Disillusioned (13 page)

Seconds later, they both emerged, Merritt
laughing and Tessa gasping for breath.

“Not funny,” Tessa spat at him, splashing him
as she bounced to her feet. Despite her complaint, the water felt
warm against her skin.

“Yes, it was,” he chuckled again at her
irritated expression.

Contrarily, Tessa swam toward the edge of the
pool, daring him to stop her. Before she could clear the steps, he
wrapped his arms around her and pulled her back into the water,
spinning her to face him.

“You are going to have fun here,” he
commanded. “I insist.”

Finally conquered, Tessa smiled at Merritt's
persistence.

“And
you
are going to be a pest,” she
accused impishly.

Laughing, Merritt hugged her to him. “I've
missed you,” he declared.

Tessa said nothing, enjoying his attention
and surprised at the adolescent nature of his flirtations -
although his current caress felt much more than adolescent. After
several minutes appreciating his closeness, she leaned back
slightly to look at him.

“I've missed you, too. This is more than I
could ever have expected.”

“I'm glad you like it.”

“I mean it. Everything. The plane ride, the
blindfold, you,” she peered at him from under her lashes. “This
town, this house.” Tessa sighed serenely.

Gazing back at her, Merritt leaned his
face to hers, forehead to forehead, and pulled her waist as closely
to himself as possible. He place his hand on the back of her head
and pulled her even closer until the side of her face rested
against his shoulder. Merritt began to run his hand up the bare
skin of the small of her back.

The inevitable chills flooded her mind,
melding with all the other sensations that assaulted her and
causing her to swoon a little. As her head swooned, Tessa caught a
glimpse of Merritt's smug expression. Smirking slightly at her
obvious weakness, Merritt lifted her to her tiptoes, raising her
ear to his lips, and whispered seductively, “Wait till you see the
bedroom.”

Tessa's first confirmation that Merritt had
lied to her came the next morning.

Merritt had risen early,
leaving her mostly asleep and claiming that he would fix her
breakfast in bed. Thirty minutes later, Tessa finally woke fully
and, tired of waiting, she decided to wander out to see if Merritt
needed help – he had never proved particularly handy in the
kitchen.
Maybe he's fallen into the
pancake batter,
she joked to herself
trying to maintain levity. Climbing out of bed, she slipped on the
plush slippers that came with the cabin, wrapped a blanket around
her shoulders, and wandered into the living room.

“Merritt?”

No answer.

“Merritt, where are you?”

Still no answer.

Tessa ambled into the
beautiful window room and gazed sleepily at the hamlet village that
spread out below. Yawning, she contemplated whether or not to
succumb to the inviting warmth of an early morning swim, but
rejected the thought as the cobwebs swept from her brain to reveal
an uneasiness.
Oh, yeah,
she reflected,
I still
haven't found Merritt.

She had so presumed that Merritt would appear
that she hadn't yet realized that she should be concerned. Turning
from the picturesque scenery, Tessa crossed purposefully out into
the kitchen, determined to find Merritt now that her brain awoke
enough to realize his absence.

The kitchen held no more
hint of his presence than the other rooms she had explored. Then
she continued through the dining room, the garage, and the guest
room. After these searches proved fruitless, Tessa retraced her
path through the house, this time scouring the closets and
bathrooms. Finally, on the mirror of the master bathroom she found
a sticky note. It read:
Ran into town for
some supplies. Be back in about an hour.

An hour.
Well, besides the heart attack he gave me, I
guess that's a good idea.

Breakfast in bed obviously couldn't happen
anymore, so Tessa decided to take full advantage of the immense spa
tub which housekeeping had stocked with all the amenities: bubble
bath, scented soaps, bath salts, and salon quality shampoo and
conditioners. One thing Tessa had learned through motherhood was
the value of a long bath for the purpose of relaxation.

