Forbidden Depths

Chapter 2: Emergency Landing

As Lucy freshened up in the bare-bones airport bathroom, she realized she sort of missed her cinnamon hair. Yet, Colton said he had a thing for blondes, and Kristi said that blondes always had more fun.

Lucy's phone went off. It was Kristi. Speak of the devil…

'Btw, since my birthday is in a few weeks, I got myself a ticket to Tucunia to meet your imaginary boyfriend. All my stuff better be comped, and my flight reimbursed when I get there. I know billionaires got $$$ to spare.'

The freckle-cheeked woman nearly dropped her toothbrush.

Her stomach twisted into a knot and a cold trickle of dread crept up her spine. She couldn't stop her sister from coming, but maybe this was a good thing. She could finally meet Colton and see that her life and relationship were real.

'I'm sure he will be happy to meet you, but don't expect ur stuff to just be paid 4,' Lucy texted back, putting away her phone.

She fluffed out her shoulder-length blonde hair and wheeled her suitcases out of the airport to hail a taxi. Immediately after leaving the airport, she was blasted by warm, salty air and greeted by the sight of tall, waxy palm trees and a deep blue sky.

This was her new home!

“Wooten Tucunia resort," Lucy said as the taxi driver pulled up beside where she stood with his window down. He nodded and helped wheel her luggage into the trunk.

As she sat in the back, hoping for a text back from Colton soon, her pulse began to drum again in her chest like she was at a rock concert.

Lucy's palms began to sweat despite the air conditioning on full blast in the taxi. Nerves. She knew it was silly; she'd been dating Colton for almost a year now. They had stayed up late, swirling red wines with names she couldn't pronounce in crystal-stemmed glasses on the balcony of his penthouse, talking about their families, dreams, and goals.

They had laid in each other's arms, without a stitch of clothing on, his skin gliding over hers like satin on silk. He had whispered all the things she'd ever wanted to hear while she lined up shots on his hand-carved billiard table.

An uncontrollable smile burst across Lucy's face as the taxi drove past white sand beaches, candy-colored shops and cottages, overwater bungalows, smiling people milling about in sarongs and big floppy hats, and finally to the sweeping, white and gold Wooten Tucunia Resort.

Elegant white columns held up sloping white scalloped scaffolding, and teak floors swept across the entire entryway, punctuated by water features, and potted bonsai trees. Breezy orange, yellow, and purple silks billowed from the open-air entry which framed the grand gold-inlaid double doors of the lobby.

“We're here, miss. It will be thirty-two," the taxi driver announced. Lucy's heart was beating so fast it could burst out of her chest.

Her mouth dried out as she fumbled for her cash while a valet swooped in to take her bags. She giddily skipped up the new red carpet to the check-in lobby.

“Welcome to the soft opening of the Wooten Tucunia, I'm Lewis. May I have your name and passport for your reservation?" A boy, who couldn't be older than seventeen in a crisp new gold uniform gave her a cheerful smile.

“Hi Lewis, I'm Lucille DeMarco, and I'm Colton Wooten's guest. He said to tell you that when I arrived." Lucy returned the smile, looking all around at other guests drifting about the lobby like dancers in a play.

“Oh…kayyyy…let me check…" Lewis's smile flopped into a puzzled expression as he clicked through the computer and Lucy rubbed her palms on her dress again.

“Hmm, I see we have special instructions for tomorrow. Did your flight get changed, Miss DeMarco?" The man picked up a phone and she put out her hand.

“Wait, no, I want to surprise him!" She got out her passport and gave it to Lewis “He's always surprising me, and I wanted to do something nice for him. Is it possible for you to give me a key and tell me where he is staying?"

Lewis's dark eyes looked hesitant but then he slid the key to her covertly. “He's staying at the presidential overwater bungalow, the last one called 'the Majesty'." He pulled out a printed map, circling the bungalow.

She had to chuckle to herself. The name sounded so pretentious, but Colton did always like the finer things.

“Thanks, Lewis, I owe you!" The caramel-eyed woman bounded up the stairs excitedly, nearly stumbling in her black maxi dress.

She thought about how Colton would listen intently to her as she read about the adventures from her grandmother's journals aboard the majestic sailboat, the Spindrift, and how he whisked her way on private weekend trips, like the surprise one to Hawaii, or to relax in mountain lodges in the Swiss Alps. She thought about how this was going to be the rest of her life, and how lucky she was.

As Lucy stepped out onto the meticulously carved wooden deck that led to rows of bungalows over teal water, she realized that knights in shining armor do exist and that maybe she should give Disney movies a little more credit.

As she reached the last, picturesque bungalow, she could hear his muffled voice inside. He must be on a call; he took so many of those.

She put the card to the reader and entered the room, as stealthy as she could. The entry to the bungalow had a semi-open view of the rest of the posh, breezy bungalow, but Colton wasn't inside, he was out on the veranda.

