His Bahamas Affair (The Albury Affairs)

by Christina OW

  She punched his shoulder as hard as she could and yelped at the pain from the contact.

  “Ouch,” he said with a boring dry tone, not even bothering to look at her. He didn’t even flinch!

  Loraine rubbed at her knuckles. “Yeah right, you didn’t even feel a thing. Do you eat rocks for brunch because you shouldn’t be that hard, it’s just not normal?”

  He laughed and the sound made the butterflies in her belly flutter.

  “No, I don’t eat rocks.” He took her injured hand and massaged her knuckles. “You should be careful next time. Here let me kiss your boo boo and make it better.”

  “I’m not a child…” she began to grumble when she caught his darkening eyes as he lifted the back of her hand to his lips.

  Breath caught in her chest as she watched his lips lower to her knuckles. When they came in contact, her eyes fluttered shut and she sucked in a breath. He kissed it lightly, running his lips then the tip of his tongue over her knuckles before he planted another soft kiss.

  “Better?” he whispered huskily.

  Loraine nodded, unconsciously moving toward him until her chest touched his. He wrapped his free arm around her waist, as the other hand weaved her fingers through his and held them both to his chest. Her head cantered to the side as he lowered his to nuzzle at the nape of her neck. Her body shuddered, pushing closer to his.

  “Reno…” she whispered softly, turning her head into his.

  “Mmhmm,” he responded, brushing his nose and lips up her cheek to her temple.

  Loraine felt her toes curl in the sand, a quiver in her chest as her breaths grew heavy. “Thank you.”

  When he stopped what he was doing, she thought she’d ruined the moment by bring that night up, that is if he knew what she was referring to when she thanked him. She hoped he didn’t.

  He kissed her temple and began moving in a circle, in a slow dance. “You’re welcome.”

  She nodded, blinking back tears. She went on her tip toes and pressed her soft cheek to his rough one. He tightened his hold on her waist and lifted her up, supporting her.

  She felt his breath on her ear before he spoke. “Any time you need me Lori, I’m right here. Don’t ever forget it.”

  A sob escaped from her lips as a few tears broke free. He released her hand to wrap his around her, hugging her to him. She wrapped her arms around his neck, lowering herself so that her head rested under his chin.

  She felt a smile creep over her lips and the load in her chest lightened. She didn’t know why but she knew for certain she would always be safe where she was. In Reno’s strong arms, she would get the strength she needed to rebuild herself to the person she used to be before the nightmares made her feel defenseless again.

  And maybe, just maybe, in his arms she’d also find the one thing she coveted.

  She slid her arms down to wrap them around his torso. His body folded around her like a protective casing of large hard muscles and she loved it, loved every second she was there even more. Yup, this was where she wanted to be until she was strong again. And certainly, not maybe, she’ll be staying in those arms until she was old and grey. She was going to make sure of it.

  Chapter Four

  He heard the whimper first, and then the creaking of wood as it cried under the strain of weight. At first, he thought an animal had somehow found its way into his home, a beach house he had built a few miles away from the resort where his first home, his mother’s home, had once stood. The one bedroom shack that had been his mother’s pride and joy, but for Reno it had been a reminder of his painful past. So he replaced it with a two story, four bedroom home, with floor to ceiling windows for walls in the living room and dining area at the bottom level.

  He heard the whimper again, but this time it was louder and coming from one of the guestrooms. He climbed off his bed and moved to the door, paying keen attention to the noise again. A few minutes of silence passed and Reno turned around to go back to bed when an ear piercing scream had him rushing out of his room and into the opposite one. It was Loraine’s room.

  She was thrashing and crying, fighting the man in her nightmare, her body wet with sweat. Reno sat on her bed and pulled her into his arms, taking the kicks and punches as she kept on fighting. He struggled to hold her still, trapping her head on his shoulder with his own so that he could speak into her ear.

  “Loraine, wake up!” He tried to remain calm but that was a struggle on its own. The intensity of her nightmare made his heart race with fear.

