Accepting Destiny (17 page)

I nod and squeeze him tighter. He pulls back and kisses me, while brushing his thumb along my chin. “I’ll check in with you when I get there and I’ll see you in a few days,” He says, as he presses his lips to the top of my wet head, and then poof. He’s gone.

I look out the window and see him get in the car, but I don’t recognize the driver. Course, I have yet to see any of the security guys since we’ve been here. A few seconds later the vehicle drives away, leaving a cloud of dust in its wake.

“Are you all right, Ms. Sanders?” I hear the soft voice coming from the kitchen.

I sniff loudly, and cringe at how gross that sounded. “Yes, I’m fine. Thank y
ou. But I am going to bed,” I say as I hang my head and head towards the stairs. “I have dinner ready, Ms. Sanders. Come. Eat.”

I shake my head and fight back the tears. “No, thank you.
I’ve suddenly lost my appetite,” I say, as I head towards the stairs.

“You’re a special one, you know?” She says to my back.

“What?” I turn back to look at her.

“You’re a special one. I’ve never seen Jacko like this before, you have some kind of hold
on him,” She says, with a smile. “He’s a good man, Ms. Sanders. He wouldn’t leave you...us, here if it wasn’t absolutely necessary.”

I’m taken aback by her comments and I’m at a loss for words. So I just nod my head and fight back the tears, excusing myself to the bedroom. As I walk in
, my eyes meet the bed.....shit, I shake my head. “Don’t go there, Al.”

I
wash my face and brush my teeth. Then, throw on one of Jackson’s new tee shirts and climb in to bed. It smells like him and I hug my arms close to me as I snuggle in to his pillow and make a futile attempt to sleep.

After tossing and turning all night, I finally see the sun start peeking through the curtains. Looking at the clock and seeing is ten thirty already, I figure I probably had five hours of sleep
, I feel like I’ve been hit by a Mack truck. I rub my eyes and stretch my body across the bed, suddenly, remembering that I am alone. Jackson left yesterday and now I’m all fucking alone. Well, there are a bunch of security guys roaming around and Hilda....but not exactly who I want to be with in a place like this.

I take a quick shower, make the
bed and put on my bathing suit. I figured I’ll go down to the beach for a bit, to try and add some color to my pasty white skin. After all, tan fat looks better than white fat. After grabbing a big towel, a book and the sunscreen, I head back downstairs to the kitchen where Hilda is making breakfast. I take a deep breath, “Is that bacon?”

“Good morning, Alexandra. Did you sleep well?” Hilda asks
, as I stroll in to the kitchen.

“As well as to be expected. Did Jackson call last night
, after I went to bed?”

“Yes, he arrived safe and sound
. He said he would try and call today once he has a handle on whatever is going on with the servers. Nodding back at her, I sit down at the table where a piping hot cup of coffee is waiting for me, and fresh cream. I add a little with some sugar and shakily stir it.

Trying not to burn my tongue, I gently sip at it. Well, I slurped it and made a lovely gurgling sound. Hilda must be
impressed with my table manners. She just smiles at me as she sets a plate of eggs, bacon and melon on the table in front of me.

“Thank you,
” I say, as she turns back towards the stove. “Are you going to join me?”

“Oh no ma’am, I ate earlier. You enjoy.”

I finish breakfast and a second cup of coffee and just watch Hilda work in the kitchen. Even though she isn’t at home, she seems so relaxed and comfortable.

“How long have you worked for Mr. Bentley?” I ask her, hoping I’m not overstepping my boundaries by making small talk.

“Oh dear, how long has it been?” She says, quietly. “Six years, actually. I took over when my sister, Lola, passed away.”

I suck in a breath. “Lola is your sister?”

“Yes, she passed away from breast cancer,” she said, as she looked away, the pain still very raw in her eyes.

“I’m sorry, Jackson has told me about her, but I had no idea you were sisters.”

She doesn’t say much else and now I feel guilty for bringing her up, because now she seems sad. I stand up and place my hand on her shoulder, a look of sympathy in my eyes, I’m sure. She looks up and just nods at me.

“I’m gonna go relax on the beach for a while, in c
ase you’re wondering where I am,” I say, as I turn back towards the deck. As I approach the door, there is a strange man sitting in one of the Adirondack chairs. I open the door and he jumps up to face me, only his face is about four feet above mine. I have to strain my neck back just to see his face.

“Hi, Ms. Sanders. I’m Jason Spencer, your guard for today. Is there something you wish to do?”

