Deception (3 page)

"Hello to
you too."

O.M.G that voice,
tingles ran through me. I am in so much trouble, my body was misbehaving in
ways it never had before. I'm not a complete dunce I know about physical
attraction and pheromones and all that scientific drivel. Well there was
nothing remotely clinical about what I was feeling. I wanted to get naked, with
him, right now. Bad Amber, you shouldn't even think that way what would your
friends say?

My eyes were
eating him whole, but wonders of wonders he seemed to be doing the same.

"I'm Amber
and you are?"

"Hello my
Amber, I'm Colin." The feel of his hand on mine sent static shocks up my
arms, I felt flushed and overheated and of course my traitorous cheeks were
blazing.

Seemingly
without thought he raised his hand to my cheek as if to capture the heat in the
palm of his hand. Now usually I wouldn't allow a complete stranger such
familiarity but things seemed to be out of my control. When he rubbed his thumb
over my cheekbone I purred like a cat in heat. I kid you not.

Alright so I'm
an eighteen almost nineteen year old virgin, but I should have just a tad more
tack no? I mean I just met the man and already I was planning our babies'
names. That's right plural. Yummers.

"You're
American..." We both laughed as we came to the same conclusion and voiced
it together.

"Yes I'm
from Washington state, you?"

He gave me a
quirky look as though disbelieving.

"Seriously,
Washington?"

I nodded my
assent while he laughed at some secret joke.

"Well hello
neighbor I'm from Seattle."

My mouth dropped
open, no wonder he was so disbelieving, what were the odds?

"Are you
here on business or pleasure?" I hope I wasn't being too forward, but
while I'd been planning my instant family I hadn't even stopped to think
whether he might already have one or not. Although he did seem kind of young,
mid twenties maybe or even a little younger I took a quick sneak peak at his
left hand. No ring, though that didn't really mean anything, my heart fell just
a little, it would be just my luck to meet Mr. Wonderful only to have him be
married.

"My mom
forced me to come here so I guess that would be pleasure. Wait that didn't come
out quite right."

He laughed that
killer laugh again and my nipples went on high alert. Hold it down there hussy.

"Mom thinks
I work too hard so she kind of forced this vacation on me, I'll have to
remember to thank her when we get back."

We? Who's we,
was he here with someone else?

"Why's
that?" I was almost breathless by now.

"Because if
she hadn't been so forceful I wouldn't have met the most beautiful girl in the
world."

He wouldn't say
things like that if he were married right? I so hope he wasn't, the life of our
future children depended on it. Get a grip Amber you've baked your head in the
sun. There's no way this walking dreamboat could ever really be interested in
someone like you, he's probably just being nice because you're from the same
place. Yes but he was smiling and touching me before he knew that.

"Are you
here alone my Amber?" I could only nod since his eyes were holding me
hostage. I'm not quite sure it was legal for him to be out and about without a
warning. Geez the things he did to my heart, not to mention other more
interesting parts ...stop that floozy, man, where did you come from?

"Good, then
you can have dinner with me tonight." He clasped my hand and turned and
walked down the beach with me. He didn't ask, just took control, okay I was
going to be a puddle any minute now. I felt all kinds of warm and feminine
walking next to his six foot three self because I was a whole foot shorter. I
didn't feel any trepidation at being alone with a strange man in a strange
country, I just felt right, so right. We walked for hours filling each other in
on our lives back home.

I was about to
start my first year at Washington State while he was an established
businessman, would he hold that against me? It didn't seem like it. We talked
easily with each other for hours and every time he hugged me to his side I fell
a little more in love.

Present Day

"Where are
you taking us?"

She'd built up
enough courage to pose that question after I pulled back onto the road.

"Home."
I saw her tense out of the corner of my eye but couldn't quite figure why that
would be. The last time she'd been in my home she'd been treated like royalty,
my whole family had been exceedingly supportive of her, of us. My little sister
Terry had taken to her right away, maybe because they were the same age, though
they couldn't be any different if they tried. Where Terry was a girly girl
Amber was a bit of a tomboy who would eschew shopping to go fishing of all
things.

My mom had been
over the moon. She'd laughingly bragged to any and everyone taking credit for
our romance, claiming that had she not sent me packing I never would've met my
Amber. She was right of course, but the woman was hard enough to live with as
it was.

After Amber
disappeared mom had taken it hard. Whereas before she took joy in having
somewhat orchestrated our meeting, she now blamed herself for her son's
heartbreak. That was another one of the reasons I would make Amber pay. She'd
used me to hurt my mom. In a roundabout way of course, but the result was still
the same. Maybe that's the reason for her tension, she knew they wouldn't be as
welcoming this time around because of her deceptions.

"Who's
there?"

Did she sound
afraid? What the hell was her game now? Why should she be afraid of anyone or
anything in my home? She was the guilty party here, no one had wronged her;
they’d all been welcoming even my cousins. Well distant cousins who weren't
really related, just old friends of the family.

Whatever! I'd
seen the way everyone had been with her and there was no reason for her to be
afraid of anyone there. Now me, that was a different story, she should be very
afraid of me and I won't let her forget it for one second.

"No one's
going to be there, I live alone you know that."

She gulped as
her body relaxed back into the seat.

"What about
your wife?" There was a little bite to her tone.

