Don't tell me you're married yet?" He
says that he nearly is and she tells him to drop
his fiancée and marry her instead. He looks
awkwardly at Betty and Betty looks daggers with
her eyes and polite smile on her lips at the two.
He introduces Betty as his assistant and the woman
dismissively says, "a pleasure" and
turns back to Armando. Betty, takes things further
and replies with the unanticipated, "It's a
pleasure... We're delighted to have you
here!" making her point that she's actually
sitting at the table with Armando. The flirt
teases him and tells him to call her before he
marries and Betty takes action by calling for the
waiter. "Am I interrupting something?"
asks the flirt. Armando explains that he and his
assistant were speaking of work. The flirt finds
this a horrible topic for a night out but new NAI
(New and Improved) Betty puts forth her opinion,
"But we enjoy it (talking about business) so
much!" The flirt graciously gets the hint and
takes her leave. Betty, however, gets the last
word, "Hasta luego. Fue un placer para
conocerte... Qué te vuelvas..." Armando
looks troubled/Betty looks grim. "What
shame..." remarks Betty, pointedly, "Do
you want to go to a more discreet place?"
Armando hastily remarks — and he looks a little
as if he means it for a change; "No, there's
no need for that. We're fine here." The
waiter brings her next vodka and she knocks this
one back too. He's concerned that she's drinking
so fast, but she just explains that it's just
because she's so happy to be with him, that,
"At last we're having our night!" He
chuckles low and awkwardly, "Me too, I'm
content too." They listen to the lead singer.
"I have a world of my own, I'm going to share
it... This is my world... my world..." Betty
asks if he's listening to the music (but are you
hearing the words?) and he apologetically
confesses that he was a bit.
Back to the uncomfortable topics... He starts
again and another woman kisses him hello. He
starts again on the topic of her salary. He wants
to give her the raise that he'd promised her
commensurate with her responsibilities but she so
rightly tells him that Ecomoda can't afford to pay
her what she's worth: Ecomoda can't pay her for
what she does with Terra Moda. Ecomoda can't pay
her create illegal figures. He's startled by this
frankness and looks at her, head tilted to one
side, and tries another tack. "Yes, but you
could draw a salary from Terra Moda."
"That would be unjust," she responds.
"I really don't do anything with Terra Moda.
The one who does is Nícolas Mora, who works full
time for Terra Moda and I've already arranged a
salary for him." Armando is clearly
uncomfortable but trying not to start anything,
"Oh, you've fixed one (a salary for Nícolas),
good." He suggests that perhaps she should
receive a commission if not a salary but she tells
him not to think of it. This topic's at a dead-end
so he starts in on the car. He tells her that he
knows he promised to get her a car and he's sorry
that he didn't before. She tells him that she's
more than happy with the Benz, "If you're not
satisfied that I stick with the Mercedes, I
could..." Armando sees a slippery slope ahead
and starts retracting, "Nooo... It's perfect
for you to have this car. " Betty has a
strange, fixed expression on her face. He goes on
to tell her that he's in accord with her
expenditures, such as for the luncheon she hosted
with the cuartel. He'd perhaps like to suggest a
figure for these types of expenses. She tells him
not to worry, she and Nícolas have already
calculated how much they have available for these
types of expenses. "However, if you'd like to
discuss them, or have us lower this monthly
expense..." Betty suggests, very
passive/aggressive in tone. He can do nothing but
agree. They listen again to the music again for a
bit. Armando speaks again, "You make a good
team with Nícolas" "Yes, yes,"
smiles Betty. Armando hesitantly puts forth that
he's glad that Nícolas didn't come pick her up
this night, that she would make him a gift of this
night together. Betty smiles and tells him not to
worry about Nícolas, he should be in bed by now.
"Health, to the two of us!" She drinks
down her third vodka, to Armando's chagrin.
Nícolas and Patricia are close to the restaurant
and now he pretends to recall where he is. He
drives up and gets out, shaking off the excess
powder. He calls to the doorman to hurry up and
open her door. She exits as slinkily as possible
and Nícolas follows her up the steps as geeky as
they come. At the top, he tries to lock the car
with his remote but only starts the alarm. He
succeeds with the next try. He tells the doorman
to keep an eye on the car and wait for the tip.
Inside, the maitre d' greets her and tells
Patricia he hasn't seen her in a while. She
pretends that the work has kept her too busy to
come. The maitre'd mentions that some of her
company was there for lunch. Patricia looks a
little sour and Nícolas a little surprised. She
wonders if he knows that Betty said that he was
paying and he expansively that he's very generous
with her. The maitre'd asks if they have a
reservation and when they don't, Nícolas acts
like a jerk implying that he's an important
person, whipping out his card, that they should
have a table for him, and Patricia just looks
pleadingly at him. For her, he leads the odd
couple to a table. Nícolas sits right down
(shades of Armando!) while Patricia stands
waiting, surprised at his ill manners. Nícolas
tells the maitre'd to pull out her chair and hurry
up. He asks Nícolas if he can take his trench
coat, but Nícolas tells him he'll leave it on.
