Fighting Destiny

by Annalisa Simon

  Nathan was hiding something and in his experience, whenever someone was getting unfair preferential treatment it always screamed blackmail. It seemed that Eve was absolutely untouchable and he wanted to know why!

  Later that evening as Candasee prepared to leave for the party, Nathan began to have serious misgivings once he saw her in her outfit! She was always beautiful in whatever she wore, even in a sweatpants and jazz shoes. But now, she looked like an otherworldly goddess with her hair now upswept into a riot of curls and her emerald gown shimmered like it was covered by an array of tiny stars. Her breasts swelled like dark orbs within the neckline and the colour of the gown was the perfect jewel tone to offset her unusual eyes!

  “I’ve changed my mind, I’m not letting you go anywhere with your ex and his family, looking so excruciatingly sexy!” said Nathan standing behind her as she stood at the mirror putting on a pair of diamond tear-drop earrings.

  Candasee had to admit that she forgot how she looked in this particular dress and Nathan was right, it was one of her more mind-blowing dresses. She had to admit to herself as well that she did look like herself when she was Darius’ wife. They attended many posh social events and she always had a new dress for each occasion which made her the belle of the ball. Maybe she should have taken Darius’ advice and tried it on first to remind herself of the fit! But that was definitely too late now. Besides after what happened this morning, undressing in his room would’ve probably taken their actions even further.

  “I’m not going anywhere with Darius, I’m going to see Marianne. I told you that already Nathan,” Candasee replied feeling conflicted as she stood there. She almost changed her mind about going several times that day. There was no way she could face Darius tonight after her shameful behaviour. How would she also explain to Nathan that she just simply changed her mind without him becoming suspicious and how could she disappoint Marianne? She’d called her that afternoon while she was on her search for shoes and was very excited that she would be attending the party. She just wanted to curl up in the bathtub and hide and wait out the next few days until she could get back on a plane to Barbados and end this madness.

  Nathan wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her close against him and buried his nose into the nape of her neck where she’d applied some of her perfume. The back of this dress plunged in a daring V almost all the way past her slender waist and the bodice fit her as snug as a glove outlining the sensuous curvature of her body. The skirt flared slightly at the hipline falling around her ankles in soft rippling waves of green silk. Instead of leaning back into his warmth, he felt her back stiffen in resistance.

  “Candee, I’m sorry about today. I promise that I will explain it all to you soon, but Graeme is making demands on me that I can’t ignore. I’m actually on your side on this and I hate feeling helpless when I know that I’m doing something that’s hurting you! I love you, you know that don’t you,” he said kissing her neck softly.

  She was still standing rigidly in front of him and he was about to lose hope that they would be able to at least begin to patch things up before she had to leave for the evening.

  “Nathan, I don’t like how it felt fighting with you today!” Candasee whispered with a heavy heart. “I want us to be able to trust each other. It feels like we don’t have that as a foundation anymore. Can’t you tell Graeme no to what whatever it is this time?”

  “I tried that already and it’s a no go. Graeme’s threatened to take over the intensive if I don’t comply with his wishes. Candasee, I wish I could say something else to you but I can’t. I can’t live with the thought that this is separating us, not when we just connected with each other on a whole new level. Please try to understand the position that I am in here,” he pleaded.

  “I can’t promise you that Nathan, I can’t. Something feels really off about all of this and I don’t like it.”

  Nathan slid his hand down along the curve of her spine eliciting a shiver at the contact of his hand against her skin. “I don’t want you to go with him tonight Candasee, not when we are like this.”

  “We will work this out Nathan. I am coming back to you,” she replied. Tonight she would make it clear to Darius that she wouldn’t be seeing him again for the rest of the trip. No more private meetings, no more chances to weaken her resolve and her character.

  “You’d better or I will tear this island apart looking for you!” he growled into her neck. Nathan knew she had no idea just how serious he was about that. They hadn’t been to any black tie events like this one and he could think of one in the not too distant future where her appearance would probably even surpass tonight’s. Their wedding! If only he could get rid of Darius Brogan and the control his own family had over his career.

  Nathan turned Candasee around and was about to kiss her when she recoiled.

  “What’s wrong?” he asked at her reaction to his advances.

  “I’ve already put on my makeup, and I won’t have you smudging it up again!” she said making up an excuse quickly to avoid getting intimate with him. With that thought, there was a knock at the door to her room.

  Nathan decided to see who it was and was met by the sight of Darius dressed to the nines in black tie formal, carrying a small rose corsage in his hand. He’d meant to have a word with Darius earlier but the intensive demanded so much of his time during the day that he never got the chance.

  Nathan stepped forward and closed the door behind him forcing Darius to take a step backwards.

  “Look, we need to talk man to man about something here!” Nathan began. “I know you and Candasee have your own history but she and I engaged now and I want you to respect those boundaries tonight. Candasee may not have made that clear to you, but I am. She is going to this party because of your mother Marianne, and not because she wants to be with you!”

