"The Dark Stranger"
© VeGirl 2014

Eddie calls me into her office one day and surprised I notice a glib expression on her face. "I've booked a flight for you and me to Vegas."

"Vegas? Eddie!" I yelp. "What do you mean?'

My friend is snickering, pleased with herself. "There's this exhibition for businesspeople, and you and I are going." Her face shows a smug smile.

"Get out of here!"

"Yes we are," she retorts and both of us laugh. "We're going from Prescot to Las Vegas Friday morning."

"Friday? But that's tomorrow!"

"Yes, I've cleared it with your boss," she jokes, earning a slap on her arm, which only make her snicker. "She said you were a slacker, but she'll let you go anyway." She teases me but I know she really appreciate what I do, she wouldn't buy me a trip to Vegas if she didn't.

This whole thing makes me emotional. "You're the best friend!" I wrap my arms around her and give her a tight hug.

"What are you doing here? We leave tomorrow so you better get home and pack right now! I'll pick you up early tomorrow morning," she says affectionate. "Now, get out of here!"

"You don't have to say that again," I retort and hurry out the door.

My mind is a swirling vortex of pictures and images of Las Vegas and as some stereotypical woman I suddenly realise that I have nothing at all to wear. It might be a part of my recently breakup, that I decide for a minor shopping streak and turn my car to the small shops in the centre of our small town instead of the big mall in the outskirts. Luckily there were both a fluttering summerdress and a club-outfit that caught my eye, even if I am a terrible shopper.

A couple of hours later I drag my suitcase out from hiding to start packing. With the big open suitcase on the bed that Peter used to occupy, I walk around, panicking about what I should pack. Isn't that the typical female crisis; with a wardrobe full of clothes, we never have anything to wear. The washer is working it's best to get my almost new jeans clean and I pack a new crisp white shirt to match with those. My new dresses are carefully put next to my killer high heels if some fancy occasion occurs.

Finally my vanity bag is all that is missing and I slump down on my back patio. The sun is bright today, but here I can relax in the shadow, sipping a glass of white wine, feeling lush and inutile.

A weekend in Las Vegas... isn't that a dream?

That night I fall asleep fast and I dream dark disturbing dreams, with so much intensity that I can't keep up, but everything is just short fragments of worry and disturbance; things I have no memory of in the morning.

After an early breakfast, I take my suitcase and my purse and sit down in the swing on the front porch as I wait for the cab to arrive. A quick glance over at my neighbours house reveals the same void as every other time my eyes has flickered in that direction. How can there be a man living in that dark abandoned looking house? An absolutely gorgeous man. Immediately I think about what made him chose that kind of life; he looks like he could fit in a much more posh environment and not have to live in a shack like that.

A cab rolls by, turn at the cul de sac and stops by my curb, allowing me to walk down to it. The cabdriver put my suitcase in the trunk while Eddie open the door for me with a huge smile plastered on her face.

"Hi babe, are you ready for an adventure?"

I laugh with her. "Bring it on!"

The cab rolls off and my eyes flicker over to the abandoned house before it disappears around the corner, but the dark guy I hope to see in one of the windows is a no show. Eddie is watching me with curious eyes though.

"What?"

"Waiting for Mr Dreamy?" she tease me.

"Not a dream at all, he came to my house the other day and scared the living shit out of me," I admit and watch Eddie's teasing expression turn into surprise, and then a dark mad one.

"What did he do?"

"Walked up to me and told me to stay away from him."

Her fury subsides and she looks at me with a confused face. "Didn't you say that he was the one that came to your house?"

"That's what I said, as soon as I regained my ability to speak," I add silently.

"Weird!"

At the airport, we find Mark sitting in a chair by our gate. "Eddie!" he exclaims. "...and Sam!" His tone of voice is softer as my name is on his lips. "How nice of you to keep me company."

I had no idea that he was coming, but it looks like Eddie did. Both of us hug him, glad that he will be attending the same gathering. The flight is smooth and Mark is a pleasant company as he sits beside Eddie, talking and joking with us through this flight.

When we arrive at the hotel, Eddie and I get a room together. With our close friendship, it would be weird if we didn't share a room. It feels amazing to walk around in this sparkling town that seems to never sleep. After the small town life we live, the tempo here is almost immediately exhausting. There is no way I can process everything that is going on around me, but we're having a great time.

We meet Mark for dinner; he has a great taste in restaurants but it turns out that he has a bad taste for what is appropriate, at least in my point of view. He asks too many questions to the poor waitress who gets nervous and he sends the food back to the kitchen because he claims the meat is overcooked. I'm aware that he knows what he's doing, but I am embarrassed.

That night we end up by a Black Jack table and somehow Eddie lose money in the same rate that I am winning.

* * *

Next morning Eddie has something to discuss with Mark, and we decide to meet down at the lobby, after breakfast.

As I walk down the hallway on my own, a girl with a red billowing hair, dressed in slim jeans turns towards me; her expression changes into recognition and then it changes again by her own will it seems and she just nods indifferent. When I am just about to pass her, I realize who the familiar-looking girl is. "Esmeralda," I breathe, stop dead in my path and grip her arm.

