Blazing Hot Spring

by Fiona Starr

When I open my eyes, I feel like I am dreaming. I must be, because Ash Griffin is standing on the edge of the dance floor right in front of me. I wonder how long he’s been there, if he’s been watching me. I feel my skin flush hot thinking he saw me imagine him.

  I blink. Can it really be him? The club is dark and there’s a haze from the smoke machine, and the strobing lights make it hard to see much detail. I stare at him and notice a cast on his wrist. He sees me watching him and smiles that lopsided quirk.

  ASH

  She moves to the music like it’s part of her. Her eyes are closed and her arms turn and curl around her while her hands caress her body. I wonder what she’s thinking about right now.

  Her hair is pulled up in a knot again, and she’s wearing a slip dress that barely covers her thighs. Her skin glistens in the glow of the club lights.

  I can’t look away.

  When she opens her eyes, she’s facing in my direction, but I can’t tell if she sees me. Her arms stop moving and fall to her sides and she stands still. Yeah, she’s definitely spotted me, now. There’s a moment where I think she isn’t sure, but then recognition comes over her face and she smiles.

  Relief runs through me and I realize I was holding my breath. What if she didn’t want to see me again? I take a step toward her as the music changes. The tempo increases and the crowd starts to bounce in time with the synthesizer.

  She moves in my direction.

  We meet on the dance floor and the crowd envelops us, taking us in and absorbing us into the mass.

  She gets up on her tip toes and leans against me, hands on my chest, her mouth near my ear. “What are you doing here?” She has to shout over the din.

  The smile on her face tells me that she’s glad I came.

  I bend to her ear. “I had to see you again.”

  “Dance with me!” She throws her arms up and sways to the beat. I move with her, bouncing and grinding, following her lead. She presses her back against me and the scent of her brings me to this afternoon and the incredible time we had together at the bar.

  After the second song transitions to the third, she grabs my arm and pulls me off the dance floor, leading me to the patio outside. The door swings shut and the music fades to a low roar. It takes a second for my hearing to adjust.

  “I didn’t expect to see you again.” She moves to a small metal table with two chairs and sits down.

  I take the seat opposite her. “Yeah. You said you and your friends were going dancing tonight. I figured it was worth a shot.”

  She lifts my cast. “Is it broken after all?” My fingers rest on her palm. She doesn’t pull away.

  “Just a bad sprain.”

  “Oh good. You’ll be back to work in no time.” She traces each of my fingers with hers.

  “Yeah.” I take her hand. “How is it possible that we only met today? I feel like I’ve known you much longer. Is that weird?”

  She lets her fingers weave with mine. “With someone else, maybe.” She crinkles her nose and whispers. “I feel the same way. And I also feel kind of funny about that.”

  “Yeah, me too. That’s why I came to find you. I was worried I’d creep you out showing up like this, but I didn’t want to let you slip away after… after…”

  “After such an amazing afternoon?” She finishes my thought.

  “Exactly. But as amazing as it was, it wasn’t enough. I want more.”

  She blushes and looks away. Then she shakes her head. “I can’t leave, my friends and I have a thing… we stay together when we’re out.”

  “No. I didn’t mean… I didn’t mean that. I want to talk. I want to know more about you. I feel like we did things backwards.”

  She smiles and holds my gaze a moment. “Ok. What do you want to know?”

  “I—I don’t know… um… Your work today. What are you writing your thesis on?”

  She leans back in her chair and laughs. “You ready? It’s not for the faint of heart.”

  “Lay it on me,” I say.

  She takes a deep dramatic breath. “Arguments for Implementing Sustainability Programs in Large-Scale Hospitality Applications.” She waits for my reaction. “It’s ok, most people glaze right over when I start talking about it.”

  “No. No… it’s interesting, actually. Working here I know that the trash situation is out of control. What kinds of things make a resort more sustainable? Recycling and water restrictions?”

  She sits up straight, excited. “It’s all kinds of things. The hospitality industry is a huge strain on the environment, both in terms of pollution as well as what they consume. But there are ways to change everything to make the impact less harmful. And I mean just about everything. From energy and water conservation to ensuring they use all natural and ethically sourced bath and cleaning products, dining options based on which food sources make the most sense, textiles for decor and bedding, even the room keys can be made of natural and bio-degradable materials instead of plastics.” She pauses and then covers her face. “Oh my god, I am rambling. I am so sorry.”

  I pull her hands away. “No. It’s fantastic. It’s nice to see that you’re so passionate. I am actually really interested in all of it. What got you interested in that?”

  We talk for the rest of the night, holding hands, our feet touching under the table. She tells me more about her thesis and how her family’s business got her interested in all of it.

  I tell her about my family and my sister and her baby and how that brought me here for the bar. She asks me about journalism and the fact that I don’t use my degree, and for the first time in my life, I don’t feel self-conscious sharing any of it.

  She doesn’t judge me; she is just interested, curious, and positive. I tell her about Derek and the wake-up call his death has given me, and how I’m struggling to figure things out.

