by Jessica Gray
“Thank you so much for helping me out today. With the language barrier, I would have had a hard time doing this on my own.” He cast her a genuine smile.
Joanna nodded with a serious face. “I better get going…”
“Please don’t!” he said in a rush of yearning. “Let me take you to dinner as a way of saying thanks.”
“I really should leave…”
“Have you eaten dinner yet?” he asked, knowing that she hadn’t had the time, being with him all evening.
“No, but…”
“Well, then you have to eat and you might as well do so with me.” An icy gust of wind had her shivering again. He glanced around the courtyard and noticed the huge sign “Lido Hotel” across the street. Nelson had commented that there was a small shopping mall and an outstanding restaurant in the hotel. “I’ve heard the Lido has a good restaurant. Should we go there?”
“It’s heated,” Joanna said with a dreamy look in her eyes, stepping from one foot to the next.”
“Then it’s a deal.” He offered her his arm and she took it despite the obvious hesitation in her eyes.
“Are you sure it won’t be…too expensive,” she murmured and Rowan wanted to kiss her for this comment.
“Don’t worry, Joanna. I want to show you how grateful I am for your help.”
On their way across the street and the few hundred yards to the hotel entrance, they passed two of the tiny eating places, most Chinese frequented. The patrons seemed to be in a good mood, enjoying the food, but all of them wore thick down jackets.
Joanna must have noticed his look of confusion, because she explained, “Most restaurants aren’t heated, so that makes for a very chilly place in winter.”
“Oh.”
She smiled at him, sending a pang of heat straight into his groin. This woman had cast a magic spell on him. It felt incredible. He’d do anything just for one of her cute, sexy, heart-warming, gorgeous smiles.
Just as they’d reached the entrance of the Lido Hotel, his cell phone rang and he took the call with an apologetic look at her. He didn’t expect a call, but it could always be an emergency, “Hello?”
“Rowan, it’s Patrick Armstrong.”
“Hi, Patrick. Are you in Beijing now?” Rowan asked.
“Yes, we arrived this morning and wanted to check in with you. We’re staying at the Lido Hotel—”
Rowan chuckled and said, “Funny. I’m actually getting ready to step inside the Lido Hotel right now.”
“Wow! Would you mind joining Angela and I for dinner? My treat,” Patrick said.
“Let me ask my…colleague,” Rowan answered and then put down the phone to turn towards Joanna. He had wanted to be alone with her, to spend time talking and getting to know each other, but he also was burning to meet with Patrick and Angela. “Joanna, would you mind terribly if extended family of mine joined us for dinner?” He half hoped she’d refuse.
“Not at all,” Joanna said, scrunching her forehead into cute wrinkles. A small flicker of relief passed through her eyes, but that could have been his imagination.
“Great.” He smiled and talked into his phone again saying, “We’ll get a table and wait for you.”
“We’ll be down shortly.”
Rowan pocketed the phone and then turned to Joanna. “Patrick Armstrong is a cousin of my sister Roxie’s boyfriend. He and his girlfriend, Angela, are travelling through China for business reasons.” He argued internally about whether he should tell her about Harbin and risk resurrecting bad memories, but then opted for the truth. “I last met them in Harbin at the Ice Festival. Patrick is a photojournalist, and Angela is a travel blogger. They are doing a reportage about the Festival, and apparently also about Chinese New Year.”
“The ice sculptures are spectacular,” Joanna said. “I’m sure his audience will love the pictures.”
“You outsparkled any one of the sculptures,” he said and caught her gloved hand. For a moment hot energy pulsed between them, but then she turned her face away.
“I look forward to meeting your relatives,” she said in a formal voice. Hot and cold. This woman was a mystery to him.
As they arrived at the restaurant, Rowan paused and put his hand on the small of her back. Even through thick layers of winter clothing he loved touching her and his hand automatically sought her out. This time she slightly leaned into his hand. Good!