Her eyes widen, but she looks like she is trying to feign not remembering who I am.

"You told me to stay away from a darkhaired guy," I remind her. "Or do you say that to all the girls?"

Her face splits up into a breathtaking smile. "Only the ones that need it." Then she starts to look around and lower her voice. "How did you find me?"

I look surprised at her. "I just walked along this hall and here you were." My tone is deadpanned. "What are you doing here?"

"Not telling peoples fortune, if that's what you mean." A smile is lurking in the corner of her mouth.

"I tried to find you, but you were gone, in your psychic hut an old crone tried to convince me that you had never been there," I growled quietly at her.

"Oops."

"What do you mean oops?" I hiss. "I need to know what kind of danger is involved around that darkhaired guy; he's saved me twice now."

Her eyes widen. "He found you?" she hiss and she looks alarmed.

"Yes." In the corner of my eyes I see Eddie walk towards us and I wonder how she'll react to this psychic girl that she dragged me to see. When she reaches us she looks straight at me as if the green eyed beautiful girl isn't there at all. "Are you ready?"

I look confused between the two girls and the Esmeralda girl just smiles.

"Yes..."

Eddie hooks her arm in mine and we walk away. I glance over my shoulder, but the hallway is empty. There is no sign of any redhead ever being there.

How odd!

We meet Mark in the breakfast area and he keeps complaining about what is served for breakfast at this high class hotel, but I tune him out. I have other stuff on my mind, about disappearing psychics in the middle of a hotel, and I have to work like crazy to focus on Eddie's enthusiasm about the event we were attending.

The exhibition is located in a huge hall fairly close to the hotel; we walk along long rows lined with people doing their best to sell you products you can't live without. Other rows present different tastes and bakery products, and finally offer tastings of the most exquisite cakes and cookies for the visitors. The scents that surround this event are enough to make my senses tingle and my mouth water.

This whole exhibition is an enlightening experience and when we leave, we're carrying bags upon bags with equipment, cookbooks, seasoning and foodcolouring to be used in the bakery at home.

My feet hurt and I'm hungry when we arrive back at the hotel. I keep looking over my shoulder, hoping to spot a certain redhaired girl as soon as we reach the hotel again.

"What are you looking for?" I snap my head in Eddie's direction, and my anxious face meets her teasing one. "Celebrities?"

I blink. "Yes," I lie with a smile.

"A certain celebrity?" Eddie keeps pushing me, but I don't know what she is after. "I saw Nicholas Cage's old black car glide past," she reveal in a teasing tone.

My heart starts to pound hard. "The car from that movie?" I ask breathless and worry is gripping my heart like an ironglove.

Eddie is laughing at my reaction. "I promise to keep my eyes open if I see him," she whisper teasingly.

I feel confused until I realise she think my reaction is due to the possibility that Nicholas Cage might be in the area. That is not at all what is going through my mind, but what my neighbor called his associate. I manage to sport a teasing, flirty look. "Please do," I say, feigning interest.

Luckily we find a great small restaurant without Mark who has met an old friend. The food is mouthwatering and the staff is nice and we're having a great time. We manage to end up sitting next to Mark Wahlberg and Eddie who started this nigh by teasing me, ends up drooling over this poor guy, who seems really nice.

"Could you please be any less embarrassing?" I hiss to her, and then laugh.

"What?"

"Stop harassing the poor guy," I laugh.

"I don't know what you mean," she says in denial. "What if it was Nicholas Cage?" She try to tease me back, but I just laugh.

"You'd probably end up asking for his autograph." I laugh at her, and she laugh back with me.

This night continues at some dance place, unfortunately without the company of poor Mark Walhberg, who had Eddie stuttering and drooling. Both of us has quite a few drinks and is a bit heavy on the liquored side when we head back to the hotel.

That night in bed, the brooding returns when Eddie silently snores. I send a silent sentence to Esmeralda. I want to talk to you! Nothing happens of course, it isn't as if I have her cellphone number. Eventually the intoxication takes its toll and I fall asleep. I dream that she and I meet in some luxurious place I have never seen, and that I am able to ask a few questions to her face.

"Why did you say he is dangerous, he has saved me twice."

"He is surrounded by danger, Sam," is Esmeraldas answer as we keep walking around in this dream and everywhere people greet us with great respect.

"That is not really what I asked." I keep prodding her for answers. "I want to know if he is dangerous!"

She sighs. "Even the cutest person is dangerous in a certain crew," she looks at me with begging eyes. "Please be careful, Sam," is the last thing she says before the dream is fading away.

* * *

I wake up the next morning with a headache. Images from other dreams surround my mind, but I can't get a clear memory of what it is about.

Eddie wakes up when I search my vanity bag for aspirin.

"Ouch," she groans and stretches an open hand towards me. I smile and put two pills in it, which she swallows with her eyes still closed before she slumps back into the pillows again. It takes us a couple of hours sleep before we can take any interest at all in breakfast, however delicious it is.

