“Do you think he really has a torture chamber in his basement? To be fair, I’ve never really explored his house, and it’s huge,” Jamie asked Perry when she was back home.
Perry laughed it off, “Pfft … come one, Gabriel? My guess would be a dungeon where he keeps his Pegasus or a cave at best, you know … where he stores all his high tech shit for doomsday prepper.”
They laughed.
“But honestly, Perry … I don’t really know him that well, the times we spent together were amazing, but he never really opened up to me … it felt like he’s incapable of doing that, he didn’t stop me from leaving, even though I wanted him to, maybe he didn’t want me to stay … not really?”
Perry leaned closer to her on the sofa, “It seems like he knows you better than you know him … you’re taking this break to figure yourself out and you should … I think Gabriel is a very intimidating figure because of who he is, it made you feel that distance, but everytime I see the two of you together, all I can see are two people who are crazy for each other … for whatever reason … and the only way you can know him well enough is to be with him longer.”
She rested her head on his shoulder, “I guess you’re right … it scares me more than anything because how rich he is, I mean I think of all the things he can do with his money and power … my family and Eddie’s wealth combined are not even close to what he has and look at what they’re doing.”
Perry took a deep breath, “You wanna know what I think about Gabriel? I don’t know him well enough to make assumptions, but you get this vibe from someone even though he’s very closed up … I think he’s either very stupid because realistically he can have any woman he wants on this planet but he chose you instead.” That made Jamie laugh. “Or … he’s very smart because in a few months he’s getting to know you, he knows that he’s safe with you … that you are someone who would never take advantage of him and to someone like him … that’s a once in a lifetime find.”
Jamie was quiet, she has a huge decision to make. Her heart was saying ‘yes’ but her head got in the way. She loved her hippie lifestyle, it was why she left all the luxuries she used to have in the first place. To be with Gabriel means she had to give that up, she will have to go back to where she started.
**********
Three days after she was back home, she received her first flowers from Gabriel. A bouquet of red roses with his signature note slipped between the bow.
“I’m sending you flowers because you’re not here or otherwise we could just kiss.”
A dozen of white Lilies followed a few days later, “I know you’re not crazy about flowers but just to remind you that you’re crazy about something else.”
His notes were bad but they made her laugh. If she wanted to receive romantic quotes, it’s definitely not coming from him but she was okay with it. She loved his effort. He never called, but the flower gifts and cringy notes kept coming. She changed his name on her phone with “Weirdo”, screenshot it and send it to him. He didn’t reply. A total weirdo.
It’s a good feeling to have come home from her jog and found his gifts at her doorstep. She pushed herself to run at least 5 KM a day and do some light work out at home to get back in shape. After only two weeks, she was already missing her turtles, Bhorma, The Peninsula and the weirdo that comes with the package.
She was taking a month break to figure things out, but the fact that he didn’t call or texted, sent her to her edges.
She noticed there was a black sedan following her around when she jogged, the same one everyday. She knew it was one of his men. She teased them at times, tried to hide from them or taunted them from afar.
They never opened their window, it was opaqued, impenetrable black windows. The car moved slowly, she could never see anyone inside it. Sometimes she just ignored them completely, rather than finding them annoying, they were actually there to protect her. Like Melvin. She missed him too.
Perry had an ongoing project, which left her alone in the house most of the time. She rearranged the rooms again, back to its usual setting. She set aside baby stuff Perry had already installed there. It was her way of grieving and closing one chapter of her unpredictable life.
She shed tears, they were still there. She was building the courage to finally mourn on the tombstone which she hadn’t visited since she was separated from her baby. She was taking her time to accept it. Being alone in her home was a form of therapy for her, drowned in raw emotions and recognize them as her own.
Three weeks after she came home, Gabriel still hadn’t called. She was going to change to her running outfit when she decided to take a quick picture of her naked body in the mirror. She’d been working hard and was returning to its older shape. She thought she’d keep one picture every few weeks to see her progress.
She put on her jacket and sneakers, stepped outside and locked her front door before starting her morning routine. She hadn’t run even one block when her phone rang. “Weirdo” was on display. She smiled widely.
“Well … look who finally decided to call.”
“Jamie …” his deep cool voice excited her. “Please don’t keep nude pictures on your phone.”
Her jaw dropped open, “You spied my phone? Oh God … I didn’t see that coming at all … is that why you called? I would’ve done it sooner if I knew you’d call.”
“Let’s just say your iphone and apple watch are compromised … by me, please don’t take nude pictures of yourself … I would like to think that it’s for my eyes only.”
She felt butterflies in her stomach, “Aww … that’s really sweet and creepy at the same time Gabriel, do you tap everyone’s gadget too?”
He sighed, “No … just you, Jamie, how’s your running?”
“It’s okay … nice weather today, and your guys are here too, they’re always on time,” she put on her earphone and started to jog.
Gabriel was silent for a moment, “What guys?”
“Those guys in the black sedan … they’ve been here for weeks.”
“Jamie … I don’t have anyone following you around.”