After checking our luggage at the dock for delivery to our hotel, we signed up for a few boat tours, then wandered around Avalon for a little while until our first tour, a voyage on a semi-submersible vessel that allowed us to get up-close views of the marine life surrounding the island. I was thrilled to see the bat rays as they glided through the water. The other fish were just as fascinating, but for some reason I was drawn to the stealthy rays.
After our boat tour, we checked in at the Pavilion Hotel, which was just steps from the beach with lush tropical landscaping. We had gotten just one room but with two beds. It was nicely appointed, not particularly fancy, but comfortable, and had a semi-private patio. Our luggage was conveniently waiting for us near each bed. We quickly changed our clothes opting for our bathing suits under shorts and t-shirts.
Next, we went SNUBA diving on the Sea Trek Eco Tour. SNUBA combined snorkeling with SCUBA diving. We wore these space-looking dive helmets and weights with wet suits, and we were able to walk along the sea floor for an hour and a half. We got to see the giant kelp forest and several more varieties of fish. We even got to see a sea lion shoot by.
Once we were done with the SNUBA, we decided to stop for lunch at one of the shoreline restaurants. We dined at the Avalon Grille for a light lunch of salads and iced tea.
“That was really incredible wasn’t it?” I asked between bites of my Cobb Salad. “I loved being able to walk with the marine life like that!”
“And the sea lion!” Justin exclaimed. “It was all something I never thought I’d see. I’m now convinced to take diving lessons and get my SCUBA certification. This is something I want to do again and again. I can’t imagine what it would be like in more exotic locales.”
“I think that’s a good idea. You’ve been in need of a new hobby. All you’ve done over the last three years is work and take care of me. You more than deserve to get out and have some fun.”
“I’ve hardly been taking care of you, Peaches. You’ve become my best friend, and I love spending time with you. You haven’t needed any real looking after for a while. The last two years have been nothing but me wanting to be with you.” He looked at me softly as he said the last sentence.
“I’ve loved every minute we spent together, too. Aside from Laurel, I can’t think of anyone I’m more comfortable with in my life right now.” A sudden thought of Vance made my stomach twinge, but I brushed it aside. He was my soul mate; how could I ever hold anyone up to that standard? Although there was plenty of comfort between us, he and I had so very much more than that.
Justin smiled broadly and reached for my hand across the table. He gave it a quick squeeze before bringing it to his lips and kissing my palm. My mouth instantly went dry and all thoughts slipped to my subconscious mind. I gave him a somewhat shaky smile in response. There was no denying that these new intimate steps with Justin caused my heart to race. I just didn’t know if it was because of my new-found attraction to him or if it was nerves over the changing landscape of our friendship. As I withdrew my hand, I looked into his soft smiling face. All I did know in that moment was that I loved Justin deeply. He had become my best friend in California and had been through the bleakest, darkest time of my life with me unfailingly--even during the times when I was difficult and not much of a friend to him. We would forever be bound to each other for that. Nevertheless, I still felt conflicted about the strange sort of triangle I’d found myself in. I wanted to be fair to everyone, but I wasn’t sure of the right way to go about it. I’d never had feelings for any more than one man in my life at a time, and here I was with two. Having a physically intimate relationship with James kind of put Justin on the back-burner in that respect, as I couldn’t imagine myself sleeping with two different guys in the same span of time. Based upon our mutual history, there was no denying that I had deep feelings for Justin. It was a predicament I felt I was not handling in the best possible way, but I’d be damned if I knew what to do about it.
I checked the time on my phone and announced that it was about time for our next adventure. We had booked a zip-line tour. The brochure had touted that the tour was three quarters of a mile at speeds pushing forty-five miles per hour. I was really looking forward to it. I had seen many zip lines on TV and in the movies and had always been dying to try it. The tour was to take about two hours. After settling our bill, Justin grabbed my hand as we walked out of the restaurant and held it the entire way to the tour office. We talked about our excitement over the next step in our adventure, but all the while I was evaluating how I felt about the escalating touches and looks between us.
