Love Fated

Chapter 4

Yawning, Lisa collapsed face down on the large bed that occupied the guest suite allotted for her use. She was exhausted and hoped to catch a small nap before dinner. Having just arrived a little while ago at John Reid's mansion, she still had to unpack her bags and hang up her clothing so that they would not get too badly wrinkled. With the whirlwind travel arrangements and then the delay at the airport while the runways were de-iced, she was feeling a bit drained.

She had found Cheryl to be lovely in person and she helped buffer the attention Robert seemed to want to lavish on Lisa. Since the surprise appearance from her boss in her home yesterday, she had been feeling rather unnerved in his presence which somehow Cheryl had picked up on.

Apparently, Mr. Reid was handling the problem that he had to come to New York for and wouldn't be able to attend to his guests until that evening. He had made reservations in a rather upscale Italian restaurant and had left instructions to dress for a coat and tie dinner. She was glad that she had packed a variety of clothing for this trip and was pleased that she had the foresight to throw in a couple of extra cocktail dresses.

Groaning, she sat up and rubbed her tired eyes. Yawning again, she managed to reach her luggage and spent the next twenty minutes putting everything away in their proper places. She was boggled by the sheer size and beauty of her suite and for a moment she allowed herself to feel like she was someone important, someone worthy of all of this expensive décor.

Shaking her head at her silly thoughts, she checked her silver wristwatch and noted the time was almost five-thirty. She gave a small yelp and felt her tiredness banish immediately as she rushed into the bathroom to get ready. She had an hour to shower, dress, fix her hair and make up before she was supposed to meet the others in the foyer. She wanted to look her best for when she met John Reid; after all, he would be partners with her boss. She had to make a good impression.

Fifty minutes later, she was adding the finishing touch to her ensemble by dabbing her throat and wrists with a light perfume she favored. Stepping back, she gave herself a once over in the full-length mirror and was satisfied with her appearance. Her curls were swept back in a simple French braid and her knee length black dress fit snuggly over her slim frame. She grabbed her clutch and her wool coat and headed out of her room. Glad that she had given herself a few extra minutes after she had taken two wrong turns, the green-eyed woman found her self carefully descending a set of stairs and entering the foyer.

Discovering that she was the first one to arrive, she calmly looked around and found herself captivated by a vivid reproduction of Salvador Dali's 'Melting Watches'. Walking closer to peer at the painting she was completely oblivious when another presence entered the room and observed her for a few minutes.

"One of my favorite pieces. Dali had such an interpretive eye. He really could capture the bereft soul on canvas."

Starting from surprise, Lisa whirled around her eyes wide, taking in the tall man who stood but a couple of feet away. His cream-colored turtleneck sweater and black slacks fit snugly against a lean frame as intelligent brown eyes stared at her from behind wire rimmed frames. He was handsome. Very much so. He stepped forward, offering his hand in greeting.

"I apologize for startling you. We haven't had the pleasure of meeting yet. I am John Reid and you are Miss Reisert I presume?"

"Oh! It is nice to finally meet you Mr. Reid. I have heard such wonderful things about you." She extended her hand while smiling at him. "I am Lisa Reisert as you correctly guessed."

He smiled, flashing white teeth before grasping her hand and raising it to his lips for a brief kiss.

Lisa felt her face grow warm at the contact of his lips on her skin and retracted her hand as soon as he released it.

"Call me John."

She smiled up at him, and he found himself catching his breath for a moment.

"Then, John, you must call me Lisa."

"Of course. Whatever you would like."

His deep voice sent a chill through her and set her pulse racing. She turned her attention back to the painting attempting a distraction.

"Although, I do not follow art, I must say that I had always assumed Dali was tweaked out on Opium or some other hallucinogen. I never would've thought to look deeper and I certainly never would have called him 'interpretative'".

She glanced over at her host and was surprised to see the amused look on his face.

"Tweaked out? My dear Lisa, is there something you want to tell me?"

"Wha…NO! Oh my god! No, no..I didn't mean…"

He laughed a low, rich sound that surrounded them. "I am just teasing you Lisa. I hope I have not offended you."

Blushing she shook her head emphatically. "No, no. It's fine. I feel as if I should apologize to you."

He quirked a brow at her remark. "Why's that?"

Before she could explain and make an even bigger fool of herself, Robert and Cheryl joined them.

"John! So good to seen you man!"

