Chapter 2: The Secret Garden

Waking up early and stretching in bed, I smell ham and eggs cooking.  Marissa must have gotten here oftly early this morning to be making breakfast already.  Stepping out of bed, I feel the cold wood planks under my feet and immediately form goosebumps on my arms.  

Brrr.  

I rush to grab my heavy robe and put it on my shoulders.  Struggling so early in the morning, I really have a hard time finding the holes to put my arms in.  When I do succeed eventually, I step into the kitchen, saying, "Goodmorning Marissa, did you sleep well last night?"

Taking a seat at the counter, I wait patiently for my food and an answer.  She turns around and smiles, "Yes, ma'am.  I did and you?"  

Thinking about my answer, before saying anything, I wonder if I should tell her about my dreams.  Settling on no for now, I state, "Yes, I did too.  This all smells wonderful."  Waving my hands at the meal cooking on the stove.

Turning back around, she finishes cooking breakfast and hands me a plate full of bacon, ham and eggs fried over-easy.  Gratefully taking it, I voraciously eat everything, wiping the left-over egg up with a piece of toast.  Rubbing my stomach, I declare, "Boy, this is absolutely scrumptious.  Thank you."

I stand up and grabbing the newspaper off the counter, stroll into the living room.  Once I sit down on the couch, I begin reading the entertainment section, before Brad comes down for the day.  Looking over at the front table, I notice that Brad had left his laptop down here, how odd.  He never does that.

Continuing to read the paper, I gaze at the article about Brad's company.  It says that his stocks have gone up several fold and that he will be expanding his business later this year.  Honestly, I never have gotten into his corporate side of his life.  I figure as long as he doesn't bankrupt us, I don't need to know.

Looking up, when I hear a noise at the top of the stairs, I watch as Brad clumsily shuffles down them.  He has never been an early morning person a day in his life, as far as I can tell and this morning shows it.  Afraid he isn't going to make it all the way down without falling, I get up and run up to him.  

I smell gin on his breathe, disgustingly filthy habit he has acquired of late and help him down the steps.  No wonder why he forgot his laptop down here and is having so much trouble this morning.  He is still half drunk.  This isn't like him, I wonder what is going on.

Curious, I ask.  "Brad, what happened last night?  You smell like a brewery." 

He stares at me with half focused eyes and after blinking several times answers.  "I took a new client out to dinner last night and she drank me under the table.  I had to take a cab home, because I was so drunk that I couldn't stand."  He starts to wobble even with my aid, before I set him down on the couch.

Laughing, I comment.  "I like her already.  I didn't think anyone could out drink you."

Gazing blankly into my eyes, he answers.  "She told me that if I could out drink her, she wouldn't fight me on any changes to restructuring in her company.  I am taking it over next week and we are absorbing it into ours."

Shocked, I have heard of owners trying to decide what happens with their companies and employees when Brad takes over, but never doing this.  She must really have some balls.  Already liking her, I ask, "Brad, what's her name?  She sounds like quite a business woman."

With a little too much enthusiasm for my liking, he responds.  "Yes, she is!  The problem is, she ran out of funding for her projects and no one would give it to her.  Her credit is near to nothing and some of her practices weren't ideal."

As I begin to suspect that he likes her for more than her savvy business practices, I grow weary of this conversation.  Asking one last question, I wonder if being half-drunk he might accidently tell the truth.  "I bet she is a sexy woman, do you want to sleep with her?"

He appears to not even think about it, when he doesn't even hesitate for a second.  He states, "Hell yes.  I don't know a man alive who wouldn't give a small fortune to screw that woman.  She oozes sex appeal."

At that moment, my heart starts to hurt.  Turning away from him, so he doesn't see the pain in my eyes, I walk away.  Wandering back to my bedroom, I can't help but wonder why he could never want me like that.  There has never been a day in his life that he has looked at me with lust in his eyes.  

When I get back to my room, I throw together an outfit and run a bath.  I sit on the side of the tub running my finger along it and wishing that he had said no, so I would know that the reason why he never wanted me wasn't because he didn't desire me, but because he just wasn't a normal man.  Instead, he confirmed my fears.

Shedding a tear, I stare into the water and watch as the tub slowly fills up.  Eventually, it does and after slipping off my robe and nightgown, I slide down into the warm goodness of the bath.  With my toes sticking out, I wiggle them and then submerge them under the water.  

The rose scented bubbles tickle my nose, when they float to my face and I decide to put my head under water.  With my eyes closed, I feel completely peaceful for the moment.  The hot water feeling like a warm embrace of a lover who never wants to let me go.

Feeling a shift in the water, I pop my head out and open my eyes.  Marissa, stands next to the tub and notifies me that I had a phone call while I was in the bath and that Brad has fallen asleep on the couch in the living room.  "Thank you, I will call them back in a few minutes, once I am done.  As for Brad, leave him there.  He needs his rest."  Nodding, she leaves me to continue what I had started.

After finishing my bath, I get dried off and dressed.  Deciding that today will be a good day for a walk, I put on a jacket and take a stroll around the property.  Finding the entrance to the secret garden, I make sure no one has seen me and clear the door.  

Moving the vines, I sneak inside and step over to the old fountain.  As I admire the birds, I sit down and stare at them playing in the puddles from yesterday's storm.  They splash and roll around, flinging water everywhere.

I love this place, it is my secret garden.  Last year when I started to get truly bored with my life, I found this place while exploring the vast grounds.  I saw all the vines and thought it odd that it was shaped in this way, so I uncovered it a bit at a time.

Realizing what I had, I quickly covered it back up and I have been coming here ever since.  When I can't deal with the outside world and need to be alone, I come here.  This is my escape.  

Feeling the chill in the air, I decide to go back inside till it warms up.  Smiling, I glance back one more time at the birds before sneaking out and covering up the entrance.  As I walk back to the house, I wonder if Brad will cheat or already has.