They pulled up to the guest house and parked. Alexander opened the car door and got out. Alex looked back at Claire before helping her out. “I hope I didn’t say anything to offend you. I assure you I meant no disrespect to either of you.”
“None taken. You’re a pretty good judge of character.” Claire got out and led the way to the front steps to the house. “Are you from New York City?” She turned to ask the pair of gentlemen. They were both carrying a bag each.
“Yes, I have an apartment there,” answered Alex.
“Know of any others for rent?” She nervously laughed and opened the door.
Alexander and his son looked around the house. There wasn’t much to it. A simple living room with a sofa and chair. The dark paneling absorbed any natural light that fought to get inside. It always appeared later in the day than it was with all the shadows that lurked inside. Claire turned on the lamp that was situated on an end table, and proceeded to give them a tour.
“I’m pretty certain you’ve both been inside here before, but this is the living room, and over there is the kitchen.” She pointed to the room with the cabinets and double sink. “The table over in the corner acts like the dining room, I guess. There’s not a separate room that I’ve found with another table for eating.” She walked toward the staircase. It was flanked with one banister; the other side of the steps rested against the wall.
“If you don’t want to share a room, I can bunk with Frieda. It’s no problem. I can even sleep on the couch.” She turned around before they came to the first door down the hall.
“That won’t be necessary,” Alexander said. “We’re only staying one night. Alex can have the room and I’ll take the sofa. I’m a light sleeper and require a lot of water throughout the night. It will save me trips downstairs to the kitchen.”
She looked at him suspiciously. “Are you sure?”
“Absolutely. I’ll take my things down there now. Go ahead and show Alex his room. I think I’ll take a walk on the beach. I’ve got to stretch my legs.”
Claire continued her tour of the upstairs, pointing to the only bathroom for the two secondary bedrooms to share. Frieda had her own in her room. The shower in it was the size of a phone booth.
“And this would be your room.” She opened the door to the room and pointed inside it, standing in the hall.
Alex took his bag to the dresser and set it down. The room smelled old. Like the walls and bedding hadn’t been aired in years. He looked to see Claire smiling at him. But it wasn’t a genuine, happy smile. Just a polite, here’s-your-room smile.
“Is everything okay?” He knew he’d just met her and was probably overstepping his bounds for asking such a personal question, but her eyes seemed troubled.
“Sure, yes. Why?” She tucked a piece of hair behind her ear and bit her bottom lip.
“It’s just your eyes look sad. As though you have something weighing on your mind. Please stop me if I’m asking too personal of a question. I do that sometimes. I can be in the grocery line and feel something is wrong with the cashier. You know, she just gave off a vibe.” He saw her squinting eyes and continued. “No, really. I’ve got this sixth sense or something. She was fumbling with the bags, murmuring something, and anyway, by the time I was bagged and leaving, she’d told me what it was and felt better for it. Honest.” He crossed his heart. “My mom says I should’ve gone into psychiatry. I think I just know when something’s off.”
She looked to the ground and shuffled her feet back and forth. Obviously, he’d guessed right. All women had that look when something’s on their mind.
“I’m fine.” She didn’t look at him at first, but then glanced up.
“Okay, but if you’re not, know that I’m a great listener. The woman at Whole Foods could give you a good reference for me if you needed one. I helped her decide whether to move and take a new job or stay with her boyfriend and keep the job she was at. She’s quite happy she talked it over with me.” He gave the most perfect puppy dog smile when he said it.
“Well, thank you, but I’m okay. If you don’t mind, I think I’ll go to my room and read some before dinner.” She went to leave and paused. “Did she take the new job?”
Alex threw his bag on the bed and looked up. “Starts in two weeks.”
“And the new boyfriend?”
“Turns out they’d only been dating for a few weeks. So it wasn’t a huge negative on the list.”
“A couple weeks, huh? She wasn’t really into him, I guess? It was just a casual thing then.”
