Heading to the Pool

Rhi POV

Opening the door, I expect to see Kate and Ana but they're nowhere to be seen. I spy a note they've left on the breakfast bar,

'Went to Starbucks to get coffee and a muffin.

We'll be back up in an hour.

You better not be naked.'

I laugh and hand it to Alex to read.

He laughs as he looks at me. "Something tells me that when they return, you're going to get grilled."

My eyes widen. Oh my God he knows they're going to get details!

He laughs at my face again and says, "It's ok. I don't mind. Besides, they already know how I feel about you, so…" He trails off.

I'm shocked at his response. "What? How do you feel about me?" I ask, quietly and look down at my hands.

He lifts my chin again to look up at him, pauses for a moment and says, "I want you." His eyes are intense, and he leans down and kisses me gently.

I swoon and smile. "I don't know how to respond to that."

He continues to look at me intensely but there's a flicker of something in his eyes but it disappears before I can even decipher it.

"I told you to take your time. I know it's sudden. I understand." He says in a clipped tone and gives me a toothy smile that looks forced. Abruptly he turns and heads for the door and with his back to me he says shortly, "I've got to go."

I still can't wrap my head around him. He's so sweet and caring and attentive but there's something that's nagging at me. I can't identify it so I remain silent. I hope I didn't hurt his feelings by not saying anything but I told him earlier that I needed time so hopefully he accepts that.

I think for a moment and decide to walk down with him and see if I can find the girls. "Wait. I'll walk down with you. Maybe I'll run into the girls. Just let me grab my shoes and my phone and my key card. Oh, and I'll leave a note for the girls telling them I'll be right back, just in case I miss them."

We head out the door and start to walk down the hallway to the elevator. He reaches down and clasps my hand, rubbing the back of it with his thumb. I look down at his hand and it dwarfs mine. He has such large and strong hands. I love hands for some reason, especially strong ones. You can tell by a man's hands what kind of person he is. At least I can anyway. I used to look at and play with my dad's all the time, ever since I was a young child. I really miss him.

Before long, my thoughts are running rampant through my mind about the times with my dad when we would work outside on the cars together. Those were the best days, when we bonded over his love for cars and my desire to be close to him and learn everything I could from him. It's because of him that I'm able to appreciate vehicles of all kinds. The way the tiniest of parts create the moving parts that come together to make one powerful machine. When we were done working on the cars for the day, we would sit around the firepit relaxing. It was at that time that I would hold his hand next to mine and revel in the power and tenderness in his, both of us with matching grease covered hands. I feel a squeeze and a tug on my hand.

"What's wrong?" Alex asks, looking down at me.

I'm snapped out of my thoughts and look up at him, "Huh? What? Nothing. I was just looking at your hands and how big and strong they are. I like looking at hands for some reason. Maybe it has something to do with my dad." I shrug silently. I'm not expanding my thoughts any further.

He doesn't say anything, just turns as we continue to walk down the hallway in silence.

As we pass the door to the other penthouse on this floor that uses the same elevator, I wonder if it's being used by anyone. I've never seen anyone coming or going when we are. Hearing the elevator 'ding' I expect to hear and see Kate and Ana but instead I hear male voices and see two big guys emerge and walk toward us. They're wearing what looks like business casual dress, Dockers, Polo shirts and dress shoes. There's always a conference in Vegas so it's possible they're here for one. They look vaguely familiar but that doesn't mean anything. I've probably seen them in the casino walking around or maybe when we checked in. They're heading to the other penthouse so I guess that answers my question, they must be staying there. Pausing, they glance briefly at Alex and cast a lingering glance at me, like they were analyzing me. I feel Alex's hand tighten around mine and he pulls me a little closer to him, but a step behind to allow us to pass by without touching them.

"Good morning." One says, nodding.

"Nice day to go to the pool. Enjoy your day." The other says as they smile, turn and go into their room.

"Well, that was weird." I say to Alex. "I've seen them before somewhere. Must have been in the casino downstairs because I've never seen anyone else on this floor."

He stops suddenly and jerks my hand, pulling me close. Grasping my chin, he lifts my face so I'm looking at him and in a condescending tone he growls, "Those are the type of guys I want you to watch out for. They saw you with me, barely gave me a glance and looked at you and checked you out. Not to mention they brought up the pool, granted you're in your suit and that's an obvious deduction, but that's irrelevant." He pauses briefly and takes a deep breath like he's trying to calm down and mutters angrily, like I'm not supposed to hear him, "Fuck, I wish you weren't so hot in that bathing suit, if you can even call it that."

