Blurred Lines Read online

  Blurred Lines

  A novel

  Jennifer K. Brand

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental.

  Copyright © 2014 Jennifer K. Brand. All rights reserved, including the right to reproduce in part or in whole, distribute, or transmit in any form or by any means.

  ISBN: 9789082227604

  To Johnny, for being my biggest cheerleader.

  Table of Contents

  CHAPTER ONE

  CHAPTER TWO

  CHAPTER THREE

  CHAPTER FOUR

  CHAPTER FIVE

  CHAPTER SIX

  CHAPTER SEVEN

  CHAPTER EIGHT

  CHAPTER NINE

  CHAPTER TEN

  CHAPTER ELEVEN

  CHAPTER TWELVE

  CHAPTER THIRTEEN

  CHAPTER FOURTEEN

  CHAPTER FIFTEEN

  CHAPTER SIXTEEN

  CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

  CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

  CHAPTER NINETEEN

  CHAPTER TWENTY

  CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

  CHAPTER TWENTY - TWO

  CHAPTER TWENTY - THREE

  CHAPTER TWENTY - FOUR

  CHAPTER TWENTY - FIVE

  CHAPTER TWENTY – SIX

  CHAPTER TWENTY – SEVEN

  CHAPTER TWENTY – EIGHT

  CHAPTER TWENTY – NINE

  CHAPTER THIRTY

  CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE

  CHAPTER THIRTY - TWO

  CHAPTER THIRTY - THREE

  CHAPTER THIRTY - FOUR

  CHAPTER THIRTY - FIVE

  CHAPTER THIRTY - SIX

  CHAPTER THIRTY - SEVEN

  CHAPTER THIRTY – EIGHT

  CHAPTER THIRTY – NINE

  CHAPTER FOURTY

  CHAPTER FOURTY - ONE

  CHAPTER FOURTY – TWO

  CHAPTER FOURTY – THREE

  EPILOGUE

  MESSAGE FROM THE AUTHOR

  CHAPTER ONE

  Nothing. I could see absolutely nothing. A curtain of darkness surrounded me and much as I tried to engage my other senses, I came up with nothing on that front too. Once in a while I could hear a scuttle from somewhere in the room, which made me believe I wasn’t alone. I had listened keenly and was convinced that I was the only person in the room, but the scuttles evidenced another life form.

  “God, not rats, please.” I whispered in the darkness.

  I was absolutely terrified of rodents. Musophobia, I think they called it. The thought made me frown. I was actually thinking of rodents while I sat on a wet floor bound on both my hands and feet. As if a million other fears shouldn’t take precedence.

  Achluophobia, Arachnophobia, Claustrophobia… I sighed. It was entirely possible I was losing it. It had been about an hour since I had woken up and found myself in a dark room. A quick flex of my arms and legs had confirmed that I was not meant to be going anywhere anytime soon.

  I looked around the room. Where was I? There was nothing to set this room apart. It was windowless and as far as I could see, furniture-less. Save for the mattress I was lying on.

  “God, what have I gotten myself into?”

  For the umpteenth time I tried to remember what had happened, but they must have hit me pretty hard on the head. I could feel a throb an inch from my left temple and I also couldn’t recall much. I didn’t even know how long I’d been in the room. One minute I was taking an evening stroll and the next I’d woken up in this room. Which now that my senses were waking up, I could tell smelled like mold. Rats and mold, perfect.

  I decided to take stock of my body, legs and arms half dead from lack of circulation, head hurt a bit, but all things considered I felt quite fine.

  I wondered why I wasn’t panicking. Must be shock. In all my wild imaginings, I’d never imagined being kidnapped. I was a normal, maybe even boring person. Nothing extraordinary. Certainly not extraordinary enough to be kidnapped. If they were in it for ransom, they’d be sorely disappointed.

  Another scuttle from the corner and I yelped. Definitely rats, or if I was lucky, just mice. But seeing as I had definitely been kidnapped, I guessed that luck was not on my side.

