Chapter 4
Dane
Sydney, the girl who ran the B&B, had pointed me to the beach. I had walked straight out of the back of the house and headed for the waves. On my way, I rolled up the ends of my pants, then the sleeves of my shirt to my elbows, popped open a couple of buttons on my shirt and discarded my shoes by flinging them away from me.
The sea breeze was salty and made my skin slightly sticky but I didn’t care. The water was inviting, blue and serene and peaceful and I walked towards it deliberately. I hadn’t seen the sea in ages, it felt like forever, and now I wanted to forget absolutely everything. The life and my career which I’d left behind in New York.
In any other circumstance, I would have been worrying over it. I wouldn’t be able to forget the fact that I had overnight, turned from the youngest most successful guy on Wall Street to an ex employee of Bradbury’s firm. That it would now take me another five years to get back on my feet. Did I even have the energy to do it all over again? Was I going to retire at twenty-nine? Was I now a complete loser?
But these thoughts weren’t distracting me today. The sea had charmed me. Struck me with its beauty. Much like how Sydney had, just a few minutes ago.
She was a small petite thing, at least half my height. She had a thick head of straight brunette hair that she left open, which was covered with a coating of some kind of dust. It gave me the impression that she had been cooking or baking something. Her cheeks were flushed when I saw her first, and her eyes were big and bright and brown. She was in a pair of distressed worn out jeans and an oversized t-shirt that was falling off her shoulders.
Even though she was soft spoken, and short; the way she looked at me told me that I shouldn’t be taking her lightly. I was surprised to see her there, at the door of the house. When Tina told me she had booked a B&B for me in a quaint little town in Florida, I wasn’t expecting to find a young attractive girl greeting me at the door.
She had looked offended when I kissed her hand, and very soon, I realized that she wasn’t much of a talker. But this whole place had begun to cast a spell on me, I soon began to see. Just the smell of the sea, the sound of sea gulls, the cool blue waters that stretched out in front of me, Sydney back in the house…it would be very easy for me to forget everything. Even if it was just for a few days.
“Mr Forsyth! Dane!” I heard a woman’s voice behind me and I whipped around to find Sydney walking towards me. She had her face shaded with one hand and a worried expression. I had been so lost in thought that I hadn’t realized how far into the waves I’d walked. I looked down to find that the water level now reached me mid-thigh. My pants were soaked and my shirt had been splashed too.
“What are you doing?” she asked, when she had come close enough. I searched her face, because I didn’t know what she was talking about. Then it dawned on me, what she was worried about. She thought I was going to do something stupid.
“Don’t worry, Sydney, I wasn’t planning on killing myself,” I said with a smile. Sydney’s brown eyes had grown wider, her face was flushed in the bright sun. She had taken off her apron and the red bandana from her head, but there were still traces of flour in her hair.
She didn’t seem to believe me, so I walked towards her. She followed me with her eyes.
“What were you doing?” she asked and I shrugged.
“Just enjoying the feel of the waves at my feet,” I said and she shook her head.
“You were really far into the water,” she said in a strained voice and I smiled again.
“I apologize, Sydney. I was lost in thought and the beauty of this place must have overwhelmed me,” I added and she continued to stare at me. I could see that she was trying to figure out if I was a dangerous case to have in her house. I had arrived only minutes ago and went straight for the beach and walked deep into the waters. I could understand where her fears lay.
“I’ll go back with you to the house, see…and I promise never to get that far again,” I said and started walking back to the beach. She followed me, still with her eyes shaded.
“You were just standing there, staring out, for like fifteen minutes…I wasn’t sure what was going on,” I heard her say and I turned to look at her again. I noticed the gentle curve of her neck as her hair blew dramatically in the breeze.
“Was it really fifteen minutes? I didn’t realize. Sorry, show me my room?” I said.
She took another few moments before she walked past me and led me back towards the house. I could see that she still wasn’t satisfied, she was unsure of me.
Just at the back door of the house, Sydney flipped around to face me again.
“Who are you, Dane?” she asked and I looked at her, straight in her eyes. How was I supposed to answer that question?
“I’m just a guy, Sydney, and I promise I won’t cause you any troubles,” I said and without saying another word, she turned and walked back into the house. I noticed the way her perfectly shaped butt moved in her jeans as she walked. No. I couldn’t ruin this ideal vacation spot by sleeping with my hostess.