Melanie put the key into the large oak door and pushed forward. They both walked into a beautiful marble hallway with a simple chandelier hanging above.
"Who did you say this belonged to?" Sam asked, his holdall flung around his shoulder as he surveyed his surroundings.
"My boss's," Melanie replied, "I knew she was rich, but I didn't know she was loaded."
"Yeah, it's a nice place... what's to eat?" Sam said.
"Hungry already?" Melanie asked, stupid question to ask considering he just asked for food, she really must get it together. She dumped her luggage near the ornate table and walked towards the living room, outside was a nine metre pool, "Wow, this is some place... the pool even looks over the cliff, it's one of those miragey type places, if you swim towards the end, it's like you're bound to fall off." Mel said to the air. She turned around and noticed that Sam had disappeared. She made her way out of the living room and into the kitchen where he was playing with a black cat. He looked all lovable.
"What you got there?" Melanie said, then realising she sounded stupid, "Besides a cat, how did it get here?"
"Cat flap... I presume. The fridge is fully stocked... and you never guess what I found out..." as he pointed downwards, "Those steps lead to the wine cellar, they have everything done there, not that I know what everything is but if your boss will let us, we can open a bottle of her finest Champagne and sit by the pool. I could do with a beer though, not a champagne person."
"Alcohol, it'll pass. Charice did say, to make ourselves at home. I'm sure it's not a problem."
"What did you want to do today?" Sam asked Melanie.
"We can do exactly that, just sit by the pool."
A few hours later, Melanie sat by the pool in her bikini and sarong on one of the sun loungers with a smile on her face and a champagne flute in her hand. Sam was smiling back at her, with a bottle of San Miguel in his hand. He had chosen to wear his khaki beige slacks and no shirt, which was fine for Mel, because he was hot and there wasn't anything sexier then a man with a pack of abs.
"What are you thinking about Mel?" Sam said mischievously as he gazed at her.
"Nothin'," she said laughing.
"I bet you were thinking about getting me naked," Sam said.
"Uh... no... not at all," Melanie denied, but she was such a bad liar, he would see right through her.
"Come on, the temptation is far too great to just be thinking potted plants and err swimming pools... I know in the last twenty minutes, I have thought about you half a dozen times minus the swimsuit and sarong," Sam said devilishly.
Melanie blushed, "Sam, I feign ignorance... that is just the beer talking."
"Well I feign the beer, because it really is your body doing the talking," Sam said back, "Don't get the wrong idea, I didn't come with you to have mad passionate fling... I..."
"I know, I'll probably sell myself short here... but let's just throw caution to the wind and see how it's goes." Melanie interrupted, "I'm not really one for, planning ahead... it never really materialises... I haven't really been lucky in anything but my job... without it... I'm nothing."
"I don't believe that... the person you are isn't all in the making of other people, I think, it really is you who makes you... despite the past and all that shit..."
"Can I ask you a question?" Melanie asked and Sam nodded, "How did you meet her?"
Sam took a deep breathe, "We had mutual friends, she was very popular but I never really took it into account... because I guess love is blind when it comes to a beautiful woman... your eyes want to see all the good pleasing things but it's the heart that takes a back seat when you know things are off. Thinking back now, I realise she was off from the get go, but I believed she was a good person because she was ludicrously beautiful but where has it got me?" Sam shrugged, "I don't want to talk about her, I came here with you, not to talk about her."
"I have to know this, before anything can go ahead but do you still love her?" Melanie asked, "Is your heart still with her?"
Sam paused, "Yes,"
That was all Melanie needed to know and God, she was stupid. She was so stupid! She wished she could click her fingers and she was back home, curled up in a duvet away from it all. It seemed as if her luck hadn't changed either and deep inside, she felt ten times as worse. Oh, she hated karma, it always took a bloody long time and now, as she sat alone with her head in her hands a few hours later, she knew this trip had been a mistake. She had, had such high hopes for a relationship, for someone to care for her, for something, anything, even if it includes a few workouts with the unobtainable Sam, she was there... so what if she was selling herself short. She always sold herself short. This hope of something to come, was fantasy.
Sam had left an hour ago, after the earlier revelation, it had been awkward between them and they just couldn't afford to spend the rest of their time together with that tidbit of information separating them. So, he had thanked her for the time that they did spend and he said his goodbyes. Melanie broke down in tears and as she uncorked the bottle of Dom Perignon, continued to drown out her sorrows.
As several seasons changed and the weather became warmer then cooler, then cold. Melanie had decided, enough was enough. She handed in her notice of resignation to the horror and bewilderment of Charice, who had hoped that she and Sam would have sorted out their feelings and when she had spoken to Charice and confirmed that Sam was still in love with his ex-wife. Charice was horrified, she had a distinct feeling that Sam was for her and unfortunately he wasn't. Which kicked karma in the butt. With Melanie's resignation, she opted to move out of her apartment and move abroad to Los Angeles into a rented apartment in Burbank, California. She wasn't totally alone, but loneliness she craved.
Her apartment was cosy, but she couldn't afford to splash out on furnishings because she had to find a new job, a new career before she could settle. As she popped on her shades and read the LA Times paper, scanning for any prospective job roles, she took a sip of her frappacino and stepped out onto the curb. There were definitely roles advertising for extras, coffee machine technicians and chefs, but nothing like that appealed to her. She crossed the road and walked down Hollywood Boulevard, she was determined to make things work out for her, she wasn't going to take another battering if her life depended on it.
She looked up, just in time to see someone careen towards her. She side stepped, only to bump into someone coming out of the coffee shop. Their coffee spilling across the pavement.
"Oh my God! I'm sorry!" she said looking at the mess on the floor and then looked up.
"Melanie, is that you?" the female squeaked.
"Dawn! Oh my God! What are you doing here?" Melanie screamed, the coffees forgotten.
"I'm here with my husband... he's doing a film, so I'll be here for the next month. More to say, what the bloody hell are you doing here?" Dawn asked.
"I made the big leap! I quit my job and moved over here," Melanie said.
"Sounds drastic, what prompted that?" Dawn not wasting time with chitchat.
"Long story, where are you headed now?" Melanie asked.
"I was bringing Clive some coffee but I guess it wasn't meant to be," she smiled, "Never mind, why don't you come along to the set, only if you haven't got anything planned. It's only down the road but it's a closed set."
Melanie smiled, "I would love that."
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