Nice, I can’t even go relax on the beach without someone “guarding” me. My brain starts to go in to plotting mode and I try to figure out a way to escape to the beach un-noticed, but I really don’t want to piss Jackson off.....even though he’s pissed me off. Hey, guess it’s better to be pissed off than pissed on, huh?

He’s still standing there, waiting for an answer and I shake my head out of my little escape fantasy. “I’m just going to go sit on the beach for a while.”

“Yes ma’am. I’ll go with you, but I promise I’ll stay back so you can have your privacy. Mr. Bentley left strict instructions that you aren’t to be left alone.”

“Yeah
, yeah, I got it. Whatever,” I shake my hand at him as I push open the screen door and begin my walk of shame to the sand.

I know I was a bit abrasive with
him, but I’m sick and tired of this shit. I want to go home and get on with things. This hiding out, is for the birds.

I
let out a sigh as my feet hit the soft, warm sand. There are only a few people here on this part of the beach, as we are in between the larger cluster of homes and the state park. I can see why Chase’s parents chose this part of the beach for their vacation home, as it’s pretty private. I fight the wind and try and get my towel flat and spread on the harder part of the sand and after a few minutes, I give up. I sit on what isn’t blowing around and stare out over the water. There’s another shrimp boat out there catching today’s dinner, thousands of seagulls flying around in circles, waiting for a snack.

I pick up the book,
read the summary on the back and realize I have no interest in this book, so I set it back down. Guess that’s what I get for just grabbing the first book I saw.

I pop open the bottle of sunscreen and coat my legs, arms and chest, cause that’s the only skin exposed, the new bikini tucked away in my suitcase with the tags still on it.

I lie back and close my eyes, soaking in the sounds around me. The soft lapping of small waves, the birds flying overhead and the occasional small child squealing. My mind goes on overdrive and I find it hard to concentrate. Why am I trying to concentrate when I’m flat on my back at the beach? Cause I’m a woman and that’s what we do.

A few minutes later, someone is calling my name and shaking my arm. “Ms. Sanders?”

Finally, I peel my eyelids open and the bright sun is too much to handle. I finally focus on Jason standing over me. “Ms. Sanders, I’m sorry to bother you, but you’re getting burned,” he says, as he makes a waving motion with his hands. I look down towards my toes and realize I am as red as a beet.

“Shit. What time is it?” I ask him, holding my hand over my eyes to shield the sun.

“It’s three o’clock ma’am.”

“You’re kidding right? I just got out here a few minutes ago.”

“No ma’am, you’ve been out here for three hours. You must have fallen asleep. Hilda has lunch ready, if you’re hungry.”

I shake the cob webs out of my head. How did I fall asleep out here? I’ve never fallen asleep in the sun. I look down at my legs and think about lobster. Ouch, I
’m gonna be hurting later on. I pray there is some aloe vera in the house.

Jason holds his hand out for me to grab
, to stand up, so I reach out and place my hand in his. He squeezes and yanks me right up to my feet, almost lifting me from the ground, his biceps flexing as he pulled. “Careful,” I tell him. “Wouldn’t want you to hurt yourself,” I say to him, smirking and knowing he could lift a four hundred pound sleeping woman with no problem. He doesn’t respond to my comment, which is probably a good thing.

He helps me gather my towel and book as I heave the bottle of sunscreen in to the ocean.
“Shit doesn’t work, apparently,” I say, as I turn towards the house, the bottoms of my feet burning on the heated sand. I am now damning myself for not wearing flip flops.

Once I am back in the house
, I sit down at the table to dig in to the ham and cheese sandwich that Hilda has set on the table. Next to it is a pile of Cheetos and I display a fist pump, because I love Cheetos! Jason just smiles at me and I duck my head down in pure embarrassment. I sure do pick the right times, to show my maturity.

“Has Jackson called?” I asked Hilda
, as she’s finishing up the dishes.

“No ma’am, he hasn’t, but I wouldn’t worry dear.
He gets so submerged in his work that he probably just hasn’t had the time. I’m sure you’ll hear from him soon,” she says, as she pats my shoulder and leaves the kitchen. I’m left sitting at the table completely alone and not liking it one little bit.

After lunch and a very painful shower, I flop on the bed
, butt ass naked and try not to move. My skin is tingling and burning, I know damn well I’m not going to be comfortable tonight. I’m just about to drop off to sleep, when someone knocks on the bedroom door. I jump off the bed and grab my robe that is hanging on the back of the bathroom door. It’s silky and cool, so it feels good against my heated skin.