The waiter asks if they'd like something to drink.
Nícolas wants to impress her and tells her to
order whatever... champagne. "No, it seems
too extravagant... " she purrs. She counters
with cognac and Nícolas says that he was thinking
the same thing. "We're of identical
minds," he says gleefully, "Joven, bring
us a bottle of your best cognac... oh and two
glasses!" Startled, the maitre d' can only
comply. "Venga, venga, venga... ¡y
rapidito!" calls Nícolas. Patricia looks
embarrassed, but it's clear that she's thinking
this is going to be easy, hooking a yokel like Nícolas.
Back at the club... They're pensive, listening to
the music. Armando says that he doesn't want their
dealings with Terra Moda and Ecomoda to compromise
their relationship. "I've been very worried
by what's been going on lately, Beatriz." She
stares fixedly at the musicians, swaying lightly
to the music . "It's not just that, during
these days, I haven't been able to sleep."
Someone passes behind him and he's momentarily
distracted. Betty chuckles, perhaps at the idea of
a sleepless Armando. He wants to clarify things
between them, they have to talk. All the other
stuff — the car, the expense, etc. — that's
all clear between them, right. Betty nods her head
goofily, the drink clearly affecting her.
"Clear, Doctor, very clear!" Armando
wants to proceed. "What is happened between
the two of us?" He gestures with his hands
and she says, "Naaaadaaaa, Doctooor...,"
and reaches out to caress his wrist
affectionately. "We're very well..." She
caresses his hands further and he looks at her
hand on his and tries to move his hand away
without appearing to. He pulls back to rub his
chin, "I don't think we're that well (tucks
his hands under his arms), because things have
been very difficult, you've been very strange with
me (she fixes a knowing smile on him). Besides,
you've wanted to be more with Nícolas Mora than
with me..." he complains. "What's
happened?" He gestures again with his hands
and she playfully reaches out to caress his hand
again, grinning broadly. "Where did you get
that idea, Doctor?" she laughs. He extricates
his hands and says, "Don't play, Beatriz!
Don't play!" He insists that she explain
what's going on with her and Nícolas Mora.
"Naadaaa, Doctor! How could you think
so?" Haw haw. He fixes her with a look. He
starts to make a point, bringing his hands
forward, but catches himself and tucks them back
under his arms so that she can't play with his
fingers again. "You remember that once you
told me that you loved me... do you
remember?" He pauses, "Have you
forgotten it?" Betty hangs her head, chin in
her hand, eyes down. He looks at her with a
slightly hurt look, "Do you not love me
now?" She looks away. "Tell me, because
I need to know, Beatriz." He oozes sincerity
— dare we believe him? She thinks for several
long seconds, then turns resolutely to look him in
the face, "No, Doctor, I still love you
(laugh)." He looks down, as if to hide his
relief, "You're going to have to forgive me,
but I don't believe you," he continues. Oh,
the look in her eyes...! "Ah no?" she
asks him. He pulls his head up proudly and looks
away. She gets up from her chair opposite and
takes the seat next to him, pulling up closely.
She runs her fingers up his arm and starts to pull
closer. "What are you doing, Beatriz?"
he asks in mild alarm. "I'm going to show you
that I love you, Doctor." She pulls in for a
kiss. "Nooo..." he pulls back, voice
rising in denial. Betty responds in frustration,
"But how do you want me to show you that I
love you? You act so evasive with me!" Laugh,
laugh. He looks a little startled at this, worried
that the people behind them may have noticed them,
"Look," he begins and another girl
kisses him hello and dashes off. He starts again,
"Look, we're in a place were people know me;
we can't do anything here and you know it!"
She laughs drunkenly, "I forgot! I forgot
that you can only be affectionate with me in
hidden little getaways, in dark corners..."
She laughs again. "It's not for you, Beatriz,
it's for Marcela," he says, teeth clenched.
"Of course it's for Doña Marcela... but,
you've been with many other women in places like
this one and it never mattered to you
before." Armando tells her that that was
different. "Very different," responds
Betty with alacrity, "because you had been
there with very beautiful women. And this isn't
prestigious, this doesn't damage your record. On
the contrary, the people applaud you. On the other
hand, with me you run all the risk with Do–a
Marcela," Betty is mocking and he looks hurt
by what she's saying. She continues to say that
what really troubles him isn't Marcela knowing
he's affectionate with her, but that the people
there see them. THAT would hurt his image."
