Short Stories - Romance

#15 - Filling In The Blanks

"Where are we?" I asked, stepping out of the car whose door Craig had thankfully held open for me. I had wanted to do it myself, but the tremors in my hands wouldn't let me. It was a wonder my legs actually worked and my question was decently coherent.

"One of the Easton properties." I flinched at the sound of the car door being shut. "Oh, I'm sorry, Miss Linda, I didn't realize." If Craig could look any more apologetic, he would have, but I waved him away.

"It's not your fault." Avoiding the pitiful look the usually stoic guard gave me, I mustered a smile before shifting my gaze to the property before me. It was beautiful. The cabin, surrounded by tall trees, was made of sturdy logs with a beautiful honey-coloured tint that stood out against the lush greenery. A big porch wrapped around it, decorated with intricate wooden designs that seemed to invite one in. The large windows offered a peek at the warm light coming from inside while a thin trail of smoke that rose from the chimney, hinted at a cozy fireplace. Everything screamed of comfort, solitude, tranquility, things I needed given what I had just gone through, and with Craig here, I knew I was safe, but all that did not matter if he wasn't here.

I sighed, pulling Ethan's jacket close to me and inhaling his scent. It was the only evidence I had of him having come for me. The memories about tonight were there too, but I refused to indulge in them. Not only because the whole ordeal still shook me, but because remembering tonight meant reliving Ethan's heroic efforts and also the way he distanced himself from me after Gerald's hurtful declaration that I'd forever be labeled as a p********e.

He wouldn't even give me a chance to explain myself. I fought against the lump in my throat, but it was no use.

"Ma'am?"

"Yes?"

"We should go in and get you warm."

"Okay." I silently followed after Craig, thinking of how the cold around me could not be compared to the ice surrounding my heart. "Will Mr. Easton be coming?" Because I couldn't take it anymore, I blurted out the question, making Craig pause, his hand on the cabin's door.

"He'll be tied up for a while." The apologetic look the guard gave me pierced my insides. Tied up? The vagueness of that answer left me filling in the blanks. And not with the friendliest of thoughts. "I'm sure he'll be here as soon as he can." Craig smiled then, the action reminding me that I hadn't seen him do that a lot. Seeing him do it, just for me, thawed some of that ice around my heart. At least he cared. It didn't even matter that maybe it was only because I was an assignment from his boss.

"Thank you for being here." I returned his smile, clearly catching him off guard.

"Oh please don't th-" He fumbled a bit before nodding. "Anytime, Miss Linda."

"Why didn't we go back to the mansion?" I found myself missing Liam. The kid would have gone on a questioning spree, asking what the hell was wrong with me, but I knew he'd eventually get me distracted from everything I wanted to forget.

"Until we know that the threat has passed, you are safer here."

"The threat?" I froze, my eyes finding Craig's in a flash. "Do you think they'll come for me again?" After Gerald, it hadn't occured to me that there would be others or that Chad was still hiding somewhere.

"The Opulent Temptress Troupe is most likely not a lone entity and if they've been watching you all this time, it only proves how important you are to them. The possibilities of them coming after you-" The more Craig spoke, the more I felt my blood drain away. "I probably shouldn't burden you with this-" Craig held the door open wide and I walked into the cabin thinking how stupid I'd been for thinking I'd escaped them at all. "Don't worry about any of it." Craig assured me as he brought me to a sofa. The seat was just as comfortable as it looked, but I found myself seating on its edge. "After tonight no one will dare breathe your way even if they wanted to."

"Wait, is that where Ethan is?" I shot up from the seat as fear gripped me all over again. "Tell me he did not stay to challenge them or something." With the murderous look he'd given Gerald, it made sense that he'd want to finish them off. But that was a lot of people. I still felt their eyes on me. Everyone of those that had stared while I was led out of the building Gerald had held me in.

"Miss Linda, stop!" Craig shouted after I bolted, but I was way past listening. I had to do something, anything. I couldn't just stay here, be safe while Ethan risked his life for me. This was my mess. "He can take care of himself." Craig's burly figure blocked my way out and I glared at him, but the body guard refused to budge. "Besides, you know he'll have my head if anything happens to you."

"I have to do something. I can't just sit here- while he- what if he gets hurt, Craig?" I fisted my hands in the guard's dress shirt, letting the tears fall.

"He'll be fine, but you won't be if you make yourself worry too much and I have just the thing to help you relax." A bubbly voice spoke from behind me and when I turned to see who it was, the shiniest of smiles greeted me. "Hi."

"This is Marina." Craig jumped into introductions while I blinked at the girl who was every bit feminine, yet also commanded a very strong presence. Another body guard? "She is here to make sure you are comfortable."

"And that starts now." I found myself being dragged away from Craig, the cabin's living area and towards the cabin's loft. "The water is ready for a hot shower, take your time and have as much of this as you want." Marina pointed to a silver flask on a tiny table that I assumed held tea or something. "I'll have something for you to eat by the time you are done."

I didn't want to eat or do anything of what Marina was suggesting, but I knew that if Ethan had asked them to, none of them would be letting me out of here. So I slumped on the bed and sighed. "Thank you."

"You are welcome." Marina flashed me her infectious smile. "And try not worry about him so much," she said before reaching for the door.

"H-How do you know?"

"That he'll be fine? He's a big boy and he finally found a reason to live again which happens to be you." Marina smiled as she said that, but thinking of Ethan's cold expression the last time I saw him, I wasn't so sure of her words.