  “What’s going on?” Melody’s distraught voice filled the room.

  Reno ignored her and kept rocking Loraine as he spoke soothingly into her ear, “It’s okay, Loraine. I’m right here, Lori. He can’t hurt you anymore if you wake up. Come on Lori wake up.”

  Her body suddenly went stiff and her screams reduced to whimpers. He kept her in his arms, stroking her back and hair as he rocked and soothed her. “That’s it. Wake up Lori.”

  “Reno, what’s wrong with her?”

  “Melody, come with me. Let him handle this.”

  Reno was grateful to his brother when he heard their feet shuffle out and the door quietly close. Loraine didn’t need the audience and she would be mortified if she woke up and found them all staring at her.

  He should have known something was wrong when she fought sleep earlier in the evening. They had been sitting in the living room, sharing stories about Riana so that Ruiz could get to know her better. He hadn’t laughed so much in his life as much as he did listening to the antics she and Loraine got into during their days in NYU. It made him feel less guilty for leaving her alone, knowing she had a wonderful college experience. Reno had never had that. He went to community college and for one purpose only, to attend his business classes. He had an early morning schedule so that he could have the rest of the morning for his schoolwork because the rest of the day and evening he had to work his two jobs. Reno never had a normal college life and he was glad Riana got the chance to.

  Then Melody and Loraine shared the little they knew about Riana and Allan’s romance. He had been annoyed at how she had easily accepted to run off with Allan for a rebound affair in Italy, even if the affair ended in marriage. But that annoyance easily vanished when Melody told them of how badly off Allan was when he thought Riana was dead. He thought Riana’s pain was immeasurable but listening to Melody, hearing the pain in her voice and seeing the sadness in her face as she teared up…he just hoped he never experienced anything like that.

  And when the night began to wind down, Loraine began to doze off only to startle awake a few seconds later. He’d suggested she go to sleep but she shook her head, a look of horror filling her eyes for just a moment before she began another story. Even after Ruiz and Melody had excused themselves to go to sleep she still persisted in staying awake, so he sat with her, quietly watching her until she lost the fight. He’d carried her to bed and watched her for a few minutes before he retired to his own. That was an hour ago.

  He felt her body begin to relax and then begin to shake. Her arms slipped from between them to wrap around him. She didn’t make one sound but judging by how tight she held him, her nails digging into his bare back, he knew she was still frightened.

  “It’s okay, you’re okay.”

  “I’m sorry,” she whispered.

  Reno pulled her away from him to stare at her. Her face was pale and her eyes were wet and red. The dark circles around her eyes he’d noticed when she’d first arrived seemed to have grown ever darker, and larger. She hadn’t had a goodnight sleep in a very long time.

  He smiled at her as he stroked her damp hair. “You have nothing to be sorry about.” He pulled her forward to kiss her forehead. “How about, you come sleep with me?”

  She snorted, her lips spreading in a trembling smile. “Aren’t you so sure of yourself. I might be going crazy but I know when a guy is pulling a move on me.”

  Reno chuckled shaking his head. “Yeah, you caught me. Can’t blame a guy for
taking every opportunity available, can you?”

  She shook her head, a few tears dislodging. “Well, just know I have no intentions of leaving that bed once I’m in it.”

  Her voice broke as she spoke but Reno kept his tone light and joking. He waggled his brows. “Now who is trying to take advantage of who?”

  She nodded, and then quickly wrapped her arms around his neck to hide her face in his shoulder as she finally began to sob. Reno held her tight, wishing there was a way to take her pain away. She looked like she couldn’t take anymore, and he knew soon the Crazy Lori he used to spur with was going to disappear under all this fear and grief.

  He dug one arm under her thighs while the other held her pressed to his chest. “Come on. First we are going to take a shower to help you calm down, and then I’m going to hold you while you sleep. I promise everything is going to get better. We just have to take one step at a time.”

