The New Years Eve Party was in full swing. Champagne was flowing freely, laughter and chatter filled the air. Woman were dressed in glittery designer fashion and the men were resplendent in there formal attire. And Megan wished she was anyplace else than this particular ballroom on this particular New Years Eve.
Normally Megan would be having the time of her life, for after all, this was how she was brought up to live. Fancy parties, old money, the bell of the ball. But tonight.. Nothing felt right. The music was to loud, the voices were grating and all she wanted to do was take off her uncomfortable shoes and the stiff dress she was wearing and find some peace and quiet. Not able to stand one more minute she wrote a quick note, handing it to a waiter with instructions to give it to her date and headed out the door.Not wanting to take the limo she came in, Megan ran out onto the sidewalk and hailed a cab.
Just as the taxi pulled to a stop and Megan slid into the back the seat, the passenger door on the other side opened wide, and a man slid in next to her. Staring in disbelief, anger beginning to boil over. Megan opened her mouth to give this impertinent male a piece of her mind, but as he turned his head to look at her she found the words getting stuck in her throat. Sitting beside Megan was the most beautiful man she had ever seen. Tipping back his Stetson he gave her a big smile ” Evening ma’am”. Pressing the intercom in the back of the cab he gave the driver an address and sat back. His voice was like dark chocolate, deep and rich and she wanted to hear more. Megan felt like she was in a fog and that was totally unexceptable, so she shook her head trying to clear the haze. Finally finding her voice she cleared her throat. “Just who do you think you are! She snapped ” How dare you take over my cab! Now tell the driver to pull over immediately!” The man beside her just gave her a slow, easy smile “No ma’am” There it was again, that rich deep voice. Taking a deep breath and getting ready to launch into a tirade with the likes he has never heard before she opened up her mouth to speak but nothing came out. Grabbing her throat Megan found herself starting to panic. “What the hell” she thought. The man just looking over at her and with a imperceptible movement of his hand Megan was fast asleep.
Megan woke up the next morning with the warmth of the sun on her face, and she allowed herself a long, luxurious stretch. “Wow this bed is comfortable” she thought as she snuggled in a little deeper. “Wait!” Bolting straight up she opened her eyes and looked around feeling a rush of fear wash over her. “This is not my room, or my bed!” Looking down at her clothes she found she was dressed in an oversized flannel shirt, also not hers. Taking a careful look around she noted the rustic quality of the room, the natural wood paneling, the antique dresser and the matching wooden four poster bed she was in. “Very quaint. Now where in the hell am I!” Pulling back the covers Megan slid off the bed onto the hard wood floor and padded over to the door. Reaching for the doorknob she gave it a twist and cautiously opened it. Peaking her head out and looking around she didn’t see anyone, so she continued through the door and walked out into what appeared to be a small living room. ” Please God, let there a bathroom with actual indoor plumbing” stepping a little further into the living room that dark chocolate voice filled her head. “Down the hall and to the right. And yes there is actual indoor plumbing” Megan could feel the laughter in his voice and it filled her with a warmth that went straight down to her toes. “Ok” she murmured “thanks” and headed down the hall.
Finding the bathroom she noted that it indeed had all the required amenities plus a change of clothes for her to slip into. After a quick shower Megan dressed herself in the jeans and flannel shirt, a woman’s this time and headed out the bathroom to find her host. The scent of bacon and eggs filled the air and her grumbling stomach reminded her how hungry she was. So following the heavenly aroma she found her way into the kitchen, and stopped dead in her tracks at the sight before her. Standing at the stove was a very tall, well muscled, Adonis for a lack of a better word. Turning his head to great her she locked into the most piercing blue eyes she’d ever seen and could not look away. “Please sit. Coffee is on the table and breakfast is just about done” regaining her composure she found herself moving in the correct direction, pulled out her chair and sat down. Taking the frying pan from the stove he slid two perfectly made eggs, over easy, and slid them onto her plate and went back for the bacon and toast. After breakfast was served and her host sat down Megan looked over at him expectantly. ” I imagine you have questions. Eat your breakfast then we will talk” Effectively cutting off any further discussion he started eating so she followed suit.
