“Excuse me!”
Someone was speaking in my direction, but I didn’t want to stop and talk so I ignored them.
“Excuse me. Sir?”
Dammit. “Yes?
“Mr. Kelley?”
Annoyed, I barked, “Yes? What is it?”
Then, seeing a terrified looking woman at the front desk, I softened my tone. “I’m Liam Kelley. What can I do for you?”
“I just wanted to let you know that the General Manager informed me that a suite opened up here in the Main House, and we have set it aside for you as apologies for the inconvenience when you checked in. If you’d like, we can have your things sent over from the bungalow this afternoon.”
“Oh, that’s all right. I’ve gotten rather used to being in the bungalow. It’s fine.”
“Are you sure? It’s no problem at all to have your things sent over.”
“No, really. I prefer to just stay where I am.”
“All right. Well, if you change your mind in the next hour or two, let me know.”
“I will. Thank you.” What I really wanted to do was get out to the pool area and get in the hot tub like all the rest of the guests. I wanted to feel inconspicuous.
***
“Can I get you another drink, sir?” The pool waitress leaned over me as I was laying on the lounge chair. All I could see of her were her perfectly round breasts spilling out of the tight tank top.
“Yes, please.” I was on my third Bahama Mama. Not only was it a fun drink to say, it was a fun drink to drink. I might have to switch over from martinis permanently... Needless to say, I was feeling much more relaxed laying here by the pool.
Speaking of breasts, I wonder how Jenny is doing.
I pulled out my phone to text her.
How is Julie? How are you?
I set the phone on the little table next to me and leaned back and closed my eyes. What am I going to do about the cave situation? I really ought to report it to the hotel management. On the other hand, I don’t want to get in trouble with whoever put it there. Maybe I’ll wait until I get back to the States. Or, just do nothing. It’s none of my business and this whole James Bond thing could blow up in my face.
My phone dinged. It was Jenny writing back.
She’s pretty sick still. They are going to keep her overnight for observation, and if she doesn’t get any better, I think we’re flying back to the States tomorrow.
I texted back.
Food poisoning?
I couldn’t imagine what else would make her so sick. Maybe heat stroke from the sauna?
I laid back down on the chair and closed my eyes while I waited for a response. A shadow moved over my face. It was probably the waitress with my drink. Opening my eyes, I saw more breasts. I love the Bahamas.
But these were different breasts. They were not attached to the pool waitress. Putting my hand up to shield the sun from my eyes, I groaned out loud. “Kayla.”
“What’s a hunk of a man like you doing drinking alone?” She plopped her breasts and the rest of her bikini-clad self down in the chair next to me.
Where did that old couple go? Why did they have to leave their chairs empty right now?
Kayla started waving her hands and calling out loudly. “BJ! BJ over here!” Within a minute, the other one was there, too.
Maybe I’ll just go back to the bungalow.
But, I realized that to do so would mean driving the golf cart back and I was really in no condition to drive.
I probably should have let them put me in the suite. This driving is getting annoying.
Kayla and BJ kept trying to talk to me, despite the fact that I’d laid back and put a towel over my face. I was seriously considering going to see if the atrium was open. At least in there I could have some peace and quiet.
“So, then, after the cooking class, BJ and I were wondering where we could get the ingredients in the US. I mean, Amazon does deliver pretty much everything, but how expensive would it be to find actual goji berries? They are so good for you, with all the antioxidants and everything.”
Without a word, I took the towel off my head, got up, and dove into the cool water of the crystal clear swimming pool.
Ahhhh, silence.
Chapter Nineteen Jenny: There’s No Place Like Home
“It appears that she is experiencing severe withdrawals from the prescription medications she was taking. Thank you for giving us the containers so that we could determine the proper course of treatment.” Dr. Monsegue was standing by a very pale looking Julie who was lying in a bed in the infirmary.
