by Cross, Daryn
“Here comes your limo now.”
Crandall glanced at the black limousine with the inscription, Just believe, painted on its side, slowly winding toward them. It pulled up right next to her and stopped. “But how did …”
“Captain radioed them,” she said. “This is a very elite island with an awesome five-star experience. The object is to simply enjoy.”
Minutes later, as the limo pulled off down a two lane hard-surface road with absolutely no traffic, Crandall sat across from another passenger and stared out at a colorful array of exotic flowers and the bustle of wild birds flying overhead. White puffy clouds floated through the seventy plus degree air with just a hint of a clean fragrant breeze blowing through the partially open limo window. “This almost seems like paradise,” she whispered to herself.
****
“Hold up, Theo,” Zack called out to the diminutive butler, the only person he’d seen since he arrived at Holly Heights.
The little guy turned around with a twinkle in his eye and a broad smile on his face. “Yes sir. What can I get for you? Some hot cocoa or coffee? Draw you a hot bath or call for a masseuse?”
“I’m fine, really. No need for any of that. All I want is a signal.” Zack held up his Smartphone. “No bars. None at all. Not even a glimmer. It’s dead. How is that possible? I even had service in the Gobi Desert.”
The man shook his head. “I’m sorry, sir. For some reason, satellite signals sometimes have problems out here. Perhaps you should try walking to the visitor’s center. It’s only two miles to the east. Or the limo could take you as soon as it gets back from the airstrip.”
“The airstrip?” he asked. “There’s another guest coming?”
He nodded. “At least one. Perhaps more.”
“I see. Okay, about the visitor’s center, do they have Wi-Fi?”
He shook his head. “No sir. But there’s a tower there. Occasionally, our tourists can get reception for their phones and computers there.”
Zack’s mouth gaped open as he placed his hands on his hips, still gripping the phone in his left one. “You mean the Internet doesn’t work out here either? I take it this old house doesn’t have Wi-Fi?”
The little guy shook his head. “It is the beauty of the island. This is where one unwinds and forgets about the pressures of what many call the rat race.” He strode off toward the kitchen.
Zack sighed, his gut lurching. How could he survive anywhere cut off from his usual communications? For the first time, he realized how dependent he was on them. Not being able to connect would be like detoxing. Some people may want to get away from the rat race. But it was near impossible for the head cheese.
****
As Crandall stepped out of the limo at Holly Heights, she stared up in amazement at the glorious structure of the mansion, which looked more like a castle. Although raised on stilts to keep it safe from high surf and flooding, the structure was made of what appeared to be polished river rock, and it had a turret. How could it be supported on a wooden platform? The architect had to be brilliant.
The driver carried her two bags to a ground level elevator. As the doors opened, she stared into the bright green eyes of a god. The man had pale blond hair, tanned skin and a toned body that left even more than she could see to the imagination. This trip was getting better all the time.
He glanced up at her and stopped short, staring. As the doors began to close on him, he held his arm in the way to stop it and jumped out. “Sorry. You took me by surprise.”
“So did you,” she told him. “I’m guessing you’re also a guest?”
He nodded with a cock-eyed grin. “I am. You’re the only other one I’ve seen. In fact, the only person I’ve seen except the limo driver and a very short butler.”
“Really?” Odd, she thought. Another little person. She supposed the owners of the resort catered to disabilities and special employees. “I’m sorry if I stopped your exit. Here for fun or business?”
He frowned. “Fun I suppose, though I’m not sure what that is. I don’t have cell reception and there’s no Wi-Fi or cable broadband here.”
“No problem for me,” she said, grinning. “I have a mobile modem. USB.”
He laughed. “Good luck. Seems satellites don’t like the place too much either.”
“I take it you do a lot of work by satellite?” she asked, raising an eyebrow.
He nodded. “Absolutely. When you have your, uh, family spread out all over the country, you have to know what’s going on.”
