Part One - Chapter Twelve: Meeting Eliana's Parents

                                    

                                          
Cristiano swallowed nervously as his girlfriend greeted her parents, he was a little nervous and he hoped that this would go well; in the past none of his girlfriend’s parents had ever liked him. 
                          
“Mãe… pai… this is Cristiano my boyfriend,” Eliana said turning to smile at Cristiano, she was sure that this would be okay and her parents wouldn’t judge him; they were just a little worried and that was all. 
                          
Cristiano smiled nervously, he stepped forward to greet her parents knowing that it wasn’t going to be that bad; he just hoped that they weren’t going to believe what they had heard about him. 
                          
William Santos pursed his lips as he shook hands with the footballer, he could remember the little boy that he had used to be and he had heard the stories that the press told about him; he didn’t trust Cristiano at all with his little girl. 
                          
Jennifer Silva smiled politely at Cristiano as they all moved to sit down, she had been surprised when she had found out that her daughter was dating Cristiano Ronaldo dos Santos Aveiro; she could remember him as a little boy. 
                          
“How did you two meet?” Jennifer asked curiously, she hadn’t really been able to get much out of Eliana about her new boyfriend and she hoped that the footballer wasn’t taking advantage of her daughter. 
                          
Eliana sat down next to Cristiano, she peeked across the table at her parents and knew that her father would be a problem; he always had the same expression when he met her new boyfriend. 
                          
“We bumped into one another,” Cristiano replied with a smile, he peeked at Eliana knowing that they had done so quite literally; he loved the way that they had met and he would change none of it for the world. 
                          
Eliana nodded her head, she smiled thinking about their first meeting and she wanted her parents to like Cristiano since she really did like him.
                          
William frowned, he didn’t like the sound of that not when he knew when the papers were telling him that Cristiano had practically stalked his daughter to get her to go on a date with him. 
                          
“It was at my photoshoot for Armani,” Eliana continued wanting to give her father no reason to hate Cristiano, he would dislike anyone who he deemed not right for his only child and the lies the media told were hard to ignore. 
                          
Cristiano shifted a little un-nerved that William was glaring at him, he had a feeling that he was going to make things a little hard for him but he didn’t blame him for being wary. 
                          
“That’s nice,” Jennifer mused not sure what to say, she peeked at William sure that Eliana wouldn’t be with Cristiano if she didn’t like him. 
                          
An awkward silence filled the air and Cristiano wondered if this could go worse than when Eliana had meet his family the week before; he wanted to prove that he was good enough for their daughter. 
                          
“I bet your career has had quite a boost from dating a lingerie model,” William mused making Eliana stare at her father and groan, he wasn’t fond of her job and that was why she was still studying to make him happy. 
                          
Cristiano stared at William, he wasn’t going to let the man scare him off not when he truly cared and maybe even loved Eliana; she was the best thing that had ever come into his life. 
                          
“Pai…” Eliana hissed staring at her father, she wished that he wouldn’t try and make her feel bad about what she did or who she was dating; she was happy and that was what should matter. 
                          
Jennifer sighed sensing a fight brewing, she wished that just for once that they didn’t have to fight over something so silly; she wanted Eliana happy even if it meant that she may have her heartbroken by the footballer that she was dating. 
                          
“What I’m sure a model at his side is just wonderful for him,” William replied not looking at his daughter, he knew that she loved her job but he had always wanted better for her and hoped when she graduated that she would end her career. 
                          
Cristiano frowned watching William, he had a feeling that the man didn’t just disapprove of him dating Eliana and he wasn’t sure what would make William happy. 
                          
“I’m not with your daughter for that,” Cristiano stated with a shake of his head, he could care less that his girlfriend was a model; he loved her for how different she was to the women that he had dated in the past. 
                          
William snorted shaking his head, he had looked into the sort of women that Cristiano had been interested in and he wasn’t impressed; they had all been models and actresses which made him worry. 
                          
“I know why you’re worried… my past is hard to ignore but I really do care for your daughter,” Cristiano said trying to convince William that he wasn’t using Eliana, they had been together for three months and he hoped that they would be together for a long time. 
                          
Eliana smiled taking Cristiano’s hand, she didn’t care about his past not when she knew that the papers would do anything for a story; it was something that they all had to get used to when they became famous. 
                          
“I bet you said that to all of them,” William scoffed, he didn’t know why Eliana would be dating someone like Cristiano but he doubted that she would be happy for long; he would end up cheating on her or dumping her when he got bored. 
                          
Eliana deserved so much better and William had never wanted any of this for her, he wanted her to have the life that he had always imagined for her but that didn’t seem to be happening while she continued to model. 
                          
“No… I’ve never liked anyone as much as I care for Eliana,” Cristiano argued back, he took a deep breath trying to calm himself and he hoped that William would warm to him. 
                          
Jennifer smiled, she wasn’t going to say anything right now but she would express her worries to Eliana later on; she wanted her daughter to be careful when it came to dating Cristiano.
                          

                          
“We’ll see,” William muttered letting it go, he would be keeping a close eye on his daughter’s new relationship; he had a feeling that it would be over in a few months and that would be the end of it. 
                          
Eliana sighed in relief and smiled at Cristiano, she had warned him that her father was overprotective; he wanted the best out of life for her and he wanted her to settle down and have children of her own soon. 
                          
William wasn’t going to let this go anytime soon and he would be waiting for the moment that Cristiano slipped up; he wasn’t going to let her settle for anything but the best. 
                          
Cristiano laced his fingers with hers, he wanted nothing more than to prove everyone that he was going to make this work; he was falling in love with Eliana and he wasn’t going to mess this up anytime soon. 
                          
“Does anyone fancy dessert?” Jennifer asked brushing some hair from her face, she had no idea what would happen if this relationship went the distance; no man had ever proven William wrong and he was often the reason why Eliana found herself single. 
                          
William looked to his wife, he wished that she would side with him for once especially on this; Eliana could do so much better and he was sure of that, she would do so much better with someone who wasn’t famous. 
                          
Cristiano chewed his bottom lip, he didn’t want to cause any trouble and it was clear that both sets of families would need time to adjust to the idea that they were dating. 
                          
Eliana was going to be in his life and Dolores would have to get used to it, while Cristiano was going to be in her life and her parents would have to get used to that idea as well. 
                          
It could have been so much worse and the couple would have to wait and see how things went.