Kiss From a Rose

by Bella Fontaine

  It really was strange, us being here like this, and in all seriousness, I would have avoided him like the plague if not for what I’d witnessed over the last few days.

  My qualms about him aside, I was wary of his family as a whole. His father was creepy. End of story. Then there was his mother’s death. I didn’t see him after that. That was the same month he’d left for the Navy.

  Having lost my own, I knew how he must have felt, but I was twenty-one when mine died. He was just eighteen.

  He moved around to the chair nearest me and pulled it out for me to sit.

  “Thank you, and thanks for the food. It looks great.”

  “You’re welcome.”

  I sat and brought the chair closer to the table.

  “I’m going back to the hospital later. I need to see how Halle’s doing.”

  “No. Anya, she needs to rest. I think that was her telling us that’s what she needed.” He sat opposite me.

  “How do you know? She could just feel bad for me being there and think that maybe I want a break. I don’t. I just want her to be okay.”

  “If you want her to be okay, you’ll stay right here and let the doctors do their job.”

  I pressed my lips together and looked him over, noting the seriousness in his tone. I didn’t know why, but I sort of felt jealous at the closeness he had with Halle and how he seemed to know what she wanted, more than me.

  “You have this whole relationship that I don’t have with her.”

  “It’s the kind of relationship you have when you’re close to people who take care of you.”

  “Are you like that with your father?”

  A line etched between his brows. “Nope. I’m not close with my father at all.”

  It was the way he said that, that caught my attention. I’d only mentioned his father because I knew he had him. My father was somewhere in the world, but I didn’t care to find out where. The way he’d left Mom and me was horrible. He’d left us with nothing and practically ran off with some woman who was younger than Mom.

  “So, you thought you’d steal my aunt?” I’d try this light play between us.

  “Yes.” He winked at me. “Anyway, look at us. If you run off, you’ll spoil this fruitful bonding between us.”

  I had to laugh. “Fruitful bonding? Is that what they call it in the Navy?”

  “Not so much.”

  “When do you go back?” That was me trying to forget the past, but not too much. If I forgot the past completely, then I would embrace the fact that he was a truly gorgeous guy sitting opposite me, looking like he’d just stepped off the set of a Hollywood film. So, best to remember just a little.

  “I’m not. I retired.” He served himself some of the chicken and vegetables.

  “Really?” I was surprised to hear that.

  “It was time. I got to Lieutenant, and that was enough for me.” He nodded.

  “You were a lieutenant?”

  Halle never told me that, but then she didn’t really talk much about him to me because she knew how we felt about each other.

  “Sure was. Does that tick any boxes for you?”

  It did, but I wouldn’t tell him that. “I don’t have any boxes.”

  “That’s a shame.” There was a glint in his eyes that held my attention.

  I tried not to blush but failed, so I looked away and started serving myself some food.

  “So, what do you plan to do?”

  “Ride around on my motorcycle for a year and scare people.”

  I looked at him and smirked. “You know, I can imagine you doing that.”

  He chuckled and brought his hands together. “I’m thinking of going into intelligence, as an analyst. I was good at it out in the field, and I’m thinking I’d love to get in on the action behind the scenes.”

  “Sounds good, and in keeping with the adventure, I suppose. You don’t seem like the property investment type of guy.”

  “Well spotted. I’m not. I’m a free spirit. Can’t tame me. What about you? You going back to Chicago?”

  “No, I came here to stick around for a while. Now, I guess, I don’t have much of a choice. I would have come before though, like I said before. If I’d known Halle was as sick as she was.”

  “She told me you did beauty therapy. I imagine you in a day spa of sorts, but your own place.”

  If he was trying to score points with me, that definitely scored him some. That was my vision for myself in a nutshell.

  “That’s the dream. I just haven’t been successful yet. I had a few places, but it just didn’t work out. I thought I’d try a smaller town and see what happens. In a year or so. I’ll see.”

  He nodded. “Well, look at us back in Wilmington with time on our hands.”

  “I don’t have time on my hands. I have to run the motel and find a job.” Reality hit hard yesterday when I thought of all that was before me.

  That whole stupidity about checking my horoscope and looking at bad luck was swept to the back of my mind. A reality check tended to do that.

  “How about you just focus on the motel? I’m going to check things out properly tomorrow.”

  “Did you really mean what you said about helping out there?”

  He gave me a saucy smile. “If you can stand my ass being there, yes.”

  “I don’t know anything about running a motel, and I’m concerned about the loan sharks. I should contact them.”

  “No.” He shook his head. “I don’t want you talking to them. Just stay out of the picture. Loan sharks are called that for a reason. You let me deal with them.”

  I appreciated his protective stance, but I felt the need to have some input. I didn’t know how much Halle owed them, and I didn’t want him offering to do something, like pay them off. Then I’d be forever indebted to him.

  “Caine. If I see them, I’m fine to talk to them.”

  “You are one stubborn woman, you know that?”

  I frowned at him. “I am not stubborn. What if you’re not around?”

  “I’ll be around, glued to your fine ass, if it helps to know that.”

  Okay… my fine ass?

