A Tragic Wreck (3 page)

Cam led Olivia up the beach to her house, helping her to the couch. Once she was settled, he walked through her living room and into the kitchen, searching the freezer for some ice. He put some in a plastic bag and brought it to her.

“Here,” he said, leaning down and placing the ice pack on her forehead. “You should probably keep this on your head. There’s a little bit of swelling.” He brushed a piece of hair out of Olivia’s eyes.

“Thanks.”

“Anytime.” He looked around the house, noticing how minimalist everything looked. It was as if she had just rolled into town with a suitcase. There was nothing personal, aside from a guitar case leaning up against a wicker chair. He walked over and sat down. “Do you play?” he asked, gesturing to the case.

Olivia took the ice off her forehead and sat up, facing Cam. “Yeah. A little, I guess. In a former life. I really haven’t played lately, though. Since I got here. The guitar’s just been sitting there, collecting dust.”

Cam looked into her eyes. She seemed so empty.

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw a large, orange long-haired cat walk down the stairs and into the living room. The cat stalked to Olivia, jumped on her lap, and curled up in a ball. “This is Nepenthe,” she explained.

“Ah,” Cam breathed. “The ancient elixir of depression.”
 

Olivia turned her head. “How did you know that? Not a lot of people know what 'nepenthe' is.”

“I have a brain full of useless information.” Cam laughed. There was an awkward silence. He was attracted to the woman sitting across from him, snuggling up with her cat, but she seemed so distant and uninterested in anything. He didn’t know much about her, but he wanted to learn more.

“Can I take you to dinner tonight? There’s this great place right on the water on the other side of the island.”

Olivia looked around. “I don’t know. I don’t think that’s such a good idea.”

“Come on. It’ll be fun. I promise. Just as friends. No pressure. I just want to get to know you, be your friend.”

Olivia had been avoiding all social situations for the past several weeks. Certain things set her off, triggering a panic attack. Looking out her large front windows at the ocean, she hoped for some guidance about what to do. She was getting to like her new home. If she got involved with Cam, she would just leave him, too. That’s what she did. She ran. Always. That was all she knew.

“Hey, Libby. The answer isn’t there in the ocean.”

She looked back at Cam, a smile still on his face, but also something else. She couldn’t quite put her finger on it, but it was almost like a look of compassion.

“I just want to get to know you. That’s all. I want to spend some time with you.”

“But why?” Olivia asked, her brows furrowed.

“What? Why wouldn’t I?”

“I could give you a thousand reasons,” she mumbled under her breath.

“As friends. That’s all, Libby. Come to dinner with me. Let me be your friend.”

Olivia sighed, petting Nepenthe. “I don’t need any friends. I’m perfectly happy in my little oasis here on the beach.”

“Oh, come on. Don’t make me beg.”

Olivia’s heart stopped. Alexander’s husky voice flashed through her memory…
I like it when you beg
.

Her lip started to tremble and she quickly jumped off the couch, walking toward the stairs and away from Cam, desperately trying not to fall apart in front of him. She had finally gotten through an entire week without breaking down and crying when she thought about Alexander, but that memory was too much. She couldn’t take it. Her heart was in pieces and she knew it was all her fault, but it still didn’t make it hurt any less.

Knowing that he had somehow upset her, Cam caught up to her and grabbed her arm. He didn’t want to leave on such a sour note. “Libby, please. Whatever I said, I’m sorry.”

She turned to face him, tears running down her face.

“I just want to make you smile. Please. Just come to dinner with me. I promise I’ll help you forget about whatever it is that has you so upset.”

She looked up at Cam, surprised at his height. He was even taller than Alexander, which was a feat at six-foot-five. Maybe he was right. Maybe what Olivia needed was someone to help her forget. She couldn’t possibly go on living her life as she had been. Every day was a struggle to get through. She felt something when she looked at him. It wasn’t sparks and shivers and tremors like it was when she looked at Alexander, but something was far better than nothing.

Cam pleaded with her with his eyes, desperate to find out more about this mysterious woman who had come to the island and captured his attention so quickly.

