Havana Jazz Club Read Online Free

to make sure she was doing the right thing and that her fiancé was good enough for her. She asked Billie lots of questions about Orlando, searching for some evidence that would either confirm her doubts or dispel them irrefutably and force her to admit that she was wrong, that she was nothing more than an obstinate, overprotective mother who would be suspicious of any man who courted her daughter. But all her efforts were in vain: In Billie’s eyes, Orlando was perfect. The boy even seemed to have settled down and put his wild ways behind him so that he could dedicate himself body and soul to his fiancée.
    Billie impatiently counted down the days until she would be united with him forever.

CHAPTER 4
    She had just turned eighteen when she married Orlando.
    It was a simple wedding, since these weren’t the times for extravagances. Still, there was plenty of beer and rum, which the government made available in abundance for weddings. But to Billie, it seemed a sad affair. Her family didn’t seem as happy for her as she would have liked. Though they tried to act cheerful, she felt the tension in the air. Her fiancé’s family didn’t appear to get along with hers and kept their distance, and she even witnessed the beginning of an argument between father and son. Later, Orlando appeared to get in some kind of tiff with a guest that Billie didn’t know. She was a slightly older woman with a long mane of dyed blonde hair—a little tasteless, she thought—in a tight, low-cut white dress that wasn’t very appropriate for a wedding, since etiquette dictated that that color was reserved for the bride. Orlando pulled the woman aside, out of view of the guests, and when he returned to the party a little while later, he looked annoyed. The stranger didn’t reappear.
    Celia couldn’t help but feel anxious as she watched the scene unfold.
    “It seems like the groom had something with that—” one of the guests hissed maliciously in Celia’s ear.
    “Well it’s over now,” Celia said, cutting her off sharply and moving away.
    Billie had always imagined that this would be the happiest day of her life, that everyone would rejoice, and her whole family would share in her joy. But as it was, only her two brothers seemed truly happy. Even Orlando was tense, a far cry from the sweet, carefree man she knew. She thought maybe he was nervous; she certainly was. She even wondered whether her parents were right after all—maybe they should have waited a little longer. Did Orlando regret taking this step? She felt a surge of fear at such a terrible thought. No, that wasn’t possible. He was the one who had insisted they get married as soon as they could. She would simply have to show him that he hadn’t been wrong, that she was the wife he needed. Her mother’s advice would help make up for her lack of experience. She went over to Orlando and took his arm tenderly. He looked at her and smiled in that way that made her tremble. As he kissed her on the lips, all her fears vanished.
    Celia couldn’t free herself from the pressure gripping her chest, as if an omen wanted to make itself known. She looked at her still-bewildered husband and was overcome by a wave of tenderness. The poor man was trying to feign happiness so he didn’t upset his daughter, but to Celia, who knew him so well, it was obvious that he was making an enormous effort to control his emotions. He wasn’t ready to let go of the apple of his eye, the light of his life, to accept that she had become a woman overnight and now belonged to another man.
    Celia sidled up to her husband and pulled him out onto the dance floor. Nicolás, groaning and complaining, tried to escape, but other guests soon formed a circle around the couple and began cheering them on with laughter and applause. Nicolás had always been a great dancer. Like the rest of the family, he had rhythm in his blood. After dancing with his wife, he danced with his daughter. He was not allowed to sit down