As soon as she hit the clearing, and the lake breeze swept over her face, Izzy's elation turned sour. What was she doing? The rapid beating of her heart revealed that there was more there than simply saying thank you to the man who'd saved her from drowning. She was excited to see him.
She froze in her tracks, biting her lip as she focused on the lake in front of her. She was pregnant. Tainted. Unwanted. A black fly bit her leg, and she winced, swatting at it. Straightening, she ran a hand through her wind tossed hair, sucking in a breath in order to steady her pounding heart. Think Izzy, think. You've felt this all before. I didn't work then, and it won't work now.
She turned and took a step back into the woods, anger and hurt flooding her thoughts. Hadn't this whole situation taught her anything? Here she was, bouncing back towards the first man she saw like a desperate little fool. She couldn't afford to be a fool again.
She walked slowly back the way she'd come, kicking at a root that protruded from the ground. It was hard to turn around. Her body felt like it was made of lead as she tromped back towards the home. She'd been so happy the whole day, she just wanted the feeling to stay.
A faint voice carried over to her, stopping her in her tracks. She turned, listening, trying to discern it from the waves lapping on the shore. A male voice. She tilted her head. He was singing, his voice lilting over the waves as if they were an accompaniment. Despite the voice of common sense urging her to go back the way she'd come, her feet carried her towards the beach. Standing once again where the sand began, she could hear him more clearly.
It was beautiful. So full of emotions—though she couldn't pick up any of the words. She stepped out further on the beach. Just to hear it better, she told herself. It was him, and he was closer, maybe fifty feet away, strolling down the beach towards her, his tall figure framed by the sun. Oh no. What was she doing? He'd see her!
She stepped back, wavering between the sand and the woods. A thrill of excitement ran up and down her spine. She should go back.
All of the sudden, the singing stopped. She stood in the shadows for a moment, waiting to see whether or not it would start again.
"Are you going to run away again?" chuckled the man from behind her.
Izzy snapped around, a strangled scream halfway escaping her lips. He must have seen her peer out at him and run across the beach to find her. He stood, trying to catch his breath, his hands on his knees.
Looking a bit sheepish as he saw her startled face, he managed a soft smile. "Didn't mean to scare you. It's just...I've been wondering if I'd see you again before I left. I couldn't believe it when I looked up and there you were."
"Yes, well, here I am." The words just rolled out before she could stop them. She was desperately trying to avoid his chestnut eyes. Something told her that just one look would draw her in further than she wanted to go. She couldn't help but notice how tall and lean he was as he straightened in front of her. He had a rougher look than the preppy boys who'd studied at her high school. She imagined he was a few years older as well.
"Yes, here we are again." He shifted from one foot to the other and blew out a breath, running a hand through his hair. Izzy wondered if he was instantly regretting his impulsive decision to run over to her. He seemed to struggle with what to say next.
"I never got your name," he said after a few awkward seconds.
Her mind drawn to the maternity home looming behind her, Izzy debated on whether or not to tell him her real name. "It's Isadora," she said finally. "Most call me Izzy."
His eyes shone playfully as he looked down at her, instantly setting Izzy's heart on high speed. "Ah, Izzy. The mystery is solved. I think I'll be able to sleep again."
She smiled despite herself. "I want to apologize," she said. "I should have thanked you the other day, before I left."
"You looked like you were in a hurry," he said, seeming to brush it off. He looked past her to the path leading back to the home. "Do you live nearby?"
"No," Izzy said a little too quickly. "I live a ways down to the left. I was walking the beach and thought I heard something in the woods over here. That's when I heard your voice." She was mortified at how quickly the lie passed her lips. She ran a hand over her face as her cheeks grew warm, threatening to betray her.
Looking up at him, she prayed he'd bought her story. When his dark eyes locked on hers, she broke into a full blush. With an enormous amount of effort, she contained her giddiness before she could further embarrass herself and giggle like a schoolgirl. "You have a lovely voice," she blurted, desperately trying to change the subject.
"You liked it?" He shot her a lazy grin. She was drawn in, suddenly wondering how his soft lips would feel against hers. His thin blue shirt fit perfectly around his broad chest.
Stop it! She needed to leave. Alarms were setting off in every corner of her mind. Get out while you still can Izzy! her mind screamed at her. She ripped her eyes away from his.
"Wes! Hey Wes! Where on earth did you go? We've been looking all over for you!" a voice shot from their right.
Two men, who looked to be around the same age as Wes came jogging down the beach. One of them, a little more burly than the other, raised an eyebrow inquisitively at Izzy and Wes. "Well, well, well. Who do we have here?"
Izzy felt suddenly panicked in the company of the three men. She didn't feel that she was in danger in any way, but the amount of trouble she would be in if one of the nuns spied her was increasing by the minute. The whole thing was getting out hand, with lightning speed.
"Gene, Hank, this is Izzy," Wes said, oblivious to her growing panic. "The girl I told you about."
"Well, hello there Izzy," Gene crooned, sweeping into a fancy bow. He winked a Wes. "The mystery girl has a name."
It was Wes's turn to look slightly uncomfortable.
Hank stepped up, offering Izzy his hand. "I'm Hank." he said. He had a slightly goofy look to him, that was impossible not to like. "It's rare that old Wes run out of words, so I'll help him out. How 'bout you join us for lunch?"
