T. Leigh - A Tragic Wreck

“I’ll never hurt you, Olivia. I promise you that,” he said quietly, barely above a whisper.

She sighed. “That’s a pretty big promise. I don’t think anyone can ever keep that promise.”

“You can at least let me try to keep it. Don’t shut me out like you want to. I’m okay if you just want to be friends. I just want to know you. If the only way I can get you is by being friends, then I’m happy.” He gave her an encouraging smile just as their entrees arrived.

“I don’t know if I’m ready…”

“I get it. I do. So let’s just hang out. No pressure. Okay?”

Olivia smiled. “Okay.” She grabbed her fork and dug into her ahi tuna salad, eyeing Cam's shrimp and grits. “You’re going to have to run, like, ten miles tomorrow to work that meal off,” she joked.

“Sounds like a plan. Want to come with me?”

“I don’t know. Think you can keep up?”

“Is that a challenge?”

“Damn straight it is.”

Cam chuckled as he took another bite of his cheesy grits, exaggerating how delicious the rich dish was.

Olivia was happy to finally feel some sort of normalcy in her life since fleeing Boston. It was good. It was what she needed to finally move on. As she took a bite of the crème brûlée that she and Cam decided to share for dessert, she wondered if Alexander had moved on, as well.

ALEXANDER’S JET TOUCHED DOWN at Jacksonville Airport a little after eight that evening. Within an hour, Martin pulled up in front of the Ritz Carlton on Amelia Island. As Alexander sat in his Gulfstream heading south earlier that day, he debated where he should start looking for Olivia. The liquor store was the key. He figured she was probably living on Amelia Island somewhere and not in Jacksonville. Also, doing a bit of research, he found out that shopping on the island was limited mostly to beach-style boutiques. Knowing Olivia as he did, she needed some sort of fashionable store similar to that which she had become accustomed to shopping at in Boston. It made sense that she would find a mall to shop at so he was putting all his money on her living on Amelia Island. He prayed that he was right.

“What’s the plan, sir?” Martin asked as he began setting up various computers in the large suite.

Alexander sighed. “I’m not sure, yet. She’s got to be somewhere on this island. Maybe we both should get some sleep so we can wake up refreshed.”

Martin finished booting up all the gear and turned to Alexander, who was sitting on the sofa and drinking an amber liquid. “Yes, sir. I’ll see you in the morning then.”

“Thank you, Martin.”

When he heard the door to his suite close, he walked from the couch out onto one of the large balconies overlooking the beach and the Atlantic Ocean. Had he made a mistake jumping on the plane and coming down to Florida to find Olivia? Maybe Kiera was right. Maybe she didn’t want to be found.

He downed his drink and decided to go for a stroll out on the beach. Quickly changing out of his suit and into a pair of jeans and a polo shirt, he left the suite, wandering out of the back of the hotel toward the beach.

He walked down to where the waves invaded the shoreline wondering if, at that moment, Olivia was looking out over the same exact waves. If she was there, she had picked a perfect location. The island was small and seemed relatively secluded from what he had found out. It was almost Thanksgiving and there were a few tourists walking about, but it was still uncrowded, unlike so many other Florida beaches.

As he strolled north along the coastline, he thought about everything that had happened over the past several months. He had been so happy with Olivia, but something spooked her and she fled town. It all went to shit in Newport. He should never have let her go run that damn marathon. She started to remember things and it scared her. That Saturday in Newport, she changed. When he stopped to let Olivia run up to Harris House, it was as if the fun, carefree girl he had become so accustomed to during their short relationship had left herself on the side of the road. After that, she was quiet and reserved. He tried to regain control of the situation and he thought he had it. Apparently, he was wrong.

Alexander lost track of time as he continued walking along the beach. Large hotels and condos transitioned into smaller beach houses. The north end of the island was markedly different from the south end. He wondered whether Olivia lived out on the beach somewhere. Or whether she was really here at all.

As he walked past a noisy bar, his cell phone rang. “Hey, Carol,” he said, answering the call.

“Jesus H. Christ, Alex. What the fuck is going on?”

Alexander laughed. “Oh, not much. Took the jet and I’m in Florida. Just another day at the office.”

“You’re shitting me, right?”

He sighed, looking out over the sand dunes. “Nope. I’m in Amelia Island, Florida. I’ve got a good feeling about this place, Carol.”

“What are you doing there? Did you find out something? This must be about Olivia if you’re there. And if you were able to figure it out…”

“I KNOW! All right? I get it. If I can find her, so can they . That’s why I need to find her and take her back home with me so I can keep her safe.” His mind began to race. What was he talking about? Could he really keep her safe? Was that what this was all about?

“Alex,” Carol said, lowering her voice. “What if she doesn’t want to come back? What if she sees you and she takes off again. You can’t really think you can keep this up much longer. There are people back home who need you, who love you. I ran into Chelsea just a little while ago and, well, maybe she’s the type of girl you need to be with. Someone stable from a good family. How much longer can you put up with the drama?”

“For as long as I need to, Carol. It’s Olivia we’re talking about here. I love that fucking girl, and I will do everything and anything I can to get her back.”

“Anything?” Carol asked.

“Yes! Of course!” Alexander shouted, staring at the crashing waves. “Except…”

“Except telling her who she is,” Carol said quietly, finishing her brother’s sentence.

“Carol, I want to. But I want her to come back to me because she wants to, not because she thinks I hold the answers to her past. I need to fix this on my own terms. We belong together. And when two people belong together, nothing …not time, not distance, not a misunderstanding… nothing can keep them apart. I will get her back. It may not be tomorrow or next week or next month or even next year. But I know, deep down, that she will come back. And that’s good enough for me. But for now, I want to beg and grovel and, really, just see her. Make sure she’s okay, or as okay as she can be, considering the shit life she’s been handed. I need to do this because I refuse to always wonder ‘what if’. Maybe I’ll get some closure out of this and I can finally move on. Or maybe, just maybe, she’ll tell me how much she’s missed me. I’ve got to find out. Then I’ll come home.”

Carol sighed on the other end of the phone. “Okay. You do what you have to do, but I swear that if I have to put up with Mom at Thanksgiving and tell her all about what you’re doing in Florida, I will murder you in your sleep and leave no physical evidence whatsoever.”

Alexander laughed as he rounded the corner to his hotel’s entrance. “Okay. I got it, sis. You have a great night and we’ll talk soon, I promise. Love you.”

“Love you too, baby brother. And just so you know, I’m totally rooting for you and Olivia.”

“So am I, sis. So am I.”

~~~~~~~~~~