AllFreeNovel
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It’s of smiling couples in skimpy swimsuits, lounging on a sandy white beach and sipping frozen cocktails with tiny umbrellas garnishing the frosty glasses.
“This is a new spa retreat in the Caribbean. They’re offering great prices next month for their grand opening. It’s an all-inclusive resort that has five pools and a private beach, and it offers guided excursions to the mainland. Not that I’d care about leaving this gorgeous place. Look at that water. It’s like glass.”
It does look relaxing.
“Next month?” I ask.
“Yeah. We could fly down to Florida and then cruise to the resort. I’m thinking nine days. We can escape the fall crowds here with everyone coming in to see the leaves changing color and to pick apples or whatever. Instead, we can relax, swim, get a golden tan, and make love on the beach. Doesn’t that sound amazing?” she asks.
“It does, and I wish we could, but fire season starts next month. You know I can’t take any vacation days in the middle of August,” I inform her.
This is not news to her. The Smoky Mountains have two fire seasons. One in early spring, prompted by the warming weather. It begins around the end of February and lasts until April. The other one is in the fall, prompted by the drying and falling of leaves. It starts in mid-August and lasts until mid-November.
“Why not? You have, like, twelve guys working for you. What good is being the boss if you can’t delegate?”
“That’s not how it works. None of us take vacation during fire season. If there is an emergency here or in a neighboring county, we’re all needed. I can’t break the rules for myself.”
“Yes, you can,” she disagrees.
“No, I can’t, and I won’t. We can go to the Caribbean at the first of the year. Doesn’t escaping the snow for the beach sound like a good idea?” I suggest.
She slaps the magazine on the counter. “The first of the year? Seriously? I’m tired of always having to wait until the fucking middle of winter to go anywhere. I thought when you made chief, we’d be able to do more!”
The opposite is true. Taking on the title of chief actually requires more of my time instead of less. It’s a responsibility that I don’t take lightly.
“My head is throbbing. Can we talk about this later?” I ask.
She stands and walks over to her purse that is hanging on a hook beside the fridge.
She fishes out a medicine bottle and shakes two tablets into her hand. Then, she offers them to me.
I take the painkillers and finish my glass of milk.
Wordlessly, she turns and marches to the bedroom, and I follow.
I wait until she is tucked under the covers before I click off the light and join her. The room is dark even though the sun rose hours ago, thanks to the blackout curtains covering the windows.
Once I’m settled in the sheets, I reach for her. Her body is stiff, but I pull her against me and bury my nose into her neck.
“I’m sorry,” I whisper.
I feel the tension dissolve as she sinks back into me.
“I know,” she says.
“Thank you for buying the lace. I liked it a lot.”
“I thought you might,” she murmurs.
“Will you wear it for me tonight?”
“Maybe,” she says.
“I’ll see what I can do about getting some time off before Thanksgiving this year. Late November is the earliest I could sneak away, but we can go anywhere you want to go. Anywhere on the planet,” I vow.
“Anywhere?”
I nod into her neck and place a kiss below her ear. “Anywhere,” I assure her.