  “Since when is my ass categorized as fine in the book of Caine?”

  “As of two days ago when Caine saw it.” He leaned onto his elbows and held my gaze.

  “The same Caine who called me The Ugly Duckling?”

  He narrowed his eyes. “When was that?”

  “You don’t remember?”

  “No, you must be mistaken. I couldn’t have said anything like that. You’re beautiful.”

  Lord help me.

  I could see that while this might be the most trying time of my life, it was about to get very interesting.

  Very interesting indeed.

  Chapter 5

  Anya

  It was nice to see Halle sitting up eating a bowl of porridge when I got to the hospital this morning.

  She looked a little bit more like herself. Still frail but at least not lifeless and limp.

  The color had returned to her cheeks, and her dark brown skin no longer looked greyish.

  I waited until she finished eating before I started talking about the motel and my plans about what I was going to do.

  She was quiet as I talked and waited until I finished before she looked at me and sighed.

  I was sitting in the little chair next to her bed. It was kind of my spot now.

  “I’m sorry about this.” She bit the inside of her lip.

  “There’s nothing to be sorry for.” I offered a small smile and reached out to take her hand.

  “There is. I feel like I let you down. You came here to start fresh, and I’ve put you ten places back. It wasn’t what I wanted for you. I should have at least told you how sick I was.” Her huge brown eyes gazed at me with love.

  “I agree that you should have told me how sick you were, but I understand why you didn’t. As for setting me back, please never think that. I am who I am today because of you. You did s
o much for me.”

  She gave my hand a gentle squeeze.

  “I love you, Anya, same way I loved your mom. You are mine.”

  “You’re mine too, and it’s time for me to take care of you.”

  “I need to get better to get back out there.”

  “Ain’t no way that’s gonna happen.” I smirked. “Aunt Halle, the doctors are talking about surgery. I think you should have it.”

  At the moment, we had a choice. She could continue with the treatment as it was now, which would last another six to eight weeks, or she could have surgery and be in for three months. I just saw that as an additional four weeks, but she was thinking of the money. Of Caine paying so much for her and all that she stood to lose from her earnings.

  “Child, please, when you get to my age, surgery is the last thing you want. I don’t want to knock on heaven’s door just yet.”

  “Auntie, if you don’t have surgery, you risk causing more damage, and you may need a transplant.” I worried about that because she would have to first go on a waiting list and then, if selected, have the surgery, and she might not take to the new heart. Also, God, it was a heart transplant.

  That by itself was a lot to take in.

  Halle sighed. “I don’t want it to get to that stage. I’d be too worried. I’m worried now.”

  “Tell me what’s really going on with everything. When did this all happen?” I wanted to know.

  Another sigh fell from her lips, and she looked ahead, out the window, where we saw the janitor cleaning the floors.

  “A few years ago, I started having chest pains. I thought nothing of it, but then they got worse. I always had insurance at the maximum coverage, but I’d just taken out a loan to build the jacuzzi at the motel. It was a hit, and the guests loved it. I thought I’d lower my insurance package, but I didn’t know how much worse I was going to get. Things started getting bad, and I couldn’t keep up the repayments. I ended up taking out another loan, and then another. At the same time, profits fell at the motel, and suddenly I wasn’t making as much anymore. We got one bad review on google, and that was it. The place went down. Staff left, and I worked harder. I ended up getting a secured loan on the motel, and that was another wrong move because it sent me into the bosom of loan sharks to try and consolidate the debt. I thought it was better to do that, but it wasn’t. Not those people. I owe close to ten grand, Anya, in arrears, and God knows how much the actual loan is now with the charges. When I got sick, I ended up paying the excess the insurance didn’t cover. Everything just got on top of me and out of control. I was too sick to manage.”

  I gasped and brought my fingers up to my cheek. “Aunt Halle.”

  God, no wonder she was in here with heart problems. Anybody with that kind of financial stress would be.

  “I know child, I know.”

  “We have to find a way to bring in money to the motel again.” I had to find a way. Not we.

  “Anya, I have to tell you something else. I don’t know how he found out about my financial situation, but Caine’s father approached me a few months back and offered to help.”

  I narrowed my eyes. “Really? Did you take the help?” Stupid question because maybe we wouldn’t be having this conversation if she did.

  She shook her head. “No, I don’t want his help. He offered a co-ownership of The Hideaway. I didn’t want that.”

  That was odd. Very odd.

  “Is… that just because you want sole ownership of the place? Or something else?”

  I didn’t like the dark look that filled her eyes. It told me to be wary.

  “I just don’t want him helping me. If you see him, and he asks about it, say the same thing.”

  “I never really trusted that man.”

  “Good, keep it that way.”

  “What about Caine?”

  Now she smiled. “He’s different. We trust him. It’s odd, and you’ll think I’m crazy, but I love that boy like my own son. In fact, I would call him such. We can just forget the details of me being black and him being white.” She chuckled.

  Halle had never had kids, and I never asked why. She’d never married, and I never asked about that either. There’d been a man or two in her life I knew of, but nothing serious.

  It was a shame because she would have made a great mom.

  “Okay.”

