* * *
Meet again at the beach? - H
* * *
I ripped the note up and stuffed it into the trash bin so no one could see me with it, then washed my hands and smoothed my clothing. Did I have time to change before heading to the beach? I decided not to chance it. With a hot blush staining my cheeks at the thought of another make-out session, I crept out one of the back staircases, tested the emergency exit door, and then headed down to the beach.
Because it was a private beach, it was empty of all but one single person walking alone. Well, at least Heathcliff would be easy to find. I sat down in the sand, took my strappy heels off (thanks, wardrobe!) and rolled up the legs of my pantsuit to my knees. That done, I headed down the beach toward him, where he was walking in the surf.
"Hello, stranger," I called out as I neared. "What brings you out here?"
Heathcliff turned as I approached and gave me a wicked grin. "Oh, just a secret tryst with a lovely lady."
"Not skinny dipping?" I teased. "I'm so disappointed."
"Maybe if you ask nicely, I'll let you strip me down anyhow," he said, moving toward me. His arms went around my waist and he pulled me against him, and then we were kissing again, just as madly and passionately as before. And if I thought a night away would give me a clearer head, I was wrong. Kissing Heathcliff was as wild and intoxicating as it ever was. I still couldn't get enough.
Eight years later, it felt like we'd broken up yesterday.
"I missed you," Heathcliff told me. When I smiled, he kissed the corners of my mouth. "I'm serious. I missed waking up with you. Tell me I'll get to do that again."
"Maybe," I said softly. I wasn't sure I was ready to make the leap yet. But when he reached for my hand, I twined my fingers with his. Holding hands, I could do. Kissing, I could do. Wild monkey sex with the man who'd torn a hole in my heart eight years ago? Not quite ready for that just yet. "So what are your plans for today?"
He lifted our joined hands to his mouth and kissed the back of my hand. "Spending time with a beautiful woman here on the beach until those horrible production people come and herd me away again. You?"
"Spending time on the beach with an idiot man who thought a reality television show about dating was the best way to get his ex back."
"Hey, don't mock my master plan. It's working beautifully so far."
I just shook my head at that...though he did have a point. As plans went, I supposed this one was effective.
We walked and talked for hours, just happy to be in each other's presence. For the first time, I didn't think it was weird that our stretch of beach at Eden was so incredibly quiet. I was thankful that we were alone and unbothered. We talked about work - I went on about sculptures and glassmaking and my internship with Seville that hadn't quite turned out the way I'd wanted when we parted. Heathcliff discussed his father's tech company and how he'd sold off pieces of it and patents until he'd made over a billion dollars, and then set up accounts for his mother and sisters so they'd never have to work. I wondered what he planned on doing with his money now that he had gobs of it and no business to run, but he said he was contemplating a few avenues of action...whatever that meant. I suspected he had an idea in mind but wasn't ready to share it yet.
It was wonderful to just spend time with him again. It made me ache, thinking of the time we'd lost. We hadn't discussed our messy parting from before. I think we both realized that neither one of us would have won that battle. That there was no right answer. That we'd simply had to go in two different directions.
But we could go in the same direction now. There was nothing holding us back any longer.
* * *
"You're a marvel," I told Leona happily as I admired my hair in the mirror.
"Well, you said you wanted to look special for your date tonight," she said, tucking one last strand of hair in. "I aim to please."
That she had - Leona was a wonder with hair, and tonight, my hair was braided into a masterpiece. She'd outdone herself, pulling the majority of my hair into one thick braid and fixing small decorative braids around the sides. Then she'd taken the big braid and shaped it along the side of my head with bobby pins until it resembled a swirling seashell. I thought I was an artist with my glass? Leona could take something as mundane as hair and turn it into a wearable work of art.
She held up a tiny coral starfish, the size of a quarter. "Think this will be too much?"
"Not at all," I said, and loved the way it looked when she worked it into the center of the 'shell'.
