He awoke the next morning, still listening to Faith’s MP3 player.
Nick readied himself then headed out the door for another day of touring with the ladies.
The group was waiting for him, all smiles, dressed in pretty sundresses and floppy hats. Faith was standing at the front desk talking to a clerk.
“Good morning, ladies.” He greeted everyone with a big smile.
“Good morning, Nick.” Kendra beamed at him. “We’re ready to go.”
“Just waiting for Happy.” He smirked, watching Faith at the front desk.
“She’s not coming today,” Kendra said sternly.
“No?”
“No, you can talk without interruptions today.”
Strangely, today, he wanted an interruption. “The tour bus is open. Go on in. I’ll be right there.” He strode over to Faith, who was finishing her conversation.
“Your friend said you’re not joining us today?” he said with a raised eyebrow. “Was it something I said?”
“As if anything you say would turn my world upside down. Don’t flatter yourself, Dimples,” she said curtly.
“Then why won’t you be joining us?”
“I’ve decided to see Los Angeles another way.” He glanced at the map in her hand.
“Don’t worry, your groupies didn’t want me along today anyway. Now they can all drool and gaze at you like you’re some sort of misogynistic messiah.”
“What’s wrong? Scared I might know a little more than you?”
“I just got a map of Los Angeles from a man at the front desk named KiKi. It’s safe to say my courage level is up this morning. Do you have something of mine?” she questioned.
He reached into his pants pocket and pulled out her MP3 player. “You have very…interesting taste in music. I’m a big Eric Clapton fan too.”
“You thought I’d have crappy taste in music?”
“I didn’t say that.”
“But I think that’s what you expected.”
“Is not. I don’t know what to expect with you.”
“And you don’t have to,” she said snidely. “Your tour group is waiting.”
“I’m not going anywhere without you.” He stood in front of her with his arms folded.
“Don’t you check with your office? I only signed up for one day,” she said through clenched teeth.
“Why would you sign up for one day when the rest of your friends signed up for five? It doesn’t make sense, but I suspect you never do anything the easy way.” Nick pulled her close to him. “The rest of the group is waiting and you’re making us late.”
* * * *
Faith turned to go. She tried not to get sidetracked by his biceps as he stood blocking her way. Talking to him diminished her energy and put a damper on the last shred of optimism she had for the day.
She sighed. Going on this trip turned out to be more stressful than losing her job. Her friends wanted her to pretend that everything was okay, spend ten days in sunny California, and leave her problems behind, but she couldn’t do it. Escaping reality was the last thing she needed to do right now. She didn’t want to admit to him what no one else around her would accept as her reality. She was broke.
“Look, Dimples. Not that it’s any of your business, but I only booked a one day tour because that’s all I could afford. I am among the newly unemployed, and against my own good judgment, I came out to this great state of yours anyway. What a mistake that’s been. I would rather spend the rest of my money doing other things.” She wasn’t ashamed, she told herself. There was no shame in admitting you weren’t able to do something because you didn’t have the money, but she hated admitting it to him.
“Why don’t you come anyway? Free of charge.” He smiled sincerely.
“I appreciate that, but there’s no point in you losing your job too.” She chuckled unexpectedly. “I don’t think someone else should have to pay for us to contradict each other all day.”
“My boss knows me. I do stuff like this all the time.”
“Thanks but it wouldn’t be right. Besides, my friends and I…need a little break. They can’t understand why I’m so wound up. So I’ll take a much-needed vacation from the vacation. You’d better go, Kendra just popped her head in here, and I don’t want to be blamed for holding up the tour.”
Nick reached into his pocket and pulled out a business card. “Call if you get lost or have any questions while you’re out venturing. I know you’re a big girl but don’t wander off and please stay in public places, with crowds.”
Faith thought for a moment then said, “Thanks, Dimples.”
“You’re welcome, Happy.”
* * * *
The tour for the second day ran smoothly. Nick made all the scheduled stops and talked incessantly about the sights. His passengers listened and flirted as he did his job even without the usual fuel to his fire. His mind wandered thinking about Faith and what she might be doing. He’d planned to sit her in the seat up front next to him so he could torment her when he wasn’t using the microphone. He had to admit, he hadn’t had an exciting day on the bus like that in a while.
When he dropped the ladies off at the end of the afternoon, he heard them talking about a club they were going to later. They asked the usual questions, and he told them what he tells all his tourist groups—stay together, don’t wander off with anyone, and go back to the hotel together.
“Thanks, Nick!” They said in unison as they stepped off the bus. He looked around for Faith but she wasn’t around, and she hadn’t called him. As he pulled out of the driveway, the hotel van pulled up, and Faith stepped out of the front seat. She looked tired.
“Thanks, Alex!” she yelled to the driver and walked into the hotel.
He wondered how she would spend the evening since the club the ladies were trying to get into had a fifty-dollar cover charge. She was still toting that travel book, he could see it peeking out of her bag as he watched in the rear view mirror.