  Just as I was trying to move my legs to get the blood flowing again, the door opened. Nope, luck definitely not on my side.

  “You’re awake,” said a booming voice from the door.

  How he could see me I had no idea. It was dark as night in the room. I decided to keep my mouth shut. I still had no idea why anyone would kidnap me. I was as harmless as they came. I wanted to point that out but decided that it was probably best to keep my mouth shut. I tended to ramble when I spoke and there was no point annoying my captor.

  “You speak when you’re spoken to, otherwise this is going to get real ugly real fast,” the voice boomed again, this time moving towards me.

  “I’m… I’m awake,” I stammered.

  “Good. You’ve been unconscious for such a long time I feared those idiots had killed you. And we wouldn’t want that would we? Who else would answer my questions?”

  He paused as if waiting for an answer.

  “I’m… I’m not sure I know what you… you want from me.” I stammered again. Damn it! What was up with this stammer?! If I wanted to calmly negotiate my way out of this clusterfuck I would have to be more eloquent.

  “You know exactly why you’re here,” Booming Voice said.

  I’d taken to calling him that, since he didn’t seem too keen on introducing himself.

  “I’m sorry, but I still have no clue. I’m just a tourist, a nobody. I…”

  I kept my mouth shut then. I was about to reveal that I had actually travelled to Barcelona on my own. No need informing him of the fact that there would be no one searching for me. At least not for a long time. And by that time…

  “Finish your sentence, you what?” Booming Voice asked.

  “I’m just a tourist,” I begged, “if I can help you I will, but I have no idea what you want from me.”

  “Well, start by telling me why you were looking for Davide. What do you want from him? How do you know him?”

  Oh, so that was why I was here. Thank God. At least this I had an answer for.

  CHAPTER TWO

  1 Year Ago

  “God I’m so excited! Never been abroad before!” shrieked Macy next to me. “And Barcelona at that! It’s such a pity I’m married, Spanish men are so hot! I can just picture God saying, ‘women, you work too hard, here’s a Spanish man for your pleasure.’”

  I laughed, rolling my eyes. “You need to calm down, and don’t let John hear you.”

  “You know I love my husband, but he’s lucky I’ve never been to Spain before.” She winked at me then went back to her ogling.

  Macy was more excited than I was. I mean, now that I was in Barcelona, and with Macy’s fidgeting ass next to mine, I was starting to get excited. But initially I wasn’t that keen on the work trip.

  I worked for Miller and Miller Advocates in New York. The team, which included Macy and I as trainees, had just gotten an acquittal on the biggest case to hit New York since… forever. The client, Raffaele D’Amato, had decided to send everyone who’d worked on his case for a week long vacation to Barcelona. Initially I was stoked. But the hate mail we had started receiving had dulled my enthusiasm.

  See, Raffaele was a well known drug dealer, at least if you listened to those kinds of stories, you would know. The District Attorney’s Office had been after him for years, but he always managed to evade arrest. Rumors ranged from his sex life – he was in his fifties, single and somehow still ro
cking the tall, dark and handsome look – to questionable deaths in the Tri-State area, which were somehow linked to him.

  I was a bit worried when Miller and Miller took on his case, but being a very junior member of the team, there was nothing I could do about it. Plus, I went to law school believing in the ‘innocent until proven guilty’ mantra, and I wasn’t about to stop just because of a notorious client. Seeing as we won, I was ready to move on with my life… until the hate mail begun.

  It targeted everyone in the team. I was worried, but everyone else went on with business as usual. I guess they were used to receiving hate mail.

  “Earth to Lori!”

  I opened my eyes to see Macy waving her palm in front of me.

  “Where did you zone out to? I’m trying to explain to you that since my married ass can’t fully appreciate all this Spanish ass, I’ll have to live vicariously through you.”

  I smiled. “You know I’m not ready to date Macy, I’m just hoping to lie at the beach, catch a tan and go back home relaxed.”

