Chapter 3
Ian walked over to where I was sitting and sat down next to me. He brought his knees up to his chest and sighed. “You sure know how to make an exit.”
“My name is Aurora Jean Sinclair. I’m twenty-three years old, and I come from a small town in Indiana. I want to thank you, Mr. Ian Braxton, for saving my life.”
Ian looked over at me and smiled. “It’s nice to meet you, Rory, and you’re very welcome.”
My hands were deep in the sand as I picked some up and held it in between my fingers. Ian stared at me for a moment before speaking.
“The way you’re playing with that sand, I’d assume that you’ve never touched sand before.”
“Only once.”
He chuckled lightly. “Yeah, right.”
I looked at him with all seriousness. “It’s true. This is the first time that I’ve seen the ocean and the second time that I’ve felt the sand.”
His eyes gazed into mine as he slowly shook his head. “You’re dead serious,” he whispered.
“All of this. The beautiful ocean air, the warm, soft sand, the peaceful sounds of the waves, you take for granted. To me, this is something I’ll cherish forever because I thought I’d never be able to experience it.”
I looked down for a moment as I could see the pity in his eyes. I didn’t want pity. My life was what it was, but I refused to let it define me as a person. “That’s only a small fraction of my life, Ian. I’m not sure you want to hear the rest.”
He reached over and took a hold of my hand. I looked at him. “I’ve pressed my hand against your bloody wound. I’ve shampooed your hair in the shower. I brushed your hair for you. I’ve given you a safe place to stay. I don’t think there’s any harm in holding your hand.” He smiled.
To be honest, I didn’t want him holding my hand, because the feeling that overtook me when he touched me was overwhelming and frightening. I gave him a small smile and lightly squeezed his hand.
“What about your parents?” he asked hesitantly.
“I never knew my dad because I was conceived during a one-night stand. See, I was doomed from the start.”
“Don’t say that, Rory.”
“My mom died when I was ten years old of pneumonia. We didn’t have any money to pay the doctor, so she just didn’t go and she died,” I said as the tears swelled in my eyes. “My aunt took me and my brother in after the state took us away. She refused at first, but when she found out that she would get paid for taking care of us, she changed her mind. We lived in a two-bedroom house and my brother and I had to share a room. My aunt was a drug addict and she used the money the state sent her for drugs. The house was filthy and falling apart. I tried to clean it every week, but it didn’t matter; she would just mess it up as fast as I cleaned it. She brought a different guy home every night. She’d have sex with them and they’d pay her either in cash or drugs. She didn’t pay attention to us. She told my brother and I that we were only there for a place to stay and that she wasn’t playing mommy, but we weren’t allowed to tell anyone that. We weren’t allowed to talk about our home life.”
Ian squeezed my hand and looked down. “My God, Rory.”
“We weren’t allowed to have friends because they would see how we lived and my aunt couldn’t risk it. I engrossed myself in my studies and tried to learn everything I could about the world, so one day, I could get out of that shithole.”
“Who hurt you, Rory?” Ian asked.
I closed my eyes and freed my hand from his. “My brother, Stephen. You know what, I’m really tired, and I think I’m just going to go back to my room,” I said as I got up and left Ian sitting in the sand as I walked back to the house.
I lay myself down on the bed as the tears fell down my face. Living that life was one thing, but having to tell someone was far worse. I was ashamed and embarrassed, but I survived and became strong because of it. I was finally out and there was no way I was going back, ever. I fell asleep for a while and, when I woke up, the beautiful morning was gone and the afternoon had brought in dark clouds and rain. I got up from the bed and stepped into the shower. I sat on my knees on the shower floor and brought my head down so I could wash my hair. Once I was finished, I got dressed and walked downstairs. As I made my way to the kitchen, Charles was in there cooking. I noticed a young man sitting at the table. I instantly had a flashback of that night.
“Good day, Miss Rory,” Charles said as he stood over the stove, stirring something.
“Hello, Charles.” I smiled.
