Summer Vows

by Rochelle Alers

  He caught up with her, resting his hand at the small of Ana’s back and escorting her out of the cottage to the main building, through the lobby and into the restaurant that had been magically transformed into a nightclub setting with subdued lighting. Tables arranged with seating for two or four were covered with white linen tablecloths, bone china, crystal, silver, lighted candles and fragrant gardenias floating in bowls of rosewater. A live band with a male and female vocalist performed on a portable stage, while waiters moved quietly and efficiently around the room seeing to the needs of the guests.

  Jacob escorted Ana over to a table for two, seating her. He lingered over her head longer than necessary inhaling the subtly sensual fragrance of her perfume. He pressed his mouth to her ear. “You smell as delicious as you look.”

  Reaching up, Ana placed her hand over his resting on the back of her chair. “Thank you, mi amor.”

  Sitting opposite her, Jacob wondered if he was really her love, or was it just an affectation like baby or darling. Words that were bantered about all too often and much too loosely.

  A waiter with a white napkin draped over the arm of his black jacket approached their table. He placed a menu on the table in front of Jacob, then Ana. “Evening, sir. Madam. I’m Lemuel and I will be your server tonight. The sommelier will be along shortly to help you with your wine selection. Meanwhile, you may look over the menu. If there’s something you’d like that’s not on the menu the chef will definitely be able to accommodate you.”

  Jacob nodded. “Thank you, Lemuel.”

  Waiting until the waiter walked away, he stared across the table at Ana. The light from the candle reflected off the diamonds in her ears. She looked nothing like the petulant woman who’d deliberately ignored her date at the baptism celebration that now seemed so long ago. She even looked different than she had more than a week before. Jacob had thought of her as a girl in a woman’s body, but now she exuded a womanliness that was palpable, and he hoped it had come from being made love to.

  He didn’t know why their paths had crossed or their lives were intertwined, but Jacob didn’t want to think about the time when what he had with her would end. In another six weeks he would have to return to Miami. Once there he would morph into the role as federal police officer responsible for the oversight of detention centers housing federal prisoners awaiting trial or deportation.

  Pulling his thoughts away from the inevitable, Jacob studied the menu. One of the many perks at the resort was the staff’s diversity, most of whom were multilingual, which helped bring a prompt resolution to any issues. Also, the various menus were never the same from day to day. Breakfasts were continental, American or the ubiquitous buffet with an omelet station. Lunch was usually buffet with offerings ranging from cold fish, meat, vegetable and fruit salads and a variety of miniature pastries. Dinner was less relaxed, requiring men to wear jackets and shoes, while their female counterpart usually displayed their tanned and toned bodies to their best advantage with revealing dresses and designer shoes.

  His head popped up. “Are you hungry?” he asked Ana, staring at her bowed head as she studied the menu. They’d foregone lunch in lieu of making love.

  She peered up at him through her lashes. “A little. I think I’m going to have steak tonight.”

  Jacob smiled. “What if we share the porterhouse for two?”

  Ana scrunched up her nose. “Thirty-six ounces is a lot of meat.”

  “Not for this carnivore.”

  “I’ve noticed you haven’t eaten a lot of meat.”

  “I go through phases when I swear off red meat for a month or two, then there’re times when I really crave it.”

  “Well, right now I’m craving some moo,” Ana joked. “But, then again the perñil looks as if it would be delicious.”

  “Why don’t we order both?” Jacob suggested.

  “No, Jacob. There’s no way I’ll be able to eat steak and pork and get a restful night’s sleep.”

  “I’ll order a smaller steak and that way you can order the perñil.”

  Ana angled her head at the same time she lifted her eyebrows. “Are you still going to share your steak with me?”

  The seconds ticked. Jacob stared at Ana as if she’d suddenly taken leave of her senses. “I’ve given you my name, and I’m sharing my life with you. Why wouldn’t I share something as basic as food with you, Mrs. Jones?” He’d stressed the last two words.