  “No one said anything about dating! You have heard of one-night stands, haven’t you? You’re 26 years old and already behaving like an old maid! When was the last time you even got laid?

  “We work 80 hour weeks Macy, when exactly I’m I supposed to ‘get laid’?”

  “Uhm, now! That’s why we have this week, for you to get some! I’m worried you’re all cobwebby down there.” Shrieked Macy.

  “Ok, you have to lower your voice! Seriously, when did you become this loud?” I glanced around to see if the others had heard us.

  “One. Night. Stand. That’s all I’m saying,” she said with a wink.

  ***

  Later that night, after dinner with my colleagues and a ridiculous amount of Sangria with Macy, I was feeling sufficiently mellow. So mellow I found myself on the dance floor attempting to do the Salsa. Macy was standing next to me doing the robot and we were laughing and shrieking at the nonsense of it all. Seemed I had also caught the shrieking bug.

  “Ok, I definitely have to pee now.” I announced to Macy already heading towards the toilets.

  “Grab me some wine!” shouted Macy, turning some heads on the hotel dance floor.

  There was no queue at the toilets, which were so clean you could eat off the floor. Raffaele had put us up in a ritzy 5 star, and I was starting to appreciate the vacation.

  Washing my hands, I quickly fixed my make up then headed straight for the bar. I was a lightweight when it came to alcohol, which means I was feeling very buzzed. But I was on a once in a lifetime holiday, so I decided to grab two glasses of wine for Macy and I.

  “Glad you’re having a good time.” A voice said to my left.

  I turned and immediately felt my jaw drop. I know a lot of women use that expression when they see a hot guy, but calling this guy ‘hot’ would be the understatement of the century. He was all broad shoulders, sculpted physique encased in a white shirt, folded at the elbows and open at the collar plus a smile for days. Dark hair, greenish-grayish eyes, and… Damn.

  I raised my glass on a toast, and took a large gulp. Here’s to hotness, I thought as I choked on a swallow.

  He smiled knowingly. I guess he was used to that kind of a reaction, which made me realize that I hadn’t said a word yet.

  “Sorry, I think I’ve had too much. I’m Lori by the way,” I said pushing my palm out for a handshake.”

  “Davide, nice to meet you Lori. I take it the hotel is to your liking?”

  Before I could answer, he added, “I’m the manager.”

  “Oh, I love the hotel. And the complementary Sangria is definitely a nice touch.” I smiled.

  “You seem to be having a good time with your friend,” he gestured towards the dance floor where Macy was making a complete fool of herself dancing the Macarena, “but I hope you don’t mind joining me for a glass of wine?”

  “Uhm, sorry, I’ve kinda had enough, but it was nice to meet you Davide. I should be going back to my friend.”

  “No worries, maybe next time,” he said leaning in to drop a kiss on my cheek. His scent was almost as delicious as his look. “It was really good to meet you.” He emphasized the ‘really good’ with a hint of an accent I couldn’t quite place, making the words more decadent than they really were.

  I have the restraint of a saint, I thought, as I made my way towards Macy. Sure I was attracted to Davide. But this one night stand business was truly not my thing. I was only going to be in Barcelona for a week, no need starting something I couldn’t finish.

  “So?” asked Macy, one eyebrow raised.

  “Soooo… what?” I asked attempting to be coy.

  “Don’t even try! Who’s the Adonis and why aren’t you climbing him like a tree?”

  “He’s called Davide and he’s the manager. Plus if there’s any climbing it’s not going to happen the first night I meet him!” I said doing a small turn on the dance floor. I caught sight of Davide standing at the bar, drink in hand, staring at me and almost lost my footing.

  Darn it. He must think I’m a complete klutz, if not an alcoholic. “Ok, time to go back to my room, I need a huge glass of water and some sleep.” I announced already dragging Macy behind me.

  “Fine, I’m going to let it go this once Lori, but I’ll get you laid if it’s the last thing I do on this trip!”

  We passed Davide at the bar where I gave him what I hoped was an enigmatic smile. He didn’t smile back, but I didn’t miss the twinkle in his eye. This was going to be one hell of a week.