“Rory, I’m Joshua.” He smiled as he held out his hand.
I walked over to the table and shook his hand. “You’re the one I ran into on the street.”
“Yes, I am.”
“Thank you for helping me,” I said.
“No problem.” He smiled. “I would’ve come up to see you, but I just got back from having a few days off.”
“Miss Rory, please sit down and let me make you a sandwich,” Charles said.
“Thank you, Charles, I’d like that. Do you know where Ian is?” I asked.
“I think he’s in his study. Go through the living room and it’s on your left,” Joshua answered.
“Thanks, Joshua.”
I walked out of the kitchen and found Ian’s study. He was sitting behind a large cherry wood desk, typing on his computer. As I entered, he looked up at me.
“You’re awake,” he said as he looked back at this computer.
“My brother, Stephen, is a schizophrenic, and I brought him to L.A. to visit a doctor who was doing a trial study with an experimental drug.”
His eyes looked away from his computer and straight at me. “Go on,” he said.
“In order for him to be in the trial, he had to stop taking his meds one month prior to his appointment. We were in the motel room and I asked him if he could turn the TV on while I went and took a shower. He’d been irritable the whole way to L.A., and I knew it was only a matter of time before he snapped. I was just hoping that he’d been in the trial study before he did. Anyway, he told me that the voices in his head wouldn’t let him turn the TV on. So I walked over and turned it on myself. He pushed me out of the way and turned it off. I told him to knock it off and to go lie down and get some rest. He started screaming at me and told me to stop telling him what to do. He said the voices were yelling at him to make me stop. I turned my back on him and, before I knew it, I felt the knife plunging into me.”
I started to shake as I relived that night. Ian jumped up from his chair and grabbed me before I could fall. He wrapped his arms around me and held me as we slowly dropped to the ground.
“You’re safe now,” he said as he held my head against his chest. “He’s never going to hurt you again.”
As soon as I snapped back into reality, I lifted my head and looked at Ian. The only thing I could see were his perfectly shaped lips that I wanted to kiss. “I’m sorry,” I said as I nervously got up off the floor and out of his arms.
“Don’t be sorry, Rory. You have nothing to be sorry for.”
I took in a deep breath. “Charles is making me a sandwich. I should go and see if it’s ready.”
Ian smiled. “Tell Charles to me make me one too, and I’ll join you shortly.”
I walked out of his study, embarrassed once again. As I walked into the kitchen, Charles had my sandwich made and sitting on the table. “Thank you, Charles. Ian asked if you’d make him one as well.”
“You’re welcome, Miss Rory.” He smiled.
“Please, just call me Rory.”
****
A few days had passed and every day I was feeling stronger. I spent most of my days sitting on the beach or by Ian’s pool. Ian spent his days at the office, and I still didn’t know what he did. He didn’t offer any information and I didn’t ask. When he’d come home, he’d shower, change his clothes, and go out on his nightly dates. More often than not, he’d bring the women back here, but they were always gone in the morning. The strange thing was the way he looked at me every time he left for the night. It was almost as if he was apologizing. Thoughts of him burned through me every second of every day.
As I was sitting by the pool, I heard Adalynn’s voice coming from inside.
“There you are. I was looking for you.”
“You were? Why?” I asked as I opened one eye and looked at her.
“Because I want to know if you’re up to going out?”
“Going out? Where?”
“It’s a surprise. Just tell me yes or no.” She smiled.
To get out of this house sounded like a wonderful idea. But I was kind of scared at what Adelynn had planned, and I’d only met her that one time at breakfast. I agreed anyway because I was desperate to get away from here for a while, and I wanted a friend.
“Just let me run upstairs and change.” I smiled.
As soon as I changed my clothes, I met Adalynn in the front, where her town car was waiting for us. “The first thing we’re going to do is get our hair done. I thought we’d have girls’ day out with some shopping and pampering.”
“But I don’t have any money,” I said.
“Aw, sweetie, don’t worry about that. Ian is paying for everything.” She winked.
“Does he know about this?”