  He carried her to his en suite room and deposited her at the door of his bathroom. She didn’t even look at him when he placed her on her feet. She walked into the bathroom wearily, stripping her sleeping shorts and shirt without even caring that he was watching. She didn’t even close the bathroom door when she turned on the shower jets and stepped into the stall naked. She just stood there, water pounding into her from all directions, her face in her hands and her shoulders shaking as she sobbed.

  Reno felt complete rage for the man who did this to her and complete despair because he had no idea how he could help her. If he only knew what exactly happened to her. He thought of calling Riana but decided against it. Whatever had happened to Loraine would have occurred recently and if he knew Loraine as well as he thought he did, she wouldn’t have said a word to Riana. Why would she share her own horrors when Riana had been living in her own nightmare at the time?

  Reno sat on the toilet seat watching her for a few more minutes then he stepped into the shower stall behind her and turned off the jets. He didn’t even care that he was getting his pants wet, all he thought about was taking care of her. When the water was shut off, he grabbed his towel and dried her off, wrapped it around her and carried her to his bed.

  She was silent the entire time, her head lowered like she was ashamed. That angered him most. She had nothing to be sorry or ashamed about. Whatever happened was not her fault.

  He pulled out one of his t-shirts from his drawers and laid it on the bed next to her then stepped out of her view and changed his wet pants for dry ones. She didn’t even make a move to touch the t-shirt. She just sat there, staring at her hands on her lap.

  Dejected and defeated wasn’t the Crazy Lori he knew and he wasn’t going to allow her to become that.

  He crouched down before her and took the shirt in his hand. “I know you are going through a lot of shit right now, and I know you’d like nothing better than to crawl under a rock and hide from all of it, but you can’t. You need to fight this or you are never going to be the same again, and he would emerge the winner again.”

  Her head shot up and she stared at him wide eyed. He felt the pit of his stomach churn. He felt nauseous. Her surprise had confirmed his worst fears and for once, he wished he was wrong.

  “Now, we are going to put this shirt on and then get into bed. I’m going to hold you until you fall asleep and I hope my presence will keep him away. But Lori, don’t get comfortable. I’m not going to let you become a shadow of yourself without a fight. Tonight you can feel miserable and angry and weak and scared all you want.” She sobbed, tears running down her eyes in a flood as she lowered her face. Reno grabbed her chin and pushed her head up. “But tomorrow Lori, there will be no more of this. One way or another, we are going to disparate that man out of your mind because he holds no power over you. As long as I’m alive, he is never going to hurt you again.”

  Loraine launched herself at him and openly cried. He lifted her into bed and laid with her, holding her tightly against his chest as she bawled. It felt like hours before she finally fell asleep. Reno watched her for a few minutes, wondering how many nights would end like this before she finally healed.

  * * * *

  “Hey, bro.” Ruiz slapped Reno’s back as he took a seat next to him at the dining table.

  Reno grunted his reply, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes. It had taken a while before he fell asleep. He kept on waiting for Loraine to wake up screaming again but she slept peacefully, her body wrapped around his just like the first time they’d shared a bed. And that time too he had kept a vigil watch over her.

  “How’s Loraine?”

  Reno rubbed the back of his neck wishing he didn’t have to go to work that morning. He needed a few hours of sleep, but he couldn’t do that. It wasn’t in him to miss work and the only time he had was the three days he was in Rome for Riana’s wedding. The fear of going back to the life he had was enough to keep him working from sun up to sun up. And his studiousness had paid off because La Paraiso was now the most sought after resort at the Cable beaches.

  When he had inherited it, it had been in the red with no prospects of ever recovering but he had done everything in his power to build it into what it was today. He’d been a waiter, a driver, a janitor. Every job that needed doing in his short staffed resort he had taken it on himself. He had applied for a loan to refurbish and promote the resort three times and every time it had been denied. Then he devised a plan to have the bank manager visit the place and had waited on him hand and foot, taking every opportunity to explain his vision to his guest. The least he could do was listen in exchange for a free weekend stay. Then early the next Monday morning, his efforts had paid off.

