Chapter 69 - Escape

Cate was sitting in the corner of the room, watching him. He was magnificent, his torso bare, the black denim jeans skimming his form, undone at the waist. He stood by the bed, his chest heaving in anticipation, looking toward the bathroom doors.

He sucked in a sharp breath as she moved into the doorway, posing seductively for a long moment, then sashaying across the bedroom.

She was beautiful, glamorous, sexy. Her long blonde hair shimmered in the candlelight, and the black lace teddy hardly covered anything. Her legs looked a mile long in the black thigh-high stockings.

She stopped in front of Jon, and he devoured her with his eyes. Reaching out to her, Jon captured her waist and pulled her roughly to him, turning his back to Cate as he kissed her passionately.

The blonde’s eyes widened when she saw Cate in the corner of the room. “Who’s that?” she asked with a sneer, pointing an acrylic-tipped claw.

Jon turned and gave Cate a cold glance. “Nobody.” he replied. “Just ignore her. She’ll go away.” He again pulled the blonde roughly against him and gave her a long, hard kiss. Then he swept her up into his arms and carried her to the bed, laying her down then sliding on top of her with a moan.

Cate felt the tears of shame stinging her eyes. Her heart was breaking. She looked down to her lap and saw her Glock in her hand, and a dark, wet stain on her shirt…

Cate let out a loud gasp and bolted upright, her heart pounding. She looked wildly around the darkened room, panicking. She was in the bedroom. But she wasn’t in the corner. Cate clutched at her chest and realized she was naked. There was no bloodstained shirt, no gun.

She shuddered and pulled the sheet up to cover her bare breasts. The cold, clammy sweat that slicked her body made the sheet stick to her skin. Her heart racing, she gasped for breath.

She looked over and saw Jon sleeping beside her, lying on his back with one arm across his stomach, the other thrown up over his head on the pillow. He was breathing deeply and rhythmically. Cate focused on his breathing and forced her racing pulse to slow. It was just a dream… it was just a dream… she repeated silently to herself.

As she tried to calm herself, she felt a dark cloud of dread settle over her. She looked back at Jon’s peaceful form. Images of their lovemaking flashed through her mind, and she recalled what she had thought when it was over. I’ve finally found it… found him…. Cate felt her heartbeat race again. Oh no. Oh God. What have I done?

Suddenly she felt nauseous. Cate quickly slipped out of bed, her hand over her mouth, and hurried to the bathroom. She went to the toilet and opened the lid, then took a deep breath. The sick feeling subsided. She stood there for a few minutes, until she was sure she wasn’t going to throw up.

Cate left the water closet and moved to the vanity, turning on the tap and splashing cool water onto her face. She ran her hands through her hair and looked at her reflection in the mirror. She took a deep breath. Now you’ve really done it, she thought. Now it’s too late.

Cate stared at herself in the mirror for another long minute, then looked up at the clock. 4:25 a.m. Cate took another deep breath, then slipped out of the bathroom.

She quickly but quietly moved around the bed, to where she and Jon had shed their clothing the night before. Not wanting to wake him, Cate scrabbled around blindly on the floor in the dark until she found her bra, tank top, and jeans. It was useless trying to find her black panties in the darkened room, so Cate slipped on her jeans without them. As she was pulling on her bra, she heard Jon stir.

“Baby?” he mumbled hoarsely, reaching across the bed, feeling for her. When he couldn’t find her, he turned his head to look to where he thought she should be. “Cate?”

“I’m here,” Cate answered softly, slipping the straps of her bra up over her shoulders.

Jon pushed himself up onto his elbows. “What are you doing? Come back to bed,” he said groggily. “It’s still dark.”

Cate pulled her tank top over her head. “I have to go,” she said quietly. “I have a meeting in a couple hours.”

“What?” Jon stared at her for a moment, confused. Then her words sunk in. “What time is it?” he asked, turning to squint at the clock radio on the nightstand.

“Four-thirty,” Cate answered. She moved back around the bed to sit on its edge, beside Jon. “I need to go home, to get ready for work,” she said evenly, though inside her heart was pounding with barely-contained panic. “I’ll see you at the office later.”

Jon sat up and reached out to her, touching her cheek. “Stay with me, at least until the sun comes up,” he implored softly.

“I… can’t,” Cate answered in a strangled voice. If I don’t get out of here soon I’m gonna freak out. I can’t let him see me like this. She leaned forward and kissed him gently. “I have to go,” she repeated firmly. “I’ll see you at lunch.”

Jon tilted his head as he looked at her. In the dim moonlight coming through the French doors, he could see only part of her face. The rest was in shadow. But he could see the tears glittering in her eyes. “What is it, Baby?” he asked softly.

Cate shook her head, rapidly blinking her eyes to try to conceal her emotion. "Nothing. I’m fine. I… I’ll miss you.” It wasn’t a lie, but it wasn’t the truth about why she was crying, either. She leaned forward and gave him another quick kiss. “Go back to sleep. I’ll see you in a few hours.”

With that, she rose from the bed and turned away from Jon. She swiftly exited the bedroom and crossed the living room. The lamp that Jon had turned on when they came in from the deck was still illuminated, so Cate was able to immediately locate her keys and flip-flops, still lying on the floor where they had fallen when Jon had made her swoon with his kisses.

Cate quickly slipped her feet into the sandals and snatched up the keys, then unlocked the door and pulled it open. She had to get out of here before Jon came out to stop her. She would fall to pieces if she had to face him right now.

Cate bolted out the door, pulling it firmly shut behind her as she hit the button on her key fob to unlock her car door. She quickly slipped into the Mustang and started it up, revving the engine. As she turned to look behind her to back out of the driveway, she saw the front door to the villa swing open.

She hit the gas and backed the car out of the short driveway onto the access road. Unable to stop herself, Cate looked back at the villa’s entry and saw Jon standing there, clad only in his black jeans, staring helplessly after her. Cate’s heart throbbed painfully at the look on his face.

Her tears began to fall as she drove away into the darkness.