I was impressed at the quality level of medical care at the retreat, honestly. It appeared they had a full “mini-hospital” right on the property. I learned that we were fortunate that the retreat had its own medical facilities, since most hospitals in the Bahamas don’t take US insurance and would require a cash payment up front just to treat Julie.
Of course, true medical emergencies were transferred to a local hospital or med-evacuated to the United States. But, apparently the infirmary was used to dealing with medication emergencies such as this. Usually the patients were there for an accidental overdose, not severe withdrawal. Being a wellness retreat, though, it did happen. People would come and try and get their life clean and then experience such severe withdrawal that they needed medical attention.
“How long will I be in the infirmary?” Julie asked Dr. Monsegue.
“I’d like to keep you here for another 24 hours for observation. Your vitals are improving and your risk of seizure is negligible at this point. But we still have you on IV fluids. Let’s plan on you going back to your room tomorrow.”
“Sounds good, doctor. Thank you for taking such good care of my sister.” The relief washed over me.
Dr. Monsegue left the room and I turned to Julie. “Some vacation this turned out to be, huh?”
“Actually, I’ve been thinking about that. I’m glad I came and this happened. I didn’t realize how bad the whole prescription thing had gotten. First it was anti-depressants after Mom died. Then Ambien. Then medication for my knee. Plus, no one told me, really, not to drink. I mean, I knew not to drink while I was taking Ambien, but no one really said I shouldn’t drink the next day. The whole thing just got too crazy and I’m glad to be off of all of it.”
“What do you think you’ll do about sleeping?” I sat down on the edge of the bed.
“It sounds crazy, but I think I’m going to try meditation. They’ve had Napur Priyanka on the CCTV here and they’ve been talking about it.”
“Next thing you know you’ll become one of those raw food vegan hippies.”
Julie laughed and said, “Hey, who knows? I just might.”
“Okay, well, I’m going to take off for a bit. Grab some food. Are you okay with being alone for awhile?”
“I am. I’m just gonna sleep for a bit. Oh, and Jen?”
“Yeah?”
“While you’re grabbing things, you might wanna grab another piece of Liam. He’s a hottie.”
“Very funny.”
***
I decided to get a smoothie at the juice bar by the pool. Maybe I should take a clue from Julie and start paying more attention to my own health. Less chardonnay and more green drinks.
Rounding the corner to the pool area, my heart sank when I saw Kayla and BJ by the pool. Not wanting another confrontation with them, I crossed over to the other side of the pool area.
Just then, my phone beeped, indicating I’d gotten a text. Hoping it was from Liam, I was disappointed to see that it was from the office back home telling me that they’d shipped the rest of the items from my office to my house.
Great. Another reminder of the mess I need to clean up when I get home.
Hitting the “close” button on the phone, I heard cackling laughter coming from the direction of Kayla and BJ. I was about to ignore it when I heard a male voice, too. Turning to look, I saw it was Liam. He’d just gotten out of the pool and looked insanely sexy s
tanding there dripping wet.
Kayla and BJ were fawning all over him and he seemed to be enjoying the attention immensely.
Well, that was fast. Your suspicion was right, Jenny. It was just vacation sex. He’s now on to the next one.
Suddenly, I just wanted to go home. “I’m going to end the vacation early and as soon as Julie gets out of the infirmary, we’ll head home.”
“Did you say something ma’am?” The girl at the smoothie counter was looking at her blankly.
“Oh, I’m sorry. I was talking to myself.”
Now you’re talking to yourself in public, Jenny. It’s definitely time to get home.
Chapter Twenty Liam: Big Brother
“Did you see her?” Kayla was talking in a loud whisper to BJ. I was back laying on a lounge chair by the pool with a towel over my face trying to ignore them. I’d wanted to move, but all the other chairs were still taken.
BJ laughed and said in an equally low whisper, “Barely. All she ever does is lurk. But as soon as she saw Liam, she crossed over to the other side of the pool. Clearly she knows he’s out of her league.”