  Pinpoints of heat and embarrassment stung Ana’s face. Why whenever Jacob chastised her did she find herself at a loss for words? She knew the answer as soon as the question formed in her mind. It was because he always told her the truth. Wherein she continued to think of their marriage as pretend, he didn’t.

  She knew if she’d met Jacob under another set of circumstances she doubted whether she would’ve slept with him so quickly. However, living with him had changed all that. He hadn’t lied when he’d professed that the men in his family made good husbands, because within days of their marriage he’d become the attentive, loving husband. It wasn’t what he wanted but what she wanted to do, eat or see. It was the same with making love. There hadn’t been a time when he hadn’t made certain she was fulfilled before he sought out his own. Jacob had gone from protector to friend, confidant, and now husband and lover.

  “Thank you for reminding me.”

  Jacob reached across the table and held her hands, his thumb caressing the ring on her slender finger. “It’s not about me having to remind you. It’s about you remembering who we are.”

  Dimples kissed her tanned cheeks. “Sí, mi amor.”

  He gave her hand a gentle squeeze. “Now that we’ve settled that. How do you like your steak?”

  “Medium-well.”

  The sommelier approached the table, listening intently when Jacob told him he wanted to order a wine that complemented wine and pork. The elderly gentlemen nodded and then walked away.

  “Would you like to dance?” he asked Ana when he noticed her swaying along with a familiar love song. Other couples were already up dancing.

  Ana flashed a smile. “I thought you’d never ask.”

  Pushing back his chair, he rounded the table and helped her stand. Wrapping an arm around her waist, he led her out onto the dance floor. She came into his embrace, her curves molding to his length.

  Pressing his mouth to her ear, he kissed her. “I love this song.”

  “‘Piano in the Dark,’” Ana whispered. “My dad played this song so much that my mother threatened to burn the CD. I think she was a little jealous of Brenda Russell even though she professed she was in love with Joe Esposito’s voice when he collaborated with her on this record.”

  Jacob chuckled softly. “You really know your music, don’t you?”

  Ana closed her eyes. “I grew up with it. I woke up and went to bed with music. Daddy installed speakers in every room of the house, including the laundry room and pantry. Never mind he had a recording studio in one part of the house, he just had to hear music whenever he went.”

  “So, I guess it stands to reason why you went into the music business.”

  “Three of us did. Alexandra is an architectural historian. Although she likes music, she never was as passionate about it as my father and brothers.”

  Concentrating intently, Jacob spun her around in an intricate dance step. “You don’t write it?”

  “No. I leave the writing and composing to Jason and Gabriel. That’s a gift I wasn’t blessed with.”

  “What are you blessed with?”

  Ana was going to say “you,” but quickly dismissed the thought. She was blessed to have him accept the responsibility of keeping her safe. “I seem to have an innate gift for recognizing musical talent. As soon as a vocalist opens his or her mouth I know within under a minute whether they have something unique, special. It doesn’t matter if you can imitate Aretha Franklin, have the range of the indomitable Whitney Houston, Christina Aguilera or Adele, a female singer must have something that sets he
r apart. It’s the same with the male performers.

  “That’s why I fought so hard to sign Justin Glover. He wasn’t just another pretty-boy with talent. He was the whole package. Justin can segue from R&B to rap, jazz and pop with the ease of taking a breath. When I heard him scatting I knew I would spend Serenity’s last copper penny to sign him.”

  “Why did Irvine go after you and not the golden goose?”

  “That’s because if he gets me out of the way, then eventually he will get Justin to sign with his label.”

  “But, why you? Why doesn’t he wait until Glover’s contract is up, then go after him?”

  The song ended and Ana stood in the middle of the dance floor, staring up at Jacob. Shadows from the dimmed overhead lighting flattered his lean face. “Irvine wants revenge because he’d heard I challenged his manhood.”

  Resting his hand at the small of her back, Jacob led her slowly back to their table. “How?”

  “I said something about when he got up to put on his pants he should also remember to strap on his cojones if he planned to challenge Serenity.”

