Escape From Paradise Read online

  Copyright © 2013 Gwendolyn Field

  All rights reserved. Printed in the United States of America.

  No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any form or by any means electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval systems, without prior written permission of the author except where permitted by law.

  Published by Gwendolyn Field

  The characters and events portrayed in this book are fictitious. Any similarity to real persons, living or dead is coincidental and not intended by the author.

  Image license from iStockphoto with the following names:

  © Ilya Bushuev

  Interior Design by Angela McLaurin, Fictional Formats

  CHAPTER ONE

  CHAPTER TWO

  CHAPTER THREE

  CHAPTER FOUR

  CHAPTER FIVE

  CHAPTER SIX

  CHAPTER SEVEN

  CHAPTER EIGHT

  CHAPTER NINE

  CHAPTER TEN

  CHAPTER ELEVEN

  CHAPTER TWELVE

  CHAPTER THIRTEEN

  CHAPTER FOURTEEN

  CHAPTER FIFTEEN

  CHAPTER SIXTEEN

  CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

  CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

  CHAPTER NINETEEN

  CHAPTER TWENTY

  CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

  CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO

  CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE

  CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR

  CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE

  CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX

  CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN

  CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT

  CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE

  CHAPTER THIRTY

  CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE

  CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO

  CHAPTER THIRTY-THREE

  CHAPTER THIRTY-FOUR

  CHAPTER THIRTY-FIVE

  CHAPTER THIRTY-SIX

  EPILOGUE

  ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

  ABOUT THE AUTHOR

  To all the women out there struggling to do it all.

  You are amazing, and this is for you.

  Full blown guilt didn’t hit me until I stepped off the plane into Mexico’s heat.

  Crap...If Mom and Dad find out I went to Cancun for spring break behind their backs—

  “Wooo! We’re in Meh-hee-co, baby!” Sabrina, one of the three sorority sisters I’d come with from Texas, screamed right in my ear. She was ready to go with her sunglasses and floppy sunhat covering her red curls. “Cheer up, girl.” She linked her arm through my elbow and pulled me tighter. “Nobody’s gonna find out. What happens in Cancun stays in Cancun.” She bumped her hip to mine and I tried to smile.

  “God, Angela, I hope you don’t whine about your parents the whole three days we’re here,” said Caryn from behind us.

  And just like that my smile disappeared.

  “Chill, Caryn.” Sabrina shot the warning over her shoulder, squeezing my arm.

  Caryn decided to come at the last minute, much to my disappointment. We used to get along great, and even joke about being twins with our straight, blonde hair. But she had this weird competitive jealousy toward me ever since we were pledging last semester. Rumor had gotten around that her boyfriend left her to try and hook up with me. He never attempted to talk to me, probably because rumor also got around that I wanted nothing to do with him. I was newly single after an emotional breakup with my high school boyfriend, so the last thing I wanted was drama. But the damage was done, and Caryn had been bipolar toward me ever since.

  “Everything’s gonna be great, guys.” Megan slid on her sunglasses and tugged my ponytail. I loved Megan, our resident peacemaker, always positive and as boy crazy as could be. Her dark spirals bounced on her shoulders as she pulled Caryn up and linked arms with the rest of us. The four of us—Caryn, Megan, Sabrina, then me—set off from the airport together.

  I did all the talking with the cab driver and hotel personnel. Even though most of them spoke English, I enjoyed the opportunity to practice my Spanish skills. It was one of the main reasons I’d wanted to come so badly. I was majoring in Spanish and minoring in Communications. Nothing beat real life conversation. Plus, the locals seemed happily surprised when this little blonde American girl spoke the native language, and I liked crushing some of those stereotypes about how most of us spoke nothing but English. Even though the stereotype was true.

  The concierge was so pleased with my efforts that he sent four rum punches to our room. We cheered when we saw the beautiful glasses with cherries, lime wedges, and little umbrellas.

