Finding My Love

FINDING MY LOVE   If they had to place a picture beside the word ‘’Unconventional’’   then mine would have been next to it because I brought it meaning or as Cindy said emphasis. Armed with a picture in a frame and a couple of encounters, I set out to find him. Before that I had met him a few times showing him houses in Eaglesview.   A freelance writer he had just moved into town looking for a place to stay. Cindy referred him to me as the best real estate agent in town or as she liked to hype me the ‘’Queen of Real Estate’’. Cindy was okay but she took being nice to others and making them feel good about themselves a little too far. She sometimes exaggerated though I was good at what I did. You could always trust her to put in a good word for you with potential clients.    That’s exactly what she did with Stewart. A remote columnist in the local paper he’d come to stay in town for at least a year or two. To get familiar with the town and better his writing since his writings were about our little town and then some. Before I took on a client I researched them just to see what sort of style they were into. Any detail could help me take them to a house that would suit them. This method proved efficient even though with Stewart it seemed like I was stalking him. He was devilishly hot, I admit going through his f*******: page several times than necessary.   I turned his house hunting into dates, deliberately making them unappealing so we could continue the charade. Talk about shooting yourself in the foot. At the end of a sale I made clients write reviews to encourage customers. Despite, trying to get him to notice me he settled for the second house out of all the 20. It didn’t matter as long as it was affordable and quiet so he could hear himself think. I had given him the best deal but was sad that my ‘’work dates’’ were over.   Though they were over I wasn’t going to let our love story end there without knowing if he was at all attracted to me even just a little. Before he moved in, I tampered with it. It worked because I got to see him when I went to ‘’inspect’’. This resulted in him suing the company I worked for,   not what I bargained for. Caught between a rock and a hard place, I was either going to lose my job or Stewart was going to lose a lot of money suing or getting counter sued for defamation and damage to property.   The hearings went back and forth; the guy I wanted to like me began to hate me because I wouldn’t testify as a witness. I had done that to keep seeing him but now it came down to my job, reputation and that of the company.   Cindy was not pleased and this strained hers and Stewart’s working relationship. ‘’Are all your friends   liars and frauds Cindy?’’ The last thing I wanted was to ruin that. Tried going over to his place to explain things, for the good of the company and his but he wouldn’t hear a thing and threatened to call the police. The neighbour’s dog kept barking at me. Could he maybe sense my shame and guilt? The next day in court was in Cindy’s words much like a ‘’soap opera’’. I got on the witness stand and testified. ‘’Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, your honour, I have been unfair and dishonest towards my company and client. I not only lied to both parties but to some extent and degree defamed them as liars; the only liar between them was me. I was introduced to the client by my friend Cindy. He was looking for a house, upon seeing the client I fell for him, began thinking about him as more than a client. This led me to show him 20 houses without a sale. Though in good shape I told him some parts of it weren’t so that we would continue until he liked me. He eventually bought a house at half the price, I took it upon myself to pay the other half as if I had sold it half price because of the ‘’damaged’’ parts’’.*The jury was in awe, so was Stewart*   ‘’After all that, he still didn’t notice me. So while he was out I broke in and damaged property, l broke the shower slightly, fiddled with the wires in the stove and messed with the plumbing.’’  ‘’What do you mean by messed with the plumbing? Please refrain from using layman’s terms in the court room.’’ ‘’Sorry your honour, It’s difficult to explain. I wanted to cause flooding.’’ * Chuckle’s* ‘’were you going to repair all that? Are you a jack of all trades?’’ ‘’No the idea was to meet him more times, as possible.’’  ‘’Were you are aware that the wires you fiddled with could’ve tripped, causing an explosion?’’ *Paused looking at Stewart who was appalled* ‘’... No your honour. I’m sorry Stewart ‘’ (there is commotion)     ‘’ Order! *silence is observed* ,It’s been observed, that neither the client  nor the company is to blame for costs incurred at the hands of one Miss Rose Hearthstone. She is guilty of fraud, breaking and entering, obstruction of justice and will be sentenced to 20 years.’’ ‘’Rose’’ (Cindy cries while the guards cuff me)  ‘’Sorry, Stewart I’m sorry’’ (they drag me to the holding cell)   The next day the story was published in the newspapers with the headlines. ‘’When she makes your life a living hell’’ The guard was intrigued and handed me the article. It read , ‘’She tampered with the wiring in the house and plumbing, in all that chaos how could she think he would ever notice her’’ Other newspapers got clever,  with headline like ’’Desperate Housewife’’ I didn’t care what the world thought of me, but I did care what Stewart thought.   I was in jail but the worst was not over. I lost my job and both Stewart and the company sued me. I lost everything, basically when I got out I wouldn’t have a place to go. Was Stewart really this harsh? Maybe all this could’ve been avoided if I had just expressed my feelings. I served my term day in day out. Cindy like the best friend that she was came to see me every now and then, my only connection to the outside world and bridge to sanity. I had become a celebrity, other inmates tormented me, would ask Cindy about Stewart but she would ask me to let go of this ‘’obsession’’ or she would tell them to move me to an insane asylum. I stopped asking. She would bring me ice-cream and magazines. Tried forgetting Stewart but couldn’t, he was engraved in my mind and heart. Moments with him though chaotic, felt like I had known him for a long time. He haunted my thoughts.    Years dwindled into months I finally got out. Cindy came to pick me up. First thing I did was shower wanting to erase all traces of jail time. Wanted to get my life together and for that I needed Stewart. I began searching for him online but only found his articles. Wanted to report him missing but that would only start scandal with the local press.   So without telling Cindy I started my shenanigans again. Cindy told me Stewart had moved and didn’t know where. I went by his house and found it empty. I caressed myself against the walls as if part of his scent was left there. I went into the basement and found a photo of his in a frame. It was now my safe keep. Cindy wasn’t lying. If she knew I would’ve gotten it out of her. Stew had stolen my heart, I was determined to steal his or at least try. I wanted to explain things... start afresh. One thing was sure; Cindy and the police wouldn’t help me. Rather they would apprehend me for stalking. I told Cindy I was going job hunting which made her happy because she didn’t want me on her couch forever. I met up with one of the inmates who were inside with me. This was asking for trouble but I had no choice. She was tied to the mafia and she took me to them. Her reason for being in the slammer was because she took a hit for them and went down for the crime. I was relieved it wasn’t murder. I told them I was looking for a man named Stewart; he made off with my money, a lot of it. I couldn’t find him. Of course they asked me what would be in it for them; I told them we would split the money. I pleaded with them not to harm him in anyway. This was the mafia I had to emphasise.  No cent to my name I had to gamble, just as I did before, I just needed a second chance. Wherever he was the mafia would uproot him. I told them he was my husband but we’re separated.   I cooked up a believable story about having money though I was sued for everything. I told them I had embezzled money from the company I worked for before the Stewart Saga, and that I had placed the cash with Stewart who fled with it and that the court wrangles were just a charade. I admit it was like sliding on a razor blade, guess I was ‘’desperate’’. If the plan flopped I was in fact going to die for my love. Months passed before they tracked him down in Africa, he was freelancing. How they brought him here I don’t know I suspect it was on the pretence of a job with an attractive pay. I told them he was greedy to the core and wouldn’t quit his day job even though he was rich. Writing was his first love. They stayed in character until I got there. He was being housed near the beach. He didn’t even know that he was being held hostage, a lamb to the s*******r.   I asked for no hostility. I told them that getting the money from him would be easy as I had dirt on him. I went the next day as the client. Though they wanted money they weren’t stupid, they had ‘’housekeeping’’ bug the place. Thank God they didn’t install cameras. *I rang the doorbell and he opened without delay.