by Laina Turner
“I don’t think it’s too far-fetched, and when you add it into everything else, it makes it seem a little more plausible.”
I had a hard time wrapping my brain around this, but maybe he was right. It certainly explained the strange things that had been happening. Just as much as it all being random did.
“Maybe you’re right,” I finally said grudgingly. “Should I tell this to the police? That I think this stolen statue is the one I found?”
“Do you think maybe they know which is why they were hounding you so badly?”
“I don’t know.” And I didn’t. I had no idea why they had questioned and then so abruptly let me go, but them knowing would kind of make sense out of their behavior. “What should I do?” I asked.
Steve shrugged. “Probably nothing, you don’t have the statue and you’ve changed rooms, so you’re out of the loop. It’s probably over regarding your end. You’ll soon get your clothes back and you can continue enjoying your vacation.”
I thought about what he said and he was probably right.
“I’m starving. You want to order some breakfast?” I asked him changing the subject. I always thought better on a full stomach.
“I’d like that.”
Chapter 7
A couple hours later, Wendy and I were in the hotel’s store trying to find some glamour among the novelty T-shirts and really gaudy beachwear. It wasn’t any better than the first time I had been here. Not that I had expected it to be, but there was always wishful thinking they had just got a shipment of clothes that would flatter me.
“Who do they sell this stuff to?” I asked Wendy, holding up a leopard print sundress with big orange and green flowers. “I haven’t even seen people around here wearing it. Do you think people buy this stuff as souvenirs and then take it to their loved ones back home? That would be a pretty mean thing to do,” I joked.
“I have no idea. This is one step past gaudy. If we can’t find anything here for you, we could always try in town. I know it won’t be free but if it were me, I’d rather spend money than wear any of these. There are some things more important than saving money and this is one of those things.”
I laughed and said, “I completely agree. Let’s go.”
“OK,” Wendy agreed putting the dress she had been holding back.
“Will your sister want to come with us?” I asked.
“She said she was going to take a nap and I mentioned going into town earlier and she said it was too much walking. So she can stay here. All she does is sit in the hotel room and sleep,” Wendy said, and I could tell she was annoyed.
“Has she always been like this?”
“What, been lazy? A stick in the mud? No, not really. I mean, she’s never been super-adventurous but she’s not usually this reluctant to have any sort of fun. But I can’t get her to do anything.”
“Do you ever think something could be wrong with her? Maybe she’s depressed or something? There could be another explanation of why she’s sleeping all the time. I had a friend who went through a bout of depression after her mother died and one of her symptoms was she always wanted to sleep.”
“I guess I never thought about that. I’ve always assumed if something was wrong, she would tell me. We might argue, but we’re still sisters and she knows I love her.”
“She might not even realize it and I could be completely off base, and it’s really none of my business. I’m not trying to interfere.”
“You might be on to something, Sterling. All her kids are recently out of the house so she’s had some big life changes lately. Maybe that’s upsetting her. I think maybe I should talk to her and directly ask her if anything is going on.”
“Let’s go to the front desk and see about getting a ride to town. I think they have shuttles,” I said.
They did and within a few minutes we were on our way, which we were told was about twenty minutes away.
The scenery on the way into town was gorgeous. The road was along the coastline for part of the way and seeing the waves crash up on the rocks was breathtaking.
“It’s so beautiful to be able to see the ocean like that,” I said. “Not a view we get in the mid-west. Especially this time of year,” I joked.
“It is beautiful. I’m sure the people who live here are used to it, but I couldn’t imagine not looking out in awe every day.”
I felt my phone vibrate, signaling I had a text. Looking at it, I smiled.
Wendy looked over at me. “Uh-oh, that kind of smile on a woman means only one thing. A man. Is it Steve?”
I nodded. “He says, ‘Have a great day, hope to see you later.’ I’m too old to be excited over a text message,” I said to Wendy. “This is ridiculous.”
“You’re never too old to enjoy a man’s attention. I should know, I’ve been married three times!”
A few minutes later the bus pulled to a stop in front of a cafe and let us out with instructions that the shuttle service made runs every half hour but stopped at 10pm. However, there were plenty of cabs if we wanted to stay in town.
Armed with a map of the area the bus driver had given us, we headed down toward the center of town where most of the shops seemed to be located.
“Much better selection here,” I said to Wendy about the first shop we were in. She was across the shop from me, looking at the sandals.
“Agreed. Very authentic, all handmade. Though, some just as gaudy in a different way.”
“Yes, but at least its authentic gaudy and not tourist gaudy.”
“Is there a difference,” Wendy teased.
We spent the next hour or so browsing and I bought a few items, for myself, Nadine and the kids. I still had to find something for Cathy to show my appreciation for holding the fort down in my absence but hadn’t come across the perfect thing.
“I’m starving. How about you,” I said to Wendy. “Shopping always works up such an appetite.”
“I was just about to say something. I could definitely eat.”
