Chapter Eleven
For the first time in my life, I feel happy. Content. Like Icouldhave everything I’ve ever wanted. And it’s all because of the man passed out next to me.
Sleep isn’t an option for me. How can I, knowing what I need to do?
Last night was everything to me. It was the closest I’ve come to showing Nate the woman I am in real life. Not this relaxed, holiday persona that’s been scarily easy to slip into. The Gabby I’ve been with Nate might be the one I love the most, but she’s not the me who keeps me safe. She’s not the calculated woman I need to be to stay clear of trouble.
The moonlight casts a white glow around the room as the organza drapes gently billow at the doors that haven’t been shut. Swimming across the water isn’t my first choice, but it will ensure I’m not seen leaving, and that I won’t wake Nate opening the front door to the bungalow.
My leg reaches out from under the sheet, and I find purchase on the floor to help slide my body off the bed with little or no movement. Before I move, my eyes study his form as he sleeps.
He was so open with me last night. Our time together might have been on the clock from day one, but it felt different last night. Precious. Nothing mattered when we were together. We had a bubble of time to be lost in one another and we snatched it with both hands.
A heavy ache rests in my stomach as I try to reason out my next move, but as my mind runs the excuses, they taste bitter in my mouth, poisoning the words I need to share with Nate. Every time I tried to share what I needed to, he stole them, snatching the moment away until now, it’s too late.
“I love you.” The whisper chokes my throat and my eyes mist with the sadness that I’ll always carry.
I tear my eyes away, unable to bear the pain that lances through my heart for a moment longer. My life doesn’t allow for dreams. That’s what I told Nate last night, but it was a lie. I have a dream. The same one since I was a little girl. To have a family and to feel love. And now, I have to turn my back on it because of a sense of obligation to my brother—the only family Idohave.
Every muscle in my body aches in a delicious, used way as I cross the room to the table where the diamonds are hidden. I can still feel Nate over my body. I pick up the vases one by one and carry them to the kitchen area. The kitchen towel makes a useful sieve as I pour the water over it, catching the diamonds and the small pebbles in the material. It’s a slow and careful process and one that I can’t rush. Each stone is over two carats of VS1-VS2 clarity. They’re worth over forty thousand dollars each. My fingers work through the grit and pick each diamond out.
When I’ve counted each one, I take a pair of scissors to the organza and create a make-shift pouch. With the diamonds secure, I place the bamboo back in the vases, minus the pebbles, and clear up as quietly as possible.
My mind welcomes the distraction from the pain in my chest. With everything set, there’s no reason to stay. Except for the man I’m leaving behind. He’s a reason. I look towards the bedroom, my heart screaming at me to stay, to leave something for Nate so he can find me again, but that will only bring pain. He’s an accountant, and while he might be worth a fortune, he doesn’t deserve the non-life that I live by. Or the potential threat I’m living under. Watching my back and never knowing who to trust. What decent human would drag someone into that?
The shadow of my brother’s organisation is long, and even if I stopped all of the more questionable parts of my job, I’d still be a wanted thief in many circles. Nate wouldn’t understand. How could he? What normal person would?
I slip into the water with nothing on, leaving every scrap of clothing where Nate ripped them from my body last night. The parcel of diamonds secure in my hand, and the evidence from the vases at the bottom of the sea, my lungs fill with a few deep breaths before I glide out into the water and to my own bungalow to finish the cleanup.
A shiver flares over my skin as I emerge from the water. I don’t look back from where I came. There’s still no sign of dawn breaking in the sky; everything still lingers in darkness.
I afford myself two minutes to wash the salt from my skin and to hide the tears that won’t stop falling beneath the warm water of the shower. But after I’m out, I switch gears, pushing all of the joy and happiness down into a chasm in my chest just waiting to be filled. And then I lock it up.
Jeans, T-shirt, jacket, toiletries, and of course the jewellery case are all I pack in my go-bag. I pull my hair into a tight braid, and I’m out of the bungalow in under four minutes.
Avoiding the security cameras as best as possible, I double back and survey the resort. Checking. Always checking, until I arrive at the reception desk to depart.
“Miss Andreas, is everything alright?” The puzzled look on the night manager’s face doesn’t deter me from my task.
“I’m afraid I need to check out early. You have my details on file. Please settle it all. I’ll also need a taxi and transport to the mainland airport.”
“Of course. We’re sorry you’re leaving us, but I trust everything was to your liking?”
“It was wonderful. What time will the taxi be available? I’m on a short timescale.” I check my watch and calculate the wait time at the airport.
“We do have one on standby. However, the cost will be significantly…”
“The cost isn’t the issue. Time is.”
“Yes, mademoiselle.”
The manager prints a receipt for the stay, which I give no attention to and scrawl my alias at the bottom. I leave the paperwork behind and make my way to the jetty where a small boat is tied up. The manager rushes past me and speaks to the driver who looks like he’s been catching some sleep in the small hours of the morning.
“Safe travels, Miss Andreas.”
The gentle sway of the boat doesn’t relax me as it has in the past. My stomach rolls and I fight the nausea that climbs up my throat. The engine starts and then, under cover of darkness, we head towards the mainland where I can set about jumping on the next available flight. It won’t matter where. It will help if I don’t take a direct path.
The gentle vibration from my phone pulls my attention, but I ignore it. The same pattern that he always uses follows. Two messages. One call.