She grinned. At least there were more people here than she thought, and good looking ones too. “Don’t let me stand in your way, but, from what I hear, this place doesn’t have many attractions.”
He chuckled. “It didn’t. But that apparently, has changed. How about having dinner with me this evening?”
Her face burned. “I don’t know you.”
He winked. “You will. Besides how much trouble can you get into having dinner in a public place?”
He was right of course. Besides, she was in her late twenties. She could certainly manage a dinner date. “All right, I suppose so.”
He nodded with a wink. “Great. I’ll meet you here tonight at seven.”
“Wait!” she called out to him, “What’s your name?”
He turned and grinned. “Is it really important? Just for GPs, call me Don Juan.”
She chuckled. “I guess that makes me Jezebel.”
As he walked away, Crandall crossed her arms and thought maybe this vacation was just what she needed. She walked into the elevator with a smile.
Chapter Four
Zack walked along the sandy beach in the direction of the tourist center and reflected on the woman he’d just met. She had to be Crandall Drake, the she-lion of the Prezelicious Company. He recognized her by her promo photos.
A publicly traded corp with a large number of employee-investors, Pretzelicious had skyrocketed into the competition with its patented salt and sugar coating. It didn’t flake off or dry out the bready texture of the pretzel itself. The coating also lent itself to absorbing flavors at the will of the baker. Very ingenious. He wished he’d thought of it first. Too bad her profits had gone soft. And too bad she was here. She could wreck his meeting with Brooks.
He licked his lips. Still, he also could go for a nice lick of a salty woman, with much caution, of course. No more bad mistakes. However, that could wait until after he got a report from Mike and concentrated on finding Brooks. Business was still business, even if he had to ease up after his heat surge a few days before.
He saw a monolithic structure in the distance as he crested a small rise and hurried toward it in excitement. As he quickened his pace, he remembered his episode in the office and backed off his pace. Better to be slow and make it than lie in the sand only to be discovered days after as seagulls circled his dead body.
Twenty minutes later, he made it to the building and entered. He shivered as freezing cold slammed into him. For crying out loud, it wasn’t even hot outside. They didn’t need this air-conditioning. Suddenly, he wondered if his blood pressure had surged again. He felt his cheeks. Not hot. The old lady who ran the place must be the one having heat flashes.
He took the elevator after looking at the stairs and decided he’d play it safe. At this rate he’d undo everything he’d gained from his workouts. But finding Brooks was, for now, the mission at hand.
As he stepped out of the elevator on the top of the monolith, he could see all over the shoreline. An older man at the windows turned. “Beautiful isn’t it? Undisturbed and all natural. A wonderful site to behold.”
Zack nodded. “Sure is. Excuse me for a minute while I try to get a satellite signal.” He held his cell phone up to a window. One bar showed on the phone. “Wow, not very good even up here. I don’t get it. It’s almost like something’s blocking it.”
“When my wife was alive, she wouldn’t let me carry one when I was on vacation. Out of reverence to her memory I still don’
t, she wouldn’t approve. But I can still work on hatching a project.”
“What’s that?” Zack asked as he stowed the phone in his pocket.
“A plan for a marvelous debut.” The man smiled. “I have a little business and we’ll be searching for a snack of the decade. Media blitz, place them in all my venues. A real winner of an international launch.”
Zack froze in his tracks. “You’re Gerald Brooks, aren’t you?”
The man blinked in surprise. “How do you know me?”
Laughing nonchalantly, Zack stuffed the cell phone in his pocket. “Well, of all the coincidences, I make snack cakes.”
“Really?” The man’s eyes widened in surprise. “Have I heard of your company?”
He nodded. “Probably. It’s Scrumbles.”
The man nodded. “Yes, absolutely. You’ve built quite a reputation, young man.”
He beamed. Off to a good start. “I’ve always wanted to get Scrumbles in your machines and the concessions as well. But, for some reason, we’ve come up wanting with past negotiations.”
