Eagle's Destiny (28 page)

“Babe, I’m fine.”  He cleared his throat again.  “I’m awake now.  Did you have a nice time with Nancy and Robin?”

“Yes, we had a great time.  We always do.  Nancy had some great news too.”  I could hear the anticipation building in my voice.  I lay back on my bed and hugged my pillow to my chest.  “She was approached by a movie company who are interested in perhaps making my first book into a movie.”

“Sensational,” said Michael, “that’s impressive.  So I’m going to be able to introduce you as my movie mogul girlfriend?”

I giggled and we continued to talk.  He was sincerely happy with the news.  I could relax and share my success with him.

His voice grew lower as he spoke to me.  My body immediately began to react to that special tone.  I sighed when my stomach started the flip-flops. 

“I heard that sigh,” he said, “so are you naked?”

“Michael we are not having phone sex.”  I countered, but noticed my own voice was growing softer and less resolute.

“There is nothing wrong with a little phone sex my little hellcat.”  He growled over the phone.

He had used the
H
nickname and the whole bottom half of my body responded to his proposition by turning the heat on.  “You know if I were laying there next to you, I’d be running my hands down your body right now.  Your body is pressing tightly against me and you feel me nestled between your legs.”

I let out a soft moan, “Oh Michael.” 

He did what he set out to do.  He seduced me over the phone. 

CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO

On Saturday, I spent the day together with my niece and nephew at the aquarium in Long Beach.  Bill and Lisa were grateful for the time together and I enjoyed the time alone with the kids.  This was my one regret about deciding to sell my house.  I would be down for visits whenever I could, but it was not like seeing them almost every day.

Until I finished the current book those visits would be impossible though.  I was considering this book to be the last of the Jessica series.  Not sure where I would go next in my writing, I felt that Jessica’s time was over.  I needed to move on.  Jessica had been with me since the beginning and finally I knew the newest character I had introduced into the book would be her forever love.

I pulled Lisa’s Volvo station wagon into the driveway.  My little Saturn Sky, a two-seater would never have fit the kids, the car seats, the stroller, and all the other items that were necessary for a day’s outing.  The kids were fast asleep and I was exhausted too.  I dreaded the thought of packing for my trip.

Bill came out and carried Marybeth into the house.  She was a little rag doll in his arms still fast asleep and clutching her new stuffed sea otter.  Jon woke up briefly as Lisa picked him up, but he just cuddled closer to her and fell back asleep.  I followed everyone into the house with the rest of the stuff.

Lisa turned and whispered to me, “Let me get them into bed.  I need to talk with you.”

I nodded silently and went into the kitchen to wait for Lisa.  Lisa and Bill joined me in the kitchen.  I scanned their faces, and they both looked serious. 

Lisa sat next to me and took my hand in hers.  “Bill and I want you to stay here with us tonight.”

I am sure I looked as confused as I felt.  “Why?”  I asked.

Bill spoke up this time.  “Kevin stopped here about an hour ago.  He was drunk.  He said he knew you were down in Southern California and he was looking for you.  He saw your car parked in front of our house.  It did not look like he was up to any good either.”

I looked down and rubbed my forehead with my free hand.  I did not need this tonight.  I was already tired.  Looking back up at their anxious faced I tried to reassure them.  “Guys, I’m really sorry that Kevin is bugging you.  I’ll talk to him and make sure he understands that you are off limits as far as he is concerned.  I’m not sure why he needs to talk with me, but I’ll give him a call when I get home.  I’ve got to pack for my trip.”

Lisa looked directly at me and frowned, “We think it’s a better idea if you stay here tonight.  I’ll go home with you now and help you pack.”

I patted her hand in my big sister way, “I appreciate your concern, but it’s not necessary.”  I rose up from the breakfast table.

Bill took my other hand.  “When you get back from your book tour, I want you to call me at my office.  We need to do a restraining order against Kevin.  I will include Lisa and the kids too.  Kevin is a nut case and he should not be around us.”