He crossed his arms. “Come to think of it, she mentioned him last on the list of why to stay. I would’ve thought he’d be on the top if it were serious. But then again, how serious can one be after only a few weeks?”
“Romeo and Juliet were seeing each other for less than a week when they fell madly in love.”
“And we see where that ended, huh? Poor girl should’ve had someone talk some sense into her.”
Claire bit on her finger and left the room. He watched as she walked to the room beside his, then closed the door behind her. He sat on the edge of his bed to check his email on his phone. After a few minutes, he heard a noise coming through the shared wall of Claire’s room. He rose to go closer. Pressing his ear to the wall, he heard a faint whimpering coming from the other side. Was that Claire? Was she crying? He wondered why this pretty young girl was so upset. He hoped to get to the bottom of it before he had to leave.
Chapter Thirteen
The Hardest Thing to Do
Claire watched Colin from her bedroom window as he walked down the dirt path to the guesthouse. His gait was fast and his look was determined; she even noticed his fists were in balls. She ran downstairs to keep the drama out of the confines of the house…out of earshot from Alex.
His hand was on the knob when she swung open the door. “Colin, let’s go somewhere else.”
“Claire, I need to talk to you.” His brow was furrowed.
“I know.” She pushed his chest with her hand. “Let’s go for a walk.”
Alexander had wandered back into the yard from his walk on the beach. The bottom of his pants had been folded up, the edges of them marked with water. Both of his shoes he carried in his hand.
“Is everything all right you two?” He must have seen the urgency in both their actions. The no-time-for-small-talk look and rush of their bodies passing him by.
“No,” Colin said with an abrupt thud. End of sentence, and don’t ask me anything else.
“I’ll be right back. Please don’t wait for me to go to dinner, Mr. Prescott. I’ll catch up later.” Claire turned her head while still moving forward, trying to catch up to Colin.
“All right,” he said loud enough for her to hear him.
“Colin, would you wait up? You’re walking too fast.” It was just then that her foot slipped into a hole. Something an animal created and it was hidden beneath the pine needles scattered on the ground. “Ouch, damn it!” She grabbed her foot.
Colin turned around and ran back for her. She was five paces or so behind him when it happened.
“Claire, are you okay?” He bent down, holding her foot and examining it for injury. She grabbed his back for balance. “What happened?”
“I think I must’ve twisted it back there. Why are you walking so fast?”
“Because I can’t get away fast enough. From Emily, her dad, my dad, that stupid Alex and his dad. All of them. They can all go to hell. It’s not like I don’t know what they’re trying to do.” He dropped her foot accidentally during his tirade against the Prescotts and Hamiltons.
“Okay, just leave it alone. I’m all right now.” She hobbled over to a tall pine tree and supported herself against it. She could see sight of the house through the trees.
“Let’s leave right now, Claire. Let’s just do it. Get in a car and drive, and never look back. What do you say?” He leaned in to study her eyes. His hand held the side of her cheek.
She said nothing—only stared at the ground. It took all she had not to take him up on it.
He dropped his hand and took back to pacing, smoothing the side of his hair with tightly pressed fingers.
“And then what, Colin?” Claire dropped her sandal on the ground and massaged her ankle.
“What do you mean?” He stopped and looked at her. “Then we go back to New York and you’ll start your job and I’ll find one doing something. It won’t be difficult. I’ve got a degree in business finance. Surely there’s an employer who would give me a job.”
“What about what you have now? What about the plane, the airfield, the Manhattan brownstone, the job, your inheritance? I can’t let you throw it away, Colin. Not on me. Your dad would never forgive you.”
“What? What are you talking about? Of course it’s all for you. I’ve never felt like this before, Claire. You make me feel free, alive, that I can do anything…be anything. I’ve always felt like there’s no way out. But there is with you. You’re the one I choose. If Dad wants to take everything else away because I won’t kowtow to his demands, I don’t care. I can work and save money for a plane of my own, one day. One that doesn’t come with chains that hold me to a place and job I’ve never wanted. You’re worth more than a plane or money, Claire.” He stood in front of her, his hands resting on her shoulders. Waiting for her to look back at him.