The meal completed, Megan sat back and drained the last of her coffee. “Thank you for breakfast. Now will you please explain to me just what in the hell is going on and why am I here!” Wiping his mouth and placing his napkin on the table he once again gave her a smile and replied “My name is Chase and I’m the owner of this cabin. I was sent to bring you here so you can begin to learn the real reason you were placed on this earth. Your life purpose.” The deep velvet of his voice was very distracting and it was hard to comprehend his words. “Wait.. What? The purpose of my life? And what do you mean you were sent! Who sent you? Hang on a minute, did my father set this up?” Laughing softly Chase replied “In a manner of speaking, yes your father did set this up, but not the father you are referring to.” Feeling utterly confused all Megan could do was sit and stare at the man before her. Pushing his chair back Chase stood and reached for her hand. “Come. I would like to show you something.” Taking his hand she stood and together they headed out the front door. Walking out into the front yard Megan could only gasp at the beauty surrounding her. Nature in all its splended glory filled her line of vision. Purple mountains, towering pine trees,and the sky was a color of blue she didn’t even know existed. “Oh my God” she whispered ” this is beyond beautiful.” Standing in awe he tugged at her hand ” Come with me, there is more.” Following his lead they continued to walk toward the woods. About ten minutes into their trek they came upon the most beautiful pool of water that she had even seen. The green of the fauna was a color she had never seen before and the water sparked like it was made of diamonds. At the far end of the pond was a waterfall that created a magnificent rainbow when touched by the sun. Megan could not get enough of the splended that surrounded her. Looking up at Chase she had no words so she just squeezed his hand and gazed into his mesmerizing blue eyes. “Thank you” she whispered. Turning her to face him Chase gently took Megan’s face in his hands, tilting her head up so their eyes met. “Hear this sweet Megan. Don’t lose a diamond while searching for glitter.” Leaning forward he placed a gentle kiss on her forehead and folded her into his loving embrace.
Waking up in her own bed, not knowing how she got there, Megan felt a deep sense of loss. Was this all just a dream? But it couldn’t be, it felt to real. Looking around at her surroundings she saw she was indeed in her own room. But it didn’t feel right and she knew, deep down inside something significant had happened, whether it was a dream or not, and it changed everything. Feeling out of sorts she got out of bed and walked over to the double doors and stepped out onto the balcony. Leaning against the railing she looked out at the grounds of her fathers huge estate. From the second floor she had a lovely view of the manicured lawn and the in -ground swimming pool, complete with a three room cabana. Statues of mermaids, Angels and lions dotted the property at perfectly strategic points, quite lovely actually. But today they just left her feeling flat and uninterested. Sighing deeply she went back inside to dress for the day. Opening the door to her walk in closet she stepped into a room almost the size of the cabin she had been in. Or had she? Peering at the rows and rows of designer label dresses, skirts, blouses, trousers, not to mention the hundreds of pairs of shoes and boots, all she could think of was that warm flannel shirt and worn blue jeans. “Good heavens, what is wrong with me!” Mumbling to herself she grabbed the nearest pair of gray slacks and a red silk blouse and proceeded to get dressed. Even these clothes felt all wrong. Tears began to well up in her eyes and she angrily brushed them away. “Stop being so silly! It was only a dream.” With a determined stride she finished getting dressed and headed down to the kitchen. Spotting the cook Megan called out “Good morning Maggie” Always with a cheerful disposition she answered back “Well good morning to you too. Will it be your usual this morning?” Stopping in mid stride she thought a moment. ” You know what? No. I think I would like two eggs over easy, bacon, toast and fresh ground coffee please.” Maggie just stood there staring “Excuse me miss, but you never eat eggs and bacon. You said it’s bad for your health” Wanting to argue she opened her mouth to respond, but closed it. Instead she replied ” You are right Maggie. I do not know what’s gotten into me today. The usual will be fine, thank you.” Taking her protein smoothie she again thanked the cook and headed out into the veranda. The day was rather lovely, sunny sky, warm breeze, fluffy clouds, yet Megan didn’t notice any of it. All she could think about was another blue sky, rolling hill, purple mountains, a small pond with a sparkling waterfall.. And Chase. The man was just too beautiful to be real. But then again, he wasn’t, was he. Not able to stand another minute of her own thoughts, she went back inside, grabbed her keys and her purse and headed out to the five car garage. Polishing the limo was her fathers driver Leo. “Good day miss. Is there someplace you would like me to take you? Handing him the keys to her Mercedes she replied “no thank you Leo, if you would just please bring my car around for me.” Tipping his hat and giving her a smile “yes miss, as you wish”
