Is this destiny?

~ Golden Ocean Resort ~

Saturday, September 15… wedding day…

11:30 AM…

Ellie, Emma, Brian and Tom are having lunch in a restaurant on the fourth floor of the resort.

Earlier that morning, Emma arrived for her fitting at 9 AM sharp. She knew that Brian and Tom will arrive at that time.

After her fitting, Emma stayed behind with an excuse to help out. Ellie didn\'t want to expose her, and it seems that Brian likes Emma\'s company… so, who is she to meddle?

Back to present...

"How are we on time?", Tom asked.

"All accessories are done. And for the fittings… Jill and Emma are done and so am I. At noon, Millie and Sharon will come for fitting, and then at one o\'clock are Sarah and Sophia with JoAnna. JoAnna is the bride so she might take longer. At one thirty makeup artists and hairstylists will arrive and then it will be a bit crazy… Wedding is at three thirty… we are good with time.", Ellie confirmed.

They were halfway through their entrée, when a man\'s voice came from Ellie\'s side. "Can we have a word?"

Ellie looked up and almost chocked on a half-chewed shrimp in her mouth when her eyes met Jasper\'s. She took few gulps of water to wash the food down her throat while wondering: what does he want?

Ellie glanced at other three people at the table and stood up.

"OK."

Tom, Brian and Emma watched Jasper and Ellie walk out on the terrace where outdoor seating is available.

"Is he the reason why my Queen is distracted today?", Tom asked.

Emma smiled while thinking that she is not the only one noticing Ellie\'s off mood. "He is the best man for the wedding today…"

Outside…

Jasper stood one step away from Ellie and both of them were facing the ocean.

Jasper took a deep breath and started speaking: "I want to clarify things… about this morning… with Millie and Sharon… nothing happened." It was obvious that he is struggling to say these words.

Ellie was surprised. "Why?"

"After we came from the club, everyone ended up in my room, and had drinks, and crashed. It was seven of us, and no one slept with anyone… intimately."

Ellie shook her head while turning to face him. "No, no… my \'why\' was for: why do you want to clarify things?"

Jasper hesitated before answering: "I don\'t know…"

"Well, maybe you should figure that one out before you look for someone to clarify things." Ellie turned to leave, and Jasper held her hand.

"Wait."

Ellie stopped and yanked her hand from his grasp. "What?"

"I… I want to clarify things because I like you."

Ellie looked into his icy-blue eyes and could not believe her ears. Did he just say that he likes her... after how he behaved? "You either think of me as stupid or you are…"

"Why would you say that?" Jasper frowned. It took him a lot of courage to say those words. He does not remember if he ever said those words to a girl… ever. And she thinks that he is lying?

"Because… if you like someone, you don\'t spend the night with another girl. Not to mention that you were with two of them."

"I told you, nothing happened!" Jasper was on a verge of losing his cool.

"That doesn\'t matter." Ellie saw that Jasper is confused and sighed. "Jasper, the two of them like you, and you spent the night with them, in the same room… after you spent an evening with them in a club. It really does not matter if anything happened between you or not. What matters is the fact that you were with them, and that tells me that you don\'t like me. Because if you do, you would care what I think, and you would care that I don\'t misunderstand… and you would want to make me feel special, and cherished… and you would not insult me by giving me lame excuses after you had your way."

Jasper\'s face fell. "You don\'t believe me…"

Ellie\'s expression softened. "Oh, I believe you. I believe that you are attracted to me. I believe that if you don\'t think that I would cause a big scene, you would kiss me right now. And trust me when I say that if I don\'t know that the next day I would be brokenhearted, I would kiss you back… Do you understand what I\'m trying to say?"

"No…" Now he was totally confused. Based on her words, she likes him… why is she rejecting him? He even said that he likes her! Jasper remembered what Jeff told him on the boat, that she is not interested in one night stands. He will clarify…"I don\'t see you as a one night stand, if that is what you are implying."

"Jasper… It does not matter if it\'s one day or a week or a month. You don\'t know what commitment is. And because of that, the only ending of our hypothetical relationship is a heartbreak. My heartbreak."

Jasper opened his mouth to say something, but no words came out.

Ellie smiled bitterly. "I will see you at the altar. Please, don\'t bring this up again."

She turned around and went inside the restaurant while telling herself to keep walking. At the same time, she hoped that those three at the table don\'t notice her emotional turmoil.

Ellie saw that others finished their meal. "Let\'s go. Millie and Sharon will come for their fitting in few minutes."

"You didn\'t finish your lunch.", Brian observed.

"I lost my appetite." Ellie took her purse and walked away without further delay.

She doesn\'t want to give Jasper a chance to catch up. There is nothing he can say to change her mind, and he would only make it worse. And her heart ached already.

…

In the temporary design studio…

Ellie got a text from Sharon that they are going to be about ten minutes late.

Ellie was staring through the window while her talk with Jasper replayed in her mind. His words were sweet, and he looked sincere, but… images of him in the club last night, and then this morning, with two girls who are super-flirty... were stamped into her mind.

\'No, no, Ellie… you can\'t fall for him…\', she told herself. \'He didn\'t realize that something like that might hurt me. He thinks it\'s normal… that is his lifestyle, after all. And he has no plans to change. If he is like that when he is supposedly pursuing me, how is he going to act when he actually gets me? It will be much worse… Can I handle having a boyfriend like that? Of course, not. It\'s better to end now, before it begins… because if it begins, and I open my heart to him, and then I see him acting like that… the wound will be much deeper...\'

Ellie was startled from her thoughts when Tom patted her shoulder. "Emma told us what happened last night. Do you want us to teach those two girls a lesson? They are the ones coming now, right?"

Ellie shook her head, rejecting his offer. "It\'s not their fault. If it\'s not them, it would be someone else."

"Should we teach that guy a lesson?"

Ellie found Tom\'s serious expression… out of character. She usually sees him with his signature carefree-boyish look.

"Leave him be. He is not aware what the problem is and it\'s not my or your job to teach him."

Tom sighed. Seeing Ellie like that, troubled him. "I\'m sorry you are like this… I wish to help somehow."

"Thank you, Tom. But there is nothing you can do. This is just a small bump, I will get over it." Ellie turned her gaze back to the window. "I know that my man is out there… somewhere.. And when we meet, he will sweep me off my feet and show me how special I am, every day for the rest of our lives."