The moment Eddie and I lay eyes on each other we start to giggle. "My God, you look a wreck!" I squeal between giggles.

"You should see yourself," she giggles. "Oh my God!" She remembers something and glares at the watch. "We have one and a half hour until we're supposed to visit a bakery here, we better get moving!" She bounces up from bed and head for the shower at once.

I stay in bed and laugh at her.

In impressive speed both she and I are out of the shower fresh like morning roses, and soon were standing by the European breakfast bar in full makeup and with blow-dried hair.

"My God I'm hungry!" Eddie hisses.

"Yeah, you would think we haven't eaten this entire weekend," I agree as I load up on my plate. I don't think a breakfast has ever tasted better, and I gulp down orange juice as if had been walking around in the desert.

We check out of our room and take a cab to the bakery where Eddie has an appointment with the owner.

It is strange to be so allured by the scents of this bakery when Eddie and I basically do the same in our town. They have figured out how to use crumbles into what they called compost cookies and they have innovative decor skills that I gladly assimilate. I feel really proud when I am able to show them a few tricks I have learned along the way.

By the time we take a cab to the airport we're both tired and hungry. Luckily the check-in is smooth and we sit down in a pasta place.

"This is food for the hung-over," Eddie mumbles with a mouthful of tagliatelli.

I giggle. "I definitely agree; now all we need is a bottle of aspirins and then we can pass out on the flight."

"That sounds like a plan."

When the plane land we're even more tired. The giggling conversation is totally gone and we barely say a word until we get halfway home in the cab.

"Thank you for this weekend that was just what I needed."

"Thank you for coming."

"Did I have a choice?"

"No."

We chuckle tiredly. "It's been a great weekend, and I think we learned a lot."

"Yeah."

We sit silent the rest of the ride to my house. It is dark when the cab stops by my house and I say my goodbye to my best friend. Just when I am about to get out, Eddie calls my name. "Sam, let's take a day off tomorrow."

I smile thankfully at her. "Thank you."

After putting my suitcase inside my house I walk out to collect my mail. I've never before really noticed how this house and the one opposite is laying further away from the others, almost placed secluded to be holding secrets together.

My pulse quickens and at first I don't understand why, until I realize that the other times my body has reacted like this, a certain neighbor has been involved. Suddenly all my senses are on high alert. I can barely move and I know he is closing in even if I have my back towards him, due to the hairs standing on edge and the air is almost sizzling.

"Who's gonna take care of you now, Samira?" I nearly moan out loud by the way my name rolls off his tongue in that deep baritone voice.

With great effort I take a couple of deep breaths, straighten my back and turn slowly towards him. I find myself in way too close proximity to him and have to look up slightly, totally lost in those silvery blue eyes of his. How can eyes be both dark and silvery at the same time? My heart flutters and my stomach clenches, and I have to work like crazy to hide those treacherous reactions. I raise my shin a fraction. "Are you implying that I can't take care of myself?"

"You don't have any defence at all when it comes to me now." His voice feels like being covered in melted chocolate. There is a dangerously captivating smug expression on his face and it feels as if he could make anybody do absolutely anything for this beautiful man.

I want to discuss the significance of the word no with him, but I'm not sure at all that is what I want. I take a deep breath, determined to make a conversation with this guy. "You have me at a disadvantage here, you know my name, but I don't know yours," I say, trying to drown out the beating of my heart.

He smiles a crocked smile. "You haven't checked up on me yet?" One of his brows raise in a challenge.

My mouth is dry and my heart is beating like a hammer. "No, I'm not a stalker, like some others in this neighborhood." I fake a bold, confident girl. It is hard.

He snickers in the most charming way and he keeps his roaming eyes on me. "My name is Vincent," he says softly and I can't help but to think that this unusual name suits him perfectly. He seems to come from an entirely different time and place.

"Vincent..." I repeat slowly as if to taste it and I can see his pupils widen and him exhaling as if his name on my tongue affects him just like my name through his lips made shivers run up and down my spine. I shake my head slightly to snap out of my dazed state. "Are you telling me that I need some kind of protection against you?"

The muscles in his strong jaw move as if he was biting it hard together. "I would never do anything to hurt you intentionally."

I raise my eyebrows. "But unintentionally?"

He calms his features. "You never know," he answers enigmatic with a smug expression, as if to hide something.

"You never know?" I blink.

He smiles a crocked smile. "Things happen in the heat of the moment that nobody can be blamed for."

I just blink and stare at him. "What are we talking about here; BDSM gone bad, or Oops; I accidentally snapped your neck, passing you on my way to the fridge?" I think of Eddie's statement about this guy being on a liquid diet; a warm, pulsating crimson liquid.

Blood!

He leans his head back and laughs out loud; it is a dark pearly sound that makes my inside tingle... my lower inside. "It is more like hanging with the wrong crowd, beautiful." He let a finger slide along my jaw, making my mind go completely blank.

I feel compelled.

He is a forceful magnetic field and I have no defence against him; he sure is right about that.

* * * * *

Hi there all of you fabulous readers! Have you gotten into the story yet? What do you think of it?

Love, VeGirl

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