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As much as she might wish it were easy, as much as she wished she could simply accept Guy’s offer and take comfort from the fact she could have him any time she wanted him, she knew she could never, ever agree to be his mistress. She just wasn’t built that way.
Her temperature beautifully cooled, she walked out of the ocean and scooped her clothes up, holding them from her fingertips rather than pulling them onto her wet body. She walked a little faster, as she got closer to the villa.
Despite the heat, Addie took the steps two at a time, her determination to get this conversation over fueling every step. She didn’t want him to believe, for even a moment, that she was considering his offer.
“You shouldn’t have come.”
She heard his words before she saw him, and Addie stopped, instantly, her body frozen still.
“But darling, Guy, how could I not? Your parents would have been so hurt.”
The woman’s voice was husky and sensual. Addie took another step, and another, slower now though, quietly, her breath held.
“You are a busy woman; your husband even more so. Make up an excuse and leave, Maria.”
Maria? Addie’s heart thumped hard against her ribs. This was the woman Santiago had mentioned? The woman from the scandal?
“Because it pains you to see me with him? Because you wish I weren’t married?”
Addie frowned. Guy had slept with a married woman? Or had she not been married then? Her accent was broad American, and Addie was glad for that, glad that whomever he was speaking with wasn’t a native Spanish speaker, so that they communicated in a language she could understand.
As Addie climbed higher, she finally saw them, on the edge of the garden, concealed from the view of the house by a jasmine vine that was scrambling over a lattice.
The woman, Maria, was older than Guy, though in incredible shape, and dressed like a twenty-something fashion model might be. She was tall and slim, with pert breasts and her dress had an animal print to it, with gems around the low-cut neckline. Her makeup was flawless, if a little heavy for Addie’s tastes.
“Because we agreed my family should never know about us,” he said the words softly.
“That’s why you’ve brought her? To make sure they don’t dig deeper?”
Addie stared straight ahead; the words slammed into her.
“You shouldn’t be here,” was all Guy responded with. “It complicates matters.”
Addie wished the ground would open up and swallow her. She supposed she could be grateful for the fact they were so engrossed in one another that neither had noticed her approach. Carefully, slowly, as quietly as she could, Addie took a backwards step, her fingertips running along the rock wall to her right for balance when her knees felt like they might give way.
Whatever thoughts had been on her mind, they evaporated. She moved quickly down the stairs, quicker than she’d walked up them, and when her feet connected with the sand, she walked to the shoreline, to the firm wetness, and she ran. She ran as though her life depended on it. She ran until her lungs felt they might burst and her skin was saturated with sweat. She ran until the yacht was in view and then, with a guttural sound of anger, she threw her clothes at the ground and ran once more, this time, into the ocean. She ran until her feet could no longer touch the bottom and then she swam, duck-diving beneath it, her tears being absorbed by the salty oceans depths.
*
“You said she left hours ago?”
“Yes, sir. To walk to the house,” the young woman answered, her look one of concern. “Did she not arrive?”
Guy frowned, not answering the staff member’s question. He stalked through the yacht, reaching for the phone in his office. He dialed the house extension and waited impatiently. His mother answered.
“Is Add- Ava there?”
“Ava? No. Why? Because everyone is looking forward to meeting her tonight, Guy.” A pause. “I hope there’s not a problem?”
You and me both, he thought, disconnecting the call, pacing through the cabin with a sense of disbelief. There was no way for her to have left the island. But where was she? If she wasn’t at the house, was it possible she’d had an accident while she was walking?
There were security cameras that patrolled the beaches, but with guests for the party arriving, the team had had their hands full. He doubted a single woman strolling along the sand would have attracted much attention.
With teeth that were clamped together, he strode towards the bridge of the yacht, intending to go in search of her. His eyes swept the sand on autopilot, and there, his eyes landed upon a familiar figure. Sitting in the shade cast by the trees, far along the beach, her knees curled to her chest, her face tilted away from him, looking towards the mainland.
Something rolled inside of him but he didn’t break his stride. He moved with determination, off the yacht and down the beach, the sand hot underfoot despite the fact it was early evening now.
“Ava,” he called, as he approached, urgent, needing her to turn her face to him, needing to see her.
