The Art of Seduction

by Kayla C. Oliver

  I used to go climbing the first day of spring every year, but with work the way it was, I hadn’t been able to this time. Instead, I went home and worked on the house all night, getting some of that frustration out of my system. Today I had plans to go out to the local markets outside of the city and buy my food. I hated dealing with the crowds in the local grocery stores; the lines sometimes took over an hour to get through. I could get better organic foods from the local growers anyway, and I knew that they would be needing the money after just coming off of a pretty harsh winter.

  I got dressed, threw on a light sweater and a pair of jeans, and headed out to my garage. I clicked on the light and smiled down at my car, sitting there under the cover. I grabbed the edge and slowly peeled it back, revealing my 1967 Alpha Romeo Spider. It wasn’t special just because it was extremely rare; it was special because my father had left it to me when he passed away. It had been the car that took me all over creation when I was a kid, and I’d always felt so cool riding around in it with my dad. Just the smell of the leather interior now brought back memories and they lifted my spirits almost every single time.

  I pulled the top down and secured it tightly before hopping in the driver’s seat. I turned on the car and listened to it roar as I clicked the button for the garage. As soon as it was up, I pulled out, feeling the cool air hit my face. I loved the feeling of jetting down the streets feeling like I was free as a bird. As I drove away from the city, I smiled, thinking about all of the times that I had ridden in the front seat, my hand out the side catching the air, my father in the driver’s seat, smiling and laughing with the radio on blasting some sort of sixties rock. He was a really fun person to be around.

  My mind took over as I remembered driving out to Oregon with my folks, my mother in the front seat, her hair wrapped up, and my father holding her hand. I sat in the back, watching as the world passed me by so fast that I could barely focus on anything. All of our gear was packed in the back and we ready to get going on vacation, but I always had way different vacations than my friends. While they went to visit Grandma or Disney World, I was climbing mountains and cliffs that most adults I knew wouldn’t even try. I was dangling over the edge of nothingness and dreaming about a life that I could live on the edge, with my parents in tow, just exploring the world. It was still hard to comprehend them not being here any longer.

  I took in a deep breath, pulled over onto the side of the road, and looked forward gripping the steering wheel. My emotions were out of control, and I could feel the tears pulling at the corner of my eyes. I missed my parents, no question, but they had been gone too long for me to have mini-breakdowns like this on the side of the road. I was a grown man with a full life, and I needed to figure out a way to get past the h slump that I had fallen into recently. Though it had been the longest stretch I had ever spent in the city without a vacation, I was an adult; I should be able to handle the real world.

  It was clear that I needed to take off on Friday and head out of town. I needed to go somewhere away from the city, away from the stresses, and away from the constant reminder that I couldn’t have the kind of life that I wanted, at least not anytime soon. My mind needed to clear, otherwise I wasn’t going to be able to get through all the work and stress that would be coming over the next year. With a clear mind, I should be able to get back on track and by taking this mini-vacation I would know what I needed to do next time I found myself in a slump like this one.

  I grabbed my bag out of the backseat, pulled my phone from the pocket, and I texted Troy that I would be taking Friday off and would be out of touch until I came back to work on Monday. I told him not to worry, I just needed some fresh air. I knew he would know what that meant.

  I tossed my phone to the side and pulled back out on the road, heading toward the markets. Just knowing I would have a reprieve in four days started to lesson the stress and tension in my body. I could survive four days of anything if it meant that at the end of those four days I would get to relax, climb, and just be somewhere other than the cement jungle.

  Chapter Seven

  The Next Friday

  Tiffany

  The sky was a cascade of colors, ones that I could never see sitting in my little Brooklyn apartment. I closed my eyes for a moment and listened to the sound of the wind blowing through the caverns below me. When I opened my eyes again, I still couldn’t believe that I was finally standing on the cliffs, far away from the city. It was even more beautiful than I remembered.

