11. Kara
11
KARA
J’orn said nothing else until they reached the tall gates of the Fem Lovely Resort. The wall around the resort was made of dusty-rose-colored bricks and the gates themselves were gold.
There was a small sign posted beside the golden gates that said,
“Please ring the bell for assistance.” And hanging on a hook beside the sign was a tiny silver bell with golden filigree flowers all over it.
Kara looked doubtfully at the tiny bell which was no bigger than her thumb. Would the people inside those massive walls really be able to hear such a small instrument? Nevertheless, there was nothing to do but take the bell off the hook and shake it.
To her surprise, the sound that came from the little silver bell was so loud she dropped it to clap her hands over her ears. BONG…BONG…BONG… It was like being directly under a huge church bell when it was being rung!
With cat-like reflexes, J’orn caught the bell in one big palm and silenced it by closing his fingers over it.
“Oh!” Kara gasped. “I had no idea it would be so loud.”
“Sound transfer technology,” was J’orn’s terse reply. She had a feeling he was still angry with her—and maybe also angry with himself for declaring his feelings again.
She wished she could find a way to make things right between them. She found him incredibly attractive—much more than she should. If only there wasn’t such an age gap she would have been happy to date him.
Just remember Demi Moore and Ashton Kutcher, she told herself. That kind of relationship always ends in heartbreak. There’s no point in taking a chance on something you know is going to fail.
A moment after the BONG of the tiny bell died out, a hooded figure wearing a long, pale pink robe hurried to the golden gates. When it reached them and threw back the hood, Kara saw it was an older Paradisian man with a shiny gold, bald head and wrinkles around all three of his eyes.
“Ah, hello my daughter. Be welcome!” he said, putting his palms together and bowing deeply. “You must be Kara—your luggage has already arrived. Welcome to the Fem Lovely Resort!”
“Oh, er, thank you,” Kara said, nodding back at him. She thought it was strange that a man was greeting her when the Fem Lovely was supposed to be a women-only resort, but she didn’t want to be rude and say it.
J’orn, however, had no problem speaking his mind.
“What are you doing here?” he asked the bald man bluntly. “We were assured that this was a females-only resort.”
“And so it is, my son, so it is,” the bald Paradisian said, nodding. “For only females are admitted as clients and guests here. But it is run by the Order of FAAL—that stands for ‘Females Are Always Lovely’ in case you’re wondering,” he added. “We are males who have been called by the Goddess Eternal to serve all womankind. Which is why we opened this resort—that we might better serve them.” He focused on Kara. “Here we offer treatments that will ease your physical and mental stress and clear your mind of all your troubles, my daughter.”
“So you have a resort full of men whose only goal is to serve women?” Kara asked, raising her eyebrows skeptically.
“Yes, my daughter. Please believe me when I say that we truly love to serve! It is our calling—our mission in life.”
The bald Paradisian monk—because that was what he was, apparently—was so earnest that Kara felt a little bad for doubting him.
“Well—” she began.
“I don’t like this,” J’orn growled. “I don’t trust their motives, Kara. Come back to the docking area with me and we’ll find you a ride home.”
“No!” Kara exclaimed, frowning up at him. “No, I already paid for this vacation. If I leave now, I’ll have to eat the cost of it!”
“I am afraid we are unable to offer refunds on such short notice without a healer’s note,” the Fem Lovely monk said, shaking his bald head sorrowfully. “But why do you not come in and look around, my daughter? You may find our accommodations to your liking.”
“I’m sure I will,” Kara said firmly. She looked up at J’orn. “I’m going now. I’ll stay in the resort, like I promised you but I’m not going back home until I get my vacation, damn it!”
He sighed.
“All right, but I’ll be coming by to check on you every day.”
“I am afraid no males are admitted entrance to our holy walls, who are not in our order,” the monk said, frowning. “All those within have taken a vow of celibacy and wear the cage of chastity so that our female guests can feel safe and secure around us. So please understand if I can’t allow you to come in. We can, however, bring your mate to the gates to converse with you if you like.”
Kara didn’t think the big Kindred liked that idea, but at last he nodded.
“Just keep her safe—I’ll be checking on her daily. And if anything happens to her…” He didn’t finish the sentence but he didn’t have to—the glare he directed to the Fem Lovely monk seemed to shake the other male completely.
“I understand,” he said faintly. “I swear to you that your lady will be safe, good Sir. No one will lay a hand on her if she does not wish it.”
“Good—they’d better not,” J’orn growled.
It occurred to Kara that the big Kindred was being awfully possessive of her, considering they weren’t even dating. But she decided to let it go—it was probably safer for her if the monks that ran this place believed she was the wife or girlfriend of a huge, imposing Kindred warrior.
“All right, I’ll see you later,” she said to J’orn. “Good luck on your mission.”
“Be careful and stay inside the walls of the resort,” was his reply.
Then he turned on his heel and left without another word.
Kara watched the big Kindred go and gave a little sigh. She wished again that there wasn’t such a gap in age between them. It really was extremely flattering to have a much younger man so interested in her but it wouldn’t work in the long run.
Deciding to put the matter out of her mind, she followed the Paradisian monk through the golden gates and into the resort.