by Eva LeNoir
"It will, Daddy. I promise."
I didn't know how long we stood there thinking about the grim future, but the rest of our day was filled with the Sakai City museum and the Japanese Gardens where I'd finally convinced my father to use the wheelchair so he could relax as we walked around the gardens for almost an hour. It was a special kind of relaxing, the five senses soothed by the specific architecture of the garden itself. Beautiful was too weak a word to describe our surroundings, too banal.
This was art and nature working hand in hand.
By the time we arrived at our hotel, we were both dreaming of our beds. Ordering room service, I made sure Dad was fed, his medication carefully sorted and by ten that night, he was sound asleep.
Lying in my own bed, I could feel my heart beating with the anticipation of Calvin's visit the next day. It wasn't excitement, it was anxiety and I didn't understand it in the least. I should be delighted that he'd make this long trip out to see me. Instead, I felt like he'd be more of a burden than a shoulder to lean on.
Unlike Marlon who helped me every chance he got, I'd had to take care of Calvin and his needs, when all I wanted to do was take care of my father and make sure he was as comfortable as possible.
Chapter 26
Marlon
Two weeks of madness ensued.
Between the guys, who were being dodgy when it came to the women they were interested in seeing, and our consistent increase in clientele since our last gala, I spent the better part of the two weeks putting out fires and smiling for the cameras.
Despite Ethan's request for me to stop taking Emma to fundraisers as my date, she'd accompanied me one last time. I barely saw her once we were there and I had no doubts in my mind that she and Ethan were fucking in some unused room or, hell, maybe even the supply closet. The cliché made me chuckle as I booked my plane tickets to Naha on the island of Okinawa, affectionately known as Japan’s Hawaii, where I would meet with Robert and Jaidyn for their last week in Japan.
I hadn't yet told her I was arriving, and I would in no way show up as a surprise for multiple reasons. First, we weren't a couple and me surprising her with my presence was at best, unprofessional. Second, nothing good ever came from last minute, unannounced visits. I hadn’t done any solid research on this topic, but I would bet that a large majority of those impromptu visits ended with tears and a break-up.
With my ticket printed out, I took out my phone and sent out a quick text.
Me: Hope your tour of the South Island was fun.
I didn't have to wait long for her to answer.
Jaybird: It was gorgeous, thank you for booking that last minute. Our tour guide was hilarious.
When Jaidyn had seen the guided tour of the island at the hotel front desk, she'd mentioned that it would be great for her dad to have a driver available, so he didn't have to walk so much. She'd noticed his chorea was becoming more and more prominent and it worried her.
As per my job, I called in a favor with an old friend of mine who used to run the streets of LA before he enlisted in the Marine Corps and at one point was stationed on Futenma in Okinawa. When his service was over, he'd returned to Okinawa to be with the woman he'd fallen in love with and married. They could have gone back to the US, but the quiet, simple life of the island was a better option for them and their children.
When I asked him, last minute, to give my clients a guided tour, he didn't even hesitate.
Me: Jimmy's a great guy. His daughter Hina has mastered the art of manipulating him into doing whatever she wants.
Jaydin: He told us all about her. She sounds like she'll go far in life.
Hina was her dad's little girl through and through. I loved that a big guy like him, practically a criminal growing up and a Marine who saw battle, was powerless when it came to his little girl.
Me: I'm glad it went well.
Jaydin: Thanks again.
Me: I'll be arriving in about two days, flight included. My room is already booked at the same resort.
It took a few minutes for Jaidyn to answer, the little dots pulsing then disappearing, making me nervous that maybe I was the only one who'd felt the pull between us. Making me doubt my decision to accompany them during this world tour.
Jaidyn: Looking forward to it.
I grinned. Four little words that took her entirely too long to write.
My little Jaybird was nervous and excited to see me.
Strictly on a professional level, of course.
Right.
Chapter 27
Jaidyn
Sometimes I wondered if the gods of the world had decided to unite their forces to make my life a living hell.
