by Zoe Adams
She answered the call from Dayna. “Hello, sister, how are you?”
“Oh, hi, Susanna, you sound happy.” Dayna sounded a little shocked and maybe a little jealous.
Susanna looked around the room and tried to find a reason not to be happy. “Yeah, I’m on a cruise with Royce. It’s pretty great.” But when she asked about the ranch, she was quickly chastised.
“Susanna,” Dayna interrupted, “you think way too much. Don’t worry about anything. You just fall in love with that sexy man, and everything will be right here when you get back. Besides, you know how things don’t really change very much around here.”
Susanna nodded into the phone. “I should be back in a few weeks.”
The call was ended, and a fresh batch of homesickness began. Susanna realized she had forgotten to mention the intense protection she was now under, or the unusual places she had been. It was just as well, she thought; then she would have to explain a lot more about Royce than she could even explain to herself.
Susanna sent out a few texts to other friends, and a frenzy followed as they were individually updated. The phone kept vibrating with its messages. Susanna got tired of entertaining them with updates, and threw her phone twenty feet to a cushion target. The phone continued to vibrate, before slipping from the silk to the floor, where it continued to clatter in its noisy receptions. Exasperated, Susanna turned up the television and flipped through halftime highlights.
***
The ship docked along the Mediterranean coast, and they quickly got lost in the scene. There were meals, shopping, and sights to see. Royce knew all the best places to share. Susanna was becoming exhausted, and with one look at Royce, they were out the door.
She expected to go back to the ship docks, but instead, they were chauffeured to a tall building on the beach. The interior was set with a sleek and modern staircase, and its well-thought-out design cast shadows across the floor. The hexagon lobby spread out in various points of disinterest, with a wall of glass and the beach behind it being the focal point. All other accessories were muted by design, in colors of sand, seashells, and pale water.
Susanna and Royce were alone on an elevator that was sturdy and fast; he backed her against the mirrored lift.
“Am I getting too heavy?” Susanna teased with her knees wrapped around his thighs.
Royce slammed his torso into her and freed his hand. He moved her hair back from her face softly, and the elevator reluctantly stopped on the top floor.
Royce entered his penthouse.
Susanna looked around slowly. A full three-sixty degree view from windows highlighted a skyline to kill for. She was hastily deposited on the long, backless couch, and she quickly covered her scabbing foot.
Royce talked about how tired he was, then found a few beers before joining Susanna.
“I can tell you don’t like this place; why don’t you just say so?” Royce said without hesitation.
“Can you please close the curtains?” Susanna thought twice of closing her eyes, and took a sip of the malted beverage. Beer seemed to help everything, and she took another sip.
Royce studied her face for a moment. “I should have known you would be afraid of heights.”
He snapped his phone open and barked out a few commands. Susanna self-medicated with a beer on the couch. Five minutes later, they were walking into a ground level suite in the same building.
They were in a clean and empty apartment on the first floor. For lease signs were still plastered to its glazed glass doors. Susanna balanced on her good foot, and Royce circled the room slowly. Sneezing on one foot was too much for her, and she swayed. Royce quickly wrapped his arms around her dizzy self.
“Royce, I can sleep in here, but I have to pass out to be able to sleep on the floor.” Susanna was far from drunk.
Royce smiled at her offer of getting drunk. “That is tempting, Susanna. I wonder if you’re ever a mean drunk. It’s probably a good thing you keep those inhibitions of yours in check, or else someone else would have snatched you up.”
There was a knock on the door, and Royce jumped up. A large mattress and couch were deposited in the room, and Royce made a quick directional to his personal assistant.
“Lawrence, I don’t care what happens to all of the penthouses. I want ground floor suites, or private houses. Any other news?” He listened briefly, and then finished his business before two minutes had passed. He ordered a few more things, and they were left alone again.
Royce and Susanna agreed on the best place for the bed, and it was soon in place. There was another knock on the door, and more bags and beer were left for the auspicious couple. Royce waved off his men and locked the door.
Susanna sat carefully, with her legs stretched out before her and crossed at her ankles. The empty room echoed her pounding heart, and the vast floor swallowed her up.
She gratefully accepted the beer Royce offered. “Do you own this building, Royce?”
“Not me directly, of course, but as you can see, things can be arranged.” He set his drink down and started emptying shopping sacks.
There were sheets and pillows, blankets and robes. He made the bed with smooth efficiency, then they sat on the bed and drank together.
“I didn’t know I was scared of heights,” Susanna said in her defense. “The older I get, the more sensitive I am.”
“I’d love to test that sensitive theory,” Royce said slowly, but somehow kept the conversation on track. “There are a lot of restaurants we probably won’t go to, but that’s all right. My bodyguards will probably be relieved.” He kept his distance while he drank his beer.
“Doesn’t anything faze you?” Susanna asked. “I mean, you act like all of this is normal.”
“Maybe normal is whatever we want it to be. You are fitting in nicely, though.” His eyes were moving up and down her chest.
“Money makes it more normal, I guess,” she agreed, and another swallow was ingested.
