Distant Myles

by Mae, Mandee

  Chapter Nineteen

  Amelia

  What just happened? One minute we were having a great dinner, getting ready to go sit on the deck, and then the next thing I know, Myles is running for the door. It must have had something to do with that text he got. He said everything was fine, but he didn’t seem fine. Caleb left shortly after Myles did. Jamie spent 15 minutes trying to find out if he knew anything. Caleb said he didn’t know what happened, but he was going to find out. I hope everything is okay and there isn’t an emergency. Well, it looks like I’m not getting laid tonight.

  Jamie and I grab our glasses and a bottle of wine and head out to the deck. It’s a nice night, not too warm and the sunset is beautiful. We find the chairs that we want and plant our asses in them for a while.

  “I wonder what had Myles running out of here so fast,” I ask, knowing Jamie doesn’t have the answer.

  Jamie takes a drink of her wine and says, “I don’t know what happened, but if I can get Caleb to tell me, I’ll let you know.”

  “So Jamie, tell me, what’s going on between you and Caleb?”

  “Nothing is going on with Caleb. We are just having some fun. I mean, he’s nice and everything, but, we are only here for two weeks and then it’s back to reality.”

  We sit there for a long time and just watch the water and the sunset. It really is beautiful here. I don’t know how much time has passed, but I look over and see Jamie sleeping in the chair. I have to laugh because that girl can sleep anywhere at any time. She used to curl up on my couch when we would take our lunches and go to sleep.

  I get up, tap her shoulder and tell her that I am heading in to get some sleep. She slowly gets up out of her chair and we both head in for the night. I can say for certain that this trip has been by far the most interesting one we have ever taken. I wonder what else will happen while we are here for the rest of our vacation.

  Walking into my bedroom, I shut the door and head for the shower. I sleep better if I take a shower before I go to bed. I let the water warm up while I undress. The steam soon fills the room and I jump in to get washed off and then I’m off to bed.

  I climb into bed, clean and naked. I try to not think about the reasons why Myles left so abruptly. He said he would call me tomorrow, so we will see what happens.

  I know I have feelings for him already, which scares me, but only time will tell.

  Chapter Twenty

  Amelia

  He didn’t call like he said he would. It’s been two days since we had dinner with Myles and Caleb. Two days and nothing. It will be three days if he doesn’t call today. I am pissed and hurt. It’s not like we made a commitment to each other or anything, but it still hurts. I thought we had a connection, but now I just feel like a cheap slut. I haven’t been able to eat. My stomach is in a constant state of nausea. I have even resorted to taking pills to help me sleep at night. Shit! I know we have only known each other for two days, so why am I feeling like this?

  I know Jamie has talked to Caleb and has tried to find out what’s going on. He keeps telling her that it is not his business to tell and that Myles will have to tell me on his own time when he is ready.

  Knowing I have been upset, Jamie has made it her mission to keep me busy. She even took me to a local spa for a relaxing massage and a mani/pedi. We have been in just about every shop there is. We’ve bought several new outfits, and of course had to buy new shoes.

  I can’t just sit around and wait for Myles to call. Should I just get it over with and call him? What could it hurt? I decide to make the call, so search for my phone. Once my phone is in hand, I search for Myles’ number and press send. After a few ring, someone picks up.

  “Hello,” the voice says. It’s a woman’s voice.

  “Oh, uh…sorry, I must have the wrong number,” I tell her.

  “No problem, honey. Happens all the time,” She says. I hit end and sit there for a moment. That’s strange. I thought I dialed Myles’ number. I wait a few minutes and decide to try again. After a couple of rings, someone picks up.

  “Hello,” she says.

  “Hi. Uh…. Is Myles there?” I ask with a little uncertainty in my voice.

  “Sorry, hon. He’s in the shower right now. Would you like me to take a message for you?” She sounds a little too comfortable answering his phone.

  “No. No message.” I press end and just sit there.

