The couple Santana and Mason

The couple Santana Andrade and Mason Capwell

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Amid the Capwell girls, all blond, the regular presence of Santana Andrade - this dark-haired whirlwind - stands out and surprises within the walls of the Capwell Villa. Younger than the eldest Capwell son, young Santana possesses the fire, the freedom, the exuberance that he lacks. Always restrained, always waiting, wavering between the desire to please and the will to displease, young Mason could easily let himself be charmed by Santana's Mexican fire. She is everything he is not. And certainly a large part of what he wishes he could be. Because Santana is free. Totally free. Free to say what she thinks. Free to make her choices without wondering whether they will please or displease. Free to shape her life without aligning it with her siblings' or her father's choices... Free to be who she truly is : close to her parents, close to her brothers and sisters, and yet fiercely independent.

As the stirrings of adolescence trouble Mason, he learns the art of seduction with the young woman. If Santana is troubled, she shows nothing of it, because her fiery eyes burn only for the other Capwell son : Channing Junior. Between eagerness and indifference, Santana lets herself be wooed by Channing Junior... Stung because he was the first to lay eyes on the young Mexican woman, Mason swears inwardly that one day he will reclaim Santana and draw her away from his younger brother...

Once again, a possibility...

The year 1984 could be a year of renewal for them both : Santana returns to the Capwell Villa determined to find the son she abandoned, and Mason feels strong enough to face his father and to win back, tame, the fiery Mexican woman. A thousand and one reasons drive him. Among all the possible paths, the one that occupies his tortured mind is to reclaim this woman, the woman his brother stole from him. For once, he hopes to take his revenge, to show that he is just as strong, just as handsome, just as charming... In short, that he is worthy of being a Capwell.

Ready to do anything to win his beloved's heart, Mason uses every trick. He plays the threatening lawyer when Santana is caught with a revolver in her hand as Joe Perkins gets off at the bus station. Then he plays the friendly lawyer who, through staged exchanges, manages to defuse every threat. Santana is not fooled; she knows Mason and partly grew up with him. She knows it is wiser to keep Mason Capwell close than to push him away openly. Yet the day she catches him in her apartment spying on her as she is about to take a bath, Santana realizes she must stay on guard: Mason is acting as if he has a claim on her.

She decides to take the initiative and play with him... A woman of character, Santana invites Mason one day to share a meal at her place, a meal flavored with Mexico. Aware of the fire she has lit in Mason's mind, Santana quite literally makes him burn with a meal far too spicy. Neither water nor bread can soothe the blaze of spices. Now both know there is a boundary not to be crossed. And yet, at times, each enjoys this game of cat and mouse, in which they try to conquer the other's territory.

Once again, a rival...

The tension intensifies further when Cruz Castillo, the firefighter who saved the Capwell platform from a terrible blaze, arrives at the Capwell Villa. A longtime friend of Santana, Cruz does not hesitate to flirt openly with her. Although they share the same culture and lifestyle, much to Mason's relief, Santana always keeps her distance from Cruz. Still, Mason feels he is competing with another man for the young woman's heart. He realizes it easily because, at many times, she refuses his invitations, dresses up, and goes out to meet another man. A new rival. Another man to face...

The identity of this new suitor is revealed in a startling twist at C.C. Capwell's birthday party. No sooner has she arrived at the Villa than the master of the house welcomes her and kisses her before family members and guests. Once again, Mason loses her. Once again, a member of his family - a Capwell - steals away the woman who awakened his first stirrings of love. After Channing Junior, his half-brother, it is now his own father's turn... The wound is cruel. The pain is terrible. Mason feels his hatred rise to the surface.

Very quickly, Mason smiles again, because his father and Santana separate shortly after making their relationship official. Mason does not care about the reasons for their breakup : was it Eden's return, the memory of Channing Junior, her feelings for Mason ? The reasons are many, but at this stage Mason ignores the true reason, a reason with a name : Brandon DeMott.

A shared loneliness begins to draw them together. Santana is deeply sad : C.C. does everything to keep her away from her son, though he is in the same city. Mason is sad too, more isolated than ever among his siblings, once again abandoned by a father who swears only by Eden, neglected by a mother whose return he painfully awaits. Around them, loneliness coils around their bodies and clings to their dreams to hold them. Thus entwined in a life they did not choose, they are almost prisoners, prisoners of their past, prisoners of others. Only when they are alone together do they manage to feel free. Over time, they become friends again. Mason agrees to investigate Gina DeMott, hoping that after her breakup with C.C., Santana might come to see him as more than a friend...

More than a friend... More than that... A kiss comes spontaneously... spontaneously, when Mason tells her that Gina DeMott is in Nice. The happiness of possibly finding her son overwhelms Santana and, carried by joy, she kisses Mason. The taste of the young Mexican woman's lips is a treasure that leaves Mason speechless.

Under the skies of France, in Nice to be precise, Mason and Santana meet again and learn each other anew. Both agree on one reality : each must distance themselves from C.C. Capwell, the man who has hurt them so deeply. Eager to win Santana, Mason does not come empty-handed ; he gives her a necklace. Enchanted under the lights of the French Riviera, Santana agrees to go out with Mason.

Their relationship quickly falters upon their return to Santa Barbara, as Santana has other plans in mind... Even when Mason saves her during the earthquake, she does not let herself be swept away by passion. In truth, the Mexican woman's heart never truly beat with love for the eldest Capwell son. Yet he persists : after saving her, while initially worrying about the reasons for her dispute with C.C., he soon proposes marriage. Mason feels a sense of urgency deep within, a fear of losing her again. Though surprised, Santana listens as Mason continues; he knows she would be a good mother after seeing her with Brandon. Flattered, Santana replies with words that still allow Mason hope. As he leaves, he whispers that she is worth waiting for.

