by KB Winters
I’d quickly packed two suitcases, gotten in my car and high-tailed it over to Gigi’s. Still, despite the fact that I’d made my decision, I wasn’t even sure how to start. Thankfully, Gigi and I were internet sleuths and we dug through all of the old messages I’d gotten from Blake on the marriage website finding out that he lived in Kenai, Alaska. Getting a last minute flight there from Seattle hadn’t been as hard as I’d have thought and after landing in Seattle with Gigi and Constance, I only had to wait an hour before my next flight. Seven hours and one layover in Anchorage later, and I was safely in my suite in Kenai.
Gigi had raised a bit of a stink at the fact that the highest rated hotel in Kenai was only three stars, but after I promised to call them when I got there, she relented. At that reminder, I pulled out my cell phone and prayed that I’d have halfway decent service.
“Oh my god, tell me you haven’t been eaten by a bear?”
I laughed. “Gigi, if I’d been eaten by a bear, do you really think I’d be calling you right now?” I shook my head at her penchant for dramatics. “How are you guys?”
“How are we? What kind of a—hold on Tay, let me put you on speaker phone.” I heard some slight movement before the phone clicked. “Okay, are you still there?”
I smiled. “Yes. I’m still here and still alive. No bears in sight.”
“Good to know,” Constance chimed in. “What’s the weather like up there?”
“Much warmer than I thought it would be,” I replied lying back on the bed. “Then again, it is only five o’clock in the afternoon. I don’t know if it’s supposed to go down too much or not. I probably won’t try to take a tour of the town until tomorrow.”
“What are you going to eat then? Does the hotel even have room service there?” I snorted at Gigi’s question. Sometimes she could be remarkably pampered, though truthfully I’d been wondering that myself.
“No idea, but they do have free Wi-Fi.”
“Don’t all hotels have that?”
Constance’s question made me giggle. We all were silent then and I wondered what the other girls were thinking. “Are you guys okay?”
“Seriously, Taylor. You ask the craziest questions sometimes,” Gigi said. “We’re fine. Constance and I are in civilization—not to mention our hotel has room service. You’re alone, in the wilderness with bears and crazy mountain people. Stop asking about us and start thinking about you.”
“I hate to admit it, but Gigi’s right,” Constance spoke up. “I know we all brainstormed and everything, but how are you going to find Blake?”
I sighed. “I don’t know guys. I mean, this place isn’t that big. The guide said there are only like seven-thousand people here so if I ask around, someone is bound to know him. Right?”
“I hope so.”
Despite how sure I tried to sound, I couldn’t help but hope so too. I had a vague plan for trying to find Blake, but it was pretty shaky at best. The thought of being here for a week, alone, and having to leave before I even found him was depressing.
“Listen Tay,” Gigi said reeling my attention back in. “I know I’ve had some strong words to say about finding this guy, but promise me something. If you don’t find him in the next two days, promise me you’ll get a new ticket and come back down to Seattle. I don’t like the thought of you up there alone for a whole week.”
“Same for me Taylor. I know it’s a small city, but people are crazy and I don’t even want to think about the wildlife.”
I smiled at my friends’ very valid concerns for me. I had those same worries myself and while a part of me wanted to promise them I’d return if I didn’t find him and ease their fears—a larger part of me knew I couldn’t give up.
“I can hear her thinking over there Constance. I don’t like it.”
“I hear it too.”
I snorted. “Both of you are insane. Listen. I’m going to go to one of the popular diners for dinner and see if maybe someone there knows who Blake is. I promise that I’ll call you guys when I get back in, and I’ll think about coming home early if I don’t find him. Okay?” I knew that wasn’t what they wanted to hear, but it was all I was willing to commit to right then. Thankfully they didn’t make too much of a fuss.
“Fine. Be careful though. I don’t want to have to explain to Mommy Dearest why her precious meal ticket has disappeared,” Gigi huffed.
