Pulse 2 (Pulse Series) (15 page)

“
Thanks.”

Dante leaned-in close to me and kissed me on the cheek. He then nodded to Cheryl and excused himself. I watched him walk away then found myself standing alone with Cheryl once again.

“Well, Alice,” she said. “It looks like you and I will be dining together.”

“
It would seem that way. You know, I haven’t seen Wesley and Travis—”

“
Don’t worry about them. I’m sure my brother is keeping them entertained. Come on. I know that spending that much time out in the water has worked up your appetite.”

Cheryl smirked at me then made her way into the ballroom. I anxiously followed her with slow and measured footsteps.

I didn’t know if I could do this. With the little I knew about Rafael and Cheryl’s relationship with him, I was worried that something might slip. I didn’t want my feelings or emotions get the best of me and say something I might regret.

Cheryl was popular, for reasons I wasn
’t aware of. She was greeted by several people, most of them men, as she passed by each one of them. The two of us made our way to a secluded table off to the side of the room. The small table made it feel like she was right in my face. I looked down at the glass in front of me and watched as the waiter filled it with red wine. The alcohol swirled around before my eyes.

“
So, tell me something, Alice. Are you enjoying the conference?”

I sipped the wine then smacked my lips as I thought about the best response.

“I’m enjoying it as much as any person could,” I said. “Sitting around in conferences and workshops isn’t my idea of a good time. It’s work. But we’re in a beautiful place, so that makes things much easier.”

“
Indeed. The promise of getting to spend your free time on a beach as gorgeous as this is always a great motivation.”

The large doors of the ball
room were open and displayed a view of the beach just a few meters away from us. The warm weather from outside wafted and created an atmosphere that was more comfortable than any dinner I’d ever sat through.

I took another sip of wine and locked my eyes on
all of the empty plates on the table. I could feel Cheryl looking me over.

“
So, tell me about yourself, Alice.”

“
There’s… not really much to tell.”

“
Don’t be modest now. You don’t get to the position you’re in without there being a story behind it.”

I loo
ked up at her and saw the curious smile upon her face. She hugged the rim of her glass with her lips as she took a long and slow sip of wine.

“
How did you end up at Barnett?” she asked me after swallowing. “They have hundreds of graduates applying every quarter.”

“
I’ve heard. After I graduated, I filled out as many applications as I could. I think every company in the city has my resume. As chance would have it, Barnett was one of the first places to grant me an interview.”

“
You must have nailed that interview.”

“…
In a manner of speaking. I wasn’t even aware the position was open.”

“
And in a few short months, here you are at the International Business Conference on behalf of Barnett Industries. That’s a remarkable story, Alice, don’t you think?”

“
I’m lucky,” I scoffed. “There are plenty of college graduates capable of handling my position.”

“
But you’re one of the lucky ones.”

“
Yeah…”

Cheryl looked at me with the same grin she always had. It always seemed like she was hiding something. There was some hidden me
aning I couldn’t pick up on. Or maybe it was just in my head. Whatever it was, I made my dinner with her tonight more nerve-wracking than it should have been.

The waiter arrived with our food and I wasted my nervous energy by poking and prodding at my meal
with my fork. Cheryl didn’t say anything as she dived right into her dinner. She grinned at me every time I looked up from the table at her.

“
Tell me something, Alice,” she said with her mouth half-full of food. “Now that we’re alone. What do you
really
think about Rafael?”

“
W-what do you mean?”

“
Oh, come now, Alice. You’re not that oblivious. We’re two women just talking about your boss. I’m sure you have some opinion of him.”

“
He’s… a great boss.”

“
Yes, I’m sure he is. But what exactly do you mean by that? I mean, what specifically makes him such a great boss? Or for that matter, a great man?”

“
He’s… an amazing man. He’s accomplished a lot.”

“
That’s an understatement. Rafael’s done more in a few years than most men will accomplish in their lives. But we’re sitting in a room full of men with great accomplishments. One day Rafael will be no different from them. Until then, he has one thing on all of them.”

“
What’s that?”

“
Isn’t it obvious? His youth. His energy. His attractiveness…”

I distracted myself from Cheryl
’s comments by cutting my food like I was working a saw. I shoved enough food into my mouth to fill it up entirely then proceeded to prepare another bite. I nodded to her to show that I was listening but didn’t look at her.

“
Don’t tell me you haven’t noticed,” she said. “It’s the first thing everyone says. Even the men. Rafael is quite handsome, don’t you think?”

Cheryl wasn
’t paying attention to her dinner at this point. Instead, she held the glass of wine up next to her face. I looked into her eyes and her grin was just as suspicious as it always was.

Does she know something? Rafael said something to her. Is it that obvious?

She stared at me and waited for my response. I wasn’t sure what the right thing to say was, so I decided to just be honest.

“
Yes,” I said. “He’s handsome. It might be the money. It might be the suits. It might be because he knows how to run his company. I’m sure any woman would find that attractive.”

“
Indeed. I’m not an exception. I find Rafael quite fascinating, in more ways than one. Alice, I’m going to tell you something and I want you to keep this between you and me. You know, woman to woman.”

“
Of course.”

