Caray, Caray!

Repeats: Carlota insists to Rufi that it’s better for Paloma to think her father is some jerk who wants nothing to do with her and her mother was a qualquiera; besides, that’s what Mac wanted. Rufi gives up and leaves. Carlota thinks it’s high time Rufi took her leave of this world.

New: Diana bulldozes through to Emiliano’s office despite Angélica’s protests that he is not in. Orlando comes in to see what all the fuss is, and Diana dramatically whips off her huge gaudy sunglasses, revealing her bludgeoned face. He is shocked.

Emiliano is still in Rafael’s office getting reassured that Daddy loves him. He’s still not sure what’s going on with his mother, though. He has figured out that Diana must have been hiding from Orlando and that’s why she wouldn’t go to the company celebration and why she didn’t want him working with Orlando in the first place. He also remembers the story Orlando told him before finding out who his mother is, about the mother of his child who ran away after framing him for a theft and putting him in jail. So Emo wonders what other lies she has told, and whether Orly really pounded her. Rafa seems willing to say that Orlando is violent and dangerous, but Emo tells him that now Orly refuses to say anything bad to him about Diana. Rafa approves of that gracious policy. Emo asks him what he thinks Diana is really up to, and Rafa says he can’t put his hands in the fire for her anymore.

Orlando angrily accuses Diana of setting up a trap and lying. She accuses him of having a wild imagination and lying. He says the truth will come out eventually and she will pay, and it’s a good thing she chose a good father to raise her son because Rafa is surely the only reason he turned out to be decent. Ange watches their fight and looks very upset.

Camila wails and sobs, wondering why Rafa has left her and gone back to Diana.

Samuel receives the message (asking him to call) from Camila at his swish hotel. He takes a moment to gloat and thought-bubble that first he will get Romina firmly on his side, then he will bring Camila to the point of absolute desperation, and then, bwahahahaha, down she falls. He gets the hotel clerk to send flowers and chocolates to Romina and smugly smugs.

Emo wants to find out what his mother is all about; he is sooo confused. Diana has always been so strict and upright and unforgiving of others’ weaknesses, and now it seems that was all an act. Rafa doesn’t want to say anything, so he tells Emo he needs to talk to Di to clear things up. He also reassures Emo that whatever else Diana may be, she really loves her son and he is the center of her universe. Mr. Centro Universo believes that, of course, because how could anyone not love him? Still, he needs to cram in an awkward title reference and state that people do terrible things in the name of love. Has anyone kept track of the number of times the characters have said “En nombre del amor?” It’s starting to sound very silly. So anyhoodle, Emo doesn’t want to see Diana. Rafa offers his apartment and says Emo will have it to himself since Rafa is staying with Diana while she recovers from her scare.

Diana tells Orlando she’s never felt for Rafa what she did for him. “So what? Now I can’t stand you,” says Orly. Diana asks him to please never say anything bad about her to their son. Orly can’t believe her nerve in asking that, after she accused him of beating her up.

Carlota storms into Germán’s office and yells at him that a gentleman stands when a lady enters. He obligingly stands up. He does not ask where the lady is, or, for that matter, the gentleman. She wants her papers that are coming from the D.F. He says they haven’t arrived. She wants Licenciado Rosas to fix things; Germy says he’s on vacation. “And who do you think is paying for that?” Carloca asks. She tells him to make it happen. The purple cow leaves and Germy is muy intrigued.

The flowers and chocolates are delivered to Romina. She squeals and says they must be from Emiliano. If that were true, the chocolates would probably be poisoned. Romina has a phenomenal capacity for self-delusion. Paloma watches from her window and wonders who’s sending Romina flowers. Emiliano calls Paloma and they agree to meet at Rafa’s apartment, providing Paloma can manage to sneak out of the house. Emo just wants to leave and go far away and take Paloma with him. She agrees that sounds delightful. (A note from me, though: if you end up in the hospital in the next town over as you flee, do not let anyone inform Carlota. That was Iñaki’s fatal mistake. Just run like hell.)

Diana breaks down sobbing when Rafa tells her that Emo doesn’t want to see her. Rafael rolls his eyes heavenward.

Paloma tells Rufi she wants to sneak out because Cruel surely won’t give permission. Rufi says she needs to be very careful so Cruel won’t find out she spent the night with Emiliano. Unfortunately, Auntie Maim has appeared and heard that last part. “You did WHAT?! You slut!” She slaps Paloma really hard. Much yelling, and Crueloca flails so much she looks like a cartoon Tasmanian devil. Paloma insists on explaining, at high pitch and lightning speed: she was just talking with Emo, and they fell asleep, and next thing it was morning and Padre Juan woke them up. “Cristóbal is involved in this cover-up (solapar = to overlap, conceal)?!” Cruel bellows, looking ever more rabid. “Who is Cristóbal?” Paloma asks. “A priest who is going to pay!”

Crueloca locks Paloma into her room and Paloma throws a fit. You’ve still got a balcony door, sweetcakes.

Out in the hall, Cruel yells at Rufi for letting Paloma out of prison and conspiring with Padre JC to cover up her lies. Cruel will not permit this! Paloma begs Rufi to let her out, but she can’t because Carloca has taken the keys. EVERYONE PAY ATTENTION NOW; THIS IS GROUNDBREAKING: Paloma does NOT fling herself down on her bed for a cry. She heads out onto the balcony!

Rafa tells Diana that Emiliano just needs time to assimilate all this news. Diana can’t understand why he doesn’t need his mommy. Where has he gone? Rafa says Emo is staying in his apartment, but to leave him alone.