I saluted the phone. “Absolutely. I’ll call you guys back in a few hours.”
“Okay,” Constance replied. “Be safe.”
“You too.”
After disconnecting the call, I just laid there for a moment to gather my resolve. I was in a strange new city, with strange new people. I didn’t know what wildlife there was or what I should do if I even came across it. “I really didn’t think this out very well,” I muttered to myself before pushing my body back up in a seated position. I hadn’t been thinking of anything other than proving myself—which I could hardly do without getting up and getting out there.
“Get a grip girl.” I stood up from the bed and moved to my suitcases. I figured freshening up would help me feel better, and then I’d look up somewhere to go. I’d driven myself to the hotel from the airport and saw a few places to eat. There was also a very eccentric looking café that looked interesting enough to try. I doubted I’d find a Starbucks, but at least I’d get some caffeine into my body one way or another.
After showering, I felt a little more relaxed. The hotel at least had excellent water pressure that helped relieve some of the tightness in my muscles—thanks to stress and traveling coach all the way up here. I regretted not calling in a favor and getting a chartered flight out, but I didn’t want my mother to have any ways of tracking me down. She didn’t need to know where I was.
Plus, I figured that if I was going to let my heart choose my future, I might as well get used to not flying first class. I knew Blake had had enough money to join the site, but I didn’t know if that was a onetime thing or if that was something he could afford to do continuously.
Driving through the streets in Kenai was nothing like driving through the streets of Los Angeles. The traffic, if it could even be called that here, was minimal at best even during the peak of rush hour. I was still glad that I’d paid extra for the GPS in my rental car because I didn’t want to get lost and run into a dead end. When I pulled into the parking lot of the café, I was surprised to see quite a few cars were there. Then again, it was a Saturday night. The decor outside of the building was warm and welcoming, and I smiled up at the sign as I passed through the doorway. The smell of coffee and bread was comforting and the pictures and decorations were pleasantly eccentric.
“Can I help you?”
I looked away from one of the pictures on the wall and focused on the person who’d just spoken. The woman was a bit shorter than me with dark brown hair and warm brown eyes. Her smile was soft and it made me smile back in response.
“Oh, yes. Do I just sit anywhere or…”?
She laughed and walked over to my side before linking an arm with mine. “You aren’t from around here are you?”
I felt my cheeks heat. “That obvious?”
“Honey, your boots and purse alone look like they cost more than my entire wardrobe.” She led me over to a small table in a corner and placed a menu on the table. “My name’s Anne-Marie and I’ll take care of ya. Let me know when you’re ready to order.”
“Sure,” I replied. “Well, honestly I just wanted to get an espresso.”
Anne-Marie nodded with a smile and took a pad out of her back pocket. “Sure, honey. Do you want a latte or a cappuccino?”
“A latte please, with nonfat milk if you have it.”
“Of course, and might I suggest a slice of our famous homemade coffee cake. It’s rich in flavor and calories, but a tiny young thing like you can definitely enjoy it with no worries. Now an old wench like me, I even get a whiff of the sweet thing and I swear I gain ten pounds. It’s a nightmare.”
I giggled.
If all of the people were like her, I had a feeling I was really going to enjoy it here. “That sounds great.”
“Alright, Sugar. I’ll be right back.”
I smiled and settled back in my chair. It was interesting to just look around at the people there. Even back home I’d always been a fan of people watching. Gigi and I used to do it a lot when we were kids and we would make up all sorts of wild stories about who the people were and what they were doing. It was something we still occasionally enjoyed doing when we had time. Constance usually just sat there trying to shush us, but even she occasionally gave in and made up some stories.
“Here you are, honey,” Anne-Marie said. She placed a steaming mug in front of me along with a colorful plate with a thick slice of cake on it. “Your nonfat latte and your all-fat cake. I think those two balance one another out perfectly, don’t ya think?” She winked, drawing another giggle from me before turning to serve the other customers.
