Deny Tomorrow Page 23

  The problem was, he led no ordinary life. Certainly not one that lent itself to sharing it with anyone on a fulltime basis. But his work had been enough until now. Now, he realized he wanted more. He wanted his work and her if he could have both of them.

  But this incident had proven just how difficult it would be to bring anyone into his world. He had just rescued the woman he loved but couldn’t even reveal himself to her. Could never let her know how he made his living or provide any valid explanations for his long absences from home. How long would she tolerate that in a relationship, or would she? Even this incident now had started because he’d left without telling her his whereabouts.

  He didn’t know how their relationship would work out in the end, but he did know that she had captured his soul, and he’d be forever restless if he let her go.

  So, for now he didn’t plan on doing anything but let her reflect on her erroneous choices. He figured he’d see how he felt when he returned from Central America. Time apart might provide more clarity.

  “Lisa talked to her you know,” Tony said.

  “And?”

  “And, I guess she feels really bad. I think she knows she screwed up.”

  Zach just shook his head and drained the rest of his beer. “She should feel bad. She almost got us all killed, and since we’ll be gone for a month, she’ll have plenty of time to ponder her mistake.”

  But then he’d also have a whole month alone without her so she wouldn’t be the only one feeling bad. He was suffering, too.

  It had been a week, and Arianna languished in bed. The physical aches and pains had subsided, but the ache in her heart raged on. How ironic that she had rationalized leaving Zach’s house by saying she needed time and space to sort out her feelings. Separated from him now, there was nothing to sort out. She loved him totally and completely and desperately wanted him back.

  As time passed, that seemed less and less likely. He had not contacted her, and her pride would not let her contact him. But it wasn’t just the pride thing. She couldn’t see it doing any good.

  In the beginning, she’d been skittish about a relationship with Zach because of the differences in their economic backgrounds. Now, she could have cared less. However, it was too late. Since she had totally insulted him and screwed up his efforts to keep her safe, she figured she’d made an irreconcilable mess of things. Reluctantly, she realized she’d just have to live with the consequences of her actions and move on, but she was tortured by her tragic blunder.

  Lisa had called. She was home in Chicago and wanted Arianna to come visit her.

  “The guys have gone on some kind of business trip,” Lisa said, “so I came home to visit my parents. I think Tony said they’d be gone for several weeks. It didn’t make sense to me, however, something about the way Tony looked at me, told me not to ask questions, so I just dropped the subject.”

  “That’s a long time,” Arianna said.

  “Yeah, so why don’t you come visit me?”

  Arianna wanted desperately to see Lisa again, but she knew it would be too painful right now.

  “Lisa, I’m trying to put this behind me and seeing you would be a painful reminder of what I’ve lost.”

  “Oh, that’s silly. I think you’re just being overly stubborn, and I also think you should contact Zach when he gets home.”

  Arianna knew she wouldn’t. “I’ve never called a guy in my life, and I’m not about to start now, especially not Zach. I’d be making a complete fool of myself. My pride just won’t let me.”

  “That’s exactly what I mean,” Lisa said. “You’re being way too stubborn for your own good. You were wrong and should apologize.”

  “Lisa, I think I could apologize, however, my instincts tell me anything that’s going to be done will be done within Zach’s time frame and on his terms if at all. I think if I called him now, he would more or less tell me thank you but no thank you. I’m not about to set myself up for rejection like that. So you see, there’s really nothing I can do.”

  Lisa thought about it and decided Arianna was probably right. She just prayed Zach would come to his senses and call her when he came home. She really couldn’t see him doing that either. He could be just as stubborn as Arianna when he wanted to.

  IF IT had been left solely up to Arianna, she would have been content to continue to languish in her room. Her mother had other ideas. There had been another time when she’d seen her daughter like this. It had been Arianna’s senior year, and she’d been dumped by Derek Watson. Kathryn vowed to never again let Arianna mope around in despair for weeks on end as she had over Derek. Having tragically lost a husband, Kathryn knew from experience the best thing one could do for themselves was to get busy. Arianna needed to go back to work.

