My Bad Boy's Secret: A Bad Boy Billionaire Romance (185 page)

PART 2

AVA

So much had happened over the last few days that it was hard to wrap my head around it. Before all of this happened, I had spent the last few years letting my guard down. I thought that I had finally gotten rid of my haunting past. I thought I was running away from my past in a successful way. But as it turned out, my past had caught up with me. Little did I know, my father knew all too well what was happening. So much so that he sent someone to protect me; my own personal warrior. My own personal Navy Seal by the name of Zak Flynn. He was a perfect specimen of a man, and he was a skilled Navy Seal, through and through. He had already proven it in the first few hours. But there was more to it than that. When I first met him I was infatuated, even though I stubbornly did not want to admit it to myself. On first glance, he made my body tingle and flush warm. When I saw him from my desk in the auditorium classroom, I knew there was something about him. The way he looked at me with that wicked and arrogant grin. He had looked straight at me, almost straight through me. I had to look away because it was so intense. I would be learning the root of that passion, sooner than later. Then, later when he confronted me and told me who he was, I argued with him and told him he wasn't needed. I gave him a piece of my mind. I was mostly angry at my father but I took it out on Zak. It was such a shock to me to hear my past had caught up with me, all I could do was act out in a negative way. But this did not deter him from what he was sent to do, no matter how much I protested. Still, loyal to his assignment and to my father, he watched over me. He was like a silent protector in the night. Little did I know that I would meet him just a few hours later. That's when my past caught up with me and intruders entered my apartment searching for me. Zak acted fast and rescued me from my deep, drunken slumber. Then he used a smart escape by using a motorboat to take us to an isolated island just off of the main island, so that our trail could not be traced. After landing he showed off his Navy Seal survival skills to take care of me, but I had no idea he planned on keeping me prisoner on the island.

Then, I did something that I was not proud of but it was very necessary. I left him on the isolated island with the promise to come back for him the next day. I wouldn't have left him if it wasn't so necessary. I needed to get back for my very important assignment. I was not going to let thugs from my past jeopardize my college future. So I did what needed to be done. Zak was not going to let me go, so I distracted him and took the boat leaving him on the isolated island alone to fend for himself. But I knew he was in good hands, his own hands, that is. He was a trained and skilled elite Navy Seal; the best of the best, and he could survive anywhere for days. He would be fine for twenty four hours at least. However, a thought did cross my mind, what if the thugs caught me? Then I would not be free to go back for Zak. I hadn’t thought that over too well. Now it was very important that I was careful. I could not have Zak’s life in jeopardy too because I was being rash and dumb. I would have to think this through before jumping into any situation. His life, and mine, depended on it. I couldn't worry about it now, I needed to get back to my apartment and prepare for our class’s volcano field trip. I could only think of one major event at a time or I would be overwhelmed and not focused.

Now that I was approaching the main island and the doc located near my apartment, fear and panic struck me. What if the men were still there in my apartment waiting for me? What if they set up watch to alert them when I returned? After all, they had no idea that they were hot on my trail to begin with. When they first entered my apartment they could believe that I had just not come home for a while but that I would soon. No, I should not go back there, but I had too. I had no other choice. I was in a t-shirt, jeans and no shoes, completely bare foot. Which was fine for island life, but I would eventually need them. I did not have any money, ID, or credit cards with me. No, I had to go back inside my apartment, it was crucial.  I would have to be resourceful just like Zak but instead of in a physical way, I would need to be resourceful in a different way. I needed a plan of intelligence and not one of sheer brute force. I was no match for thugs with my petite frame and weak body. I would have to think this over.

I steered the boat into the dock and parked it. I would wait until I knew what I was doing. There was no point in leaving my means of escape just yet. If they somehow came onto the dock, I would be ready to go back out to sea in a flash. I sat in that boat for half an hour trying to figure out what to do. I either had to sneak in unnoticed, or I would have to draw them out. I mulled over these two options, weighing the pros and cons of different approaches to solving the problem. A few minutes later, I had an idea. I didn't know if it would work but I had to try. I jumped out of the boat and onto the wooden planks of the dock and slowly and casually walked to my apartment complex. I had to be careful not to draw attention to myself by running or seeming jittery. I needed to remain calm and cool.

My plan was simple, but yet I thought it would be effective if I did it right. I knew that my answering machine inside my apartment was on, and would play out loud. So anything that was said to the machine, the men inside would hear. They would think they were privy to secret information. It was perfect. The large complex I lived in had a recreation room for gatherings. There was a movie room, pool table, bar, and of course, a phone. I practiced what I was going to say out loud in a calm manner. If my voice was shaky, they would see right through my lie. I picked up the phone and I called my phone line. I was very nervous and jittery, and breathed in deep to calm myself. When the answering machine picked up I said, "Hey Lisa it's Ava, I know you are coming to clean my apartment today. I am still in Los Angeles and will be here for the next two weeks, could you also pick up my mail? I think you have a copy of my mail key. Just leave it anywhere. I’ll talk to you soon. Thanks." Then I hung up the phone feeling satisfied. I was good at lying, I had been doing it a long time to run from my past. It worked out well.

After I hung up I quickly and quietly made my way towards my apartment and waited out of sight as I watch the front door. I only waited five minutes before two men opened the door and came out of my apartment. I gasped as I realized that if I hadn’t been so clever, they would have been waiting for me. Shivers ran up my spine at the thought of them catching me so easily. Zak would have been pissed. I was glad that I had called and set up the trap. Now, I had to wait to see if they would leave. Did they fall for my trick?