“Could you please tell him we need a nice table for four, where we can talk undisturbed?” he asked with a nod to the young man dressed in a black suit standing behind the reception stand.
“Sure.” Joanna engaged into a conversation with the receptionist that was a lot longer than asking for a table. After the conversation, he snapped his fingers and a young waiter came hurrying over with four menus. “This way, please.”
“Do you know this man?” Rowan asked as he followed him to their table.
“No, why?” Joanna gave him a puzzled look.
“Just because your conversation seemed to take a lot longer than asking for a table for four.”
She giggled and waved her hand. “Ah that. We discussed which table was the best. He told me the advantages of each table and after having all the information I chose the one I think will suit us best.”
“Oh,” Rowan said, deflated for the second time in the last fifteen minutes. China wasn’t only a different country than the States, it was an entirely different world.
Joanna gracefully complimented the young waiter, and a look of pleasure appeared on his face. Sweet. She’s sweet and kind. A wonderful combination. Rowan helped her out of her thick coat and turned it over to the waiter before he pulled out the chair for her and waited until she was seated to sit down himself.
After sitting down, he noticed the simple purple tunic with the gold braided sleeves and thought it brought a vivid shine to her face. A glimmer of purple reflected back in her pitch-black hair, making her look like royalty. For a moment, he cursed the imminent arrival of Patrick and Angela.
Rowan took a minute to look around, noticing the bright red and gold lampions hanging from the ceilings and the red cloths stretched across the table tops. The entire restaurant boasted a color scheme of ruby red and classic browns, but the addition of bright red and gold gave it a festive flavor. “Such a beautiful decor.”
“Yes, it’s already decorated for Chinese New Year. They will also have added special foods to the menu.”
Rowan smiled at her and then stood up as Patrick and Angela arrived. “You made it,” he said, shaking both of their hands and then turned to Joanna. “This is my colleague, Jin Yue Wei. She allows us longnoses to call her Joanna.”
Angela laughed and extended a hand towards Joanna saying, “It’s really nice to meet you and I appreciate an easy name to repeat. I must confess I’ve been butchering your language for the last week.”
“I’m pleased to meet Rowan’s family.” Joanna shook hands with Angela and then Patrick.
“And your English is perfect.” Angela clapped her hands once and turned to Patrick. “Aren’t we lucky to finally find someone speaking decent English?”
Rowan watched a blush bloom on Joanna’s cheeks. Sexy. “Have a seat. Joanna mentioned there will be special New Year’s meals on the menu.”
“Sounds good. Food is an important part of any celebration, and Angela is dying to taste them all,” he said as he helped his girlfriend out of her long coat and pulled out the chair for her.
After some chit-chat they stared slightly overwhelmed into the English menu, until Joanna cleared her throat and suggested, “Would you mind if I chose New Year’s specialties for all of us and we put them in the middle to share?” Her cheeks stained again in deep purple as she noticed three expectant pairs of eyes on her. “It’s custom here to share. And you can try some new things.”
“Perfect. I love that!” Angela said.
“We’ll eat whatever you order for us, except if it’s still alive,” Patrick teased her.
“Oh no
…” Joanna’s eyes widened in shock and then added, “There’s places, mostly in the South, where they eat live animals, but not here in Beijing. Not here.”
“He’s only teasing,” Angela assured her and Rowan wished he could just wrap his arm around Joanna’s shoulders and kiss her worries away.
After another lengthy discussion with the waiter, Joanna told them she’d ordered four starters and four main dishes plus steamed rice.
“She doesn’t know the waiter, but she discussed with him which way to cook the different meals and which ingredients to use,” Rowan whispered to Patrick.
“How do you know?” Joanna asked with surprise in her beautiful black eyes.
“I’m a fast learner.” You and Mei did the same thing in Harbin.
Then their conversation turned to the upcoming Chinese New Year celebrations. Both Angela and Patrick were curious and asked Joanna if it would be okay to take notes for his research.