  I had driven straight to the park to watch the sunset and made it in just the nick of time. I hadn’t even checked into the bed and breakfast yet, because I needed this sunset, this exact one. I needed it to fill my soul, to wash away the polluted artificial lights that I felt were embedded into my skin. I wanted to go to bed with the smell of the wind on me, not the smell of the city, and I wanted my dreams to do the same thing.

  I sat down on the edge of the cliffs and pulled my legs into my chest. The sky was bright orange and blue and the view took my breath away. I could see the wood on the other side of the cliffs, the birds retiring for the evening. Down below the cliffs were a succession of small ponds, leading to a larger lake, small boats rowing through the waters. The air was cold, and I loved it, refusing to even put a jacket on, not wanting to miss a second of that feeling. I was relaxed and comfortable in a way that only nature could do for me.

  As I watched the sun dip down below the horizon, I knew that this was the perfect way to clear my mind and get the drive back that I seemed to have lost. It took motivation and determination to get the things that I wanted in the future, but I needed to feel it and hear it for myself, to remember that what I was doing in New York was all for a greater purpose.

  As I sat there staring out at the darkening sky, the sparkles of stars I never got to see in the city began to come to life, I pulled my vibrating phone out of my pocket. It was Posey, and though I loved her, I didn’t want to talk; I wanted to just be alone. I had left her a message that morning, letting her know what I was doing, you know, in case I didn’t come back, but that was it. I didn’t want to be disturbed or bothered. I sighed and pulled myself to my feet, hit the ignore button, and climbed back into the car. I threw the phone in the glove box and headed out of the park, knowing I needed to check in soon to the room.

  When I arrived at the bed and breakfast, I pulled around to the parking lot and grabbed my bags, smiling as I looked up at the tall Victorian style home in front of me. I walked up the creaking steps and passed the rocking chairs that reminded me of my parents. When I walked in the door, I immediately lit up, seeing the innkeeper, Mary, standing there. She knew exactly who I was, since I had stayed at the inn more than any of her other guests in the history of the place.

  “Oh, it’s good to see you,” she said, hugging me tightly, like a grandmother. “I was starting to wonder when you would be back.”

  “I tried to stay away, but you know I can’t,” I said, looking around. “Are you going to be this quiet all weekend?”

  “There’s only one other guest besides you,” she said. “And he rented out the rest of the place so that he could have some quiet.”

  I laughed and handed her my credit card, not understanding the way people worked. Like one room wouldn’t be enough to feel alone and rested. It was probably some guy from the city, trying to feel like he was doing something wild in the “wilderness.” Of course, ‘wild’ to people like that was using their clout to have a huge house all to themselves, telling people later they were roughing it in a ‘cottage’ near the park.

  “If you don’t mind, I’d like to eat dinner in my room tonight,” I said. “I really don’t feel like having weird conversation with some rich guy that I’ll have nothing in common with.”

  “Of course,” she giggled. “I’m sure he won’t be eating down in the dining room anyway. He’s very mysterious, not saying much at all and asking to be kept under a fake name so that no one from work could find him.”

  �
�He probably brought a mistress,” I laughed.

  “He will get an earful from me if he did,” she said in her sweet old lady voice. “This is a high-quality establishment.”

  “You are more than right, Miss Mary,” I said, smiling.

  She handed me my card back and walked around to help me carry my bags. I refused to let her, thinking of her more as a grandmother than the owner of the inn. I hadn’t brought that much anyway, and the climb to the attic wasn’t bad. Mary had remodeled, making the staircase wide and winding, for an easier climb to the top. I always stayed in the attic room, even if I had to rebook my trip to be in that room. I didn’t know why, but I liked to be up there.

  I opened the room and kicked the door closed behind me, setting my luggage down on the floor. I looked around, happy that it was the same old room as any other time. There was a queen-sized bed pushed up to a triangular window on the front wall. The ceilings were angled to the roof, and lamps were sporadically placed throughout the space. On the floor was a large Oriental rug, and the bedspread was white and red, and very fluffy. I walked over to the bed and sat down, falling back and pulling my arms under my head.