“We passed that café a few shops back that advertised fresh shrimp specials. Want to try there?”
“Sure.”
We walked back a few stores and were quickly seated. After looking at the menu, we both ordered shrimp Caesar salad and iced tea.
We kept up an easy flow of chatter and I was really glad I met her. I felt it was hard to make friends at my age, mainly because people were busy and had families and jobs and just didn’t seem to socialize as much. I was excited to make new ones here, something I needed to work harder at back home. I needed to start creating a new life for myself. As we were talking, I noticed a man sitting a few tables away and I thought I’d seen him in a few of the shops we had been in. Probably a coincidence, but it seemed odd to keep running into the same person, especially a man when we were spending our time shopping for women’s clothes.
Our salads came and I completely forgot about the guy and enjoyed the food. Food was always a good distraction for me, unfortunately for my waistline.
“I think that is the best shrimp I’ve ever had,” I said to Wendy.
“I’m stuffed but I would eat more if it was in front of me, it was that good.”
”Let’s do some more shopping and walking and burn this off and then find something for dessert.”
“Sounds like a plan.”
We hit a few more shops and I caught a glimpse of the man I had seen at the restaurant again. Maybe it was a coincidence, but I felt he might be following us. He had been in every single shop we’d been in since leaving the restaurant. But why anyone would be following us? I walked over to Wendy and whispered in her ear.
“See that guy over there,” I said, pointing to the man, who was intently looking at the display of postcards.
“You mean that dark complected man in the navy blue track suit who, if he was a few inches taller, might make a good catch, at least in the looks department.”
I smiled in spite of my concern.
“Yes, that one.”
“What about him?
”
“I think he’s been following us. I saw him in a couple other shops we were in and he was at the café we ate at.”
“Really?” Wendy’s eyebrows rose. “Maybe he’s just shopping or thinks we’re cute?”
“You think someone would follow us because they thought we were cute?”
“Or maybe it’s just a coincidence? He’s probably just a tourist like the rest of us and likes shopping for the same things as us,” Wendy said “Look around you. The majority of these people are tourists.”
“You don’t think it could be related to the statue do you? “I said, though even as I said it, it didn’t make sense to me.
“You think maybe it’s one of the band of robbers?”
“You’re way too excited over that prospect, but I don’t know. It’s probably my over-active imagination.”
“Let’s just see if he keeps following us. If your gut tells you he is, he probably is,” Wendy said. “Who knew meeting you would make my life so exciting.”
We had another hour or so before we had planned to catch the shuttle back to the hotel and in every shop we went into the swarthy man was right there with us. Not too close, yet never too far away either. I don’t think he realized we had noticed him.
Wendy and I were grabbing smoothies at a small booth by the stop where we were waiting for the shuttle and once again the man wasn’t far behind.
“I think you’re right. He is following us,” Wendy said. “No one else I’ve recognized in every store we’ve been into. We’ve seen him way too much to be a coincidence.”
“Yeah, I agree. What should we do?”
“I don’t know.”
“What if he gets on the bus?” I asked, feeling nervous.
“As long as we’re with other people we should be OK. What can he do in a crowd? Though, I’ve heard of women in foreign countries being kidnapped and sold into the slave trade.”
I looked at her and laughed in site of my concern.
“We look pretty amazing for our age Wendy, but I think those guys are usually looking for the younger girls. Not us middle aged ladies. I think we’re safe from that.”
“I was just listing the possibilities,” she said, pretending to be insulted.
We had about ten minutes before the shuttle was to come and we both kept glancing over at the man. Finally, one time looking over I caught his eye and in those few seconds, looking at each other, any doubt I had that he was following us vanished. And he knew we had noticed him. He broke eye contact and abruptly turned and walked away in the opposite direction.
I nudged Wendy, “He’s leaving.”
“Oh well, maybe he’s not following us.”
“No, I’m certain he was now,” I said and filled Wendy in on the last few seconds when she had been looking in the other direction drinking her smoothie.
“At least if he left he isn’t planning on following us back to the hotel.”
I thought about that for a second. “He doesn’t need to! This stop services only two hotels. According to the sign,” I said pointing to it. “So he would know that if we were here waiting, we must be guests at one of the two hotels.”
“Oh,” she said and paused. “Even so both hotels are big resorts. The chances of him finding us, if that’s what he’s doing, among all the guests is slim. Plus, they are busy places. We aren’t going off somewhere alone.”
Our bus pulled up and I thought about what she said. While she had a point, I just had a funny feeling about this. I didn’t like the thought of someone who seemed to be following us knowing what hotel we were staying at. And since he saw us waiting here, he had a fifty percent chance of figuring out the right one.
We got settled in our seats and Wendy asked, “Any more texts from Steve?”
“Maybe a couple,” I felt myself blushing like an immature school girl.
“You’re blushing. You must like him,” she teased.
“He did ask me to dinner and I said yes. And at least now I’ll have something to wear.”
We were both silent the rest of the trip. I was exhausted and assumed Wendy was too as she had her eyes closed the whole time.
