Chapter 9

The bath was just as soothing as I imagined it to be, tiny rose petals flaked off the bath bomb to go fluttering over the glossy water. I leaned my head against the tiled wall and breathed in deeply, feeling like I could finally unwind after a long day. It was difficult though, I kept picturing the way Damian was violently shaking, it left me feeling uneasy about the whole situation.

A knock on the door was a blessed relief. I turned my head to the right only to see the corner of the wall obstructing my view. “Yes?”

“I have the wine ready for you,” Ashley called out from the other side of the doorway. “And he gave us this nice tasting baguette.”

“Oh?” I mouthed out with surprise.

“It is really fresh! He must have bought it recently. Do you think he baked it?”

“I don’t know.”

“It’s really good,” Ashley said with a stuffed mouth. I nearly chuckled at her, knowing she was probably eating it on the other side of the door. “Enjoy your bath!” she called out, and then she left me to my own musings.

That was nice of him, I thought. He obviously likes me.

My wet hand rested over the top of my mouth, sliding across my bottom lip. God, I haven’t been kissed like that in a while.

There was another knock on the door, which made me laugh in good humour. “Yes?”

“He brought us ham.”

“Okay?”

“Like the good kind,” Ashley exclaimed with happiness. “And cheese!”

“Okay,” I chuckled, for I found her so amusing.

“You told me Damian only brought us snacks.” I rolled my eyes and decided it was best to get out of the tub, seeing I would not have a moment to relax anytime soon. “This isn’t snacks, Sara!”

“That is what he told me,” I fought back as I began to towel myself off.

“Snacks are chips and candy.” I couldn’t help but laugh at my friend’s statement. “You think Damian is rich? I mean, he is old enough.”

“I don’t know.”

“What if this is all a disguise, you know, and he is sitting on a wad of cash.”

“I don’t know.”

“It would make sense.”

I attempted to look in the mirror, but it was too foggy from the heat. My bathrobe was thrown on instead, and with some reluctance I propped open the door. “Yes, I am here,” I sighed out, since Ashley had no intention of leaving me alone tonight.

“That was fast.” I strode past her to get to my rucksack bag, zipping up a small flap to unearth some body cream.

“Have you seen all the stuff he gave us?”

“Yeah,” I drawled out listlessly.

“Damian likes you, Sara.”

“I can tell,” Ashley lightly laughed to cover up her nerves.

“I mean, really likes you,” she said with extra emphasis. “Who cares if he is a little weird, I say this one is a keeper.” She picked up the bottle of wine and strode towards me, ignoring the fact that I was applying the cream to my legs. “Look!”

“Wine.”

“Yes, wine.” She shook her head at me. “You see this! It cost money, and I mean a lot of money.”

“Alright,” I giggled with my hand over the front of my mouth.

“And he gives it to you willingly, and he isn’t even here to share it.” Ashley placed the bottle down on the bed stand and took a hold of my hand. “Listen to me! You can go on a trail walk any day.”

“Ashley,” I groaned in a dangerously deep tone of voice.

“Let me stay with the boys!” she shouted out. “I want you to have some fun.”

“But you’re my friends.”

“Look!” She pointed at the things Damian had gifted me. “What kind of guy does this on day one?”

She has a point.

“It is not even twenty-four hours yet,” Ashley said with glee. “Think about it!”

I turned my head away from her to cover my quick eye roll. “Okay,” was muttered from the corner of my mouth. I knew Ashley had to have her own way. She was the type of person with a Type A personality, a desire to control every feature of people’s lives, and quite frankly I did not have the strength to fight her on this one today.

“You like him,” Ashley gently reminded me with a gentle squeeze over my hand. “And you said the making out bit was hot, right?”

“Yeah.”

She tilted her head at me and it was enough to get me to submit to her whims.

“I swear it’s like pulling teeth with you.” She grabbed a hold of the wine bottle and settled it somewhere safer. “Join me at the table,” she suggested, and then pointed at an empty paper plate where she laid out food for me. “It’s a feast, Sara! As if you didn’t have enough with that big slab of salmon.”

“You saw that, did you?”

“It was bigger than his,” she pointed out with disbelief. Ashley appeared happy once I sat down beside her, offering me a tall glass of wine in celebration. “Who knew what bright blue eyes and gorgeous red hair would do to a man?”

“You are one to talk.”

“Why thank you,” she teased, and tossed out her long, brown hair with newly dyed golden highlights to prove a point. “But clearly I have no effect on Damian.”

“He isn’t even your type!” I yelled back. “You can’t have them all.”

“Nope,” she mouthed over the rim of her glass. “Tell me what you think of the wine.”

“Alright.”

Ashley kept a careful eye on me as I sipped on the dark substance. I let it slide over my tongue to feel the weight of it at the back of my mouth. “A bit tart,” I unexpectedly pointed out. “Has a sweet fruity taste to it as well.”

“Pomegranate?” my friend guessed. “It isn’t bad though.”

“It’s seductive,” I teased with an arched eyebrow. “I think Damian is trying to tell me something.” We both laughed at that, and then set aside our glasses to try the food as well.

We were well into our meals when Ashley gave me some unexpected news. “You know how I suggested you don’t look this place up online?”

“Yes.”

“I did it for a reason.”

“Go on,” I urged her with a stuffed mouth.

She nibbled on the end of her bread, deliberating something in her mind before she swallowed it down with a cautious air about her. “This place is known for having gruesome deaths.”