Destiny Undone: The Complete Series Box Set

by Heartley, Amanda

  “Okay, babe,” I nodded. “See you then.” The awkwardness between us returned as I turned to leave, but it wasn’t as bad as when I’d arrived. Thankfully, the hallway was still deserted as I exited the female locker room. We were closed to the public on Tuesdays, so it was always a good day to catch up on maintenance and cleaning. I heard laughter coming from the lunch room and it was a little early for the crew to be taking a break so I popped my head around the door and saw our three new interns—Ken, Paul and Samantha—seated at a table, yakking it up. Martin, the intern we hired from our last recruitment phase, stood leaning against the fridge.

  The three of them stopped laughing and their demeanor changed as soon as they saw me. They all straightened up in their chairs, and Martin snapped to attention, as if he was waiting for me to reprimand him for something.

  “Good morning, folks,” I said. They all cast nervous glances at each other and were about to stand up. I waved them back down, trying to put them at ease. “Relax. Have all the animals been fed?”

  They nodded. “Good. Martin, can you stop by my office before you take lunch? I have a couple of things I need to discuss with you.”

  “Sure, Gabe,” he said nervously. His face was slightly flushed, as if he was embarrassed. I had no idea why he’d be embarrassed, so I let it slide. Among other duties, part of his job was to oversee the newbies and he was effectively the first rung on the management ladder. I guessed he’d probably felt as if he’d done something wrong so I wanted to put him at ease.

  I gave him a big smile and said, “Don’t worry, Martin. You’re not in trouble,” and he smiled back and seemed to relax. “Listen, guys,” I continued, “When you’re done with your break, I need someone to do the monthly inventory. Any volunteers?”

  Sam’s hand went up straight away. “I’ll do it!”

  “Great. Martin will show you where we keep the inventory forms and how to fill them out—it’s pretty simple. The items we need to have on hand are on the form, along with the required quantities. You just enter what we’ve got in stock, and then I’ll order whatever needs replenishing. Ken, Paul, you guys can sweep up and bag the leaves in the courtyard, please. The willows outside the gate are shedding pretty heavily and we don’t want anyone slipping on them. And let’s make sure all the tank glass gets cleaned thoroughly. Get the smudges and sticky fingerprints wiped off, okay?”

  “Sure, man, no problem.” Ken replied, and he and Paul hurried off to get their jobs done.

  “Great, see you guys after while.” I said with a wave and left.

  I could tell the newbies were still a little nervous around me, so I made an effort to make them feel at ease, especially when I assigned them their tasks. They were good kids, and if everything went well, I’d hoped to hire a couple of them this time around, although a part of me wanted to snap at them for lounging around this early in the day. I was glad I’d been able to resist the urge. I didn’t want them to think of me as some angry, Captain Ahab type of boss, limping around the facility and barking out orders.

  Martin was kind of a low-key kind of guy, and in the end, that’s why I’d decided to hire him when his internship ended. His co-workers from the last cycle, David and Tracee, had both been eager and competent, but each had a personality flaw that tainted them, in my view. They were too eager, attempting to ingratiate themselves by knocking others or having some other agenda.

  Martin wasn’t the type to stand out. He wasn’t an extrovert, or a bullshitter. Unfortunately, those are the ones who normally get noticed first. No, Martin operated on an even keel and never had any clashes with anyone. No drama. I liked that. Still, with everything going on this week, I needed him to be a little more authoritative with his posse. That would be one of the things I intended to talk with him about later on.

  I spent the next hour staring out of my window, watching Pepper and Singh practice their routines. Singh bobbed and dipped the length of the pool, back and forth, and Pepper held on like a skilled rodeo rider. It was fun to be a spectator—just like our paying customers—watching their interaction, but it was Pepper who always captured my attention. She was still my Dolphin Girl. Who’d have thought that this jet-setting diva would’ve taken to this job like… well, like a fish to water? Loving God’s creatures is one measure of a person’s character, but her rapport with Singh demonstrated another level altogether. Plus, she looked so breathtakingly sexy in her tie-die bikini.

