Chapter Twenty-Three
Unwelcome Visitor
We spent the rest of the day making love, eating naked in bed, and were pretty much on rinse and repeat until Sunday morning. With the French doors to the beach wide open, I lay on his leather couch wearing jean shorts and a white tank top, watching the waves crash, enjoying the warm ocean breeze as it gently swirled through the living room. Tom danced around in the kitchen preparing breakfast when his phone rang.
“Tom here. Hi. Hold on.” He walked over to me and threw the phone on my lap. “It’s for you.”
Surprised, I put it to my ear. “Hello?”
“Babe, it’s me.”
“Jen?”
“Sara, do you ever pick up your phone? I’ve been calling you since last night.”
“I never heard my phone ring.”
“Well, did you even bother to check your phone at all, maybe to call home at least?”
I rolled my eyes and twirled a strand of hair around my finger. “What’s going on, Jen? Is something wrong?”
“It’s your boss. She’s been calling the apartment incessantly. She’s been trying to get in touch with you also. “
My body tensed and I straightened on the couch, planting my feet on the floor. “What the hell does she want? She knows I’m not due back to work until tomorrow.”
“I don’t know, but she sounded upset. Something about Alexei blowing a gasket and the show being cancelled. I think you need to call her back.”
I pushed up to my feet and paced. “This is stupid. I don’t feel like talking to her right now. It’s effing Sunday!”
“This is your job, hon, you gotta call her back. It seemed urgent.”
“Everything is always urgent for her. The nerve,” I growled as I walked out to the deck, hoping the open air would cool my anger. After a couple of deep breaths, I finally stopped seething. “Thanks for letting me know, Jen. I don’t know what’s wrong with my phone by the way.”
“You sure it’s your phone?”
“You’re gonna start with me now?”
“I’m just saying you could have called home. Everything okay out there?”
I sighed. Things were more than okay. I couldn’t remember the last time I felt so happy and unburdened. Tom had a way of melting my problems and making me forget anything else existed but us. “Yeah. I wish I could stay longer.”
“You don’t miss us?”
“Us?”
“Me and Skiddles.”
“How is she?”
“She won’t leave your room.”
I shook my head, disappointed in myself. How easily I had forgotten about home. Not bothering to check in with Jen or see how Skiddles was doing? That was not me. It’s not difficult to lose sense of reality when you’re lost in a fairytale, but it doesn’t make it right. I felt ridiculous for floating around all weekend on cloud freaking nine.
Time to get back to the real world.
“I’ll be home soon, Jen. My flight leaves tonight at nine.”
“And you have to be at work by eight tomorrow?”
“I’ll manage.”
“Can’t wait to see you and hear all about your trip.”
“Me, too. I’ll talk to you later, okay. Bye.”
After I hung up, I plopped onto one of the patio chairs, still pissed at Rebecca for always finding a way to ruin my good mood.
“What’s the matter?” Tom asked as he walked out with a tray of pancakes.
I reached for a plate and served myself. “My phone must be dead. I always forget to charge it.”
“That’s what’s got you so upset?”
I looked up at him. “No,” I replied with vinegar on my tongue and immediately regretted how bitter I sounded. “Sorry. I don’t mean to take my frustration out on you. Jen’s been trying to reach me since yesterday to tell me Rebecca needs me. Something happened at the studio. She’s freaking out and Alexei seems to be pissed off about God only knows what.”
He sat down across from me and made his own plate. “Is that all?”
As I took a mouthful of pancake, my brows pinched. “Is that not enough?”
“I don’t know, you tell me. Sure nothing else is bothering you?”
There was. I didn’t like how easily I had disregarded everyone back home. As much as I wished I could get lost in this fairytale book, real life existed. I never wanted to lose sight of that.
“This was simply a reminder that life doesn’t stop just because you take a detour.”
“Am I the detour?”
“Maybe,” I groaned.
“You say it like it’s a bad thing.”
“No. I just need to remember it’s not always like this. Vacations in Santa Monica, spending full days in bed, eating like my triglycerides aren’t gonna kill me one day.” I cut into my pancake and stuffed my face.
