House and Harbour Bridge. It took us just under twenty minutes to actually cross over to Manly, a suburb of Sydney. As it turns out, Manly got its name from a British Captain, who commented that the local Guringai people had “confidence and manly behavior.” Once there, we visited the historic area of North Head and spent a while on Shelly Beach.
Later, Martin offered to take me up the Sydney Tower to get a good view of the city. At over 1000 feet high, I learned that the tower is Australia's second tallest freestanding structure and Sydney's tallest. It was built mostly in the 1970s, but the lower part was refurbished just a few years ago. We decided to eat at the revolving restaurant another time. Today, we were interested in the Sydney Tower Eye, a fabulous observation deck with 360° views of Sydney from over 800 feet above ground. The views were amazing, and I realized that I was starting to fall in love with Sydney. It was a glorious city with water in three directions and mountains to the west. I looked forward to exploring it more.
Not only did we see the Royal Botanic Gardens, but we made sure that we got there before dusk so that I could have my fill of bats. As Australia's oldest garden, it was founded in 1816 and is also the country's oldest scientific institution. The collection of nearly 9,000 plants from Australia and the South Pacific was mind-boggling with many species that I'd never seen before. The garden also has a library and herbarium and, I learned, receives three million visitors each year. I’m sure that its location has a lot to do with the high number of visitors as the garden was close to the harbour, opera house, galleries, and museums. The garden also is surrounded by a large open area known as the Domain, which seemed to be popular as well.
Once dusk arrived, so did the bats – 22,000 of them lived in the park. A few people, children mostly, screamed and ran. Most of the bats flew high, and we watched their profiles against the darkening sky.
Finally, we departed for home. Neither of us was hungry. We both showered, and Martin excused himself to check his email and do some work. I checked my email and was tired so I went to bed.
I awoke when Martin came into the bedroom around midnight. He got into bed quietly so he wouldn’t awaken me.
“It’s okay,” I said quietly. “I’m not asleep.”
“Did I wake you?” he asked, sounding a little concerned.
“Yes . But I don’t mind.” He got into bed behind me, and I turned over to face him. “Did you catch up on work?”
He smiled a little. “Mostly.”
Watching me for a moment, h e ran the back of his hand along my collarbone as the moonlight fell across our bodies. “Do you know how beautiful you are?”
I smiled . “No.”
His smile grew. “I don’t believe it.”
“Why ?”
“I’d think you would hear that all the time.”
“You don’t hear from many guys when you live alone on top of a hill.”
Martin chuckled. “So, I’ll just have to tell you, won’t I?”
Reaching out, h e stroked my hair slowly, and his face became serious. I tried to read him, but what I saw in him didn’t quite make sense. He looked at me almost as though we had been lovers for years. He seemed so comfortable, and I wondered if I should fall into him and trust his confidence in us or if I should maintain enough distance – and doubt – to avoid making an absolute fool of myself.
Despite my uncertainty, m y eyes were glued to his. I only had a few weeks left with him and didn’t want to miss a thing. Even though I didn’t share his total confidence in “us,” there was something about him that made me comfortable. As strange as it was to say this after just a couple of weeks, Martin felt like home.
I loved the way that he looked at me, and I also loved his touch on my skin. I reached up to hold his hand and kissed the inside of his wrist. Leaning forward, he kissed my lips gently and, then, my eyelids.
“You are
Later, Martin offered to take me up the Sydney Tower to get a good view of the city. At over 1000 feet high, I learned that the tower is Australia's second tallest freestanding structure and Sydney's tallest. It was built mostly in the 1970s, but the lower part was refurbished just a few years ago. We decided to eat at the revolving restaurant another time. Today, we were interested in the Sydney Tower Eye, a fabulous observation deck with 360° views of Sydney from over 800 feet above ground. The views were amazing, and I realized that I was starting to fall in love with Sydney. It was a glorious city with water in three directions and mountains to the west. I looked forward to exploring it more.
Not only did we see the Royal Botanic Gardens, but we made sure that we got there before dusk so that I could have my fill of bats. As Australia's oldest garden, it was founded in 1816 and is also the country's oldest scientific institution. The collection of nearly 9,000 plants from Australia and the South Pacific was mind-boggling with many species that I'd never seen before. The garden also has a library and herbarium and, I learned, receives three million visitors each year. I’m sure that its location has a lot to do with the high number of visitors as the garden was close to the harbour, opera house, galleries, and museums. The garden also is surrounded by a large open area known as the Domain, which seemed to be popular as well.
Once dusk arrived, so did the bats – 22,000 of them lived in the park. A few people, children mostly, screamed and ran. Most of the bats flew high, and we watched their profiles against the darkening sky.
Finally, we departed for home. Neither of us was hungry. We both showered, and Martin excused himself to check his email and do some work. I checked my email and was tired so I went to bed.
I awoke when Martin came into the bedroom around midnight. He got into bed quietly so he wouldn’t awaken me.
“It’s okay,” I said quietly. “I’m not asleep.”
“Did I wake you?” he asked, sounding a little concerned.
“Yes . But I don’t mind.” He got into bed behind me, and I turned over to face him. “Did you catch up on work?”
He smiled a little. “Mostly.”
Watching me for a moment, h e ran the back of his hand along my collarbone as the moonlight fell across our bodies. “Do you know how beautiful you are?”
I smiled . “No.”
His smile grew. “I don’t believe it.”
“Why ?”
“I’d think you would hear that all the time.”
“You don’t hear from many guys when you live alone on top of a hill.”
Martin chuckled. “So, I’ll just have to tell you, won’t I?”
Reaching out, h e stroked my hair slowly, and his face became serious. I tried to read him, but what I saw in him didn’t quite make sense. He looked at me almost as though we had been lovers for years. He seemed so comfortable, and I wondered if I should fall into him and trust his confidence in us or if I should maintain enough distance – and doubt – to avoid making an absolute fool of myself.
Despite my uncertainty, m y eyes were glued to his. I only had a few weeks left with him and didn’t want to miss a thing. Even though I didn’t share his total confidence in “us,” there was something about him that made me comfortable. As strange as it was to say this after just a couple of weeks, Martin felt like home.
I loved the way that he looked at me, and I also loved his touch on my skin. I reached up to hold his hand and kissed the inside of his wrist. Leaning forward, he kissed my lips gently and, then, my eyelids.
“You are
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