Brooks nodded. “Yes I know. The wife hated your ad campaign. She was a bit vehement about it and flat against my selling your product. Perhaps you should consider more G-rated material?”
Zack felt a surge coming on. Oh boy, so much for the public purchasing power. He’d been so close he could almost taste it. This guy would probably triple sales with a signature on a simple contract. Time for damage control. “We’re looking at our campaigns right now as a matter of fact….”
“Good. You know it’s amazing you’re here.”
“Just good timing I suppose.” He smiled ad shrugged his shoulders. “My Vice-President insisted I get away for a few days. Seemed to think I was working too hard.”
Brooks smiled. “Yet you’re on your Blackberry.”
He laughed nervously. “It takes a while to unwind.”
“So it does.” He nodded. “I know this isn’t when you want to hear about business, but if you don’t mind, I’d like to have dinner with you tomorrow night. Talk about plans for something I’m working on. That wouldn’t be too much on vacation would it?”
Shaking his head, Zack tried to look casual. “No, that isn’t a full-fledge business meeting. Dinner, conversation. No problem.”
The man shook his hand. “Tomorrow then, at my place.” He pulled out a pen and a business card from his jacket pocket, then wrote on the back of the card. “Just call this number if you need to talk to me beforehand. Otherwise the transportation on the island will bring you over.”
Zack nodded as Brooks left the tower. Maybe this was the vacation he needed after all
****
Crandall glanced up as Zack descended the staircase. “Isn’t the woman supposed to make the grand entrance?”
“Guess I’m late.” He chuckled. “Surprisingly, I’m always early when I’m working.”
“What do you do?” she asked, taking in his white dinner jacket and bow tie. Elegantly dressed for island attire, but then, she had on a cocktail dress herself.
He shrugged. “Oh, I’m in administration. Just a little manufacturing firm. Nothing special. And you?”
Staring at the ground, she sought for a good answer. What did she tell him? “Pretty much the same. Food products. We haven’t been around all that long.” She caught his frown, then a slightly raised eyebrow, and she wondered if somehow she’d given him a hint. Naw. No way he could know who she was. She didn’t pose at every photo op. Better change the subject. “Where are we going to dinner?”
He grinned and her knees buckled. His teeth were so white in his tanned skin. The man was breathtakingly handsome. She was going to have trouble eating.
“Theo told me about a small place right on the beach called ‘Sandpiper.’ It’s an open hut with a real driftwood grille. They cook the fresh catch of the day and serve light cocktails. Okay with you?”
She nodded. “Sounds perfect. Can you believe it got up in the 80s today? Better than back home.”
“Way better for me. Where do you live, Jez?”
Warning bells went off. She may be Jezebel to him, but too much information wasn’t good. She intended on keeping this light and have it stay right here on the island. “Oh, I’m originally from the West Coast. These days I spend a lot of time going across country, actually temporarily staying in New York. My job requires I travel. Right now, I have to say I’m without a real home. My condo sold and I’m waiting to relocate. How about you, Don?”
He laughed. “I’m originally from the East Coast and still live there. I live in North Carolina now, but my allegiances are split between two locations.”
He was fairly good at hedging as well. Was he hiding something? Not that she could come out and ask.
“There’s the limo now,” he said. “Let’s go.”
Minutes later, the limo let them off with instructions to come back in two hours. Inside the hut, Crandall felt the hard knots in her shoulders ease. Listening to the gentle surf off the gulf was intoxicating. As for the view, what wasn’t to like about a slowly lowering sun over the ocean. She stared across a small table at Zack and saw he was also mesmerized by the ambience. “Having trouble decompressing from real life?”
He turned and gazed at her, his eyes half-lidded with a sexy look. “I was, but after I gave up on the cell phone signal, I just sat out back on the porch, and the island did the rest to settle my racing mind.”
She sighed. “I should have done that. Instead, I sat in my room with a stupid headset on dictating stuff into my computer with that speech recognition software. I don’t know why I felt compelled to do it, but there it is.”