He impulsively responds, "Don't say that,
it's not true." (Is this the Armando who
comforted Betty in Mario's apartment and made love
truly?) Betty replies, cynically, "No? In
truth?" she grabs his neck and he flinches.
She pulls back. "Isn't you that's behaving
strangely in all this, Doctor?" He starts to
panic and begs that she stop playing, let him take
her home, to some other place, so that they can
discuss this. She won't let him off the hook and
continues to mock herself and him; she notes that
the places he always takes her are dark, "Of
course that’s better for him because he doesn't
have to see whom he's kissing!" He's really
startled by this and her drunken, self-deprecating
laugh. Armando tells her that they'd agreed on
meeting in dark places, but she's right back at
him by reminding him that when he finishes with
Marcela they wouldn't hide anymore. He quickly
replies that that's true but he's not finished
with Marcela and he sees her every day in the
light. "Sure, Doctor! In the light of my
office!" mocks Betty. He gives her a quick
look to interpret this latest comment. He reminds
her that he's offered her another office several
times but she's turned him down. She seizes on
this, "Yes, to stay closer to you!"
"Look, Beatriz, you can punish me for the
darkness, not for neglect." He tells her that
the dark is for her benefit, she laughs and he
tells her that she can laugh if she wishes, for
when it's dark, he feels her most, in his heart.
She stops laughing, "This love of ours,
Doctor, is going to turn into vampire love!
(laugh) Because it ceases with the sun..."
She continues be agreeing that the darkness is
inherent to the nature of their relationship, she
understands well enough, don't worry. Armando
responds with hurt in his voice that he doesn't
feel that they're resolving things. He presses on
that the clandestine nature of their relationship
doesn't alter how he feels, what he loves... that
he loves her, he pauses for effect. "That I
love you... But I feel that there's something else
separating us!" "Then," responds
Betty, "What is it?" "Everything
you've done, all of your moods towards me has a
name: Nícolas Mora." "Nícolas?"
laughs Betty incredulously. "Yes. Why are you
laughing? Just when you changed towards me he
appeared." He recounts the many recent
occasions when Nícolas has intruded between them,
particularly getting angry when he mentions the
changing of dates with him. Betty is enjoying
this. She leans back and with a big grin says,
"So, you insist that I have something going
with Nícolas?" Armando tells her that he
does and she laughs quietly. "Do you believe
that what I feel for Nícolas is more important
that what I feel for you?" He stares at her
penetratingly. She leans over and draws close to
him, pulling him to her lips. "Will you help
me prove that that's not so?" she asks.
"How can I do that?" he responds
furtively. "Kiss me, kiss me a lot," she
says. He resists with his eyes only, rolling them
the way he did when he first kissed her. Before
they can hit full liplock mode, his cell phone
rings. "Damn it!" he says, in relief.
"It's Marcela." He excuses himself to
answer it in the bathroom.
In the bathroom, he speaks faux-sweetly to
Marcela, telling her where he is, how long he'll
be, asking where she is, etc., and signs off,
"Besos!" Then he gets the idea to check
whether or not Betty actually called home. He
reviews the numbers dialed on his phone and
discovers that her call wasn't to her home
number...!
Niki and Patty
are seated in the expensive restaurant, chatting.
He still has his overcoat on. Patty asks Niki what
TerraModa does, and he responds that they do
investments over the internet. She says that she
is very interested in anything involving the
market, (of course, anything involving money would
be interesting to her.)
She asks what kind of food he likes, and he turns
the question on her. She talks about all sorts of
foreign food, Italian, Japanese, especially the
wok, and goes on and on. He says he likes all of
those too, see, they have so much in common.
Then a phone rings. He says it must be hers, and
she says no, it must be his. He tries to ignore
it, but it continues to ring, so he excuses
himself awkwardly from the table and goes to the
restroom to answer it. He looks at the numbers,
recognizing them as Armando's phone and says, oh,
no, it must be Betty, and prepares to pretend that
he is home, practicing yawning, etc., before
answering. Armando speaks in a high pitched voice,
saying "I think I have the wrong number, who
is this?" "Nicholas Mora, who is
this?" Armando hangs up and gets very upset,
talking to himself in the mirror. "Nicholas
Mora, Nicholas Mora, - -oh, so we know what you
have been doing. You want to play, okay, we'll
play"
The waiter comes to the table and asks if Patty
and Nicholas are ready to eat, Patty says that she
doesn't have much "Fam", but if he is
ready, and he responds that he is starving, and
can't wait to eat. They look at the menus
together, and it is clear that Nicholas doesn't
recognize anything. Patty asks what dishes he
likes, and Nicholas says, oh, all of them, as he
flips through the pages, hurriedly, looking for
something familiar. She suggests some dishes,
including oysters or scallops on the ½ shell.
Then the waiter asks about the wine, and Nicholas
has no idea what should go with anything, so Patty
steps in and suggests white wine, and he goes
along with that.
