Lost Without You: Book 2 in the Chasing Olivia Series (9 page)

They sit across from me, filling out the same cards. “Wait until you see what’s in store for us today,” she squeals, adding, “Oh, Olivia, this is the bride to be.”

“Hi, Amanda. Congratulations,” I murmur uncomfortably.

“Thank you, Olivia. It’s nice to finally meet you. I’ve heard nothing but good things about you.”

“Did you get a look at that masseuse? He is hot!” Miranda blurts. Amanda rolls her eyes and I try to stifle my giggle.

“Right this way,” the receptionist interrupts, and we follow her to a private cottage.

“I chose the Dead Sea mud therapy to start. I hope you girls don’t mind,” Amanda says.

“Nope,” Miranda and I answer.

We are all instructed to go into a changing room and strip, coming out only in a terry-cloth wrap. “We will start with a full body brushing and exfoliation with Dead Sea salt. Then, your body will be covered with nourishing minerals found in Dead Sea mud, which are absorbed into the skin,” the receptionists says, then leaves.

We are each brought into a separate room. “Good morning, Olivia. My name is Cindy, and I will start with the body brushing and exfoliation. This will sweep away dry, dull, rough cells to reveal smoother, softer skin while stimulating your circulation and enhancing cell renewal. Please, take off your wrap and lie on the bed, face down,” my therapist says.

“Okay.” I remove my wrap and lie down on the massage table, which is more like a bed. She immediately covers my ass with a towel and starts to spread the warm sea salt mixture across my back and arms, lightly pressing as she applies. It feels strange at first, but once I get used to the harshness, it’s quite enjoyable.

“Please, go shower and then come back here.” Cindy motions me to a large room with a single stall.

Once rinsed, I return to find a large vat of mud next to the bed. Motioning for me to lay down, Cindy says, “Dead Sea mud will effectively remove the harmful toxins and dangerous pollutants from the unseen pores.”
Sounds good to me.

Cindy gradually distributes the hot mud across my skin. It’s smooth, but thick and heavy. As she spreads the viscous liquid, she massages it into my skin. The warmth from the mud and the gentle kneading of my muscles feels incredible. Repeating the process on my front side, only a part of me has been spared. “I will be back in fifteen minutes, when the mud has thoroughly dried,” she says as she leaves the room.

Fifteen minutes later, Cindy returns, instructing me to shower. After washing the mixture off, which wasn’t an easy task, she leads me into a larger room with three massage tables. As I’m walking in, Amanda and Miranda appear, each from a separate room. “Here you will receive the COMO Shambhala massage. Enjoy the rest of your day.” With that, she leaves.

My masseuse, Rocky, instructs me to lie on my stomach. Doing as I’m told, I lay across the table. Once situated, he slides the wrap down my back to cover only my ass.

Getting to work, he starts at my neck, working all the way down to my feet. “You’re muscles are very tight,” he murmurs as he works his magic.

“Am I the only one who could stay here all day?” Miranda asks on a sigh.

“No, this is amazing,” Amanda answers. This has definitely been an amazing experience so far.

Finishing my back, he motions for me to flip as he pulls the wrap back up my body. Starting at my feet this time, he applies pressure points to my soles. I close my eyes and enjoy the pampering.

A short ninety minutes later, our massage is complete. “Thank you,” I manage to say before Rocky leaves. Another woman appears, directing us to the facial room.
Geez, more?

“I needed this, so I figured if I had to go through it, so did you girls,” Amanda announces.

“Go through what?” I ask.

“I don’t want puffy, red eyes. This facial is supposed to relieve tired, swollen eyes.”

“Oh, we’re gonna need to come back after the wedding,” Miranda interjects.

Three more therapists enter the room, carrying a selection of creams and serums. “This is the Sundari Beautiful Eyes treatment. The Chamomile Eye Oil smoothes and replenishes delicate skin around your eyes. It reduces the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles. Our Neem Eye cream is healing, and reduces puffiness and dark circles,” my therapist informs us.