“No, not yet, anyway.” She laughed.
I was really starting to like Adalynn. She was funny and she had an aura about her that gave off friendly vibes. “If he doesn’t know, how’s he going to pay?” I asked in confusion.
“Ian Braxton has accounts all over town. Don’t worry, sweetie. He won’t mind.”
“How long have you and Ian been friends?”
Adalynn looked at me and smiled as she took a hold of my hand. “Ian and I have known each other since college. I’m sure he didn’t tell you, but I’m his ex-wife.”
My stomach dropped. “You and Ian were married?”
“For a short time. Only a couple of days.”
“Why? I’m sorry, but I don’t understand. Why wouldn’t he introduce you to me as his ex?”
Adalynn laughed. “We don’t talk about it. Ian and I have been good friends for years. Friends with benefits, if you want to know the truth, and one weekend we went to Vegas. We got really drunk and Ian said we should get married. I agreed, or should I say, the alcohol agreed, and we went to the chapel and got hitched. After we realized what we did, the next morning, we had it annulled the minute we got back. Neither one of us wanted marriage. It was just a random act, one drunken night.”
“How many friends with benefits does Ian have?” I blurted out.
“Well, if you’re asking if Ian and I are still doing it, the answer is no. We stopped all that a couple of years ago. I’m currently dating someone and we’re very much in love.” She smiled.
A sigh of relief washed over me when she said that. I didn’t, in any way, feel threatened by her. I was just glad she wasn’t sleeping with Ian. One less woman in this rich town to worry about. We pulled up to the salon and, once inside, we were immediately taken back to our stylists. Adalynn introduced me to her stylist, Renee. As I sat in the chair next to her, I heard a boisterous voice from behind.
“And you must be Rory!” he exclaimed as he clasped my shoulders with his hands. “I’m Benny and I’m going to be styling you today. Now, tell me what you’re thinking.”
“Nice to meet you, Benny. I just found out I was coming here, so I didn’t have a chance to really think about what I want. What do you suggest?” I asked.
He ran his fingers through my long, brown hair, examining the ends. “Hmm...I’m thinking about two inches, long layers and caramel highlights. With your bone structure, it will look fabulous.”
“That sounds perfect, Benny,” Adalynn said.
“What do you think, sweetheart?” he asked.
“Sure. That sounds great.” I smiled.
Two hours later and Benny was finished with my hair. He turned the chair around and I gasped when I saw myself in the mirror.
“Oh my God, Rory. You look fantastic,” Adalynn said.
“Well?” Benny asked.
Tears began to form in my eyes as I stared at myself. “It’s beautiful.”
Benny helped me out of the chair and led me to another section of the salon. “Take a seat here, sweetheart, and Joey will be right with you.”
I looked at Adalynn as she sat in the chair across from me. “What’s going on?”
“You’re getting your makeup done.” She smiled.
Joey walked over and introduced himself. Adalynn said he was the best makeup artist in all of California. Once he was finished, I looked across at Adalynn, who had tears in her eyes. “You look gorgeous.”
As I looked in the mirror, I stared at the girl staring back at me. I desperately wanted to cry happy tears and Joey knew it because he told me to look up at the ceiling so the tears wouldn’t fall and I wouldn’t ruin my makeup.
“You’re gorgeous. You’re a natural beauty and you don’t need makeup, but with it, wow, all the men better watch out.” Joey smiled.
“Thank you, Joey.”
As Adalynn and I walked out of the salon, she put her arm around me. “You look simply stunning. You’re a beautiful woman and don’t ever let anyone tell you otherwise. Now, let’s go buy you some clothes.”
I was grateful to her for doing this for me. I felt like a charity case and I hated it. I’d always been a charity case. My aunt always led people to believe that no matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t find a job. So, Stephen and I were always given hand-me-downs and people looked at us with pity.
Adalynn grabbed the clothes that I tried on in the dressing room and took them to the register.
“I don’t know about this, Adalynn. It’s really expensive.”