  Darius looked Nathan straight in the eye and saw the fear of losing Candasee there, but he knew that giving him his word would be an outright lie. He had no intention of honouring this relationship which Candasee was hiding behind. Besides, after what he saw on the cameras today, he wasn’t sure that he wanted this man anywhere near Candasee at all. He was hiding something and before long, with Mitchell’s help he would discover exactly what that secret was.

  “Nathan you have every right to be angry but whatever you are trying to build with my wife will never to work. You are fighting against the inevitable here.”

  “She is not your wife!” hissed Nathan through clenched teeth as the vein in his jaw pulsed with barely suppressed anger.

  “Okay if it makes you happier, I’ll say Candasee. But I’m sure that you know if your relationship with her is truly strong you have nothing to worry about right? I’ll admit that I want my wife back and I make no apologies about that. You guys aren’t married yet and that means Candasee is still free to choose who she wants to spend her life with!”

  “You have a lot of nerve showing up here and daring to speak to me like that! I ought to deck you where you are standing right now! How would you like it if the shoe was on the other foot?” Nathan asked, his voice rising to a shout in anger.

  At that moment Candasee opened the door and found Nathan and Darius squared off almost like gladiators in a ring!

  “Hey you two, will you stop it! I mean it! Stop it!”

  At the sound of her voice, both turned to look at her and both expressions said something completely different. Nathan’s eyes were literally pleading with her not to go, but how could she disappoint Marianne? On one hand she needed some time away from Nathan to think through the events of the day. Being with him right now was more than an uncomfortable thought. On the other hand, she also wanted to go and see some of the friends with whom she had not connected with in ages. It wasn’t fair of him to try to stop her! She was still free to do what she wanted and she didn’t need his permission, just like he didn’t need hers to keep Eve in her class!

  She looked away from his expression to Darius’ who frankly looked stu
nned as his eyes trailed from her head to her toes in blatant admiration.

  “Candee, you look absolutely stunning!” he whispered.

  “Candee, Candee? Seriously man, you are really pushing it now!” shouted Nathan now reaching the point of exasperation at hearing Darius use the same term of endearment as he for Candasee!

  “Nathan, I’ve been calling my wife that for longer than you have even known her, so relax! She will be safe at the party and I am sure you can trust her!” he said in a cold and almost mocking tone.

  Why wouldn’t he stop calling her his wife?

  “Nathan, look I know this is hard on you but I have to go,” said Candasee. “You can trust me tonight! When I get back we will talk then, okay?” Silently she wondered if she could trust herself especially with Darius now looking his best and most devastating in his black tux. She would be staying as far away from him as possible tonight and would stick to her plan of letting him know that she wouldn’t be seeing him again. She had to make that clear if she had any hope of moving on with her life.

  Nathan, without another word turned and forced his way past Candasee and re-entered the room closing the door so that Candasee and Darius were left standing alone in the hallway.

  “Wait here, Darius I have to get my clutch and my shawl!” said Candasee turning to go back inside the room. As she opened the door a draft of warm air told her that Nathan had gone out onto the balcony into the balmy night air. Taking up her purse and shawl from the bed, she walked to the door and peeked out. He was leaning sideways against the wall looking out toward the beach with his back turned to her.

  “Nathan, I hope everything goes well tonight at the rehearsals. If you need me just give me a call, okay,” she said cautiously.

  “You know Candasee, I couldn’t care less about the damned rehearsals right now. If you leave here with him tonight it will kill me, do you hear me? This is my heart and my life that both you and Darius are messing with,” Nathan choked out raggedly without turning to look at her.

  “Nathan, please don’t do this. I just want to see Marianne tonight. I won’t be comfortable enjoying the event knowing you are up here miserable like this! You’re asking me to trust you with this secret you are hiding about Eve and now I am asking you to trust me too. Look it is just a party for Marianne and her fiancé, okay. It is not as though Darius and I are going on a date together.”

  “Do you still love him Candasee?”

  “What?” replied Candasee caught off-guard by his sudden question. “Nathan, what are you asking me?” she stuttered.

  “The question was clear Candasee. I have never been anything but open with you about how much I love you and I was able to show you how much when we made love for the first time yesterday. I would have loved to finish what we started then tonight, but here you are going out to, “see your family”. A family you divorced two years ago. I think I deserve to know the answer to my question!”

  Candasee stood in silence unsure of how to answer Nathan and she paused a little too long!

  “Well I have my answer!” he said bitterly walking past her and out of the room.

  Candasee took a minute to calm her shaking nerves by taking a few deep breaths and locked the balcony doors before leaving the room. Why didn’t she say anything?

  When she got outside Nathan was nowhere in sight and Darius immediately handed her the corsage.

  “Can I pin this on?” he asked softly noting how her stormy her eyes looked and she was on the verge of tears since Nathan left the room so angrily.

  “Yes sure, go ahead!”she said, but her voice was faraway and distracted.

  They walked silently to the elevators and rode the lift down to the lobby and when they emerged outside, a sleek black stretch limo was waiting for them under the porte-cache.

  “I can’t remember the last time I rode in one of these,” said Candasee, as Darius opened the door for her and allowed her to step inside. When she did, she was greeted by the enthusiastic welcome of its occupants.

