Forced (1st book in The Forced Series)

Thirty One

Thirty One

The next morning, Van, with barely three hours sleep, roused Hazel from her heavy sleep. He had gotten up early to prepare to theoretically pamper Hazel. He knew that her being unhappy, and stressed, was not healthy for neither her nor the baby.

Once her tired hazel eyes met his, he tried for a smile,"Good morning, babe."

The endearment had simply slipped out but it felt right. Hazel looked away from him, flinching a little when Van's fingers brushed back a particularly frizzy lock of hair from her flushed face.

"I've got breakfast ready,  so just go freshen up." he positively beamed at her,"I've got a surprise."

Before she had time to flinch back, his lips brushed pass hers in a  fleeting manner. Her eyes widened at the contact, her breath getting uneven and heart beat picking up considerably. Her mind told her that she should put him in his place and rebuild her walls, while her heart -the small part that was barely existing- swooned at the tender contact.

Not wanting to sit and imagine his lips on uncharitable places    -much less with a rotting mouth-she headed for the bathroom. Hazel scanned herself in the mirror, taking in the wide, dead eyes, her paler than pale skin and the undeniable mark of being tormented by restless sleep. For a moment, she wished for her legs to give out, so that Van would sweep her up in his strong arms, but then chastised herself for thinking about it.

Taking a deep breath, she picked up her tooth brush and got down to business. Half hour later, Hazel stepped into the kitchen dressed in a baggy shorts and off the shoulder tank with a wide neck tee shirt over it. Her head ached terribly and there was the tell tale sting about her eyes that proved that she had been crying. Ignoring all the body parts that cried for attention, Hazel left the bedroom, following the scent of bacon and eggs, toast and waffles and calming smell of green tea. Her mouth was salivating.

Van was exhausted by the time they had finished eating breakfast. He stayed up for most of the night watching Hazel stir in her  restless sleep. Everything that she told him rested heavily on his mind. Surely if her opinion of men was based on the impression of her father, then he couldn't blame her for her begrudging hate.

"Have you ever been to the Caribbean?"

Hazel's eyes shot up from the dish she was drying to meet his sparkling blue ones.

"Are you serious?" she snorted.

Her eyes went back to the dishes as Van frowned,"Why are you laughing. I'm serious... we have a hotel in the Caribbean so I thought we could take off for a day or two so you can relax."

Hazel had never left the continent before. Her dad had been a booming business man but he had never been big enough for important business in paradises such as the Caribbean islands. The thought alone of walking along sandy beaches, under the hot sun -and perhaps even seeing Van soaked throughout- made her feel giddy.

"So...you're saying that you want to... take me to the Caribbean...?"

"Yes. Would you like to? "

If Hazel had been looking at him properly, she would have seen exactly how nervous he was. However, she was staring intently at her fingers, wondering why the image of a dripping wet Van goth Steel persisted to torment her.

"Yeah...?"

Van grinned,"Great. We leave for the airport in an hour."

His proclamation left Hazel dazed for a full minute, staring at him wide eyed,"Wh-what?"

A smirk appeared on his lips,"I already got  us tickets, and everything that's needed is prepared. It was just up to you to decide."

Hazel felt herself smile softly, the sight of which made Van grin like he'd just won a Grammy. Biting her lip, Hazel stood, took a step towards Van and engulf him in a hug that could have only lasted for five seconds, before she ran -or hobbled, depending on which point of view one was looking at it from- to the bedroom to pack.

She was feeling positively buzzed with excitement. The tact that the Caribbean was beautiful meant more than just sight seeing. It also meant inspiration for a painting or photography of something -or someone- other than a certain man who consistently sported a six pack around the apartment.

Sighing gravely, she continued to pack clothes for a warmer weather. All of which made her self  conscious of the fact that she would be in less, and thinner, clothing around Van. The thought trilled her despite herself and left her in a state of near panic.

×forced×

With a sense of incoming forbidding, Hazel walked slightly behind Van towards their hotel room. A belhop walked ahead of them with Hazel's luggage while Van shouldered his own. The muscles in his arms strained with the effort and sweat beaded on his neck and for head.

In light of a landslide somewhere along the road to the hotel, the air conditioning was off and the building was hot. The manager promise that all the utilities would be fixed and air conditioning would be on in an hour tops, but at that moment, Hazel couldn't careless about her cast getting itchy, or her hair looking kinky, her singular thought process was on Van goth Steel's forearm where his hand flexed back and forth as he walked.

Back and forth, back and forth, back and forth...

"...So is that okay with you?"

She shook her head,"I'm sorry. I wasn't listening."

"I thought we could go to one of the beaches here then come back for dinner if you wanted to go. Or we could do the next best thing  and  settle in a bit. But with this heat, we should probably find somewhere cool and non hassle to relax at."

Swallowing, Hazel nodded,"I agree. But where to?"

The bellhop, a dark honey skinned man cleared his throat,"If I may, I know jus' the perf'ct place."

Hazel smiled at his accent that she wanted to pick up over their  two week visit. He was speaking perfect English no doubt but that playful Jamaican accent seemed to deem some letters unnecessary.

"Really? Could you show he please." Van ventured.

The bellhop showed them to their room but they left right away, following the technically rented bellhop to a secluded area of the beach behind the hotel. He led them round some trees and finally into a clear opening walled in haphazardly by trees.

He grinned at the couple then left. Hazel sighed, sinking onto the slightly warm sand. The area was covered from the sun's glazing afternoon heat by some tree's and a makeshift hut roof.

Van gazed at Hazel intently, his eyes dropping just a bit. He rubbed them and sat, determined to stay awake.

However, Hazel had noticed his evident sleepy state from the plan ride. Tentatively, she crawled up to sit beside him, putting her hand over his eyes.

"Sleep. I'll wake you in an hour."

Van smiled,"Okay...but don't run away."

"I wouldn't dream of it."

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