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“We got lucky with that moon, or else we wouldn’t have been able to see shit.”
“You planned this?”
He grins at me. “Always have a plan, but this one was tricky.” He spreads the comforter, which looks ridiculous on the sand, situates the cooler and then himself on it before he pulls me down into his lap. Snugly between his legs, he rests his chin on my shoulder, and I rest my hands on his thighs.
“Are you having fun?” he asks softly.
“God, yes, this has been so incredible. Thank you.”
“Don’t thank me,” he whispers, “too impersonal. And I fucking hate that you’re leaving tomorrow.”
“Me too.”
“So stay,” he urges, pulling me tighter into him.
“You know I can’t. This is your life, not mine.”
We sit for a few quiet moments equally in awe of our surroundings. The smooth rumble of his voice sounds from behind me, but it feels so far away.
“I never thought I would see this,” he says softly. “Never. This is not something I ever thought I’d experience in my lifetime.”
“Me neither.”
The air around us is as ancient as the free-standing structures, and the silence is surprisingly peaceful.
Lucas speaks up on a whisper. “They’re smaller than I thought they would be.”
“Does that ruin it for you?”
“No,” he says. “It just goes to show what builds in the mind and surfaces in reality can be so different.”
Unsure if we’re still talking about pyramids, I glance his way and see him mystified which stuns me silent. Lucas isn’t at all what I expected. He’s not accustomed to the life he’s leading, he doesn’t demand anything from anyone. He’s full of hope and just as in awe of this new world as I am. He’s humble, appreciative, highly affectionate, giving, and there’s not much more I need to know.
A few minutes later, I’m still admiring the view when Lucas gently shifts me from his lap and starts fishing around in the cooler. As he unpacks, he unveils a small feast and a little lamp which illuminates our blanket.
“Wow, you really did think of everything.”
He takes a forkful of a dish with the provided silverware and brings it up to my mouth.
“The chef said these are the things we have to try while we’re here. He said this one you’ll love or hate.”
“That must be Molokhia.” He lowers the fork he just offered to me and reads the scribbled label on top of the container. “How in the hell did you know that?”
I shrug. “I picked it up somewhere.”
“Just picked it up,” he says, his voice full of sarcasm as he lifts the fork and I take a bite.
“This is one of the last places on my bucket list,” I say around a mouthful, “I studied up on Egypt years ago. But I’ll have to have another bite to decide about the food.”
He grins, forking another bite. “Of course you will.”
He gives me another mouthful before taking one of his own.
“Did you know Egyptians invented the three hundred sixty-five-day calendar?”
He shakes his head slowly as he feeds me another forkful.
“We have them to thank for the year mark, the measurement of life. They invented time. Such fascinating and intelligent people.”
