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Chapter Four

With the time difference Sydney and the Melroses arrived in the middle of the night. A car was waiting to pick them up and take them to the house. Sydney didn't even have a chance to appreciate her surroundings. They got their luggage inside and went right to bed.

Sunlight streamed into the room the next morning. Sydney peeked an eye open and saw it was after nine. She tried to do the mental math to figure out what time it was back home, but gave up quickly. She was on vacation and time didn't matter. What did matter was all the noise outside. She crept out of bed and stepped onto the balcony. A car similar to the one that had brought them to the house the night before was back in the drive.

That was weird. Jill hadn't mentioned any other family members coming to stay at the house over the holidays. The driver emerged from the car and started to unload the luggage from the trunk. A dark haired man and woman emerged next. Must be an aunt and uncle of some sort.

Then came Adrian. What in the world was he doing here? He had told her he was going on a ski trip for the holidays. Maui was a far cry from the slopes. Sydney ducked back into her room, not that Adrian had seen her, but still…this was alarming! Had he followed her there? No, of course not. He didn't know she was coming here for the break. She told him she was going home. Besides Jill said she hadn't talked to Adrian since the party. Ugh, why was she freaking out so much?

She walked through the bathroom that connected her room with Jill's.

"Jill! Jill!" Sydney hissed. She sat down on the edge of her bed.

"What? What are you doing?" Jill whined.

"Why is Adrian here?" Sydney asked her.

"Adrian's not here," Jill murmured. She rolled over and hugged her pillow.

"Yes, he is…with his parents. Well, I think they're his parents," Sydney said. "I saw them outside."

"They own the timeshare with us," Jill said through a yawn.

"But he told me he was going skiing over break," Sydney said.

"Why are you freaking out?" Jill asked her.

"Why do you think I'm freaking out?" Sydney demanded.

"I don't know…oh…THAT," Jill said, suddenly everything clicking.

"You're finally catching on," Sydney said.

"Don't be like that," Jill said. "My brain is operating on jetlag."

"Go find out why they're here," Sydney said to her.

"We'll find out later. When we're awake," Jill said. She handed her a pillow. "Now go back to sleep."

"How the hell do you expect me to fall asleep?" Sydney asked her.

"Like this," Jill said. She scrunched up her pillow and closed her eyes. "Just like this…"

Within ten seconds Jill was asleep again. Sydney groaned and rolled over onto her back. She was half tempted to go downstairs and find out what was going on, but she didn't have the nerve. Instead she ducked into the shower and let the water pour over her. She needed to clear her head. There was no reason to freak out. She was here to relax and enjoy herself. And so what if Adrian was there? It's not like she'd be spending time with him anyway. He probably didn't want to spend time with her so what she so worked up about?

"Don't be a freak, don't be a freak…" Sydney mumbled to herself under the spray of the shower. After finishing up her pep talk Sydney turned off the water. She grabbed a warm, fluffy towel and wrapped it around herself. She stepped out of the bathroom and into her bedroom and promptly screamed.

"Nice to see you too, Sage," Adrian said with a snicker.

"What? What are you doing in my room?" Sydney asked him.

"I could ask you the same question," he replied.

"I'm staying here…with Jill and her family," Sydney stammered. She tightened her towel around her body.

Adrian chuckled again. "Don't worry, Sage. I'm familiar with your naked form," he reminded her.

"You told me you and your family were going skiing over break," Sydney said, choosing to ignore his comment.

"Change of plans…or I didn't listen in the first place," Adrian said with a shrug. "At any rate I'm here and YOU are in my room."

"Your name isn't on the door," Sydney said. "And you aren't supposed to be here!" she added in exasperation.

"Sage, you're giving me a headache and I'm on vacation so headaches are no good unless they are a result of a hangover," Adrian said.

"I'm giving you a headache?" she asked in disbelief.

"I suppose since you're all set up in here I can give you the room," Adrian said.

"How big of you," Sydney said.

Adrian remained unmoving.

"Do you think I could get some privacy?" she asked him.

"Oh, well…if you insist," Adrian replied. "See you around." He smiled and ducked into the bathroom to gain access to Jill's room.

Sydney sat down on the bed and put her face in her hands. She would just ignore him. That way her vacation wouldn't be ruined. She changed into her swimsuit and cover-up and went downstairs for breakfast.

"Good morning," a man Sydney assumed was Adrian's father greeted her.

"Hello, sir," Sydney said politely. "I'm Sydney Sage." She offered her hand to him.

He shook her hand back. "I'm Nathan Ivashkov," he said. "Adrian's father…among other things."

"It's nice to meet you," Sydney said. "I didn't realize you'd be vacationing here over the break."

"Last minute change of plans," he said. "No worries, though. This place is big enough for all of us."

"How long have you and your family known the Melroses?" Sydney asked him. She helped herself to a cup of coffee.

"Mr. Melrose and I were college roommates," he explained to him. "We worked together for a while, but the company went bust and we went our separate ways career wise. We all still keep in touch, though."

Sydney sipped her coffee and nodded her head. "I see," she replied.

"Are you friends with my son?" he asked her.

"Friends is probably an overstatement," Sydney replied. "I'm friends with Jill and actually just met Adrian the other night."

As if on cue Adrian sauntered into the kitchen. "Are you using my name in vain?" he asked the pair.

"Don't flatter yourself," Mr. Ivashkov replied. He took his own cup of coffee. "See you around, Sydney. Try to keep him out of trouble. God knows no one else can."

"Charming man my father is," Adrian replied and looked back at Sydney.

"Aren't you going to sleep?" she asked him. "You must be totally jetlagged."

Adrian shrugged. "I don't need much sleep to get by. What are you and Jilly up to today?" he asked her.

"I think we were going to check out the beach," Sydney said to him.

"Perfect," Adrian said to her. "I'll just change and then we can head out."

"I didn't say you were invited," she replied.

"Now, Sage…you're a polite young lady. How would it look if you didn't invite me along?" Adrian said. Before Sydney could reply he grabbed a waffle from the buffet and left the room as quickly as he came.

Sydney shook her head. She picked up some fruit salad and added yogurt. She was guessing there was a maid or housekeeper around somewhere. She could hardly imagine Mrs. Melrose cooking. She sat down at the table and ate while she waited for Jill.