I took a tentative sip of my latte trying hard not to burn myself in the process. The feeling of hot caffeine sliding down my throat made me shiver and I instantly felt my mind perk up. My first bite of the coffee cake had a similar result. I let out a wanton groan as the rich sweet flavors burst across my tongue. Anne-Marie walked by my table again with a knowing grin and I smiled widely.
As I continued to make my way through the cake and latte, I let my eyes wander again this time over the decor on the walls. There were a lot of pictures of random people and I wondered if they were all locals. One picture in particular caught my eye. It was of a large resort, but that wasn’t what made me get out of my seat. The reason I got up to look at the picture more closely was because of the tall familiar figure posing in it.
“Hey Anne-Marie,” I called out as I examined the photo. I could hear her walk over to me.
“What’s up, Sugar?”
I pointed at Blake and looked over at her. “This guy, Blake. I’m looking for him.”
Her eyebrows shot up. “You’re looking for Blake? Why? Is he in some kind of trouble?”
“No, nothing like that. I met him in Los Angeles.” I could see her expression turning suspicious so I tried to think fast. “I’m friends with one of his old navy buddies and he told me to contact Blake when I got here to get an idea of where to stay and what to do.”
Anne-Marie looked me up and down. “You don’t seem like the type to want to do fly-fishing or hunting.”
I internally gagged at the thought of doing either of those and figured honesty would be the best policy here. “And you would be completely correct in that regard, I mean, look at me. I am not the fly-fishing, hunting type of girl. Not that there’s anything wrong with liking those,” I added quickly. She laughed and clapped me on the shoulder.
“No worries. Truthfully, neither am I. That’s why I run a café. Now as far as places to stay, there’s a nice three-star hotel down the road or you could drive a bit further and get a room at Blake’s uncle’s fishing lodge. It’s a bit more rugged as far as decor, but the old man does try to spruce it up every now and then.”
My heart leapt at the thought of having found Blake already and I tried to reel in my excitement. “Perfect. I’ll head over there now and see if there are any rooms available.”
“Want me to pack up your cake and coffee to go?”
I smiled slyly. “The coffee, yes. The cake is already gone though. It was too good to stop.”
Anne-Marie looked at me for a moment before throwing her head back and laughing loudly. When she looked back at me, I could see a tiny shard of approval in her gaze. “Alright then, let’s go pack up your coffee. And make sure you come back and visit me here.”
“Keep making cake like that and you’ll never get rid of me,” I joked with a smile. I went back to sit at my table and wait for my coffee to go. When she brought it back out, I paid my bill making sure to leave a hefty tip and called out a good-bye to Anne-Marie. With the name of the lodge, it was easy for me to find it in the GPS system and soon enough I was on my way. When I saw the structure in my windshield, I felt the butterflies in my stomach come back with a vengeance. I had to sit for a moment and take a few deep breaths before I could even undo my seat belt. My footsteps felt heavy as I approached the large double doors and I looked up at the sky quickly as if asking for guidance.
When I opened the door and took a step inside, the first thing I noticed was a giant bear statue looming over me. It was impressive in a terrifying way and I tried to ignore how its sheer size made me want to slink away and hide, preferably somewhere with reinforced steel doors. I didn’t even know bears could grow to that size.
“That’s nothing. You should see the one we have at city hall.”
I whirled around at the sound of a man’s voice. My gaze focused on an older gentleman who was sitting at the front desk and reading what looked to be a hunting magazine. When I didn’t respond, he looked up at me. “Can I help you find something miss?”
I shook my head. “No, well yes. I’m actually looking for a person—a guy named Blake.”
The older man narrowed his eyes at me and I suddenly felt very self-conscious. “Blake isn’t here right now.”
I felt my body deflate slightly. “Of course he isn’t, because that would just make things way too easy for me,” I muttered.
“Why are you looking for him? Is he in some kind of trouble?”
I looked back up. “No. I just was looking for him, that’s all. I’ll just check back tomorrow.”