  “Cheers to Angela and her mad Español skills,” Caryn said in one of her kind moments. I felt myself warm to her when she smiled at me. When she was nice like this it made me miss her.

  “Cheers,” we all said, clinking glasses.

  I took a tentative sip and coughed.

  “Damn!” Sabrina laughed.

  “This has to be local rum.” Megan took another drink and smacked her lips, raising her eyebrows. “We’re not in Texas anymore girls!”

  I wasn’t a huge drinker. The girls had come to count on me as their designated driver, and that worked for me because alcohol made me puke every time.

  But I drank half of the strong punch before handing it to Sabrina. She rewarded me with a loud kiss on the cheek. Caryn and Megan went out on our tiny balcony and made cat calls to guys walking by.

  I reached for my phone, checking for missed messages from my parents. Sabrina took it from my hand and tossed it to my bag.

  “They think we’re camping somewhere with no reception, remember?” Sabrina whispered, “We made a pact not to post any pictures. They’ll never find out. Now get your suit on and let’s have some fun.”

  I nodded. It wasn’t that I’d never lied to my parents before. I’d snuck out back in high school, and forged notes to skip class, but this was different. They’d specifically told me “Absolutely not” when I asked to go to Cancun. Yes, they were overprotective of their only daughter, even though I was a sophomore in college now, and that was annoying. But they trusted me and I’d used that to manipulate them.

  After that, when I’d approached them with Sabrina’s fake plan for a camping trip on her grandparent’s land, they thought it was a great idea. They gave me way too much money to buy supplies and food. Their money coupled with money I’d earned over Christmas break was just enough to cover my flight and hotel.

  If I’d have known the guilt would be this bad I wouldn’t have gone. But now I was here for three nights, and there was nothing I could do to take it back. So I reached for my bathing suit and told myself I’d use the experience to hone my language skills for when I was a translator someday. Everything was going to be fine.

  It was easier to let the guilt slip away when my toes dug into the soft, hot sand and I was peering out at crystal blue water. Texas beaches were nice, but nothing like this. The sand here was white, and the atmosphere up and down the beach was like a huge party. Most of the people were U.S. college kids on Spring break, but some were from other countries, and then there were the local hotties with their dark tanned bodies. I had to admit it was kind of awesome.

  “I so need a guy,” Megan said, eyeing the group playing volleyball near where we sat on our towels.

  “So does Angela,” Sabrina said. She tried to hand me her margarita.

  “No thanks.” I was still slightly lightheaded from half a freaking drink. “And I don’t need a guy.”

  “Need, want, whatever,” Megan said, flipping her dark curls at a six-pack who walked by. She giggled when he grinned at her.

  “How long has it been?” Sabrina asked me. “A year?”

  My face warmed and it had nothing to do with the blazing sun.

  �
��Ten months,” I mumbled.

  All three of them snorted as they tried to hold back laughter, even Caryn, though she looked asleep as she lay on her back, soaking rays on her flat belly.

  “Bitches,” I said, falling back on my towel and closing my eyes. When they laughed harder I cracked a smile too. “It’s not like I never hook up.”

  “She’s a relationship kind of girl,” Megan offered.

  It was true. I liked the comfort of being committed if I was going to have sex, and I’d only had that with one person in my life. Too bad our love hadn’t been strong enough to last through the long distance.

  Sabrina scoffed and leaned on her elbows. “We’re all hookin’ up in Cancun.”

  The three of them raised their margaritas and I raised my lame bottle of water.

  “Cheers to boys,” Megan said.

  “Hot boys,” Caryn corrected, and we all drank to that.

  When I was finally relaxed enough to let go of the guilt, I came alive. The first two days flew by in a blur of late nights and waking hours soaking up sun. I was open to meeting a guy, but when that didn’t happen I was happy to keep an eye on my three friends and make sure we all made it back to the room safely each night. During the days the other three might sneak off with guys they’d met, but at night we all came home together—no sketchy hotel flings. When Megan had asked to stay out longer the night before, and the guy she was with offered to walk her back to our room, we shot them down and dragged her back, ignoring her drunken pleas.