He laughed, one of those big and guttural belly laughs that can make your stomach cramp. It was so infectious, it momentarily made me forget why I was so mad.
Once the laughter stopped, he walked over to me and knelt down, taking my chin in his fingers. “Baby, yes, it can. I can give you the world, minus the high triglycerides.”
I smiled and cupped his cheeks in my palms. “Aw, Tom. Can you stop being so perfect for once?”
He leaned in and kissed me. “I just want to see you happy,” he whispered, his breath hot and heavy on my lips.
“I am happy,” I told him, brushing my mouth against his and savoring the sweetness of his maple-syrup breath. “You make the best pancakes.”
With a toothy grin, he kissed me once more then he went back to his chair. “So, what does the gorgon want?”
“Gorgon?” I choked on my OJ as I burst into a giggle. “Oh, that’s a good one.”
“Maybe you should call and get it over with.”
I sighed. “I guess it will be worse on Monday if I don’t.” I grabbed his cell phone off the table. “Mind if I use your phone?”
He shrugged. “Go ahead.”
After two rings, she picked up. “What?” Rebecca nearly blew out my ear drum.
I sat back on my chair and sucked in a deep breath. “Ah, hi, Rebecca. I heard you’ve been trying to—”
“You know, Sara, you have some fucking nerve. I’ve been trying to call you since Friday night. Have you any idea what’s happened?”
“No. I’m in California, remember? I’m coming back tomorrow.”
“Shit’s hitting the fan.”
“What are you talking about?”
“What am I talking about? Your fucking choices that’s what. We lost four more dancers on Friday, Sara. Four. Alexei is fuming, and he’s threatening to quit. Have you any idea what’s at stake? The shows are sold out. And we have four weeks to find replacements. Four fucking weeks to teach four new people the routine.”
“Rebecca, calm down.”
“Don’t you tell me to calm down. You picked these people. This is all your fault.”
“I didn’t pick them, Alexei did.”
“He gave you a very strict list and you gave him garbage.”
“All the dancers who auditioned were well qualified. He’s the problem, not me. No one is ever good enough. Are you sure they left or did he fire them?”
“Who the fuck cares. Get your ass back to New York and find me four new dancers, Sara. And not the shit you dragged in here last time, or I swear you’ll be looking for a new job.” She hung up on me.
“Bitch!”
“What’s going on?” Tom asked.
I jumped off my chair. “What’s going on is I work for idiots, that’s what. Fucking Alexei managed to fire four more dancers in a matter of days. I mean, what does he think, that I freaking grow dancers on a tree or something? Yeah, there are tons of starving dancers out there dying to land the next gig, but no one meets his criteria. No one. Ugh, I’m so pissed I could rip his head off.”
“Hey, calm down, okay. What happened?”
“Basically, he needed dancers. I couldn’t find anyone to audition because no one met the criteria. He wanted years and years of experience; only people who’d gone to the most reputable dance schools and those who had worked not only in the U.S. but who had experience in overseas productions.
“I mean, those people don’t want to come to work for Alexei. Those dancers already have jobs. They are probably choreographers themselves or running their own dance companies. He may be a master at his craft, but he is a horrible person.
“The point is, Rebecca came into my office a week ago and basically said I needed to bring in new people or get fired. I scanned through tons of applications and portfolios. I looked at video after video entry and selected who I thought would be great. He chose four dancers, but apparently, they weren’t good enough because he got rid of them on Friday. Now they are both demanding I come up with four new people who can learn the routine in less than four weeks. That’s impossible. Literally impossible.”
“Quit.”
“Quit? That’s your solution?” I said, unable to hide my distaste at his careless comment. “In case you haven’t noticed, I’m not exactly made of money here. And don’t even bring up the whole you’ll give me some cockamamie job at your company or take care of me shit. We are together, but nowhere near that stage yet. You know how you always tell me you are not that guy? Well, I’m not that girl. I can’t quit. Not again.”
“You can find another job.”
“Find another job? In this economy? In the city? In this field? Ah, not happening.”