“What are your plans tomorrow?” I asked Wendy after we got off the bus, before going our separate ways – me to get ready for dinner with Steve and her to dinner with her sister. I looked around and didn’t see the man. Hopefully, I wouldn’t again.
“I was going to attend the class they have, I think at ten am, in origami. I thought it sounded fun. Want to join me?”
“Love to. See you then. Thanks for shopping with me.”
“Any time. And tomorrow I want all the juicy details of your date with Steve.”
Chapter 8
It was nice having more time to get ready for dinner than I had for my morning coffee with Steve, not to mention, having new clothes.
I found myself looking forward to seeing him, which both surprised and scared me. I didn’t know if I was ready to have these kind of feelings again and I definitely had more than platonic feelings toward him.
The outdoor patio restaurant had re-opened and that’s where I was meeting him. I was so looking forward to eating there, due to the beautiful pictures on the resort website, and when I arrived I wasn’t disappointed. I no longer had any buyer’s remorse for the money I spent on this vacation.
Steve was waiting at the host stand for me, which didn’t hurt the view either. He was dressed in jeans and a dark grey button down shirt. The grey made his eyes stand out and he looked even more handsome than this morning. I had on a long dress, crimson batik print. One of the great finds from my shopping trip. I had been able to do something with my hair and had styled it up to show off the pretty bamboo earrings I had found.
When we walked into the dining area, it was breathtaking. It was completely lit by candlelight. Candle arrangements on the table and strategically placed floor candelabras throughout the place gave it a soft glow. Along with the moonlight reflecting on the water it gave a very romantic feel which made me blush a little. I didn’t know what was wrong with me, blushing like a school girl, but I had to admit it felt nice. It made me feel young again.
I was just thankful of the dim light so Steve couldn’t see. I would’ve been so embarrassed that my emotions were so transparent.
We were seated at the table, which afforded a beautiful view of the ocean. I couldn’t remember a time when I’d been to dinner somewhere so amazing.
After ordering drinks, Steve asked, “How was shopping?”
“You tell me. My entire outfit is from town. Including these fabulous earrings.”
“You’d make anything look good,” he said, smiling.
“Thank you,” I said. “You’re not so shabby yourself.”
We gave our order to the waiter and when he left, I filled Steve in on the man I saw in town who I thought had been following Wendy and I.
“But then maybe what happened last night has just made me paranoid? I’m on vacation and I’m nobody. It doesn’t really make sense that someone would be following me or Wendy, or both.”
“If your gut tells you he was following you, then I bet he was following you.”
I smiled. “That’s what Wendy said.” It had been a long time since I felt someone believed in me and now I had two new friends who cared. I had forgotten how nice it felt just even to have someone listen and pay attention.
“It just seems so crazy. Do you really think it could have something to do with that statue? Even if it does, why follow me? If it was the same person who broke into my room, they would know I didn’t have the statue and clearly I’m not just carrying it around.
“Your guess is as good as mine, but why else would someone follow you?”
“I don’t know. Maybe my looks and charm?” I teased, feeling more confident.
“Well, of course that,” he teased back.
We continued playful banter through the meal and even splurged for dessert sharing a delicious crème brûlée, since I wasn’t
worried this time about popping a button on my pants. Though maybe I should have been. I had been over-indulging on this trip but it was vacation I rationalized. Calories didn’t count on vacation.
Lingering over our second cup of coffee, neither of us wanted to end the night. At least, I didn’t and considering he didn’t seem at all in a hurry, I assumed he didn’t either.
Finally, as our waiter started giving us meaningful glances as if to say “get out of here people and give me my table back,” we decided we should get up.
Steve said to me, “Want to walk off all this food with a stroll on the beach?”
“I would love to. I shouldn’t have had the last bite of dessert but it was so good.”
There was an entrance to the beach from the outdoor patio so we walked down the few steps to the sand. We both took our shoes off and Steve rolled up his pants so we could walk right at the water’s edge.
There was a full moon out, so between that and the lights from the hotel, it was enough to see by so we didn’t run into other people doing the same thing. There were quite a few people out here enjoying the beach.
At first we didn’t even talk. Just enjoyed the easy silence that usually comes from knowing someone well, but it was nice to be experiencing it with him. It was so beautiful on the beach, no talking was really necessary. It was nice to just listen to the gentle waves rolling in and the sand crunching beneath our feet.
It was getting late so we started to head back up the path to the resort, making plans for coffee again tomorrow. I was beginning to enjoy our new habits trying not to let the thoughts that this was a vacation and would soon be over enter my mind, when all of a sudden I stopped and grabbed Steve’s arm.
“What is it?” he asked, looking at me.
“Over there,” I pointed to his left which was an outdoor area for people to sit and watch the ocean.
He started to turn his head.
“Don’t look.”
“But you just pointed in that direction,” he said, confused.
“Sorry, I want you to look but not make it obvious you’re looking.”