“Okay. I’ll go out with you.”

A smile spread across Cam's face, and Olivia couldn’t help but giggle a little at the look of excitement. “Great!” he exclaimed. “I’ll pick you up at seven.” He left before Olivia could protest.

She fell back onto the couch. For the first time in weeks, she actually had something to look forward to that evening. She was unsure how to feel about that. Would she just find herself in the same situation as she did with Alexander? No. Impossible. She refused to let it get that far. She couldn’t. It nearly tore her apart when she had to leave Alexander, and she vowed to never do that again…even if it meant spending the rest of her life alone.

“Damn it, Nepenthe. What have I gotten myself into?” Her cat stood up and stretched before settling back down on Olivia’s stomach.

O
LIVIA
SCOURED
HER
CLOSET
looking for something to wear that evening. She refused to call it a date. It was just two friends getting to know each other. Olivia was done dating. She should never have gotten close to Alexander. It ended horribly. Life was better before. It was uncomplicated. She could fuck anyone she wanted and never get attached. That was what she needed in order to get her life back on track. Maybe Cam would help her with that.

But after she had gotten a taste of what a real relationship was like, could she even think about going back to her old ways? She loved the butterflies she felt fluttering in her stomach when she thought about that special someone. She loved the cute things Alexander did for her, like sending her text messages just to say he was thinking about her. Sending flowers to her office just because. Is that feeling truly worth it when you know it will end in heartbreak? She wasn’t sure.

Olivia fell onto her bed, wishing she still had all her clothes. She left Boston in such a hurry that she barely had much in terms of acceptable dinner attire. Most days she roamed around her house in a pair of gym shorts and a tank top. Other than that and running clothes, she didn’t have much need for anything else.

She glanced at the clock. It was just a little past noon. She had more than enough time to go to the mall and get back in time for dinner. She quickly threw on a pair of shorts and tank top, and jumped in her car, heading toward Jacksonville. Within an hour, she finally pulled off the interstate and into a crowded mall parking lot.

Shit
, she thought. Christmas shopping. She had completely lost track of the days and it was a few weeks before Thanksgiving. People were clearly getting their shopping done early. Instead of trying to find a parking spot, she made a bee-line for the valet and threw the attendant the keys to her Audi before running into the mall in search of a store that could have something for her to wear. As she navigated through the swarms of people pushing and shoving their way through the shopping center, she thought about how much she missed Boston and the convenience of living around the corner from a street lined with designer boutiques. She hated shopping malls.

After finally finding a store with clothing that was her style, she scoured the racks, grabbing more clothes than she could ever wear, but she didn’t care. The girls at the store were more than helpful, seeing a huge sale in their future. She would deal with what to wear when she got home.

Olivia reached into her purse, opening her wallet to pay with some of the cash that she had grabbed while she was fleeing Boston. She had been using that money to get by on, not wanting anyone to be able to trace her. She suddenly realized that she left the house without grabbing any more cash from the safe. All she had on her was a few small bills and that wouldn’t cover what she was buying.