Chapter 19
“Of course,” Joanna agreed, feeling the weight of her sudden importance making her pulse go erratic. Wasn’t it enough that Rowan’s presence made her lightheaded, now his relatives wanted to grill her on Chinese culture for an important reportage?
Angela pulled out her iPad to take notes and then the two of them fired question after question.
“Chinese New Year usually falls on the second new moon after the winter solstice. Everyone celebrates it, independent of their religious beliefs. Most families come together and as normally is the case, food is a major part of the celebration. The holiday starts with a large family reunion dinner where fish and dumplings will be served.” Sadness crept into her heart. This year would be the first time she couldn’t be with her beloved parents. There was no way she could afford the plane tickets with her meager allowance.
The waiter interrupted, serving said dumplings.
“Why those two ingredients?” Patrick asked.
“Fish and dumplings signify prosperity. In fact, some form of dumpling is usually present at every meal. You might say it’s the most important food in Chinese culture.”
Rowan used his chopsticks with surprising ease to snag a dumpling from the bowl and popped it into his mouth with a smile. After chewing and swallowing he grinned. “They are mighty tasty as well.”
“They are. But my favorites are the Yuanxiao dumplings. We will have them later for desert. They are made with sticky rice filled with a paste of black sesame powder or red bean paste. Their round shape and the special bowls used to serve them in symbolize the strong bonds of a family.” Her heart grew weary and she changed the topic. “Around midnight, fireworks will be set off to ward off evil spirits. Families will allow the person who needs the most good luck to light the first one as it is said they will receive a greater portion of good luck.”
Patrick and Angela hung on every word, enthralled with the explanations behind each of the traditions, but Rowan seemed more interested in his food. He probably thinks this is pure superstition and all of it can be explained away with modern science. Joanna wasn’t opposed to modern science, not at all, but there existed more things between earth and heaven than could be scientifically proven.
“Then there is Shou sui…” Joanna continued.
“Excuse me?” Patrick interrupted her. “What or who is shou sui?”
“Shou sui, is the night after the New Year’s dinner. According to the legend, there’s an awful beast the Year that looks like an ox with a lion head and lives in the sea. But at midnight on New Year’s Eve it comes out of the sea to harm people, animals and properties. Since the beast is a water creature, it’s afraid of the color red, fire, and loud noises. So in addition to decorating their homes with the color red, people will take turns staying awake all night to keep the fire lit and to burn off additional fireworks in an effort to keep the Year away.”
“I heard people have to clean their homes before New Year?” Angela asked.
“Yes. From top to bottom. It will take out the old and make way for the new. It is always good to be in a position to receive the new.” Out of the corner of her eye she noticed Rowan’s eyes on her. Was he the new coming into her life? Was it time to throw out old beliefs to…She cast a shy smile at Rowan, before she turned to focus on Angela again. “We decorate with new door hangers, red lanterns, upside down fu, and door gods. Everything being done as they look forward to welcoming the New Year and saying goodbye to the old one.”
“So all this is done before the actual day of New Year?” Patrick asked.
“Yes. The celebration itself lasts for two weeks, starting with New Year’s Eve and finishing with the Lantern Festival on the fifteenth day. It’s my favorite part of the celebrations. Families come together, and we fill the street with a large parade, everyone holding lit lanterns on a pole, competing in brightness with the full moon in the sky. There will be lion dances and people walking around on stilts, and everyone will become involved in some way. It is one of the happiest days in China.”
Joanna quit talking as the waiter served them their main course and Angela stored her iPad in her handbag.
“Thank you so much Joanna for the information. I can’t wait to go out and take pictures,” Patrick said.
“I had to literally hide his camera or he would have brought it to dinner,” Angela smiled and gave her boyfriend a look so full of love, it tugged at Joanna’s heartstrings.
The two of them seemed to be such a good team and they apparently enjoyed being around each other very much. If this was what a relationship could look like…
“So, what’s the news from back home?” Rowan asked.
