ROMANCE: Bear Naked Passion (Billionaire Bear Trio Book 2) (62 page)

Chapter 4

I'd been a city girl all my life and I was growing tired of it. People in the city were jaded and cynical. I could feel myself turning into that and I didn't want that for myself. I tried to think back to when I was younger and how idealistic I had been. I still believed in love and liberty and hadn't been soured by experience. I knew that I wasn't going to what I was looking for in the city. Things had changed me there. Everyone looked the same and the only way to meet people was to go to bars and I had had enough of that. Didn't help that I didn't have any single friends left. The one I helped get into the taxi after her break up? The night I met Alex? Yeah, she got over that one pretty quickly and ended up marrying the next guy she met. Seems to work out well for them though. But I don't know, whenever I meet a guy I just can't picture marrying them. Is that a thing? Are you supposed to envisage a whole life together with someone when you start dating?

Even with Alex we were just seeing where it went and while we had spoken about the future we hadn't made any concrete plans. I guess that's maybe what he was referring to when he said that I was pushing him away. But I just couldn't see myself getting married to him...being together for the rest of your life is a big commitment. How do you know that someone is worthy of that? How can you know that you're going to love them above all others when there are countless other people out there that you haven't met yet? Perhaps it's for the best that Alex broke up with me. We were probably heading for disaster anyway. I felt like I needed to do some soul-searching and I wasn't going to find myself in the city. It was all dark and grimy and I'd been there for too long. The last time I had a vacation was a short weekend break away to a bed and breakfast out in the country somewhere but Alex ended up getting a call from work and enjoying the sights on my own wasn't the same.

But the more I thought about it the more that it started to seem like a good idea. I'd been set in my ways for too long and my life was becoming routine, which was something I hated. The best times in my life were when I had shaken things up, like when I had gone to college, I changed totally and really discovered myself. That's all I needed, a shot in the arm, a little way to refresh myself and come back better. So I decided to go away for a month. I never saw the point in going on holiday for a week because once you get there you have to adjust, and by the time it gets to Wednesday you're already thinking about going home and I wanted to give myself room to breathe and a month was just a way to get away from it all.

After making my decision I went and left the rain behind and dried myself off. I felt better for having made a plan, and I was sure that getting away from the city was the right thing to do. Sometimes leaving everything you knew behind is a great feeling.

Chapter 5

On the day that I drove out of the city, the sun was shining in a rare break from the rain. It felt like it was meant for me. Perhaps that's egotistical of me, and maybe it points to an underlying issue of narcissism but it was a good omen for my trip. I looked out of the rear-view mirror and saw the gleaming skyscrapers bid me farewell. Ahead of me was the open road with nothing on it but possibilities. Other cars rushed by me and as we all drove along, snaking along the highway, I wondered where they were going. Did they have similar problems to me? Were they escaping their lives for a little while as well? Or perhaps they had just been to the city on a vacation themselves and were returning to their normal lives in a small town.

Even just driving away from the city filled me with a sense of contentment. I gripped the wheel tightly, turned up the music, rolled down the window, and drove forward with a smile on my face. I'd done some searching around on the Internet and it was depressing because it showed me how little I knew the area in which I lived. To me the city was the world. It had everything I needed so why would I care about anything else? But a quick Google search had shown me everything that was around me and I couldn't believe how much there was to do! There were museums and historical sites and things that I never knew existed. And there was a small town a couple of hours away from the city. Some of the comments about the city said that getting cell phone reception was difficult and that sealed the deal. Getting away from it all meant getting away from it
all,
and nothing was going to stop me from finding myself.

I always found driving alone quite relaxing, and really I've always been quite comfortable with my own company. Many people find it disquieting to be alone, as though the whole abyss of the world threatens to swallow you up, but I've always enjoyed being away from people. That's another thing about the city. It's hard to be alone, and I don't mean feeling lonely because that's something that's possible even in the biggest crowds, but just finding a place that's yours is troublesome.  Out there on the open road though, it felt like the world was giving itself to me. I could have gone anywhere and done anything. I breathed in the fresh air and grinned to myself. I hadn't experienced that feeling since I had first gone to college. Then I had been driven by my parents and I was sitting in the back, cramped with boxes of stuff all around me, the hard angles digging into my armpit. I stared at the window at all the scenery whizzing by in a blur and although I was uncomfortable I couldn't help but feel happy as I imagined everything that awaited me.

