Deadly Expectations (54 page)

There were a few more steps.
 
He’d be able to see I wasn’t behind the bed.
 
His eyes would still be adjusting from the bright lights in the hall and bathroom so I stayed still hoping I had a bit of time where he could only see me if I moved.
 
My lungs were starting to complain though; since I had slowed my breathing to be quiet I was feeling short of air.

He took something out of his pocket.
 
I held my breath as he put it to his ear.

“Did she call again?
 
She’s not here,” Paul said.

I let air into my lungs again and put the safety back on.

“Paul?
 
I’m here,” I said quietly, putting my gun by my phone and trying to get up.
 
His ears focused on my voice and in two strides he was beside me.
 
I threw my arms around his neck when he knelt down and pulled him into the corner with me.
 
The panic I had been ignoring was making me numb again.

“You got away,” I whispered.
 
My voice was shaking again.

“Sshhh,” he said.
 
He put the phone down and started pulling me out of my corner.
 
“You’re really wedged in here.”

When I was out from behind the couch he got me back in bed and covered me up then he turned on the lamp and went to pick up his phone.
 
He got mine off the floor too and my gun.

“Why do you have your gun out?” he asked as he checked the safety was on and put it back in the drawer with his.

“Give it to me … they’ll come back,” I told him.

“You don’t need it,” Paul said.

When he came to sit on the bed with me I grabbed his face and pulled it close, examining his cheek.

“No marks,” I said.
 
Nothing on his jaw either.
 
I pressed with my fingertips where he had been hit but he didn’t react.
 
“Doesn’t that hurt?”

“John?” Paul’s phone spoke.
 
I didn’t realize Ray was still on the line and Paul had turned the speaker on.
 
“What’s going on?
 
What about the gun?”

“She was hiding in the corner with it … did you hear the rest?”

“Yes.”

“Anna,” Paul whispered in my ear, then louder so Ray could hear.
  
“What happened?”

I looked back at him dumbly.
 
Maybe he had a concussion.
 
Maybe he didn’t remember.

“Sugar?”

“Why don’t you remember?” I was looking at his eyes.
 
Pupils were the same size so I started feeling his head for bumps.
 
“How hard did they hit you?”

He took my hands off his head.

“Nobody hit me … what do you remember?”

I guess I had to humour him … maybe it would trigger his memory.
 

“You were on the couch when I fell asleep,” I pointed to it.
 
“Next thing I knew three men burst in.
 
Two had you from behind before you could get to the drawer … the third knocked you out.”

I felt the side of his face again.

“I couldn’t move; they dragged you out … the door clicked shut.
 
I don’t know how long I waited until I could move.
 
As soon as I could I called Mark … then I hid.
 
Mark … he doesn’t remember.”

Paul sighed.
 
“I went down to the pub for takeout.
 
Mark called when I was on my way back up.
 
You were scared, slurring, said I’d been taken.
 
I found you in the corner.”

He gestured to the dresser.
 
His grease spotted paper bag of takeout sat on top.

“No …” I shook my head.
 
It didn’t make any sense.

“Take me off speaker John,” Paul did and went into the bathroom with the phone.
 
I counted to sixty then I pulled the cover off the bed and followed him while I was wrapping myself in it.

“Why don’t you believe me?” I asked him.
 
His back was to me and he turned around.
 
“I don’t like being whispered about behind my back.”

He sighed.
 
“I think you’re right Mark … we’ll sort it out.”
 
Then he hung up.

“Come back to bed … you had a bad dream,” Paul said.

He put his arm around me pressed his hand on my back to move me but I held my ground and stared back at him.
 
I’d be happy to accept that if he could make it make sense.
 
I raised my eyebrows at him.
 
Go ahead, I nodded.

“You couldn’t move because you were asleep … Ray says sleep paralysis.
 
You didn’t take anything before bed, did you?”

I shook my head.

“Maybe you were dreaming when I went out … that’s why you heard the door close,” he pulled my arm out of the blanket and put it on his cheek.

“I’m not hurt,” he said softly.
 
“See.”

“I see,” I agreed.
 
I couldn’t argue with his untouched face.
 
This time I let him take me back into the room.
 
I put the cover back on the bed and got in.
 
“Sorry I interrupted your snack.
 
I guess I got too worked up about being without you today.”

Paul offered me some of what he brought back.
 
I picked.
 
Never had been a big late night eater.

“Will you go out with me sometime?” he was wiping his hands on a paper napkin.