  By the end of the night, we don’t even realize that the music has stopped. Bridget and I are engrossed in conversation and the rest of the world seems far, far away. When her friends come to find her, she seems as surprised as I am at the interruption.

  “We’ve been looking all over for you!” A tall blonde woman says.

  Bridget clutches her friend’s hand. “Susannah, hey. Sorry. I… um… This is Ash.”

  “Ash from this afternoon at the bar Ash?” She gapes at us. “I’ve heard so much about you.” She flashes a wicked grin.

  I walk with Bridget back to her condo. Her friends are a few yards ahead, giving us some privacy. When we get to the fork in the path that leads to her door, I stop and take her hand.

  “This was really nice. Can I see you again?” I know she’s here for the rest of the week and I want to get as much time as I can with her before she leaves.

  She smiles and bites her lip. “What about tomorrow? Breakfast?”

  “That sounds perfect. I’ll meet you here… at seven?”

  “Seven.” She nods and pulls me close.

  I kiss her and it’s sweet and slow. She places her hand on my chest and I cup the back of her head in my hand. I like the way she feels moving against me. When the kiss ends it’s like the perfect way to end the evening. “Goodnight, Bridget.”

  “Goodnight, Ash. I am glad you came to find me.”

  “Me too.”

  Chapter Seven

  BRIDGET

  The next morning, Ash meets me at the fork in the path. He’s got a single white rose in his hand and he’s made reservations at a fancy brunch place. He takes my hand and we walk along the beach, past the cove and Griffin’s Sand Bar.

  “What will you do when your sister comes back?” I ask.

  “I don’t know.” He shrugs. “I’ve been doing a lot of thinking about that. I wonder if I should start writing again. Build up a portfolio and see if I can’t get some freelance gigs to start.”

  “That’s exciting!”

  “Yeah. I have a few more weeks to go. Who knows. It’s hard to figure out what to write about.”

  “Maybe the right story will just
land in your lap, you never know.”

  “Wouldn’t that be nice? I could use a little bit of instant life-purpose.”

  I stop walking and pull his arm until he turns around. “You know, you keep talking about yourself like you’re not living up to your full potential. I mean, I get it, you’re coasting a bit right now, not sure what you want. But I look at you and I see how lucky you are. You have the space to find your path. You have the time to come down here and help your sister out for weeks at a time… that’s not a flaw in your life, that’s a quality. You ask me? I say that’s a blessing.”

  He smiles and shakes his head. “You’re really something, Bridget. Thank you. I can’t remember ever being able to share all of this with someone and not feel like a total loser. Most people I meet have everything figured out by now.”

  “You’re not most people, Ash. I think you’re going to do something great.”

  “I don’t know about that.”

  “It doesn’t have to change the world to be something great, you know. It just has to mean something to you. And most times, when you find something meaningful, it’s also something that makes a difference, too. That’s what makes things great.”

  “You’re so optimistic. I need some of that.”

  “Careful, I hear it’s contagious.”

  After breakfast, we walk back along the shore and stop at Griffin’s bar.

  “This is me,” he says.

  “Yes, it is.” I rock on my bare feet and smile up at him. “Thank you for a lovely morning.”

  “Thank you for joining me. Want to do it again tomorrow?” He kisses me once, a quick peck. “And the next day.” He kisses me again. “And the next… wait, how many more days are you in town?”

  “Three more breakfasts.” I get up on my toes and plant a good one on him.

  “What do you say? I won’t have another night off while you’re here, but breakfast is always open.”

  “I’d really like that. And it still gives me time to work and time with my friends at night.”

  “Then it’s a date. Tomorrow. Same time, same place.” He backs away, watching me, letting my hand fall from his grasp when he gets too far to hang on.

  I press the rose to my nose and spin on my heels and continue along the beach path back to the house.

  ASH

  I feel like I am floating to the bar. I don’t know when I’ve ever felt this good about anything. Not just about Bridget, but life… my future. There’s a tiny fire inside me and it’s finally urging me to do something real.

  I head to the cabana office and when I get to the door, Luis is there with that guy from last night. Just like last time, the hairs on my neck stand on end.

  “Hey!” I call after the guy.

  He doesn’t turn around, but instead double-times it and keeps walking away like he hadn’t heard me. But we both know he did.

  I push open the office door. “Luis, who was that guy? What was he doing here?”

  “Ash, hey. Nothing. He’s—”

  “Yeah, he’s nobody. You said that last night when he was here too. I didn’t believe you then and I definitely don’t believe you now. What gives?” I drop myself onto the sofa. “Is everything all right?”

  Luis lowers himself into the desk chair and rubs his face. “Annie made me swear to keep you out of it.”

  The mention of my sister’s name sends alarms through my head. “Annie? What’s going on, Luis? You might as well tell me, or I’ll just find out some other way.”

  He looks up at the ceiling and leans the chair all the way back.

  “He’s with the policia—a cop. He was here to pick up a payment.”

  “Payment? For what?”

  “Ah, your sister is going to kill me for telling you.”

  “I won’t tell her it was you.”

