Sentient

Sentient: Chapter Ten

We arrive at our floor. We both get the edge room which gives us the view of the lake and the mountain.

“I’m going to freshen up a bit and then we’ll go for breakfast.” I tell Darius. “Meet you out here in thirty minutes.”

He salutes me teasingly and says, “Yes, ma’am.” 

He lets me get in first before he does. I smile to myself knowing that I’m with a gentleman. Somehow, Mr. Cavanaugh sending Darius to watch over me is kind of reassuring, in a way. 

Even when I just took a shower at home before I left, and the plane ride was only more than an hour, I already feel like I’m eye-deep in dirt. So I run the bath, pour some essential oils, complimentary of my Princess Suite and lay back in the beautiful maroon, oval bathtub.

As I lay, I start to think of a reason why Mr. Cavanaugh felt the need to have Darius accompany me today. And why does he have to go to the trouble of upgrading my perfectly fine deluxe room to a suite as grand as this? He must’ve known that I’m only staying for one night, there’s no need to spend a huge amount of money—even if it’s the company’s. 

Huh. Bathroom thoughts.

I finish my bath after fifteen minutes and switch to a fresh batch of clothes and then meet Darius outside for our promised breakfast.

Our table’s located on the balcony of the hotel restaurant, overlooking Lake Champlain. The waiter took our orders and arrived in less than fifteen minutes, and then settled into a conversation.

I start, “I can’t believe Mr. Cavanaugh made you drive all the way here just to… you know, drive some more.” 

“Don’t worry ma’am, I’m very well compensated.” Darius says with a chuckle as he pops in a piece of chicken in his mouth. He ordered a chicken waldorf salad while I wanted some chicken and waffles. “It’s very rarely that he makes me drive, mostly he just does it himself.”

I quickly reply, “Well, then lunch is on you.”

We both laugh. I never thought I’d be hanging out with Darius like this. I actually thought he’s some sort of stern, introverted man. Makes me kinda glad I have him with me right now. 

“Why do you think he did this?” I ask. “Do you think maybe he doesn’t trust me with work? Was he like this with his previous assistant?”

“The thing you need to know about him is he’s a really thoughtful person, Ms. Edwards.” He tells me, “For everyone he cares about. He always goes big. And he likes you a lot. He’s so amazed by your performance so I think you better brace yourself and get used to stuff like this. Why do you think Jasmine hates you?” 

“How long have you been working for him again?” I ask him.

“A year.” He replies. “His mom, Linda, took me in when I was nineteen and out of a job, helped me put both my sister and I through college. I’ve been with her for ten years until she transferred me over to Darren.” 

“That’s really nice.” I say with a smile, “So you’ve pretty much known him most of his life?” 

“Kind of.” He replies. “He’s lived his life the way he wanted it, still does. I got transferred to him after he got back from the Philippines. He was there for four years, handled a huge project, and came back last year.”

“Yeah, what is the deal with that?” I ask, “I kind of get this feeling that something happened in the Philippines, something that made him so… I don’t know… sad? But of course, I can’t ask about it.”

“It’s not really my place to talk, but,” He licks his lips before continuing. “All I can say is, he’s been hurt. He’s not the casanova everyone thinks he is.”

So I’m right! He’s been hurt! And it really was ‘pain’ I saw in his eyes the last time we were in his house. I didn’t think someone so rich, powerful, and handsome like Darren Cavanaugh could be so sensitive and compassionate. Slowly, I’m starting to see the real him.

“We’ve got an hour to get to the Briarwood Lake House.” I say to Darius, subtly changing the subject and looking at my wrist watch. “After that, I’d like to stop by at one of the rentals in town to check on the stuff we’re going to need for the retreat. I figured we need to source stuff locally so that it’d be less hassle to bring from New York.” 

Darius watches me intently, listening to my every word. 

“Also, I need to get somewhere by eight. Do you mind if you drop me off? You can go anywhere after that.” 

Once again, I see the look of a mischievous grin settling on his face so I figure he already knows about my sister’s engagement party tonight. 

“But of course, you already know about that.” I say, rolling my eyes. “Suddenly, I don’t feel like I’m the assistant here, Darius. How come he knows my entire schedule?”

He simply shrugs and grins. 

“I don’t even know where he is.” I mutter. “I’m a bad assistant.”

He laughs at me and takes a sip of his coffee. “Not a chance, Ms. Edwards.”

“Oh please! Drop the formalities.” I told him. “Just call me Charlie. I kinda feel like you have the seniority between us since you know my boss better than I do.” 

“You’ll get there.” He replies with an honest, genuine smile. 

We finish our timetable by six, leaving me ample time to prepare for Patty’s engagement party. I invited Darius as my plus one since Christie isn’t with me, plus it’d probably keep my Mom and sister at bay with all the setting up with other men. He’ll distract them with his looks while I try to sneak off to the bar and drown myself in alcohol. 

Pres Du Lac is the venue for Patty’s engagement party. Of course, what else will my brazen parents use other than their latest and own restaurant? 

They have three in total: Par La Montagne, the original establishment; Par La Vallee, the second one, opened the same day as I was born; and this Pres Du Lac, where I spent the first two years of my life after college working.

I wear a black halter neck dress that hugs my hips tightly and stops just before my knees and has a vertical eyelet opening of lace material in the back. I accessorize it with a golden band belt at the waist and partners it with tan heels and a black purse. I make it a point to dress nicely today since I’d be coming Christie-less and boyfriend-less, so at least I look good. 

Darius parks the car and I wait for him at the entrance of the restaurant. I’m not walking in there without him—without a distraction. I kind of feel bad for using him as bait for my family but at least there’s free dinner and booze. 

Finally, Darius arrives and stands beside me. 

“What took you so long?” I ask, looking up. 

And it’s not Darius.