I couldn’t help but compare him with James. James was lighthearted, fun, and definitely hot as hell. Justin was also good looking with his shaved head and goatee, tattoos, and biker boots. But where James had this thrilling aspect to him, Justin was more of a gentle giant in some ways. That’s not to say he didn’t have a hard edge and would fail to put himself in harm’s way if the situation called for it, he was just always very sweet and tender with me. I didn’t know James well enough to know if there was a serious, thoughtful side to him. So far, all I’d seen was his playful side, and well, his lustful side. I didn’t know enough about Justin on that level to be able to compare him with James either, but he was definitely adventurous as today’s trip was proving. I resolved to just file it away. Justin was my forever friend, dear to my heart. Whatever happened between us from here on was up to the future. James was my newfound distraction. I knew that if Justin and I walked down this road much further, I’d have to choose, but that day wasn’t today. I certainly had to find a delicate way to tell him about James. I didn’t know how to go about that either because I was so afraid of hurting Justin in any way. The idea made my stomach cramp and my heart sink. I had been ignoring the situation because of my fears, but I needed to buck up and face the issue head-on before it was somehow raised for me, and I really made a mess of things.
Justin was eager to take a tandem ride on the zip line, but our combined weights exceeded the maximum limit. He seemed disappointed, but it didn’t stop us from taking our turns on the line. Of course, being a little bit of a ‘fraidy cat’ (i.e. my hesitance over taking a trip down the water slide on the house boat), I made him go first. After the tour guide strapped him into the safety harness, Justin reached out and grabbed me by the waist and planted a firm kiss on my lips. He let me go quickly and nodded to the tour guide who pushed him off the platform. With a loud whoop and a sky punch, Justin was rapidly zipping away. I heard his wild laughter and shouts echoing off the canyon slowly fading away the farther he zoomed from us. Once he was out of sight, the tour guide turned to me with another harness. It was time to put my money where my mouth was.
“Are you ready, ma’am?” he asked.
I took in a deep breath and shook out my nervous hands. I felt a slight dampening under my arms and said a quick prayer that I made it to the other side alive and without wetting my pants. I gave the guide a quick nod, and he quickly strapped me in and attached me to the line. Before I had a chance to think any further, the guide gave me a quick, hard push and I was off and flying with a terrified scream as my feet left the platform.
Once my initial shock and yes, I must say trauma of being suspended three-hundred feet above a canyon, wore off, I was exhilarated. I felt like an unusual bird what with the helmet and all the safety gear, but I was truly soaring as a real bird might or at least that’s how I saw it. I shouted giddily, feeling so liberated and thrilled beyond belief. There were five total zip lines and at each platform stop, I was given a little presentation about the island, the wildlife, history, and the areas I would be passing through. I soaked up every single second of it.
Finally, I met Justin at the end of the line where he high-fived me. We were both on an adrenaline high and could hardly stand still. We both agreed we’d definitely return to the island just for another trip on the zip line. After our initial jubilation waned a bit, our eyes locked on each other’s. For a moment, every cel
l in my body went still and my mind went blank. I realized we were connecting in a new way. He moved in cautiously pulling me into his arms. He brought his hand up to my ponytail and pulled it gently until I was looking up into his face. And then…then he gave me a deep, slow, soulful kiss that made my toes curl. My arms came up and wrapped around his neck without me even thinking about it, as I pulled him into at tighter embrace. I could only describe kissing Justin this way like being wrapped in silk--smooth, soothing, and luxurious. His lips were soft and relaxed against mine before he parted them and slowly, deliberately stroked my tongue with his. It wasn’t a wild and passionate kiss like the ones James gave me, but a slow, lingering seduction. I fell into an otherworldly, surreal state, almost hypnotized by how thorough he was in his exploration of my mouth. He slowly coaxed my hesitant tongue to into a sensual dance with his.