When I arrived at wardrobe, my dress was a plain, pure-white sheath that went to the floor. I was disappointed at the sight of it at first, but when I realized it tied at the back of the neck and the back was non-existent? I thought it was perfect. I turned in the mirror and admired the long line of my naked back, the fabric pooling at the curve of my spine. Sexy but understated, and it made my ornate hairstyle stand out that much more. I felt like a princess.
I ran into Diamond as I left wardrobe. She was in a gown that was the exact duplicate of mine, but that stunning ruby red color that she'd lucked out on. It set off her pale blonde hair that cascaded around her shoulders, and she beamed at me. "Looks like we're both seeing our man tonight."
"Looks like," I said, forcing a smile to my face. Our man? The jealous side of me wanted to claw her eyes out, but knowing that Heathcliff wasn't interested in her made me feel better. The fact that Diamond was probably the prettiest out of those of us left had nothing to do with him choosing her. Maybe she was a great conversationalist. Or something.
I knew I was being insecure, but our budding re-relationship wasn't exactly on the most solid ground just yet. Combine that with all these other women around just waiting to get their claws into him? It'd make any girl neurotic.
But when we went down to the dining hall and met with Heathcliff, I knew they were groundless worries. He couldn't take his eyes off of me, and I preened in the light of his attention. It didn't matter that another woman was there on the date with us, because I knew he wanted his time to be spent with me.
I could tell that Diamond knew there was something going on between Heathcliff and me, too. Every look she gave us was questioning. Maybe it was the way his gaze lingered on me. Maybe it was the way his hand brushed mine every time he reached for something on the table. Maybe it was that, when he leaned, he leaned toward me.
At any rate, by the end of dinner, Diamond was miffed. Her perfect face was stiff with irritation, though she found a smile readily enough when Heathcliff looked in her direction. I felt a little bad for her. It wasn't easy being on a date with someone that didn't want to be with you. Having your date pay extra attention to someone else right in front of you? Double whammy.
When our plates were cleared, Diamond gave Heathcliff and me an expectant look. "So have you guys seen the hedge maze yet?"
My imagination was instantly captured. "There's a hedge maze?"
She nodded, all enthusiasm. "Want to go see it? It's huge, but there are lights in the gardens so we can't get lost."
I did. I looked over at Heathcliff.
"Let's check it out," he said with a grin, and stood up, then offered us both an arm.
We walked down a long, winding hall that led out to the gardens. Apparently whoever ran Eden had a green thumb, because the gardens were like something out of a movie. Lush hibiscus bloomed along the rock-tiled pathways. Vines crawled along arching trellises, and everywhere the scent of flowers reminded me that this was an island paradise, even if the ocean wasn't in view. "Wow, this is beautiful."
"Isn't it?" Diamond said, a pleased tone in her voice. She pointed ahead. "The maze is that way."
Excited, I abandoned Heathcliff's arm and moved forward, entranced at the thought of someone spending hours lovingly crafting greenery into a maze. I loved art in all its forms, and to me, this was definitely art. My mind always turned back to my glass-making, and I began to mentally play with the ideas of glass mazes, or maze-inspir
ed pieces with different puzzle shapes. I wandered into the entrance of the maze and quickly got lost amongst the high hedges, my mind racing and my imagination giddy with the fun of it.
It took me a few minutes to realize I was alone in the maze. Diamond and Heathcliff were nowhere to be seen.
Frowning, I glanced around. No one was near. I backtracked in the maze, looking. Maybe we'd gotten separated? "Guys?" I made a wrong turn, and then began to backtrack again. I'd heard once that if you kept one hand on a side of the maze, you'd never get lost. It was worth a shot here. I put my hand on the left hedge wall and began to follow it.
Sure enough, it led back to the entrance a few moments later, and I breathed a sigh of relief. Up ahead in the shadows, I could make out what looked like Heathcliff and Diamond standing together. I must have been lost in a daydream and wandered off from them. I'd have to explore the maze again in the daylight, when there was more time. I'd make sure to bring Heathcliff with me, too, because--
I stopped. Diamond's arms were around Heathcliff's neck and they were kissing.
