by Mason, V. F.
Micaden has a surprise for me, and I can't wait to see it. So far, time with him has been nothing but magical, and I’m giddy to discover what he has hidden up his sleeve next.
Because my Micaden has brought nothing but happiness in my life.
Micaden
The time has come to collect all debts.
Emerald
The ding echoes through the space when I enter the café, and I hear Eve shout from the back, “I’m here.”
Shaking my head at her productiveness, I wave at locals who usually come here for lunch and dart to the backdoor where she’s probably checking supplies.
And there she is, twirling the phone cord in her hand while she sighs in exasperation, seething into the phone. “I don’t give a fuck. I want the red plates. I ordered them. Either bring them on time, or you can say fucking bye-bye to my money.” She hangs up on whoever is on the other end of the line and I wince, because, oh boy, does she look pissed.
She pushes her hair back and tugs on her white stained shirt, glaring at me and pointing a finger in accusation. “Why are you all dolled up at this hour?”
I raise my arms and Joe, who passes by her, smirks at us, saluting me, clearly used to her outbursts during this time of the month.
The “time” being when she ordered new supplies and made all the booking for the stuff she might need. For the last several weeks, I’d become quite familiar with all her moods, and let’s just say, no one likes to be around her when she counts the money she’ll have to spend in a month.
“I have a date.”
She rolls her eyes, sipping her cold water, and then says, “Please, hooking up with your boyfriend after you paint or write is hardly a date.”
“You are just jealous because Tom has been busier than usual.” I wiggle my brows. “Horny much?” She throws a pencil at me and I dip my head in time, so it misses me and hits the wall instead.
“Bitch.”
“Just ravish him here.” I tap on her office desk, and we stare at each other for a moment before both of us burst out laughing, happiness swirling around us.
She takes a deep breath, and asks, “No seriously. Why are you all done up?”
I glance down at my floral navy blue dress along with my silver sandals and tug a little on my braided hair, shrugging.
“Like I said, I’m going on a date.” Not that he told me much about where he’s taking me, but I prefer to look nice just in case.
“Yeah? Where?”
“Micaden decided to surprise me.”
Her glass pauses midair to her mouth and she stills, but then she swallows hard. “Surprise?” She clears her throat, resuming drinking, and my brows furrow.
“Yeah. He told me it would be an unforgettable evening.” This time the glass falls on the floor, shattering everywhere, and I scream, darting toward her, but she stops me, grabbing my elbows and holding my stare. “Eve, we need to clean up.”
“Forget about the fucking glass.”
Her fingers on my skin tighten and I wince, groaning, “You’re hurting me.”
“Don’t go.”
“What?” I’d have laughed if it weren’t for the fear glazing her eyes and panic lacing her voice. “Don’t go to that surprise. Just don’t go with him.”
I can’t believe what she’s saying, what the hell?
She has been nothing but supportive of this relationship, but now she’s acting as if Micaden is the evil in my life. “Are you insane?”
“I’m serious. This surprise will be your—”
“Eve—” The deep voice booming from the doorway pulls our attention, and her mouth clamps shut when Tom fills the space with his dominating energy, communicating with her silently while I just stand there, confused.
Finally, she lets go of me, stepping back, and then walks slowly to her husband, who doesn’t even bother looking at me. Even these last months haven’t change his attitude toward me, and I’ve made peace with that.
Tom and I tolerate each other at best. “Tom, remember what I told you? If there are sides, I’m on hers.” Sides? Her words about being on my side from our first meeting enter my mind while she continues. “This is madness.”
“Maybe. But it’s the only way,” he replies oddly and then cups her chin, and I don’t see her face, but after a moment, her shoulders sag and she glances at me, shaking her head.
“I just can’t support it.” And with that, she rushes out.
The AC blasts me, and I rub my arms as an uncomfortable feeling settles in me while fear and confusion fill my mind. Eve never acts this way. Why is she so against this date?
It’s with Micaden!
Tom steps toward the door to rush after her, I guess, but then he stops and faces me, scanning me from head to toe, before clearing his throat. “Be careful, Emerald.”
“I don’t understand.”
He only says “Yeah” and disappears while the disturbing feeling doesn’t go away, and where there has been only happiness, now something else lives inside.
Doubt.
Because if they are his best friends and they’re warning me about him, what does it imply?
Am I making a mistake by trusting him?
My knees wobble and I drop onto a chair. I bite my lip as I place my hand on my chest, which rises and falls due to my heavy breathing.
What do I know about him, really? Besides the fact he has told me… nothing. The people on the island all have different reactions toward him, but I’ve never seen anyone at ease in his company.
No, he brings tension wherever he goes.
Is there some secret no one wants to share with me? That would explain why he never talks about his past much and closes off whenever a topic he doesn’t want to talk about arises.
My phone vibrates in my pocket, and I take it out, seeing a message flashing on the display.
I close my eyes, and all our moments together flash behind my eyes, and a slight exhale of relief slips past my lips, because everything is okay.
He could have never hidden any bad emotions from me; we have been real, and all my fears have no merit.