They were both on cell phones talking to somebody as they paced in front of my door. I tapped my foot to get rid of some of my nervous energy as I waited. Then, after a few minutes, they walked towards a car, got in, and drove away. I sighed in relief. I even jumped up and down a little. It had worked!

I made it to the front door and stopped. How would I know if anyone else was in there? Then I did something brave, or stupid. I knocked on the door, and yelled, “Pizza delivery!” 

I waited. There was no answer. Then I did it again, repeating myself. There was still no answer. The coast was clear, I hoped.

I quietly entered my apartment and checked it out to make sure that there was no one there. I was all alone, but I didn't know for how long. I couldn't stay here. So I quickly grabbed a few tote bags, and my backpack, and started stuffing them with clothes, my school work, shoes, toiletries, and other things that I would need. Even though I knew I was in danger and the men could come back at any moment, I felt very smug about my accomplishment. I was very clever to call and leave that message and I was clever to knock on my own door. Okay, maybe a trained Navy Seal had better ways of doing these things, but I had to improvise with such short notice and no training. It had all worked, too. Even my pizza knock was impressive. I smiled to myself and then felt the need to tell someone about it. I sort of wished that Zak was here to see the brilliant distraction I had come up with that made the men leave. I wanted to rub it in his face, and feel pride and arrogance just like he did when he accomplished something, like making a shelter and catching lobster for breakfast. I guess his Navy Seal ways were rubbing off on me. I thought about him alone and isolated on the island, and I felt bad. A sinking feeling overcame me. What I did was wrong but it needed to be done. He would have to understand the concept of what needs to be done just needs to be done, type of action. Still, I couldn’t wait to see the look on his face when I told him how I distracted the thugs and made sure the apartment was safe before entering. I would have to remember to gloat about my accomplishment later. Even though I knew that when I finally went to pick him up from the island, he would be very, very, pissed off. I probably wouldn't have a lot of time to gloat. Then suddenly everything changed.

While I was upstairs in my bedroom gathering items I heard somebody enter down stairs. I panicked. I didn't know what to do so I hid in my closet. I guess I was gloating too soon because the thugs were back, and now I was screwed. I wished for Zak’s presence now more than ever. Then I heard somebody whisper, "Ava. Ava, it's Zak are you here?”

I was astonished. Unbelievable! How did he get here so quickly?

"Zak? I'm here," I said as I slowly opened the door.

"Thank God!" he sighed as he walked fast to me and pulled me into his arms. He held me close against him, and I felt relief as his arms wrapped around me. He rubbed his hands up and down my back and I felt very safe with him wrapped around me. I didn't know how scared I felt until right in this moment. I pulled away and looked up at him into his eyes. He looked down at me with tenderness, and not the anger I thought he would display when he saw me. Clearly in this moment he was not thinking about how I left them on the island. I was grateful for that. Finally, he peeled his body off of me and said, "What the hell are you doing here? This is the last place you should be."

"I had to come back for some things. You don't understand what it's been like for me. I won't let a few men that are hunting me change everything that I've worked so hard for."

"But it's not safe they could've been here when you walked in. You could've walked straight into their arms. What were you thinking?"

"No, you see I took care of that first before I came inside."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, you see, I..."

"No, tell me later. There's no time for that now. Grab your stuff and let's go before they come back. "

I did as he said and handed him a few bags and then we slowly and stealthily walked out the front door as he scanned the environment to make sure we were safe.

"Where are we going? I am not going back to the island. I have to stay here. I have to go on my class field trip. It is very important. "

"We'll talk about that in a second, first let's get out of sight. I know a place we can go. It's not far. "

I followed him closely as he walked from my building across the sidewalk to a neighboring building. He walked up the stairs and I followed him.

"What are you doing, we have to get out of here?"

"We are getting out of here, or out of sight I should say. It will be good to keep tabs on these men. You will see."

He unlocked the door to an apartment and as soon as I walked in I realized what was going on. He had been watching me. And he had been watching me from this very apartment. I walked around slowly as I put my bags on the floor. The windows of this apartment faced my own apartment. There were binoculars on the windowsill where he had been watching me. I looked at him and my mouth fell open. He smirked, which slowly moved into a full-on arrogant grin. I gasped as I realized this is how he watched me take a shower, and had watched me touch myself.

"So this is it. This is my little hideaway. Make yourself at home. "

"How dare you?! You have been watching me? For how long? How much have you seen? "

"Did you not wonder how I made it into your bedroom that night? I zip lined from my window to yours. I would not have been able to rescue you unless I had been watching you. Just as my assignment calls for. So don't complain about my way of doing things. Now get used to being quiet, we will lay here low-key and watch your apartment just as I have been, to see if the men return."

He was talking to me in a very stern voice. I could tell that anger was welling up inside of him. I assumed that now that he had me safe it gave him time to remember that I had left him isolated on an island. Even though I was planning to go back for him, he had no idea if I would or not. Now as he gave me short answers, verging on the silent treatment, I could tell that he was mad at me. So I didn't stretch it. I wanted to know exactly how he got off the island. There was no way that he swam for it… Could he? No, there was no way. Even though he was a trained Navy seal, it was too far of a distance for him to swim. I think. It would be very impressive if he did, but also very dangerous. Which would make me feel even guiltier than I already did. I watched him around the empty apartment. There was only a table chairs and a sleeping bag in the corner of the room. There was nothing else. It was sad surroundings. I wondered how long he had been living like this, just to protect me. Then I remembered that he was in fact getting paid and I should not feel guilty. I moved over to the windowsill and stared out the window trying to make myself useful.