Exhaling loudly, she handed the saleswoman her credit card, visibly cringing when she swiped it.
Great
, she thought.
Now there’s a fucking paper trail
.

~~~~~~~~~~

Alexander groaned when he heard a loud banging on the door to his penthouse. He must have passed out on the couch again. He had gone to MacFadden’s the night before and proceeded to get incredibly wasted. His brother left, not wanting to put up with his drunk ass.

He sat up on the couch and took in his disheveled surroundings, clothes thrown everywhere, hoping he hadn’t done anything in his inebriated state that he would regret.

“What the fuck is that?” a female voice called out from the staircase.

“Shit,” Alexander cursed under his breath. “So much for not doing anything stupid.” He rubbed his eyes and made his way over to the door, not turning to look at the tall redhead standing at the foot of the stairs. “Don’t worry about it,” he grumbled, his voice raspy. “Go back upstairs, Chelsea.”

“Fine,” she said, walking back up the stairs. “Are you actually ever going to make it to bed? It’s practically three in the afternoon and you were no use to me last night, Alex.”

“I’ll be right there,” he groaned, rolling his eyes as he opened the door, surprised to see Martin standing in the foyer.

“Sorry to disturb you, sir.” He walked into the penthouse and proceeded to the kitchen, grabbing several aspirin and a bottle of water before handing them to Alexander.

“What the fuck, Martin? You think I need a babysitter? I can take care of myself. Plus, why didn’t you just use your code to get in?”

“I wanted to make sure I wasn’t interrupting anything, sir. I tried calling, but you never answered.”

Alexander put the aspirin in his mouth, then drank the water. After nearly finishing the entire bottle, he turned to Martin. “Well, please, by all means, tell me what the fuck you’re doing here.”

Martin took a deep breath. “Do you remember the conversation we had a month ago when…”

“DO NOT SAY HER FUCKING NAME!” Alexander yelled, his eyes wide with fury.

Martin took a step back, tired of dealing with his rather unstable boss. He didn’t know whether or not he should actually inform him what he had come there to tell him.

“Okay…well, you asked me to run her credit cards and keep tracking them to see if they were used at all. For the longest time, the trail has been cold…”

Alexander eyed him suspiciously, his heart rate picking up as Martin continued to talk.

“There's been a hit,” he said, pausing as he gauged Alexander’s reaction to the news. “Her credit card was used a few hours ago at a mall in Jacksonville, Florida.”

Alexander’s eyes went wide.

“And then, just thirty minutes ago, it was used at a liquor store in Amelia Island, Florida.”

Alexander swallowed hard. “Martin,” he said softly. “Can you…”

“Prepare the jet? Already on it, sir. It’s on standby for you as soon as you’re ready.” He turned to leave.

“Martin?” Alexander said, his mind racing, knowing that if he could find her, anyone could.

“Yes, sir?” he replied, turning back to face him.

“I’m sorry I snapped at you before. I know my behavior lately has been a little off.”

“No need to apologize, sir. I just hope it all works out. I’ll be downstairs waiting.”

Alexander ran up the stairs to the bedroom, his heart beating frantically at the idea that he may finally know where his Olivia was.

“It’s about fucking time, Alex,” Chelsea said as he stormed into the master bedroom. She sat on the large bed, watching some crappy gossip show on the giant television.
Olivia never watched TV like this
, Alexander thought to himself.
She always preferred to read.
Just thinking about her made his heart break a little bit more, if that was even possible.

“Don’t you have something better to do with your time than watch that rubbish?” he sneered, opening the closet and grabbing a suitcase. He began throwing clothes into it.

“It’s not rubbish. We’re on it from Thursday night at the charity dinner. By the way, it’s a good thing I convinced you to take me because, if I didn’t, you know that Adele would have sunk her claws into you again.”

He rolled his eyes. “Don’t remind me.”

“So, going somewhere?” he heard her ask quietly.

Alexander turned and saw Chelsea standing in the doorway to his closet, her arms crossed. He regretted calling her to come over the previous night, but he was desperate to feel something other than the dull pain that had accompanied so many of his nights recently.

“Yeah. Work thing,” he said quickly before turning back around to resume packing for his mission to find and bring Olivia back home.

Chelsea rolled her eyes and walked over to him, pulling him to her. “Come on, Alex. What is it going to take for you to forget about
her
?” she asked, running her tongue down his neck. He groaned, his erection that couldn’t be found the night before finally making itself known. “There’s my boy,” she whispered, grinding against him. She slowly removed her silk kimono robe.

“Chelsea,” Alexander whispered. “I can’t.”

She threw her robe to the ground and stood in front of him, totally exposed. “Can’t or won’t?” Pressing her lips against his, she ran her hands through his hair. “I know you want to, Alex. I can feel it.” She brushed his lips with her tongue, begging for permission to enter.

Alexander didn’t know what to do. Yes, he absolutely wanted to fuck Chelsea at that moment just so he could feel
something
. But he also wanted to get on that plane to try to find Olivia…
His
Olivia.