"What the
hell did you just say?" I was incredulous, now I knew for sure she was
playing a game.

"I
said..."

"I heard
what you said, I just don't get what you're playing at you know damn well I'm
not married."

"But I
thought..."

"Enough, I
don't want to hear anymore of your lies, save them for someone who'd believe
your bullshit, that no longer applies to me. You burned that bridge good and
proper."

I was fucking
livid, how dare she? Did she know that I'd been planning to give her my
grandmother's ring? Is that why she was throwing the wife thing in my face? The
black hearted bitch. I'll make her pay for that insult.

Right after I
fucked her to within an inch of her life. I'm going to bend her to my will and
leave her a broken shell, just as she'd left me. Only thing was, where she
didn't quite succeed, I’m going to be very thorough.

I couldn't wait
to get her home this time there would be no escape. I had taken the necessary
measures as soon as I'd learned her whereabouts. Not all having to do with her
of course.

There was now a
brand new top of the line nursery set up with everything my son could ever want
or need, because although doubtful of the report, I’d needed to be prepared.
And even though I'd had doubts in the beginning as to whether the child really
existed, or later if he was mine, I had decided to bring him back with me.

I had claimed
her on that island, what was mine I kept. Her and my son belonged to me. Him
forever, her, until I was through with her, until my thirst for vengeance was appeased
and the way I still lusted after her that could be a very long time.

We stopped three
more times so my son could eat and once so we could grab something at a drive
through. Conversation was very light as in nonexistent but I could tell she was
thinking really hard about something. She could plot all she wanted to in her
little head, there was nothing she could do about what I had in store for her,
not if she wanted to see her son. Yes I was not above using him to tether her
to me for as long as I needed. I could see that she wasn't putting on a show.
She really did love my kid that was something I guess; too bad it wasn't enough
to sway me from my determined course of action.

"Where did
you go?"

"What?"

"When you
left me, where did you go?"

"Nowhere."
Did she really think that was going to work? She must really think I'm a chump.

"Don't fuck
with me where the fuck did you go? And don't lie to me." I knew she hadn't
been at that cabin all this time, but her trail had been cold for months after
she left. I needed to know what she'd been up to, who she'd been with. I'm not
in the least fucking jealous dammit.

"I went to
Melissa's aunt in Chicago."

"Melissa
huh, the same Melissa who swore to me that she didn't know where you
were?"

"Don't do
anything to her because of that please, she was only trying to help me she was
protecting me, please, just leave her out of this, this is between you and
me."

"We'll see
don't think for one second you can tell me what to do, I don't care what you
want or what you think." She looked like I had kicked her, too fucking
bad.

"Did you
know you were pregnant when you ran or was that your whole purpose? Did you
plan to get pregnant in order to extort me at a later date, is that why you
were in Greece, huh, was I some kind of mark?"

"Stop the
car." She reached for the door handle."

"No, take
your hand away from there."

"Colin
please, pull over, I'm going to be sick."

"Fuck."
I pulled over to the side of the road; we were about forty five minutes from
home. Before I could stop the car completely she had placed the baby in the
seat and was rushing off to the side where she was violently sick.

Amber

Oh my God I
can't believe how much he must really hate me to even think I was capable of
such a thing. The mere thought made me sick to my stomach, the fact he even
entertained the notion makes me heartsick.

Things just kept
getting better and better, when we'd met on that island I'd been the happiest
I've ever been in my life. There was so much promise for us, I should've known
with my luck it wouldn't last. It was almost too good to be true, I'd fallen
fast and fallen hard only to have it ripped away from me a few weeks later. Now
I was more confused than ever, because I thought for sure he'd be married by
now, after all that's the whole reason I’d left. So he could marry the woman he
was promised to.

I watched her as
we got back on the road to see if she'd be sick again. She just held the baby
as he made waking noises not saying anything, but with a frown puckering her
brow. She was confusing as hell, I didn't see before me the hardened
manipulator she'd turned out to be, but instead the innocent I'd fallen head
over heals for. My heart gave a little pang but I squelched it quickly, all I
had to do was remember my first few days after she'd left. I'll never let
myself be gutted like that again. So my heart could just shut the fuck up.

She bit her lip
again and my treacherous body reacted. Soon buddy, you'll have her again soon,
only this time around have the good sense not to get hooked. This time they
would be no loving between us when I take her, which I would very soon. It will
be just plain sex, sex for the sake of working her out of my system.

"We're
almost there."

She nodded
without answering; okay let her play little Miss. Innocent if she wanted I
wasn't falling for that shit again.

When we reached
the house I took my son and left her to bring in her bags, we were upstairs in
his room by the time she found us. I undressed him and really looked at him for
the first time. A silly grin broke out across my face before I could stop it.
Were all babies this adorable? My boy was, he looked up at me with my eyes and
I fell in love. He was mine, I couldn't believe it, I had a son.

"Daddy
loves you buddy." The thought that he could've been lost to me forever
makes me see red all over again and when she finally joined us I gave her such
a look of hatred that she stumbled back.

"Tomorrow I
'll be interviewing nannies."

"He doesn't
need a nanny he's got me."

"It's what
I want and that's final, don't even think about arguing with me, you're lucky
to even be here."

"Please
don't do this, I didn't do anything wrong..."