I look at him stunned, his face is so intense and his eyes are dark once again. What in the mother fuck? Is he for real? Paranoid much? And they think I'M the one with issues? Fucking hell, I'm confused about this whole thing but I'll do what I can to pacify him. I don't need any confrontations. Luckily I'm an expert at believable and successful diversion tactics.

Sighing, I force a smile and touch his cheek with my hand. "I promise. I'll be fine. Trust me when I say I can handle things myself if I need to. I appreciate the concern but I'll be fine." I put my arms around his neck and pull him down to me and kiss him. I hear a 'click' but ignore it because I'm preoccupied with kissing and placating Alex, who picks me up and I wrap my legs around his waist and giggle.

He leans me up against the wall and places his hands on my cheeks and looks at me with those beautiful dark brown eyes and kisses me gently but deeply, and I can feel some of the tension leaving his body. "I trust you, but I'll worry anyway. It's just my nature." The tone of his voice drops ominously as he continues, "I'm very protective of those I care about." He looks at me with an intensity that is almost palpable and a shadow crosses his eyes then disappears as quickly as it appeared. After a beat, his tone changes again. "Right now, I want to get you to Ana and Kate so you can get out and enjoy your vacation safely and then see you later." He smiles.

Placing me back on my feet, he reaches for my hand again and we continue to walk to the elevator in silence. The nagging feeling is back and I can't help but feel like there's something ominous lurking under the surface. Before I have any time to really think about it, the elevator doors open and we descend in silence down to the casino floor.

When the doors open, we step out and head for the doors to the taxi line. As we're making our way through the casino, I hear my name being called.

"Rhi!" I hear Kate and Ana shout in unison.

Looking around, I see Kate and Ana waving their hands and I want to cringe. Good grief they look like tourists and geeze, do they have to announce my name to the whole world? Laughing, I shake my head and start to walk over to them.

They're in their suits too and looks like they just finished at Starbucks and were getting ready to head back to the room. I'm glad we got down here before they went up, this cuts down on time wasted running back up to the room. It's time to get down to enjoying our vacation. It's already been a stressful start to the day and I'm ready to hit the pool and relax. Swimming is one of my favorite sports, it's great exercise and I love the water. The ocean is my favorite place to be because I love the sea life and the beaches are beautiful. I'm not too fond of the Pacific ocean, the rocky cliffs and lush forests of the west coast are amazing but it's way too cold to swim in. I'm more of an Atlantic ocean person. The water is warmer and calming, the beaches are more tropical and adorned with tiki huts and cabana boys.

I quickly start walking toward them and when I reach them Ana tells me, "We were just heading up to the room to get you. Are you ready or do you have to go back up to get anything?"

"I believe the hotel provides everything if you have a cabana and we've reserved the best one. We should be fine. There's no reason to go back up to the room." I know it sounds bad but I want to get Alex into his taxi so we can get to the pool. Right now, I can't deal with his intensity and the confused and uneasy state he leaves me in.

Kate looks behind me at Alex and asks, "Hey Alex, are you leaving?" There's a glint in her eyes that she's trying to instigate something but I don't know if he see it. Ana and I are hyper aware of the glint and what it signifies.

He sighs, "Unfortunately, yes. I have to go to rehearsal with the guys and practice for the show tonight. I asked Rhi this already, but I'd like to see her again tonight. She said she'd talk to you about it later."

Kate side eyes me and Ana and says, "Sure, that sounds fun. Just let us know the details and we'll see what we're doing at the time." She smiles devilishly.

Fuck. I can tell this is going to be a battle between them. He wants me to be with him and she will fight him for dominance the entire time. Alex and Kate are having a stare down and I look at Ana and roll my eyes. It's actually pretty amusing when she's like this and at this point in time, Ana and I think it's hilarious and struggle to keep from laughing. She raises her coffee cup to her lips to hide the smile that's growing across her face. I look down to hide my own smile, my hair forming a curtain around my face, but I have nothing to pretend to fix. I slyly drop my door key card and bend down to pick it up. It's a pathetic camouflage but works in a pinch.

Standing up, I see they're still glaring at each other. They're acting like children fighting over a toy.