He shrugged. “You must be a workaholic like me. I haven’t had a vacation in seven years.”
She chuckled. “Yeah, me either except for a couple of conferences. Do they count?”
He grinned and shook his head. “Not according to my second in command. He says even at conferences I keep him up past midnight rehashing the information we gathered.”
“I take it you aren’t married.” At his widening eyes, her stomach lurched. “I mean, with all that work…”
“It’s okay. No, I’m not. I was once for about six months. That was enough for my wife at the time. She literally ran away.”
Sobering information. Her island high came crashing down. “I’m sorry. Did you ever find out where she went?”
He shook his head. “Not then. Didn’t know until three years ago and by then it had been over a long time.”
“Oh.” A chill passed over Crandall. “I’m so sorry.”
He winked. “You don’t need to be. That was a long time ago. I’m over it. Let’s change the subject. Have you ever been married?”
She shook her head. “Haven’t had many relationships. Only one came close, but the guy enlisted in service and never came back.”
“Now it’s my turn to say…”
“No” Crandall held up her hand. “We weren’t engaged or anything. I probably read more into it than was really there. You know how you are when you’re in high school.”
He laughed. “Yeah. I got married. Tell you what, let’s make a vow we won’t talk about our past anymore tonight.”
“Great idea.”
“I have an even better idea. Let’s talk about what we’d like to do in our future. Our bucket list. Nothing to do with work.”
“Okay.” Crandall took a deep breath. “Let’s see. I always wanted to go up in an air balloon. You know, like one of those ones you see over Albuquerque in the fall?”
He nodded. “That would be fun, for some people I guess. I’m afraid of heights.”
“You’re kidding?” She felt the laughter bubble up in her throat but she quelled it. Never make fun of another’s fears. After all she had her own. “I bet you could get over it.”
“Doubtful. As for me, I’m more into ocean sports. I’d like to snorkel in the caves off Cozumel.”
Letting loose with the laughter she’d held inside, Cra
ndall stared at him. “I can’t swim. Terrified of water.”
“See?” He held his arms up. “Everyone has a phobia, at least one.”
The server placed their fried grouper fingers in front of them in a huge basket with finger food, fries and raw vegetables on a plate next to it.
“This,” Zack said, pointing, “I’m not terrified of. I’m eating it now.”
****
Once back at their mansion, the two exited the limo, and Don linked his arm through hers. “What do you say we walk along the beach for a few minutes before turning in?”
Crandall nodded. “Sounds like a stellar idea considering the moon is full and there’s not a cloud in the sky.” It didn’t take but a few feet across the driveway to sink into the soft sand. He dropped to the ground. “What are you doing?” she asked, laughing.
“Taking my shoes off.” He yanked one shoe off his foot. “Who wants sand in wingtips? Besides, barefoot is the way to go.”
She kicked off her sling backs. “Glad I don’t have as much trouble as you.”
“Story of my life.” Pulling off his socks, he tucked them into the shoes. “Safe and sound.” He rolled up his pants legs. “Now I’m ready to stroll with a beautiful woman at my side.”
“Why thank you, kind sir.”
As they walked along the beach with the water lapping dreamily up against the shore, Crandall felt alive for the first time in, well, forever. Right now, it was if she’d never lost her father, never felt the pain of almost driving their business near bankruptcy, never disappointed another human being who loved her. For this man oozed self-confidence, gentle playfulness and an air of complete belief in her. Still, she wouldn’t let her guard totally open, for to do so meant injury. Her father had told her so on more than one occasion.
With a deep inhale of salt-filled air, she concentrated on taking what was offered and simply being in the moment. Just not expecting the next one to be as good.
“That sure was a deep breath,” Don said, throwing his arm casually around her shoulders. “My dad used to tell me when you take a breath like that and then let it out, it’s the body’s way of ridding itself of negativity.”