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“I’m sorry you didn’t get to do everything you wanted to. I know you wanted to swim in the ocean and see the local sites, but there will be time for that next time we come back.” He reached over and touched my hand, and I felt my heart skip a beat.
So hedidwant me to come back—with him. The disappointment at missing out on the things I’d wanted to do today melted away because being with Beau was even better than visiting paradise, no matter where we were together. Even in Alaska.
“Did you have a good time in the limited amount of hours you were here?” he asked me, still patting my hand.
Nodding, I assured him that I had. “Yes, this was amazing,” I told him. “Thank you so much for planning the luau. I had the best time. Those fire dancers were amazing, and I loved learning to do the hula dances. Everything was so authentic and fun. I’ll never forget that as long as I live.”
I could tell he was happy that I’d had such a good time as his smile widened even more. “Good, good. Next time, maybe we’ll go to Oahu. I’d love to hike Diamond Head with you or take you swimming under Waimea Falls.”
“Do you have a house in Oahu, too?” I asked, a bit confused. Wouldn’t it be easier to go to all of his Hawaii properties at once?
“Not yet,” he said, and I nodded. “But I’m looking at a few. Besides, there are some of the best hotels in the world in Waikiki.”
“That sounds like it would be an amazing trip.” I barely dared to let myself dream about it because I didn’t want to have it seem real in my head only to find out that it wasn’t ever going to happen. Beau was like a dream at the moment, one that seemed to be coming true, but if I held on too tightly, he might just vanish, never to be found again.
“I think going anywhere with you would be amazing, Georgia.” Once again, he squeezed my hand, and I felt my heart stop beating. He was so sweet. What had I done to deserve to have a man like this in my life?
All I could say was a feeble, “Thank you.” Taking a deep breath, I thought about all the trouble I’d gone to in unpacking my clothing and other belongings the afternoon before. Oh well. “I guess I should go take a quick shower if we need to head to the airport.” I hadn’t even eaten much more than a few bites of my muffin, but at the moment, I wasn’t hungry. I didn’t want to leave paradise.
“Sounds like a plan,” he told me with a sympathetic smile.
Pulling myself up from the chair, I took my muffin and coffee with me to take a few more nibbles and finish the warm beverage as I found the outfit I wanted to wear. Then, setting them aside, I headed into the bathroom to take a shower.
Under the warm water, I couldn’t help but think about the things I hadn’t gotten to do for a few moments. We hadn’t even made love—or had sex, or whatever—while we were here. But then I thought about how much fun the luau had been and it put it all into perspective. We’d gotten to do a lot of the things I’d dreamed about doing in Hawaii all at once—hula dancing, watching the fire dancers, listening to beautiful tropical music, all oceanside beneath a canopy of stars. It had been a pretty perfect trip, even if it was cut short.
Once I was out and dressed, I headed back into the bedroom to pack my bag. Beau was already packed and had gotten my bags ready for me, which I appreciated. It didn’t take me too long to get my items placed back into my suitcases. I got everything from the bathroom and then checked the drawers and closet again. It seemed I had everything, so we could go.
“The driver’s here whenever you’re ready.” Beau spoke to me in soothing tones. I did my best to snap out of it. After all, we were headed to two more beautiful destinations. What did I have to be upset about? Besides, this was probably how it went sometimes when one was traveling. Plans got changed. A person had to adapt and change.
Beau grabbed my larger bag, along with his, and he wheeled them out into the hallway, carrying them down the stairs, while I took my smaller bag. As I walked, I looked around the house, taking it all in one last time. I was going to miss this place, but I was looking forward to the promise of visiting again one day.
On our way to the airport, I looked out the window at the beautiful surroundings and made peace with leaving. I began to think about Switzerland. “Tell me about Lauterbrunnen again,” I said, managing a genuine smile.
“Oh, you’ll love it. Granted, it’s a lot different than Maui, but it’s still beautiful. The people there are just as kind. There’s so much to see and do. Again, we won’t have time for everything, like we didn’t here, but I’m hoping you’ll want to come back with me so we can have more adventures.”
“You said there’s skiing?” I asked him, feeling a bit of trepidation. “I’ve only ever water skied before. I can imagine that skiing down a snowy slope would be difficult at best.”
He chuckled, probably picturing me flying down a hill with my arms and legs flying in every direction. “I don’t think that we have to go skiing this time,” he reassured me. “There’s a beautiful trail that’s not too hard for beginning hikers.”
“Oh, I’ve been hiking a lot with my friend Lucy,” I told him. “But I’m not a mountain climber by any means.”
“Cool. I think this trail will be perfect then. There are beautiful wildflowers and views of the mountains, and sometimes wildlife. Then, you’ll want to see the village. There’s some great shopping there, little shops with treats and desserts. You’ll love it.”
By the time we reached the airport, I was so excited about heading on to Switzerland, I could hardly think about being sad that I was leaving Maui.
The plane was easy to spot as we approached the airport. Once again, I felt a thrill bubbling up inside of me. Taking Beau’s hand, I gave it a squeeze. “This is your life!” I exclaimed. “Can you even believe it? You get to fly around from one amazing place to another in your very own private jet?”
At first, he only stared at me with his eyebrows raised, and I thought for a moment that maybe I offended him, but then he broke into that wide smile. “No, actually, I can’t believe it myself, if I’m honest. I pinch myself all the time to see if I’m dreaming.” Even though he was still smiling, a shadow passed across his eyes. “My life isn’t perfect by any means, but I have a lot to be thankful for.”
I imagined he had to be thinking of his wife. I didn’t like to see that sadness in his eyes, so I changed the subject. The car pulled to a stop, and I announced, “Race you to the plane!” while unbuckling my seatbelt and giving him a shove toward the door away from the plane.
Pulling the door open before the driver could get to it, I took off sprinting toward the plane, Beau hot on my tail, both of us laughing our heads off. I had a feeling it didn’t matter where I was—as long as I was with Beau, I was going to have a great time.
23
BEAU
Chasing Georgia to the plane, I couldn’t help but laugh like a little kid. She was so spontaneous, so fun, and it was clear she was trying to beat me and get there first, even though she was laughing, too. Part of me wanted to be the winner, but in the end, I decided it was better to see her overjoyed at reaching the stairs to ascend the plane than getting there first myself.