  “Mom, I really don’t think I’m ready,” Arianna protested, when Kathryn brought up the subject. “I need to rest some more.”

  “No, ma’am, you do not,” Kathryn said. “Your eye has healed, and you can barely see where you were hurt. Just a little touch of make-up and you’ll look as good as new.” She knew there were still wounds… internal wounds of the heart only time could heal.

  Arianna had no enthusiasm for this idea but grew tired of her mother’s constant nagging. She knew she would not hear the end of it until she found a job and made an attempt to return to a normal life. So, she took the path of least resistance and called André. Singing with his band would give her a bit of income and get her out of the house without her having to put any effort into what she was doing. In other words, she could stay lost in an emotionless limbo.

  “Well, you’re in luck, darlin’,” André responded, when Arianna called him. “I have a gig lined up in Miami if you’re interested.”

  Not really but, if she expected to get her mother off her back, she knew she had to take it. So, it was with a heavy heart she found herself on a flight to Miami. She’d go through the motions, hoping that time would eventually ease the constant dull ache she had in the pit of her stomach.

  André had booked a gig in one of the trendy nightspots of South Beach. The city teemed with the young, the beautiful, and affluent, and an abundance of phony relationships. The women gave and the men got... and gave, too, usually with their wallets. Money, jewels, and a large assortment of other luxury items. One way or the other, they gave. And the number of lasting relationships ever really formed was likely miniscule.

  Arianna detested this environment. She much preferred performing for the college crowds at the spring break locations. She had to start working again somewhere, so this place was as good as any.

  Todd Martin had attended every one of her performances for two weeks now, and he’d asked her out every single time. He was handsome enough, and it didn’t hurt that he was one of Miami’s wealthiest residents, but Arianna felt nothing for him. Besides, her heart was closed. Walled up and sealed off, it was impenetrable at the moment.

  Now, Martin wanted to hire André’s entire band, including her to perform for his quests at a weekend bash he was hosting at his multi-million dollar, ocean side mansion. In addition to performing, he’d insisted that she and André spend the weekend as his special guests.

  “No way,” Arianna insisted, when André brought it up. “He’s just looking for a chance to hook up with me, and that’s not happening,” she told André.

  “Please,” André countered. “He’s one of Miami’s wealthiest residents. He can open all kinds of doors for me professionally. This is a great business opportunity.”

  Arianna shot him a look that said, please tell me you’re kidding.

  “Pretty please,” he pleaded, looking at her with big puppy dog eyes.

  “Okay,” she’d said begrudgingly. She owed André so much. How could she say no? “But if Todd makes one wrong move, I’m out of there.”

  “Deal! Thank you. Thank you. Thank you,” André said, very glad Arianna had agreed.

  The plan was for them to arrive on Friday evening with the rest of the guests. They wo
uld enjoy a poolside cookout and then, dancing to music provided by a DJ. On Saturday, Arianna and the band would give one short performance in the afternoon and a longer one after dinner.

  Todd agreed Arianna would have her own private bedroom, and he encouraged her to make herself at home and enjoy the weekend with the rest of the guests. Arianna’s translation of all this was that he considered her his date and thus had high hopes of making it with her before the weekend was over. She’d indulge his misguided fantasy for the sake of keeping things status quo, but in truth, there was no way she was going to become romantically involved with him.

  Friday night’s cookout actually turned out to be just as dismal as she’d anticipated. Todd seemed to be right at her elbow every time she turned around despite her best attempts to avoid him. Finally, weary of the battle, she feigned a headache and turned in early, leaving André by himself to schmooze the guests in search of future bookings.

  She slept in as late as she dared on Saturday, and then asked for some breakfast to be sent to her room where she stayed until noon. Realizing that she had finally run out of excuses for not appearing, she dressed and made her way to the pool where most of the guests had congregated.

