The Billionaire's True Love

Chapter 5 - Sarah

-        Thank you, Will. I was rushing to arrive on time, I told the captain as I boarded the last boat to the island that evening.

-        - Two minutes more. Will Darwinton, who ran the Island Boat Company Richmond, I would never forget to mention how much time I have left until departure. It was our little private joke. I think he would let me go later and yes see how I run towards the dock, but so far I have never missed a boat.

-        Eh, Will. Two minutes earlier, and running in heels, I feel like I am achieved real success.

That earned me a shy smile and a slow shake of my head.

-        I'm glad you're with us, Sarah.

Will didn't talk much, but he was very kind and serious about his role as captain of the ship. He was another one of those hardworking islanders who worked long hours to earn a living in these hard times. If you love your job, and I assumed Will loved it own, then it's easier. After finding a place inside where it was warm, I relaxed for the first time in the last three hours. I suddenly became very sleepy, not wanting to think about the asshole who grabbed me, about the fact that I just quit that one shitty work, about lack of money or other problems. So I crossed my arms on the table and rested my cheek on my sleeve woolen coat. I closed my eyes and let the rocking of the boat lulled me to sleep. A gentle hand on my shoulder and calling my name woke me up for an hour after. It seemed to pass in an instant.

- Is everything okay, Sarah? Will's green eyes looked at me worriedly. - We've arrived and I have to close the ship. Everyone came down.

- Oh! I fell asleep. I'm so sorry, I started. I'm moving. I hurriedly got up and picked up my bag.

- No problem, he assured me in his kind, shy way, which he perfected. - Watch how you drive.

- Good night, Will.

- Night, Sarah.

I sensed that I might have had Will Darwinton had I somehow encouraged him for anything other than friendship. He didn’t shoot me and was always a cavalier in every sense, but a girl recognizes signs when someone is interested. Will was kind, really handsome, hardworking, and a great opportunity for any girl, but he wasn’t for me. Specifically, I wasn’t for any man at the moment. Too early. Too much. It was too hard for me to imagine being with someone again when I was still working on finding that person I was before. The person I was before I gave him the power to almost destroy me. He almost did just that, and I couldn't - I wouldn't - repeat the same mistake. I reached the parking lot and lit my grandmother’s 1980 Jeep Cherokee, lovingly named Woody because of the fake wooden decoration it was lined on the outside and inside. I’ve always been grateful for Woody’s reliability because while it may not be the most comfortable way to take me over a six-mile-long bumpy road in the dark, it will certainly bring me to my destination. You had to know where you were going, otherwise, you would get lost in the middle of a meadow or forest if you made just one wrong turn. I always walked slowly because little creatures had a habit of jumping out at night, and it would bother me for days if I accidentally hit a rabbit or a night bird. Grandma's hut was firmly and comfortably perched on top of a hill, overlooking the sea. It was dark now, but the The lighthouse lighthouse illuminated the cape at the foot of the hill. The island had a lighthouse for each port - The lighthouse at the south end and West Light on the west coast where most villas and estates were built to shelter the island and the mainland, protected from the cruelty of the open ocean. As I parked and entered, I felt that stabbing panic deep in my stomach. It was a concern about how long Grandma would still be able to stay in huts. I didn't know the answer. I knew it was in her possession and that it was the only valuable thing my grandmother had from marrying my grandfather. He died when my mom was an infant, so even she didn’t meet her father. Grandma never remarried after her grandfather's death but devoted her life to working on the Richmond estate. Since the cottage was not mortgaged and given the value of the land on the island with an unobstructed view, it had to be worth a considerable sum. But it was a very small estate and was not located in an exclusive area in which luxurious resorts and personal estates have been located. I couldn’t believe promoting it and transferring my grandmother. Where would we go? But the financial situation was not going to improve and I should have at least inquired. I decided to visit Herman and ask him for advice. If anyone can know, it's him. Maybe Grandma could take out a mortgage so it would get us out. Who did I cheat on? Get us out of our financial trouble until we win the lottery? Yeah right. Frustrated, I headed to the kitchen to make myself a cup of tea. It was too late for caffeine, and I needed sleep after the shitty day I had. I took off my boots first. It bothered me that my beloved boots were the cause of my problems tonight. They certainly attracted negative attention as I served. Didn't Eduardo greet me this morning with "those boots screaming f_ck me until I can't take it anymore"? It seemed to me that the morning was a hundred years ago. If I was working in my usual uniform tonight, would that awful man still grab me and say all those horrible things? I shuddered at the memory. The rough movement and possessive touch of his evil little hands on my body so quickly brought me back to the past. My only thought was to take it off myself because I could no longer bear to be roughly touched by someone. It reminded me too much of how he touched me. And I will never forget what that feeling was like. I wanted to forget ... I just didn't know if it was possible. There was a drop of shrimp sauce on the collar of my white T-shirt I bought today. S_it. I coated it with a bleach pencil and let it soak in the sink, but I realized it was probably ruined because it was white. Something in that sauce made its removal almost impossible. It has already happened to me that I ruined my clothes with a shrimp cocktail. My stomach turned again when I realized that several expensive suits had been sprayed today, and my salary would not even come close to covering the cleaning of designer suits. I was hoping the dry cleaners had a magical stain remover.