Horror crashed through me. I stumbled back into the maze, breathing hard. I couldn't believe what I'd seen. All of this was a lie. All the sweet words, the fervent declarations of love and wanting me back, all of it was pure crap.
Tears blinding me, I rushed past them, wanting to escape, wanting to do anything to retreat away from the visual of Heathcliff kissing another woman. Those dates he'd gone on with the other women -- clearly he'd been lying to me after all.
"Wait," Heathcliff called. "Juno, wait!"
"Fuck you," I wept, racing away as fast as I could.
Anguish ripped me apart. How could I fall for Heathcliff again after he'd hurt me the last time? I slammed into the elevator and hammered on the 'door close' button, waiting for it to take me back to my room. As the doors shut, I saw Heathcliff round the corner, a furious look on his face.
"Juno," I heard him bellow as the doors closed. "Fucking wait!"
No. Absolutely not. I hugged my chest, wrapping my arms around myself, letting the tears pour down my face. To think I'd been giddy with tonight's date. To think I'd been excited about the possibilities between me and Heathcliff again.
To think that he'd wound me so freaking quickly after I'd fallen for him again. Did I never learn? I was so freaking stupid, so childishly naive that I only saw what I wanted to see.
The elevator stopped on my floor, and I rushed out, heading for my room. The need to get away, to escape all of this, hammered through me. Fuck the money. I'd get it some other way. This torture-fest of head games wasn't worth it.
I hammered in the pass code to the suite I shared with Leona, and stumbled in, swiping at my cheeks as I wept. Leona was laying on her bed, flipping through a magazine, and she sat up as I entered. "Juno? Oh my God, are you okay?"
"I'm leaving," I told her with a hiccup. "I can't take this any longer."
"What? Why?"
I shook my head. I didn't want to talk about it. I just wanted to leave. I thumped my suitcase onto my bed and began to toss clothing into it. I had to get out of here before Heathcliff found out I'd run to my room and was leaving.
"I don't understand, Juno. You were so happy earlier. What's causing you to run away?"
I flinched at her words. Running away? "I'm not running!"
"Yes, you are," Leona said, utterly puzzled. "What else would you call this?"
"I..." I swallowed hard, realization hitting me.
I was running away.
I sat down heavily on the edge of the bed. Heathcliff was right.
Whenever things got hard, I dropped everything and ran. I hadn't even stopped to question anything. I'd just assumed Heathcliff was fucking around and had retreated, so sure I was going to get hurt again. I wasn't giving him the chance to hurt me again.
And...that scared me.
It had hurt when Heathcliff and I had broken up the first time. It had hurt so badly that I still carried the scars. And the thought of losing him again terrified me more than I even wanted to think about. Maybe that was why I was running now. Because I knew how much pain it would cause and I didn't want to go through it again.
But...wasn't Heathcliff worth a bit more effort? I shut my bag, thinking hard. What would be the worst thing that could happen if I went and confronted Heathcliff?
I'd go back and get my heart broken again...which was exactly the same thing that would happen if I left now.
Or I could turn around, give him and Diamond both a piece of my mind, and get it out of my system.
I could stop running.
And maybe it wouldn't get me Heathcliff back, but maybe I also wouldn't carry around the scars of another breakup for the next eight years. Maybe I wouldn't spend them like the walking wounded.
But even as I steeled myself, my heart hurt. I wanted my Heathcliff back. My beautiful, practical man with eyes only for me. Was he truly shallow enough to go make out with another woman in the garden while my back was turned? If I turned off the panic in my mind and listened to my heart, it told me no, he wasn't that kind of man.
But finding out the truth would mean facing him again, and that suddenly felt like an enormous task.
I sucked in a deep breath and closed my eyes. Did I want Heathcliff more than I wanted to be safe and protected and alone?
I did.
I opened my eyes and wiped them dry, then gave Leona a small smile. "I'm okay. I just...panicked."