  She was still bitter when we all woke at ten the next morning.

  “He was the cutest guy I’ve met here! What if I can’t find him again? It’s our last day!”

  “There’s tons of guys here, Meg,” Sabrina grumbled from her hungover fetal position on our bed.

  Megan flung her forearm over her eyes. “You guys are evil. Seriously. Spawns of the horned one.”

  We smiled at that, because we knew she loved us.

  “He could’ve been a serial killer using his baby face as a disguise,” I told her. I was the only one up and about, moving around the room getting ready.

  “Or some guy on a mission to knock-up as many girls as possible,” Caryn said from her spot next to Meg.

  “Or a herpes and HIV carrier with a vengeance against women,” Sabrina chimed from her fetal position.

  “Ugh!” Megan flopped onto her belly and groaned into her pillow.

  I leaned forward and smacked her butt, making her jump. “Come on. Last day on the beach. Let’s go!”

  “Geez, someone’s all hot to trot after moping the whole first day,” Caryn said. She was looking just as groggy as Megan.

  “I didn’t mope the whole time.” I grabbed my brush and ran it through my shoulder-length layers. “Just the first couple hours.”

  “I need some fucking coffee,” Sabrina said, rubbing her temples. “But I can’t move.”

  I sighed. “You guys suck. How about I go get us some coffees and those pastry things? But when I get back you have to get your little asses out of bed. Deal?”

  They grumbled their agreement, and Sabrina pointed to her purse with the money. I took what I needed and headed out.

  We’d discovered an amazing cafe and restaurant near the hotel the day before. I smiled at the aproned woman behind the counter.

  “Quatro cafe con leches, por favor,” I said.

  She brightened at my use of Spanish and said, “Ah, bueno” as she got to work.

  The bell to the door chimed as I hovered over the pastry counter, staring in at the mouth-watering delicacies. I bit my lip, trying to decide between the little strawberry shortcakes or fruit-filled pastries. The rolls also looked heavenly.

  “It’s hard to decide, no?” said a rich male voice from behind me.

  I turned and my insides swooped at the sight of the gorgeous Hispanic guy. Definitely a local with his smooth, accented English, tanned skin, and black wavy hair. But he was dressed in expensive-looking clothes—crisp dark jeans that fit perfectly and an unwrinkled button down shirt.

  A fierce blush rose to my cheeks when I realized I’d been staring. I smiled a little and glanced back at the case, saying, “Yes…everything looks so good.”

  The guy stepped closer. I couldn’t get a read on how old he might be. Most likely older than me, probably mid-twenties.

  “It is all good, trust me. But my favorite is the chicken soup.”

  “Chicken soup?”

  He stood next to me again.

  “Sí. The arroz con pollo. It’s delicious.” Rice with chicken. He smiled with straight, white teeth, and my tummy wobbled with excited nerves.

  “That sounds...good.” I would have never bought chicken soup by choice, but with this guy recommending it I wanted to buy the whole pot.

  “My name is Fernando.”

  He stuck out a warm, firm hand and I shook it, glad when he didn’t let go right away.

  “I’m Angela.”

  “Angela.” The way he said my name in his accented English, giving the “g” an “h” sound made me shiver.

  Dude. This guy was…wow.

  The cafe matron slid my four coffees across the counter in a beverage carrier. She shot a misgiving frown at Fernando before smiling at me.

  “Anything else, bonita?”

  “Um, yes.” Since she’d asked me in English, and I was flustered by Fernando’s presence, I found myself slipping back into English myself. “Four arroz con pollos, and four rolls to go, please.”

  Again she shot a glare that I couldn’t read toward Fernando, but when he stared back at her she quickly dropped her eyes and began ladling soup into containers. She handed me a large bag after I paid, and we exchanged smiles. Her eyes darted to Fernando for a fraction of a second. I couldn’t understand why he made her nervous.