What was she going to tell me? I
’m not ready for this…

I braced myself for
anything she could tell me. I already knew about the past she had with him. I didn’t want to hear that there was something more. Her voice was dripping with an enthusiasm that made it clear she was still fascinated with him. I was jealous and I wasn’t sure I could contain myself.

“
Rafael and I, we had a thing in the past,” she said. “It was nothing serious. I was a bored young woman who was dragged to a conference by her brother. He was a young CEO trying to make his mark in a world full of stubborn old men. We found refuge in one another. We never saw each other outside of the conferences. But it became a regular thing.”

I listened intently to all of the details she was giving me but pretended to be disinterested. I nodded my head and chewed on my food, constantly reminding myself to remain cool.

“Every single time the International Business Conference would roll around, I would pack all of my things and prepare for the best sex I ever had.”

I grabbed the glass of wine and gulped it, hoping that it would calm me down. I didn
’t want to hear the details of their most intimate moments. But I just had to know. I remained silent and hung on every word she said.

“
But something is different this time around,” she said. “We haven’t done a single thing since he’s arrived.”

“
Is that so?”

I tried to contain my excitement. I had to stop myself from smiling. It was childish of me to appr
eciate this and treat it like good news. I was partly ashamed of my jealousy. But it was the truth. That’s just how I felt.

“
Yes, he hasn’t so much as touched me,” she said. “It’s curious. We never openly discussed it. We agreed that whatever we did would be just that and nothing more. But for some reason, we haven’t done anything.”

“
Maybe he’s just busy. Maybe he just hasn’t had the time.”

I was throwing out excuses for Rafael even though I knew they weren
’t true. I had already been with him once this trip. I was the only one. While I contained my amusement at Cheryl’s dilemma, she pondered the reasons I had given her.

“
You’re right,” she said suddenly.

“
Right about what?”

“
Rafael being busy. Every night, he’s been up late conducting meetings with representatives with every company in sight. But he’ll make time. I can see it.”

“
See what?”

“
That look in his eyes. That look of desire. I don’t know if you’ve ever noticed it before. I don’t see how you would have, since you’re just his employee. But Rafael gets this look. He stares at you so intensely that it’s unmistakable. It’s a look of lust and desire. And I’ve seen it burning inside of him when he stares at me. He’s just biding his time. I’m sure I’ll get him to see things my way and remind him of all of the fun we used to have.”

“
Maybe. I… I don’t know what Rafael’s thinking.”

“
I do. I think I’m just going to have to try a little harder and remind him of what it’s like. The way I made him writhe in his seat. The way I let him come inside of my throat and swallowed every last drop…”

My enthusiasm waned. I was suddenly trying to keep my emotions in check as she spilled the explicit details of the things she did with him. It was taking every muscle in my body to hold back. I wanted to reach across the table and
stab her in the chest with the knife in my hand.

“
He wants me,” she said. “I know it. It’s only a matter of time before he gives in. I know that he’ll enjoy himself then head back to whatever is waiting for him with a smile on his face. That’s all this conference is.”

“
What is it?”

“
It’s an excuse to come out here. It’s blatantly obvious why they picked a place like Maui. Rafael came here to relieve himself. Nothing does it better than a no-strings-attached fling. Speaking of which, how are things going with Dante?”

“
What?”

“
Oh, Alice. Need I remind you that there’s no need for you to be so oblivious? Dante clearly has a thing for you. He’s handsome. He’s charming. He’s a doctor. That’s always a plus. I don’t know what you’re waiting for.”

“
I… I’m not interested in him that way.”

“
What way? I’m not saying you should date him, Alice. But you’re in a place you might never be again. You should have some fun with him. That’s why it’s called a fling. When you’re done, you
fling
them away.”

Cheryl laughed at her ow
n joke as she enjoyed another sip of wine. After everything she said about Rafael, her suggestion about Dante didn’t seem so unreasonable.

I knew what I
’d done before. I would be a hypocrite if I said that I was above some kind of a fling. It’s not like Rafael and I were in a monogamous relationship. It was barely a relationship at all.

“
Alice.”

I looked up at Cheryl and she had a smile on her face, her eyes wide.

“Yeah?”

“
Are you okay? It looked like you were out of it for a second.”

“
No, I’m fine. I was… I was just thinking.”

“
About Dante, no doubt,” she said with a smirk. “You shouldn’t hesitate. I don’t know about your situation back home Alice but just know this. Whatever you do with Dante won’t change that. You’ll never see Dante again. It will just be a single moment in time for you to have fun. You can go back to your boyfriend or husband or whomever. And they won’t have to know. It won’t change things.”

“
That… makes sense.”

“
I knew you would see things my way, dear. Consider yourself lucky. I’m sure Dante won’t need any convincing. Whatever it is that’s holding Rafael back though… I’m sure I’ll figure it out. I just have to give him a reminder of what he’s been resisting this whole time.”

Before I could say anything, the waiter arrived to clear our p
lates.

“
Will either of you ladies be having dessert?” he asked us.

“
Yes, I will,” Cheryl said. “Alice?”

“…
No,” I shook my head. “I’m done.”

“
Oh, come now, Alice. A single slice of cake won’t ruin your figure for the beach.”