TWENTY

 

Mr. Right or Mr. Right Now?

 

Libby

 

 

Harrison brought me back about three hours ago. We spent the entire morning in bed, then went for a hike, which included some extremely delicious skinny dipping in a freshwater pool under a waterfall. Yeah, that’s right, Adventurous Libby had sexy sex under a sexy waterfall.

Now my head is spinning with a joy so all-consuming, it really is like being completely intoxicated. I sang “Take a Chance on Me” (horribly, I might add) all the way through my shower, then floated around the room in my robe before throwing on a cute T-shirt dress and plunking myself down in my chair.

I, then, spent several dreamy minutes staring at a cream and purple stripped sea shell Harrison gave me before we left the island. It was perfectly in tact when he plucked it out of the sand and handed it to me. “This is you around the wrong people,” he said.

Then opening it so the two halves opened up so the iridescent shiny inside showed, he added, “This is you around someone who cares. You go from being all clammed up to being a butterfly and revealing everything that’s beautiful about you.”

Tears pricked my eyes as I rubbed the smooth center of the shell with my fingertip.

“That was corny, wasn’t it?” he asked.

I shook my head. “That was lovely. Thank you.”

“Thank you for letting me see the real you.”

Dreamy, right?

Okay, so when I’m not gazing at my shell, I’ve been writing not one but two reports on the property — and not because I’m an overachiever. It’s because while I was in the shower, I came up with what I hope will be the perfect plan to save Paradise Bay.

At this moment, I don't know if Harrison and I will end up together and live a long, happy island life. But, what I do know is that I can't be responsible for the destruction of this wonderful community. Rosy was right. This is a family, and no one should tear apart a family for profit. It's just wrong.

I sit back in my chair, having just read over the final version of each report. My heart pounds as I look back and forth between the two of them neatly stacked next to each other on my desk. The first report is for Harrison's eyes only, and it contains a very detailed how-to guide for him to take this property and make it extremely profitable. If my bosses saw this, it would not only get my arse fired, they would also make sure I’d never get another job in mergers and acquisitions again. And they wouldn't be wrong because what I'm doing is completely unethical. I'm making a decision to hide the truth from my bosses, which means a lost opportunity for GlobalLux and its shareholders.

The second report is a complete lie meant to cause GlobalLux to abandon their takeover bid. This report is so damning, it will pretty much guarantee no one ever looks at this property again unless it were to burn to the ground and only the land was up for sale. I've made it sound as though things have been so poorly managed and constructed, the cost of acquisition plus making the necessary improvements to turn a profit would exceed any potential future earnings for many years to come.

I tap my fingers on my lips, hoping I'm doing the right thing, even though I know this is irresponsible — reckless, even. My gut churns at the thought that maybe I am just like my mum. Because at the moment, I'm willing to throw away my career for a man I hardly know. And it's not about the amazing orgasms, I promise you.

At least I think it isn't.

Over the past few weeks, I've come to see the beauty of what Harrison has built here, and I can't bring myself to tear that apart even if it would be the boost I need for my career. The truth is, I don’t actually care about my job at the moment, and I’m not sure I ever did. Other than the fact that it made me look like a success, I don’t like what we do. It’s ugly and soulless to reduce someone’s dream to profit margins and efficiency ratings. There’s so much more to a business than what’s on paper — at least there should be.

I can’t do it anymore.

I don’t want to.

I won’t.

Opening up my laptop, I start an email.

 

Email from Libby Dewitt to Quentin Atlas:

RE: Paradise Bay Preliminary Evaluation Results

 

Quentin,

 

I've attached my full report. To summarize, I’ve deemed Paradise Bay All-Inclusive Resort not worth pursuing. The owner’s valuation of the property is unrealistically high, and he’s in no way willing to move off his position. At this time, it is my unequivocal recommendation that GlobalLux abandon the pursuit of acquiring this property.

 

Regards,

Libby

 

P.S. Effective immediately, I quit.

 

I stare at the email for a moment. “After this, I have no plan,” I say to the empty room.

I do a quick body-scan before I hit send. No clammy hands. No heart palpitations. My throat doesn't feel like it's going to close up. Complete lack of dizziness, nausea, and lightheadedness. Lifting my hand to my upper lip, I find it dry.

Huh.

If I don't feel like I'm about to have a panic attack, that must be a good sign, right? Or am I completely numb because this is the worst idea I've ever had?

I look down at the shell and run my fingertips along it. I am a butterfly, not a clam. I'm worth more than this job. I can do something better with my life — for example, staying here and trying to help turn things around so Paradise Bay Resort can stay exactly the way it is, only with one new person here to complete the puzzle.

My hand hovers over the mouse, I take a deep breath, then click send. I have exactly 29 seconds after hitting that button to change my mind. I watch the timer count down and do nothing as it winds its way to zero. Then, I exhale — long, deep, and slow. When I’m done, I smile and stretch my arms out to the sides, feeling free for quite possibly the first time since I was a little girl.

My phone rings, and I quickly pick it up. Thank God, it's Alice. I swipe the screen to answer.

“You're not going to believe this, but I just quit my job.”

“What?”

“Crazy, right? Am I crazy? Don’t answer that, I already know,” I say, biting my thumbnail.

