In Too Deep(4)

I made one last trip up the hill, finding a clearing area that gave me a nice view of the main portion of the resort. I could look miles out into the sea, letting me clear my mind. I sat down on the loamy earth, assuming a lotus pose on the forest floor and starting my deep breathing. It's an important part of my daily routine.

"Einz, zwei, drie, vier....." I started in German, reaching twenty before switching over to Chinese. Chinese gave way to Finnish, then Icelandic, and finally Spanish before I reached one hundred. I was centered and opened my eyes to just sit back and observe the natural beauty of the resort.

This was a heck of a place for my yearly retreat, I thought to myself as I leaned back against a tree trunk. A lot better than last year.

It was true. Last year I'd settled for two weeks in the Sangre de Cristo mountains around Taos. Beautiful, but too austere for the inner peace that I sought. I'd spent too much time in desolate places.

I admired the flew for a few more seconds, then got to my feet. I had just enough time to enjoy a light lunch and some reading in my room before it was time to get ready for my date with Melina. I hadn't been on a real date in a while, I couldn’t afford to get too attached. With the secrets that I knew, anyone that got close to me could be in danger. But there was something about Melina, in her eyes, that made me forget, that made me want to get to know her. I actually felt a little bit of anxiety as I rolled down the mountain toward the main part of the resort.





Chapter 3





Melina




I had no idea what the hell I was doing, dressing up for dinner. I hadn't been on an actual formal date in months, at least, being so busy with my work, and the last boyfriend I had wasn’t the sort of guy who got dressed up. Jeans and a polo shirt was about the best I could expect from him, and a romantic dinner was a trip to Olive Garden. Nothing against Olive Garden, I loved the place, but would it hurt to go somewhere a little nicer every now and then?

Finally, at about five forty-five, I got frustrated as I couldn't decide for the fifth time between the skirt I'd packed and the one dress I'd slipped into my suitcase on a last minute whim. I picked up my room phone and dialed room 275. The phone kept ringing, and I was just about to hang up when Cameron picked up. "Hello?"

"Cam? It's Melina, you know, from the beach today?"

“Of course, hi Melina," Cam said. “I was hoping you’d call. What’s up?”

"Well, I have a problem," I said.

“What is it,” he asked, his voice dropping in disappointment. "You need to break our dinner?"

I nearly dropped the phone I was so shocked. First, I'm not the sort of woman who breaks a date. Second, I damn sure would never break a date with a man like him. “Of course not," I said quickly before he could continue. "I just wanted to know what you were wearing. I've been sitting here in my room for the past half hour trying to figure out what to wear and I'm stuck."

Cam's sigh of relief combined with laughter was audible even over the phone line, and I had to chuckle in response. "Did you really think I was calling to break our date?"

“Maybe, who knows,” Cam said. "That, and I thought I'd look damn foolish going down to dinner in my best suit and tie. That isn't overdressed for you, is it?"

"No, it sounds great," I replied. "Actually, it makes my decision easy. I'll meet you down at the restaurant in fifteen minutes."

"Sounds great. See you out front," Cam said before he hung up. I set my phone down and quickly changed into my dress, zipping the side and pulling my sling backs on three minutes before six o'clock.

I was still nervous as I walked down the stairs to the restaurant. From what I'd read, this place had top quality food. Part of it was that as one of the smallest in the chain, the chef was able to put in more individual effort toward making a tighter menu. At least, that’s what the reviews said.

Cam was waiting for me just like he'd promised, wearing a pale gray suit, white shirt with a lime and blue striped tie that looked amazing on him. I couldn’t wait to find out who Cameron Swagger really was. At least I'd have plenty to talk about at dinner.

Cam's eyes lit up when he saw me coming down the hallway from the stairwell, and I swore that a hint of pink touched his cheeks as he watched me approach. "You look. . .” he began, then stuttered. “You look amazing."

"Why thank you, Mr. Swagger," I said, smiling naturally. "And you look dashing. Shall we?"

The host seated us at our table, where Cam took the gentlemanly step of actually holding my chair for me before he took a seat. I felt my own heat rise as he gracefully sat down, and I looked around. "Where are the menus?"

"The restaurant doesn't do printed menus for dinner service," Cam said. "Our server should tell us what's on for tonight."

"Oh. Sorry, first day here, and I'm not exactly used to this sort of place," I replied, taking my napkin and placing it in my lap. "In fact, this is the nicest vacation I've ever had."

“It’s a nice place,” Cam replied. “A little more extravagant that what I usually go for."

"Really? You look so at home. I figured you for one of the people who come to places like this all the time. What do you do? Banking? Doctor?"