  CHAPTER THREE

  I woke up the next morning with a headache and a smile. The amount of sangria I had drunk was making itself known, but the thought of running into Davide excited me to no end.

  I hopped off the bed, took a quick shower, then sat down trying to decide on an outfit. I was in no way going the one night stand route, but flirting could not hurt. I decided on a short yellow sundress and flip flops. Not exactly a ‘killer’ look, but the yellow really complimented my long blonde hair. Plus if I was going to flirt with the guy, I had to make it look like I wasn’t trying too hard.

  Light make up came next. Just a hint of blush, some eyeliner and some mascara. I looked at my reflection. I wasn’t exactly a Victoria’s Secret model but I liked the way I looked. Brown eyes after my father, blonde hair after my mother, and a body that I somehow managed to maintain even though I was addicted to fries and hardly ever exercised. Genes I guess.

  Deciding not to wake Macy up, I took the elevator to the restaurant. I knew Macy would be hung-over, plus I wasn’t in the mood for more let’s-get-you-laid nagging.

  The entire hotel was a sight to behold. Opulent to the tee. From the low hanging drapery, to the marble pillars and the downright decadent velvet settees at every corner. Raffaele had definitely not spared any expense.

  I walked into the dining room, hoping to not only get a glimpse of Davide, but to also catch the rest of my team. Two of my bosses, partners at the firm, had declined the vacation, so it was just Macy, myself and two associate lawyers, one male and one female, who had accompanied us.

  I got the distinct feeling that the two colleagues accompanying us were dating and trying to keep it undercover. There were the looks they kept sending each other’s way the night before, and the fact that they both conveniently disappeared right after dinner, leaving Macy and I to finish up the sangria.

  “You’re an early riser, I like that.”

  I turned to see Davide strolling towards me with a smile on his face. He looked downright edible in a pair of blue jeans and a white polo shirt. The way he filled out those clothes should have been a sin.

  “You really have to stop sneaking up on me,” I said smiling.

  “Now where’s the fun in that?” he asked leaning to kiss my cheek. I was starting to love this very European gesture. “So what’s your plan for the day? I could give you some suggestions to explore the city unless you want to spend some time in the hotel.”

  “Defini
tely staying in the hotel. I saw the infinity pool and I plan to spend the entire day there with a book.

  “Sounds good. Please let me know if you need anything. Here’s my cell number.” He handed me a white card, smiled and strolled off the direction he had come from.

  I sighed. I guess it was something that he had given me his card but I clearly needed to sharpen my flirting skills.

  ***

  I spent all day reading, with the occasional dip in the pool. There was no sight of Cindy and Tom, my other colleagues, but I knew Macy would be in her room still nursing a hangover. I toyed with the idea of waking her up but I was still not ready for her nagging.

  In the evening, with still no Macy in sight, I decided to walk back to the restaurant for some dinner. I ordered for some pasta with shrimp and a glass of white wine and opened my book.

  “What exactly has you so engrossed?”

  I looked up to see Davide leaning on the table trying to get a glimpse of my book cover. I turned it over so he could read the title.

  He frowned. “I thought it would be some sort of chic lit novel.”

  “Sorry to disappoint,” I said with a smirk. “You’re still working? Don’t you ever get time off?”

  “Actually I’m on a break right now and thought I’d join you for dinner if you don’t mind.”

  “No, please, have a seat.”

  He sat down motioning for the waiter. After ordering, he directed that sexy green/gray gaze on me. “So why are you having dinner alone? Where’s your friend?”

  “I think she’s busy learning that drinking two jugs of sangria is not a wise decision,” I said laughing.

  Davide’s gaze dropped to my mouth. “You have a beautiful laugh,” he said.

  I felt myself blush. What was this man doing to me? I never blushed. I prided myself on being a non-blusher.

  “Speechless, yet again, maybe I should take this opportunity to ask if you’ll join me for a walk after dinner,” he said.