Caray, Caray!

At the restaurant, Helena sees Pluto (she thinks he's JC) and wants to give him a piece of her mind. Panicked, JC tells Helena HE'LL take care of it. He goes to Pluto's table and spins a wild tale about Helena being a clingy crazy ex-employee he regrets having gotten involved with. She's pregnant, the baby is certainly not his, but she forced him at gunpoint to make a scene at their table. They should pay no attention to anything she says. Antonia expresses some sympathy for Helena's desperation. Only then does Pluto jump to his feet and scold JC for his careless behavior with women.

Eventually Helena gets tired of waiting for JC and comes over to the table to tell them off herself. This works out to be the perfect misunderstanding, mercifully cut short by a phone call from Helena's mom. (Antonia tells her brother she's lost her appetite. He insists that they have dessert. Yeesh, is he trying to kill her too? No, I think he's just an idiot.)

Helena is upset about Adriano's rudeness. JC says no woman should be treated that way; he wanted to bust those guys' faces. He also wants to talk about Playa Majagua, but she has to go home; Dad is waiting. She insists on taking a taxi. She is barely out the door when JC picks up another woman. He takes her back to his place and kicks her out when he's had enough of her.

Helena's father gives her a hard time about getting home late. They are mutually offended. He stomps off to bed. Helena's mom wants to know how it went. No, not the business dinner, but the man! Helena admits he was great.

At home, Antonia doesn't feel well. She calls 911 and flops over on the bed. Pluto looks delighted when she says she feels like she's dying.

At JC's apartment, his bimbo du jour is now wearing a big t-shirt and tells JC he was sensational. She wants to stay all night, but he says he's too busy and calls her a cab. It doesn't take long - apparently he's a regular. The taxi dispatcher knows what he wants as soon as they hear his voice. He dismisses her brusquely.

At the hospital, Pluto is clearly disappointed when the doctor reveals that Antonia is still alive. (Really. He asks twice.) Turns out she's come down with diabetes. Her glucose was way high. Of course, there are ways to make it more manageable, the doctor says, and he'd like to keep her there for some tests... but Pluto says no, we're going home. He hammers her little shoes onto her swollen feet and tells her he doesn't trust doctors. She's just got a touch of the diabetes, that's all. Very easy to control. Antonia thinks that could be serious, but Pluto has a gift for her - chocolates! Sugarless and calorie-free, he says. She says they taste just like the regular ones. They agree not to tell her brother - he'll worry. Anyway, Pluto says, it's no big deal. He'll take care of her. "Put your life in my hands."

Next day, Pluto tells Rebeca all about it. They laugh about Antonia's diabetes. If only she would die! On top of obesity, Rebeca says, Antonia's also got high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and snores like a bear! A hahahahaha!

Helena tells Lucia how hot JC is and how he defended her in front of the Grupo Imperio people. JC has come up with some plan that requires Helena to accompany him to an Acapulco resort and show him around. Helena volunteers Lucia in her place. Lucia pops out (from the door she's been hiding behind) to shut down that idea. Helena finally agrees. They'll leave at 7 the next morning. JC gives the door a good whack on the way out, smacking noisily eavesdropping Lucia in the forehead. (There's a window in the door, for heaven's sake. He could see her hiding there.)

Back at GI, JC and his pals go to the restroom to rehash and pee. I must say, this is an interesting twist on the rehash sessions that female characters often have in restrooms. They talk about beating Pluto with their plan. JC is sure this "business trip" will work out. She won't be able to resist him. He'll dress up in a skirt and heels before he suffers over a woman. Santi jokes about JC falling in love with a fea. "Like the one Pluto married," JC laughs. They all walk out. Pluto steps out of a stall. He's overheard everything, and he doesn't look happy.

It's already evening. Santi ad Ferni are working late. But the files they've been working on have been deleted. (You'd think that after similar fiascos in other TNs, they'd know enough to back up their files regularly.) Pluto gloats.

Helena tells Dad she's going out of town. He says no, she can't travel alone. Um, did she ask his permission? She assures him she won't be traveling alone. Is she referring to JC?

No, it turns out she means Lalito, her son. JC is quite surprised when he arrives to pick her up. He wasn't expecting a kid. He's not happy. Neither is Lalito. They make faces at one another. The kid scowls at JC. JC ruffles his hair. The child actor fights to stifle his smirk and angrily tells JC not to touch his head.

The IT guy brings Pluto the Playa Majagua project files he stole from Santi and Ferni's computers. There's not much too see. So much for stealing their work! (It turns out that Santi, at least, was working last night not on the PM project, but on setting up reservations for JC's trip.)

Lalito and JC fail to bond over lunch at a roadside café. The boy puts hot salsa in JC's taco and generally acts like a brat. He jumps up and down in the back of JC's car. He drops a sticky snack on the upholstery and wipes his saucy hands on JC's shirt.

Back at the travel agency, Helena's mom brings lunch to Lucia. Lucia tells her how great "Juan Perón" seems. "He's a true caballero," she jokes obliviously.

Finally JC & co. get to the hotel. Some of the employees recognize JC. JC asks one of them to rustle up a babysitter to watch the brat. The brat refuses to be handed off to a babysitter and is rude to JC, but somehow he ends up going off with the babysitter anyway.

Meanwhile, at the office, Pluto (wearing a very shiny suit), knowing that JC is out of town, puts Santi and Ferni in the hot seat with Adriano. They try to bluff their way out of it, but they obviously don't have their facts and figures on Playa Majagua. Adriano gives them a deadline and kicks them out.

Furthermore, Santi's and Ferni's paychecks are being held back "until further notice." Ferni is upset that he'll have to rely on his wife's pay.

JC hatches a plot with a yacht captain. When JC puts his hands over his face, that's the signal for the captain to cut the engines. He calls it "Operation Honeymoon."

On a shopping trip with Antonio, Pluto has a run-in with the owner of the car Rebeca crashed Pluto's car into. The other guy says it happened outside a cheap motel. He wants money. Pay up or he'll call the cops. Antonia is getting restless in the car. Upon seeing that the woman in the car is not the same woman he saw yesterday, the other guy manages to extract a few more pesos in blackmail money.

Lalito gives his babysitter the slip at the pool. A couple of hotel employees gossip about JC seducing the single mother and breaking her heart. Lalito overhears and runs off.

On the yacht, Juan is laying it on thick with Helena. He says he feels nostalgic. He drones on and on about natural beauty and el sol y el mar. (Hmmm... this feels familiar. I keep expecting him to mention the sabor de la vida.) Helena says she's heard that story before and let's just stick with business. She mocks his Argentinean accent.

The babysitter searches for Lalito and finally reports him missing.

Juan continues trying to flirt with Helena. He asks if she likes him. His pal from the hotel calls with the news: Lalito's lost. "¿¡QUE!?"

Next time:
You call these avances? They're useless! Here are my own predictions for Monday: One of the men acts like a jerk. Someone gets angry. Nobody dies just yet.

Labels: por-ella