I crack the door open and see Jason standing there, his hands in his pockets. “Ma’am, I have to go out for a bit
, but David will be downstairs if you need anything. Do you need me to pick up anything for you, while I’m out?”

“No thanks, I’m good,
” And I turn back to the bed, closing the door behind me. I need to figure out a way to get out of here without being seen, I think as I spy the rental car keys on the dresser. “If I take off without telling anyone, security will be on my ass in a second,” I say out loud, scratching my chin. “But I really don’t want to stay here by myself, so I have to figure out a reason to leave.”

As the sun starts setting, I decide to go for a walk on the beach. The cooler air might feel good on my sunburned skin. As I pull the door open to the deck, Jason appears from nowhere, causing me to jump out of my sunburned skin.
“Sorry, Ms. Sanders. I didn’t mean to scare you,” he whispers, as if he is trying to calm me like a damn baby. Now I’m really getting annoyed.

“Damn it! I can’t go anywhere without having you riding my ass
, can I?” I snap at him, seeing him flinch with my anger.

“Sorry ma’am, strict orders from Mr. Bentley.”

“Well, if Mr. Bentley would call me, I would tell him where he can shove those strict orders. I’ve had just about enough of this shit,” I say, as I storm down the walkway to the beach, feeling him a short distance behind me. I pick up the pace and almost enter in to a sprint just to lose him, but like I’ve said before - I only run when chased. Well, doesn’t this fit the description of being chased? As my feet hit the sand I slow down, because it’s hard enough for me to walk, let alone run in thick, soft sand.

I slow to a rapid walk or whatever you want to call it, because I look like a duck walking in mud. I keep going until my feet hit the luke warm water of
f the Gulf of Mexico and I stop, as the water reaches my ankles. Damn him for putting me through this. I wouldn’t be in this shit if it weren’t for him! Though, as I look around I realize, I could be in a much worse place.

I shake my head at the decision I have finally come to. If I haven’t heard from Jackson by tonight, I’m blowing this
Popsicle stand, to hell with security. They can just follow me all the way home, if that’s what they want to do. Hilda has her own car here, so she won’t be stuck. Though I’ll feel guilty leaving her here, with only security. But will they even stay or will they all follow me and drag me back kicking and screaming? Surely someone will stay behind.

I suddenly imagine a caravan of cars behind me, speeding up to circle my car and slow me down, so they can turn me back towards the beach. That is so not happening. I’ll get some sleep and then
, sneak out in the middle of the night and head home.

I grab the laptop that Jackson left behind
, and open it to maps, to find the easiest and quickest way out of here. A frown reaches my lips, when I see how secluded we really are and that there are only so many ways out of here. One, to be exact. Well, one off this island or whatever it is, but once I get off the island I can choose which way to go. I settle for the back roads to Tallahassee, so I can hit I75 and put the pedal to the metal. The other way appears to be back roads, all the way to Columbus, Georgia.

I grab a pad of paper
from the table and write down the directions I will take. Then I write down the ones I won’t take and leave that sitting on the table. Maybe that will throw them off course and I can get down the road, before they figure out they’ve been scammed.

I log in to my personal email from the laptop and see only messages from Heather. I reply with my plans and make sure she understands
, that if she spills the beans to anyone, especially Jackson, our friendship is over. She replies that she agrees and I close up, deciding I need to get as much sleep as possible, before my early departure.

The alarm on the bed side table
, goes off at two a.m. and I reach for it, ready to throw it across the room, but remember today is the day I go home. Suddenly wide awake, I lay there for a minute and listen for any movement in the house. All seems quiet, so I crawl out of bed and quickly pack my bag, not that I have much here anyway. I shove the laptop into the brown paper bag with my clothes and try and make my way to the door, without making any noise. As I pass the alarm panel on the wall in the hall I look and thankfully, the alarm is not set. Some security.

I suddenly feel like a teenager sneaking out on a Friday night and smile, inside. Outside
, I am ready to explode. I make it to the car and decide to try the door handle before clicking the key fob, because I know the lights will blink if I do. Unlocked. Wow, security didn’t even lock the damn car doors. What are these jokers? I’d make a better security guard than they do. No alarm in the house and the car is unlocked. I snicker, quietly.

I toss my bag in to the passenger seat and quietly try
to close the door, but I’m gonna have to pull it harder for it to latch. I decide to leave it cracked, just a bit and pull it as I start the car, because once the engine is cranked, I’m bolting.