“And what do you mean again? When did you quit before?”
Oh, great, just what I needed. How was I supposed to get out of this hole? This was not the time or place to get into this conversation. “Baby, I appreciate your concern. I really do, so please don’t take this the wrong way, but I don’t want to talk about this anymore.”
“So, that’s how it feels.”
I craned my neck slowly, confused at his latest comment. “What are you talking about?”
“When someone shuts you out.”
I shot him a look that would have incinerated him. “You should know, Tom. Just like you shut me out about Jake’s call.”
“Okay, I see this conversation is going nowhere.” He raised off his chair and walked back inside the house.
“Oh, so it’s okay for you to shut me out of your life, but when it comes to me, I can’t have any secrets.”
He stopped and spun around in an angry flash. “Sara, I’ve shown you my skeletons. You know more about me than I know about you. And I’m okay with that, there’s no rush to fill a lifetime into a couple of days. But asking you about when you quit, that’s asking you to spill your secrets to me?”
In my mind, my conscience was already busy at work building a fortress around me, brick by brick. This was my defense mechanism and I couldn’t stop it. As soon as I realized I was getting too close, I put up walls.
“You wouldn’t understand,” I began.
“Try me.”
It was there, the aching need to tell him what was raking through me; the words sitting at the tip of my tongue. As I looked back at him, tears ran down my face.
His eyes relaxed, his anger evaporating. For a long moment, he said nothing. He just walked over and waited until I was ready to talk.
I didn’t need to tell him anything. It was like he had a tapped line into my soul, and he understood something lay hidden, a tormenting secret I couldn’t dig up, not here, not yet.
He leaned in and kissed me. “I’m sorry. When it’s time, I’ll be here to listen.”
As always, his words brought peace to my heart and tamed my anger.
We cleaned up after breakfast and Tom spent a big portion of the afternoon in his study, talking to people on the phone and managing business on his computer. He apologized for leaving me alone, but I didn’t mind too much. Sure, it was great spending so much time together, but a little me time didn’t hurt. I laid on the beach for a while, even took a dip in the ocean.
I was leaving on a red-eye flight that night, but I still needed to get to the airport two hours early. So around five, I picked up my beach towel and went inside to shower and pack my things. When I came out of the bathroom, towel drying my hair, the sound of a familiar voice coming from Tom’s study startled me. Too nosy for my own good, I pried my door open and listened.
“Who’re those men in the car outside?” Tom asked, the tone in his voice harsh.
“Carlo’s guys,” Jake replied.
“You brought his thugs to my house?”
“I had no choice.”
“You had no choice.” It wasn’t a question. I couldn’t see him, but I had a pretty good feeling Tom’s jaw muscles were clenched.
“I guess he wanted to make sure I wouldn’t bail.”
“He’s got you on a leash.”
“Listen, you think I like coming here like this?”
“This is the last time, Jake. You know how many strings I had to pull this morning to get this money? I had to yank the bank manager from a family outing on his day off. It’s a good thing he’s my friend. I don’t have hundreds of thousands of dollars in cash lying around my house for every time you have a run in with these guys.”
“I’ll pay you back. You know I always do.”
“For Christ’s sake, man. This isn’t about the goddamn money. It never was, not even for you. But you’re not going to stop until you end up in some ditch with a bullet in your head.”
“I can handle myself.”
“Yeah, you think so? These are dangerous people you are messing with, and they don’t take kindly to people who screw with their money.”
“You think I don’t know that? Once I get Carlo this money, I’ll be done with my debt.”
Before I realized, I’d snuck out into the hallway. Trying to figure out what they were arguing about, I didn’t notice the accent table near the stairs and tripped, almost knocking over a vase.
“Shit,” I tried to whisper, but they heard me anyway.
“What was that?” Jake asked. “There’s someone else here?”
“It’s probably Sara.”
“Wait. You actually brought that chick home?”
Someone closed the study door. All of the sudden the voices got muffled.
Dammit!
I had to move closer to hear.
“Who I bring home is none of your business,” Tom told Jake firmly.
“The hell it isn’t. Since when do you bring women home?”