Once inside her car Megan just started to drive with no paricular destination in mind. Flicking on the radio she sang softly to the current song that was playing, anything to block her wayward thoughts. But piercing blue eyes and that deep chocolate voice would not leave her alone and it was agrivating her off to no end. Suddenly to her dismay her Mercedes started coughing and sputtering then just stopped all together. ” Oh for the love of heaven Now what!” Banging her fists on the steering wheel she just screamed in rage until she tears started. Crying never solved anything, or so her father always told her, so blowing her nose and drying her eyes she pulled herself together and thought about what to do next. Searching through her purse for her cell phone she found it wasn’t there. Clothing her eyes in resignation she realized she had left it in her other purse. “Ok, now what?”was the next thought. Looking at her surroundings Megan had no idea where she was. She had been driving for hours, paying no attention to where she she was going, and now.. Ah hell, she was totally lost. Not one to panic under normal circumstances, she closed her eyes, took a deep breath and thought about Chase. ” Where is my cowboy when I need him” ran through her mind. Immediately she began to feel a loving warmth fill her and that voice telling her “I am right here darlin.” Snapping her eyes open and frantically looking around Megan searched for the owner of that magical voice, but he was no where to be found. “Chase!” She cried out. “Be at peace my love. Continue down the road before you on foot. There you will find what you need.” And then there was nothing.
Stepping outside the car Megan pressed the auto lock on her keychain and started her long walk down the dirt road. “Unbelievable” she muttered. About an hour into her trek she noticed the weather beginning to change. The clouds started thickening and covered the sun. The wind was beginning to blow and the temperature felt like it had dropped by about twenty degrees. Shivering from the cold Megan kept on walking but the road seemed never ending and she was getting so tired. Two hours later the sky opened up and the rain came pouring down. Falling to her knees she screamed out for Chase and lay huddled on the muddy road, her tears mixing with the pouring rain.
Murmuring voices woke her from her uncomfortable slumber. Slowly she opened her eyes and peered around at her surrounding. Lying on a hard cot with a thin wool blanket covering her, Megan felt the heat from the crackling fire, but to tired to look any further she fell back to sleep. The next time she awoke a young woman was standing beside her replacing a cool cloth on her forehead. “Well hello there sleepy head. Good to see you” smiling the woman continued “My name is Daisy. We found you lying on the road and brought you here. How are you feeling?” Trying to speak Megan croaked ” thirsty”. Reaching down to help her sit up Daisy brought a tin cup filled with ice cold water to her lips. Sipping slowly Megan drank her fill and when she finished Daisy lowered back down. “Thank you” Megan whispered. “Go back to sleep. You are safe here” Daisy said softly.
The room was dark when Megan woke up again. Slowly sitting up she tried to see her surroundings but she could see nothing. Panic and fear rose up inside her and felt her heart starting to race. “Hello?” She called out in a shaky voice. Hearing a rustling in the corner of the room a light from a lantern broke the blackness and as the light came towards her she was able to see a women cross the room. Calming her beating heart Megan vaguely remembered the woman, her name was Daisy. Placing the lantern on the table Daisy sat beside her and smiled gently. “Well it’s nice to see you awake. We were getting a little worried about you” Megan took a deep breath and let it out slowly. “Where am I?” She asked. ” someplace safe” Daisy replied. “And Where is safe” demanded Megan” Reaching out her hand, Daisy placed it on her arm and simply replied “Home”