He heads back to the table and Betty is turned
away from his direction, listening to the band
with her chin in her hand. He sits down, but still
she doesn't notice him, so he clears his throat.
She asks him if he has to go, and he says no, why?
She responds that he was gone so long she thought
he had a problem with Marcela. He said that she
was gone longer, and she said no, she didn't think
so, but maybe it seemed like it because she missed
him so much. He repeated no, and asked her to
remind him of where they were. She says that she
was going to show him how much she loves him, that
she feels nothing for Nicholas, wraps one arm
around his neck and leans in very close. He
doesn't move away, instead looks directly at her
and says really, she doesn't feel anything for
Nicholas? Then why did she lie to him and say she
was calling her house when she was calling
Nicholas instead, huh? What is that about! She is
deceiving him. She pulls away and says for him not
to shout at her. He responds that she is acting
shamelessly. " I am shameless?" she
questions. She says that he has offended her and
she is not going to take it, and she gets up to
leave. He grabs her arm, and pulls her close to
him, saying that she will stay, but she responds
that he is making a scene, that these are his
people, his group, that she doesn't care what they
think of her, but he cares what they think of him.
She then pushes past her, and he follows after
her, saying "Beatriz", one of his
associates sees him on the way out, so he says
hello without slowing down.
She is moving at a rapid clip down the street when
he catches up to her and says that she has to talk
to him, she can't leave. They can go back in and
sit down and work everything out. She says, back
in there, why? So he can reject and humiliate and
ignore her again, because he is ashamed to be seen
with her? He says that she shouldn't say that, it
isn't true, she insists that it is. He insists
that she is behaving disgracefully, and she says,
how, because I am going around with two guys? He
says, so then its over, we're finished? She says,
unless you are willing to share me, because I am
inclined to share myself. That's just the kind of
woman I am.
He backs off and says, okay, so I made a mistake,
I made a mistake, but this situation is making me
crazy. You were teasing me in there, teasing and
tempting me to kiss you, I need to kiss you. He
grabs her and tries to kiss her, and she pulls
away, and says no. He says I am dying to kiss you,
dying, and he reaches for her again, stealing a
brief kiss. No, she says, are you crazy. Yes, he
responds, crazy for you, and I am going to kiss
you. She says no, don't do it, and turns her head
away. He grasps her chin and pulls her face
towards his, firmly, and kisses her. She resists a
little at first, then gives in. When they break,
she pulls away and he tells her that he will make
her forget Nicholas, he deserves her more because
he loves and desires her, and kisses her again,
but this time she doesn't respond. He pulls away
and asks what is wrong, and she replies that she
has to go. He says where? She says home. She turns
and runs to catch a taxi, and waves goodbye -
-Goodnight Doctor. Beatriz, wait, and he is
standing next to her and shutting the door to
prevent her from getting in, and he leans into her
space. Don't get in, stay with me, we can go
somewhere, somewhere where we can be alone, where
I can show you how much I love and desire you.
Where we can spend the night, the whole night
together. She says that she has to go. He says,
didn't you hear what I said? She responds, yes,
Doctor, I heard you, and looking him directly in
the eye, adds, but I don't want to be with you, I
don't desire you. He releases her and she gets in
the taxi and leaves.
Patty and Nicholas are receiving various plates of
food, and as each one comes, Nicholas asks what it
is, and the waiter says, it is what they ordered.
The first plate (either oysters or scallops on the
½ shell, I forget which), floors him, and
Patricia holds one of the ½ shells up for him to
take. She is reaching for a fork, when he slups it
directly out of the shell. This is the beginning
of the end. Then the rest of the meal comes, I
forget what it was, but Nicholas doesn't recognize
this either, and asks what it is. Then, when he
realizes that this is the main course, and is
dismayed because, on par with most expensive
restaurants, there is not much food on the plate,
and he is hungry. He then proceeds to order lots
of more filling dishes, including fried potatoes(I
think). Patty is trying not to laugh at him, while
feeling horrified at the same time. And he keeps
referring to the waiter as joven, even though the
waiter is probably older than he is. He also snaps
his fingers and waves his hand around a lot in an
affected, in charge manner.
Nicholas asks Patty if she lives with her mother,
her father, a friend, or (gulp of discomfort) her
boyfriend. She responds that she lives alone. She
turns the question on him, and he responds that he
too lives alone, but we see his squirm of
discomfort, and we are reminded that he lives with
his mother.
Patty then asks if Niki and Betty are going to get
married, and he responds no, gosh no. She says
that they seem very attached, and he responds no,
not at all, it is a very independent relationship.
She says that they must be very much in love,
though, because he is so attentive and calls her
all the time, gives her detalles, and lends her
his car. He responds that a man doesn't have to be
in love to do that, and she says no? (You can see
the calculator working in her brain).
