Distractions (35 page)

were a burden, it was six days I never

thought I would get to experience again.

I couldn’t help but notice how I had

aged, too. I didn’t look old, but I was

definitely no spring chicken. The past

few months had taken a toll, leaving

physical proof of the battle fought.

Thankfully, a good concealer and a little

blush made it less obvious. Shepard

wasn’t in the room when I came out

again; instead a small note was written

on the desk.

In the Refectorium, join me if you

want some coffee.

Coffee. Absolutely. My watch was

still set on Eastern Time, reminding me I

would be sleeping. Making my way

through the narrow corridors, the smell

of fresh bread and sound of dishes

banging against each other led me to

believe I found the right room. A small

buffet of eggs, yogurt, granola, as well

as various meats and cheeses were set

up with some rolls and breads. My

stomach started to grumble as my eyes

devoured everything that I saw.

Shepard was sitting in a corner

wooden booth with a steaming cup of

coffee. One of the attendants directed me

towards the food and handed me a plate.

“Kann ich Kaffee bitte.”

My German was terrible, but the

few phrases I knew well immediately

came in handy. “Where was a toilet?”

and “May I have some coffee?”

Settling into the booth opposite of

Shepard, he smiled at my company. “It’s

good you’re eating; it’s not the same

over here as the states. People actually

have meals, not snacks. This is a

traditional breakfast, so I hope you like

it.”

My mouth was already stuffed with

the delicious bread I coated with

chocolate hazelnut spread. Giving wide

eyes, I groaned in approval while

nodding my head.

The woman arrived with the coffee,

making me melt in my seat. A delicate

china cup and saucer sat daintily next to

the sugar cubes and tiny spoon.

“Danke.”

“You speak more German than I

thought.” Taking in a small sip of coffee,

he appeared surprised.

“Hardly, just a few phrases I

learned. My aunt lives here remember?

Oh, no. My aunt! I need to call her and

tell her what’s happening. Crap, crap

crap…”

Taking his hand, he immediately

placed it over mine, holding it against

the table gently.

“Violet, calm down, I remembered.

We can call her after breakfast and work

out when to visit. Relax.”

His tone was slightly authoritative,

yet low. I couldn’t stop the pull deep in

my center as his thumb swept slowly

across my wrist, back and forth. Any

fear of being unwanted washed away

with the force of his gaze that paralyzed

me. I remembered that look.

Dropping my eyes to the plate in

front of me, I went back to eating with a

foreign sense of calm. Breakfast was

finished in silence, allowing me to take

everything in. The windows were

opened with no screens. The breeze

floated in with a slight crispness of the

early morning. Birds sang happily in the

trees that lined the property.

Each time I gazed at Shepard, a

smirk peeked from the corners of his

mouth as our eyes met, making me look

away. Henry was waiting outside of the

hotel and assisted Shepard in loading

our luggage. I sat on the fountain,

listening to the bubbling water while

waiting to leave. I was clueless as to

what he had in store, but if this hotel was

any indication, it was bound to be

amazing. I was told we were going to

Bad Reichenhall for the day and then

staying in Salzburg for the night.

“Isn’t

Salzburg

the

opposite

direction of Bern?” I didn’t have a map

in front of me, but I was familiar enough

with geography to know where they

were located in relation to each other.

“Yes, but…driving to countries

here is like driving to another state. You

are mere hours from each other. You

don’t have much time, so it’s important

to pack in as much as possible.”

I smiled at how considerate he was

being, yet it was too hard not to wonder

what his intentions were. I believed in

fate to a degree, but I wasn’t that dense. I

let the thoughts simmer silently in the

back of my mind, simply watching to see

what happened next. For the first time, I

really didn’t need to be anywhere or do

anything. He was right without knowing

how right he was. I didn’t have much

time. Closing my eyes to regain my

strength, I pushed everything away

besides this moment. Opening them to

the most incredible man I have ever

known made my heart sing. Just as

before, his timing was perfect. His

phone rang while I was lost in my

thoughts, dragging me out of them.

“Hey John, is she ready? Yeah, I

will be there shortly to pick her up. I

have really missed her these past few

weeks. Ciao.” With a laugh, he hit the

end button on his phone and shook his

head, then turned to me where he could

see the wheels spinning.

“Where are we going, Shepard?”

My body immediately tensed and started

to scoot away from him.

With a mischievous smile he

replied. “We are going to pick up my

girlfriend.”

I couldn’t stop my face from

dropping, along with my heart. I was

stupid. I should have asked. I assumed

because of everything he did, but he

didn’t do anything to indicate otherwise.

He didn’t directly hit on me. He did not

tell me at any point there was someone

else, then again, neither did I.

A searing heat was burning behind

my eyes. Looking out of the window, I

closed them so he wouldn’t see how

swollen they were getting just yet. My

heart was falling to pieces in my chest.

Girlfriend. He has a girlfriend.