* * * *
Faith was sitting in a chair on the balcony of the room, watching people come and go from the Starbuck’s across the street. She’d seen a total of three minor celebrities today and one guy who did a lot of supporting cast work on a few television shows she liked, but no major stars always in the media. Maybe they were somewhere on vacation too. There was a knock at the door, and Kendra bellowed from the bathroom to answer it. Faith slowly crossed the room and opened the door, expecting to see Sandy or one of the hotel staff.
“Hey,” Nick said with a slight smile.
“Hey, Dimples.” She looked surprised to see him.
“Who is it?” Kendra yelled. “If it’s the girls, tell them I’m almost ready!”
“No, it’s not.” She looked back at him. He wore a yellow polo shirt and a pair of khaki pants. “I’m sorry, what are you doing here?”
“How was your day?” He ignored her question.
“It was eventful,” she said with a sheepish smile. “Nothing like finding your own way in a strange new world.”
“It is very exciting,” he said thoughtfully.
She coughed, “What are you doing here?”
“I thought I’d take you out for a night tour. Your friends said they were going to a club and I didn’t think you’d be going.”
“Technically, Kendra and Sandy are the friends. The others are friends of theirs. I didn’t know your company did night tours?”
“They don’t. This is a native Californian, night tour. I thought we’d go to the Santa Monica Pier.” Her eyes lit up, but she fought back the excitement.
* * * *
He heard Kendra telling Sandy that Faith would have loved to see Santa Monica because her favorite movie was The Truth about Cats & Dogs.
“Don’t you have something else to do tonight?” she asked warily.
“Well, I could spend a peaceful night at home, watch horrible audition tapes with my friend, Scott, who’s an aspiring director trying to make his first movie, or pick up th
e grouchiest tourist in California and take her to the beach while praying neither tries to drown the other.”
Faith gave him a once over. “I think it’s good you feel secure enough in your manhood to wear a yellow polo shirt.”
“I think it’s good you don’t give a damn about society’s perception of women and dress like you’re going to capture Big Foot in the woods. I would never think you were anything but a lady,” he said with a straight face.
She laughed, showing all her teeth for the first time. Her smile cemented a little bit as he looked at her lips and pretty teeth. She looked like the sweet girl next door, if there was such a thing anymore. He also thought she looked like a woman who didn’t take herself too seriously, open to adventure.
“Dinner. A walk on the pier, and I’ll even let you ride the Ferris wheel,” he continued. “My treat, of course.”
Kendra finally came out of the bathroom, looking surprised to see Nick. “Hey, Nick. Did you change your mind about the club?” They’d asked him to go but he had turned them down.
“No, actually, I’m here for Faith.”
There was a thunderous knock on the door, followed by laughter. Faith opened the door as the rest of the ladies filled the room, all seeming just as surprised to see Nick standing there.
“Hi, ladies. You all look very nice.” It was true. They were all glitzed and glammed, ready to go. “Don’t forget what I told you about safety.” He turned to Faith. “You ready to go, Happy?”
Faith grabbed her bag off the bed. No one in the room muttered a word as Nick held the door for her. “Don’t worry, ladies, I’ll bring her back in one piece.”
“You do pretty well as a tour guide, I take it,” Faith murmured as he held the door to his Jaguar open for her.
“I do okay.” Nick glanced over and saw the travel guide peeking out of her bag again. When he got in the driver’s side, he carefully slid his hand over, grabbed the book, and threw it in the back seat. “No reading tonight.”
“You’re just a regular literacy campaign, aren’t you?”
* * * *
As he drove, she could feel them getting closer to the ocean. The cool, salty air always made her think of being stranded on an island. Surprisingly, Nick didn’t say much as he made his way to the pier. A tour guide who drove a Jaguar and owned an Omega watch, she mused. Clearly, he was a living contradiction, but he was a nice, handsome, charming, smart ass. She couldn’t help but enjoy the reactions from her pretty, preening friends when he hustled her out of the hotel room. Kendra, who after the tour expressed her lust for him, looked like she wanted to implode.
“So what line of work were you in?” he asked as they settled into their seats at the Bubba Gump Shrimp Co. Nick ordered a beer while she ordered a fruity drink.
“I was a receptionist for a linoleum manufacturer. Exciting, right?” She laughed in spite of herself.
“Just something to do to pay the bills?”
“Yep.”
“Which means you have a passion for something else?” he said quietly.
“Why do you say that?”
“I think you are very self aware. I don’t think being a receptionist fits you. I think you make a living while something else fills your time. I just don’t see the beginning and end of your day being at a linoleum factory.”
“I am a…jack of all trades. I am somewhat good at a lot of things but have yet to find passion.” She coughed and continued, “For something I would love to do for the rest of my life.”
“There must be something you love to do.”
“Read.”
“I figured as much. What else? What do you do that brings you absolute pleasure?”