I felt a sudden rush of anger rise and whipped the towel off of my face. “Excuse me? What did you just say?”
Kayla’s face morphed from smug mocking to one of feigned innocence. “Oh, I’m sorry. Could you hear that?”
“Who were you talking about?”
“Actually, we were talking about that girl you were with before.” Leaning forward, Kayla lowered her voice in a gossipy way and said, “I don’t mean to tell you who to hang around with or anything, but she and her sister are both trouble with a capital T. I heard the sister tried to kill herself with prescription drugs and is now in the infirmary. And she has explosive rage issues. Isn’t that right BJ?”
“It’s true. She totally went off on Kayla in the bar a couple days ago.”
I’d had enough. “You know what? You have no idea what you’re talking about. The two of you are just like the girls in high school who bully everyone else.” I threw the towel down and stood up.
“Wait, I’m sorry... I didn’t mean to...” Kayla had that damn pouty thing going on again.
“Yes you did. You meant every damn word. Jenny is a good woman, and you wouldn’t know a thing about that. You should just shut the fuck up and mind your own goddamn business.”
I stomped off. I was sick of people and just wanted to go back to the bungalow. I was sure it had been long enough that if someone had seen me leaving the cave, they would have let me know by now.
***
Everything looked normal when I pulled the golf cart up to the bungalow. Still nervous, I looked around the outside before going in, to see if there was anything out of place. I didn’t see anything—it all looked just as I’d left it this morning. Even though I had a black belt in Tae Kwon Do, I wasn’t about to start a fight with a drug lord.
As soon as I put the key in the lock of the door, though, I knew something was off. The door wasn’t locked. Shit. I had definitely locked it before I left. Hadn’t I?
I slowly pushed the door open and waited a moment to listen inside. Was there anyone here? Maybe I was just being paranoid and it was housekeeping or maintenance. “Hello?”
There was no answer, and I couldn’t hear any sounds. With one foot, I slowly opened the door, arms up in a defensive position in case anyone jumped out at me.
Walking in, I felt a blow to the stomach. Not from another person, but from what I saw when I entered the bungalow. The entire place had been ransacked! The wicker couch was turned upside down, along with the coffee table. The magazines that were on the table were strewn on the floor. Throw pillows had been sliced open and their contents pulled out.
In the tiny kitchen, I could see that the intruders had opened every cabinet and swept the dishes and glassware onto the floor. The refrigerator was left open and the microwave was pulled out from its electrical socket. I was almost afraid to go into the bedroom to see what they did in there.
Sure enough, the bedroom looked about the same as the rest of the bungalow. The mattress had been pulled off the bed frame. My clothes had been pulled out of the drawers and off the hangers in the closet. Fortunately, I was in the habit of carrying my money, passport, and other important possessions with me, so they didn’t get to those.
In the bathroom, the bottles of shampoo and conditioner were emptied and their contents smeared all over the floor and walls. I couldn’t even walk in without getting it all over my shoes. It was time to call security.
Making my way to the house phone, which was off the hook, I dialed the extension for security. “I’d like to report a break-in.”
***
A leisurely 45 minutes later, one security guard showed up. The guy must have been 60 years old, and was so skinny that his security uniform was saggy on him. He walked around, taking some notes on a yellow notepad and taking a few pictures on his phone. He asked me how the intruder might have gotten in, since there was no apparent break in. No windows or doors were broken, and the door was unlocked.
“Maybe you forgot to lock the door?”
“I did not forget to lock the door. I live in a large city, and don’t forget to lock my doors.”
“It was reported that you lost the key to this place a few days ago. Maybe you forgot that you gave it to someone?”
“Look...” I looked at the man’s uniform to read his name. “...Winston, I didn’t give the key to anyone, I didn’t forget to lock the door. This was in no way my fault and I don’t appreciate you walking in here and insinuating that this is my responsibility in any way.”