*   ‘’Hello you must be the client, please come in’’   ‘’Yes thank you’’   *disguised he didn’t recognise me* ‘’You don’t look like you’re from here’’ ‘’ I’m not I’m here on business only’’ *I open the briefcase and place a blank paper in front of him* ‘’Err so what’s this’’ ‘’These are the plans of the project.’’ *While explaining I told him everything on the piece of paper. I told him the mafia were listening and that he had to play along. I hadn’t told him that I had gotten them to find him yet. I just told him I was in debt and they wanted money and that he had to play along. He wanted to burst into flames. I made gestures for him not to otherwise we would all die. From the outside it looked like we were signing papers so it didn’t alarm them. I had hanged myself by the neck and tightened the rope with each deception. I pulled out a gun.* ‘’Stewart! It’s me, give me the money, and give me the money now before I blow your brains out’’ ‘’W’ wait honey no need to get hostile I will get the money, it’s just not here’’  ‘’Then where is it!’’ *I c**k up the gun*  ‘Wait... I buried it in Cindy’s backyard’’ ‘’What? ‘’ *Last thing I wanted was to get Cindy involved, I already had two people involved in this mess. No matter I would play this game until I hit a hole in one.*   ‘’Of all the places you could have hid the money you hid it with her?” ‘’Not with her but in her backyard’’ ‘’Same thing!’’ ‘’Look baby, we have to go there now and get the money’’ *We made our way to Cindy’s and found a letter; Cindy had gone to visit her Aunt for the weekend. She was safe as long as she wasn’t here. Like always the Mafia were right outside and now it was just me and Stew. He closed the door behind him.* ‘’What the hell is wrong you Rose!’’ ‘’Please, just hear me out’’ ‘’The Mafia! What you couldn’t get a private detective? And just why were you so hell bent on finding me? Did I owe you money?’’ ‘’Please just hear me out’’ ‘’You’re crazy; I mean I knew you were crazy but not this crazy’’  ‘’I became crazy when I fell in love with you. I developed feelings for you. So strong I thought if we saw each other more often you would feel the same way. I wanted a second chance. I wanted you to forgive me, please.’’ ‘’We can talk about our feelings and forgiving each other later.’’ ‘’What do you need forgiveness for? ’’ ‘’We have to lose these guys, escape them somehow *ignores my question* ‘’Escape them? There is no escaping them, dodging them yes, but not escaping.’’ ‘’Well we have to I mean where are we gonna get 2 Million? Do you have any lying somewhere?’’   ‘’No I lost every penny I had, law suits.’’   ‘’Where is Cindy?  ‘’Her Aunt’s place’’  ‘’Good, tell her to stay there’’ ‘’Tried calling, her phone is off’’  ‘’Try her Aunt’s home phone, in the mean time let’s get out of here.’’ ‘’We gonna live on the run?’’   ‘’Pretty much until we run into some money’’ *I hug him* ‘’Oh Stew, I love you,’’ *he didn’t say it back* We used the backdoor, took our passports, and ran off to the airport; little did we know that we’re being followed .We made our way to  Hawaii, still couldn’t get a hold of Cindy so I called her Aunt and heard she wasn’t there. Stew was getting drinks at the bar when the Mafia boss called.   ‘’Hello Rose you enjoying your vacation?’’, *Stew kept looking back at our table* ‘’Are you looking for Cindy?’’   ‘’What have you done to her?’’   ‘’Nothing... Yet, but If I don’t get my money there will be hell to pay. Kill her right in front of you and kill the both of you, this time we won’t take half we will take the whole 2 million.’’   ‘’No, please, I will get the money you can take everything, I will find the money, please’’ ‘’Call me when you do, remember, we’re always watching, you won’t even know if we decide to poison your food, drinks.’’ * hangs up* * Stew was about to take a sip of tequila at the bar, I slap the drinks out of his hands*   ‘’What the f**k was that!’’ ‘’They were poisoned’’ ‘’What you mean the bar man? *Looks back, the barman was gone* ‘’They kidn*pped Cindy, Cindy was with them the whole time, and I would never forgive myself if anything happened to her. I’m the one that got her into this mess. *I start panicking*   ‘’Rose, calm down, I’m here’’ *he hugs me*   ‘’What are we going to do? Where are we going to get so much money?’’   *sighs* ‘’I swear I have never had woman trouble like this but...,’’ ‘’What do you mean?’’ ‘’I know where I can get the money. After that whole debacle I wrote a book, about you. It was the first book of mine that was bestseller. Sold over 5million copies’’ ‘’Wait you wrote about me without my permission.’’  ‘’Shut up let’s not try to act all innocent.’’  ‘’I’m saying  I can gather  2 million but we need a few days to get  cash, tell him he will get his money but we need to round up the cash’’ *I tear up hugging him * ‘’Oh my God thank you Stew’’   ‘’Hold on we are not out of the water yet’’   The mafia boss agreed, even if we didn’t he would have our necks for sure. For the next 2weeks we gathered the money. We went back to Cindy’s, as it was no use running and found the place a bit trashed. We figured an exchange would have to happen, but after what we did we wouldn’t get out   unscathed so we had to make a plan. We called the mafia boss again, hoping this time it would be the last. We told him to meet us in public, at a restraunt. He agreed. Tomorrow couldn’t come any faster; Stew and I made our way to the restraunt and sat there, waiting until they walked through the door with Cindy. I wondered where his entourage of killers were. Cindy looked disturbed. I imagine how much they tortured her.   ‘’What a lovely couple you  make, Tell me why did you guys separate, yeah that’s right you were never together in the first place, *laughs and gets serious*  ‘’Where is my money?” *We put the briefcase on the table and he opens it and smiles.*  ‘’You kept your word’’, *Gets up*, ‘’Nice doing business with you. Do tell us in future if you want to find someone again, or hire a private detective. I won’t be so generous after you’ve lied to me. *He leaves and I rush to hug Cindy when she tells me she has a bomb strapped to her ankle. That’s why she was crying the whole time*   ‘’We have to get out of here’’   ‘’Rose there might not be time we have to diffuse it here’’   ‘’We’re gonna die!’’ *Cindy cries out grabbing the attention of everyone we didn’t want alarmed in the first place.* I’m sorry Cindy for causing this but please calm down’’ ‘’Never thought that things would end this way or that we would meet this way’’ ‘’What are you talking about?’’ ‘’I have something to tell you Rose *as he diffuses the bomb * I’m not who you think you I am’’ ‘’Great more secrets’’ *Cindy says* ‘’It’s me, Jared Bennett.’’ ‘’Jared,’’ Cindy asks, ‘’Bennett, from high school’’ ‘’Yes’’ ‘’What happened to your face?’’ Reconstructive surgery, sky diving... things didn’t go well I crashed, it’s a miracle I even survived, and my face was left in tatters. ‘’I understand but did you give your name reconstructive surgery?’’ ‘’I got into some trouble as a teen soon after I moved, changed my name’’ *We were still trying to diffuse a bomb, cutting wires; the conversation helped us stay calm* ‘’I changed my name, reinvented myself. After a while I became Stewart James.’’ ‘’Now I know why I felt a deep connection with you * I laugh a chuckle* what a weird way to meet.’’ ‘’I know’’  ‘’This is the only good thing that came out of this whole thing’’ ‘’Guess the universe wanted you to know’’ ‘’It was destiny Jared, I mean Stew, got us together somehow.’’ ‘’You know I had bought a ring that night, was gonna ask you to marry me. That was my intention. I didn’t wind up asking Cindy for the best real estate agent in town by mistake you know,’’ *Cindy and I were both surprised, Weird or fantastic turn of events? * ‘’Don’t get me wrong, what you did hurt me, though intentions pure, I could’ve been defamed and lost clients; it’s why I had to sue you. I had to protect my career. Suing you hurt me more than it hurt you. I mean I loved you, and still do.’’ ‘’I understand, if you never forgive me for this.’’ ‘’Already forgave you, if you forgive me’’ ‘’You don’t need to ask for forgiveness from me, you were going to tell me the truth I just messed it up’’   ‘’Well then guess you’ll forgive me for this, the timing’’. ‘’Will you marry me?’’ *just then he managed to diffuse the bomb*  ‘’Still in awe, both at the question and the bomb being diffused’’ ‘’We wasted enough time already, and before you get us in another shenanigan that gets us killed I want us to be married first’’ ‘’Well say yes!’’ ‘’Yes, *holding my hands in his* I’ll marry you Stew. *Cindy starts dancing* ‘’I’m gonna be a bridesmaid I’m gonna be a bridesmaid, don’t get me wrong Rose I’m still mad but I’m happy for you’’ *we hug*  People didn’t know what was going on, one minute she’s shouting ‘’we are all gonna die’’ the next she’s happy and dancing on the table.   Well that’s my story, unconventional and all. Stew and I got our happily ever after and got married. Right now I can’t wait for his second book starring me of course his Bandida. Now I’m trying to find a man for Cindy, should I engage the Mafia again? *laughs*                                                                                                               *THE END*