Then I spill my guts, telling Alice everything that’s happened since we last talked. I tell her about Rosy and Fidel’s baby and the opossum and Butterfingers Girl, and about my night on Fantasy Island.

When I get to the end of the story, I say, “I mean, none of this makes any sense. This has to be a rebound thing, doesn't it?” I pace the room, holding my mobile phone up to my ear.

“Okay, hang on a second,” Alice says. “I'm just trying to wrap my head around a few of the details before I can help you sort this out. Are you sure you guys did it, like, seven times?”

“Alice, seriously, I need your help here. I'm desperate.”

“I actually wouldn’t call you even a little bit desperate if you got it seven times since yesterday afternoon. And that whole waterfall thing? That sounds like the kind of fantasy that could keep a girl going for the rest of her life.”

“Yes, it was unbelievably perfect, but what if Harrison's wrong? What if I am exactly like my mum and I just threw away my entire life for some crazy, lust-filled relationship with someone I barely know?”

“How old is he?” Alice asks.

“What does that have to do with anything?”

“Just answer the question.”

“Thirty-two.”

“Well, then you're fine. He’s older than you, so you’re not turning into your mother.”

I groan. “Alice, I don’t think you get it. I am doing the most reckless thing I have ever done, and I have absolutely no desire to stop.”

“Then don't. Where did being good and predictable get you, Libs? I mean, really?” she asks.

I consider her question and find myself unable to come up with a defense for sticking with my old ways. “Good point.”

“Do you think you might be in love with him?”

I stop pacing and consider the question. The answer makes me sit down on the bed because my legs feel weak. “I think I might be. But it can't be real. I mean, I've known him for less than three weeks.”

Alice makes a clicking sound with her tongue, then says, “There is such a thing as love at first sight, you know.”

“No, there isn't. There's just lust at first sight, which I definitely have.”

“So, that’s all you like about him? How he looks?”

“No, there’s so much more to him than that. He’s just so generous and caring, and he’s so great with his staff and the guests…and tiny wild animals,” I say with a dreamy sigh. “And then there’s the way he smells, and the way he smiles, and how he looks at me like I'm the only woman who's ever lived. It's like…he just really wants to take care of me, you know? Like, really take care of me.”

“Yeah, I got that when you said the part about doing it seven times,” Alice says. Then her voice drops. “Oh, shit. I just realized if you end up with this guy, I'm hardly ever going to see you.”

“Exactly. Which is why this whole thing is insane. I just need to tell him my life is in Avonia and even though this has been amazing, I really can't stay.” I stand and start pacing again.

“Did he ask you to stay?” Alice says.

“Yeah, actually.” My entire body warms at the thought of his words and the feeling of being in his arms.

“As much as I hate to say it, I think you need to stick around there for a while and see where this goes,” Alice says, sounding a little bit sad. “You owe it to yourself to see if he's the one. And based on everything you've told me about him, he sounds so perfect, I kind of hate you right now.”

“I take it things still aren’t much better between you and Jack?”

“You could say that. I don’t know, things are just… I think we’re just hitting a rough patch.”

“How rough?” I ask, leaning on the desk in my room and letting worry set in.

“I don't know. I mean, I'm sure it's totally normal, but he just seems really distracted lately. The other night, I woke up in the middle of the night and he wasn't in bed. I went to go find him, and he was, umm, you know, at his computer, watching something.”

I pull a face I’m glad she can’t see. “Oh, well, I suppose that's probably pretty normal, isn't it?” I ask, feeling one part worried for her and one part scared for me having to get any more details than I already know about them.

“I'm sure it is. It's just that I've never known him to do that before, so it just really feels like he must be…I don't know…unhappy.”

My heart squeezes at hearing Alice sounding so unsure of herself and her marriage. This isn’t like her at all. Here I’ve been so caught up in my own drama that I’ve completely missed the fact that my best friend is struggling.

“Hey, you guys have a lot going on, you know? I mean, you barely ever get any sleep or have any time together alone. What if you leave the kids with your parents for a few nights and get away, just the two of you?”

“Yeah, that's a good idea. I should suggest it,” Alice says, but her tone is not in the least bit convincing. “Oh crap, I have to run. Colby just started up the stairs with the toaster, and I think he's headed for the bathroom. I should not have let him watch that Bugs Bunny cartoon.”

“Oh God. Yeah, go.”

As Alice hangs up, I hear her shouting Colby's name.

I toss my phone on the bed and sit for a minute, trying to digest my conversation with her. I’m aching for her, and part of me wonders if I’ve been wrong to try to find a perfect life that looks exactly like hers, because it turns out it isn’t so perfect after all. Maybe perfect doesn’t exist.

If that’s the case, I might as well go for crazy happy, even if on the outside it just looks plain crazy.

There's a knock at the door. Wow, that was quick. Harrison told me he wouldn’t be back for a few more hours. One of the resort’s trucks broke down, and he needed to go fix it.

I hurry to the door, running my fingers through my hair to tame it and straightening out my dress a little. My entire body feels all warm and tingly as I grab the handle.

I swing the door open with a huge smile on my face, planning to yank him inside and have my way with him.

But it's not Harrison standing there grinning down at me.

It's Richard.