I smiled, “I will.  I promise.”  I bent over and gave both of them a hug.  “Don’t worry about me tonight.  Kevin is all bark.”

When I got home, I locked all the doors securely.  I missed my dogs, they were always sure to bark and cause a commotion if anyone approached the house.  After I switched on the television to give me a little noise and company in the house I started packing.  I kept hearing noises in the house and to tell the truth it did give me the creeps.  It would be like Kevin to sneak around.  Just as I had the thought, my doorbell rang and I almost jumped out of my skin.

I moved the curtain aside and peeked through the small window on the front door.  Sure enough, it was Kevin.  Why couldn’t he leave me alone?  I opened the door slowly and only a crack.  “What do you want Kevin?”  I asked him.

“Let me in Liz, I want to talk to you.”  He demanded.  Even behind the door, I could smell the alcohol on him.

“No, Kevin.  I don’t want you in my house.  Whatever you have to say you can say it to me through the door.”  I didn’t open the door any further.

He tried to peer in through the crack in the door.  “Come on Liz.  Let me in.  I need to talk with you.”

“Kevin, I said no.  You hurt me the last time.  I’m not going to be stupid twice.”  I said adamantly.  I began to close the door.

He shoved his foot in between the door and the frame.  “I need to talk with you.”  He breathed heavily and gave the door a hard push. 

I pressed my body against the door but he had more pounds and
muscles on me.  I cried out in surprise as his force on the door propelled me out of the way and the door came crashing open. 

“Stop being such a bitch.”  Kevin spit out.  “I just want to talk to you.”

I backed away from the door.  “Okay.”  I said, “What do you want?”

His breathing came in big gulps from the exertion.  “My lawyer told me that my alimony check is stopping in two months.  Why have you stopped the checks?  You owe me.”

I stood there in disbelief.  “I owe you?”  I sputtered out.  “How do you figure that?  I gave you a huge settlement.  I’ve paid you every month for the last three years Kevin.  It’s over.  You don’t get any more money.  That was our divorce agreement.  The money stops.”

“I don’t care about our agreement.”  He argued.  “You still owe me.  Without me, you would have never started your stupid books.  I taught you how to write.  It was all my idea.”

I concluded he was delusional.  “Kevin you are not going to get any more money.  Period.  You need to leave me alone.”  I pulled my portable phone out of my jeans pocket.  “If you don’t leave now I’m calling the police.”

He was surprised to see me holding the phone.  “What about your new rich boyfriend?”

I looked at him incredulously, “Michael has nothing to do with this, and I don’t want you talking with him again.”

Kevin made a move to step forward and I lifted the phone in my hand.  He looked me in the eyes and reconsidered.  “I will do whatever I want to do Elizabeth.  Don’t forget that.  You can’t stop me.”  Kevin said flatly, as he backed toward the door.  His eyes showed no emotion only cold darkness

He rarely called me by my full name.  That did scare me.  Kevin glared at me for a moment.  I stood there motionless with my hand wrapped tightly around the phone.  He turned on his heel and walked out of the house not bothering to close the door.  I watched him walk down the driveway and for once, he did not turn around.  I did not move until he reached the curb.

Closing the door, I threw the deadbolt, and put the chain across the door.  Sitting down on the tile floor in front the closed door, I wrapped my arms around my knees and pulled them up tightly against me.  I did not cry.  I silently rocked myself back and forth.  In the heat of the summer’s night, I was ice-cold.

Finally, when I rose from the floor it felt like I had been there for hours.  I was stiff and still frozen.  My resolve to sell the house was even stronger now.  I had to remove myself as far as possible from him.  He would not be able to touch me as easily up in my cabin.  Bill was right.  I did need a restraining order against Kevin.