The man nodded. “You could do that, or you could walk over to Frankie’s pub where he usually spends his nights these days. He’s been acting strange since he came back from his trip to L.A.” He stopped and looked at me suspiciously. “But you wouldn’t happen to know anything about that, would you?”
I blinked not knowing what to say. “Um…I don’t think so. I mean, I met him there, but I don’t know why he’d be acting strange.”
He looked me up and down for a few moments longer before turning back to his magazine. “Well you go on over and see if you can find him there. Tell him Uncle Bob wants to see his ass here manning the desk tomorrow morning at six sharp. None of those half-assed excuses that he’s been giving me for the past two weeks.”
I nodded. “Yes sir, I’ll be sure to let him know.”
The man, Bob, dismissed me with a wave of his hand. “You do that.” He lifted the magazine back up to his face, but not before I saw the corners of his lips turn up in a smile. I decided to count that as another win and turned to exit. When I stepped back outside, I pulled my scarf more securely around my face. The air had turned chillier than it was before, but thankfully Bob was being truthful about the pub being a short walk away. I could see the neon sign for it from the door so walked towards it.
The décor outside the pub was the opposite of that from the café. There was a picture of a scantily clad woman on the window, and I could hear some really terrible music pouring from the closed doorway. Still, I couldn’t let tonight go to waste. With a quick deep breath, I pushed open the door and stepped into the pub.
The muffled music that I had heard through the doorway didn’t sound any better once I was inside. It was a horribly corny sounding country song that made me want to stick my fingers in my ears just to block it. There was no one at the door to card me which was surprising. In L.A. everywhere made sure to card unless you gave the bouncers enough money to go around that they all ignored your obviously underaged ass. Here, not many people looked like they could even pass for being younger than thirty-five, and I wondered if there were any people my age and if so, where they were on a Saturday night.
“Hey there, pretty lady,” slurred a drunken voice near my ear. I leaned away and turned to look at the man who had invaded my personal space. His eyes were bloodshot and the stench of alcohol was potent even with me putting inches between us.
“No thanks,” I replied quickly, not even letting him get another word out. I turned away and swiftly put some distance between us. Dr
unken men seemed to be the same in any state, and I didn’t want to get caught up with trying to defend myself in a strange town where I didn’t know any one.
I took a deep breath when there were no other drunken come-ons directed my way. I figured the best place to be in order to scope out the entire place was the bar, so I politely excused my way through the surprisingly thick crowd of people. I was expecting to see a worn down and slightly sticky bar counter. What I wasn’t expecting to see was Blake sitting at that counter with some other woman.
I stopped in my tracks as I watched Blake and the woman converse. When she turned her head to laugh, I almost smirked at how unattractive she was. What was Blake, a man who could have passed for a model in any country, doing with a woman who looked like she’d never even seen a mirror? I knew judging her like that was petty of me—but I couldn’t help but pick apart her features in my head, especially when she leaned forward placing her hand on Blake’s leg.
The fact that he seemed equally as enraptured with what she was saying made my blood boil and before I could even attempt to pull back my rage, I was behind him tapping on his shoulder.
When Blake turned around, his look of surprise was enough to make me smirk meanly as I gestured to the woman beside him.
“Who the fuck is this?” My voice was calm though I felt anything but. If not for my desire to have Blake see me as something other than a spoiled gold-digger, I’d have screamed my head off and maybe even thrown something. As it was I just waited calmly for him to answer my question.
“Taylor? What are you doing here?”
I moved my gaze from the obviously annoyed woman to Blake. “I came here, all the way from fucking Los Angeles, to talk to you about what happened with us.”
“What happened with us? Last I remember, you were all dolled up playing princess with your rich prince.” Blake turned away.
“Well you remembered wrong,” I insisted. “You made some snap judgment about me based on what—one picture! You didn’t even give me time to explain to you before you sent a mean email and made it so I couldn’t even respond.”