She starts to apply the oil first, gently rubbing right underneath my eyes. Finally, she spreads paraffin across my cheeks and chin, which will harden into a mask. “This will take about ten minutes to dry, then I will peel off the mask and rub the rest of the cream into your skin.” As she leaves, she places two slices of cucumber across my eyes.

“Anybody know the reason behind these cucumber slices?” Amanda asks, giggling.

“No idea,” I answer.

“They do this every time I get a facial,” Miranda says.

“There must be some therapeutic value to it,” I say, hoping someone might hear our conversation and answer our stupid question.

“I wonder how the boys are making out,” Miranda ponders aloud.

“Probably not well. I can only imagine what they are up to.” Amanda chuckles. “I’m sure they’ve already tried to drown Justin.”

“My face is starting to itch,” I announce, the cream starting to tighten across my cheeks.

“It’ll go away in a few minutes,” Miranda tells me.

“One more stop, then off to lunch,” Amanda announces.

“What else could we possibly do?” I ask, astonished we’re still here.

“Mani-pedi’s,” they both say in unison, then burst into giggles.

“Oh,” is all I say.

“If we had more time, I would have booked us space in the sauna,” Amanda says.

“Ugh, too hot,” Miranda complains.

As if on cue, our therapists come back into the room. “To answer your question, cucumber is rich in silica. This is responsible for strengthening the connective tissues. Since the skin is a connective tissue, it helps keep it healthy. It also helps remove dark circles from around your eyes. And, as an added bonus, it’s an antioxidant,” she says, plucking the cucumbers from my eyes before peeling the mask from my face. I scrunch my face, working out the tight feeling. Mid-scrunch, she starts applying cream to my skin, smoothing out my expression. Taking a towel, she wipes off any residue and waves us off to get dressed.

Once dressed, we meet back in the center of the spa and head toward the salon. Shoes off and feet soaking, the ladies get to work.

“So, this is as good a time as any to discuss this.” Amanda is sitting in between Miranda and myself, making it easier to talk to both of us. “Ever since I met Nate, it’s always been about him. I don’t have many girl friends.” She pauses for a moment, furrowing her brows. “In fact, I don’t think I have any. Since Justin and Chase are like brothers to Nate, they’re standing up for him at the wedding . . .” she trails off and takes a sip of mineral water before turning to me. “Olivia, I know we’ve just met, and, Miranda,” she says, shifting toward her, “since you’ve only been dating Justin for a few weeks . . . I know this is probably strange, and a lot to ask, but would you girls be my maids of honor?”

“Of course we will!” Miranda exclaims.

“Um . . . I didn’t bring anything that would be suitable for a maid of honor,” I stutter, annoyed Miranda would answer for both of us. She doesn’t even know me.

“I brought some dresses with me and there’s a tailor here in case they’re too big or small.” Amanda looks over at me. “No, they should be okay, maybe have them taken in slightly.”

“Yay, I love new dresses!” Miranda squeals. I inwardly fume. Maybe Miranda is used to this kind of thing, but expensive dresses and shoes that cost more than my car make me uncomfortable.

“What color is the dress?” I ask, not really wanting to know the answer.

“It’s called haze. It’s a blue color, like the waters here.”

“Ohhh, who made it?” Of course Miranda would want to know that.

“Herve Leger, it’s one of his bandage line dresses. It’s called Viviane, and it’s exclusive.” I wonder if Chase knew about this.

“Ohmigod, I absolutely adore his line,” Miranda gushes.

“The dress will go fantastic with the Jimmy Choo silver sandals I got. Olivia, Chase gave me your shoe size,” Amanda tells me.
Of course he did, the rat bastard.

“Oh,” I mumble, displeased.

“Don’t be mad at Chase. He told me you hate surprises, but I begged him not to tell you.”

“Does this mean silver toes?” Miranda asks, in her own little fashion world, while I’m still reeling over Chase keeping this from me.

“Yes. Silver for the toes, and French for the fingers.”

The rest of the morning was a blur. Bodies massaged, faces primped, fingers and toes shiny new, by the time we’re finished, it’s close to one. Once our nails are dry, we set off to the Lotus restaurant to meet up with the guys.

