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Chapter Twenty-Six
- Noemi -
TO HELL WITH DANTECalegari. When he first made me apologize to him, I was contrite. I could tell by the way his body stiffened that he was not happy with me. I truly hadn’t meant to offend him, so an apology wasn’t the end of the world. I needed to remember how touchy he could be. Sometimes, it was like I was talking to two different men and I didn’t really know either one of them.
Dante was true to what he said. We ate a light lunch together on the lanai, but he was quiet and didn’t talk much. He asked me once if I liked my food. I told him that I did. The fish cakes were flavorful. The salad was light with a tangy dressing. The coconut fritters were delicious. I could have used another Scorpion Bowl, but Dante told me no more liquor until dinner. We ate in silence for several minutes, then he asked me again how I liked my food. He seemed to want to talk but didn’t know what to say. I knew that feeling well.
After lunch, he kissed me softly, so gently I barely felt the warmth of his lips against mine. He tapped me on the nose, told me to stick to the schedule and call his cell phone if I needed anything. I stood in the center of the living room, a shudder racing through me at the click of the door as it closed.
I was alone. I felt the same way I did in the plane not four hours ago. Deserted. Clueless. I didn’t even know where the hell I was beyond knowing that I was in an exclusive hotel on a tropical island... somewhere!
The abandoned feelings were getting old. The routine had run its course. At least, this time, I didn’t have to sit around and wait for him to return. I should have been angry that he made plans for me and didn’t even ask my opinions, but when I reread the schedule he handed me, every thought I had about being mad at him fled.
A one-hour massage. A facial. A mani-pedi. A trip to the hair salon. A stylist meeting me in our room at five to prepare me for the ball. The ball? He was taking me to a ball?
I was giddy with the idea of it all. Except the ball. I wasn’t much of a dancer. I had two left feet and no rhythm, but if an invitation to a ball would get me the full spa treatment for the afternoon, I’d fake dancing as best I could and pray that Dante wouldn’t notice.
For the next four hours, I was polished, shined, pampered and had my every whim catered to. I sipped on a papaya milkshake as Gwennie, the masseuse, worked me over. I was nervous about the prospect of a massage, having never had one before, but once I settled face down on the table, I practically had to be peeled off when it was time for my facial. I was escorted from room to room in the spa like I was some sort of celebrity.
Everyone spoke kindly to me, asking me where I was from, how I was enjoying my stay. I answered them honestly; however, they remained remarkably silent when I asked them simple things like where I was and what they knew about Mr. Calegari. Gwennie just shrugged and dug even deeper into my tissues. I was sure to be sore in the morning.
After a new coat of pink nail polish, I was treated to a shampoo and style session in the salon. Only, the staff in the salon were not as inquisitive, going about their work in near silence. I was taken aback when they started arranging my hair in an updo without even consulting me about my preferred style. When I questioned the stylist, she merely said it was “Mr. Calegari’s request.” I grumbled under my breath but couldn’t maintain my irritation when I saw the end results. My hair was piled up onto my head, with curls cascading down the back of my neck. I touched the tendrils that framed my face and couldn’t help but smile.
“It’s beautiful,” I complimented her.
“There’s more.” She picked up a green velvet box that had been sitting on the vanity. She opened it and withdrew the most beautiful hair comb I’d ever seen. Blue and white gemstones created a row of intertwined teardrops. It wasn’t a tiara, but when she placed it in the center of my updo, it looked like one. And I felt like a princess.
“Where is this from?” I asked her, my hand hovering over the jewels in my hair.
“Mr. Calegari,” was all she said.
My earlier frustrations immediately vanished. He had the social skills of a slug, but Dante made gesture after gesture that showed me another side of him, one that I hadn’t expected to find. How much effort did I need to put into understanding him? Into figuring out his behavior? At my request, we were together for one purpose only – so that I could lose my virginity, or more accurately, so that I could give it to him. I needed Dante out of my system so I could move on with the rest of my life. While I didn’t need all the bells and whistles, the romantic in me appreciated the efforts he was making.
While other people may be turned off by his demands, Dante’s domineering attitude turned me on. I’m sure there’s some psychological reason why my heart skipped a beat and my knees weakened when he told me what to do. Being able to let go and put him in charge of things that I had no experience with, like sex, didn’t bother me. I needed it. I need him to take charge otherwise, I’d be too self-conscious to go through with our agreement. Honestly, we wouldn’t even have an agreement if he hadn’t commandeered the conversation. I knew I did the right thing when I agreed to let him make the decisions.
Walking back to the bungalow, I became nearly intoxicated on the smell of the plants and flowers bordering the walkway. I couldn’t have guessed what they were called but there was one of every color in the rainbow. The perfumed air filled my lungs and my soul. This was paradise, and I was grateful that Dante had chosen.... wherever we were.
I probably should have been angrier about that as well. Secret locations. People who were instructed not to answer questions. What was up with the secret spy stuff, I had no idea. But it wasn’t like I had to live this way. It was a vacation. A temporary spoiling. I think I could live with his secrecy for a week. And after that...
My heart ached at the idea. I wasn’t ready to face it yet. We’d just arrived. I could put off the feelings of loss until closer to our departure. At least, I could pretend to.
I turned my attention back to the flowers around me and one particular bloom shaped like a blue star with a yellow spike in the center. It smelled heavenly. I was so lost in the assortment of beauty around me I didn’t notice the approaching figure until it was too late. I immediately stepped to the side when it looked as though he was going to run into me. Other than the hotel staff, he was the first person I’d seen since we arrived. He walked quickly toward me, but he wasn’t paying attention either. That, or he didn’t care whether he ran me off the path or not. Which was exactly what he did.
“Watch out,” he muttered as he closed in on me. I didn’t understand why he didn’t just move once he saw me, but he stayed on his course, forcing me to step off the path into the flowers.
“Hey!” I cried out as I nearly twisted my ankle. His hand on my arm stopped me from falling over, but he didn’t help me up either. I looked up into dispassionate eyes that didn’t seem to care whether his rude behavior had caused me an injury or not.
When he leaned over me, putting his face close to mine, I thought I was going to get an apology, but it was something else entirely.
“He’s not who you think he is. Stay away from Calegari.”
He let go of me so abruptly that I did fall that time. Not hard, but enough to smash the flowers under my knees as they hit the ground.
“What?” I called after his retreating figure. “Wait! Who are you?”
I rose to my feet, intent upon following him. He started running, ducking into an overgrowth of bushes a few feet from me, but by the time I reached it, he was gone.
“Hello!” I called out, hoping to get his attention if he were still around. His words sent a chill down my spine. Who was he and why was he warning me away from Dante? It was crazy. If I had any valuables on me, I would have thought it was a pickpocket who knocked me around to distract me from having my belongings stolen. But if it were a robbery attempt, what did the warning about Dante mean?