Though Tessa had no real
reason for feeling stress, Merritt's disappearance had stirred an
anxiety she now held in her neck and shoulders.
Hot water and aromatherapy,
she
sighed, still a little miffed at Merritt, though she guessed that
he had left her sleeping.
He'll be back in
30 minutes,
she assured herself, assuming
he had left a while before she woke, and she settled in the hot
water and bubbles that began to fill the tub.

Breathing deeply, Tessa practiced relaxing
until she realized she had begun to doze. The bath pillow under her
head having kept her in place, she now sat up abruptly, feeling for
a moment as if someone watched her. She had no idea how long she
had slept.

“Merritt?” she called forcefully, hoping to
chase her heart down from her throat to its proper place.

Tessa glanced at the clock. 9:15 a.m. Merritt
had left at least an hour and a half ago, and this assumed that she
had found the note only a few minutes after he left. Reaching over
her head, she grabbed the plush, hotel-quality towel from the bar
and carefully stood while she wrapped herself with the towel,
unwilling to expose herself to housekeeping, or whomever she had
sensed.

As soon as she stepped out of the bath, she
pulled a robe from its hook and traded the vulnerability of the
towel for the security of the robe's extra wrap and ties. Tessa
dried her feet on the rug, then cautiously shuffled to look out
into her room. No sign of anyone.

Really,
she chastised herself.
There is no
reason to be this apprehensive.

The demons of the misgivings she had felt in
Phoenix had followed her to this cold, foreign place. She could
think of no reason to doubt Merritt except his extended absence.
She could think of no reason to fear for herself except...

Her thoughts trailed off. Suddenly a memory
caused her skin to crawl.

“...no
tengo
miedo
para
ti,” Merritt had said on the plane, “Es para mi
bella.
”

Merritt feared for her. The
question recalled itself now that adrenaline had intensified the
clarity of Tessa's thoughts. Why would Merritt fear for her?
Absolutely nothing exciting or dangerous ever happened to
Tessa.
Yet, if Merritt fears for
me
, Tessa couldn't help but think,
I should probably fear for myself.
The thought froze her to the spot, freezing her
heart's motion for a moment.

The blood that had left her
extremities when her heart stopped rushed back into them as she
decided she needed to move. Though her feet felt heavy, she dragged
them toward the closet where her jeans and sweater awaited her.
Bursting through the closet door, she threw her clothes on and
searched frantically for her cell phone. She came to the
realization that she didn't even know if she was in the city or the
country, so she had no assurance of cell phone service. As futile
as it seemed, she searched the closet for something she could use
as a weapon. A wire hanger served better than anything else she
could find.
I'm just overreacting,
she assured herself, though she felt no
conviction in her words.

Glancing through the crack in the closet
door, she peered as thoroughly as she could around her room to
ensure that she remained alone, or to put down the coat hanger. She
prepared herself to replace her calm reserve if she saw Merritt,
desiring that he not see her so disheveled. No one visible, Tessa
carefully opened the closet and moved as quietly as she could
toward the bedroom door, still peering around her to make sure no
one surprised her.

Had her imagination become overactive, or did
she just see a shadow by the front door? Glancing around the edge
of the bedroom's threshold, she noticed that trees that lined the
front drive cast their shadows into the entryway, and the wind had
sent them dancing wildly. Finally, feeling completely exposed,
Tessa sprinted toward the kitchen. All she needed...

A door slammed. Tessa dropped behind the
kitchen counter trying to conceal herself from anyone coming the
direction from which the door had sounded. Her back against the
wall, she slumped to the ground trying very hard not to breath.

“Tessa?” came Merritt's voice.

Tessa's breath returned with a rush almost
making her head spin. How she could possibly explain to Merritt why
she sat on the floor she didn't know, but she tried to calm herself
nonetheless. She felt utterly ridiculous, and infinitely
relieved.