She tries to finagle the car, but Niki says he
couldn't possibly, because he promised it to
Betty. Patty then tries to secure his help in
getting her car out of lockup, going on and on
about how the embargo was a matter of bad luck.
Niki alludes to being able to help her with that
without promising anything. "I'm sure I can
find a way to help." Patty - - Really, oh,
how nice, I am so glad I met you. A toast to us!
Betty comes in the door, trying to tiptoe in, and
is ambushed by her father in the blanket. He gives
her the usual questions about how she got home,
she says in taxi but accompanied. He asks if she
talked to Armando about the car, and she replies
yes, and that he is fine with everything. Armando
has returned to the bar/club where they were. When
the waiter asks if he wants the bill, he says no,
a whisky. The musicians are singing "te
amo"
The bill comes, and Nicholas pulls out a big wad
of bills, and begins to count them - - he doesn't
know how much he has, but it isn't going to be
enough. He then pulls out the Terra Moda
Checkbook, and starts writing, after a big show
about the risks of taking checks, and toying with
the waiter by pulling it back and forth out of his
reach. Patty asks why he doesn't use credit, and
he says, no credit is very bad - - the bills.
Patty makes faces (we know she was hoping for
access).
They come out of the restaurant and Niki tells the
attendant to open the door for her, and that his
tip is inside with the check he wrote to the
restaurant.
Betty is in her room, writing in her diary. She
can't believe she let Nicholas talk her into
staying, she thought to get revenge, but it was a
disaster, a disaster. Armando is sitting in the
bar, drinking alone, listening to another song,
the band is singing "I miss you, I want that
you had stayed with me." Betty is talking in
the voiceover about how painful it is to know that
he finds her repulsive, and he is touching his
mouth, as if it were marked. Betty says he must be
hurting for fear of his company the way she is
hurting from his deception. He takes another sip,
then jabs his fingers at his hair in frustration.
She talks about how by now, he must be erasing all
feeling of her, all memory of her with Marcela,
and how she must avoid the temptation of being
with him. Marcela calls, and asks what he is
doing, and he replies that he is having a drink
with a friend (male) and he will go back to his
apartment after they are done. A friend says good
night, and there are beautiful women everywhere,
but he continues to drink alone. It was only her
anger with him, at his reference to Nicholas being
less, having less worth than he, that allowed her
to pull back, and from now on she will have to
keep her distance, because his skin, his kisses
tempt her. She will have to keep her distance,
until she can distance herself forever.
When Nicholas and Patty arrive at her home, she
invites him up. You can tell he is tempted, but
hesitates, and she says, oh, no, of course, and
goes on and on about his relationship with Betty
and how she respects that. She then hops out of
the car (he looks like she hit him over the head)
and gives a little wave. He calls after her, wait,
wait, but she continues to walk away, and then
turns back for another wave. After she is out of
sight, he fawns all over the seat she sat in,
touching it, even smelling it (the bottom of the
seat no less!!!!)
It is morning and Don Hermes is complaining about
not all of the skin being off of the papaya, and
Dona Julia is rolling her eyes. Betty comes down,
and Hermes starts in again about the car, and how
even if Armando said it was okay, they shouldn't
get too caught up, and Nicholas is turning into an
idiot over the car and the clothes, and they
shouldn't be confused about who they really were.
Betty then opens the cupboard and shock! The
checkbook and $$ from TerraModa are missing! She
then thinks, ok, Niki probably moved them. Niki
then shows up, after making lots of noise, and
sits down at the table , giving Dona Julia
"his usual order" and making lots of
show. Hermes says that this is exactly what he was
talking about, that they are both getting very
caught up in all of this, and it needs to stop!
Niki and Patty are seated in the expensive
restaurant, chatting. He still has his overcoat
on. Patty asks Niki what TerraModa does, and he
responds that they do investments over the
internet. She says that she is very interested in
anything involving the market, (of course,
anything involving money would be interesting to
her.)
She asks what kind of food he likes, and he turns
the question on her. She talks about all sorts of
foreign food, Italian, Japanese, especially the
wok, and goes on and on. He says he likes all of
those too, see, they have so much in common.
Then a phone rings. He says it must be hers, and
she says no, it must be his. He tries to ignore
it, but it continues to ring, so he excuses
himself awkwardly from the table and goes to the
restroom to answer it. He looks at the numbers,
recognizing them as Armando's phone and says, oh,
no, it must be Betty, and prepares to pretend that
he is home, practicing yawning, etc., before
answering. Armando speaks in a high pitched voice,
saying "I think I have the wrong number, who
is this?" "Nicholas Mora, who is
this?" Armando hangs up and gets very upset,
talking to himself in the mirror. "Nicholas
Mora, Nicholas Mora, - -oh, so we know what you
have been doing. You want to play, okay, we'll
play"
The waiter comes to the table and asks if Patty
and Nicholas are ready to eat, Patty says that she
doesn't have much "Fam", but if he is
ready, and he responds that he is starving, and
can't wait to eat. They look at the menus
together, and it is clear that Nicholas doesn't
recognize anything. Patty asks what dishes he
likes, and Nicholas says, oh, all of them, as he
flips through the pages, hurriedly, looking for
something familiar. She suggests some dishes,
including oysters or scallops on the ½ shell.
