Chapter 13: Chapter 13

That night, Olivia started packing for France with her grandmother's death fresh in her memory. Keeping in mind that she still need to attend her grandmother's funeral. Putting her brokenness aside, she got ready to leave the next day, not knowing how long they were staying or even what to pack. She checked the weather website which predicted sunny days for the week, with a few rainy days here and there. Just as she was about to put her phone down, a message came through.

- Picking you up tomorrow morning 7 sharp. Don’t be late. Go to bed early. See you. -

It only took a short message from Tyler Brown to make her heart beat faster once again. She threw in some more dresses, shirts, jeans and other odds and ends she always thought might be useful, but never ended up using. After twenty minutes, her suitcase finally closed with the zip barely holding it all together. She decided she might as well inform Kate that she would not be at work the next day. A part of Olivia didn’t want to be at work to see the company’s future collapsing around her. She had to try Kate twice, before Kate picked up.

“Huh,” Kate answered sleepily.

“I’m leaving early tomorrow. Just wanted to say bye.”

“Okay, bye,” Kate said through what sounded like a yawn.

“Found anything new?”

“Nothing. I’ve been searching the whole day. Nothing came up.”

“Maybe we should stop digging.”

“No,” Kate replied, with sudden life in her exhausted voice. “I’ve already messed up my whole day for this. I’m certainly not giving up now. I thought you knew me better. I’m not giving up that easily.”

“Okay, thanks. See you…,” said Olivia, unsure how to complete her sentence, “when I see you.” That was all she could think to say.

“See you later then, lover.”

Olivia hung up the phone and went to bed.

The next morning her alarm greeted her “good morning” when it went off at 6:30, but Olivia decided to sleep in a bit. She was not a morning person and always slept to the last minute. When she finally got up, she had to rush like usual to get all her things done. She knew he would be waiting for her.

Just as Olivia was about to grab her suitcase from her room to head out, there was a knock on the door. It was 7:02 on the kitchen clock.

“I’m coming. One minute,” screamed Olivia, stuffing a whole granola bar in her mouth. Without even knocking a second time, Tyler opened the door. Olivia glanced over and looked at him as if he was an intruder.

“Don’t worry. I’m not an alien. Just checking if everything is alright.”

“If I’m two minutes late it doesn’t mean my apartment is burning down,” Olivia said, struggling to talk through the pieces of food in her mouth. “You could’ve waited in the car. How do you know which apartment is mine anyway?”

“My security.”

“Right. And you decided to come up to see if I’m all right. Isn’t that a security guard’s job? What if there was a fire,” Olivia mocked him.

“Car is outside. Security will show you out,” he replied, smiling as he closed the door behind him.

“As if some random person is going to steal a few pieces of clothing. Thanks, anyhow,” Olivia said, teasing Brown.

Outside, a dark blue Rolls Royce waited for them. Olivia was no expert on cars, but she recognised this one from photos she had seen. When the bodyguard opened the door, she stopped in her step. The seats were covered with light brown leather and the roof was filled with stars. Although it seemed glamorous, it did not seem to fit Tyler Brown’s style.

“Not satisfied with the car,” he asked.

“No. I mean, it’s just that I prefer something less fanciful,” she said. For someone who really did want to stand out from the pack, she was oddly satisfied. But, she wouldn’t admit it. Playing country girl, she told herself.

“Come on. Not enough time for a car switch. We’re running late.”

Climbing into the car, Olivia could smell that it was brand new or maybe it just got a good polish to receive a guess. What kind of guest am I, she asked herself. The housekeeper, she reminded herself.

“What’s the rush? You make it sound like we are running away.”

“Kind off,” Brown said. Quickly spotting that Olivia was uncomfortable, he added, “Just joking. The plane is taking off soon.”

“Wait, Blanca isn’t coming,” Olivia asked as the car smoothly drove off.

“No. She’s staying. I only need one housekeeper,” he said, trying to be funny.

Olivia didn’t know why she hadn’t thought how ridiculous it was that she was hired as a housekeeper. Why couldn’t he just hire a real one? He just needed an excuse. Her parents would probably laugh when she finally tell them. At the same time, she thought, she had never done something this spontaneous before. It awakened an excitement inside of her which was strange; she had always been scared of the unknown. This time she was plunging into the unknown. Why? She couldn't tell. Something is for sure, she is not the same.

After twenty-five minutes of riding in silence, they arrived at the airport. It was not a normal commercial airport. No. It was a private airport for small, private planes. Why this surprised her was a mystery to even her.

“I’m going to get my bag,” said Olivia, sarcastically.

“Funny. The bags are already loaded in. The plane is waiting for us.”

Waiting for us.

The words echoed in her mind. Never before had an airplane waited for her where she didn’t have to worry that she might miss it. Although it would be easy to get used to all this, she still tried to continue with her country mentality.

“Can I get some snacks for us to eat on the plane,” Olivia joked, pretending to be ignorant. There were a few other people in the airport and they all looked at her as if this lifestyle was completely normal and she was the one who was strange.

“Sir, the plane is ready,” the bodyguard announced from behind a pair of dark sunglasses.

“Yes, Fredrick, tell them we’re on our way,” Brown replied, looking back at Olivia. “No, more jokes. We need to go.”

He grabbed her by the arm and escorted her to the small private jet that was waiting for them. The pilot welcomed them, before they climbed the stairs into the airplane.

“Mr Brown. Ms Acker. France, sir?”

“Yes, Ben.”

As soon as she was seated, her eyes glanced over every detail of the plane, from the marble table tops to the beds in the back. Brown sat down across from Olivia and stifled a laugh every time he saw Olivia noticing something else she would never be able to afford.

“Champagne,” he asked. He quickly added, “For the shock.”

“You love making fun of me. I’ve never seen so much wealth in one day.”

“Well, that’s me.”

She wanted to ask him about what he really wanted to do in life, but he quickly started a conversation by asking her, “Always wanted to be an assistant?”

“No. Landscape architect.”

“Don’t look like an architect.”

“How so?”

“Don’t know. I just don’t see you that way.”

“I guess you don’t know me very well, then.”

A few hours went by as they flew through the sky. They started their flight in the morning so they would arrive very early the next morning. Only in the last few hours of the flight did she finally gather enough courage to ask the question that had been bothering her the whole time.

“Why all this luxury? A chateau in France, a private jet. I thought you were bankrupt?”

“My business is bankrupt, not me,” he responded in a plain tone, letting her know that he didn’t want to hear the word “bankrupt” anymore.

“Right,” said Olivia softly.

She tried to suppress a second thought, but couldn’t, so she answered it for herself. There must’ve been other girls in the past. How he acted a few seconds ago seemed to show that she had started to peel an old bandage off that he wanted to remain closed. She wouldn’t blame a girl. Who can? A handsome man with lots of money can attract any girl. It was just his fear of commitment that put them off. But, that was precisely what attracted her to him the most. She watched an almost-asleep Tyler Brown lying back in his seat with his tanned skin and messy hair and sun-kissed lips parted.