Chapter 5 : Are You Coming Back for More?

Since Carl wasn’t around, I got myself settled down in the room and checked my school emails to catch up. It took a bit longer than I anticipated and I didn’t realize it was getting dark.

I was trying to fill out some paperwork when I noticed my driver’s license was missing.

Where had I left it? Did I lose it on the way here? Had I left it at home? No, because I had it at one point after we had taken off to come here.

I went on a wild search for it through my bags, hoping that I had just placed it in a weird pocket or something, but to no avail.

I took a moment to sit and think about where I could have misplaced it. Maybe it had fallen out when my bags were taken for me? Maybe Bethany had seen it?

I decided to check with my sister, but the house was too big and I certainly didn’t want to walk into a wrong room again.

“Excuse me,” I grabbed one of the house staff’s attention with a smile.

He smiled politely at me in return with a cream towel draped over his forearm, “Yes, Miss Richardson? How may I be of service to you?”

“I was wondering if you could take me to my sister’s room?”

“Ah, surely, however, as far as I know, she wasn’t there the last time I went to check,” the gentleman noted.

He saw my confusion and explained, “Mr. Carl came back earlier but left again to handle a business agreement. Miss Bethany volunteered to accompany him saying she knew about the company he was meeting with. She said you were probably catching up with your school work, and it was better not interrupt you. Miss Bethany’s room is this way.” He gestured for me to follow.

I shook my head. “If that’s the case, I’ll just wait for them to come back.”

“Of course!” He straightened his posture with one arm bent in front of him and the other behind his back like he was trained to pose a specific way. “Anything else that I can do for you, Miss Richardson?”

“No, I’m alright. Thank you though.” I gave him the best smile I could while being a little disappointed.

Carl and I both tried to give each other space when it came to our own responsibilities. I did appreciate Bethany stepping in to help, however, today I wished Carl would have checked with me first. After all, I was his fiancee, and it would be my role to stand by his side if he felt that the Richardson network might help him in this business meeting.

The attendant courteously suggested, “Please make yourself at home and let us know if you need anything.” Then he bowed one more time and left me on my own.

I sighed and decided to try my luck to find my driver’s license on my own.

The hallway was empty with evenly spaced white sconce lights running down the dark gray walls, causing it to be dimly lit. The flooring was a gorgeous ebony wood and I followed it.

The corridors and hallways were endless. I didn’t know where I had dropped my driver’s license, but it had to be somewhere here.

I continued to search through the mansion like a mouse in a maze when I was suddenly met with a set of double doors. I was intrigued. It seemed to be a relatively public place and I figured it should be safe to walk in.

I grabbed the double handles, shoving the doors open to reveal a massive indoor pool with a waterfall feature in one corner and that same distracting triskele emblem on the bottom of the pool.

Lounge chairs lined the sides, but that wasn’t what grabbed my attention. There was a man swimming in the pool.

My gaze locked on the way his back muscles moved with each stroke of his powerful arms. His skin was sun kissed and gorgeous, and his black swim shorts were soaking wet and riding low on his hips.

His feet kicked through the water as he propelled himself forward, turning his head every so often to catch his breath. My lips parted as I watched him do a front flip and kick off the back wall to glide beneath the water towards me in a majestic movement.

He rose from the water, flipping his soaking wet dark hair back and causing water droplets to cascade down from the air around him. Reaching up, he ran a hand through his hair to brush it back, causing his tricep to flex.

A blush danced across my cheeks, as I realized it was Carl’s father again, Mr. Ellis Peterson.

I tried to back out of the door unnoticed, but it was too late. He saw me.

He smirked and gazed at me in a way that spoke of secrets.

“Hi…hi, Mr. Peterson,” I muttered.

“Hello again.” He peered at me with a smirk.

I licked my lips as he swam forward, grabbed the edge of the pool, and slowly lifted himself up and out of the pool. All of his muscles flexed, causing my mouth to run dry and my lips to part.

He stepped closer, and I could feel my blush spreading across my face and deepening in hue. My chest began to warm up considerably.

“I…I’m so sorry to bother you,” I explained, the words fell from my lips in a rapid slur, “I was just looking for my ID.”

“Really?” he smirked.

I paused and confused, “Why would I lie?”

He stepped closer, leaned forward and lowered his voice, “Maybe you couldn’t stop thinking about the other night?”

I froze, and immediately felt ashamed, angry, and nervous, as I crossed my arms and snapped, “Of course, not! Why would you even think that?”

He stepped forward as I inched back.

“Are you sure?” He leaned down before whispering against my ear. His deep voice rang, and I felt goosebumps all over my body.

I quivered and gripped my upper arms in defense. “Of course, I am!” I huffed and pouted at him, causing him to laugh again.

“I was just teasing you,” he seemed to be greatly entertained.

I glared at him as I pulled away to give myself safe distance from him. He grabbed a towel.

Seeing my furrowed brow, he smirked, “Relax, I found your ID. You dropped it when you ran from my office. I’ll have my maid fetch it for you.”

If he had it, why couldn’t he just tell me! Did he have to make those bad jokes?

Before he wrapped the towel around his waist, I caught a glimpse of his tight, dripping swim shorts…and I couldn’t stop my face from heating up a bit.

He stepped closer towards me again and lifted my chin with his index finger, so that my gaze was on him. This time, although we were close, my instinct told me he wouldn’t do anything “bad” to me.

He simply found me…entertaining.

He couldn’t press down the curled-up corners of his lips and he let out another hearty laugh. “I just think that sometimes you act silly. Like…like an innocent silly bunny!”

I stepped away from him and retorted. “I’m not silly, nor am I a bunny!”

“Well, you’re still with Carl.”

“It’s none of your business!” I huffed and pouted at him.

He watched me and let out a laugh again. He agreed, “You’re right.”

I didn’t expect him to agree with me so fast. It made me curious. “Why do you care anyway?” I wondered.

“Because I’m a good dad?” he replied mischievously.

“Excuse me, a good dad would give us his blessing instead.” I reminded him.

“You’re right,” Ellis affirmed. “Good luck, little bunny.”

“Stop calling me bunny!”

Ellis’s laugh picked up again like he was enjoying every minute of it.

Finally, he stopped laughing and apologized with a smile on his face, “All right, all right. Sorry, you’re just so funny and cute when you’re angry,” he confessed with a shrug, although I really didn’t sense that he felt sorry at all.

I did not feel like entertaining my fiance’s wicked father any more, so I broke away from him by backing up a few more steps.

“Wait, don’t step back—” he tried to stop me when suddenly I slipped on the wet pool deck and fell backwards.

I let out a scream before falling into the heated pool.

“Sh*t,” was the last thing I heard before I hit the water with a loud splash.