Wes laughed nervously, punching him in the ribs, then turned to her, a hopeful look on his face. "Will you join me?"
Alarms reached a fever pitch in Izzy's mind as she struggled to free herself from the magnetic force of his eyes. His lips curled as he patiently waited for her reply.
"I—I'm not dressed." She imagined she looked positively plain in the gray dress, no makeup, no curls. She couldn't understand what would cause this well dressed man to want to invite her anywhere. "I can't. I really need to get back to—to the cabin. My parents will be expecting me." Another lie.
"Are you sure?" Hank shot her a pleading look. "It's our last day here. And—it's the least you could do for the guy who saved your life."
"Hank! Come on, I'm not going to twist her arm." Wes, shot him an irritated look. His face held an apology as he turned to Izzy. "We're staying in a cabin a little ways down the beach with our record producer, Judd and his wife. She'll be the one cooking, not us."
"I can't stay long." Izzy couldn't believe the words as they slipped out of her mouth.
She cast one last wary glance at the foreboding maternity home behind the woods before she followed the three young men down the beach. Her legs grew weaker as she imagined Sister Mary Thomas seething at a window, watching her trot off unescorted with three grown men. If she was caught, she'd pay for it dearly.
As her feet kicked the sand, she wondered what had possessed her to go with them. Was she losing her mind? She could always turn back. She could apologize and tell them she'd changed her mind and she needed to get home.
Wes turned to her, seeming to sense that she was uncomfortable. "I don't think I formally introduced myself. I'm Wes," he said. "We've been staying here for a week with Judd Jones, from Sunray Records?" He eyed her, as if to see if she recognized the name. Met with her blank face, he continued. "We're a band, we just signed to Sunray Records. We're here to iron out the details, then we'll be heading back to California to record."
In front of them, Hank let out a high pitched squeal as Gene body slammed him, causing him to stumble out into the cold water. Wes shook his head at them. "What about you? Do you live here on the island?"
Izzy gulped down a knot in her throat, and reached up to pull her hair over her shoulder. "I'm staying here for the summer. My family owns a cabin." She couldn't look him in the face as lied. But, truthfully, there were several other reasons why she couldn't look him in the face.
Self consciously, she ran her hand to the small lump on her stomach, straightening her dress, praying it wasn't visible. Again, she asked herself what she was doing. She should be back at the home. Here he was talking about a shining career in California, while she was worrying about the repercussions of getting caught for venturing outside of her current prison. They couldn't be at more opposite ends from each other.
The girls must have gone back inside by then. She thought of Dottie. She must be worried about her. And then there was Gloria. Gloria was sure to go looking for her. She would probably press Dottie until she told her. Her mouth went dry thinking about it.
The deck to Judd's large log cabin came into focus. The cabin was beautiful, made of brightly polished logs set on top of eachother. Izzy imagined Judd must have a lot of money in order to have a cottage bigger than a typical families' house. An older man, who Izzy guessed was Judd, sat in wooden rocking chair on the deck, turning the page of a newspaper, while he puffed a cigar.
As they climbed over the rocks onto the grass, and came towards the back door of the cabin, Izzy began to feel queasy. How queer she must look, showing up for lunch out of the blue with three strange men. What would the older couple think of her? Her throat was so dry by the time they came to the door, she could barely swallow.
"Betsy makes the best sandwiches," Wes said, beaming at her. A look of concern replaced his smile. "Is everything alright? You look so pale."
"I really think that I should—." Izzy was interrupted as the back door swung open and Betsy's plump face beamed at them.
"You must be the girl," she said. "Wes was set on finding you before he leaves for California tomorrow. He's been walking that beach every day, hoping to run into you again. I'm so glad he finally did."
"Gee, you make me sound like some kind of lovesick romeo." Wes laughed, clearly embarrassed. "I've only just learned her name."
"Please, please, come in," Betsy said, stepping aside to let them through the door. She clasped her hands together under her heavy bosom, the wide smile on her lips never fading as she led them to a large wooden table beside a picture window that overlooked the lake. "Have a seat," she said bustling around them. Her stockinged legs moved with purpose as she hurried into the kitchen.
"Is she always that excited?" Izzy asked. Wes sprung forward to pull out a chair for her, nearly knocking the other two over. She eased herself into it, all the while thinking how different Betsy's reaction was from what she'd expected.
"I'd say so," Wes said. He sat next to her and drummed his fingers on the table. "She's a jolly woman. Judd's a lucky man."
Izzy smiled. She'd decided she must be dreaming. She'd just relax and play along. Her eyes drifted over the room. It was beautifully decorated, not in a high end fashion kind of way, but more a cottage style. Pictures of the lake adorned the walls, along with a few stuffed trophy fish. The smell of pine was welcoming, so different from the damp smell of the home. It was so light and airy, she wanted to suck it all in.
"I've told you about myself," Wes said. "What about you? What's your story?"
As she looked at his handsome face, it pained Izzy that what she was about to tell him would all be a lie.
Hope you enjoyed this week's update. Unfortunately, I couldn't fit it all in one chapter, so there's more to come next week between Izzy and Wes. Probably not a great start to a relationship when one of them has something to hide. Can you blame her? Please vote if you're enjoying this story. If you have an questions or ideas let me know. Did you notice that every chapter is named after a song written and performed in the 1950's? Just an added touch :)