I finished my packing and tried to sleep.  Michael had left a voicemail earlier in the day letting me know that he was going to be with the eagles tonight.  He had wished me a safe trip and looked forward to talking with me when I reached Miami.  There I was in bed, and I could not sleep.  I had no dogs or Michael cuddled up next to me.  Drowning in my own self-pity, finally the tears did come.  I missed my dogs, my cabin, and I missed Michael most of all.

chapter twenty-three

I eventually drifted off to sleep very early in the morning.  The doorbell ringing startled me out of my sleep.  The clock showed that I had overslept.  How had that happened?

Nancy barreled through after I unlocked the door.  She looked at me with surprise, “You’re not dressed yet?  Girlfriend, get a move on we are going to be late with a capital L.”

“I’m sorry Nancy.  I overslept.”  I stumbled back into my bedroom.  “I’m all packed.  Let me take a quick shower.”

“No can do, Elizabeth.  Put some clothes on and get your butt into the limo.  Thank goodness, we don’t have to park.  We cannot be late for this flight.  You can take a shower when we get to
the
hotel in Miami.  You’ll have time to change before dinner.”  Nancy said adamantly.  She picked up my luggage sitting in the corner.  “I’ll get these out to the car.”

I was dressed, had the house locked, and was in the limousine in less than 5 minutes. 
She
helped me braid my hair while we sat in the back seat. 

“Nancy, I don’t understand what the rush is about.  We have plenty of time before the flight leaves.”

“No we don’t,” she said holding my braid clip between her teeth, “we’re catching the earlier flight to Miami.  I left you a message on your cell phone yesterday.”

I half turned to look at her and she batted me back so she could continue to braid my hair.  “You did?  Oh, I turned my cell phone off.  Where is my cell phone?”  I started to look through my purse.  “Oh damn, I left my cell phone on the kitchen table.  Nancy we have to go back and get it.”

“No.” she said as she put the finishing touches on my braid, “We’re late.  It’s going to be a rush to catch the flight anyway.”

Curious, I asked, “Why are we leaving early?”

“We have a dinner planned tonight.”

“With who?”  I asked.

“The publishing company bigwigs.”  She said with a flourish.  Her eyes were sparkling and she was grinning like a mad person.  When I didn’t make a fuss over her announcement, she rolled her eyes.  “You don’t get it do you?  Number one, look at the New York Times Sunday edition, your new book is on the top ten list at Amazon for the most preordered book ever.”  She reached into her brief case, pulled out the book review section of the newspaper, and handed it to me, pointing to the headline.

“Ever?”  I said in a small voice.  “Wow.”

“Yes wow!”  Nancy grinned at me.  “This is big stuff, and don’t think they haven’t heard about Triad being interested in your books.  That just sells more books.

“Nancy, it’s just a silly romance novel.”

“Silly or not.  It’s serious.  Your books always have done well and have had a strong following.  You’ve seen the sales figures.  I think it is because your characters are a little older than the normal romance characters.  People like associating themselves into a book.  America is getting older.  It makes sense.  But, whatever, you are on the big guys’ radar.  I spoke to Carol at Berkside Publishing yesterday, and they are increasing the security at the bookstores during your signings.  They don’t want anything to go wrong.”

I sat back in the seat.  My head was spinning.  “All this and no coffee?”

Nancy laughed, “I will get you a Starbucks at the gate, okay?”

“Give me your cell phone.”  I held out my hand.

Nancy hesitated, “You’re giving it back aren’t you?”

I rolled my eyes, “Yes, I’m just going to call my family to let them know I don’t have my cell phone with me.” 

She handed it to me and I called Michael, Lisa, and my Dad.  I left each one the same message about my cell phone.  I felt naked without my cell.

We made the flight in plenty of time and Nancy bought me the coffee as she promised.  Since it was Sunday, first class was almost empty.  We practically had the cabin to ourselves.  Both of us pulled out our laptops and headsets to start working.