  I need to do something. I decide to take a walk. I need to let Jamie know. I find her sitting on the deck and tell her I’m going on a walk to try to clear my head. She asks if I would like her to join me, but I tell her that I need to be by myself for a while. I just have some things I need to think about. I leave without having a direction in mind and just walk.

  It’s late evening when I return and I can tell Jamie is worried. I must have been gone for a while. I am tired and all I want to do is take a shower and go to bed, but then my phone rings. I look down at the screen and my heart skips a beat when my brain registers whose name appears on the screen.

  Chapter Twenty-one

  Myles

  I am such a dick. After receiving that text from Megan, I left Amelia like my ass was on fire. I never returned Megan’s text. I have no clue what she wants and I don’t intend to find out. Getting that text brought back too many bad memories. I had to get out of there so Amelia didn’t see how pissed I was.

  I haven’t seen or heard from Megan in five years. I am happy where my life is right now. I know I need to explain what happened to Amelia and why I took off. I just need to figure out the best way.

  Amelia looked so hurt when I left and I don’t like knowing that I hurt her. Plus, I failed to call her like I said I would and I’m sure that’s pissed her off even more.

  Why haven’t I called? Good question. I’ve been asking myself the same thing for the last two days. Today makes the third.

  I haven’t done much of anything today. I just sat around the house and pondered how much things have changed in the last two days. Before I knew it, the day passed by and it’s evening. I need to run. Running always helps me clear my head and find answers. I find my running shoes then take off, hoping this will help.

  Running eight miles wore me out. I made my way to the front door and as soon I go inside I collapse on the couch. I should have tried to make it to the kitchen before I sat down, because now I don’t have the energy to get up for some water.

  I sit until I cool down from my run. I decide that I will call Amelia after I shower. I need to convince her to have dinner with me so I can explain why I left the other night. I have to tell her about Megan and what happened with her. I dread explaining how that relationship ended.

  I get off the couch and head upstairs to take a shower. I am going to have to give myself a pep talk to get through this call and the rest of the evening if she agrees to come over. Making my way into my bedroom, I strip off my clothes and head straight into the shower. The cold water is a shock to my system at first, but it quickly changes from cold to hot. It’s a nice relief to my muscles.

  I finish my shower and toss the towel into the hamper and search for some clean clothes. Opening the first couple of drawers on my dresser I retrieve some clean boxers and a t-shirt. Next drawer down, shorts. I am dressed and give myself that little pep talk and head downstairs to call Amelia. I hope she can forgive me enough to come over and let me explain what happened. Taking the last step of the stairs, I hear someone talking. That is strange because I am the only one here. At least I thought I was the only one here. I head toward the kitchen and cannot believe what I see.

  Megan. What the hell? “What the hell are you doing here and how did you get into my house?”

  “I found your spare key outside and let myself in. I want to talk to you, Myles,” she says, turning around to face me with a phone in her hand.

  “Is that my phone? Were you just talking to someone?”

  “Yes, this is your phone. It was ringing so I answered it. It was just some girl asking for yo
u. I told her you were in the shower and asked if she wanted to leave a message. She said no and then the bitch just hung up,” she says, waving it in front of me.

  Shit! I bet it was Amelia. I walk over and take my phone away from her and check the last call. Dammit. It was Amelia. How am I going to explain Megan being here? I will be lucky if she even picks up her phone when I do call her now. I look up at Megan and can barely contain the anger I feel inside.

  “You need to leave. I am so fucking pissed right now. I can’t even see straight. I haven’t heard from you in five years Megan. That’s the way I want it. I don’t care what you have to say. Get. Out. Of. My. House. NOW!” I am yelling at her now. I can’t believe she thought she could just walk into my house after all these years.

  “Myles, I want to come back. I’m sorry and I miss you. Let’s just forget about everything that happened and start over.” She’s watching me while she is telling me this, trying to gauge my reaction.

