Page 9 of Walking the Bird

7

Eleni stood with her hands hooked on her hips, sweat pouring down her face and neck, her lungs burning with her labored breathing. Despite not crawling into bed until close to three, her eyes shot open as the sun colored the horizon. She’d tried to fall back to sleep, but the crashing sound of the waves called to her, pulling her from the comforts of her bed and onto the beach. What began as a leisurely stroll, morphed into a hard-core workout, ending with her staring inquisitively at the area beyond the marker Derek had pointed out.

Nothing particularly odd caught her eye about the area beyond the marker. No signs of civilization or evidence of evildoing, yet she was left with an uneasy feeling.

“You will never see the danger until it’s too late.”

Eleni gasped as she spun around, landing her right foot into the midsection of the intruder behind her, an automatic response Alex ingrained in her years ago. Her eyes widened as her limbs automatically moved into an attack position, finding a sweat-covered Derek doubled over in the sand trying to take in a breath.

“Oh my god, Mr. Silvers,” Eleni rushed to his side, attempting to help him to his feet. “You scared the hell out of me.”

“No, it’s my fault,” Derek coughed, struggling to balance himself on one knee. “I should have made my presence known.”

Eleni took a step back to allow Derek to regain his footing, and no doubt dignity, trying desperately not to ogle his toned muscles. When her efforts failed and her eyes lingered far too long, she averted her attention to the boats on the water and the men who guided them closer to shore. She tried not to compare Derek against Alex, but the way his skin glistened in the sunlight made it impossible for her mind not to drift to the last night she and Alex spent together. Her period rearing its ugly head the next morning, sending Alex deep into his work.

“Do I need to send for someone?” Eleni offered, needing any possible excuse she could find to get away from the situation.

“No,” Derek laughed. “I’m fine. Besides, I have a reputation to maintain. If word got out I had my ass kicked by a woman half my size, I’d never live it down.”

Derek’s confession, while lighthearted, stirred something inside of Eleni, a feeling she hadn’t felt in months. She missed, more than she cared to admit, the way Alex used to make her feel.

“Your secret is safe with me,” Eleni turned her attention back to the men on the boat as they made landfall. She watched as another group of men emerged from the side of a run-down hut and came to help them pull the boat across the sand and disappear behind the hut.

“Where did you learn to defend yourself?”

Eleni jerked her head back toward Derek, “I took a self-defense class a handful of years ago when I lived in DC.”

Derek groaned as he stood to his full height, holding his midsection. “You had an excellent teacher if you learned that in a single class.”

“Never said it was one.” Eleni tossed back before she could catch herself, instantly regretting the caustic tone lacing her words. “But, yes, I had an excellent teacher.”

Tears came to her eyes as she thought about the numerous times her and Alex’s training sessions had turned into hot sex against whatever surface was closest. He’d been so patient with her, allowing her to grow comfortable in her own skin as she learned what she liked and disliked.

“I can tell,” Derek agreed, a glint in his eyes which made Eleni’s skin prickle with heat. The rising sun, casting a healthy glow on his tanned skin made her salivate. Derek’s body lacked the tattoos and scars which told Alex’s body’s story, one she’d traversed on a number of occasions. Eleni could barely make out the single tattoo on the back of Derek’s left hand, the sweat and sun distorting the ink.

“I was about to have breakfast, Ms. Kutsukos. Care to join me?”

Eleni could count on one hand the number of times a handsome man like the one standing before her had flirted with her. However, it was the last man who did, the one who’d put a ring on her finger and swore to love her forever, who reminded her how slippery a slope she traveled if she took Derek up on his invitation.

“Thank you for the offer, Mr. Silvers, but I must decline. My work out is far from over.”

Derek lowered his head in defeat, sensing something or someone had wounded the beautiful woman before him. He wanted to do whatever he could to help heal her. “Then may I recommend our gym facilities on the second floor? It has an excellent view of the ocean from most of the equipment.”

“Sounds amazing,” Eleni offered as she could see her denial had left him with a bigger bruise than her fist.

“Have a good day,” Derek bid Eleni, as he began to walk backward. “And don’t forget; you have access to both resorts; Blissful Breeze has some incredible shopping.”

* * *

Alex tossedhis cellphone in frustration, cradling his face in his hands as a muffled, “Fuck,” left his lips.

“Still not answering?”

“No,” Alex answered with a sigh, shooting Zach a glance as he allowed his tired body to melt into the back of the couch.

“You could always pull up her tracker.”

Reaching over, Alex lifted the discarded phone, waving it back and forth in Zach’s direction. “I tried when she didn’t answer two days ago. Eleni figured out a long time ago how to deactivate the fucking thing.”

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