made the reservation when we were still together. Now, we aren’t together and I’ve paid for a whole honeymoon. It was too late to cancel without losing a lot of money, so here I am.”
“Ugh, what a freaking jerk!” The woman’s professional demeanor was gone. Her face was drawn in irritation. “This guy made you pay for the whole thing and then left you with the credit card bill and no husband? What a freaking jerk.”
“I know.” And all of her closest friends and family knew too. Maura still didn’t know how she was going to face her family at the holidays. Many of her aunts and cousins had warned her that no man wanted a big girl for his wife. Thanks to jackass John, they had enough ammunition to mock her for years to come. She didn’t know why she had even told the receptionist. She hadn’t meant to open her mouth but that kept happening. It was like she had to tell the whole world how much of a jerk John was.
“I’m Lily, by the way.” The woman held out her hand. “I think you need a friend. You should come with me to Safari Town for dinner tonight.”
“I don’t think so.” Maura had made herself feel even worse. It was nice hearing someone else say John was a jerk but now she was thinking about it again. She just wanted to curl up with a big bottle of wine and cry in the hot tub.
“No, you should come with me. By the time you get back to your room, it will be all the way un-romantic. You aren’t going to want to stay in there right now.”
Maura considered. This was a good time to get a look around Safari Town. She had planned to take it easy and keep to herself until Jimmy Tony got to the island. This was better. At least she would have something useful to add to the mission. As painful as the thought was, she nodded. “Sure. I’d love to come with you.”
“Great. I get off work in ten minutes and you can have the bellhop take all your stuff upstairs. Wait for me in the hotel bar?”
Maura nodded. She gave the bellhop her room number and found the Blue Sky Bar. She took a table alone to wait for her new friend. It was already an interesting trip. She’d somehow managed to stray from the plan. She would need to be careful after this. After this little trip to town, she would stick to the plan.
***
“And that concludes our tour for the day. You guys have all been great.” Branch Dunkin was giving his end-of-tour speech for the millionth time as sweet old ladies and young families disembarked from the tour van.
“That’s all of them.” Chet Gallow got up and walked to the back of the bus. He checked to make sure the van was empty while Branch counted the tips. “Looks like we’re all clear too. Want a lift home?”
Branch nodded and kept counting. “Not as good as the last one. Enough for a nice night out with Addy.”
“She’s not in a going-out mood right now,” Chet said as they walked from the van to a golf cart. “The heat is making her really uncomfortable.”
“The giant rhino calf she’s making probably doesn’t help.” Branch grimaced as he thought of Addison’s giant baby bump. He loved putting his hand on her stomach and waiting for the baby to kick him. The little guy was going to be great at football one day, but carrying him wasn’t much fun for Addison anymore now that the summer heat was settling in. Branch felt bad for her having to lug the extra weight around.
“True. Do you mind if I stop to grab a carton of ice cream? I want to surprise her.”
“No way. I could go for a cone myself,” Branch said. “You want to go out for dinner with me? I bet you’re getting cabin fever being cooped up with her all these months.”
“Not at all. I like spending time with my wife.”
Not as much as you like saying ‘my wife’ , Branch thought. His two best friends had gotten married within six months to women who were best friends. While their working relationship was the same, personal time had changed drastically. The men used to go out
“Ugh, what a freaking jerk!” The woman’s professional demeanor was gone. Her face was drawn in irritation. “This guy made you pay for the whole thing and then left you with the credit card bill and no husband? What a freaking jerk.”
“I know.” And all of her closest friends and family knew too. Maura still didn’t know how she was going to face her family at the holidays. Many of her aunts and cousins had warned her that no man wanted a big girl for his wife. Thanks to jackass John, they had enough ammunition to mock her for years to come. She didn’t know why she had even told the receptionist. She hadn’t meant to open her mouth but that kept happening. It was like she had to tell the whole world how much of a jerk John was.
“I’m Lily, by the way.” The woman held out her hand. “I think you need a friend. You should come with me to Safari Town for dinner tonight.”
“I don’t think so.” Maura had made herself feel even worse. It was nice hearing someone else say John was a jerk but now she was thinking about it again. She just wanted to curl up with a big bottle of wine and cry in the hot tub.
“No, you should come with me. By the time you get back to your room, it will be all the way un-romantic. You aren’t going to want to stay in there right now.”
Maura considered. This was a good time to get a look around Safari Town. She had planned to take it easy and keep to herself until Jimmy Tony got to the island. This was better. At least she would have something useful to add to the mission. As painful as the thought was, she nodded. “Sure. I’d love to come with you.”
“Great. I get off work in ten minutes and you can have the bellhop take all your stuff upstairs. Wait for me in the hotel bar?”
Maura nodded. She gave the bellhop her room number and found the Blue Sky Bar. She took a table alone to wait for her new friend. It was already an interesting trip. She’d somehow managed to stray from the plan. She would need to be careful after this. After this little trip to town, she would stick to the plan.
***
“And that concludes our tour for the day. You guys have all been great.” Branch Dunkin was giving his end-of-tour speech for the millionth time as sweet old ladies and young families disembarked from the tour van.
“That’s all of them.” Chet Gallow got up and walked to the back of the bus. He checked to make sure the van was empty while Branch counted the tips. “Looks like we’re all clear too. Want a lift home?”
Branch nodded and kept counting. “Not as good as the last one. Enough for a nice night out with Addy.”
“She’s not in a going-out mood right now,” Chet said as they walked from the van to a golf cart. “The heat is making her really uncomfortable.”
“The giant rhino calf she’s making probably doesn’t help.” Branch grimaced as he thought of Addison’s giant baby bump. He loved putting his hand on her stomach and waiting for the baby to kick him. The little guy was going to be great at football one day, but carrying him wasn’t much fun for Addison anymore now that the summer heat was settling in. Branch felt bad for her having to lug the extra weight around.
“True. Do you mind if I stop to grab a carton of ice cream? I want to surprise her.”
“No way. I could go for a cone myself,” Branch said. “You want to go out for dinner with me? I bet you’re getting cabin fever being cooped up with her all these months.”
“Not at all. I like spending time with my wife.”
Not as much as you like saying ‘my wife’ , Branch thought. His two best friends had gotten married within six months to women who were best friends. While their working relationship was the same, personal time had changed drastically. The men used to go out
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