The knowledge about the sales of the book was exciting.  I was always amazed that people bought my books.  This type of news made me feel more valued and talented.  It was funny how a few dismal words from Kevin could bring me down and make me feel worthless. 

I shook my head at myself and sighed.  Nancy looked over at me and raised her eyebrows.  “Are you okay?”  She mouthed in my direction.

I nodded and turned my attention back to my laptop.  The direct flight landed us into Miami in the late afternoon.  My publishing company had a limousine waiting for us and we were quickly at the hotel in South Beach. 
The bellman showed us to my suite first and what a set of rooms!  Called the terrace suite,
overlooking the ocean,
it was larger than my first apartment.  The white on white décor in the rooms was stunning.  I was almost afraid to touch anything for the fear of getting it dirty.  A vase with eleven long stem pink roses and one long stem red rose sat in the middle of the table giving the room a splash of color. 

“How nice,” I said, “they sent me flowers.”

Nancy plucked the small envelope from the holder in the vase.  “There’s a card.  The flowers are from somebody, these aren’t from the hotel.”  She handed the card to me.

I slid the small card out of the envelope.  I read the card aloud, “
I’ve got you under my skin.  I miss you.  M
.” 

“Hmmm, a red rose in the middle of the pink ones.  Not too difficult to read into that imagery.”  She looked at the bellman, “You might as well show me my room.  Elizabeth, dinner is at eight, I’ll be here at seven.  We don’t want to be late.”

I nodded not really acknowledging her.  The door to my suite closed gently.  I stood there in the middle of the room holding the card and rereading the words.  Even though I was standing still, my mind was jumping around singing and a broad smile broke out on my face. 

“My teddy bear misses me.”  I murmured to myself.  The grin that had formed on my face wouldn’t leave me.

Sitting down on the white couch carefully, I picked up the phone and dialed Michael’s number.  Michael picked up his cell phone right away, “Hi Babe.”

“How did you know it was me?”  I asked surprised.

“Caller ID, you’re the only one I know with a Miami area code.”

“Oh, that makes sense.  Thank you for the flowers, they are beautiful.”

“I wanted to make sure you were still thinking about me Miss World Traveler.”  He said.

“I think of you all the time,” I said.  “It’s hard not to.”

Michael laughed his deep throaty laugh, “Good.  That’s what I love about you Elizabeth.  Your honesty is so refreshing.  No games from you.  How is your room?”

I giggled, “It’s all white.”

“What do you mean all white?”

“I mean it is all white, carpet, chairs, bedspread, everything.”  I laughed, “I’m afraid to touch anything.”

Michael chuckled with me, “I think I’d be afraid too.”

“The bathroom is beautiful too, not white though.  Everything is marble, including the enormous tub.  I’m going to treat myself to a bubble bath.”

Michael groaned over the phone, “I wish I were there with you.  I love
bubble baths.”

I giggled, “Do you really?  I wondered about your big bath tub in your bathroom.”  I smiled to myself, another Michael layer peeled away.

“What are you doing tonight?”  He asked.

“Tonight is a dinner with my publishers.  That was a last minute surprise.”  I told Michael about the New York Times book review article.

“Very impressive.  You know I’ve been meeting quite a few people who know your books.”

“Have you been talking about me to other people?”  My heart leaped to think that maybe I was on his mind as much as he was on mine.

Michael chuckled, “You know it.  I’ve been bragging.  That’s the perk of being your boyfriend isn’t it?”

His voice had a magical effect on me and when he said b
oyfriend
he caught me up in the thrill of the word again.  Every time I spoke with Michael, my heart beat faster, my skin flushed, and my stomach, oh yes; my poor stomach did those now familiar flip-flops, and everything tightened south of the equator.

After we hung up, I did as I promised.  I took a long bubble bath.  Without any windows, the bathroom was naturally dark.  The hotel had placed candles around the tub area and even though it was still daylight, they created a soft glow in the bathroom when I lit them.