  When she finished her routine and head to the locker room to towel off and change, I got myself ready for her arrival. Straightening the items on my desk, I de-cluttered the desktop by placing the stack of resumés on a bookshelf. I didn’t want any distractions while we talked and I opened the door and waited for her to arrive.

  No one had ever lit up my doorway the way Pepper did and when she appeared, I couldn’t stop myself from staring at her. That image would be burned into my brain forever.

  “Is this a good time?” she asked.

  I gave her a huge smile, got up from my desk and walked across the floor to meet her. “Of course, babe. Come on in,” and I closed the door behind us.

  There was an awkward silence for a couple of seconds until Pepper broke the ice, “I saw Martin on the way over,” she said as she sat in the chair in front of my desk. “He told me you asked him to report to you later and he seems kind of worried. Is he in trouble?”

  “Trouble?” I echoed, then I laughed. “Actually, I plan on telling him that he’ll eventually be overseeing the new whales once they’re settled in and he’s got some more experience. Patricia Clark at Sea Crest is loaning us her whale expert, starting tomorrow. I want Martin to shadow him and suck his brains dry, so I’ll actually be promoting him.”

  Pepper sighed. “He’ll sure be relieved to hear that. I like Martin and I’m sure he’ll do well.”

  “Listen, Pepper, before we finish talking shop, I’d still like you to come on board as my Lead Trainer. I know you’re busy with your classes, and some might view hiring you as nepotism—”

  “Nepotism? How can they? We’re not related.”

  “Not yet,” I smiled. Pepper smiled too, then looked down at the floor and I saw color rushing to her face. “Favoritism maybe, but I can justify that decision to anyone who might dispute it. I’m talking about HR, mainly, but anyone who’s seen you in action with Singh would understand that you’re a good fit.”

  “A good fit?” she grinned and got up from her chair. She walked around the desk and perched her sweet ass on my desk, sitting close enough for me to smell her damp skin and hair. It was an intoxicating aroma, completely her own and made me hungry for her . “You think I’m a good fit?” She slipped off her sandals and lightly ran her toes along my thigh. I involuntarily spasmed, defensively, even though she’d touched my good leg. She stopped and said, “I’m sorry. Did I hurt you? How is your leg?”

  I cupped her ankle in my hands and brought her foot up to my crotch.

  “My leg is fine,” I reassured her. “I’ve even stopped taking those pain pills when I realized that they were turning me into an asshole.”

  “You’re not usually that jerk-y,” she countered. “You’re usually very sweet. That’s why I couldn’t understand why you were being so nasty to me yesterday. But if it was the meds, I can totally understand.” She smiled as her foot felt the hardness of my erection. “And how is your other leg, the middle one?”

  “Well, now that you mention it, there appears to be some swelling down there,” I cocked an eyebrow and glanced at my lap.

  Pepper spread her legs, placed her feet on the arm rests of my chair and leaned forward. “It could be tension,” she whispered as her hand cupped my rock hard junk through my pants. “Perhaps I could provide some relief.” Her lips pressed against mine as her hand stroked my cock. I reached around and squeezed her firm butt cheeks, pulling her in closer. I wanted to push her back on the desk, pull her shorts over to the side of her pussy and fuck her.

  That train of thought was soon der
ailed by the insistent ringing of my desk phone and I recognized the single ring as my temp calling.

  It was all I could do to take my eyes off Pepper, but I knew I had to answer and my finger pressed the button. “Yes, Tricia?” I responded.

  “Gabe, Martin’s here and he said you wanted to see him. Shall I send him in?”

  Pepper was unzipping my pants as I pondered my dilemma for a couple of seconds. Who should I listen to—big head or little head?

  “Give me a minute and I’ll come down and get him,” I said and hung up the phone. I could see Pepper was disappointed and an exaggerated pouty expression crossed her face.

  “Sorry, honey. I’d love to continue, but your reputation is more important than my gratification.”

  “See? You are sweet,” she smiled, and as she zipped up my pants, she said in a breathless voice, “But Mr. Gregory, how can I thank you for offering me the Lead Trainer position?”

  “I hope you’ll let me thank you, Ms. Anderson,” I replied. “So does that mean you’ve accepted the position?”

