A Secret Love Affair

Chapter 12

"So, what's the plan? Where are we going?" Paige asked, while looking to set up her bluetooth in Sienna's car. "And will there be moonshine and chewing tobacco?" She asked, hoping Sienna would give her some details on their late night adventure.

"You know, at some point you're going to have to stop assuming that Arkansas is one big stereotype. I didn't go to Florida thinking it was going to be all "Florida man..." all the time but...wait bad example, it really is "Florida man..." all the time over there.." She said, amused at her own comment. "Look, It's a bit of a drive but consider it an extension of our road trip" She said, while keeping her eyes on the road.

Sienna felt uneasy, she knew they had to talk about everything that happened that day but she wasn't ready. When you say something outloud, you can't take it back, it makes things real.

When Sienna finally pulled into the parking lot of Bigmart, a huge chain store where you could grab food, camping equipment and everything in between, Paige became even more curious.

"So, are you going to tell me what's going on or what?" Paige asked, raising an eyebrow.

"In a minute, we need to grab a few things." Sienna said, using her most patient mom tone.

Sienna made her way through the aisles as Paige followed, she grabbed travel accessories and snacks. She stopped in the clothing aisle and grabbed some cheap clothes.

"Hello! What are we doing? What's with the supermarket sweep?" Paige asked, confused.

"Small or medium?" Sienna asked, while holding up a bathing suit. "You look like a medium." She said, before Paige could even answer. Sienna noticed Paige was teetering a line of curiosity and annoyance. "Will you trust me?" Sienna asked, Paige stopping for the first time all night and looking in her eyes as she held both her wrists.

"Yeah, fine but if I end up murdered..." Paige replied, before being interrupted by Sienna.

"Nothing. Nothing will happen because nobody knows you're at a Bigmart in Arkansas, Paige. They'd never find your body." Sienna responded, winking at Paige.

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After a couple hours of driving and a lot of winding roads, Paige and Sienna arrived at a small town. The downtown area seemed pretty lively with Christmas lights everywhere but Sienna just seemed to drive right by it. They drove uphill, and toward what seemed like a wooded area with an occasional cabin along the way. Sienna finally pulled up to a bungalow that seemed to be up on stilts.

Sienna got out of the car and opened Paige's door. As she stepped out of the car she studied the wooded area, and although it was much darker than the cities she was used to, she knew it was beautiful.

"Welcome to your Hot Springs treehouse." Sienna said, waving her arm like a model on the price is right. She grabbed Paige's hand and they climbed the stairs to the treehouse.

Paige was slightly overwhelmed by the impromptu trip. She began piecing things together, mostly she realized why Sienna had picked up all that hideous clothes. They never packed. As they climbed the stairs to the tiny bungalow, Paige held her breath, it's not like she was expecting a group of people to jump out from behind the couch and kitchen counters and scream "surprise!" but it was more like the fear of the unknown. As they walked through the front door, Paige was floored by how beautiful the place was.

"So, what are we doing here?" Paige asked, trying to play it cool.

"I don't know, I figured we needed a little getaway. I know my family can be a lot and then there's Andrew." Sienna replied, hanging her head.

"Sienna, we didn't even spend twenty-four hours at your parents," Paige responded, chuckling. "I won't lie, the Andrew thing really made me want to hop on a plane, train, and/or automobile right back to Florida." Paige responded, as she looked around the bungalow. "How did you even make this happen?" Paige asked, working hard on keeping it cool.

The place was like a suspended little cabin. A tiny kitchen welcomed them, the place was fully furnished, and they had a great view of the outdoors. Paige spotted a hot tub outside, edison lights hung creating a romantic atmosphere. It was romantic, it was beautiful, it was breathtaking.

Paige took a seat on a huge leather couch that sat directly across the fireplace. She watched as Sienna fiddled with the gas and smiled at the beautiful sight in front of her.

"Well, the owners are friends with my parents. These are very hard to book but when I texted them it so happens they had a cancellation and I jumped on it. Initially, I was just going to take you out for ice cream." Sienna said, taking a seat next to Paige on the couch.

"Well, this definitely beats sprinkles but why here? Out of all places..." Paige asked, inching closer toward Sienna.

"Well, I figured maybe we'd spend a little time together, get to know each other." Sienna replied, biting the bottom of her lip.

"I'm sorry for losing my patience with your boyfriend this afternoon. I know it was rude of me to just walk away but boy did I want to punch his perfect little face," Paige responded, reaching for Sienna's hand. "But I did really enjoy that kiss..."

"I'm sorry, too. I knew he would be there at some point, I just didn't expect it to be so soon." Sienna replied, inching toward the subject she really wanted to get into. She was glad Paige had brought up the kiss first. "So, tell me about how you enjoyed that kiss" Sienna asked, finally feeling brave enough to ask what she had been dying to ask.

"You mean that little thing, I already forgot about it, it was so random" Paige responded, knowing her comment would get a reaction from Sienna.

"It was nice..." Sienna replied, letting her words linger as she ran her fingers up and down Paige's forearm. She could see the goosebumps forming on her arm.

"Did you bring me here expecting me to put out, Arkansas?" Paige asked, making light of the situation.

"Nope. I brought you here in hopes of getting to know you better. What was that comment you made about my lips when we kissed?" Sienna asked.

Paige smiled and shook her head knowing it was time to fess up. "So, you know the night of the party when we walked home together? You totally kissed me. I know I'm irresistible and you probably couldn't help yourself but I made an executive decision and decided not to tell you anything in case maybe you regretted it the next day. I didn't want you to feel embarrassed." Paige replied, removing her hoody since the fireplace had started warming up the living room.

"You know, I thought I dreamt that!" Sienna responded, almost as if she found the last piece of a million piece puzzle.

"Nope. All real. It was so unexpected I think you almost gave me a heart attack." Paige replied, licking her lips. She wanted so badly to kiss Sienna but she wasn't sure if that's what Sienna was angling at. She hadn't really given her any signals. Sienna looked tired, it was in fact almost one in the morning and they had been driving for what seemed like days.

Sienna and Paige began talking. They talked about their childhoods, showed each other not so flattering pictures of their teenage selves on their phones and went through the bottle of wine. Paige finally began opening up and the more she did the more Sienna liked her. Paige was like a good book and Sienna just couldn't get enough.

"So, now that you know that Andrew is my one and only relationship, tell me about your last relationship." Sienna asked, looking at Paige expectantly.

Paige looked at Sienna, contemplating how much to share about the relationship that broke her. She felt safe with Sienna and her gut told her that it was ok to be vulnerable with her. With the help of a deep breath and the last sip of her wine, Paige began telling Sienna the story about the girl she was with for four years, that later broke her heart. She told Sienna all about her softball scholarship and how she lost it because of her severe depression. She told Sienna all about the self-destruct mode she went into that led her to totaling her parents car and almost killing herself. She told Sienna about how her actions broke her relationship with her family and all of her friends. Paige finally let go of everything she had been holding back. She didn't feel ashamed of her past, she just felt relief.