Lisa stepped back to allow the two men to exchange greetings. For some reason she was feeling shy and inept. Not used to feeling awkward, she turned her attention back to the painting allowing the threesome behind her to chat amicably for a few minutes. Once again the vividness of the piece of art captured her attention as her eyes roamed the bleeding colors.

"Lisa."

Startled, she quickly spun around and faced her grinning boss. "Robert!"

He glanced at the painting behind her and shook his head. "I called your name three times. You were rather intent on the painting."

The beautiful brunette felt her face flame in embarrassment. God, she was such an idiot! Not only did she appear socially inept and scatterbrained but now rudeness could be added to the growing list.

"I am sorry Robert. It's been a long day. I apologize for my rudeness."

His jovial face did not change expressions but his eyes were cold. "I am not the one you need to apologize to. Remember Lisa, this is a big deal for the company and I trust that you won't continue your behavior."

Gaping at him in disbelief, she could only nod her head dumbly. He flashed a smile and the warmth was back in his eyes. "That's my girl."

She bit her tongue in restraint as Robert turned his attention back to the conversation between Cheryl and John. Her face was flushed from embarrassment and fury at Robert's audacity. She counted to ten before rejoining the group and fulfilling her role as a well-behaved, knowledgeable assistant.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Jackson sipped his Merlot as he observed his dinner guests. His "partner" seemed to have imbibed quite a bit and was flirting heavily with Cheryl while casting looks across the table at Lisa who was situated between him and Cheryl. Of course, that was done purposefully. Surprisingly, he rather enjoyed having Lisa at his side. They had conversed cordially throughout dinner and Jackson found himself relaxing and letting a bit of his true self shine through, much like he had all those months ago at the airport. Luckily, his attitude fit right in with the persona he was portraying. He couldn't let himself become too comfortable though. He would not jeopardize his assignment for anything or anyone.

Including his obsession with the beautiful woman next to him.

He turned his attention towards Robert and observed the drunken man carefully. In the past the two men had gone for a few drinks, but Robert had never been so sloshed before. That pill Cheryl slipped in Robert's drink really packed a punch. He leaned back in his chair as Lisa excused herself. Cheryl seeing the contemplative look on Jackson's face accompanied the petite brunette to the restroom.

"Robert, my man, it seems like you have had a bit much to drink."

"I'm alright John. Just having a grand time at your expense." Jackson smiled at his slurred words.

"Carry on then. I'm not going to drag you to your room when we get home, just so you know."

Robert shook his head and closed his eyes against the spinning sensation it caused. "That's what servants are for. Besides, I plan on going to Cheryl's room. Hers is closer to the front of the house anyway."

Jackson raised a brow at that. Cheryl was most definitely an efficient employee for the Organization. While he could do without her little innuendos, as he personally had no interest in fucking the woman, she was most useful in her special skills.

"You and Cheryl, huh? I must admit I never saw that coming."

"She's smokin' and willing. What more could a guy ask for. Well besides….."

Jackson waited patiently for the drugged man to continue his sentence. When it appeared that Robert wasn't going to, he prompted him.

"Besides what? What else could a man want besides a hot, willing woman?"

Robert blinked as he thought over his answer. "Money, power. Oh, and the right woman."

"Right woman? What do you mean by that?"

Waving his hand around, the drugged man leaned across the table towards Jackson. "The right woman! You know, the one you pant after and dream about night after night! The woman you are obsessed with and who you see every time you close your eyes!"

Ignoring the little voice in his head that screamed 'That's like you! That's like you!', Jackson decided to pry a bit more information from the drugged man.

"It sounds like you've found the 'right woman'."

He was not prepared for Robert's reaction that followed leaving him chilled. The drugged man seemed to sober for a moment as his eyes glazed over with excitement.

"Oh, I have! And when I finally get her, it will be glorious! Long have I waited for someone like her, but no more! She will resist of course, but I will break her and she will call me master!"

Looking around him, Jackson noted that their table was far enough away from the kitchens that none of the workers had heard the outburst. Since it was Christmas evening, the restaurant was practically deserted. The wheels in his mind began to turn as he realized for the first time how unstable the man in front of him really was. There was something more going on here and he vowed to get answers from The Boss Man.

"That sounds, well that sounds a bit obsessed my friend. I must say that whoever this woman is, I would love to meet her. Anyone who can cause you to become so worked up over has got to be something real special."