  “Welcome my daughter, I am so glad that you decided to come!” said Marianne excitedly and Candasee slipped over to the seat where she was seated and embraced her tightly. A tear of happiness streamed down her face at seeing her adopted mother again. But was it worth it? By coming here tonight it meant she hurt someone else she loved, Nathan. It seemed that was all she was doing these days. What was really true for her?

  Seeing them holding each other like that was all the confirmation Darius needed that reuniting his family was the right thing to do. Things were uncomfortable now, but Candasee needed Marianne and Marianne needed her daughter back. Although she tried not to pry, he knew how much Candasee’s leaving had hurt his mother who had always wanted another child but never had the opportunity until she met her.

  “Oh Mom, I wouldn’t have missed this for anything.” Candasee replied. “Is this the lucky groom,” she asked noting the tall gentleman who sat beside her.

  “Yes love, this is my fiancé Francis!”

  Candasee extended her hand to him and he shook it with a strong grip and a wide smile.

  “I’m looking forward to getting to know Marianne’s daughter. You know, she talks about you all the time! I feel as though I already know you,” he said.

  “Oh we are all together again! Doesn’t this just feel so right?” Marianne asked happily looking meaningfully at Darius as she spoke and seeing the silent agreement in his own eyes.

  Darius sat alone on the seat at the back of the limo surveying the scene that lay before him. The plan he’d envisioned could now be carried out without a hitch and he was determined to see it through!

  The majority of his marriage to Candasee was beautiful and untainted and the ugly times only began in their final year, but were intense enough to cause this damage. Tonight he would explain everything to her and she would see that everything they lost could become new again and even better than it was before!

  Chapter 10

  As the limo drove the conversation was rich and interesting and Candasee got a chance to hear about how Marianne and Francis met and what they loved about each other. It turned out that Francis was an ex-policeman who had risen to the rank of Deputy Commissioner before his retirement a few years ago and he’d spent almost a year travelling the world to see all the sites he’d dreamed of visiting. His job had kept him too busy to consider having a family so he had no children.

  He and Marianne had actually met on a cruise she took to Alaska with two of her girlfriends and once he’d danced with her that first night he already knew he would be pursuing her after the cruise was over. It was like destiny for them to discover that they were both residents of Derrien Island.

  The limo came to a stop and Candasee chanced to look through the dark glass at her surroundings. It appeared that they were at some kind of helipad. Darius got out and was speaking to a man dressed in a Captain’s uniform for a few moments.

  Darius re-opened the door and offered Candasee his hand, and helped her out before helping his mother.

  “We need to take the helicopter the rest of the way to our party location,” he said calmly.

  “A helicopter?” exclaimed Candasee in disbelief. “Darius, you know how much I dislike flying. You could have told me this before-hand!” said Candasee now feeling a sense of woe creeping up her spine at the thought of being airborne again.

  “If you are scared you can hold my hand! The other guests have already been flown out to the venue and they are waiting for the guests of honour to arrive, so please let’s go to the chopper quickly,” he said hoping she would just trust him and not delay their arrival by putting up any further resistance.

  But why a helicopter, she wondered. Was the party being held somewhere in the mountains or on a yacht at sea? Candasee was perplexed at the need to fly around such a small island. An hour long drive through the mountains would’ve been okay with her!

  Marianne squeezed her hand and smiled reassuringly as they walked the short distance to the
chopper. They all climbed in and secured their seat belts. True to his word Darius sat beside her and held her hand immediately in his as soon as he was settled. His hand felt so big and warm and she leaned into his warmth instinctively when the chopper started the engine and while they were zipping through the air. Candasee gripped Darius’ hand with all her might and closed her eyes not wanting to see anything outside. Instead she focused on the warmth of the hand holding hers and tried to calm her irrational fear of flying.

  The flight was smooth and lasted just about fifteen minutes! Candasee waited to feel the impact of the chopper landing before she once again risked opening her eyes. Plane flights were way more bearable for her than helicopters ever were, and she really hated flying in planes.

  They’d landed on a cement surface and behind it rose from the heavily vegetated landscape a beautiful mansion. The path leading to the mansion was lit with torches and festive music could be heard weaving its way to them over the trees.

  A golf cart was parked and waiting for them. They boarded it, and were driven by a uniformed staff member all the way to the front door of the majestic house.

  Candasee couldn’t remember ever coming to a party here and they had been invited to the homes and restaurants of so many of the wealthy and influential on Derrien Island already. They must be somewhere in the Northern Mountains based on the terrain and vegetation, she thought.

  Darius could see the questions all over Candasee’s face and knew she had no idea that she was no longer on Derrien Island. She always trusted him so completely to arrange details like travel that she never really asked him their destination sometimes. She had said back then, that she did not care where she was, that just being with him was enough and that she would follow him anywhere in the world because she trusted him with her life! And tonight subconsciously she was doing the same thing and she did not even realize it. Despite that observation though, he didn’t dare hope as yet that she was here because wanted to be with him. He knew that she was motivated by a desire to be with Marianne, but it still spoke volumes. He would make sure that he told her soon before it ruined the rest of his plans for the evening.