“Like I said, it’s none of your business.”
“Those were your own fucking rules,” Jake shouted.
“I made them, I can break them.” Tom wasn’t wavering.
“For her?” Jake seemed beside himself.
Fucking prick. Who the hell does he think he is?
“Men like us,” he continued, “we don’t bring women home. Not women like her.”
Like me?
“Fuck’s that supposed to mean?” A chair scraped along the hard floor.
Probably Tom pushing off his chair to go punch this asshole’s lights out.
You go, baby!
“I saw the way you two were with each other at the party the other night. You can’t fucking be serious. You have feelings for this chick.”
“Her name is Sara, and what’s it to you anyway?”
“What’s it to me? Have you forgotten how you got to where you are? Did you forget the fucking mess I pulled you out of? Women screw with our heads and turn us into idiots. You know that better than anybody.”
“It’s different now.”
“Different how? They are all the same. Lying whores.”
“You shut your fucking mouth, Jake. Sara is not like that, and you better start getting used to the fact she’s not some chick off the street. If you disrespect her again—”
“Wow,” Jake interrupted. “I can’t believe I’d ever see the day Tom Wright would be getting all soft and cuddly. So now you’re in love or some shit? Does Tiff know about her?”
“She knows.”
“No, bruh, I mean does she know how you feel about Sara? She’s not going to take this laying down.”
“Tiffany has no say in what I do or don’t do in my life. Who I choose to date is none of her fucking business.”
“That woman is still in love with you. Even after the shit you pulled, she fucking hangs around you like a puppy dog. You don’t think she’s gonna question why you didn’t change your rules for her? Why you’re changing them for Sara?”
“I’ve already told you, Sara is different. This time, things are different. And I’m done explaining myself to you. Listen to me very closely. You’re my best friend, you’ve been like a brother to me, but do me a favor and stay the hell away from Sara.”
“So that’s how it’s going to be?”
There was no response from Tom.
“You’re joking. You would choose a woman over me? Over us?” Jake tossed.
“You see me smiling? Now take your money and get the fuck out of my house. And don’t ever bring those thugs near here again.”
I heard the door unlock and made a beeline for the bedroom door. The last thing I needed was to run into Jake or for them to know I was spying. Downstairs, Tom and Jake exchanged a few more words before Jake was finally escorted out.
I walked back out into the hallway.
“You know, it’s rude to snoop.” His words were humorless.
Busted.
Still wrapped in my bathrobe, I descended the stairs with my tail tucked under my behind. “Was I that obvious?” I shrugged, trying not to look as guilty as I was.
Tom looked up at me, but at first, I couldn’t make out his expression. “Obvious?”
He sounded upset, but the slight twitch at the corner of his lips gave the impression he might have been slightly amused. Either that or he had snarled at me. With his hands on his hips, he eyed me with that look a parent gives a child when they’ve done something disappointing.
“I didn’t mean to eavesdrop,” I said biting my lower lip, but instantly I hated I sounded exactly like a child who didn’t want to disappoint.
“You didn’t mean to eavesdrop or you didn’t mean to get caught?” The tone in his voice was chastising. He looked away and walked into the kitchen. He took an orange juice container out from the fridge, opened it, looked at me, then took a slug.
“I’m sorry,” I said.
He said nothing.
“Don’t you own a glass? It’s gross to drink from the container.”
“Not to me.” He took another gulp of juice. “And I’m not mad at you. I’m mad at him.”
“For what?”
“For being a fucking idiot.”
“So, who were those men you were talking about?”
He took a deep breath. “The less you know the better.”
His dismissiveness pricked my heart.
Tom put the OJ back in the fridge and walked over to the stairs where I stood. “It’s getting late. I should drive you to the airport.”
He didn’t want to talk about Jake. I got that, but what about the other things he’d said. “Jake doesn’t like me very much.”
“He’s not used to this version of me.”
I hiked an eyebrow. “There should only be one version of you.”
Tom took me by the hand and guided me up the stairs. “There is. C’mon, nosy girl. Let’s get you packed and ready before you miss your flight.”