  My eyes roamed over the ceiling, thinking about the drive here and how much better I already felt. It was like coming home from college for that first Christmas, realizing how homesick you really were. My heart was content, and I started to remember exactly what I was working so hard to achieve. When I had my own place, I was going to have a room just like this one, somewhere that was a sanctuary that I could go to, no matter how stressful life got.

  I pulled myself up off of the bed and walked over, pulling the map from the front of my bag. I spread it out on the bed and sat cross-legged in front of it, following the different hiking trails with my finger. I was going to do the bigger trail the next day and would start just as the sun was coming up so that I could get the whole view of the trail from sun up to sun down. I would stop about halfway and eat lunch by a brook I remembered being there from the last time I did the trail.

  There were so many places I wanted to hike, so many relaxing spots that I hadn’t been to in quite a while. I wished that I could stay longer, but unfortunately, I didn’t want to spend all of my savings on weekend trips from the city. That money was there for my future plans and I knew that the sacrifice now meant that in the future, this would be my life, living out in the wilderness, relaxing in my house, preparing for journey after journey.

  My thoughts stopped as a knock on the door rattled me back to reality. I pulled myself up, jogged over to the door, and pulled it open, smiling at Mary, standing in the hall holding a tray. She had brought me my dinner for the night, which was perfect, since I would need to go to bed soon.

  “Tonight is vegetable chowder, just how you like it, toasted baguettes, and a spinach salad with raspberry honey dressing.”

  “Oh, Mary,” I said smiling. “It looks fantastic. You’ve always taken such good care of me. I can’t tell you how amazing this is.”

  “Let me know if you want dessert,” she said, handing me the tray. “I have peach cobbler downstairs.”

  “I will, thank you,” I said, smiling.

  I brought the homecooked meal into my room and set everything up at the table by the window. I could see the front yard from there and with the lights dimmed, the stars would twinkle in the sky. It was an incredibly clear night, which meant that if I wandered outside later, I would be able to see the Milky Way and everything.

  I took my shoes off and sat down in the chair, pulling my napkin into my lap. I could feel the slight draft of cold air from the outside, coming through the old windows, and smiled, glad that it was still cold. I wasn’t ready for winter to be over. While other people hid away in the city during the winter, it was the best time of year for me.

  My spoon full of chowder hit my lips and I closed my eyes, putting it into my mouth and groaning. It was the best chowder I had ever had and one day I would convince Miss Mary to give me the recipe for it. She cooked just like my mom did, healthy, but hearty. It was the kind of food that made you want to curl up by a fireplace and just enjoy life. As I lifted another spoonful to my mouth, I stopped and wiped the fog from the window. Up the driveway sped an old vintage sports car. It parked, and a dark-haired man got out.

  I tried to wipe the fog off the window again, but the contrast in temperatures fogged it up too quickly. The view was muffled, which was fine because it seemed that my thoughts were right on target. I rolled my eyes and shut the curtains, not wanting to look at the man who could have ruined my perfectly planned weekend. I was there to relax and not be troubled by strangers, a quality that I had always loved about the inn. The place could be full, but everyone was there for the peace and quiet.

  I didn’t know what this man’s plans for the weekend were, but I was not going to let some rich guy ruin my awesome mood. I shut him out of mind and grabbed the bottle of wine off the counter and poured myself a glass. This was the perfect way to start my mini-vacation, with a glass of merlot and the warmth of Miss Mary’s vegetable chowder. Tomorrow was going to be just another step toward reminding myself exactly why I was there, why I wanted to recharge, and to cement exactly what my plans were for the future.

  Chapter Eight

  Rob

  The early start to my trip didn’t turn out quite like I thought. Before I could even leave my house, Troy was on the phone, reminding me that before I jetted off to nowhere, I had to be in the office for a quick meeting about the upcoming marketing scheme. I didn’t want to go, but I knew that without me the meeting would be pointless. I threw my bags in the car, so I could leave directly from work and drove my car there. The top was still down, and it was a cold drive, but I needed it to wake me up.