“Like a date?”

“Yeah,” he winked at me, “we never really dated.”

I thought about it.
 
“I’m free tomorrow.”

“So you’ll go out with me?”

“Yes,” I was smiling now.
 
That cheered me up so I suggested something he would like.
 
“Some place nice?”

“But not too nice … I hate wearing a tie.”

I agreed.
 
A tie was a terrible thing to do to a man.

“I have to go shopping,” I told him.
 
The things I had packed were more practical for travel.
 
I’d get something nice but not too nice.
 
Then Paul and I would go out on a date.

Chapter 43

The next morning we split up in the mall to shop.
 
I found a dress almost the same colour green as Paul’s eyes; just a shade or two darker.
 
It had short flared sleeves and fit tight up top.
 
The loose skirt draped and clung to me and came down to cover just the tops of my knees.
 
Three small pearl buttons closed the front of the bodice and a wide ribbon covered the seam where the skirt and the bodice met.
 
The neck was low enough that my necklace from Paul wasn’t covered by it at all.

Paul called as I was heading back to the hotel.
 
He was already there and wondering where I was.
 
When I got in I stashed my things in the closet out of sight.
 
The dress was in a garment bag so he couldn’t see it.
 
He’d ordered up some lunch then we both got a nap in before getting ready.
 
I planned on making it up as late as Paul wanted to stay out.

I got the first shower and after blow drying my hair loaded it up with rollers.

“Not a word,” I told Paul.
 
He thought it was pretty funny.
 
I guess he never thought he’d see me like that.

Then he got the second shower and dressed in the room while I finished up in the bathroom.
 
He knocked, my hair was done but I was struggling with the makeup.
 
Alina usually did it for me when we went out which wasn’t often.

“Ten minutes?” I called back.

“Just making sure you didn’t go to sleep in there.”

Sure you were, I thought, you were hoping to get another laugh at the rollers.
 
Then I laughed when I backed away from the mirror to study myself.
 
Couldn’t blame anyone for thinking I was Alina.
 
I pulled the pantyhose and the dress on but I couldn’t zip it up.
 
I put the lipstick in a little purse and perfume on my neck and wrists.

Paul was pacing when I got out of the bathroom.
 
Nervous didn’t really suit him but there he was.

“Can you zip me up?” I asked taking him in.
 
He had medium gray dress pants on and a deep blue shirt.
 
Top button undone.
 
There was a darker gray blazer on the bed.
 
Black dress shoes and belt.

“Look at you,” I said.

“Me …” he said softly; his voice wandering with his eyes.
 
“I thought you were beautiful before … what did you ask?”

“Zipper please,” I laughed.
 
I carefully turned around in my precarious shoes and lifted my hair out of the way.
 
The back of the dress was cut down a bit and my hair was so long now it covered most of the zipper.
 
He slowly did the zipper up and put his nose to my neck.

“What is that?” he whispered in my ear, smelling my skin as his hands ran down the smooth fabric of the dress, feeling my curves underneath.

“I can’t pronounce it.”

“Mmm.
 
We better go or we won’t make it out of the room,” Paul said.
 
I agreed.
 
He took my hand and slowly spun me around.
 
Then he stopped me facing him and ran his fingers over my necklace.
 
I was only a couple of inches shorter than him now.

“Wait … you’re missing something.”

He got a small box out from under his jacket.
 
There were two pearl earrings inside.
 
Screw on backs.
 
Each had half a dozen pearls hanging down at different lengths on fine gold chains.
 
He helped me put them on.

“Get your ears pierced tomorrow … we can change them to posts.
 
These are hard to find.”

 
“They’re lovely …
thank
you.”

Paul got caught with his hands all over me in the elevator when the door opened in the lobby.
 
It never embarrassed him when he was the one being forward and it took a good minute for my cheeks to stop feeling so hot.

It was a longer walk than I thought it would be and we took our time.
 
I held on to Paul and avoided wiping us both out in my shoes.
 
He kept saying how good I looked until I told him I was going to worry what he might really think about how I usually dressed.

“I won’t promise to stop … but for now I think I’ve made my point,” he said, but was right back at it a few minutes later.

We found a steak and seafood place that was quiet.
 
It was earlier on a weeknight so we got a table.
 
There was a second level above part of the restaurant.
 
I thought it might be more secluded but from my seat I could see a chain with a sign that said ‘Private’ blocking the stairs so I didn’t bother asking about it.