  Yes, that fear of failure and going back to the life of struggle and poverty was what was keeping him up that morning.

  Reno pushed away from the table and stood. “She’s still asleep. Would you please wait for her to wake up before you come in? I don’t want her to be alone.”

  “Why don’t you stay, take a nap and I’ll handle the resort. You are no good to anyone half asleep.”

  Reno’s immediate reaction was to say no but the thought of a few hours in his bed next to Loraine was very tempting. And Ruiz was quite capable of handling the running of the place.

  “Are you sure?”

  Ruiz chuckled, standing up. “It’s time you let someone else take care of you big brother. In fact, why don’t you take a few days off and take Loraine on a tour of the islands?”

  Reno shook his head. “No way. I’m only taking the morning off.”

  “You could take Loraine with you.”

  Both men turned to the sound of Melody’s voice as she walked into the room. Reno could see the concern in her eyes and he knew it was for Loraine.

  “Allan used to have nightmares like those and they scared me to death.” She tried to laugh it off but the tears in her eyes betrayed her. “We need to do something fast before she gets as bad as he did. I can’t handle that so soon after Allan.”

  Ruiz went to her and wrapped her in a hug. “Hey, everything is going to be alright, right Reno?”

  Reno just stared at them, speechless. He had no idea what to say. His own experience with Riana had frightened him as much as Melody’s and he had been powerless to do anything then too. Aurora had saved her, and years after Allan had brought his sister back.

  What exactly could he possibly do for Loraine?

  “Right. Everything will be fine.”

  * * * *

  Loraine slowly woke up feeling more rested than she had in weeks, loving the feel of Reno’s arms around her. She hadn’t known for sure but now it was a proven fact. The only way to keep the nightmares away was by sleeping in his arms.

  She slowly crawled out of bed, careful not to wake him. She was surprised to find him in bed with her in the middle of the day, but remembering the night before and his promise to watch over her made her stomach churn with guilt. He was missing work because of her.

  God she felt so stupid, and weak! He was right when he said she couldn’t buckle
to her fears anymore. It wasn’t just her life she was making miserable anymore, Reno had gotten roped into it. And if she knew anything about him, it was that the man was determined. Now his focus was on her and getting her life on track and with his kind of strength she had no excuse for letting that psycho plague her life any longer.

  She padded barefoot on the hardwood floor to his spacious kitchen. She loved his home and though it resembled a picture in a catalogue it was beautiful. The living room faced the ocean and when the sliding doors were opened the sounds and scents of the ocean floated in. And the floor to ceiling windows allowed her to watch the roaring ocean from the comfort of the couch. It was probably why his bedroom faced the ocean too. It was beautiful to wake up to.

  Loraine wanted to cook for him to show her appreciation. She had been a wreck the night before and he had taken care of her. She hadn’t even realized she had stripped naked before him until he stepped into the shower stall to turn off the jets. He’d dried her off and carried her to bed without a leering look or comment. Not many men could accomplish that, even with the best intentions.

  But Reno…he wasn’t like most men. He wasn’t like Pierre.

  Her hand stilled over the bowl of eggs she was beating. She’d never permitted herself to think that name let alone say it out loud. It had been one of her ways of coping, pretending that she never knew his name or his face, that it never happened and it was all a bad dream. She had actually achieved in making him faceless in her nightmares except for those haunting grey eyes.

  Her body shivered. The look in those eyes as he stared down at her, his body looming inches above hers would stay with her forever.

  Mon Coeur…

  The beater fell out of her trembling hand and into the glass bowl with a loud cling.

  She could still hear those soft spoken words as he whispered wetly in her ear. Then he’d kissed right behind her ear before taking her lobe into his mouth…

  “No!” she yelled loudly until her own voice rang in her ears. “You are not doing this to me anymore. I got rid of you once, I’ll do it again!”