Obviously going to a small town isn't quite the same as going off to college but it was going to be an adventure, and I hadn't had one of those in a long time.

The more I drove the more I got away from other cars as we all went our separate ways. Eventually I turned off on a small road (thankfully the town, although small, was signposted) and it was just me and the trees and the wide, open fields. As I looked out I saw some animals grazing and I instantly knew that I had made the right decision because that was something that I never would have seen in the city.

Being out in the world reminded me how colorful it was. The city was all drab and gray. The buildings looked the same and they had no personality to them, or if they did it was a stern, stoic one. Out here there were green trees and yellow fields. The sky was blue and the sun was golden. Flowers fluttered as I drove by, and then I entered the town. There was a small sign welcoming visitors. It billed itself as the friendliest town this side of Canada, and I wondered if that was an official designation. But I would find out shortly.

I slowed down and weaved my way down the main high street. It was like I was going back in time, back to good ol' Anytown USA. A group of kids were cycling down the street and a few people were milling about. It was the middle of the afternoon and everything had a wholesome vibe about it, a far cry from the noir city I had departed from. There was a barbershop with a red and white pole protruding from the sign, a cinema called
The Majestic
, which was showing classic movies along with the new releases. It had an ornate entrance and lived up to its name. The stores all had their doors open, and with my window rolled down I could hear the people inside conversing with each other. It seemed like everyone knew everybody else, and that's exactly what I needed.

I pulled up by the corner of the road and stepped out on the sidewalk, surprised at how clean it was. A row of trees stretched ahead in front of me, the green leaves almost glowing with happiness. Across the road was a park, from which I could hear much laughter, and in the distance I could just about spot a fountain. I turned around; there were two roads that split off in opposite directions, no doubt leading to more cute stores. I placed my hands on my hips and inhaled deeply. The air smelled sweeter here than it did in the city, and I was only interrupted from my reverie by a woman greeting me with a friendly hello and a smile. I almost didn't respond, such was my surprise for in the city saying hello to a complete stranger like me that would have come across as peculiar. But I smiled back and nodded, and then I made my way into the corner store, which seemed as good a place to start as any.

But little did I know that from the moment I stepped into that store my heart was going to be captured by an angel.

Chapter 6

I stepped inside the store and was greeted by the smell of fresh fruit and vegetables. Then I heard the sound of laughter and saw a lady with a stroller talking to the store clerk, and as my eyes fell across her I was paralyzed. She was the personification of loveliness, soft, milky skin and long tresses of blonde hair. Her wide eyes looked out at the world with innocence and her smile was radiant. She had full lips and a heart-shaped face. She glowed with an energy that completely intoxicated me, even from that distance across the store. I felt myself drawn to her but I also felt my cheeks flush crimson with something akin to fear. Although I had often found women attractive, and occasionally they had even crept into my nighttime fantasies, I had never felt such an instant, intense attraction like that before.

“Can I help you?” she called out from behind the cash register. I remained silent for a few moments and she looked at me strangely.

“Are you okay?” she asked, a hint of concern pressing into her voice. She spoke in a melody and her words were honeyed, and they held such power over me that it all seemed hopeless yet what was I to do? She came out from behind the cash register and I saw that she was wearing a plain brown apron. Underneath that was a pale blue top with white hearts embroidered into it, and a white skirt that reached down to her knees. Though the apron was unflattering she was still the purest beauty I had ever seen. She wore a silver heart around her neck and there were two bracelets around her right wrist, although her fingers were free of rings. The bracelets were plain silver and as she walked she brushed her hair behind her ears, and I saw that they were naked and free of earrings. She was obviously modest and sweet, wholesome even, just like this town, while my heart was racing and I could feel my skin prickling with anxious sweat.

“Excuse me, are you okay?” she said again. Now she was in front of me and I caught the light scent of her perfume. I gazed into her liquid eyes and drowned in the deep blue, before I finally regained my senses and smiled at her.

“Yes, I'm sorry, I just zoned out for a minute there,” I said.

“Are you sure? Do you want some water or anything?”

“No, no, I'll be fine, honestly,” I said. She nodded, although didn't seem convinced, but she went back behind the cash register while I started to walk down the aisles, absently picking up some fruit because I felt like I should buy something while I was in there, and I wasn't ready to leave yet.

“I don't recognize you, are you just passing through?” she asked.