  “Oh, shit!”

  Ana stopped short, Jacob stumbling when he nearly lost his balance. “What are you shitting about?”

  “Did you or did you not say that?”

  She lifted her shoulders. “I may have alluded to it. But only after he’d called me a bitch that had gotten out of pocket, and he was just the man to take care of me.”

  Jacob seated Ana, then pulled her chair close enough to his for their shoulders to touch. “Who was there when you said that?”

  Exhaling an audible breath, she then bit her lip. “Of course Jason was there.”

  “Think, Ana!”

  Her brow furrowed. “I guess it was the executive staff.”

  Beckoning to a waiter, Jacob asked him for a pen and a sheet of paper. “When that waiter comes back I want you to write down the names of the people who make up your executive staff.”

  “Why?”

  “One of your employees is a rat, m’ija. Someone who knew you were going to be at that restaurant the day Tyler was shot.”

  Ana’s eyes were as large as silver dollars. She shook her head. “I don’t want to believe that.”

  “Why not?” Jacob whispered harshly.

  “Because every employee has to sign a confidentiality agreement.”

  “Wake up, Ana. People take oaths every day, but that doesn’t stop them from spying on their country or breaking the law.”

  Looping her arm through Jacob’s, Ana rested her hand on the sleeve of his jacket. She didn’t want to believe that someone at Serenity was leaking information to Slow Wyne. The employees had become her extended family. In fact, she saw them more than her own family members, with the exception of Jason. She tried thinking of a situation where the result ended with a disgruntled employee, but drew a blank.

  “What are you going to do?”

  “I’m going to get these names to Diego. He’ll know what to do with them.” Jacob kissed her hair. “I don’t want you to concern yourself with this.”

  “But...I...I have to be concerned, Jacob.”

  “No, you don’t. Right now Serenity is on hiatus, and that means Jason will only have to interact with a smaller number of employees.”

  “What about Jason? Who’s going to protect him?”

  Ana’s wide-eyed look was one he would remember all of his life. It was the first time he saw fear in her. Occasionally he would detect it in her voice, but this time it was different. She wasn’t frightened for herself, but her twin. “I’m certain Jason can take care of himself.”

  Jacob wanted to remind Ana that her family had enough resources to hire a small army of mercenaries to carry out their wishes. Her disclosure that she’d verbally emasculated Basil Irvine was the linchpin to identifying those responsible for shooting Tyler.

  “I want you to promise me one thing, darling,” he crooned.

  Her expression softened, eyes glowing like amber in the candlelight. “What is it, m’ijo?”

  “You’re going to let me handle this.”

  There came a beat, then a smile when she said, “Okay. I promise.”

  He angled his head and kissed her, moaning softly when her lips parted. “That’s my baby.”

  The waiter returned with a pad and pen stamped with the resort’s name. Jacob tore off a sheet. “Thank you.”

  “Will there be anything else?”

  “No. Thank you,” he repeated.

  Ana wrote down the names of three men and two women. “That’s it.”

  Jacob folded the paper and slipped it into the breast pocket of his jacket. “I’ll be right back.”

  Ana grabbed his sleeve. “Where are you going?”

  Cradling the back of her head, he touched his mouth to hers. “I have to go to the cottage for something.” Raising a questioning eyebrow, she met his steady gaze. “Don’t run away.”

  Her dimples winked at him when she smiled. “Where would I go?”

  Her question lingered with Jacob as he left the restaurant. Where would she go after leaving the Bahamas? Back to Boca Raton? Back to pick up the reins of operating Serenity? And back to a lifestyle that was as predictable as a sunrise.

  He would also return to the States to resume his own familiar lifestyle, but with a difference. Jacob doubted whether he would ever forget Ana. Taking long strides he covered the distance between the main house and the cottage in record time. Retrieving the netbook he went online. The island had a cell-phone antenna, a satellite dish for limited television viewing, and the resort had what was touted as secure Wi-Fi connections, yet Jacob still felt uneasy about accessing the internet with what he considered sensitive information.