  “You forget we’re talking about Annie.” He sighs heavily. “Last year, the mando único—the police—started a task force to stop corruption with the sanitation department in Cancún. Trash is big business at the resorts and there are lots of crazy rules. Then all the sudden, these inspectors start coming by. Checking to see if we have this bogus form or that non-existent license or what have you. We pay them, they go away.” He shrugs as if that’s all there is to say.

  “So that cop… he’s part of the task force?”

  Luis nods. “He runs the task force.”

  “But wait, you said he was here for a payment.”

  “Yeah. He also runs the inspectors.”

  I whistle. “So the whole thing’s a scam? That guy was here for a shakedown?”

  “That’s about the size of it, yeah.” He looks ashamed and beaten down.

  “Why did he come back today if he was already here last night?”

  “Yeah, about that. Thanks for making the bank deposit for me. There wasn’t enough cash on hand last night to pay the dude.”

  “Oh man, I didn’t know.”

  “I know. You weren’t meant to know anything about it. Your sister’s got everything under control. She wanted you to have nothing to do with any of it.”

  I can’t believe this is happening. “What about other cops? Isn’t there someone you can call? Escalate it to the chief or something?”

  “You don’t understand. The police in Cancún—it’s the federal, state, and local police all rolled into one. They work together.”

  “And?”

  “And that guy?” He points at the window. “He works with the new chief.”

  “You’ve got to be kidding me.”

  I spend the rest of the morning at the computer researching the local paper’s website and after a few hours, I have a list of reporters at the Yucatan Times who’ve covered anything to do with sanitation, salvage, or police corruption. It looks like there are three reporters who cover the main stories.

  I call the paper and leave a message with each of their voice mails, telling them I’m a reporter investigating and trying to get an idea of how the sanitation scheme works down here.

  By the time I’m done, it’s lunch time and I have only a couple of hours before I have to open the bar.

  I close the laptop and leave my notebook on the desk and lock up the cabana office. I tuck the keys into my pocket, turn around, and everything goes black.

  Huge hands punch me in the stomach. I double over, clutching at my abdomen.

  Someone grabs my neck, pulls me to the side. “We hear you’re making calls you shouldn’t be making,” a male voice whispers in my ear.

  Rough hands grab my arms and pull them behind my back. They cinch plastic tie wraps over my wrists, pulling them awkwardly away from my body as one of them forces me forward. “The boss would like a word with you.”

  Then I’m lifted off my feet and tossed into the back of a truck. I hear the sliding door slam down and the air goes from normal to sweltering in seconds. I lay down on my side and try to calm my breathing.

  This isn’t going to be good.

  Chapter Eight

  BRIDGET

  I wake while it’s still dark. I get dressed and hurry down to the beach to catch the sunrise. It’s a ritual I’ve had since I was a little kid. Whenever I’m about to embark on some new path, I set my alarm and make sure to get up to watch the sunrise so I can make a wish on the biggest star in the sky.

  There is something magical about starting the first new day of the new thing in the exact moment the day begins. My dad calls them my Big Star Plans, and today it feels right to mark my hopes for me and Ash.

  I know we just met but I really feel like I’m starting something with him. Something that feels real and has potential. Yeah, we kinda started it off backward with sex first and dating second, but that doesn’t seem to matter at all. He’s special, and I think he thinks I’m special too.

  A large cruise ship is the only bright spot on the dark horizon. It inches along, the light from the decks reflecting off the black water. I look at my phone. It’s only about half an hour until sunrise, and then another ho
ur after that until I get to see Ash again. I can’t shake this feeling that something really good is beginning with us. Thinking about him makes my belly flutter.

  I lay my blanket on the cool sand and sit down to wait for the sun.

  It’s ten after seven and there’s no sign of Ash. I’m standing at the end of the path and starting to make excuses for him. Maybe he overslept. Maybe he forgot. But it doesn’t take long before the other voice creeps in. Maybe he had no intention of coming. Maybe I got it all wrong.

  By twenty after I give up and head back to the house. My friends are all awake now and heading to the beach so I change into my bikini and wrap, grab my hat, and join them.

  FRIDAY

  The next morning, I decide to give Ash the benefit of the doubt and I am at the fork in the path at seven. This time I only give him ten minutes before I head back inside. I feel like a fool for believing anything he said. But really I’m just confused. He seemed genuine.

  I didn’t get the player vibe off him at all. The girls think he was leading me on, but toward what? It’s not like he was looking to get in my pants… he already got that. I don’t understand.

  Susannah joins me at the table with a bloody Mary. “Why don’t you go to him? Walk up to that bar and tell him he’s an Ash-hole.”

  I smile but I want to defend him; he isn’t an asshole. Is he?

  Should I go to the bar? Part of me really wants to. But I am still stuck on how wrong I got everything. I really thought there was something legit between us. If I go to the bar and he’s a jerk to me, I just don’t know if I can face that.

  I had my hopes up. I wished on the sunrise.

  SATURDAY

  Well, this is it; our last few hours in Cancún. My flight leaves at three and I need to be up at the main pavilion to check out and get the shuttle around noon. I pack up my suitcase and slip my computer into my bag, shaking my head. I can’t believe I let this whole week slip by without getting any work done.