Until recently, it wasn’t clear when exactly Marlon would be able to meet up with us. I’d figured Japan was cutting it too close so it made sense that New Zealand would be the logical choice. I would have preferred it that way since Calvin was arriving around the same time. What were the chances?
This meant we'd be stuck in Okinawa, a relatively small island, together. At the same resort, no less. Me, Calvin and Marlon. Under different circumstances, it could have been a great ménage situation but in reality, it was anything but sexy. It was borderline dangerous with the way the luxury cabanas were set-up, privacy would be optimal only at night.
I had hesitated between begging him to postpone until the next leg of our trip and telling him I couldn't wait to see him. Both inappropriate and only one true to my feelings.
Maybe these emotions I was harboring for Marlon, this lust coursing through my veins was a sure sign that Calvin and I weren't exactly a match made in heaven. This should have been a wake-up call. But then it was impossible to forget the young man Calvin used to be when we first met, before his parents turned him into the selfish man he was now. The way he used to look at me, like I was his sun and moon. I missed that Calvin and maybe I was simply hoping he’d, somehow, return.
So, there I was, on a beautiful island whose history was marred by two opposing cultures fighting on opposite sides of a political cause, and I understood her. This island, forced to navigate between its own culture, that of the Japanese since the end of the nineteenth century and the American invasion after World War II. Torn in two yet forced to evolve.
I would take Okinawa as my example and do the same by compartmentalizing my life as the loving daughter, the doting girlfriend, and the grateful client. It sounded easy and I figured I was stubborn enough to make it happen.
"Do we really need to go see some eight-hundred-year-old building?" Calvin asked, pouting, as he pulled me into his warm body. We were both still half asleep. He'd arrived late the night before and was too tired to have sex. Instead of disappointment, all I felt was relief which in turn brought on my confusion. Our sex life had always been quite active, especially with the long distance keeping us apart. As soon as we saw each other, our first instinct was to christen the nearest bed.
Somehow, the thought of having sex with Calvin left me cold, inexplicably so.
It’s Marlon. That little voice inside me whispered, and I couldn’t ignore the possibility that she was right.
"It's not some building, it's an architectural work of art," I answered, pulling away from him and trying to get out of bed. Before I could stand, he grabbed my wrist and pulled me back in.
"Come here, baby," that crooning voice of his meant only one thing.
"We're going to be late; I need to shower and make sure my dad is ready," I told him, pulling my wrist out of his grasp and sliding a robe on my practically naked body.
Rolling on his back, he closed his eyes and put his hand under the sheet, palming his cock.
"I'm so hard, Jai, can't you even suck me off?"
I wished I could say that in that moment I felt an inkling of guilt since it had been so long since we'd had sex. Maybe it was the selfish demand that I please him. Maybe if he’d taken the time to wake me with an orgasm, I would have felt differently.
But then I heard his voice. That famil
iar deep timber.
That low rumble and deep, throaty laugh belonged to only one person and just hearing it had me wet in an instant. It was suddenly so clear, my lack of desire for Calvin. I had Marlon on the brain and apparently, he was also in my libido.
"Shit!" I mumbled and ran off to the shower, locking the door on my way to make sure Calvin didn't get any ideas.
"Fuck, Jaidyn, you're going to kill me, you know that?" Calvin called out; frustration evident in his voice.
"Not before Marlon kills me with his superman pheromones," I muttered once naked and under the shower.
Not thirty minutes later, I was showered and dressed, ready to visit the Shuri Castle. Marlon had rented a wheelchair so my father could rest all the while taking in the scenery and the history of this architectural gem.
While Calvin showered, I stepped out of the cabana to find myself face to face with the man that made every cell in my body hum from his mere presence.
"Morning," I called out, nonchalance my middle name.
"Yes, it is, Jaybird," he said, a devastatingly gorgeous grin on his lips and eyes boring into mine from across the private pool that separated our cabanas, "Did you sleep well?"
