Convincing

Vacation

So, after leaving lunch with her mom and her sister, she was already making the plans when she got home and found her dad leaving. “Oh, and you received a package baby girl.” Thanking her dad, Arthur said a bye to his grandson and kissed his head as Mateo walking him out said, “Love you, grandpapa Arthur.”

Ruffling his brown curls, the man beamed, “Je ’taime, handsome boy.” Waving bye to them and leaving Penelope to ask Mateo, “Do you want to go to the vacation home when you get out of school on Friday? We can go swimming, sleep in, do a camp out.”

Grinning, Mateo nodded eagerly and asked, “Can we bring Jacobe?” Not sure but not going to let what she had going on with Harper affect the kids friendship, she was the bigger person.

Calling her when Mateo was in the shower she got her answer pretty quick, “No ugh, I think Scott wants to keep him. They’ve been hanging out and he’s been talking about taking him to the zoo and other stuff so.” Not sure that was going to happen and wanting to voice that, Penelope didn’t.

“Okay well the reception there is very spotty but if you need anything you know where the key is. Have a nice night.” Hanging up before things could get tense, Harper already felt it.

The unsaid words hanging in the air like a bad smell, Harper didn’t know if she wanted a friend who never told her the truth or a friend who would.

But having to lay in the bed of telling her friend to butt out, she was left in a soiled bed with a man who meant her no good.

Left in that bad and worsening predicament, Penelope who was still getting flowers and notes, needing the reprieve? Took off a day earlier than expected. Calling her son’s school and making sure it was okay, she asked Mateo if he wanted to go to school or go ahead and leave he chose the latter.

Having been having a hard time at school with his best friend being so down and not wanting to be bothered more and more now, the withdrawing blonde boy was making Mateo feel like he didn’t want to be friends.

So the boy was happy to go spend time with his mom and have fun.

On the road in his mom’s favorite mode of travel when they were going on trips, her land rover was moving fast and she was soon out of the city. Singing along to the radio with her as they ate snacks and played, I Spy, eventually had Mateo taking a nap, Penelope managed to kill the last four hours getting there in no time.

Driving up the driveway, the restored gite with its beautiful stone look gave it a castle look made her remember all the times she acted like it was one.

Calling it her princess castle and adoring spending her summers there and pretending to be one with her kind nanny who entertained her for hours with tea parties and whatever would make her happy.

Grateful for Louisa who had been like a second mother to her, Penelope was stiving to be different. Wanting her son to have memories with her there, she didn’t wake him up and carried him to the door. Opening it and going inside, she took Mateo to his room for the next couple of weeks and undid his shoes.

Getting him comfortable and laying him down and letting him go to sleep even deeper, the little boy did indeed as she got their groceries and stuff out of the car.

Just as she was finishing, their security called in, “Are you okay ma’am?” Nodding she looked around, “Yeah thanks for coming in before we did.” Having swept the house for a possible squatter or anyone lurking, Smithers, the head of security assured her it was his pleasure. “You and the little tyke have fun miss and if you need us, you know how to get us there quickly.”

Thanking him and walking to her room, Penelope was taking off her shirt to take a shower when she felt them. Eyes.

Turning slow and looking over her shoulder, she saw the house a thousand acres away. In the dark of the night it looked haunted and spooky. Not knowing who owned after all these years and it’s change of hand happening a lot, Penelope tried to shake off the feeling someone was sitting in it. Watching her...

To the point she tried to forget about it when she got up the next morning. Making breakfast for her and Mateo, she looked at him and eagerly said, “Do you want to go do something fun today?” Nodding eagerly, fun included horseback riding and then going straight to the lake.

Swimming clothes under their shorts and shirts, Penelope jumped in and her son followed with a whoop. Both great swimmers, and the water clean and cool, both were having fun splashing and playing when Mateo noticed him first.

“Who is that?” Turning and seeing a man sleeping under a tree, she looked at him startled having not noticed him. “I don’t know. But let’s not disturb him.”

Getting out of the water and getting their stuff, they left the man to sleep and went to the little shops and centers.

Going through the market and just looking, Mateo was suddenly tagged into a game with some local kids and began playing soccer and as they did, she enjoyed a juice as she watched over them.

Looking at her son and beaming when he scored but still high fived the other kids, they were all laughing and talking in French when she heard, “Miguel! Come now, it’s time for your chores!”

Other kids being called one by one, she waved her son to her, “Come on, let’s walk back. We’ll come back tomorrow.”

Nodding, they went home and after making dinner and eating, they watched a few Pixar movies before passing out on the couch together. Waking up with a horrible pain in her neck, but worth it because her son was curled into her content, she didn’t want to move.

But she had to as a dog barking jeered her from comfort.

Getting up and walking to the back patio door, she looked to see in the house opposite of the lake. Seeing a man playing fetch with his huge dog, she watched for a while and while it seemed harmless as she drank coffee, she found herself making out his form.

From far away he was nicely built and as he flexed throwing a ball, she could see he was like a female scratch post. Sure that was ink on him, and curious as dark hair moved, she realized then it was the man from the other day who had been sleeping.

Only Romeo hadn’t been sleeping, he’d felt her eyes on him and had wanted to call out but played harmless.

Now trying to ignore the eyes on him as he played a game of fetch with Pedro, the huge Great Dane barked as he brought back his ball. Laughing and petting his head, he smiled, “You’re gonna meet your brother today. So be nice okay? Be nice to the mama too. She’s small, so no standing.”

Not wanting to scare the young woman he knew wasn’t alone, Romeo had seen the men monitoring the house and checking in. Having run backgrounds on all of them and seeing them all highly decorated ex-service members who’d been working for her family for years, he felt better.

But he knew that meant if he alarmed her, she’d have his ass shot and in the hospital fighting for his life. So nice and slow was the approach, nice and slow.

The convenient home his godfather having left him across the acres of land from the vacation home her parents owned, Romeo sitting and watching waited for the perfect moment.