Page 66 of Spark

Once I felt clarified, I removed Darren’s watch, carefully placing it in a spot against a tree, and practiced some yoga, working on my handstands and advanced poses. I couldn’t practice with the giant clunky thing dangling from my wrist. The fact that the ground was grassy and extremely uneven made it more difficult, and I liked the challenge in that. I moved on to practice my advanced spinning and jump kicks, trying my best to get them higher and higher every time.

Needing a break from the exertion, I took a walk, purposefully heading to the fox’s den to see if they were there. Creeping up to the tree, I carefully peered around it, only to be flooded by disappointment. Not even a peep. Maybe they were sleeping in the den. Turning back around, I sat on the ground and slumped against the tree, but when I finally raised my head, my stomach dropped.

The mother fox was staring right at me no more than ten feet away from where I sat. Remaining as still as possible, my eyes scanned every inch of her, recognizing her posture as non-aggressive but still cautious. She stood to her full height—her ears forward, tail down, and her eyes right on me. I tried to relax, making myself as least threatening as possible and hoping I wouldn’t have to hurt her if she attacked. Darren would kick my ass if a wild animal hurt me out here, and then he’d probably never allow me back out.

After a few minutes of staring, she moved closer to me, her nose leading the way as she sniffed the air. Step after hesitant step, she made her way to me, and I regretted letting her get as close as she did. If I got bit, there would be hell to pay.

No more than a foot away from me, she continued to sniff, her jaws opening to breathe me in and allowing me to catch the remnants of her sharp little teeth. I thought about maybe scaring her away, but then she might retaliate to protect her kits, and I’d still end up with a bite mark. So I remained as still as ever, trying to keep my heart calm. But then the small cry of something behind me drew her attention, and she quickly scampered away. I released a breath of relief and turned around the tree to see her usher a stray kit back inside her burrow. Hopefully, now that she had my scent, she wouldn’t see me as much of a threat anymore.

Reaching up to flick my stray hair back, I suddenly noticed it lacked a certain weight. My stomach immediately twisted in knots as I realized I’d left Darren’s watch by the tree in the clearing… and I had no idea what time it was. Jumping up, I dashed through the trees as fast as I could until I finally came to the clearing and saw the shiny silver Rolex dead ahead. My heart pumping like crazy, I snatched up the hunk of metal and looked for the time. 1:28 p.m.

“Shit!”

Wrapping my hand around the metal band, I raced through the clearing and back into the trees. I was at least ten minutes away from the house, but if I ran fast enough, I might just make it in time. I worked my legs like pistons, pushing them as quickly as they could, jumping over stray branches and hoping like fuck I didn’t tear my clothes in my haste.

Glancing down at the watch, I had about five seconds left before that timer would go off, and I’d be fucked. I pushed harder, leaping my way over the stream as I passed the hammock, finally back on the trail. The entrance was about a hundred yards away when the timer went off, announcing the shit day I was going to endure for the rest of the afternoon.

On a growl, I kicked it up one final notch and blasted my way through the trail and finally shot of the woods. As soon as I hit the grass, my eyes landed on the estate to find Clive and Owen standing on the edge of the patio. Owen lifted his watch to his mouth before the two of them descended down the slope of the grassy hill, heading for me.

I rolled my eyes and slumped to the ground as I fought to catch my breath and calm my heartbeat. I felt like I was going to pass out from the terror and exertion. Bad combination.

When the two of them finally reached me, they looked down with disappointed smirks and shook their heads.

“You’re late, Miss Jaden,” Clive said, amused.

I looked at the watch still clutched in my hand.

“By three minutes,” I huffed between breaths.

“Three seconds or three minutes makes no difference to Mr. Davis,” Owen added.

Right. I’d forgotten about his severe detest for tardiness.

“You guys gonna spank me now? Or do I have to face the corner until he gets home?”

They repressed their sighs through their noses and reached down to haul me to my feet.

“Let’s go, Miss Jaden,” Clive said, escorting me back to the house while Owen grasped my other arm.

“You can let go now. I’ll be a good girl,” I growled at them, yanking my arms free of their grasp. They let go without issue.

I was shunned to my room for the rest of the day, which was fine since I was about ready for a nap anyway.

When it was time for dinner, I was escorted down to the dining room and waited for Darren to arrive, which he did after about five minutes.

He kissed my temple when he arrived, and I couldn’t help but clench my jaw in fear. “How was your day?” he asked as he sat down.

“Good,” I replied, making an effort at some pleasant conversation, hoping he would ignore the giant pink elephant I knew he was waiting to address. “Yours?”

“Successful,” he said happily as he placed his folded hands on the table, leaning toward me. I nodded and turned my eyes toward the window. I heard him take a breath. “I understand you were late coming back from the woods today.”

I scoffed. “Did my tattletales tell you that?”

Darren’s eyes darkened. “They didn’t need to. Your cuffs have been modified to register your heart rate, body temperature, exercise and sleep patterns. Your heart rate spiked at 1:25 p.m. and then again three minutes later.”

I sighed, annoyed at his obsessive stalker tendencies, and placed my face in my hands. “I accidentally left your bowling ball of a watch by a tree while I practiced some yoga. Afterward, I went for a walk, and several minutes later, I suddenly realized a ten-pound weight was missing from my wrist, then immediately ran back to retrieve it and found out it was 1:28 p.m. I ran back as fast as I could. I’m sorry; please don’t be mad at me.”

He sighed, just as annoyed as I was, and slid his chair back. “Come here.”

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