Robert's feverish eyes looked at Jackson. "But you have met her John! Just this evening in fact. Oh, look here she comes!"

His blood ran cold as he noticed the direction of Robert's gaze. No, impossible! His mind refused to accept what was real. The drugged man spoke again, his words soft and filled with pride.

"Isn't my Lisa magnificent?"

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

Lisa was glad the night was over with. While dinner was delicious, the atmosphere seemed a bit strained when she and Cheryl had returned to the table for they're after dinner coffees. She assumed that Robert must've done or said something in his drunken state that offended John since the air around their host seemed rather saturated with anger. She hoped that it wasn't too irreparable of an offense. They had wrapped up dinner quickly and before she knew it, here she was in an oversized sweatshirt and flannel pajama bottoms laying on her back and staring at her ceiling. Belatedly, she realized she should have specified decaf coffee, as she was now wide-awake. Sighing, she sat up and played with the end of her braid.

What to do? What to do? She was bored and did not feel like watching some made for TV Christmas movie.

Damn! Today was Christmas and she hadn't called her father or her mother! Her mom would be furious with her for hanging up on her yesterday and not calling her back. She looked over at the clock and saw that it was 10:30 pm. Chewing on her lip she decided to wait until the morning to call her parents. How could she have so easily forgotten Christmas?

All of the whirlwind travel and plans had completely blindsided her and she just lost track of what day it was. Sighing she stood up and slid on her warm clogs and silently left her room making her way downstairs. Now that she was paying attention, she noticed that there were no decorations for the holidays here and she assumed that was because John didn't really stay here that much. It was only because of the last minute emergency John had to come here to take care of that they were all here as well. She wandered the huge house aimlessly, taking in the beautiful, yet cold décor. There was no warmth to the house, no photos of family or friends anywhere. She found that to be a bit sad. While the house was beautiful, it felt empty.

She found herself passing many darkened rooms and did not pause in her meanderings until she reached a huge kitchen. This room seemed almost as sterile and cold as the rest of the house, but she was determined to change that. The kitchen had always been a homey room in her house while she was growing up. It was a place for friends and family to gather while they prepared wonderful meals together. It seemed wrong to see such coldness from this room, particularly at a holiday time. She was struck by an idea. She hadn't gotten anything for Robert, John or Cheryl and what better way to do something for them than to make something delicious? She felt like baking, and by god she would do so! She pushed up her sleeves and started opening cabinets finding them to be well stocked and full of various ingredients. Finding a portable radio, she plugged it in and tuned in to a classical music station. Humming softly, she pulled down several mixing bowls and measuring instruments and set them on the center island with an array of ingredients. She stared at them thoughtfully, trying to decide what to make.

"What are you doing?"

A small scream escaped her as she spun around and found a tousled haired John in the doorway. Her hand was against her chest as she gripped the counter space behind her.

"John! You scared me!"

"Sorry about that. Now what are you doing?" He repeated.

"Oh! Baking, or rather deciding what to bake. I just realized that today was Christmas and that I hadn't gotten anything for any of you and I thought that this would be a nice surprise. The house seemed so empty for a holiday so then I thought I could cheer it up, at least this one small part of it. I know rather silly of me, huh? I mean I don't really know you and this is your house and all, and who in their right mind would try to cheer up a house anyway?"

He leaned against the doorway amused at her rambling. "Do you always say what's on your mind?"

She bit her lip feeling foolish. "Lately, yes."

He entered the kitchen fully and looked around. He was still dressed in the fitted clothes he wore to dinner and the bright light showed the planes of his handsome face. She gulped. She couldn't believe she was ogling her host! What was wrong with her? No male had been able to have that effect on her since Jackson. Or even before Jackson for that matter.

"What about before?"

"Before what?"

"You said that you had started to speak your mind lately. What about before that?"

"Oh!" She quickly set the oven to preheat and busied herself with preparing the dry ingredients for spice cookies.

"Before… well before, I was rather conscientious of everything that came out of my mouth. I had to, for my job you see. I was the manager for a rather posh hotel in Miami and I had to be courteous to both the guests and the staff at all times."

He went to the refrigerator and pulled out some eggs for her. "I imagine that got a bit tedious."

She laughed lightly. "You could say that. It wasn't until I had a major reality check that I realized life was too short to try to please everyone. Besides, I learned that it wasn't very healthy to keep things bottled up."