"Kate, Ana? Do you want to walk with us to get him a taxi or do you want to wait here?" I ask looking at Kate with pleading eyes to stop antagonizing Alex. God, I hope they don't come with us.

Ana speaks up, still trying to hide her smile by taking a drink, then says, "We'll wait here for you."

Before we're even turned around Kate says, her voice laced with saccharine and her eyes gleaming, "Bye Alex, see you later. Maybe."

"Kate!" I look at her, pleading with my eyes for her to drop it.

She opens her eyes wide and tries to act innocent. "What? I already said it would be fun but who knows, we might be doing something. After all, it IS our vacation." She smirks.

I nod. "You're right. Hold on, I'll be right back, wait here." I turn and pull Alex behind me to get him away from her.

This is going to be a nightmare. I'll have to talk with her and see if I can get her to chill a little. I know she's worried about me, considering what's happened, and I love her for it, but she needs to not do this to every person I meet, male or female.

We get into the taxi line, and I turn to Alex, "I'm sorry Alex, Kate is a little… over-protective. She means well, but she's also cautious about everything and everyone. Please don't be upset with her, but she's right. It IS our vacation and we're here to hang out and relax." I pause for effect, I don't want to hurt his feelings but I need to get my point across. "Just the three of us."

He turns and looks down at me. His eyes soften and he's quiet for a moment. Finally, he sighs, "I'm not upset with you, or her really. I know you're here on vacation and I guess I forgot that. I just wanted to see you later and spend time with you while you're here." His eyes roam my body and the suit I'm wearing. "Even with just meeting and all that's transpired, she's not the only one to be over-protective. I'm going to worry about you in the pool looking as hot as you do. At this point, I'm glad Kate is the way she is. That means you'll be safer." He smiles and winks then a serious look settles on his face. "Please promise me you will be careful today. Don't trust anyone and don't accept drinks from people you don't know. I know I sound like a parent, and I'm sure you know the drill, but I worry. There's a lot of creepy people in Vegas just waiting for a beautiful woman to be alone. Please make sure you aren't alone anywhere."

"Where to sir, ma'am?" The valet asks, looking between the two of us, cutting the tension.

"Excalibur please, and it's just me. Thank you." Alex tells him and when he looks at me he looks like someone took away his puppy. "Wow, I don't like the sound of that. It should be us not just me." He stops, catching himself." Sorry, I didn't mean to say that. It is what it is though."

Ok, now I feel kind of bad, but it really isn't my fault. He's the one that put himself in this situation. I was telling the truth, we're here to relax on our vacation. I didn't come here looking for a relationship, and to be honest, I don't know if I ever will want one. There's too much bullshit that happens, miscommunications happen, unrealistic expectations are set and a wholes mess of other things mixed in there. I don't think I can handle that right now, nor do I really want to. Maybe sometime in the future, and yes, maybe with him, but I don't want to think about that on my vacation.

I reach up and caress his face, playing with his beard. "It will be ok. Go rehearse, do your thing. It's not that I don't want to see you but we are here on vacation and it's only the second day. I'll talk to Kate and Ana and will let you know what's going later. Ok?" I reach up and kiss him goodbye. Stepping back I smile, "I'll talk to you later."

He steps into the taxi, closes the door and rides away from the hotel.

Heading back to Kate and Ana, I find them right where I left them.

"Kate, you drive me crazy you know that? I understand why though and I love you for it." I laugh and shake my head.

"Girl, he's forgetting that you don't live here. I'm glad you met someone, and he seems really nice, but he needs to be reminded that this is our vacation." She sounds like she's talking about a love-sick teenager.

"I know, I know, I know. You're 100% right and I needed to be reminded of that too I guess. I told him pretty much the same thing, though I think his feelings were hurt more when I told him we were here on vacation and wanted to spend time just the three of us. I tried soften the blow by telling I'd talk to you guys and see if we can work something out. I do like spending time with him, and he's a really nice and sweet guy, even if he makes me uncomfortable sometimes. But you're right, this is our vacation. Who knows what will happen, maybe I'll just hook up with him. I mean, he's fucking hot. I could definitely fuck him!" I laugh at their expressions. "Anyway, right now, I just want to have fun and enjoy our vacation. So….. Are we ready to go to the pool?"

"Yes!" Kate and Ana exclaim in unison.

We turn around and head to the pool entrance.