  He connected to Diego’s email and clicked on the instant-message feature. Jacob had to wait three minutes before Diego responded. Typing quickly, he listed the names Ana had given him. The coded messages went back and forth, until Diego asked how he was enjoying his honeymoon.

  His hands stilled as he willed his fingers to type what lay in his heart. Then, as if they were detached from his body, he typed, I love my wife. Later. Logging off and not giving Diego the opportunity to reply, he sat motionlessly staring at the blank screen.

  He’d admitted to his godson’s father he loved Ana when he hadn’t told her. He’d never been reticent when it came to speaking his mind, but staring down the barrel of a loaded gun was preferable to admitting those three little words to Ana.

  The beginnings of a smile found its way to Jacob’s eyes. It was apparent he was no different from his father—one glance and he’d known almost instantaneously the woman with whom he wanted to share his future. Ana was sexy, uninhibited and innocently seductive. And he suspected she had no inkling of how seductive she could be. She was also unpredictable and that kept him slightly off-balance. Unpredictable, independent, feisty and smart. These were characteristics he admired and looked for in a woman.

  Jacob finally got up from the dining table to put away the computer. It was time he got back to his wife.

  * * *

  Ana averted her gaze when she heard the scathing interchange between the couple sitting at a table several feet away. What had begun as a disagreement had escalated into a noisy argument when the young woman stood up, called her boyfriend a drunken fool and then stalked out of the restaurant. Good for you for walking out on that clown, she mused, silently applauding the woman.

  “Hey, beautiful. Wanna dance with me?”

  She went completely still when the stench of stale alcohol wafted to her nose. Ana didn’t want to believe the man had shifted his attention from his girlfriend to her. He was so close she could hear his raspy breathing. “No, thank you.”

  He leaned even closer and she shifted off her chair and onto the one Jacob had vacated. Where are you? the voice in her head screamed. Her husband had taken the most inopportune time to leave her alone. Ana didn’t want to cause a scene, praying her unsolicited admirer wouldn’t come an
y closer or attempt to touch her.

  “Come on, baby. Don’t be like that. Come on, dance with me.” He grabbed her arm.

  Ana fisted her hands. “Get the hell away from me.”

  “I—”

  Whatever he attempted to say was cut off when he slumped, groaning in pain. Ana glanced up just in time to see Jacob catch him before he fell. The look in his eyes and the expression on his face didn’t bode well for the inebriated man.

  “Touch my wife again and I’ll put your ass in the ground,” Jacob threatened between his teeth. Supporting his sagging body, he steered him toward the entrance. He waved to the clerk manning the front desk. “Call security and have them take him back to his room.” Within minutes two men appeared.

  Jacob didn’t wait around to see where they’d taken him because he wanted to get back to Ana. He found her, eyes closed and cradling a glass of water. The bottle of wine sat in an ice bucket next to a pitcher of water. Folding his body down to the empty chair, he whispered, “I’m sorry about that, baby.”

  She opened her eyes. “What did you do to him?”

  “I turned him over to the security people.”

  Ana met his eyes. “Did you Taser him?”

  “No! And where would I get a Taser?”

  “He went down like he was hit with a bolt of electricity.”

  Jacob blew out his breath. “Let it go, baby. I rescue you from a drunk and you want to know what I did to him. He’s lucky I didn’t break his neck.”

  She shook her head. “I can’t let it go, Jacob. What did you do to him?”

  Waves of frustration washed over him. Ana was like a dog with a bone. She just wouldn’t let it go. “I grabbed his midsection just below his heart. If I’d applied a little bit more pressure his heart would’ve ruptured. Now, are you satisfied?”

  Ana knew Jacob was upset with her questioning him. “I’m only asking because I need to keep a low profile. I didn’t leave Florida to become headline news in the Bahamas because of some idiot who just may decide to sue you for assault.”

  “Don’t worry about him, m’ija. He probably won’t remember anything after he sleeps it off.”