“Hey, Merritt,” Tessa responded, trying to
infuse her voice with its usual casualness. She hoped he didn't
notice the slight break in her voice. “You surprised me,” she
continued, standing to her feet and covertly pulling her phone from
her pocket, as if she had picked it up off the floor. “Made me drop
my phone.”

She glanced his way with what she hoped was a
sheepish look and placed the phone on the counter in front of
her.

“You should really be more care...” he began
to chastise in his normal fashion, then broke off. “Um, you could
hurt yourself.” The words gripped Tessa with a sense of shock. For
the duration of their marriage, Merritt had chastised her about
many things, and Tessa had grown used to his manner of
communication. Never, though, did he betray a concern for her
well-being; only for her property or her image, usually in
reference to his own. For him to show, once again, such
solicitousness for her seemed out of character. It didn't help her
peace of mind that, as Merritt spoke, he furtively averted his eyes
from hers.

“So, where's my breakfast?” she complained in
a light tone, not prepared to address her concerns. “I've been out
of bed for about an hour,” and she glance at Merritt to see his
reaction.

Again he avoided her eyes, “Well, the store
didn't have much selection,” he hedged. “Small town, you know.”
Then, in a lighter tone, “Give me five minutes, though, and I'll
deliver an outstanding omelet.”

“Is that five real time or Merritt time?” she
asked. Though she hoped he would take her comment as teasing, she
couldn't keep the irritation completely out of her voice. If his
morning were any indication, five minutes could turn into
thirty.

“Watch yourself...” he threatened in jest,
once again adopting usual playfulness. He seemed to think he had
sufficiently distracted Tessa from their unspoken conversation.

Though Tessa tried to laugh, the sound was
forced, unnatural. Merritt's lack of forthcoming had begun to rile
her, and although she loathed arguments, she felt one brewing in
her mind. After ten years of passivity, Tessa found herself
suddenly less than willing to let an argument go. Then, again,
Merritt had never lied to her before, and Tessa did not intend to
let him start the habit so late in the game.

The truth will
out
, Tessa mused bitterly as she stared
with unrestrained disgust in the direction of Karen
Whitfield.

All day yesterday, after the promised omelet,
Merritt had unleashed his most charming persona at Tessa, almost as
if he had to woo her all over again. She could very nearly have
forgotten the raw edge of fear from the morning if she hadn't been
so disconcerted by his untruthfulness. Certainly, she had grown so
used to forgiving him after so many years, she might have forgotten
when to hold on to the injury. Surely he deserved some censure when
he actually did something wrong. Like now. Like when the lies began
to pile up.

He lied to her about his phone conversation
with Liset.

He lied to her about his trip into the
country store.

And now his biggest lie stared Tessa in the
f12 ++ace with unabashed amusement.

“Tessa Wilson. How generous of your husband
to let you tag along,” Karen Whitfield beamed at her over the
produce in Jasper's town store. “I assume your children didn't come
with you? That would be abject cruelty, what with his early morning
meetings.”

This explained Merritt's absence this
and yesterday mornings, Tessa realized.
Honestly, though, what a stupid thing to lie about!
Tessa wondered. Merritt had never feared
confrontation, especially with Tessa, so why lie over something so
unremarkable?

Unwilling that Karen see her disturbed,
Tessa plastered on her best fake smile and quipped, “Yes, very
generous. I imagine he couldn't stand the thought of coming to such
a romantic place alone.”
Unlike you, I
imagine,
Tessa didn't say
aloud
.

Karen colored as she grasped the jibe that
Tessa had fought to conceal. Though Karen obviously tried to
suppress it, bitterness rose into her voice as she shot back, “Of
course...” Karen cast a furtive glance at Tessa. “I mean, Jason and
I agreed that we should stay on after our business is concluded. It
would be such a waste for us to come up here and not enjoy the
amenities. We might even come during the winter. The cold weather
makes for such cozy situations.” When she finished her dialogue,
Karen punctuated it with a snarky smile.