As she looked around, it was easy to be overwhelmed by the situation, so she decided to drink instead. The bottle was finished and set aside carefully, before another was opened.
“I am so sick of sitting.” Susanna’s voice was an octave higher, and starting to lilt.
“So it takes four beers for you to start complaining.” Royce smiled. “I wonder how the fifth will go.”
“Are you keeping track for me? Because I don’t think I want to know the damage.” She was starting to feel a little feisty, and leaned back on her side and stretched.
Royce choked out a laugh and shook his head. “You’d better be careful, Susanna. You’re pretty cute when you’re drunk.” He took a swig of beer, and the twinkling never left his eyes. “So, what do you want normal beach behavior to be?”
“I don’t know, because normal is subjective.” She shrugged the universal whatever.
Ever alert, Royce started to stroke her curved hip, and added, “Hey, I have to know, so I can keep you off your feet. I can’t let that cute little foot get scarred.”
“Thanks, baby, you help me a lot. I just don’t like being helpless. Now, I’m gaining weight, and my butt is getting bigger.” She had sent the invitation, and Royce studied it intensely.
“It is? Let me check that right now. I don’t know. I’m almost an expert on these silky curves, and they’re as sexy as can be.” His fingers groped, and she started to squirm in a flirty way.
“Wait,” she laughed and shrieked at the same time. “I have to get ready for bed. I’m still wearing my makeup.” Susanna started her sixth beer. “I like the sound of the beach. Do you think we should leave that door open all night?” She made a delayed point to the wide door Royce had left open.
She saw a protective look drop over his face, and he said forcefully, “We will be safe.”
Susanna had a lot of old habits concerning safety, and not packing a pistol lately had instilled a new measure of trust and safety. It was better this way and less weight to carry when being transported aroun
d. She wondered vaguely how much of herself would be, or should be lost.
Royce was ready to reassure her. “Bad things won’t happen to us. My men are very good. They are stationed along the beach and at other integral parts of the vicinity. No one with a bad motive will be coming near my penthouse, or whatever this ground floor suite is called.”
“How can you be so sure? This is a public beach.” She felt forced to question things.
“Who would bother two lovers?” He smiled smugly.
That answer was good enough for Susanna. It did make sense, so she let her attention slip to more present circumstances.
Royce’s hands had a mind of their own, and he started to pet her good foot. Susanna let him for a while, until his touch lightened too much. She giggled and withdrew her toes on reflex.
“Tickling isn’t fair, especially when I’m working on my drunk.” She took a prudish swallow, before sweeping a long sideways glance at the man beside her.
His eyes were boring holes into her skin, and she couldn’t look away from him.
“I know what you’re trying to do,” she said as she blinked her heavy eyelids.
“What’s that?” Royce said innocently as he stilled his hands on her hips.
“You’re keeping me sedate, so I can’t ask you any questions.” Susanna was too drunk to decode him.
“You can ask me any question you want,” he said, and hoisted her onto his lap.
“I want to know the price,” she slurred.
He looked up at her, and she pushed him further onto his back.
“For you, price is no object.” Royce was being very suave.
“Oh, I know. You give me everything I, or you want, and I’m very grateful, but you still haven’t named your price.” She dug her knees into the cushions that sided his ribcage and slowly inched upward. “Of what I have to give you.”
“There is only one thing you can give me.” He was sliding provocatively under her, trying to adjust her position. “Or two or three.”
“Yeah, I know. Sex is the one thing I’m not worried about. You want something else from me, Royce,” Susanna said.
“Yes, I want a lot of things from you. I want you beside me all the time. I want your baby to be my son. I want you to have privacy and whatever you want. Most of all, I want you to get past all of this, and accept your position.” He broke his voice from the monotone. “I also want to eat your honey pot before I starve.”
He jerked his shoulders in a quick and fluid motion, and his mouth was trapped under moist lips.
Susanna forgot her question. The empty chamber stood witness that in a world of lust, a barren room is not a deal breaker. Pounding waves matched melding skin. They worked and then slept a few hours. Their haphazard sleep pattern wasn’t to blame.
They finally emerged from the empty room at about noon, with the foremost purpose of nourishment in mind. They were determined not to let Susanna’s handicap diminish the day, and they were driven about in a whirlwind of activity.
Royce had been adamant about keeping his bodyguards. It had been a new experience for Susanna to be with a man who needed to be surrounded by men. It was even weirder to hear Royce tell jokes with the guys. She was reminded he was just a man, and there is a standard for men in every class. She felt skittish about sitting in a limousine with Royce and five of his men after the twenty minute drive.
She found herself staring obliquely out the window to avoid the presence of too-casual men. Royce was always aware of her curious eyes, and he appeared to love the challenge of keeping her preoccupied, as he switched subjects from pointing things out the window to her, then referring back to whichever friends his bodyguards wanted to visit.
Once they were alone again, Royce changed into her appropriate lover. Susanna realized it was because he was on his best behavior around her. No wonder he acted like everything was so fresh, and he was so happy to be alive. He made her feel that way too. They shopped and dined, the picture of a couple in love that was almost oblivious to the world’s curious stares.