  “Are you out of your fucking mind, Megan? Have you forgotten that I came home one day and found you in our bed fucking not one, but two men? Do you have any idea what seeing that did to me?”

  I turn away from her for a moment and run my hands through my hair before I turn around to face her again. “I had to turn and walk away or I would be in prison right now for a double murder. I felt like such an idiot. You made me look like an idiot. It wouldn’t have made a difference if you were fucking one man or ten. Cheating is still cheating and that is something I cannot forgive, let alone forget.”

  “Oh Myles, get over it already,” Megan says with a smug look on her face.

  “Get over it? Oh, believe me. I am over it. Now, for the last time, get the fuck out of my house and don’t come back. I’m not kidding Megan. I don’t want to see or hear from you again! Do you understand? If you come back here I will have you arrested for trespassing.”

  Getting up and walking towards the front door Megan says, “Fine. If that’s really what you want Myles, then that’s what you shall have. I will leave you alone. I won’t bother you again. Oh, and good luck with the girl. She didn’t sound too happy when I answered your phone. Have fun trying to patch that up. Dick!” She slams the door on the way out.

  I stand there and watch her walk out the door. Thank fucking god! I walk over to the cabinet and grab a bottle. I need a drink. Hell, I need a fucking bottle. I twist the cap off and take a long drink. It burns going down, but I know it will soon calm my nerves.

  It takes an hour for me to calm down enough to even think about calling Amelia. Figuring it’s now or never, I pick up my phone and press send when I come across her number.

  “Hello.” Her voice is kind of harsh when she answers the phone.

  “Amelia, it’s Myles.”

  “What do you want, Myles?”

  “Okay, I deserved that. I would like to talk to you about everything that has happened over the last few days. Is there any way you would agree to have dinner with me tomorrow night? If you’re still pissed at me after we’ve talked, then I won’t bother you again. Please, just give me a chance to explain.”

  I sit there patiently, waiting for Amelia to answer. I know she has to think about it. I can’t blame her. The line is so quiet, that I begin to question if she is still on the line or not.

  “Amelia?”

  “I’m here Myles. There are a few things I want to say first before I even consider having dinner with you.”

  “Okay, I’m listening,” Myles says rather softly.

  “Myles, I’m not the type of girl who sleeps with a man on a first date. What we did in the bathroom when you came over for dinner proves how attracted I am to you, but when you left me like that after dinner, it hurt. I felt like I was being used. I felt like I was some kind of whore that you could just hook up with when you wanted to and then just leave. You’re going to have to have a pretty damn good excuse if you want me to give you another chance. That was a huge screw up on your part.”

  “You are not a whore, Amelia. I’m sorry. I never meant for you to feel like that.”

  “Myles, I don’t know what’s going on but, I am willing to let you explain and I will try to keep an open mind.”

  “Thank you. I will be there at 6:30 to pick you up. See you tomorrow.” That is all I say before I hit end. I know I should probably have asked her to come over this evening to talk, but I am in no state to have this conversation tonight. It will have to wait until tomorrow.

  After we talked and she agreed to have dinner with me, I began to relax a little. Even though it isn’t very late, I am extremely exhausted so go to bed. I want to have a clear head when I talk to Amelia tomorrow. I head upstairs and get ready for bed. It doesn’t take long to fall asleep once my head hits the pillow.

  Chapter Twenty-two

  Amelia

  Myles finally called and asked me to come over for dinner tomorrow night so he can explain what’s going on. This should be interesting. I told him I would let him explain and I will. I guess everyone has their secrets. I know I do, but he already knows mine. I wonder what his is.

  I walk into my bedroom and all I can think about is a nice, long, hot shower. Stripping off my clothes, I head towards the shower. It doesn’t take long for it to heat up and I jump in. I just stand there and let the hot water work its magic. Leaning my head back to wet my hair, I try to let my worries wash down the drain with the water running off my body.