Eve just had a bad day and took it out on me.
There’s no other explanation.
I dart outside, aiming toward the door, but at the last second, Eve grabs my hand and hugs me fiercely, and although I return it, I don’t find peace in it. “I’m sorry, babe,” she murmurs and gives me an even tighter squeeze. “I just had a bad day.”
I instantly relax in her arms, patting her back. “It’s all right.”
“I’m just worried.”
“I have to go.” I remove myself from her embrace and give her a forced smile, because the sting of her earlier words still stays. “I need to go. Micaden is waiting for me.” A horn sounds in the distance, and I don’t miss how her jaw tics, but she doesn’t say anything.
Instead, she steps aside and I go outside, quickly running to his Jeep. I hop inside, and he tangles his fingers in my hair and brings my mouth to his, giving me a deep, wet kiss that sends electricity through me, awakening every little instinct inside me.
No, all this can’t be wrong. He lets go of my mouth, skimming his lips over my neck and murmuring, “Ready for our date, my mermaid?” I punch him lightly in the stomach, and he grunts, although with laughter, and leans back, putting on his sunglasses. “Come, Emerald. I’m about to take you on the ride of your life.” Before he drives off though, he takes out a blindfold from his glovebox, and orders, “Turn around.”
“What in the hell?”
“It’s a surprise, right?”
A familiar ache builds up in my temples, but Micaden’s fingers are already there to soothe it, rubbing it gently, while he whispers, “Trust me, Emerald.” And although something niggles at my mind about it, I nod.
He wraps it around my eyes, securing the knot behind my head, and then it clicks.
The scene that happened in
the book.
But why?
Micaden
I park the car by the shore, and the waves choose this moment to crash against the rocks.
Emerald gasps. “You brought me to the beach!” She points a finger at me almost in an ah-ha gesture, as if it’s supposed to mean something.
It does, of course, but not to her.
Hopping outside, I jog around the car and open the door, helping her get out.
Each movement is carefully planned, staged so each caress and word will send her into panic but also love.
Her emotions need to be as high as possible, so when she falls, it’ll be so painful she’ll struggle to breathe.
Pushing her against my chest, I lock my arms around her waist, and murmur softly into her neck, “Happy Birthday, baby.” I skim the skin of her shoulder, and she shivers in my arms, sighing softly.
I keep back a snarl, because some things never change, her reactions being one of them. “How do you—”
“ID, babe. You live in my inn. Did you forget?” Her hands slide up to rest on my nape, and then she quickly turns, circling her arms around my neck, and blindly searches for my mouth, rising on her toes.
Looking at her, her full lips just begging to be kissed, my hands on her hips tighten, because it brings back so many memories.
Memories in which her genuine affection used to be honest, or so I thought. But she’s no different now than she used to be in the past.
The only difference is that now I know for a fact she loves me. Otherwise, I wouldn’t have brought her to the grand finale of this plan.
Instead of indulging her, I suck on the skin of her collarbone, and she moans, but I step back, leaving her wanting more. “Micaden,” she whines, but it only adds to the sadistic bastard living inside me.
Oh, she’ll beg all right.
Putting my hands on her shoulders, I spin her around and push in the direction of the boat that slowly rocks in the wind at an otherwise peaceful shore.
Each of her steps is tentative, but she’s guided by my voice, and since she trusts me, she believes in me.
One of her biggest mistakes.
Finally, we reach the edge of the boat, and I remove the blindfold. She gasps, covering her mouth, and for a moment, I’m taken back in time.
When I orchestrated the romantic dinner the first time in my life, the girl in question also looked at everything with wonder.
Just like she does now. But she loves me now, and back then, she only played at love. Shouldn’t the reaction be different?
I push away the nagging thought and concentrate on the volcano inside me that I can finally allow to erupt. The show has ended and finally her reality will come.
We’ve played this stupid game long enough.
“It’s so beautiful,” she whispers, sliding her hand on the white-as-snow surface of the boat, and then hops onboard, quickly marching to the deck where a round table with candles and glasses scattered around it sits, while roses petals lie around us. “I can’t believe you decided to reincarnate the scene from the book.”
My brows furrow at this, because I’m fucking fed up with the book references. Whenever I do something, she tries to connect it to the book or wonders if I peeked over her shoulder at it.
Why the fuck would I care about her art or some lame-ass story she wants to tell the world? I never read the damn thing, even though Eve begged me to do it.
That’s another problem I’ll have to deal with once this ends, because according to Tom, she’s losing her shit. “So are you saying yes to a romantic getaway for two?”
She picks up a petal, rubbing it over her cheek, while she asks, “Getaway?”
“Yeah, I’m stealing you to have a pirate adventure. Ravish the princess and all.”
She laughs, sending awareness through me, but I squelch it. Tender emotions no longer have a place in my heart. “Ready?” I ask her, and after a second, she nods.
“With you? Always.”
Always and forever.
How poetic and ironic.
Emerald
I can’t believe he did all this for me, and on my birthday! I don’t celebrate it much; usually Kaden shows up to take me out and gift me some stuff that I don’t need, like a designer bag or jewelry, while I muse about my parents.