The renovation list for their new landing pad kept growing. It included a main entrance from outside instead of from the lobby, and to acquire the above three floors. Most of the room was needed for taller ceilings, the viewing decks and a private elevator to whisk them to the helipad, just in case.
With Royce’s upheaval of address, his scouts were kept busy checking the new location from every angle. They were pleased that it was easy to protect, and his team quickly acquired the strategic positions around the dwelling. The uprooting was largely silent, and everything seemed to click into place with the well-oiled sprockets crashing their course, and squashing opposition in its predestined path.
That night Susanna and Royce sifted through the items they had purchased that day. They had decided to stay on the island for a few more days. Royce had insisted Susanna be involved in the plans for the ground floor penthouse.
She looked outside and sighed.
“What is it?” Royce was already in tune with most of her mannerisms.
“I want to plant flowers, but they will just die when we leave.” Susanna was wistful.
Royce furrowed his brow, confused. “Just let them die, and replant them whenever you want.”
“I can’t let a plant die. That goes against the grain for a farm girl. Besides, if I have to replant them all the time, they will never get big,” she said, dejectedly swirling the straw in her iced tea.
“Well, you probably won’t want a gardener dropping by all the time, so I guess we need to install a watering system.” Royce began texting his latest request.
“I was just thinking of a few flower pots.”
“I guess you have to go bigger.”
Susanna was shopping on her phone when she realized she could do much more with plants in such a tropical climate. The temperate was luxurious after the frigid four-month growing season she was used to.
At the end of the week, Royce looked at her apologetically. “Look what two workaholics can do in a few days.”
They were sitting at an intimate dining room table, with an open bottle of wine in between them, and half-eaten steaks.
“It has been an exciting week,” she agreed. “You know things would have been different if I were mobile, and I had two good feet.”
“I know, you would have climbed the Himalayas or crossed the Sahara or something else life threatening and dangerous.” Royce smiled at her.
“I can figure out which risks I should be taking,” she said indignantly. “All those things you mentioned sound fine to me, so long as I have most of the comforts of home. Even at home, in my outdoor bedroom, I still had a bed, pillows, and miles of mosquito netting, but that’s just to be comfortable. Sometimes all you need to feel safe is a gun.”
They laughed together, and Royce doled out the rest of the wine.
“Yes, I did notice you had the fittings of a queen, right in the middle of a field. It was really bewildering, but very sexy. You were just holding onto an existence, and waiting for me to find you.” He smiled like a preying tiger. “Getting run over by a deer is the best thing that has ever happened to me.”
Susanna widened her eyes in vague disgust at the comment that was so charged with testosterone. She knew when to be coy, and when to charge forward, and this was a moment of accepting a compliment, albeit a strange one.
“What is it?” He said between satisfying bites of dinner.
“Nothing is wrong. I like this place as a pit stop for shopping and stuff. I’ll just be happy to leave the commotion of population,” she answered quietly.
“Do you miss the prairie?”
“Yes, I miss it very much. It took serious intervention for me to leave the ranch. Now that I’m away from it all, it’s strange to know I can survive without working.” Susanna sat forward with an empty wine glass. “It’s strange to have so many people in my life. I lived alone in the middle of nowhere for so long. The thing I miss the most about the prairie is
its serenity.”
Royce laughed. “Serenity comes from having wishes filled, and needs met.”
She considered and nodded. “Yes, but if you can’t have them, then the next best thing is a beautiful sunset or sunrise, and hoping what follows will produce your wish.”
Royce set his fork and knife down. “When you talk like this, you can get whatever you want from me.”
It was her turn to be flabbergasted. “Hmm. That’s good magic. Just say it out loud and receive it. I’m not used to anything easy.”
His dark eyes twinkled in candlelight and picked up on the lighter notes of the conversation. “Well, you’re lucky, some people can’t always say what they’re thinking, and some people can but aren’t worth repeating. I want you to always tell me what you think.”
“Even if it’s contrary?”
Royce shook his head arrogantly. “I don’t see that happening. How could we possibly disagree?”
She knew better than to argue. She gave a little laugh and a wave of dismissal.
“I agree,” she said. It was just a little yes to give such a big man. She shuddered at anyone who would be naïve enough to disagree with him. Susanna didn’t plan to fight him on anything at the moment, but just in case, she would have to choose her battles carefully.
Chapter 14
Chilly Waters
The Black Water Splitter left the bustling seaport and shot past an inlet of isles. The days were spent balancing the hot equatorial sun. Busy ports and heavy demographics were avoided completely. Fresh delicacies or various requested items were procured by sending the helicopter inland whenever necessary.
The ever-present passing of time was evident as the rattlesnake bite healed. Susanna’s freedom of movement was a change in form for them. Royce’s private rooms, which had been adequate to their needs before, were abandoned for more exciting entertainment. They used to spend time lounging in resplendent harmony, now it was being spent in various outdoor sports.
One of the crew’s favorite pastimes was diving off the tall bow of the ship. Susanna could only watch and stare from her seat. The height was daunting for her. She hadn’t known until recently about being sickened by heights. How could she know? Living on the ranch had limited her surroundings.