Paloma goes over the balcony rail and makes it down the wall to the sidewalk. She takes off running.

Camila sees the flowers and asks Romina who sent them. Romina says they’re from her father, and accuses Camila of jealousy. That is just ridiculous. Cami says she tried to see Sam, but he wasn’t in, and she wants nothing to do with him and this is just another game he’s playing. Romina tearfully says it’s not a game. She is going to marry Emiliano and make him fall in love with her, and Cami should do the same with Samuel.

Padre JC gives Padre Benito the new keys; the locks have finally been changed. PB asks him if he and Mac wanted to have a child. “Well…we were too old for that,” says PJC, confused. “No, the first time you were together, a long time ago,” clarifies PB. PJC says they would have loved that, but their lives went in another direction. “But, ahem, were you two…eh…intimate enough that it could have happened?” PB pries. “Well…yes. Why the nosy personal questions?” “Oh, no reason. Never mind.”

PJC starts to leave, but the crazy purple thundercloud storms in (should have used those new locks!) and asks him what he’s doing, covering up her niece’s sluttiness. Both priests are taken aback.

Paloma runs through the town, upstairs and downstairs in her ugly flowered gown. She pauses to call Emiliano and update him.

PJC tells Carlota to stop overreacting. She thinks he’s immoral and a poor specimen of a priest. He says nothing sinful happened between Paloma and Emiliano. She wonders how he can be sure. PJC says he would put his hands in the fire for the two of them. (Second mention of that this episode! I was mostly kidding last week when I said Paloma is so dimwitted she would probably keep putting her hand on the stove if she cooked, but now I see that this is apparently a popular pastime in Real del Monte.)

Carloca demands that Padre Benito make Cris stay away from Paloma. Cris tries to explain how things really happened, and apologizes. Carloca says that doesn’t make it okay and he had better stay away from her niece. Oh, he’ll have the hots for her now, for sure. They’re both yelling until PB says, “Basta! Ya!” and makes Cris leave so he can talk with Carlota privately. Carloca smirks and Cris asks when she turned into this.

Paloma shows up at the apartment. She and Emo commiserate over their mutual parental confusion. Emo doesn’t know what to do—now he has no home, no job, and no friends. Paloma tells him not to think about that now. She distracts him with kisses.

Carlota whines brattily while Padre Benito supplies her with tea which unfortunately probably doesn’t have belladonna in it and tries to calm her. She thinks it’s unacceptable that PJC seems to have a weakness for Paloma. PB thinks that’s all the more reason to tell them the truth. “Never!” she says, and threatens him as she leaves.

Cris is out in the garden when Carloca passes through. He tells her he only lied to protect Paloma from Cruel’s crazy vicious wrath. He says she is playing with fire. She says she likes playing with fire because she knows she won’t burn. Ha! She is a demon! She just admitted it! He tells her there are much nicer ways to live but she isn’t interested. She says his punishment will be the guilt he feels about every tear Paloma will spill over this, or some such. Oh yes, crazy lady, he will just fall into your bed now. What exactly is her end game now? Does she even have one anymore, or is she just straight-up nuts?

Diana calls Romina for help. She wants Ro to go to the apartment and convince Emo to go visit Di.

Paloma worries that Carlota has gone to rage at Padre Juan but Emo says he can defend himself. Emo does feel guilty about causing this whole fight, though. Paloma says it’s not his fault, and she’d do it again regardless of how angry Carlota gets. Emiliano says he’ll make it all up to her when they’re married and everything’s okay. She wonders if they’ll actually ever marry and he says they definitely for sure will and they will be very happy.

Romina tells Camila that Emiliano called and wants her to come visit. Then she rubs in that Rafael has gone back to Diana. Romi says probably Emo wants her to see the apartment because that’s where they will live after they are married, but not to worry, she’ll let Camila take care of the baby all the time. Not that Cami needs to live alone, though! If Rafa can go back to Diana, surely Camila can get back together with Samuel, says Romina. Camila looks more and more fed up in every scene.

Germán is waiting on the step when Romi leaves the house. She spins the same story for him about going to see the apartment. Dream on, he says, we both know you’re going to end up married to me. He wants to go get the test results. She says to stay out of her life. Germs shakes a baby rattle at her and she smashes it on the ground.

Padres Benito tells Cris that in this case Carlota was right; he takes too much interest in Paloma. Cris says he was just trying to help her avoid Carlota’s completely disproportionate punishments, and he won’t abandon her because he promised Mac he would take care of her. Benito says he’s going to talk to Obispo Calixto about Cris, and to stay out of trouble.

Paloma tries to cheer up Emiliano, but he says now he doesn’t believe anything his mother says, and he feels bad about that.

Orlando is upset because he has no way of proving that he wasn’t the one who hurt Diana. Ange says she believes that Di was just trying to sling mud on him. He seems touched by her faith and asks her to stay there while he calls Emiliano.

Emiliano is politish and tells Orlando he will finish the work he has pending and then leave the business. Orly asks him to stay, even if he can’t accept him as a father. Emo cries. Ange gives Orly an encouraging nod.

Paloma strips off her sweater and walks slowly over to Emo as they blather about nothing important. She kisses him and we see lots of replays of their entire courtship. Looks like they could go on awhile, but the doorbell rings.

Avances: Looks like we’ll finally get the paternity test results. The announcer wants us to believe we’re in high suspense, but I think we all know how this is going to go. I’d love to be wrong.

Labels: amor