Then the waiter asks about the wine, and Nicholas
has no idea what should go with anything, so Patty
steps in and suggests white wine, and he goes
along with that.
He heads back to the table and Betty is turned
away from his direction, listening to the band
with her chin in her hand. He sits down, but still
she doesn't notice him, so he clears his throat.
She asks him if he has to go, and he says no, why?
She responds that he was gone so long she thought
he had a problem with Marcela. He said that she
was gone longer, and she said no, she didn't think
so, but maybe it seemed like it because she missed
him so much. He repeated no, and asked her to
remind him of where they were. She says that she
was going to show him how much she loves him, that
she feels nothing for Nicholas, wraps one arm
around his neck and leans in very close. He
doesn't move away, instead looks directly at her
and says really, she doesn't feel anything for
Nicholas? Then why did she lie to him and say she
was calling her house when she was calling
Nicholas instead, huh? What is that about! She is
deceiving him. She pulls away and says for him not
to shout at her. He responds that she is acting
shamelessly. " I am shameless?" she
questions. She says that he has offended her and
she is not going to take it, and she gets up to
leave. He grabs her arm, and pulls her close to
him, saying that she will stay, but she responds
that he is making a scene, that these are his
people, his group, that she doesn't care what they
think of her, but he cares what they think of him.
She then pushes past her, and he follows after
her, saying "Beatriz", one of his
associates sees him on the way out, so he says
hello without slowing down.
She is moving at a rapid clip down the street when
he catches up to her and says that she has to talk
to him, she can't leave. They can go back in and
sit down and work everything out. She says, back
in there, why? So he can reject and humiliate and
ignore her again, because he is ashamed to be seen
with her? He says that she shouldn't say that, it
isn't true, she insists that it is. He insists
that she is behaving disgracefully, and she says,
how, because I am going around with two guys? He
says, so then its over, we're finished? She says,
unless you are willing to share me, because I am
inclined to share myself. That's just the kind of
woman I am.
He backs off and says, okay, so I made a mistake,
I made a mistake, but this situation is making me
crazy. You were teasing me in there, teasing and
tempting me to kiss you, I need to kiss you. He
grabs her and tries to kiss her, and she pulls
away, and says no. He says I am dying to kiss you,
dying, and he reaches for her again, stealing a
brief kiss. No, she says, are you crazy. Yes, he
responds, crazy for you, and I am going to kiss
you. She says no, don't do it, and turns her head
away. He grasps her chin and pulls her face
towards his, firmly, and kisses her. She resists a
little at first, then gives in. When they break,
she pulls away and he tells her that he will make
her forget Nicholas, he deserves her more because
he loves and desires her, and kisses her again,
but this time she doesn't respond. He pulls away
and asks what is wrong, and she replies that she
has to go. He says where? She says home. She turns
and runs to catch a taxi, and waves goodbye -
-Goodnight Doctor. Beatriz, wait, and he is
standing next to her and shutting the door to
prevent her from getting in, and he leans into her
space. Don't get in, stay with me, we can go
somewhere, somewhere where we can be alone, where
I can show you how much I love and desire you.
Where we can spend the night, the whole night
together. She says that she has to go. He says,
didn't you hear what I said? She responds, yes,
Doctor, I heard you, and looking him directly in
the eye, adds, but I don't want to be with you, I
don't desire you. He releases her and she gets in
the taxi and leaves.
Patty and Nicholas are receiving various plates of
food, and as each one comes, Nicholas asks what it
is, and the waiter says, it is what they ordered.
The first plate (either oysters or scallops on the
½ shell, I forget which), floors him, and
Patricia holds one of the ½ shells up for him to
take. She is reaching for a fork, when he slups it
directly out of the shell. This is the beginning
of the end. Then the rest of the meal comes, I
forget what it was, but Nicholas doesn't recognize
this either, and asks what it is. Then, when he
realizes that this is the main course, and is
dismayed because, on par with most expensive
restaurants, there is not much food on the plate,
and he is hungry. He then proceeds to order lots
of more filling dishes, including fried potatoes(I
think). Patty is trying not to laugh at him, while
feeling horrified at the same time. And he keeps
referring to the waiter as joven, even though the
waiter is probably older than he is. He also snaps
his fingers and waves his hand around a lot in an
affected, in charge manner.