She knew she couldn’t. He’d challenge her decision—the one that safeguarded his, his sister’s, and his mother’s fate.
She said it slowly and quietly. He’d have to concentrate to hear her right. Because she could only bring herself to say it once. “I think we got carried away with ourselves and the crazy notion we could change the world with one summer. I don’t think this is going anywhere.” Her heart glitched and she swallowed hard to continue. “It was a crush, a good time had by all, but now it’s over. You don’t have to choose me over your family. I’m releasing you, Colin. Trust me, you’ll be happier when you’ve had time to think about it. This was going nowhere. We’re two entirely different people. I’m used to living alone. You’ve always been surrounded by your family.” The lump in her throat felt the size of a potato. She imagined internal bleeding, too. Lots of it. The source coming from her heart. If ever she’d wondered what Juliet felt like, it was now. There was no escaping this fate.
“What are you talking about? Stop saying things like that.” He squeezed her tight, holding her captive with his blue eyes. The same ones she saw every night when she closed hers. Wondering whether it was all a dream and she’d finally wake up from it. Well, this was the alarm clock. Time to let him go.
“I don’t feel anything for Emily, if that’s what has you talking like this. I’ve set her straight. There is no future for us. She knows that. I love you, Claire. I want to run away with you. We’re happy together. Isn’t that what it’s all about? Isn’t that enough?”
The mere words began to break down her constitution. Loud pops and shards began splintering where there used to be bullet-proof glass. She had to think quick or she’d find herself taking his hand and running so fast she’d leave her injured ankle behind. Twisted around the bony branches that lay fallen on the forest’s floor. Ankles weren’t a necessity when you were riding on the wings of love.
She took a deep breath, found the last shred of her defense, and dove in for the kill with what strength she had left. “Colin, here it is. I don’t love you. I thought it was love, but it turns out it was just mistaken rebound.” Her body was as stiff as a steel rod. The compression of her shallow breaths hurt her lungs to breathe.
“Rebound? What are you talking about? I thought you’d been taking care of your mother these last months. You said how hard it was to study and stay focused. You never mentioned a guy.” He cocked his head, his eyes almost slanted. He let up his grip on her arm and took a step back.
“His name is Rex. We’ve been dating for about a year. It was on and off, and more off when Mom needed me. I’d had a huge fight with him before coming here. I guess I wanted to get back at him and sleep with you. And then it escalated into some sort of fantasy I knew could never come true because deep down I’m still in love with him.” She fought back the tears she knew were waiting to bust through. They couldn’t roll out…not now. “I’m so sorry.”
Colin backed away from her, his eyes holding such sadness and disbelief. She reached out for him, but he moved. She could hear his breath quicken as he violently combed through his hair with rigid fingers.
“Colin, you don’t know me. You have no idea who I am. I’m like this. The truth is I can’t be alone for any short time. I don’t have a family so I need to constantly feel loved.” She lowered her head in shame for lying the way she was. But it had to be convincing to stop him from loving her. “I was using you. And when I saw you with Emily, I became angry and called Rex.” She stared at a piece of bark on the tree behind Colin’s head. “It turns out he was miserable without me, too, and asked me to come back tomorrow. I’m moving in with him when I return.”
He covered his eyes, shaking his head. She wanted to puke. To impale herself with something, anything. How could she lie to the only man she’d ever loved? In the name of the family who was coming up on her short list of things to abhor. If she had to belong to a family built on lies, she was glad to remain an orphan.
He turned away, facing the direction of the house. His hand rested on his hip. She wished she could know what he was thinking. To be able to reach out and touch him. But she’d lost that benefit. Did it hurt as much as it was killing her? As if someone had just taken the plug from her life support and all she could see as her eyes began to close was his face looking back in disbelief?