  “Of course,” she quipped as she slid off the desk and walked to the door.

  “And will you be returning to our little love nest?”

  She paused as she held the door handle. “Uhm, if you don’t mind, I’ll spend another night or two at Dad’s. I need to do a little bonding with Sis. Oh, and Evangeline made amends with me. She seemed sincere, so I may work on that a bit, too. I’d love to have you over for dinner with the family on Wednesday though. I’ll call you later and we can discuss it,” then she turned the handle to open the door.

  “Wait!” I hissed. “Give me a minute for this raging hard-on to go away!”

  Pepper flashed a smile at me, cocked her head to one side and pulled the door wide open. “Martin, he’s ready to see you now,” then she gave me a final look and winked before she left my office.

  I started to get up, but my rock hard cock got the better of me.

  Half-crouched over my desk, I waved at a seat and sat back down.

  “Leg bothering you, chief?” Martin asked with concern.

  I nodded. “Yeah. The throbbing’s pretty intense today,” I said. “Don’t worry—I don’t think it’ll last much longer.”

  Thankfully, as my attention was diverted by business, my dick went back to sleep. Martin and I discussed my plan for the whales, and his role in looking after them, and he seemed pretty excited. I didn’t mention that there’d be a pay increase as well—I thought it better to wait and see how well he did first.

  Once Martin had left, my mind went back to Pepper’s recent visit and I leaned down and sniffed my desk. What did Vonnegut call guys who sniffed girls’ bicycle seats? A snarf! Yeah, I was just a step above a snarf and I didn’t even care. I stared at Pepper’s picture on my desk. She really had me whipped and I really wanted her to return to my place as soon as possible. Funny how, in some ways, I wanted parts of our relationship to move faster—getting our own place, living together, working together—while at the same time, I felt like stomping on the brakes when it came to marriage, and especially babies.

  Don’t they say that as one door opens, another closes? One thing was for sure, though—I knew I needed Pepper in my life, and I vowed to never drive her away again.

  Chapter Six — Pepper

  Mills had made arrangements for dinner on Wednesday at Daddy’s and apart from Gabe, Daddy and Charlotte were there, of course, Fallon and his dad and, last but not least, Evangeline. Throughout dinner, she’d been on her best behavior, sipping at the same glass of wine and making conversation with everyone. No doubt her reduced alcohol intake contributed to her new-found pleasantness.

  The center of attention, however, was Cha-Cha—Mills’ Maltese pup, who trotted from chair to chair and stood on her hind legs, begging for morsels. With any other dog, that sort of behavior would be frowned upon, but Cha-Cha was so charming that we were all guilty of pandering to her doggie delinquency.

  Gabe was back to his old self and the perfect gentleman. When I introduced him to Evangeline, he was very relaxed—convincing her this was the first time they’d met when, in fact, on their first encounter he’d seen her drunk, disorderly and bedraggled, having just dismounted from Church’s dick at Mill’s birthday party.

  I guess that’s one of the reasons they say ignorance is bliss—if Evangeline had even suspected that Gabe had witnessed her behavior that day, she’d have crawled away in shame, perhaps joining Cha-Cha under the table. And when Fallon’s dad insisted that Gabe call him by his first name, Gabe replied, “Yes, sir, Yassir,” and I cringed a little. I imagined Yassir had heard that a million times, but we all got a laugh out of it nonetheless.

  Yassir seemed nervous throughout dinner, fidgeting and glancing about. I guessed some people got nervous when visiting a stranger’s home without the social buffer of a spouse by their side, but everybody was very gracious, drawing him into each conversation, but I couldn’t help wondering if Yassir was focused on some agenda—other than socializing.

  Gabe brought us up to date on the progress of the preparations for the whale’s arrival, as well as Saturday’s opening and banquet and I was glad to hear that everything was going smoothly.

  “And you’ll still be attending, right?” he asked, turning toward Dad and Charlotte.

  “Oh, yes,” Dad replied. “Wouldn’t miss it for anything.”

  “Glad to hear that. We wouldn’t be having either of these events, if it weren’t for your generosity, so thank you again, sir,” he said.