Waiting is something new for Mason. Yet he soon returns to question Santana. Honest, she confides that her feelings are not very clear. She genuinely appreciates Mason; parts of him truly touch her - his struggle against his father, his thirst for independence. A true complicity binds them and, in moments of intimacy, Mason opens up, revealing pieces of his life he deliberately hides from others. He shares what is surely his greatest sorrow : he often hates his father for openly favoring Sophia's children. One evening, as both are going through difficult times, Santana asks Mason to stay and spend the night beside her. Together, they might chase away their demons : Mason must face Peter Flint's accusations, and Santana must endure Gina's presence beside her son. They spend a chaste night, confessions unfolding in the darkness of Santana's bedroom. Without realizing it, they weave a sincere bond.

Yet despite this genuine affection, Santana keeps an entire part of her life secret. How can she speak of her love for Channing Junior to a brother who hates him so much ? How can she confess Brandon's existence ? She does not know how. All the more so since C.C., sensing Santana has become a threat to Brandon's balance, works to keep her at a distance. He accuses her of playing with Mason, of giving him the illusion of a relationship merely to stay close to Brandon. Santana swears it is not so, that she has real and sincere feelings for Mason - feelings that are not love... But does Santana truly know this ?

Once again, Channing Junior...

Forced by C.C., questioned by Mason, Santana, if she wants her relationship with Mason to survive and to keep her chances of seeing Brandon, must tell Mason the truth. Not the whole truth... Only part of it... Brandon is her son, a son whose father's identity she carefully conceals. A secret Mason will break. Digging into the past, probing everyone's memories, Mason finally understands why Brandon is so important to his father. Hurt, bruised, disavowed by a father who prefers a dead son, Mason sees no choice but to rush events and take revenge, beyond death, on the brother he so deeply envies. Years ago, Channing Junior took Santana from him. Today or tomorrow, he will take her back, and he will do everything, absolutely everything, to steal from his father the grandson he idolizes...

As if possessed, Mason unleashes all his rage and frustration. The couple he wants with Santana must take root now, immediately. The urgency is real to him. No matter Channing Junior's shadow. No matter C.C.'s pressure. Now. Deep inside Mason, a tidal wave surges, sweeping everything away like a dam bursting. Driven by this grim determination, Mason tells Santana that since their return from Nice, he can no longer wait. He takes her in his arms and leads her to his bed. And to finally vanquish his brother's memory, to banish it to darkness, he tells Santana that he is a far better lover than him... One word too many... The one that makes Santana falter.

Those words plunge Santana into reality. The truth - her truth - Mason knows it. Since he knows it, there can be no Santana-Mason couple... Santana understands : the same truth that destroyed her relationship with C.C. now ends her relationship with Mason. Before it can truly exist, the Santana-Mason couple faces a terrible crisis. For Mason, he must defeat the memory of Channing Junior, the brother, the rival, who has always darkened his life. A Machiavellian plan forms in Mason's mind. Driven by violent jealousy, he goes to Santana's and forces her to describe her feelings. She does not know what to say; she cannot describe what she herself does not know.

Mason shouts, threatens, rips the phone from the wall when it rings. He wants, demands, the truth. Getting no answer, he plays his final card : he threatens her. If Santana does not agree to marry him that very day, he will find Gina DeMott and Brandon and tell them the truth, the whole truth.

Santana cries and screams. Because Mason has understood everything. Brandon is his nephew, the son of Channing Junior, the fruit of Santana's affair with that treacherous brother. Rage distorts Mason's features. He wants revenge. He wants to defeat Channing Junior. He is ready for anything. Santana sees hatred replace love in Mason; this hatred devours everything. All the Mexican fire within her ignites to protect her son. C.C.'s arrival puts an end to their fight. Armed with a knife, Santana drives Mason from her home. But she knows this will not remove the threat. She does not want to see him again.

With no hope left for a future with Mason, Santana must defend Brandon. She goes to La Mesa to tell the little boy the secret of his birth, convinced the truth would be less cruel coming from her than from Mason. As Gina steps away, Santana faces the obvious : she cannot speak; she cannot harm her son in any way. She is utterly incapable of it. A mother above all, Santana chooses to abandon all hope of reconciliation with Mason. The truth would wound the little boy too deeply. She chooses to let Mason tell him his origins. She prefers to sacrifice herself and bear all the world's pain alone. In tears, Santana leaves the restaurant, then leaves the city.

Realizing too late his mistake and clumsiness, Mason goes to Santana's to apologize. No one is there; Santana is gone. He finds only a letter addressed to him. He waits until he is alone to read it. In her letter, Santana asks Mason not to destroy Brandon's life. She also asks him to make peace with his father, because she knows that deep down he loves him. Devastated by this wreckage, Mason lets a few tears fall. He knows that this time he has lost her forever. Unlike before, this separation is not someone else's fault. He alone is responsible... Alone...

A subtle blend of past, present, and future, the relationship between Santana and Mason is as rich as it is complex. The couple lasted only a few weeks, a few days, and yet a genuine intimacy took hold between them. In their confrontations, both Mason and Santana accept the shadows within themselves. They are often honest, far more than they would like. Built on shaky ground, their love cannot flourish; Channing Junior's shadow takes up far too much space. Yet beyond that, they managed to build a stronger, more stable friendship. In the name of this friendship, in 1986, Mason will propose marriage to Santana a second time so that she can obtain custody of Brandon. And in the name of that same friendship, and against all expectations (Brandon being the son of the hated brother), Mason will spend his entire life loving, protecting Brandon, and keeping him far from the Capwell influence...

Text written for this site by Lilian