He released me just as slowly as he had kissed me, then smiled down at me with warmth radiating from his expression. I blushed softly, feeling a little off-balance, a little knocked back by such an amazing kiss. Not even Vance had kissed me like that. I was speechless, afraid to say something to break this amazing spell between us, but if the moment drew out any longer, I knew I’d become uncomfortable.
“Thank you for the most amazing day, Justin. Everything has been so much fun and just incredible. I don’t know how we’ll ever top this.” I stumbled out, unable to fully articulate my gratitude.
He smiled at me softly again and spoke in a near whisper, “I promise this is the first of many new adventures for us.”
I was back to feeling awkward with that statement. It was becoming clear to me that Justin had an agenda for steadily moving our relationship in a different direction. Of course, I wanted to spend time with Justin. I adored him. But, I also had this new person in my life and didn’t know where he fit in yet. I did know that I wanted to continue to get to know James, to see if there were something more to our friendship than good sex, so how could I allow things to move forward with Justin? Once again, due to my discomfort, I unwisely pushed the thought away and vowed to let things come as they may.
After our zip line adventure, we agreed to go back to the hotel to shower and relax a bit before dinner. They had a wine and cheese tasting we agreed to try before our dinner reservations at six p.m. All in all, it was very relaxing and low-key following the day’s excitement, and exactly what we needed to decompress from our mutual adrenaline high.
I had pulled my phone out of my purse and set it on the low table between our chairs. I had set an alarm to let us know when it was time to leave for dinner. We were both so relaxed and leisurely, I was worried we might miss our reservation. According to Justin, we were having our meal at the Descanso Beach Club in an ocean-front cabana. It sounded so lovely that I wanted to make sure we were there on time. We were discussing how we would spend the following day when my phone started buzzing around on the table between us. We both looked down at the display which showed James’ name over a picture of the two of us on the houseboat in Havasu. Justin looked up at me quickly with a questioning look on his face. I picked up my phone and sent the call to voicemail.
“Who is James?” he asked, looking a little worried.
“James is a guy I met on my trip to Lake Havasu. He’s in the same squadron as Jessica’s friend Zach.” I volunteered.
“He’s a pilot?” he asked, looking a little gray around the edges.
“He is. He’s a very nice man.” I said, twisting the strap of my purse which had been laying in my lap around my fingers.
“Are you dating him?”
“I wouldn’t say that.” I said with a slight cringe.
“What does that mean?” he inquired softly, his fingers gripping the armrest of his chair.
“Well, I’ve barely just met him. We’ve had dinner once. I hardly think one date qualifies as ‘dating’,” I replied.
“Well he’s calling you again so I’m sure it will lead to another date,” Justin said before emptying his wine glass in one quick gulp.
“Justin, I don’t know where anything is going. Not with him and not with you at this point. Obviously things between you and I are taking a different turn, and while I like it, I’m a little hesitant. I don’t want to disrupt or destroy what is one of the most important relationships in my life. I just want to take things as they come and not overanalyze anything. You know that I haven’t had a relationship since Vance passed, nor have I even done any real dating for that matter. I don’t want you to think that simply because I made a new friend who happens to be male, it has any bearing on you and me.”
He sat back in his chair, contemplating what I’d said. “I suppose you’re right. I’m going to put it out there though, Peaches. I love you. As your friend and very likely more. I want to see if there could be something serious between us. I understand that you might not be ready for that, yet. I’ll take my time with you and try not to rush anything between us. But make no mistake, I intend to make you mine.”
It was my turn to gulp down the rest of the vodka martini I’d ordered from the bar since I still didn’t really care much for wine. Fortunately, my phone started vibrating again signaling that it was time to leave for the restaurant. I smiled tremulously at Justin, and we both stood. He took my hand, and we walked over to the beach club.