  She straightened and took both my hands into hers. “He’s changed, Anya, so there’s no need to be wary of him.”

  “A leopard doesn’t change his spots overnight, Auntie. And neither does the devil. I loved you too much to protest against coming to see you every summer, but he made it hell.”

  When I was a kid, she lived with the Donoghues. They allowed me to come and stay with her. Now that I think back, it was nice of them. It wasn’t like I had to squeeze in though. Their house was so big she’d lived in one of the cottages on the estate, just like the other on-site workers.

  She laughed, and the sound filled me. “Trust me, he’s a great guy. I vouch for him.”

  “And you are vouching for him because?”

  “I just am. I don’t want you two at each other’s throats if you’re working together. Also, Anya, it’s a great thing he’s doing for me. Just think of that. We wouldn’t be able to afford the medical bills.”

  I couldn’t refute that. I actually couldn’t say anything about that. She was right and probably didn’t want me embarrassing her with my indifference towards Caine.

  “Don’t worry. I promise to do whatever I’m doing argument free.” I would have preferred to get on with it all by myself, but I had the feeling I didn’t have much say in the matter.

  I figured as long as I kept my distance from Caine, I’d be fine.

  “I’ll do my best to get back to you as quickly as possible.”

  “You’ll rest. That’s what you’ll do.”

  “Running a motel is seriously hard work, Anya.”

  “It will be fine.” I nodded confidently.

  I didn’t know why in the hell I thought I’d be fine.

  No, I was not fine. This was my first real day on the job, and it was a nightmare.

  The guests in room sixteen reported a water leak, Patricia, the one and only maid we had, was doing the job of the four maids who hadn’t turned up, and the guests in room ten complained about the couple in room nine because they were having loud sex all night, and the room ten people couldn’t sleep.

  Jesus Christ, I didn’t know what I was supposed to do with that one.

  Now, I had a woman with a Chihuahua that yapped over everything she said. I heard something about the doctors.

  “I’m sorry, could you repeat that, please?” I had to ask.

  She was just about to answer when the phone rang behind the reception desk. Having been a receptionist in one of my first jobs, I knew the importance of answering the phone. The customer in front of me should be told I’d be with them in a minute, just so I could get the phone and put the customer calling on hold.

  “Just a sec, let me get that call.” I smiled politely and dashed to get the phone.

  The woman looked put out that I was leaving her mid-conversation, but it needed to be done. I answered the phone in my usual polite manner.

  “Gurl, cut the pleasantries. It’s only me,” Shawna said, laughing.

  “Shawna, why are you calling on this number?”

  “Because you didn’t answer your phone.”

  I looked on the little table where I thought I’d left my phone earlier, and shit, it wasn’t there. I panicked because what if the hospital were trying to call me, or someone else important?

  “I’m sorry. I don’t know where my phone is.”

  “Excuse me, it’s incredibly rude to leave me and pick up a personal call,” the woman with the dog called out. She tapped a long red fingernail on the counter and eyed me with daggers while the dog yipped.

  “Shawna, I have to go.”

  “Hey, wait. I’ just wanted you to know I’m coming to hel
p out. I just booked two weeks off work, so I’m all yours.”

  My heart squeezed, and I didn’t care about the woman and her yippy dog. My friend seriously came through for me.

  “Thank you so much. I’m so grateful and…” The words drained from my brain, frazzling into thin air as my eyes beheld a shirtless Caine coming through the door.

  He carried a folding ladder in one hand and a tool bag in the other. Dark Levi’s hung low on his hips, showing off every single muscle that defined his lower torso and ran up his seriously defined abs of steel.

  I’d never seen such definition on a person in real life. Just on TV, or on the models on fitness magazines like Men’s Health. He also didn’t have the over-the-top bodybuilder muscles. He was just perfect, ex- Navy perfect.

  Add the tattoos, and God in Heaven … I was drooling.

  I had to swallow hard.

  I looked him over as he passed by, and I could see why Aunt Halle was worried about how many tattoos he had.

  Unlike her worries, however, I found them damn sexy. He had a lot, but again, not over the top. There were mostly Celtic swirls, but there was a Bulgarian dragon on his back, and the very talented artist who did it made it so the wing whipped up his shoulder and the tip of the wing curved up the edge of his neck.

  I swallowed again and noticed that I and every woman in this room was staring at him. And stare we did until he disappeared down the hall. Even the yap-yap dog woman had gotten lost in him.

  I was shocked though at myself, because just then, I’d never felt desire like I felt just now for anyone. That was the same guy who I’d decided to keep away from just hours ago.

  Shawna was saying something, but I didn’t hear her.

  “I’m sorry, Shawna, I don’t know what you said.”

  “See you at five. Let’s do dinner.”

  “Mmmm hmmm,” I mumbled and hung up.

  I was still looking down the hall.

  “Excuse me.” The woman waved her hand to get my attention. She didn’t seem as hyped up as before. Secretly, I thanked Caine.

  “I’m sorry.”

  “I was asking about the nearest drug store.”

  “Oh, the nearest one is just a block from here. It’s called Gordon’s. Are you okay?”