“Actually I decided to take a little break so I'm going to be here for a while. City life was getting me down, y'know?”

“You live in the city?” she asked. I looked up at her and saw that her eyes were wide with wonder, as though I had just told her something amazing.

“Yeah, lived there pretty much all my life.”

“I've always wanted to go! What's it like? Why would you ever leave to come to a place like this?”

“You've really never been to the city?”

She shook her head.

“Well it's not all its cracked up to be.”

“At least there's stuff to do there, not like here.”

“I hope that's not true because I planned to stay here for a month, so if there's nothing to do then I'm going to get very bored very quickly.”

“Of course there are things to do, but not like in the city. I mean, everyone knows everyone here. There aren't any surprises.”

“You mean like me?” I said with a twinkle in my eye. She blushed a little and turned away, then rolled her tongue along her lower lip. It was cute. There was a moment of silence between us, which I couldn't stand.

“So what is there to do around here? Oh, and where's the best place to stay? I kinda just came here on a whim so I didn't make any bookings or anything.”

“Oh, if you head down the road and turn right you'll get to Polly's place, she'll put you up, and she makes the best breakfast in town. As for things to do, well, you've got the movie theater there. They're playing
Gone With the Wind
at the moment there's a matinee showing starting in about half an hour if you wanted to catch that.”

“I've never actually seen that.”

“You've never seen
Gone With the Wind
?!” she asked, incredulous. I shook my head.

“I guess it's one of those things that I never got around to.”

“Right, we're going to see the matinee. Come on,” she said, and pulled off her apron.

“Are you sure? Don't you have to work?”

“Oh no, it'll be fine,” she said, and then turned to the stairs at the back of the store. “Daddy!” she called out, and soon enough an older man came stomping down the stairs.

“This is,” she turned to me and we both realized that we hadn't actually exchanged names yet.

“I'm Claire,” I said.

“This is Claire,” she continued, “she's just new in town and visiting from the city and she has never seen
Gone with the Wind
! So I wanted to take her to the matinee.” Her father looked shocked at the fact that I hadn't seen the film. I guess it must have been some kind of rite of passage around here, and to my surprise he actually agreed to his daughter's request. She ran up to kiss him on the cheek and said thanks, and then grabbed my arm as she led me out of the store. She was so breezy and light that she was like summer herself, and just being beside her made me feel warmer.

“So you have me at a disadvantage, are you going to tell me your name or are you going to remain a mystery to me?”

She smiled coyly again. “I'm Faith,” she said, and skipped ahead of me a couple of steps. I suddenly felt very old as we made our way to the cinema. She said hello to the usher as he printed off our tickets and then we walked into the golden hall. I couldn't believe that a place like that still existed. It was such a sight to behold and the feeling of being in such a cinema gave the whole experience a sense of grandeur. It made going to the cinema an event again. We walked into the large cinema. There were a few other heads in there but it was hardly packed out so we had our choice of seats. Faith led me to her favorites and we settled into the plush red seats as the giant screen flickered into life, playing cartoons just like they had done when I was a kid. As soon as I saw them my face lit up.

“What's so funny?” she asked.

“It's nothing...it's just that nowadays they don't usually show cartoons in front of movies. Just took me back to when I was younger and my dad used to take me. Speaking of which, so you work with your dad at the store then?”

“Yeah,” she said despondently, “it's a family business but my brother was allowed to go to the city. I had to stay here and help them out but I want to leave too at some point.”

“How old are you, if you don't mind me asking?”

“Oh, I'm twenty-one,” she said. I was surprised, for she seemed younger than that, but I guess the city makes everyone seem a little older. I told her that I was twenty-nine and she acted surprised, which was nice, although I think she was just being polite.

“I still can't believe you haven't seen these. It's probably my favorite. Well, actually,
Casablanca
probably beats it but that's because it's a lot shorter.”

“How long is this one then?”

“Oh, about four hours.”

“Four hours?!”

“Yeah, but don't worry, there's an intermission so we'll get to stretch out legs.” I looked at her with disbelief and wondered what I had gotten myself into, but once the movie started I was able to relax, and it was that good that I soon forget about the passage of time and was able to simply enjoy the film. I think Faith was watching me more than the film, and how I reacted to certain scenes, but I was transfixed. I was even annoyed when the intermission came because I wanted to see what happened, and in that four hours a bond had been formed between us.