“Listen to me, Rory. Ian is buying. He doesn’t care. The man has more money than he knows what to do with.”
“What exactly does he do?”
She looked at me with surprise. “He hasn’t told you?”
I shook my head. “I don’t know a thing about him. All I know is that he has money.”
“Well, he certainly is rich.” she smiled. “The thing about Ian is that he’s a very private man. He likes to talk about business and not his personal life. We’re close friends and there are still things I don’t know about him.”
“He likes women,” I said as I looked down.
“Yes, Ian likes a lot of women.”
“He brings a different one home almost every night,” I said.
Adalynn looked at me and tilted her head. “You aren’t falling for him, are you?”
“No, of course not. Even if I was, and that’s a big if, a man like Ian Braxton would never be interested in me.”
“Of course he would, Rory. You’re a beautiful woman and you’re kind. Yeah, maybe you’re right. The women Ian seems to go for are total greedy bitches with sticks up their asses.” She laughed.
I laughed with her as my side started to hurt. I placed my hand on it and sat down in one of the chairs.
“Are you okay?” she asked.
“I’m fine. I’m just a little sore.”
Adalynn took my hand and helped me up from the chair. “Let’s get you back to the house so you can rest.”
As we walked through the door and into the house, Ian was coming out of his study. He stopped in the middle of the room and stared at me. He looked at me as if it was the first time that he’d ever seen me.
“What’s wrong, Ian? Cat got your tongue?” Adalynn smiled.
Ian cleared this throat as he walked over to where I was standing. When he cocked his head, the corners of his mouth curved up slightly. “Rory, you look amazing.” He brought his hand up to my hair and took a few strands between his fingers. “Your hair looks great. You had it cut and some highlights put in.” He smiled.
“Yeah. It was Benny’s idea.”
“Ah, you saw Benny. He’s the one who cuts my hair.”
I looked over at Adalynn and she winked at me. “I need to go now. I have a hot date to get ready for,” she said as she walked over and gave Ian a hug and kiss.
When Adalynn turned to me, I hugged her and thanked her for everything she did for me. She had done more for me in one day than anyone ever had in my life. I would always be grateful to her. For the first time in my life, I felt beautiful, and even a little bit sexy.
“Well, are you going to show me what I bought you?” Ian smiled as he pointed to the bags I was holding.
“Oh, sure. Let’s take them to my room.”
Ian took the bags from me and we walked up the stairs and into the bedroom. He sat down in the chair and crossed his legs while I showed him what he had bought, piece by piece. He sat there with a smoldering smirk on his face.
“What’s that look for?” I smiled.
“Nothing. I’m just admiring the things you picked out. You look happy, Rory, and I can’t help but feel that I had something to do with that.”
I turned away from him as I hung the clothes in the closet. I didn’t know what to say because the truth was that I was happy because of him. After hanging the last piece of clothing, I walked over to him and he stood up. I did something I never thought I would’ve done. I gave him a light kiss on his cheek.
“Thank you, Ian. Thank you for everything. You saved my life, and I do want you to know that I’m grateful for that.”
He brought his hand to my face and gently stroked my cheek as his eyes stared into mine. “It was my pleasure saving you.” He smiled. “Now, if you’ll excuse me, I need to go finish up some work before heading out to dinner.” He walked to the door, stopped, turned around, and looked at me. “You’ll be joining me tonight at one of my favorite restaurants. Maybe you should change into one of your new outfits. We’re leaving promptly at seven o’clock, so make sure you’re ready,” he said as he walked out of the room.
I stood there, trying to take in what he’d just said. He was taking me to dinner tonight. Not one of his other women, but me. A mixture of excitement and nervousness shot through my body at the thought of having dinner with him. It was just going to be the two of us. He was amazingly beautiful, but intimidating. His confidence was something I’d never seen in a person before. He walked with his head held high, as if he was the most important person in the world. Ian Braxton knew he was sexy, and he knew how to charm women. His charm was weakening me. I felt things that scared me. Things I’d never felt before.