Henry turned into a non-descript lot

behind a brick building through an

alleyway. It appeared to be a garage of

some sort. Once stopped, Shepard

grabbed my hand and tugged me towards

his door.

“What are you doing?” Looking at

his hand, I instantly recoiled back.

“Violet, it isn’t what you think.”

Reaching out to take my hand again, my

voice

came

out

harsher

than

I

anticipated. “Don’t touch me.”

Henry stared in the rearview mirror

as if I had lost my mind. Shepard looked

wounded at my apprehension to leave

the car. I didn’t want to meet the woman

who held his heart. I should be okay

with this, but I wasn’t. I was a complete

wreck, imagining her smug face looking

down at me like a piece of trash. I did

not need any more reminders of how

many mistakes I made. Stepping out of

the door closest to me, I walked around

the back and kept a wide distance.

Looking around, the gorgeous woman

was not yet in view.

“Where is she?” I was not as brave

as I tried to be. My feeble attempt to act

calm was mediocre at best.

“I told you it’s not what you think.”

He tried to laugh, but the stabbing in my

gut continued. Mindlessly rubbing the

coin necklace around my neck to settle

down, I wanted to run yet again. I should

have at the hotel; why didn’t I listen?

“Of course it is. We are here to

pick up your girlfriend, what else would

it be?”

Turning around to step in front of

me, his eyes bore holes into my skull.

“Why are you being like this?”

“It doesn’t matter, so don’t worry

about it. I am sorry. I am being

immature.”

He brought his hand up to my face

to wipe away the tears that slipped

down to my chin. Once again, I jerked

back like a frightened animal from his

touch.

“Violet, what’s happening to you?”

Turning my head away from his

intense stare, I was crushing under its

weight. Cracking a huge smile and

straightening my shoulders, I pushed it

down deep. I could do this.

“Sorry, I must still be tired. Let’s

go, shall we?”

I was now overtly perky while

heading into the shop. A bay with a lift

had a very expensive car jacked up with

a mechanic beneath it. A handsome man

with deep olive skin and long black hair

approached us. Gleaming white teeth

contrasted against the caramel tone of

his face. Looking me up and down, he

didn’t hide what he was thinking. A

quick glance at Shepard gave nothing

away. Shaking Shepard’s hand, the man

had a thick Italian accent while speaking

German. It was interesting to hear.

“Who is your lady friend, eh?”

Now giving me a warm gaze of

affection, he possessively replied.

“John, this is Violet. Violet, this is

John.”

The man reached out for my hand

and kissed the knuckles longer than

necessary. His forward behavior made

my stomach turn.

“Pleasure to meet you, Miss Violet,

although I must say I am perplexed.

Shepard is here to pick up Violet.”

He now had an “I told you so” look

with a devilish grin.

Just then, a bay door opened,

revealing a sleek black sports car with a

trident symbol on the grill.

John pulled on a white glove from

his pocket and approached the car. The

closer you got, the more you could see

the color was not black, but a deep

custom shade of purple. Both he and

Shepard looked at the vehicle lustfully.

Standing frozen in the same spot, I could

not believe what just happened and how

I reacted. I was a bigger mess than I

thought. I walked back outside as the

men talked; they didn’t notice I

disappeared for some time.

Leaning against the ledge of the

outer wall, I took deep breaths in and

out. Anxiety flooded as the doubt began

to scream. “What if it was a real girl?

You are raving mad! It’s been six years,

you walked away. You have no right to

even think there is a place in his heart

for you, no matter how kind he is being.”

My stomach clenched and my chest

jerked, trying to hold back the tears. He

would be better just taking me to the

airport than having to deal with this. He

had no clue how screwed up I really

was. Holding my hands over my face, I

wept silently. Turning to dig into my

purse for a tissue, I failed to notice he

was leaned right next to me.

Through a stuffed nose, I blurted

out, “You should know I am crazy, back

out while you can.”

“Stop saying that, Violet. It is my

fault – it was a bad joke. I had no idea it

would bother you this much.”

“It shouldn’t have bothered me.

That’s what I am saying.”

Sliding a little closer, I heard him

breathe out deeply. “For the record,

there is no one else. Just so we are

clear, is some guy going to come kick my

ass for gallivanting across Europe with

you?”

Shaking my head, I confirmed, “No,

there is no one.”

“I want to talk about this, Violet,

but not until you are ready. We should go

now, though. Are you okay?”

“Yeah, never better.”

His fingers laced gently into mine

and led me back into the garage. John

held the door while I slipped into the

luxurious car. Beneath the small screen

in the console had the clean script stating

Violet was a
Maserati
.

Once Shepard clicked his seat belt,

I let out a low whistle. “She seems

pretty high maintenance, but she’s

beautiful.”

Turning the key, the engine roared

in the enclosed space. His hand rubbed

the dashboard lovingly. “She’s a poor

substitute for the real thing.”

His fingers then reached over and

stroked along my jaw line, pinching the