“I’m so sorry.” She placed pressure on her ankle so she could touch his shoulder. The pain paled in comparison to what her heart was going through. “I never thought it would get this far with us. I shouldn’t have acted so crazy about Emily. Especially when I had Rex.” She waited for him to respond. “Say something, will you? Hit me, yell at me—do something.”
He never turned around. “I’ve got to get out of here.” He took a few steps, then took off running in the direction of the beach.
With tears that had finally spilled down her cheeks, she ran toward the house. Pain burned through her foot and up to her knee. The pain felt good, however: it gave her something to channel for focus.
∞ ∞ ∞
Claire fell through the door, holding her ankle. Streaks of tears marked her face.
Alex jumped up from the sofa and ran to her. “What happened? Are you all right?”
“I’ll be fine.”
She wouldn’t look at him, hobbling like an injured bird to the staircase. She tried valiantly to make the first step and fell forward, catching herself before she nose-dove into the carpeted step.
“Shit!” she yelled out. “Why is this happening to me? Shit, shit, shit.”
Alex took her by the side and tried his best to direct her to the sofa. “Come on, hold on to my neck. You can’t walk. I’ll carry you to the couch.”
She reluctantly held around his neck with both arms and he hoisted her in the air. She tucked her chin and kept her eyes down.
“What happened?” He put her down and placed both her feet on the worn green cushions.
She covered her eyes. “I fell in some godforsaken hole out there in the woods. I’m such a klutz. And the animal who dug it should be forced to fill it.”
“Why didn’t Colin carry you back? Where’d he go?” He waited for her to respond. He knew they were together; he watched as they walked off toward the tree line from his window. “Did he leave you like this, Claire? Did he know you were injured?”
“It’s a long story.” She closed her eyes. “I deserve this. And much worse.”
“That bastard! He’s just like his dad. To leave a girl stranded in the woods. Typical of that jerk.” Alex knew it was more than just her ankle that was making he
r upset. “Is there something else wrong?”
“Where’s your dad?”
“He went to dinner. Melanie called about five minutes ago.”
“Maybe you should go, too. Why haven’t you?” Her lip quivered when she asked. Her breathing was less labored now.
“I was waiting for you to return. I thought we could walk there together. Dad said you told him that you’d be right back.”
“I also said not to wait for me. I’m not going to dinner. So you can go ahead.” She stared at the wall behind the television. Her face was void of color—void of life.
He looked for a tissue and retrieved one next to a crocheted doll on the side table.
Claire took it and wiped her nose. “Thank you. And I’m sorry I just snapped at you. This is totally not me.”
“Don’t apologize. I get it. But I’m not leaving you like this. Besides, your ankle looks like it’s got a sprain, and you seem like it’s not all that’s troubling you. You don’t have to talk about it, but if you want, I’ll listen.”
She let out a writhing cry and smooshed her eyes together until a trail of tears fell down her face. She quickly sponged them up with her tissue. “Oh my gosh, you must think I’ve lost my mind,” she said, muffled by holding her tissue underneath her nose.
He fetched another one for her. “Not at all. I have a mother. I see this all the time when she watches sad movies. Or happy movies, for that case. It’s sometimes more entertaining to watch her than the screen.” He began backtracking. “Not that I find it entertaining to see someone upset. It’s just the lamest movies in the world can make her cry. Like some cowboy who saves a girl’s ranch and they kiss and ride off into the sunset. Mom goes bonkers over things like that.”
Claire let out the tiniest of smiles before she began sobbing again.
It was heartbreaking to see a pretty girl cry. He wanted so badly to hold her and tell her whatever it was would pass and she would be fine. Instead, he rested on his knees, feeling little prickles as they began falling asleep from the hardwood floor. He dared to place a hand on the sofa cushion. Just somewhere so she knew he was there for her without overstepping the boundary of having only met her an hour ago.
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