She walked around the silk sofa and chaise to where she could see Colton's profile lounging on a sun chair, with a private concierge moving a sun umbrella. However, in the sun chair next to him, she could see a woman's right leg. On it was a sparkling red anklet. They both faced the crystalline water, unaware of her entry.

Time stopped and her heart stopped with it. Her stomach clenched into a sour pit at the base of her spine, and her mouth filled with the metallic tang of panic.

“I'm telling you, it's in the bag. I already got everything I needed from her. She was almost too easy a mark," Colton jeered, his strong jaw grinning like he would when he'd line up a shot on the pool table.

Lucy grabbed onto a table to keep the earth from completely tilting off its axis. She had the craziest, far-fetched feeling that he was talking about her.

“That four-eyed geek is finally getting what he wants," her blond knight in shining armor continued, and Lucy had no idea who or what Colton was talking about.

The woman hummed in agreement, but everything suddenly turned to white noise.

“Now all you have to do is turn on your charm with that pathetic ex of yours… Are you paying attention? Oh, another selfie."

“Yeah…" the woman murmured, caught up in her activities.

“Crap, babe, I lost one of my new cufflinks! They're sapphires, dammit." Lucy barely registered her boyfriend's dismay as he fumbled with the sleeve of his white button-up shirt.

“You're blocking my sun," the woman said, but the bottle-blonde wasn't paying attention to her.

The caramel-eyed adventurer snapped out of her trance. She can't just stand there like a dumb statue, she had to make a move, make a scene!

“You know what's funny, is that Lucy thought that I gave a sh*t about the whales or dolphins or whatever and that's why I built this resort. I couldn't give a rats a*s about those purple dolphins, I mean, how important could they really be?" Colton laughed.

He carried on like he just said the funniest joke and it was a laugh that made the freckle-cheeked diver think of times they spent huddled over candles at fine restaurants, or the laugh he made when she got scared watching a horror movie.

“Sir, I don't think you should make light of our precious marine life…" the concierge said.

“If I wanted your opinion, I would pay you for it. Now go get us some more champagne," Colton snapped.

The concierge walked through the sheer curtain and spotted the toffee-eyed woman with her fists balled up in rage, her face splotchy red in anger and hurt.

“Uh…ma'am?" the concierge asked.

“Crap," Lucy cursed, her eyes wide.

Colton sprung out of his chair faster than she'd ever seen him move. He put out a hand to stop the woman lounging next to him.

The bottle-blonde diver studied him. The way the sun made his skin a perfect tan, the way the wind swept his blond hair, and his eyes glinted bluer because of the water. He was just wearing a simple button-up shirt and navy shorts, but he looked like a knight in shining armor was supposed to look.

Clean cut, strong jaw, clear blue eyes, great physique, and dazzling smile.

Only he wasn't smiling right now. His usually tight mouth hung open like a fish.

“Lucy?" Colton's sharp blue eyes lasered in on her as if was caught robbing him.

The concierge—the poor guy—stood in shock his head, whipping back and forth between the both of them.

“If you think I'm such an easy mark, it must be embarrassing that I surprised you like this, right?" Lucy's voice cracked and she pursed her lips to keep her tears in check.

The shocked billionaire rubbed the back of his neck. “Lucy, I didn't mean it. You're a great girl an—"

Lucy cut him off with a trembling finger, her body a buzzing hive of shock and bolts of icicles.

“I trusted you… I gave up my whole life…sold my car, quit my job…even my sister is supposed to come for her birthday to meet you, and it's really all just a lie, isn't it?" The freshly blonde, freckled woman became overwhelmed with the sensation that the walls were closing in, that she needed to come up for air, but she couldn't find the surface.

She leaned against the table a little more for support.

“Lucy, look…I can make this right." The handsome, tan billionaire in front of her put out his hands as if trying to not be the bad guy.

All Lucy could do was stare at him like he was clinically insane.

There was no coming back from this.

Sure, she hadn't caught him in bed with another woman, but it rocked her to her core in a far more devastating way. It was as if someone had taken an ice-cold arrow, pulled back the bowstring, and struck her dead through the sternum with it.

She swallowed hard, blinking back the tears, trying to think of anything to say, but the rising tide of hurt, betrayal, and confusion rose neck high.

“Why? Why me? Why do any of this?" was all she could ask, her caramel-colored eyes softening with unshed tears.

Colton gaped at her. “Lucy, please don't cry. I hate it when girls cry…"

Really? This was who Lucy had fallen head over heels for? This is who she hoped would get down on one knee? This is who she wanted to be her partner in life and mischief?

How could she be so stupid?

Kristi was right all along.

She had thought she was dating someone real, but that man didn't exist. Maybe she really was an easy mark…

“Miss, are you all right?" the concierge asked, taking a step closer, and she realized she was fanning herself. She had probably grown pale as a sheet.

“No…no, I'm not." Lucy did the only thing she had the strength left to do.

She pointed at Colton, trying to force words to come out that were trapped and sticky in her stomach. “You're the scum of the earth, and you'll get what's coming to you." She turned on her heel and escaped out the door she had just happily skipped through not moments earlier.