The bath took away the tension of traveling.  I was nervous about the dinner this evening and if I had a choice, I would have preferred to stay in the room.  Social occasions always made me nervous, especially if I did not know anyone.  I knew Nancy.  She was good at being the social butterfly so I was glad she would be there.

Nancy aside from being my agent was one of my dearest friends.  It was not only business with us.  Yes, she had my back on all the business dealings but she was more than that to me.  During the worst times when I was divorcing Kevin, she had been there for me.  We spent countless nights together on the phone when all the issues with Kevin had given me writers block.  Nancy had encouraged me to go up to my cabin to get away from Kevin.  She had realized before me that I was the happiest there.

I slipped into a black sleeveless cocktail dress with a twisted ruching V-neck in the front and a plain V-back.  The summer had tanned my legs enough so I could go without hose.  The dress, longer than my usual dresses came to the top of my knees and had a playful back slit.  Even though we were on the ocean, it had been a hot and humid day.  I was used to the drier California climate.  I put my hair up.  I slipped on my three inch black strap sandals.  Tall would be the word for the evening.

Nancy and I met the group in the lobby of the hotel.  I was well acquainted with both Samuel Wells, the president of the division, and Martha Cooper, the editor-in-chief.  They had both been with the division
for many years, and they would be attending Rom Com with us next week in Las Vegas.  Nancy and I would stop for two days at the yearly convention for book signings and panel discussions on our final leg of the book tour.

  Sam looked like he could have been at home on a horse, roping cattle.  I always expected him to show up in a cowboy hat and boots.  It wasn’t only the Texan accent that made me think that way.  Sam was big, the type of big that blotted out the sun when he stood next to you.  He made me feel small. 

Where Sam was large, Martha was tiny.  She barely cracked five feet, and was as round as she was tall.  However, what she did not have in stature she more than made up in wit and wisdom.  Martha was legendary in the publishing field for being able to discern a great book from a good book. 

The new division vice president, Luc Thierry transferred from their international offices in Paris.  He appeared to be in his early forties and was the type of handsome that made women turn their heads with dark hair that had barely begun to gray.  His height had surprised me, when he stood to greet us he was several inches taller than me, which put him at least Michael’s height.

When he shook my hand, his face wore an expression of intrigue.  He held my hand a bit longer than necessary.  When I pulled my hand back, his fingers traced along my palm as if he did not want to let go.

“I have heard so much about you Miss Sommars, and I can say that I am delighted to meet you finally.”  His French accent was soft and there was almost a British ring to his words.  It sounded like he had been educated in England or at the very least with a British teacher.

“Please call me Elizabeth.”  I looked up at him and smiled.

“And you must call me Luc.”  He said looking down straight into my eyes while he gently took me by the elbow.  “I believe the car is waiting for us in the front?”  Luc asked as he turned to look at Sam, Martha, and Nancy.  “Shall we?”  He led me outside with the rest trailing after us.

We drove to a private club and restaurant a short distance away.  It was crowded when we walked in, but the restaurant portion was quiet.  We sat at a large round table in the center of the room with Luc on my left side and Sam on my right.  I guessed it was my turn to be the belle of the ball.

I had made it a rule never to drink during business occasions.  I plainly did not trust myself.  Luc called for champagne and before I could protest, the entire table was toasting the new book and me.  The champagne was good and it made me feel very warm.  Where one glass of champagne went, others followed along with the appropriate wine for each course we ordered.

By the middle of the meal, Luc and Sam had me giggling with their stories of publishing nightmares.  Nancy kept flashing me looks of warning
across the table but I paid her and the looks no heed.

After dinner, our party went into the nightclub.  It was crowded and the music was loud.  We had a special table close to the dance floor reserved for us.  It was not evident to me at the time but both Sam and Martha allowed Luc to monopolize me.  I danced with Luc three times with the last time being a slow song.  He was not shy to hold me close either.