  Todd was the first to greet her, thrilled she had finally joined them. Normally, the life of the party at any pool gathering, on this day she sat stoically by herself off to the side. Todd continued to smother her with attention to the point she was relieved when three o’clock rolled around, and it was time for her afternoon performance.

  It was in the middle of this set that she saw him. Zach strolled into the party followed by Tony, Lisa, Juan and his girlfriend. On Zach’s arm was a stunning brunette. Petite and delicate, she had a radiant smile that was captivating. Arianna’s heart clinched in her chest and for a moment, she couldn’t breathe. It took all the internal fortitude she could muster to stay on the stage and keep singing.

  Zach’s expression was unreadable, and he never took his eyes off her, though Arianna took great care not to look at him. Seeing Zach alone would have been shock enough. Seeing him with another woman was excruciating.

  “Hey, Zach!” Todd said, slapping him on the back. “I was beginning to think you weren’t coming, but you came just in time. Isn’t she something else?” he asked, motioning toward Arianna singing on the stage.

  Zach returned Todd’s greeting, never responding to his question about Arianna.

  “Yeah,” Todd beamed. “She’s not just the entertainment, you know. She’s my date for the weekend.”

  Zach instantly saw red. The thought of Todd being with Arianna caused him to do a slow boil. “No, I didn’t know,” he said, struggling to tamp down his anger.

  “Yeah, but hey, who’s this lovely young lady?” Todd asked, looking at the girl standing beside Zach.

  “This is my sister, Camilla Acevedo,” Zach responded. ”She’s visiting from Puerto Rico.”

  “Ah, so nice to meet you, Camilla. Now, I see the resemblance. Welcome to Miami. I’m glad you could join us,” he said kissing her hand.

  Turning to Zach he said, “I thought I heard you were dating one of your servants. Had to consider the source though. Ran into Lydia a couple of weeks ago, and she was ranting on and on about your break-up. Any chance you two will get back together?”

  “No, none.”

  “Well, anyway, grab a drink and make yourself at home. There are actually several single ladies floating around here. Who knows? You just might get lucky. When this set is over, I’ll introduce you to Arianna, but just remember she’s with me,” he said with a wink.

  ZACH WAS shocked to see Arianna at the party. His people in Milwaukee were slipping. They were supposed to be keeping tabs on Arianna and her comings and goings while he was away on his latest mission. No one had indicated she had left the city. He’d be making some personnel changes when he got home. You couldn’t make these kinds of mistakes and continue to work for his organization.

  Zach made sure he stayed far away from Todd. He didn’t’ want to be anywhere near him when Arianna came off the stage and joined up with him. He hadn’t planned on, and thus wasn’t ready to talk to her today. A month of guerilla warfare hadn’t cooled his ardor for her, not to mention he was dying for the company of a woman. When he next spoke to her however, he wanted it to be in the right place and the right time. This party was neither of those.

  But maybe he was too late anyway. To hear Todd tell it, the two of them were an item. Evidently she’d found someone new. If that were the case, he didn’t plan on sticking around to watch some other man make off with the woman he loved.

  IT WAS fitting that the last song of the set was “Let It Go” from the movie Frozen. That’s exactly how Arianna felt… frozen in her tracks with a strong need to let it go. Try to let go of the raw emotion, hurt and pain she felt. As soon as the song was finished she rushed into the house, threw her belongings into a bag, and was dashing out the front door when Lisa caught up with her.

  “Arianna! Wait up,” she yelled, scrambling after her.

  Arianna turned and looked back. “Oh, Lisa! Hey. How are you?” she asked, stopping to give her a big hug.

  “Good. Missing you. Wishing you’d be back with Zach.”

  Arianna grimaced. “Sure,” she said, shaking her head. “But anyway, I was just leaving so maybe I’ll call you sometime.” She paused to negotiate with someone’s limo driver for a ride back to where she was staying in Miami.