Nicholas asks Patty if she lives with her mother,
her father, a friend, or (gulp of discomfort) her
boyfriend. She responds that she lives alone. She
turns the question on him, and he responds that he
too lives alone, but we see his squirm of
discomfort, and we are reminded that he lives with
his mother.
Patty then asks if Niki and Betty are going to get
married, and he responds no, gosh no. She says
that they seem very attached, and he responds no,
not at all, it is a very independent relationship.
She says that they must be very much in love,
though, because he is so attentive and calls her
all the time, gives her detalles, and lends her
his car. He responds that a man doesn't have to be
in love to do that, and she says no? (You can see
the calculator working in her brain).
She tries to finagle the car, but Niki says he
couldn't possibly, because he promised it to
Betty. Patty then tries to secure his help in
getting her car out of lockup, going on and on
about how the embargo was a matter of bad luck.
Niki alludes to being able to help her with that
without promising anything. "I'm sure I can
find a way to help." Patty - - Really, oh,
how nice, I am so glad I met you. A toast to us!
Betty comes in the door, trying to tiptoe in, and
is ambushed by her father in the blanket. He gives
her the usual questions about how she got home,
she says in taxi but accompanied. He asks if she
talked to Armando about the car, and she replies
yes, and that he is fine with everything. Armando
has returned to the bar/club where they were. When
the waiter asks if he wants the bill, he says no,
a whisky. The musicians are singing "te
amo"
The bill comes, and Nicholas pulls out a big wad
of bills, and begins to count them - - he doesn't
know how much he has, but it isn't going to be
enough. He then pulls out the Terra Moda
Checkbook, and starts writing, after a big show
about the risks of taking checks, and toying with
the waiter by pulling it back and forth out of his
reach. Patty asks why he doesn't use credit, and
he says, no credit is very bad - - the bills.
Patty makes faces (we know she was hoping for
access).
They come out of the restaurant and Niki tells the
attendant to open the door for her, and that his
tip is inside with the check he wrote to the
restaurant.
Betty is in her room, writing in her diary. She
can't believe she let Nicholas talk her into
staying, she thought to get revenge, but it was a
disaster, a disaster. Armando is sitting in the
bar, drinking alone, listening to another song,
the band is singing "I miss you, I want that
you had stayed with me." Betty is talking in
the voiceover about how painful it is to know that
he finds her repulsive, and he is touching his
mouth, as if it were marked. Betty says he must be
hurting for fear of his company the way she is
hurting from his deception. He takes another sip,
then jabs his fingers at his hair in frustration.
She talks about how by now, he must be erasing all
feeling of her, all memory of her with Marcela,
and how she must avoid the temptation of being
with him. Marcela calls, and asks what he is
doing, and he replies that he is having a drink
with a friend (male) and he will go back to his
apartment after they are done. A friend says good
night, and there are beautiful women everywhere,
but he continues to drink alone. It was only her
anger with him, at his reference to Nicholas being
less, having less worth than he, that allowed her
to pull back, and from now on she will have to
keep her distance, because his skin, his kisses
tempt her. She will have to keep her distance,
until she can distance herself forever.
When Nicholas and Patty arrive at her home, she
invites him up. You can tell he is tempted, but
hesitates, and she says, oh, no, of course, and
goes on and on about his relationship with Betty
and how she respects that. She then hops out of
the car (he looks like she hit him over the head)
and gives a little wave. He calls after her, wait,
wait, but she continues to walk away, and then
turns back for another wave. After she is out of
sight, he fawns all over the seat she sat in,
touching it, even smelling it (the bottom of the
seat no less!!!!)
It is morning and Don Hermes is complaining about
not all of the skin being off of the papaya, and
Dona Julia is rolling her eyes. Betty comes down,
and Hermes starts in again about the car, and how
even if Armando said it was okay, they shouldn't
get too caught up, and Nicholas is turning into an
idiot over the car and the clothes, and they
shouldn't be confused about who they really were.
Betty then opens the cupboard and shock! The
checkbook and $$ from TerraModa are missing! She
then thinks, ok, Niki probably moved them. Niki
then shows up, after making lots of noise, and
sits down at the table , giving Dona Julia
"his usual order" and making lots of
show. Hermes says that this is exactly what he was
talking about, that they are both getting very
caught up in all of this, and it needs to stop!
At Betty's House
Hermes tells Julia to stop being an "alcagüeta"
and tells her that if breakfast is in process. She
says yes and they both are out of the dining room.
Betty aks Nico if he has the cheks and the money
of the petty cash box. And he says he has been
carrying it around with him just in case. She
tells him that he should not do that. Nico tells
her that they should get a credit card and he
convinces her to request one from the Montreal
bank. They both go out to the car because Nico
will take Betty to work.