The man’s demeanor changed. “No, no, Mr. Kelley. I’m not suggesting that at all. Look, why don’t I help you gather your things and we’ll move you to the Main House.”
I thought about it for a few moments. On the one hand, a rational person would probably go and take the room at the Main House. But, when I was training for my black belt, I learned that sometimes the best defense is to just use the others’ momentum against him. I didn’t want whoever did this to think that I was intimidated. It felt important that I stand my ground.
“No, that’s fine. I want to stay here.”
“Are you sure, Mr. Kelley? It’s safer for you if you come with me to the Main House.”
“No, thank you. But would you mind helping me get the mattress back on the bed at least?”
“Not a problem, sir.”
We spent the next twenty minutes cleaning up a little, and as Winston was leaving he tried one more time to get me to move to the Main House.
“I’ll be fine, Winston. Thank you for your help tonight.”
“My pleasure, Mr. Kelley. You seem like a very nice man. I’m sorry this happened to you.”
“Have a good night.”
“You, too.”
As Winston closed the door behind him, I headed into the bathroom to wash my face. We’d cleaned off the floor and Winston said he’d send housekeeping over in the morning with some fresh towels and shampoo. But, maybe there was a spare soap or something in the medicine chest.
When I opened the medicine chest, a note fluttered out of it and onto the ground. I picked it up and read it.
Did you think there wouldn’t be cameras in the cave? We saw you. Stay away or the next time the damage will be more personal.
For a moment, I wished I’d taken Winston up on the offer. The feeling passed, though. I could handle this. So I washed my face with water and climbed into bed, making sure that my pocket knife was right next to me.
Chapter Twenty One Jenny: Heavy Heart
“Do you need anything?” I got Julie settled in her bed in our suite after she was released from the infirmary. “I just feel so bad you aren’t getting to enjoy the retreat.”
“Having my big sister wait on me hand and foot is pretty amazing, if you ask me.”
She leaned back on the pillows, and I was relieved to see that Julie was looking much better.
“Do I ge
t a little bell to ring so you’ll come running if I need anything?”
“Hahahaha, you’re definitely feeling better. No, you do not get a bell. That’s what room service is for.”
I grabbed my purse and went to kiss Julie on the cheek.
“Where are you off to? Kissing Mr. Handsome, I hope.”
He’s too busy kissing someone else. “No, I’m going to try and see if we can change our flights home. I don’t know about you, but I’m ready to go home.”
“Yeah. I mean, I wouldn’t mind staying. But, on the other hand, I’m still feeling pretty weak and would love to be at home with my bed and my cat to finish the rest of my vacation from home. I don’t have the energy for hiking or swimming or anything.”
“Right? And I have a job to find.”
“Okay, well, let me know how it goes. I’m going to take a little nap before dinner.”
Headed toward the door, I turned and said, “I love you, Julie. I’m glad you’re better.” But, Julie was already asleep.
***
I was standing at the concierge's desk when I saw him walk in.
“So, you’d like to change your reservation and leave immediately, is that correct?”
Just like the first time I’d laid eyes on Liam, I barely heard the woman as she was speaking. I was mesmerized by how beautiful a man Liam was. Every single time I looked at him, I felt a powerful attraction rise in my body. It was more than just physical. It was visceral.
“Ma’am? Is that correct?”
“What? Oh yes.” I turned and focused on what I was doing. Leaving. I need to leave. Put that man and this place out of my mind and get back to my real life.
“Is there something we can do to make your stay better?” The woman had a genuine look of concern on her face.
“No. My sister has been ill and we really would just like to get back to the States.”
“Oh, I see. Well, let me take a look.” She began clacking on the keyboard, and I took the opportunity to look around to see if Liam was still in the lobby. He was not. “I’m afraid the first flight out isn’t for about 48 hours. Will that be alright with you?”
Provocative Paradise: A Secret Stranger Romance Page 10