She thanked him as he silently handed her the eggs. She looked sideways at him. "What about you?"

"What about me?" He asked absently as he helped stir the batter.

"Do you speak your mind?"

He shrugged. "Sometimes. I guess it depends on the situation and any possible repercussions."

"Repercussions? I must admit that I no longer take those into consideration."

"Why not?"

She paused, reaching for a cookie sheet. "I guess I changed."

"Your major reality check?"

She smiled briefly, one of a pained longing. He saw it and filed it away in his memory for a later analysis.

"You could say that."

She spooned out the batter onto two cookie sheets and slid them in the heated oven. She placed the dirty mixing bowl in the sink and filled it with water before turning back to the center island.

"What brought you to New England?" He asked her suddenly.

"Excuse me?"

He handed her flour and baking soda. "What brought you to New England? You said you used to work at a hotel in Miami, so I assumed you lived in the Sunshine State. Either that or you had a killer commute."

She smiled at him, her dimple flashing. "No, I lived in Miami. I left there for a change of scenery, a fresh start if you will."

"Let me guess, a result of your reality check?"

"Spot on."

He dumped the cup of chocolate chips in the mixing bowl. Hearing the ding of the timer, she pulled out the browned cookies and loosened them from the tray. Finding some wax paper, she spread it out on the counter near the sink and slid the cookies on there to cool.

"I hope you enjoyed dinner."

She turned to look at him. "Of course. It was delicious. I was rather surprised that they were open though."

He smiled and his face momentarily mesmerized her. His smile seemed familiar somehow, but before she could grasp that thought fully it was gone.

"Ahh, yes. Christmas. The reason you are down here this late at night baking."

She blushed and wiped her hands on a kitchen towel. "I know, I know. Rather stupid of me. I've seem to be doing and saying idiotic things since I got here."

Hearing no reply, she turned back to the chocolate chip cookies. She tried to mask the hurt she felt at his indifference, confused as to why she felt that way at all.

"You have some flour on your face." He said gruffly, not missing her reaction to his silence.

Her head snapped up. "I do? Where?" She began to wipe at her face.

His tanned hand caught hers. "Allow me." Gently, he raised his thumb and brushed the flour from her cheekbone. She stilled under his touch as her pulse raced at his nearness.

He was so close! Too close!

His brown eyes stared into hers intently before lowering his head. She closed her eyes reflexively waiting for his lips to meet hers, but the stirring of the air around her caused her eyes to fly open. She caught a glimpse of John before he disappeared through the door leaving her to stare after him in hurt confusion.

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

"AAAAARRRRRGGGGHHHH!!!!!!!!!!"

A table crashed against the wall of the guesthouse out back. He had already decimated the room earlier when he got back from the most informative dinner with his guests. The thought of Robert Johnson with his hands on Lisa had inflamed Jackson's bloodlust to a destructive point. There was barely any furniture left whole that had withstood his wrath.

Now he was at it again.

A lamp shattered next to the splintered table. He had almost kissed her! How could he had let his walls down long enough for that to happen? He blamed Robert. Since that man's declaration at the dinner table, Jackson hadn't been able to think straight. He had to calm down.

Taking deep breaths, he calmly smoothed his clothing and tousled hair. Slowly, he banished every single one of his crippling emotions from his psyche, allowing welcoming emptiness to fill him. Feeling in control, he left the destroyed room and made his way back to the main house.

Johnson would pay, that much Jackson would make sure of. Not only was it his job, but it would also be his pleasure to rid the world of that man. How dare he lay claim to Lisa? Lisa was his and he be damned if he allowed another to claim what belonged to him.

He glanced up seeing the glow of a light through the kitchen window. He saw Lisa silhouetted against the window and felt a sharp pain in his chest as he thought about the time he had just spent with her a half hour ago. He watched as she spun around as if dancing with a partner. Even from this distance Jackson could make out her beauty and grace. The tolling of a church bell some miles away broke through his thoughts. He looked once more at the beautiful woman, before walking away, his softly spoken words echoing around him.

"Merry Christmas Lisa."

XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX

A/N: I LIVE!!!!!! I am SOOOOOOO sorry for not updating this sooner. Like an idiot I started a couple of other stories and put this on the backburner. Shame on me!

So if any of you out there are still reading my story, drop me a line and show me your support! No rotten tomatoes please.

As always, THANKS FOR READING EVERYONE!!!!!!!!

F.L.