  “Thank you so much,” I said.

  “Enjoy, Miss. And be safe.” She didn’t look toward Fernando again, even to ask what he wanted, and he didn’t try to order. It was all very strange.

  But Fernando beamed at me, so I suppose I’d misread the awkwardness. Or maybe there was some history there. Small town family drama or something.

  “Your hands are very full, Angela. May I help you?”

  “Oh, you don’t have to do that.”

  “Please. Let me.”

  I handed him the bag of food while I held the coffees. “Thanks.”

  “De nada,” he said, then laughed. “I mean, you’re welcome.”

  I laughed too, because oh my gosh, he was too cute. The girls were never going to believe I’d picked up a sexy local on a coffee run.

  Outside in the sunshine I started to feel bad. It was only a couple blocks to the hotel, but I was sure he probably had stuff to do. I mean, he went in the cafe and didn’t even get anything.

  “You really don’t have to walk me all the way to the hotel,” I said.

  “Don’t you worry. My destination is farther. However, if you wish to repay me I have a request.”

  My heart jumped a little. “Oh? And what’s that?”

  “That you come to this club tonight.” He adjusted the bag to one arm and pulled a business card from his back pocket, holding it up between his fingers for me to see before slipping it into the bag.

  “I’ll talk to my friends, but I’m sure we can swing it.” And what I really meant by that was that I would beg, scream, and kill to get to the club if I had to.

  “I would be very sad not to see you again, Angela.” He was smooth. Probably too smooth. The kind of guy I’d normally veer from, but he’d already ensnared me and there was no turning back now.

  “I’ll be at the beach all day today,” I said, embarrassed by the hope in my voice.

  “That would be a beautiful sight. However I have much work to do.”

  We stopped in front of the high rise, moving to the side next to a palm tree to let people pass. I balanced the coffee carrier on one outstretched hand and reached for the bag of food. He handed it over with a grin and g
ave me a bow of his head.

  “Until tonight, then.”

  “Yeah. Tonight. Thank you.”

  I bit my lip to hold back my enthusiasm, and turned to enter the hotel. As soon as I was inside the smile overtook my face. I was still geeking out when I got to our room. The girls were in bed, but they were at least sitting up now.

  “What the hell are you smiling about?” Sabrina asked, but seeing me had caused her to break into a grin, too.

  “Hottest guy ever.” I set down the food and drinks and flopped onto the bed on my back.

  All three of them pounced.

  “Who?” “Where?” “What’s his name?”

  I told them the whole story, leaving out the weirdness about the cafe lady, and they fawned with me. Megan grabbed a pillow, crushing her hips against it and said, “Oh, yes, Fernando!” I swatted her hip.

  “Ew, hussie. Get your crotch off my pillow!” Sabrina snatched it away.

  “This looks legit,” Caryn said, reading the business card for the club. “We should definitely check it out.”

  That made me sit up and clap my hands. I might have even kicked my heels in the air a little. We were all in good moods now. They didn’t even complain about the chicken and rice soup, which, by the way, was as delicious as Fernando’d promised—light and flavorful—definitely the healthiest thing we’d eaten since we got there.

  After we ate and got our caffeine fixes, we put on our suits and headed out for our last rays of Mexico sun. The day was amazing. My skin was as dark and beautiful as it had ever been. We made friends with some of the other people in the hotel, and played games of volleyball. Megan found her guy from the night before, promptly attaching her mouth to his for the duration of the afternoon.

  The giddy excited feeling Fernando had given me stayed with me all day. I couldn’t stop thinking about the gorgeous, dark-eyed guy, and how nice he’d been. It had been a long time since I felt excited about a guy. Trevor and I stuck it out through our freshman year of college before admitting to ourselves that it didn’t feel right anymore. After that I made out with a few guys at parties, but never felt any connections. Nobody had turned me on enough to make me think about sex again. Until now.