Darkmoon(30)
And yet I’d been born here.
Connor opened the hatch, and we retrieved our meager luggage. Right then I sort of wished we’d gone to the Motel 6. I wouldn’t have felt quite so out of place.
But the people at the front desk were very friendly, and gave us a map of the compound — it was probably bigger than all of Jerome — and told us where we could park. We got back in the car, drove slowly through the winding streets of the complex, and eventually ended at the unit that was our destination.
When Connor unlocked the door, I said “wow” for the second time in the space of an hour, and for good reason. This wasn’t a dinky hotel room, but an entire apartment, with a separate living room and dining room, not to mention a full kitchen. Best of all, it had sliding glass doors that opened to a balcony, and that balcony offered a breathtaking ocean view.
“Feeling better?” Connor asked as I stood there, mesmerized.
“I — this is amazing, Connor. I had no idea.”
“Neither did I, but I suppose I should have known. Lucas doesn’t exactly hang out with the low-rent crowd.”
“Guess not,” I said shakily.
He glanced up at the clock. “So…it’s after five. What do you want to do?”
Good question. It wasn’t that late, but I was feeling wiped out after that drive. Maybe it would be better to take the rest of the evening to unwind, to relax and be tourists, and then get a fresh start the next morning.
“Freshen up a little, and then walk on the beach.”
“No food?” he asked, teasing me.
“Oh, that, too. But I think I want to watch the sun set over the ocean.”
“They’re on Daylight Savings Time here. That sun may be setting later than you think.”
“And there are no restaurants here with ocean views?”
“Touché. I’m sure we can find something.” He held out a hand to me, and I went to him, let him fold me against him, felt the warmth of his body on mine. We stood like that for a long moment, and then he relaxed his embrace somewhat. “Okay,” he said, “let’s go sightseeing.”
* * *
All my weariness seemed to drop away with the touch of that fresh ocean breeze, the feel of the cool sand beneath my toes. It was colder than I’d expected, chilly enough that I wished I’d brought a sweater with me. Even so, I saw people all around me in shorts and tank tops, or girls in bikinis catching their last few rays for the day.
To his credit, Connor didn’t seem to be openly gawking at any of them — so much so that I said, “It’s okay to look, you know. I’m guessing there aren’t a lot of opportunities for bikini-wearing in Flagstaff.”
“You might be surprised. We do have a lot of hot tubs up there.” Then he shook his head. “Why should I be looking at those girls? You’d look just as good in a bikini.”
I sort of doubted that, but it was gallant of him to say so. “Well, for the next month or so, anyway. After that I’m going to start looking like a beached whale.”
“You don’t know that. With one of my cousins, you could hardly tell she was even pregnant. Lucas used to tease her that she must be carrying the baby in her shoe.”
Somehow I doubted I would be that lucky, but I only shrugged and said, “Maybe.”
We walked for a while, and then my stomach growled, causing Connor to grin and comment that maybe it was time to get something to eat. Of course we knew nothing about the area, but a few minutes on Yelp helped direct us to a nearby restaurant. Again, I felt woefully underdressed, even though I’d changed into a fresh top and jeans before we left the hotel. Once I started eating, though, I stopped worrying about my style — or lack thereof — and just concentrated on the amazing sea bass and twice-baked potato. I did regret not being able to have a glass of wine with my meal, but it wasn’t enough to keep me from enjoying myself.
It was easy to forget why we were really here, our true reason for coming to California. Connor and I might have been just another young couple enjoying a night on the town. Looking at us, no one would be able to guess that we possessed powers far beyond the ordinary, or that we were suffering under a curse cast many, many years earlier, in a time and place so far removed from where we were now that they could have been something out of a fairytale…albeit a Grimm one.
But I knew it wasn’t a fairytale, but my life. Connor and I needed this time together, I knew, to return to one another, to be a couple. We’d have our meal, and then we’d go back to that luxurious little apartment Lucas had so thoughtfully procured for us. And then Connor and I would make love with the sound of the waves in the background, and we’d fall asleep in one another’s arms, dreaming only of each other, keeping tomorrow for tomorrow.