"Yes. Thank you," I answered, the heat in my cheeks warning me that I was most likely blushing, "When did you get in?" I asked mirroring his stance by sliding my hands into the pockets of my shorts.
"My flight landed at six this morning, just got here about an hour ago," he answered, his gaze taking in the resort with appreciation, "It's nice here, cozy."
It was like we were flirting without any heat, just acknowledging that we both felt this incredible pull. His eyes called to me, always inviting me to see deeper inside his soul. He’d been keeping his beard nicely trimmed, said it had to do with the heat and I wondered if he’d let it grow out as the months passed.
"There you are, Jai, was looking for you," Calvin called out from behind causing Marlon's demeaner to change completely from relaxed and content to rigid and eerily still.
But when Calvin put his arms around my waist and kissed the nook between my neck and collar bone, I could, even from the distance between us, see his gorgeous green eyes turn a murderous black.
"You smell so good," he murmured, placing another kiss before calling out to Marlon, "Good morning, there...Malcolm," he called out, purposefully using the wrong name to get a rise out of him.
"Marlon," I corrected, in vain.
"Right, sorry," he said but I could hear the insincerity in his voice, and it irked me.
Pulling away, I turned to Calvin and whispered, "You are such a child, sometimes," and walked back into our cabana to grab my small backpack with all the supplies I needed for Dad.
By the time we arrived at the castle, I was ready to beat Calvin unconscious. Marlon had stayed back at the resort since Calvin was with me, he figured I didn't need his help. He was wrong. Travelling with Calvin was like taking a toddler on a cross country adventure. The whining, the complaining, the pouting when he didn't get his way, it all tested my patience.
Once in a while, my father would throw me a look that said, "Kill him, I'll be your alibi."
"So, this isn't even the original palace?" he asked, annoyed that we'd come to the castle to learn it had been destroyed twice and rebuilt. The last time being in nineteen-forty-five from the battle with the Americans at the end of the war.
"That's part of its history, Calvin. The destruction, the rebuilding. But mostly, it's the significance of this place. The reason it exists that is important," I told him, not even hiding my frustration anymore, "I mean, it was originally built in the fourteenth century. How amazing is that?" It was meant to be a rhetorical question but of course Calvin had to jump in.
"So what, we're looking at the reconstruction dating back to nineteen ninety two?" he looked around and pointed to the burned down portion of the castle, "I mean, we can't even visit the whole thing since that part burned down last year," he was referring to the main building of the Shuri Castle that burned down last fall awaiting a new renovation before the next six years.
"Look at this view, baby doll," my father interrupted, seeing my jaw clench every time Calvin complained about something, "you can see all of Naha from here," he said, taking my hand that was resting on the back of the wheelchair and giving it a comforting pat.
"It's beautiful, Daddy," I said, looking at the horizon and the ocean beyond.
"Let's go back before we do something that lands us in a foreign prison," he winked over his shoulder, speaking loud enough for Calvin to hear, although the comment went well over Calvin's head.
Our return to the resort took almost thirty minutes, traffic being heavier than when we left.
"I've booked a restaurant for just the two of us, tonight," Calvin announced as we entered our cabana. It hadn't escaped my notice that Marlon was working remotely on his deck, shirtless and god like.
"What about Dad?" I asked, taking my shoes off and changing into a bikini so I could cool off in the pool. The October weather was warm enough to warrant a swim.
"What about him?" Calvin asked, absentmindedly, "he can stay alone for a few hours, right?" he looked at me, waiting for my reaction.
Of course, he could. Dad wasn't a complete invalid, and Marlon was there if anything happened, but the insensitivity drove me mad.
"Fine, what time?" I snapped, tying the string of my bikini top behind my neck and grabbing a floppy hat before stepping out through the French doors.
"Hold on, let me see," Calvin, oblivious to my mood, looked at his phone for the reservations, "Six thirty."
"Fine," I repeated, walking straight toward the pool, my eyes fixed on Marlon whose gaze was following my every move.