That was Martin's problem anyway. He could find the asshole who caused the whole mess and make him pay. You broke a man's nose tonight. Yes, I am. And I would do it again in the same situation - without thinking. I looked at my feet. The scars on my right leaf and knee were the reason for boots or leggings when I wore skirts. The scars were ugly, yes, but mostly I didn't want to look at them ... and remind myself.

***

- You have a fan, condeso, look what came for Sarah.

Eduardo walked over to my workspace with a beautiful jar of flowers and put them on my desk. They were a beautiful cranberry red, and most of the flowers were still in buds. They will be huge when they open. Impressive and unusual, and completely unexpected.

- From who? I couldn’t even imagine who could send me flowers. - Martin? No, he was too stingy for flowers. This looked expensive, and besides, it was a pot, not a vase of cut flowers. I can plant it in my grandmother’s garden and enjoy it for a long time to come.

- Read the message, ay Dios Mio, what are you waiting for? He pulled it out of the bouquet and handed it to me. - I'll die before you tell me who sent you this.

“You surely ought to had been an actor, Eduardo,” I instructed him as I opened the envelope and examine the message.

                                        Sarah, please accept these flowers as a sign of my thanks for 

                                          last night’s lesson on meatballs.

                                           It was unforgettable.

                                                                                                                                    Cristian

The guy with the bruise. Unforgettable? He tried to be kind even after he was knocked down by an asshole touching me. Why? Why did he send me expensive flowers, and further, how did he even know where to send them? He knew my name. I wondered if he had asked Martin, but if Martin gave my information to a stranger, it would be a low blow. It would also be illegal. I handed the message to Eduardo so he could read it. Recalling our conversation from last night, I remembered him offering me transportation, which I did not accept, but did not become embarrassed when I declined his invitation. I appreciated that part of his personality the most. A man who understood that the word was not so easy to find in my limited experience. It was a real rarity. For a moment I was tempted to call a number written in thick black chemical on the back of the message that I could clearly see from Eduardo's hand. But what would I say? Cristian. I couldn’t help but smile when I remembered how sweet he was over that tray of meatballs. It was certainly the dumbest conversation in the world, and yet he made an effort to send me flowers that even looked like meatballs while it was in the budding stage. I looked at the flowers again. The color was perfectly matched. Beautiful. Wow. What a smart man that Cristian was. Also incredibly handy. Even as he bore the consequences of a nasty blow to the head. I endured the teasing of the peonies that fit nicely on my desk for the next two hours before I sent everything to hell and gave up. My excuse? I am a woman and curiosity has won.

I sent him a message:

                                        Cristian, thank you for the beautiful flowers in red meatballs.

                                        A lovely gesture, but ... how did you find me?

                                                                                                                            Sarah

My cell phone rang about a minute later and I couldn't help but smile a second time.