"Is everything all right?" My friend looked so worried. "What did Heathcliff do to you?"
I picked up my bag and set it in the closet again, my mind made up. I wasn't going to run this time. I wasn't. Even if finding out what was going on with Diamond hurt like a thousand knives, I'd endure it, because...because I knew it wasn't true. That wasn't my H. He'd never even looked at another woman when we were together, all those years ago. Why would he change now?
I clenched a fist and pressed it over my heart, willing it to stop thudding so hard. "I caught Heathcliff kissing Diamond out in the gardens."
Leona gave an outraged gasp. "What? That bitch."
I was surprised at her immediate defense of Heathcliff. "You don't think it was him?"
"Of course not! He's been utterly gaga over you the entire time."
I nodded. "I...freaked out a bit at first, but now that I've had time to turn things over in my head, that's what I think, too. I'm going down to talk to him."
"Good for you," Leona said with a firm nod. "Go get your man out of her clutches."
She can't keep him there if he doesn't want to be there, I wanted to point out, but I took a deep, steadying breath, composed myself, and moved for the door.
When I opened it, Heathcliff was on the other side, readying to knock. There was a frantic look on his face that quickly changed to relief at the sight of me.
"Juno," he groaned, stepping inside. Then, his hands were clasping my face to his and he pressed his forehead to mine. "God, Juno, don't run like that. Please, let me explain. It wasn't what you saw. I--"
"I know," I said softly. "It's okay."
"She kissed me," he said quickly. "I've never wanted anyone but you. Never. Never looked at anyone else but you. You're my entire world. You're my universe. You--"
"Shh," I said softly, relieved that I wasn't the only one panicking. I smoothed his messy hair off his brow. "I'm not running this time. I promise."
"I love you," he whispered, eyes closed as he held my face to his. "I've never stopped loving you. Don't leave me, Juno, please."
"It's okay, really," I told him. And it was. I knew him. I trusted him. Heathcliff was many things, but he wasn't a cheater.
"No, it's not," he told me. "I had no idea she was going to do that." He reached into his pocket and pulled out a DVD. "I was late getting up here because I had production burn the last hour of garden footage onto this disk so I could show you. She pretended to twist her ankle and when I tried to help her up, she kissed me. That was the moment you came out. I th
ink she did it on purpose."
"I know," I said softly. And it made sense. It really did. "I trust you. I don't have to see the DVD." My hand cupped his cheek. "Really, it's okay."
"Well," Leona said, plucking the DVD from his hand. "If it's all the same to you, I'd like to see this for myself." She hustled it over to the TV, giving Heathcliff and me a moment alone.
He closed his eyes again, the look of pain on his face intense. "I thought you'd left again. Thought you'd run because I'd hurt you--"
"I did at first," I admitted. My hand caressed his jaw, tracing my fingers along his skin, rough with five o’clock shadow. "I ran, just like you said I did. It's easier to run. But then I realized that if I ran, I was going to lose something worth fighting for." And I leaned in and kissed his mouth. "You."
Heathcliff groaned and crushed me against him. His mouth bruised mine in a wild, passionate kiss, but I didn't mind. I wrapped my arms around his neck and held on tightly as his tongue swept into my mouth, claiming me as his. Because I wanted to be his, and I wanted him to be mine.
"Hey, when you two stop playing tonsil hockey," Leona called a few moments later, "I found the spot in the footage. He's right - Diamond all but wraps her man-eating legs around him."
I giggled at Leona's descriptions. "I don't need to see it," I told her. And I didn't want to see it. I didn't want to see Diamond kissing Heathcliff, because I might go up to her room and claw her eyes out for touching him.
Heathcliff kissed me again, mouth fervent. "I hope you don't mind, but I did an immediate vote off at that point. No ceremony. No nothing. She's gone. They moved her to a different part of the hotel and she's flying out as soon as daylight hits."
"Mmm, good," I told him, pressing my breasts to his chest. "Can we finish the rest of our date, then?"