Taking the steps down into the shallow end of the long, rectangular pool, I made a show of pouring the water over my arms, my shoulders and finally my neck. From behind my sunglasses, no one could see that my eyes were trained on the man who was able to get me aroused without even saying a single word. When my hand poured water along the lines of my neck, I watched as Marlon shifted in his seat. I wondered if he was hard for me like I was wet for him. I wondered if he was tired of this push and pull and ready to give into our mutual attraction. I didn't wonder for long when Marlon rose from his chair and promptly went back inside his cabana.
My first thought as I watched him leave was, I wish I could follow you.
Chapter 28
Marlon
"This room service is delicious," Robert said, patting his stomach and slouching in the large, comfortable patio chair.
"I've had a lot of Japanese dishes, but I have to admit, this Goya Champuru is going to the top of my list." I said, finishing off the last piece of tofu with a chopstick full of zucchini.
"That bitter melon was a delight, I wonder if we can find it in the States," he mused, closing his eyes, a smile on his lips.
"I'm sure we can, especially in LA where everything is available at the snap of your fingers," it was true, I couldn't think anything impossible to acquire in LA
"True, true," he muttered, then opened his eyes and stared straight at me for a few seconds.
"You know, Jaidyn is a stubborn woman. I used to think it was a difficult trait when she was a teenager and sometimes, I wish she'd compromise a little more."
I didn't interrupt him, guessing he had a point to make.
"But," he paused, probably choosing his words wisely, "she has been more pliant as of late, during this trip, that is." I couldn't help the small smile that formed at the corners of my mouth, thinking that somehow that little bit of compliance had something to do with me.
"I think it could be you, Marlon," Robert confirmed and my smile erupted into a grin I couldn't have stopped if I'd wanted to. And I truly did not.
"Well, we get along okay, I guess," I tried to play it down, after all, I was here eating dinner with a man old enough to be my father while the girl I wanted was out having a romantic dinner with her boyfriend.
Fu
ck me, every time that thought entered my mind, I wanted to hit something, however, I needed to remember that as much as I wished she were here, she belonged with that douchebag. It was difficult enough thinking of him touching her but seeing it this morning was a fresh new hell. I was afraid I’d chip a molar with how hard my jaw clenched when he pressed his lips to her collarbone. Worse, I could feel her unease and it made me livid. Unfortunately, it wasn’t my place to decide for her.
"I guess you do," he mused, taking a napkin and wiping the corners of his mouth, methodically, despite the evident tremble in his hands. Jaidyn was right, he was getting worse. I hadn't seen him in a couple of weeks, which made the contrast all more evident.
"How are you feeling, Robert?" I asked, my stare demanding honesty.
"I'm getting worse. I've been trying to meditate before I get up, before JaiJai can see me. You know, to ease the chorea, the uncontrollable sharp movements but I know she's noticed," he said, turning to look at the shimmering lights from the floor of the pool. The glow bathed the entire area in an appeasing Mediterranean blue, almost a hypnotic hue.
"She has," I confirmed, "she's been worried."
"I know, I know," the shimmer in his eyes betraying his attempt at strength, "It's why I need to talk to you, Marlon."
"Of course, anything."
"But Marlon, what I'm about to tell you must not be repeated. As your client, it is specified in the contract we both signed that client privilege is in effect. I'm sorry but I feel I need to remind you of that," when he returned his serious, pained eyes on me, I knew, "You must not say a word to my daughter."
This would not bode well for me and Jaidyn.
Chapter 29
Jaidyn
The restaurant was on the beach, the sand tickling our feet as we sat cross-legged on the wooden floor. Around us, the patrons were far enough away that each table was in its own little cocoon. The entire perimeter was surrounded by canals that snaked around with carp swimming from one end to the other and into the large pond at the front of the restaurant. The orange, white and black fish executing an almost tantalizing dance. I felt like those fish. Swimming around and around and never really going anywhere.