He never talks about them, but I suspect it’s too painful. I don’t remember anything about them, and most days it makes me feel guilty to think that, so I don’t. None of the pictures he has of them ever have our entire family together, just me at a few gatherings with them.
I always thought they’d probably cast Kaden out, and that’s why he was never part of our lives much, but he sort of had to step in to take care of me. Ever since my parents died in the car accident that injured me.
Micaden goes to the helm, turns on the motor, and grabs the wheel, shouting, “Ready?”
“Yep.” Who wouldn’t be?
The boat roars to life and starts moving, swaying me a little as I grab on to the rail. A sigh of pleasure slips past my lips as I gaze at the glistening sunset on the water that’s reflecting the beauty of nature. I quickly go to the deck, dropping onto the couch while resting my chin on my arm.
I glance behind me to see the town and shore slowly disappearing from view as we move farther and farther into the ocean, creating a magical atmosphere around us. I even see a few waves, which don’t look like regular ones. Then suddenly I see a head and something jumps. “Oh my God!” I squeal, running to the railing again and leaning over it, as my eyes drink in the awesome dolphins swimming along with us. “Micaden!” I call after him and glance to the wheel, but he’s nowhere in sight.
My brows furrow a bit, and then I nod to myself, remembering the floor plan of this boat. Due to my constant fear, I haven’t visited him much during his work, but he talked about the boat enough to make me curious to check it out online. It has one room, so he probably went there to pick up something.
But strong arms wrapping around my waist and bringing me closer to his heated body prove me wrong, and I gasp when he runs his nose along the crook of my shoulder, inhaling my scent. “I thought you left.” A giggle escapes me at how ridiculous it sounds, and I correct myself. “I meant downstairs. Clearly, you can’t hide here much,” I tease, but he stays silent, and only then it dawns on me his hold is different.
It’s not warm or inviting as usual; instead, he’s tense and his hands on me keep me firmly against him, but not in a sexual way.
Rather, so I won’t get away. “Mica—” He spins me around, enclosing his hand around my chin, and raises it up, while our gazes clash. Mine confused and his cold as ice when he runs his eyes all over my face.
“Do you love me?” he asks, and my knees almost buckle at the relief slamming into me, because for a moment there he scared me.
“Yes. I love you.” A beat, and then I have my own question. “Do you love me?” I know he does, I just want to hear it from his lips this once.
I always thought love took a lot of time to grow and that all those people who claimed they fell in love within a short amount of time were delusional. But I discovered this summer that time means nothing when it comes to love.
It’s all about the emotions and feelings the person inspires from within you that matter.
His mouth lifts in a half smile, but once again, it lacks any warmth. “How can I love you, Emerald, when I hate you so much?”
“Wh-what?” I stammer, too shocked to even react properly, and search for any kind of teasing in his face but find none. “Micaden, that’s not funny.”
“Indeed. Funny is the fact that you thought you could fool me twice. Like the saying goes: Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me.”
I ignore the pain in my heart and shake my head, while a bitter taste fills my mouth. “I don’t understand your riddles. Stop it.” Is it some kind of plan he’s created, to first scare me and then bring me joy? He likes to prank Tom a lot. Is this what it is? “Micaden, can y
ou please be serious.”
“Oh, I am,” he replies, and pushes me back. And with a scream, my back hits the edge of the boat, and I would have fallen into the water if it weren’t for a hand catching the front of my dress, the only thing that keeps me from falling.
Nothing happens for a moment, just us two looking at each other when he finally speaks up. “Ah, Emerald. You are finally at my mercy.”
And that’s when I understand it’s not a prank.
But very much a reality in which my lover from my dreams has turned into a monster.
Chapter Sixteen
Island, United States
Micaden, 21 years old
“This is bullshit, Duke!” I shout at the sheriff, kicking the bars of the cell while he exhales heavily.
“I know. But my hands are tied. Just wait five more hours, and you’ll be out of here,” he says, resting on a chair and kicking his legs up on the table, his hat covering his face while the radio blasts from the other corner.
Ron apparently is interested in surfing championships happening in Australia, so he’s the only one listening to that crap.
Growling in frustration, I squeeze my hands tighter around the bars, letting my anger flow into them, and I shake them. Just imagining what they might do now to my Emerald makes me go insane.
She’s mine, and I have no means to protect her.
Why didn’t she tell them or try to explain it to me better? She never spoke about her parents much beyond they were wealthy and never hurt her. My girl is a beautiful angel, and she deserves the best in the world.
I never wanted her to be stuck here with me or clip her wings; I knew she was made for great things. I wanted to be part of them, support her every step of the way, and not take her chances away.
But how could I explain that to her parents who probably think I am some loser from the island seducing their little girl?
It’s all right though, because they have no grounds to keep me here forever. Tom already spoke with her, and he’ll bring her to me once I’m released.
What her parents plan to accomplish is beyond me, considering she is of age, but I don’t give a fuck. They have no legal grounds to keep me. Why is Duke listening to them anyway?