  I straighten myself and start my routine of washing and conditioning my hair and washing my body. I decide to pass on the shaving tonight. I will do all that before Myles comes to get me tomorrow. I rinse and shut off the water, step out of the shower, I grab a towel and dry off. I am ready for bed. Hopefully, I will be able to get some sleep. I pull back the covers and climb in. God, it feels good to finally lay down. It doesn’t take long before I drift off despite thoughts of tomorrow still running through my mind.

  The sun filtering through the blinds slowly brings me out of my sleep. Today is the day I find out what the big mystery is with Myles. I am ready to find out why I didn’t see or hear from him in two days. I need to find something to do today that will occupy my time. I can’t just sit here and let my mind run away with me until he picks me up. No sooner than I let that thought cross my mind, Jamie walks into my room.

  “Hey Amelia, do you want to go down to the beach again after we grab some breakfast?” Jamie is bouncing around the room. It’s like she can’t sit still for five minutes unless we are at the beach.

  “Great minds think alike. I was just thinking that. Let me get dressed and I will meet you downstairs for breakfast, then we can go. I need some sun today.”

  I climb out of bed and head over to my dresser. Yes, I’m still naked. Being in the medical field, if you have seen one naked body, you’ve seen them all. Some are just in better packages than others. Being naked in front of Jamie doesn’t bother me in the least. I have a good body, so why not show it off? With that thought, I grab the bikini I bought yesterday and put it on.

  “Okay, I’ll be in the kitchen.” And with that, she is out the door.

  We picked up some fresh fruit from the farmers market and that’s what I plan on eating for breakfast. I grab my wrap, then head towards the kitchen. Apparently, Jamie had the same idea. She has already filled a nice big bowl with cut up fruit. Jamie grabs the bowl and two forks and brings it over to the island where I am sitting.

  “Thanks, Jamie. This looks delicious.” With fork in hand, I dig in for a piece of cantaloupe and take a bite. God, this is good. The juice from the cantaloupe explodes in my mouth and now I have juice running down my chin. Jamie is laughing and hands me a napkin. We eat just about all of the fruit she has cut, so we put the rest in the refrigerator.

  We gather what we need for the beach in a large bag so it’s easier to carry and head for the door. It’s a beautiful, bright, sunny day. We found one of those large umbrellas in a closet, so I am going to take that with me today to help keep the sun off us when we need
to take a break from the rays.

  Making our way down the path, we finally reach the beach. Now all we have to do is find a spot, but that doesn’t take long either. I jam the umbrella into the sand then proceed to spread out our huge towels. I just want to lay in the shade for a while first. No need to rush. We have all day to enjoy this.

  “Here, Amelia. Let me rub some sunblock on your back before we go any further.” Jamie is grabbing the sunblock out of the bag while I take off my wrap.

  I sit down with my back facing her so she can rub the sunblock on. I don’t mind getting some sun, I just don’t want to get burnt. After she has caked it on my back, she hands it over my shoulder so I can get my front.

  “Thanks, Jamie. Do you want any?”

  “No, thank you.” She continues. “I brought some oil with me. I don’t burn like you do.”

  We lay there and talk for a while. I tell her about Myles calling and inviting me to have dinner with him tonight and that he is supposed to explain why he practically ran out of the house the other night. I also admit to her that I’m a little nervous to find out what his big secret is.

  “It will be fine, Amelia. Just let him tell you his story and go from there. You don’t have any idea what it is, so there is no reason to start worrying now,” Jamie says already laying down and soaking in the sun.

  “I know, I know. No reason to get my panties in a twist just yet, is there? Okay, enough talking for now. Let’s just enjoy the sun and the eye candy.”

  I lay back down with my shades on even though I am still under the umbrella. I know I will be good for a while, so I relax and enjoy the day.

  “Amelia…Amelia.” I hear Jamie say my name softly, like she is trying to wake me. Shit. I must have fallen asleep.

  “How long was I out?” Wait, when did I roll over? I don’t remember rolling over to my stomach. And where is my shade?