  Dad brushed away the compliment. “I’m just sorry I’ve caused you so much work, Gabe” he laughed, then became more serious. “I’m glad I could help. Sure, when you get to be my age, you think about leaving behind a legacy of some sort… not to diminish the pride I feel for our two beautiful daughters, of course.” He glanced at Evangeline as he said it, and she nodded her head thoughtfully.

  Dad continued. “But it’ll be a boon for the community as well. Destiny Beach and the surrounding area will benefit from the increased tourism real estate values are bound to increase, so everybody wins.”

  Maria had slipped silently into the room and I saw Mills whisper into her ear the she and her helpers cleared the table of dishes and returned with candles and glasses. Champagne glasses! They lit the candles, dimmed the lights and poured the champagne before disappearing like elves into a forest.

  “Do you want me to do this?” Mills asked Fallon. Fallon nodded his head, a shy smile lighting up his face. “Okay, everybody, the waiting is over! We finally have a name picked out for our little one. May I have a drum roll, please?” she beamed.

  Several of us drummed our hands on the table then Mills announced the winning entry.

  “We’re going to name him… Douglas Yassir!”

  We cheered and applauded. It was a good choice, and I think that everyone was relieved that they’d finally decided to call him something!

  “I know,” Mills smiled, “a no-brainer, right? But we had so many names that were all so cool! Like names from Lord of the Rings,” Fallon added. “And Star Trek characters.”

  Everyone looked at each other and flashed an awkward, frozen smiles at that revelation—all except for me and I couldn’t help giggling. Mills gave me a piercing look and felt obliged to point out that those were among Fallon’s choices.

  “Well, we’re very honored,” Dad smiled. “Aren’t we, Yassir?”

  “Indeed,” he replied. “Very nice. It is a very big honor, in fact.” Yassir obviously had something else on his mind and nervously twisted his napkin into knots as he spoke. “In truth, however, I was hoping you might have made another announcement as well.”

  “Hold on,” Mills teased. “We’re getting to that. You’re all supposed to sip your champagne after that first announcement, by the way.” We did as she asked and Maria appeared quietly again and quickly topped us off again.

  “Okay, here’s the really big news,” Mills gushed. “Fallon and I have set a date for
our wedding!”

  Charlotte beamed a huge smile and leapt up from her chair to hug Mills followed by Evangeline who ran round the table from her side too.

  “That’s so wonderful,” Charlotte said. “What’s the date?”

  “December 21st,” Mills replied.

  “Oh my,” Evangeline gasped. “That’s so soon!”

  “Raise your glasses, folks,” Dad said, “To Fallon and Mills!” and everyone else stood up and congratulated Mills and Fallon, kissing her on the cheek and back-slapping Fallon before they took another sip.

  “And why did you choose December 21st?” Dad asked. “I mean, any particular reason?”

  “Well, it’s the Winter Solstice, for one thing,” Mills explained. “And it’s close to Christmas, but not too close. I mean, we want businesses to be open for our service and reception. Plus, most of our friends will be on vacation from school, so we should get a good turn-out.”

  “That makes perfect sense to me,” Dad said.

  I looked over at Gabe to see his reaction. Sure enough, although he was smiling and, I’m sure, very happy for them, I could see there was a trace of nervousness in his smile. I patted his thigh comfortingly—maybe he felt the noose tightening around his own neck.

  “Oh, I am so relieved!” Yassir beamed, and chugged down his champagne. He turned around and asked Maria for a refill, which he also downed in one swift drink. “I could not be any happier… for you two as well as myself! Fallon, your mother would have been so proud of you!”

  “But that’s less than three months away,” Evangeline said. “Do you realize how far in advance caterers and wedding planners get booked up? Goodness, I’d better start making calls tonight!”

  “I’d be glad to help, if I can,” Charlotte offered. “I realize that you and Mills are the primaries, but if you could use reinforcements in any way, please let me know.”

  Evangeline looked slightly stunned, but she snapped out of her shock when Mills thanked her for her offer and eagerly endorsed her participation. Evangeline looked at Mills and nodded in agreement.