  The meeting actually went really fast and I could tell that Troy was running it that way for my benefit. He knew I needed to get away, even if I hadn’t told him why. He had known me long enough to know that if I planned something spur of the moment like this, it was for a good reason. I started to head down the hallway when I heard Troy hollering my name.

  “Yes,” I said with a sigh.

  “So, you’re heading out of town,” he said. “Is there anything I should know about?”

  “Nope,” I said, looking down. “Just need to get away from the city for a while.”

  “You sure you aren’t running from something?”

  “No, I’m running from something,” I said. “I’m running from the city as fast as I possibly can.”

  “But the city is great,” he said, laughing.

  This was exactly why I didn’t want to have this conversation with him; he had never understood why I hated city life so much and wanted to get away. He cleared his head doing yoga downtown, but there was something I found less than relaxing about the thought of doing yoga under a recording studio.

  “Anyway, have a good trip,” Troy said. “And don’t fall off any cliffs. I need you in one piece next week.”

  “Will do,” I said, turning and walking away.

  I rushed through the building, trying to get away before anyone else stopped me. When I was out on the curb, I sent the valet to retrieve my car. As I stood there, watching him slowly pull up, I shook my head, realizing how accustomed I had gotten to the amenities of rich city life. I had never had valet parking in my life until I moved to New York, and now I didn’t know what I would do without it.

  I tipped the valet and climbed into the car, taking a moment to plug my phone into the radio so I could listen to music. I fixed the roof, making sure it was securely closed since it was going to be a cold morning, and headed out, not even looking back once. I felt free before I could even get out of the city, and I could feel the cliffs calling my name.

  When I got out of the tunnel and hit open highway I let out a deep breath, already feeling better with the city and the traffic in the background. I was free to do as I pleased for at least a couple of days, and I couldn’t wait until I hit countryside and was able to see for more t
han a city block.

  When I finally got away from the other cars, I took the first exit and got gas. I disconnected my GPS and pulled the maps out of my glove compartment. I had never been to this particular part of upstate, but was sure that I could find it without the hinderance of electronics. Pulling back out on the highway, I sped forward, feeling like I was really escaping, until my phone rang, of course. Unfortunately, I had to field several calls from work, but I let everyone know that once I reached the inn, I would be completely off the grid until I returned.

  I had even taken steps to avoid any stress where I was staying by renting all but one room in the place. I just wanted to know that I was going to have certain peace and quiet for the weekend and not have to engage in uncomfortable conversation with other people. I had stayed at several bed and breakfasts growing up and was never any good at idle conversation with strangers.

  The one room I couldn’t rent out was for a woman who apparently visited the place often. From what I gathered with my conversation with the innkeeper, the woman was there for the same reason as me. I assumed that meant she wouldn’t be much of a threat to my peace and quiet, not that I was going to be there all that much. I wasn’t going to waste one moment of the sunshine and cool weather there.

  The innkeeper seemed like a nice woman and I explained to her that I wouldn’t be any trouble, that I just wanted to get away from the city. She assured me that she would make sure things stayed as quiet as possible, even going as far as to stock the place with the foods I liked in case I didn’t want to eat what she cooked for the other guest. She told me the woman was a vegetarian and I was thrilled since I wouldn’t have to live off of granola bars and whatever I could stock in my mini-fridge.

  The sun set while I was driving, giving me the most gorgeous display of colors I had seen in a long time. I missed the sunsets and couldn’t remember the last real one I had seen. I had been cooped up in the city so long that I was used to watching the sun set over the buildings and not the actual horizon. When I reached the long dirt driveway, it was dark, and the stars were shimmering brightly in the night sky. It was a beautiful night, and I could feel the cold air from the door of the car.