Cathy looked out into the sea. “You’re right. I didn’t even notice it before. Everything from powder blue, to pantone to turquoise and ultramarine. It’s all out there in front of us.”
Nick beamed at her. “I didn’t know you were an expert in colors.”
“I sell houses for a living, mister,” Cathy said. “I need to know all the colors of the rainbow so I can describe them to my clients.”
Nick went over to a nearby chair and sat down on it. They were talking to each other for the first time in years. For once it wasn’t either about work, or money, or the kids. A conversation about nothing, and it was pleasing to his ears. No stress, just two people having a casual chat.
Cathy looked down at the shiny marble floor. “I… I have to tell you something, Nick.”
“Sure,” he said. “I’m all ears now.”
“I-I met my old boyfriend Brad a few months back,” she said softly. “It was a chance meeting. One of my clients invited me to a party and he happened to be there.”
Nick nodded. “I get it. Did you see him again afterwards?”
“I did, but it was just out in public, you know. We just talked about the old days and how I missed it.”
He remembered Cathy reminiscing about Brad when Nick first met her. “He was the love of your life before you met me as I recall.”
Cathy leaned forward and placed a warm hand on his cheek. “He was special, but so are you.”
He reached out to hold on to her hand. “I’d like to keep us all together. If you’re still willing to give me a chance.”
Cathy’s lips trembled. She still had a responsibility to her family, and she knew she just couldn’t throw it all away for Brad. Her world had flipped over not once, but twice now. Just a few days before she’d felt so sure about letting go of Nick and falling into Brad’s waiting arms, but now the pendulum had swung the other way. She would need to tell Brad once they returned to Los Angeles, and that would be hard too.
Nick repeated his words again. “Can I have that chance, Cat?”
Blinking away the forming tears from her eyelids, she let out a short giggle to force the serious emotions away. “You haven’t called me Cat since the time Scotty was born.”
“Do you mind if I call you that again from now on?”
“No, of course not. I like it.”
Getting up, he gently led her out of the chair. “Come on.”
Cathy stood up and Nick held her in his arms and gave her a deep kiss. She felt somewhat surprised, for they had not made love in months, and it was done usually to relieve his stress at work. But now it seemed he was genuinely enamored of her, and it felt like they were both young again.
Pushing the front door open, Nick guided her past the moderately sized living room and towards the master bedroom. The cleaning staff had already been through it, and every piece of furniture was immaculately arranged like a picture in a catalog.
Cathy looked out at the window as he began to slowly peel her blouse off. “What if the kids see—”
He placed his index finger on her lips. “They won’t. They’re out and about, and this whole island is pretty damn big.”
She kissed him again, before he took her in his arms and placed her gently on the bed.
21
KIM DIRKSE SAT AT THE bar near the entrance of the hotel restaurant, swirling a tall glass of iced tea in front of her to keep the sweet part of the beverage from settling at the bottom of the tumbler. Her parents hadn’t said anything with regards to returning to the cottage, so she did a bit of wandering on her own.
Her mom did tell her to watch over her brother, but Scott kept darting in and out of every nook and cranny and she just couldn’t keep up. In the end she figured he wasn’t going anywhere since it was an island so she went her own way. After taking a short swim at the beach where there were more staff than guests around, she had a quick shower and a change of clothes before drifting over to the restaurant bar for refreshments.
Looking around, she could see only two couples sitting on the nearby tables. The uniformed staff at the buffet section was busy placing trays of steaming hot food onto the chafing dishes lining the walls, which meant it would be lunchtime soon.
Kim took out her smartphone and checked the internet. She had hoped that her boyfriend Todd would send her an email, but there was nothing but the usual spam stuff in her inbox. What the heck am I doing? I told Dad I was going to forget about him and I should.
There was an inner restlessness inside of her, and Kim couldn’t shake it off by doing the usual things. Her entire world revolved around college and hanging out with her boyfriend; now that she had neither, she was finding it hard to find something to do. The resort had every amenity she could think of, but none of it seemed to matter.
The restaurant had massive glass windows and she could see the manicured grounds outside before a thin line of palm trees extending out towards the white sand beaches. There weren’t any others of her own age at the resort. The only additional guests were old couples or a few prominent local families with small children.
Except for one. Kim first noticed him by the outer buildings after breakfast when she was still trying to follow Scott around. A young man who wore surfer shorts and a t-shirt with the Aquaholics Dive Center logo printed across his chest. She knew then he was part of the resort staff, and he flashed her a friendly smile when she walked past him on one of the concrete walkways along the hotel perimeter. She smiled back of course.
Kim saw him again a few hours later. He was carrying what looked like scuba gear from the dive shop over to the pier. He was built like Todd: tall and lanky, but this youth had more muscles than her ex-boyfriend had. Like her he was a foreigner, with tall spiky blond hair and an earring she couldn’t help but focus on.
Her curiosity getting the better of her, Kim got up from the bar stool and made her way out of the restaurant. The hotel interior was air conditioned, and when she stepped out of the automatic front doors she felt the waves of intense heat around her. The humidity was so thick it felt like she could cup her hands and take a piece of it from the very air.
The resort had given her a pair of complimentary flip-flops, and she padded on the concrete walkway until she rounded a bend and began walking towards a separate building.
Passing by another sandy trail that led down towards the beachfront bar and cafe, she hesitated while standing in front of the open-air entrance to the dive center. I can’t believe this, I must be getting desperate. It’s only been a few days since I broke up with Todd and now I’m looking for someone new?
What else am I going to do for the next week? I might as well check him out, she thought. Mustering up her courage, she walked inside.
Rows of scuba gear lined the white concrete walls of the shop, along with additional equipment for assorted water sports. A wide faux bamboo counter had been erected in the center of the room, along with a pair of dark brown wooden benches and a low table strewn with diving magazines by the opposite side.
A smiling Indian man who also wore the dive shop’s t-shirt stood behind the counter. “Do you need any help, ma’am?”
Darn, where is he? she thought while drifting over to a bookshelf by the side of the entrance. “It’s okay, I was just looking around.”
“No problem,” the well-built man at the counter said. “If you have questions about diving or anything else, let me know.”
Kim smiled back before taking a book from the shelf and began thumbing through it. “Thanks.”