Maddie:Hmm. Please tell me you don’t mean Pornhub.
Riggs:I’ll have you know Pornhub is very educational. Technically, I’m your boss now and Pornhub clearly demonstrates how a boss’s desk can be multifunctional. Who knew?
Ash:He has a point. I just decided Rhonda is my new secretary. Congratulations on your new job, sweetheart.
Rhonda:Hope your office has soft carpet and plenty of room under your desk.
Ash:Hope you get plenty of rest on the plane because I have a whole lot of dicktation for you to take.
Riggs:Dick-tation? Really? I need to get off this before my brother makes me gag. If there’s any problem with the flight itineraries, let us know and we’ll take care of it. Also, we put $10K on the cards we gave you in Vegas. Maddie, I know how you feel about that, but try to pretend that your boyfriend was only being nice.
Ash:See you soon!
Rhonda answers with a series of emojis that show how excited she is. Maddie, on the other hand, doesn’tanswer at all and I know why. She hates it when I treat her like a charity, but there’s no way I’m letting her travel halfway around the world without the means to deal with mishaps. What if a connecting flight gets delayed or cancelled? What if they get stuck in Honolulu? At least this way they’ll be able to get a nice hotel and enjoy themselves. Besides, why shouldn’t I be able to spoil my girlfriend? What else am I going to do with my money?
It’s Wednesday evening New Zealand time and the girls finally got here. Ash grabs Rhonda’s luggage, and I can’t help noticing it’s new, while Maddie still has the raggedy 1970s luggage she brought to Vegas. If I had to guess, Rhonda went shopping while my girl refused to spend a dime. That needs to change, but I’ll address it later. Right now, I’m just glad to see her.
With Ash and Rhonda in the back seat, we’re all on our best behavior as we head back to the hotel. Mostly it’s small talk about their layover in Hawaii.
As soon as I pull into the parking lot, Ash and Rhonda disappear. No surprise there.
Finally, it’s just the two of us. I pull Maddie’s luggage out of the trunk with, “You must be tired.”
“Not too bad. I slept on the plane.”
She’s dressed right for the weather with a long coat and gloves. That’s good. “Our room is on the second floor. Are you hungry?”
“Yeah, I could eat. I’m not a big fan of airplane food.”
We take the stairs up, and I notice her luggage is light, like really light. I can’t imagine there being much in it at all. She brought more to the hotel back in Sweetbriar, a lot more. I remember the suitcase being so heavy I worried the handle might break off. But this time, it’s light as a feather. Should I be worried?
And it’s not just that. She’s been a littledistant since she landed. When I gave her a hug, she hugged me back, but something about it felt forced. She just flew halfway around the world to see me, so whatever it is, it can’t be that bad. She’s probably just tired and I’m probably just being paranoid.
“There’s a nice place I think you’ll like. They have Akaroa salmon.”
“Akaroa? I’ve never heard of it.”
“Akaroa is where they farm-raise king salmon here. I tried it the other day. It’s good.”
As soon as we step into the room, I drop her bag, shut the door, turn to face her, and decide to go for it. “Enough with the small talk.” I draw her into a hug, lifting her feet off the ground. “God, I missed you!”
She throws her arms around my neck. “I missed you too.” She’s smiling as her lips meet mine and she kisses me eagerly. Thank God.
I kiss her back, and just as I’m really getting into it, her hands press against my shoulders as she pulls away to put some distance between our mouths. Then her eyes drift off to the side as if deliberately avoiding eye contact. “What do you say we get something to eat first?
That was abrupt. I set her down and try to meet her gaze. Something isn’t right and sick feeling begins to churn in my gut. Then again, it was a long flight. Perhaps she’s just not feeling well. I’ll give it some time and see how things go before I start to panic.
“Sure, do you want to change first? I think you look fine, but whatever you want to do.”
“I’m good. We can go now, unless you havesomething you need to do first.”
She’s still avoiding eye contact and I don’t like it. “I don’t have anything going on, and you know me, I can always eat.”
On the way to the restaurant, I tell her about New Zealand and some of the places we can visit. She doesn’t engage in the conversation like I’m used to. Instead, she’s distant, and I’m beginning to think something is definitely wrong.
Sitting at the table, waiting for our food, she’s not fully here. She’s somewhere else and I’m beyond confused, not to mention frustrated. There’s no question that something is off, and I don’t like any of this.
“What’s going on? And don’t tell me nothing.”