  “No wait,” Lisa said, running up to her just as she was getting in a car. “Please, Arianna. I’m dying to talk to you. Can’t we work something out?”

  Arianna stared at her, not speaking. It was Zach she was running away from, not Lisa. She couldn’t think of any valid reason for not seeing her. Besides, this would be the last time they would get together. Now that it looked as though Zach had moved on, it would be too painful to spend time with her ever again because of the memories it would conjure up.

  “Okay,” she said finally. “When?”

  “Awesome,” Lisa said. “Now listen. It has to be tonight because we’re leaving tomorrow. I’ll tell Tony I have a headache and leave the party early... maybe around eleven, twelve o’clock. It’ll be perfect because the guys have an all-night poker party planned so we won’t be interrupted. I’ll leave a key at the front desk of our hotel...the Adam’s Mark on Key Biscayne Drive. Just come on up when you arrive.”

  Arianna hesitated. “Are you sure? I do not want to run into Zach.”

  “I’m very sure. No one will be around but me and you. If that changes, I’ll call you.”

  “Okay,” Arianna said, waving the driver on. “I’ll see you tonight then.”

  It was quite a test of their friendship. Andre took a lot of heat over Arianna’s leaving. He told Todd she’d suddenly become ill, but Todd wasn’t buying it. Only by agreeing to perform for free was he able to stave off a potential lawsuit for breach of contract.

  Arianna spent the rest of the day, debating whether to actually meet Lisa or not. Should she inadvertently run into Zach, she knew it would be a major disaster. On the other hand, she very much wanted to see Lisa, for what in her mind, would be one last time.

  Shortly after midnight, she stopped at the front desk of the hotel to retrieve the key Lisa had left. Taking the elevator to the seventh floor, she was constantly on the look out for Zach or any of the other men. She made her way to Lisa’s room, slid the key into the door, and entered the darkened suite. Evidently Lisa had turned in early, probably thinking Arianna wasn’t going to show.

  Tiptoeing softly to the bed, she bent down to gently waken Lisa, when a hand reached out and grabbed her arm. In a blink of an eye, she was slammed to the bed. As the light snapped on, she found herself staring into the barrel of a 9 mm, which Zach had aimed at her head.

  “Holy shit! What the hell are you doing here?” he yelled, pulling the gun back. “You almost got yourself killed.”

  “Uh, uh....” she stammered, more embarrassed and shocked tha
n scared. “Uh... oh, my God! This is all a mistake.”

  It was a huge mistake. She had no idea how she’d wound up in Zach’s room, but she planned to get the hell out of there as fast as she could. The problem was her sandals had flown off when she’d been slammed to the bed and her purse and its contents were scattered all around the room. Quickly scrambling to her feet, she began searching for her possessions.

  “Umh, you see, you were supposed to be Lisa,” she said looking under a chair. “I mean, Lisa invited me to come see her, but I think there was a big mix up, because uh, uh I have your key, and I don’t have any idea why I have your key and not her key. I... I picked up the key she left me.”

  Zach just stared at her, not speaking.

  “I mean, I’d never, or well, ahem, I know that since I screwed up, well uh, I can see that you’d never want to have anything to do with me again” she yammered as she searched around the room for her shoes. “And... and I don’t blame you so I’m just going to get my things here and go, but ah.... I can’t seem to find...” and her voice trailed off, as she continued to frantically look for her sandals and purse under chairs and behind curtains.

  Complete panic was setting in. She found one sandal on top of the armoire and the other under a chair, but her wallet was nowhere to be found. She needed it, at least the money it contained so she could get a cab back to her hotel across town. Without it, she was stranded not to mention her driver’s license was in there too. This is a disaster.

  “I...I understand why you hate me,” she continued, glancing quickly at Zach then looking away. “I messed everything up because I’m such a fool sometimes, but I really didn’t mean to, it’s just that I thought I could, oh.... I don’t know what I thought,” she said and tears of frustration began to roll down her cheeks as she still struggled to find the contents of her purse.