Armando is writing the "detalle" of the
day . Mario comes in and asks that if
"we" are ok with Betty (I noticed Mario
always does that we thing). Armando aswers that
better than before. Mario asks if he took her to
the place he told him to. He says no, that he took
her to "el meson de san diego". Mario
reacts shocked. And Armando tells that not only
was he with her but that EVERYONE was there and he
mentions a lot of names one of them Monica G.
Marcela is talking in the cell phone with MONICA
G. And Marcela is repeating everything she says
because we cannot hear Monica. And she says that
Armando was with another woman. Apparently she
describes Betty and she said she was really
"cariñosa" (sorry bad english) with
Armando. Marce says good bye and hangs up.
Armando explans with a lot of details what
happened at "el Meson" and that Betty
wanted him to kiss him A LOT. Mario asks him if he
did and he says no and Mario reacts happy that
Armando still had some sense. They also talk about
how he tried to raise her salary and that they had
to only use a certain amount of money per month.
He also told them that el Muelon (that is how he
called Nico) and Betty had already had everythng
planned.
Patty and Marce talk in that moment and el cuartel
comes in and Patty knows that so she starts to
talk loudly and says that she went out to the Le
Noir and that they did not order champagne like
people who want to get noticed or they were not
all crazy because they had earned a few bucks to
go there and she tells her what they ate. Marce
tells her that how could she have done something
like that in front of them and to go with her to
her office.
Berta starts saying that she would have done the
same if someone had done what they did of showing
off with Betty's boyfriend and going to lunch to
the Le Noir. But el cuartel says that now how are
they going to put up with Patty now. They decide
to make a meeting of the cuartel to find out if
Patty is telling the truth (about going to Le Noir
the night before).
Mario is saying that Betty is trying to put
Armando to the test for what he is doing to her.
Armando corrects him and says "what we are
doing". Armando tells him about the call to
Nicolas and Betty telling him to kiss him after
and Mario tells him that if he kissed her and he
said yes and that he felt she loved him but that
she did not want to sleep with him that she told
him that she did not want him. Mario went crazy he
said that how could she do that, he would have
strangled, killed, kicked her out, then he said
no, no, we need her. And Mario tells him that if
he has the Detalle of the day. Armando shows him
the card he's written. Mario reads the card and he
makes like 4 ahhs and then said why didn't you go
to the writers meeting of something (not sure). HE
is going out when he says maybe Nicolas did you a
favor ... maybe Nicolas is better endowed than
you. Armando almost hit him.
Betty just got to Ecomoda and el cuartel tells her
that they have a meeting at their meeeting place.
Patty talks about how they went in the Mercedes
and that Betty probably walked. Marce said no,
that Armando took care of her by taking her to el
Meson de San Diego. Patty is speechless. Marce
tells Patty how Monica told her that Betty was
really cariñosa to Armando. Freddy comes in gives
them the wedding invitations. Patty is telling
Marce what an embarrasing night she had at the Le
Noir . She told her about the food, the checks and
the rubber stamps (everything stupid Nicolas did).
Betty comes in to Armando's office and she says
sorry she did not know he will be in Ecomoda that
early. He says its ok and that if she slept well
she said yes and comes in to her office. She reads
Armando's letter and Armando come in he tells her
keep on reading and then when she is done he
expects an answer. She says it's beatiful like
always, thank you. He says that he is not here for
her to thank her but to explain why she left
yesterday and that if they are back again like
before. The phone rings and Armando would not
answer until Betty told him. Betty says yes like
before and she answers. It's Roberto (Armando's
father). Armando talks to him and when they start
talking about the wedding Betty goes out of her
office.
These scenes went back and forth but I will just
put in one.
Marce tells Patty why did he take her to the Le
Noir if he has no class. That they knew that
anyone that coukd date Betty had to have something
wrong. She says that she knows but she was not
going to go out to an ugly place. Marce says that
not to lie that the only reason Patty went out to
the Le Noir is to get back at the cuartel. Daniel
calls and says that he is coming to Ecomoda and
Patty leaves.
El cuartel talks about how they can find out if
Patty really went to the Le Noir and they decide
to call the Le Noir and ask. Betty does not agree
but at the end she did not say anything. El
cuartel tells Berta to do it.
Patty calls Nico and tells him to call her in 2
minutes.
Armando is talking to his mom and he says that
Marcela and him are only having a civil wedding
ceremony (meaning not religious).
Armando tells Betty that now that they are ok that
she should work on the report. That she has to
cover up the real figures very well. She says yes
but that if he is really going to cancel his
wedding he says yes after the meeting. She agrees
to cover up the real figures and then Armando is
going to walk out and returns and tells her that
he loves her and she says it back. Neither looks
as if one another's actions convinces them. Betty
lights up the candle. |