The cabana on the beach where we had our dinner was very peaceful and soothing. In all honesty it was very romantic, and Justin was doing his best to be charming. Not another word was mentioned about James, but I was still a bit startled by Justin’s declaration. I stuffed my feelings away beginning to feel like Scarlett O’Hara.
After dinner, we took a nighttime tour of the Avalon hills in an open-air all-terrain vehicle along with two other couples. Justin sat very close to me and put his arm around my shoulders. I relaxed against him and enjoyed looking at the scenery and listening to the driver give his narration. The trip took just a little over an hour. Most of all, I enjoyed looking at the starlit sky above us. It was the perfect end to a romantic evening. I was pleased that I was sharing it with Justin.
Once our tour was over, we quietly strolled back to the hotel hand-in-hand, both of us exhausted from our very busy day. I think we were both mulling over the admissions of the evening. I don’t know what Justin was feeling about learning of James’ existence in my life, but I was still taken aback by what he had told me and the idea that we’d be sharing a room. I didn’t think anything was going to happen as Justin had said he’d take his time, but the last thing I wanted was for things to be awkward between us. Fortunately, we each just took our turns in the restroom, both of us emerging wearing sweats and old t-shirts. He gave me a hug and a brief kiss goodnight and turned out the light in favor of the small night table lamp between the two beds.
As I was drifting off, I thought of Vance and wondered what he would think of the whole situation.
Six
I was walking alone along the beach just after dawn. The morning was thick with fog, but I could make out a figure relaxing on one of the lounges set up along the shore. My first thought was that it was odd that the chairs had been put out so early in the morning, and that the moist air would ruin the cushions. The next was puzzlement that someone else would be out so early just relaxing when there were no sun’s rays to bask in.
As I drew closer, I saw the familiar shape of a man. His hair was very dark, and he was dressed in a cream colored cable knit sweater and jeans with brown deck shoes. He was very relaxed, just sitting with his arms crossed behind his head. He turned to look at me and my heart jumped into my throat. The man looked just like Vance. He smiled and spoke to me.
“Good morning, Precious,” he said softly. “Come have a seat and tell me what’s eating at you.” I ran the few remaining steps to his chair with my heart pounding. It was indeed Vance. I didn’t know how it was possible that he would be here with me, looking so healthy and robust, but I didn’t care. He sat forward, placing both feet on either side of the chair and patted the
space between his spread legs. I eagerly climbed on twisting around to hug him tightly. He leaned in and kissed me in his usual fashion, a feathering of his lips against mine. I desperately wanted to deepen the kiss, to feel our familiar connection flare to life, but he simply put his hand on my shoulder and urged me to turn back around. I settled back against his chest as he wrapped his arms around my waist and rested his chin on top of my head.
“How are you here, Vance?” I whispered, my amazement and disbelief filling my voice.
“I promised you before I left that I’d always be with you, Mimi. I know you need me now so here I am. First, tell me how you’ve been.”
I swallowed around the lump in my throat as tears filled my eyes. Again my voice came out in a whisper. “I’m doing fine for the most part now. I still miss you tremendously, but I’ve slowly come back to feeling like myself.” I didn’t want to tell him about the current goings on in my life, afraid that he would be angry with the fact that I’d slept with James and had been growing closer to his good friend.
“I am glad. I’m also happy to know that you’re keeping your promise to me.”
“What do you mean?” I asked hesitantly.
“I know about James and Justin. It’s good that you’re finally opening yourself to the possibilities of love.”
I snorted softly. “I don’t know about love. I’ve only just met James, and my friendship with Justin is taking a turn in a new direction. I just don’t know if I should choose one or the other. You know it’s not like me to sleep around. I am not sure I feel comfortable seeing two people at once. Not seeing Justin is not an option, he has become one of my closest friends. James on the other hand is someone I’d like to get to know better.”
Fighting Perfection (The Perfection Series Book 2) Page 9