Faith thought for a few minutes. She thought hard. “I like to cook.”
“Cook? You mean I sprung for a meal when I could have had you cook for me?” He laughed.
“It’s not that simple. I like to cook but I can’t cook for everyone. I’m not one of those people who will volunteer to bring a dish to a party or something. To me, cooking is…intimate. Eating well not only feeds the body but it also nourishes the mind and the soul. All the different vitamins and proteins keep your body going and your mind alert. The smells and textures of the food are sensuous. I only cook for other people as a way of expressing how I feel about them, I guess.”
“Very interesting. So, you are selective about the people you cook for?”
“Yes.” She smiled. “I know it sounds weird but I can’t just cook on command. It annoys me when people ask me to when I know the last thing I want to do is feed them. It’s kind of like kissing someone you don’t want to. It’s terrible.”
“So, cooking for you is like finding a ‘sponge worthy’ man.” He smiled a wicked smile.
Faith laughed. “Seinfeld fan, eh?”
“Guilty as charged.” He smiled back, looking slightly amused that she got the reference.
“I never thought about it like that.”
“You take your time before you know they’re worth the effort and intimacy you obviously attach to cooking. You associate cooking with love.” His shining eyes accompanied a lazy smile.
“I guess so.” Faith watched the water rolling onto the beach under the night sky from her patio seat.
“You haven’t cooked for a lot of people, have you?”
“No, I haven’t.”
“So why don’t you try your hand at being a chef? Learning the trade?”
“I don’t know ingredients. I am a Food Network fanatic and love watching the chefs and challenges, but I don’t think my brain could learn all the nuances. I have a short attention span.”
“You could learn then figure out what you want to do with it. You could become a personal chef, being a chef doesn’t mean having to open a restaurant. Learn the craft then turn it into what you want. Make your own destiny.”
Faith hunched her shoulders, trying to feign indifference. She hoped he couldn’t sense her vulnerability and that she was on the verge of collapsing.
“So what do I have to do to get you to cook for me?” Nick asked as he paid the bill.
Faith thought about it for a moment. Based on the meal he ordered, she thought of the great pasta primavera she knew he would devour as soon as she put the plate before him. The thought of doing that for a relative stranger, no matter how sexy he was, rattled her a bit.
“Don’t hold your breath, Dimples.”
* * * *
Nick made his way into the hotel lobby to meet his band of zany women. He’d gotten to know them over the last few days, and he had to admit, they were a great group of girls. However, he spent his nights showing Faith the California he loved. Seeing her was the best part of his days. He managed to break past the first wall of defense, and she actually looked like she enjoyed the private tours. She even agreed to put the book away and allow him to show her the things she’d been reading about. They agreed to table any talk of the problems awaiting her at home.
“My friend, Tia, wants to meet you,” he told her when dropping her off last night.
“Your friend, Tia? Wants to meet me?”
“Yeah. She’s very…spiritual. I stopped by her and her husband’s house last night after I dropped you off, and she said she could feel a lot of tension and stress.”
“This involves me how?” She raised an eyebrow.
“She said it wasn’t mine directly, it had to come from the last person I was in contact with, that I was sharing your stress.”
“And what does Tia need to see me for?”
“She offered,” he said with an amused grin on his face, “a free spiritual cleansing.”
“Does she sell herbal cleanser or something?”
“In a manner of speaking. But she does not charge. So what do you say? Are you up for it? She’s having an evening session tomorrow.”
“Sure. Okay.” She laughed nervously.
The journey to Tia’s spiritual cleansing, the next evening, began with a two-hour car ride to a secluded
beach at sunset. From the parking lot, Faith spotted a group of people gathered around a fire, chatting and eating. She and Nick played musical twenty-questions on their walk, and she even managed to get him to stop a few times so she could take a few scenic coastal pictures. The sea breeze caught her sweater, blowing it back before she could wrap it around her. Nick caught it and put it around her, his hands lingering on her shoulders, making her smile.
“Nick, you old dog, where have you been?” someone yelled.
“Hey, Marty,” Nick responded as he shook the man’s hand.
“Everyone. This is Faith. Faith this is,” he started on the left, “Mischa, Terry, Sapphron, Emgoene, Elizabeth, and Danny.”
“That’s Tia meditating on the blanket over there, and this is her husband, Marty.”
“Hello everyone,” Faith said shyly.
* * * *
They all smiled back at her, seeming genuinely happy to meet her.
“We just want to thank you, Faith, for being here tonight.” Emogene, a short, sleek haired woman stepped forward and shook her hand while Nick continued talking to Marty.
“Why do you want to thank me?” she said curiously.
“Tia hasn’t done one of these in a while. She said she was waiting for someone to complete the next cleansing circle and apparently it was you.”
“When was the last time you had a…cleansing circle?”
“Five years ago. We had one a year after Nick’s wife died. He really needed it.”
“His wife?” Faith said, dumbstruck.
California Bored and Tourism Page 2