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I stared at him in disbelief. Of course, it had occurred to me that Alex may not want me now, but I never imagined that they would actually try to hurt me if I returned. My dad would never hurt anyone unless he had to. Warwick and I sat in silence for a long time. I glanced at him occasionally, his thoughts not being conveyed on his handsome face. I went upstairs and changed into my shorts. It looked like our swimming adventure was going to have to wait until Warwick was in a better mood.
Maria and Kevin arrived a short time later. Maria brought food and when Sam came back with the groceries, we had enough to last us for quite some time. That thought didn’t make me feel any better though. In fact, I felt more miserable than I had since I’d agreed to the stupid wedding in the first place.
“You know you have to change your appearance,” Warwick said gruffly.
“Okay,” I muttered, wondering if he was finally mad at me for messing up his life.
“Maria is a hair stylist by trade. She can dye it and cut it.” He finished.
Maria smiled kindly and nodded. I stared at my long honey-colored hair and felt more alone than I ever had in my life. My hair was my pride. It was the best feature I had, and I was terrified to get rid of it.
“Look,” said Warwick. “They will find you if you look like you. It buys me some time to figure out how the FUCK to fix this!” He slammed his meaty fist down on the table for emphasis. I jumped and nodded in silence. When Maria took my hand and led me to the washroom, I went willingly.
“I’ll make you look sexy, senora, don’t worry,” Maria assured. “You’ll love it.”
She chopped away at my head and I sat in unhappy silence as I watched large slices of caramel fall to the ground. She stopped cutting at a medium bob and fussed with my strands critically.
“I’ll give you some layers for texture,” she said and began snipping my already diminished hair. After that, she dyed it dark brown and added some blond highlights. They were subtle in feel, but bolder than anything I’d had in my hair ever before. By the time she was done, I could hardly recognize myself.
“Maria, why did you stop being a hairdresser?” I asked. My hair looked amazing even if I felt like I was staring at someone else.
“Anthony pays me a lot more,” Maria said. “I still do friends and stuff. But he pays me, and the work is easier, believe it or not.”
“Oh. Well, you’re amazing. Thank you. I don’t even look like me.”
“That reminds me,” said Maria. “I bought you some other clothes to wear in case we have to move around. They’re nothing like your usual style.”
I laughed out loud when I saw the conservative outfits Maria picked out. They made me look like I’d just come off the set of Little House on the Prairie. The goth outfit she picked as my second disguise was even funnier.
“Check out the new look,” Maria announced as we entered the kitchen. Warwick looked up and stared.
“Oh wow,” he said. “That hair is amazing. It brings out your eyes.” He gazed into my eyes for what felt like an eternity—like he was looking right into my soul.
“Thanks,” I said shyly.
“Good job, Maria,” he praised her. She smiled and nodded happily.
Warwick and I spent the afternoon separately. After announcing that he had calls to make, he left the room and locked himself in his office. I could hear his voice occasionally, but I could never make out his words. What was he doing in there? Why was he being so secretive?
After a mostly silent dinner, Warwick looked at me and finally spoke. “I have one more call to make, then we can go down to the water like we’d planned, okay?”
“Maria’s going to be so upset if I mess up my hair.” I teased.
“Maria can do it for you daily if you want,” he said. “Let’s have some fun.”
We walked down to the water in silence. Butterflies of excitement danced in my stomach as I watched Warwick’s tight ass and the small of his back ahead of me. He looked like the bad boy of the universe.
We passed a day bed and what looked like a fancy tiki hut on the way to the water. Around the daybed were candle-lit tiki torches that seemed to be just waiting for the sun to go down so they could twinkle to life.
Warwick walked out into the water and casually dove under when it reached his stomach, and before long, we were goofing around in the ocean, his bad mood long gone.
I splashed water on Warwick and swam away as he tried to splash me back. I was a faster swimmer than he was, but I also didn’t anticipate how long Warwick’s arms were. He grabbed my ankle and pulled me towards him. I flew backward into the water, and my head surfaced right before his.
“I save your life, and this is how you repay me,” he asked in mock seriousness. “No, you shall be punished!” Warwick held me still with one arm and splashed me repeatedly with the other. I fought back, but I was no match for his strength. I lifted my legs and prepared to push away on his leg, but he held me fast until I laughed and choked on the water. Only then did he stop and pull me to him. The water was deeper where we had ended up, and I could barely touch the sand. Warwick’s 6’2” frame stood easily on the ocean floor.
Our laughter continued for a few seconds longer, and when we calmed down, we looked at each other and grinned.
“Thanks for lightening my shitty week,” I said.