“We met up with Roxie and Drake at the L.A. airport. They were on their way to Sicily. There’s been a red alert for the Etna.”
Joanna’s eyes widened. “Drake is the volcano…guy?”
Everyone chuckled at her choice of words.
“Yeah, volcano guy, he’ll like that name. And a red alert is for him like Christmas for the rest of us, or New Year’s for you,” Patrick said, chuckling.
Joanna broke out in a cold sweat at the thought of having to go near a fuming mountain. It surely wasn’t something to look forward to.
“Are you going home for the holidays?” Angela asked Rowan.
“Nope. I volunteered for a forty-eight hour shift at the hospital so my Chinese colleagues can be with their families,” Rowan answered.
Joanna’s heart warmed at his thoughtfulness, but at the same time it stabbed her heart to be reminded that he’d return to ER after he finished his internship. In the few short days he’d been assigned to TCM, she’d become so accustomed to being around him all day.
“Joanna, will you be going home for the holiday?” Rowan turned to face her.
“Not this year.” The pain in her heart intensified at the admission.
“Why not?” Patrick asked, picking up too late on the warning glance Angela sent him.
“It is too far away and too expensive,” Joanna mumbled, studying intently the food in her bowl.
Gratefully, Angela switched gears to less emotional topics and they finished their meal chatting about this and that. After everyone had praised the typical Yuanxiao dumplings for desert, Patrick glanced at his girlfriend and said, “Would you mind if we retreated to our room? We’ve been travelling for most of the day and are exhausted”
“Not at all,” Joanna answered.
“Joanna, it was very nice to meet you. I hope we can meet up again one day.” Angela made a small bow, but then giggled and gave Joanna a hug, which was confusing to say the least. Chinese people didn’t hug. They didn’t even shake hands.
“Are you ready to go, too?” Rowan asked her.
“Yes. It has been a long day.” Joanna nodded and slid from the table. She enjoyed being with him – a little too much –, but it had been a long and exhausting day. She needed to sleep and get up extra early the next morning to make up for the missed study time this evening.
“Come, let’s have the reception
call a cab and I’ll take you home.”
Joanna stopped and shook her head. “No.”
“No?” he asked, helping her into her coat.
“The traffic will be hell. There’s no need for you to escort me all the way to the clinic and return here.”
“Nonsense,” he said, “I’ll see you home safely.”
Joanna laughed at his misunderstanding. “Not nonsense. It really takes too long. I do not need an escort home. And with your mastery of Chinese, who would escort you back home?”
She could see from the glint in his eyes, that he didn’t like it, but he didn’t insist. Instead, he put his hand on the small of her back and led her from the restaurant. Joanna couldn’t help but like the way his big and strong hand guided her as they walked down the long hallway that led to the hotel lobby.
Just before they entered the brightly lit lobby, he stopped and pulled her gently into his arms. Her heart fluttered and her brain shut down any rational thought the moment she glanced into the deep pools of his darkened eyes.
“I want to kiss you.”
Joanna didn’t know whether it was a question or a demand. And she didn’t care either way. She rose on her tiptoes and presented her lips for him to take. The moment he lowered his mouth to hers, brushing her lips lightly, all thought drained from her brain. If it weren’t for his strong grip on her back, she would have tumbled to the ground.
Shiver after shiver ransacked her body, each one more powerful than the last. Rowan must have felt it too, because he crushed her against his chest and opened her mouth with his tongue. His tongue was hard and soft at the same time, hot and wet, and the sweet taste of black sesame paste lingered on it as he explored every crevice of her mouth. I had no idea! When he came up for breath, her cheeks were scorching, her lips tingling, and funny feelings pooled deep down between her legs. Only now she became aware that he’d turned them so his back was against the wall and her feet were dangling in the air, as he held her pressed from shoulder to hip to his body. She glanced to the side and saw his bulging biceps threatening to burst through his coat, albeit unbothered by holding her weight.