“Let’s wait for the boys at the bar. They should be here soon,” Amanda suggests.

“Yes, great idea. I could use a glass of champagne,” Miranda says, scurrying off ahead of us.

“Good afternoon, ladies, how can I be of service?”Our bartender has a dazzling smile that would make any girl blush, and his accent is sexy as hell. If I had to guess, I’d say he’s Australian.

“We would like a bottle of champagne, do you have a list?”

“Beautiful lady, we have anything and everything you desire. Is there a particular champagne you have in mind?”

“What do you guys think?” Amanda asks us both.

“I like Dom,” Miranda answers.

“I personally love Clicquot,” I mention.

“Ohhh, that’s good, too,” Miranda agrees. “What about you, Amanda?”

“Either one is good.” Amanda turns to the gorgeous bartender. “Do you have Clicquot?”

“Of course, give me just a minute,” he says before walking away.

“I don’t know about you girls, but I am
starving.
” Miranda reaches across the bar, picks up three menus, and hands one to each of us.

Glancing at the menu, I notice lots of fish and salads. Perfect for lunch.

“I hope he brings back more than one bottle. Between my and Nate’s parents arriving soon, I’ll need to have a good buzz going to deal with them both.”

“What time are their flights?” I ask.

“I’m not sure. They aren’t flying commercial, so it’s whenever they boarded the plane back in NY.”

The bartender appears carrying three bottles of Clicquot. He places two in ice behind the bar, sets three champagne flutes on the bar top, and pours us each a glass.

“Ladies, my name is Noah. Anything you need, please don’t hesitate to ask.”

“Thank you, Noah,” Miranda flirts.

“And your names are?”

“I’m Miranda, this is Olivia, and this is Amanda. Amanda is getting married tomorrow.”

“Beautiful names, for beautiful women.” Noah smiles, a dimple popping out of his left cheek. I sit quietly.

“What accent is that?” Amanda asks coyly.

“I was born a few miles north of Sydney.”

“I knew it! I knew that accent was Australian!” Miranda shrieks. Noah looks over at me and smiles.

“What about you, lovely lady?” I take a sip of my champagne.

“What about me?”

“Were you taking mental guesses? It’s okay, everyone does.”

“Not really. I’m not really good with accents.”

“Well,” he reaches over to touch my hand, “I am enjoying your New York accent.” This is uncomfortable. I pull my hand back and reach for the bottle of champagne, but he beats me to it and tops off my glass.

“How did you know we were from New York?” Miranda asks, astonished he hit the nail on the head.

“New York has a very unique accent. How did you know I was an Aussie?”

“Point made,” Amanda acknowledges, nodding her head.

“How long are you ladies here?” Noah asks, looking at me.

“We’re leaving Sunday afternoon,” Miranda answers for us.

“So, you’re here all weekend?”

“Yes, we are,” Chase answers behind me, putting his arms around my waist.

“Chase!” Amanda jumps off her stool and moves toward him.

“Hello, beautiful,” he whispers in my ear before releasing me to hug Amanda.

“How was your spa retreat?” he asks Amanda.

“Perfect, thank you.”

“Hello, Miranda.”

“Chase,” Miranda nods. “Where’s Justin?”

“Yes, where are the other two?” Amanda asks.

“They’ll be here in a few minutes. I was just slightly faster.”

“Would you like a glass of champagne?” Noah asks Chase.

“No. Single malt scotch, neat.” As Noah scurries off to pour Chase’s drink, Chase pulls me into an embrace once again.

“I missed you,” he mouths.

“I missed you, too. Did you have a good time?”

“Yes, how was it?” Amanda asks.

“Great. I hooked a yellow-fin tuna, so did Nate. Justin, on the other hand, almost fell overboard,” Chase says, laughing.

“Are you sure you didn’t try to push him?” Amanda asks, laughing.

“No, not this time. Dumbass wasn’t strapped in when he hooked a big one. Almost dragged him head first into the water. He was dangling over the edge of the boat. Nate and I had to grab a leg and pull him back in.” Noah hands Chase his scotch and he takes a welcoming sip.

“Oh no,” Miranda moans.