Read Online Sunrise in Bali - Across the Pond Trilogy (Book 1) by L.A. Shorter - Free Book Online

Andy
and Andrew laughing over a large bowl of fresh fruit. She'd heard
that the Australians and Irish had a similar sense of humor, and so
it would seem as they continued to crack their sides as she
approached. “Jen my love, how're you going this beautiful morning?”
went Andy's traditional morning greeting.

    “ Oh
great, enjoyed the wake up call a little earlier!” She said it
sarcastically, but was being quite serious.

    “ I
know, I know...shoulda warned you guys about that I guess. Ah well,
who doesn't like a nice surprise!”

    “ No,
it's great....anything that's different from New York is just FINE by
me! You know, new experiences and all that, variety is the spice of
life....” She rattled off a few more common phrases of similar ilk
before shutting up.

    “ She's
a wise one for her years, our Jennifer,” said Andrew with a
chuckle, wrapping his arm over her shoulder. “Alright Andy, what's
the score for today then...?”

    Andy
started briefing the two of them over what to expect for the rest of
the day, but was forced to repeat himself continually as more of the
group joined them at the table. By the time they had all come
together, Sarah the last to appear, Andy had decided to whittle down
his speech to the bite-sized version. It seemed the day would be
spent on the move once more, exploring a few local areas before
heading off to the village of Senaru for the night.

    It
was a more jovial day than the last, most of the group seemingly more
upbeat than they had been during their tour of the area yesterday.
That is, except Sarah, who appeared a little more downtrodden than
her usual vivacious self. Jenny's attempts to extract any telling
information as to the cause were unsuccessful. According to Sarah,
she was “just tired”, but it seemed like more than that. Jenny
suspected it probably had something to do with Mark, although he
seemed fine, joking and laughing as usual with Todd and Henry.

    Jenny
also noticed that Emily had begun to spark up a friendship with
Miley. They were both quiet, and Emily hadn't exactly ingratiated
herself to Jenny and Sarah thus far, even though their similar ages
made it likely that they'd have a few more things in common. Everyone
loved Miley though, she was the motherly kind, always finding out if
people were OK and quietly getting along in the background.

    Towards
the end of the day the group were back in the van, rumbling along the
dirt roads towards their next overnight destination. Soon they found
themselves in the small village of Senaru, a quaint place nestled in
between the might of Mt Rinjani and the tangled Lombok jungle. Jenny
continued to be stunned by the tranquil beauty of the place: sweeping
vistas across towering valleys, deep green jungles, crashing
waterfalls and peaceful rice paddies; and all without sight or sound
of another tourist the entire time.

    Unfortunately,
it was all to be over too soon for Jenny. The next morning they were
to move on down to the coast and take the short boat trip over to the
Gili Islands, a group of three small islands a few miles off the
coast of Lombok. Although she loved islands and beaches, she felt she
hadn't quite soaked in the serene ambiance of Lombok quite yet. Andy
assured her that they'd be returning in a couple of days for another
afternoon and evening on Lombok, but Jenny suspected it would only be
a fleeting visit, concerned more with travel than exploration.

    With
a feeling of disappointment filling her veins, her head turned back
to Henry. She still hadn't spoken to him properly since that night in
Kuta, save a few passing comments here and there, and their
relationship was becoming increasingly strained, as if both of them
wanted more but neither was willing to take a leap. In fact, it was
getting to the point of being awkward, with them purposefully
avoiding each other when sitting for lunch or dinner, or when finding
a seat in the van to take them to their next destination. Both of
their inexperience