by P. M. Thomas
“Take my parents for example, they're completely different, yin and yang. My mother, calm and kind, you could tell her the world's ending and she'd be cool headed about it. My father on the other hand, always worries over anything, the news, the weather, his work, travelling. My mother has to always calm him down. I don't know how she copes, but maybe the business of having to calm him with her calmness is what keeps them together. Perhaps that's what they like best about each other, their differences.”
Gloria found his theory interesting. “If that's the case, what do you like about my differences?”
“Well...” Paulo hesitated, he did not know what to say or how to say it.
“Come on.” Gloria waited eagerly to hear what he had to say. He started it, got himself into it, he had to find a method to get out of it without offending her. The last thing he wanted was to set off her mood swing and endure her sulking for the rest of the day.
Paulo thought of something off the top of his head, the first thing that flashed in his mind. “I like your... different taste in
food.”
Gloria whirred to him, she was taken by surprise at his basic comment. “Is that it?”
He was treading on thin ice, he wasn't out of the hot zone yet, he had to think of something better to her liking and fast, if only he could think of one, “No, I also like your...”
“My?” she asked expectantly.
“Your...” he struggled to think of a difference he liked. It was going to be a long morning.
CHAPTER 9
The lavish cruise ship housing the star who defined the meaning of the word “super” dropped anchor by the dock located at none other than the continental island haven containing a fan who defined the meaning of the word “devoted”.
Sara was in her cabin, cooling her finely crafted body from the baking hot rays of the sun. She was signing the final photo on the deck for the Bartender. She had spotted him at the bar, he was barely able to contain his swelling excitement of his absolute favourite diva giving him what he craved for since she stepped foot on the star-studded cruiser.
Sara cheerfully gazed at the vintage photograph and more importantly what she had written for the avid fan.
To my friend Luigi, I hope this is hot enough for you, love Sara Sarracini xxxx
Her eyes moved up from the signature, looked at the relic of her modelling days and how fast time flew by. It was hard to believe three decades had gone by since that picture was taken, it seemed like only yesterday she was standing in the ocean blue backdrop in the studio during a bright Saturday morning, at the height of her career and popularity in 1987, clad in red leather gloves complete with a red bra and panties, layered over with a transparent white top with the light fabric torn around the chest to expose her plentiful amount of cleavage from her ample full breasts while striking a steamy pose full of heated sexiness, with her hands in her wild and frizzy eighties blonde hair, and a lustful expression in her blue compelling eyes and pouting, soft red lips, showing off a woman hungry for some passion and good loving.
It was enough to get any man in the mood and keen at a moment's notice. She had a fun and productive day during that photo shoot, her and the enthralled photographer who could hardly look away from his sensational canvas took many alluring and breathtaking photos that complimented every curve of her sensuality and sexuality.
“You are so impeccably sensual and so impeccably gorgeous, your truly magnificent and truly stunning visage is like a highly detailed and highly fascinating grand painting with your truly wonderful soulful blue eyes, your truly tantalizing red lips, your truly shining silk gold hair and your truly divine captivating face of a true goddess always at the towering height of your true enchanting beauty and true beguiling sensuality. Not even Faye Dunaway can compete with your absolute beautiful and absolute compelling excellence.” those were the parting words from the awestruck and lovestruck photographer as he shook her hand and kissed her strong cheekbones. She never forgot them, she remembered them word for word to this day and would do for the days that followed.
Her train of thought was interrupted by the sound of her door being knocked.
“Yes?” she asked, wondering who it could be. She expected it was another loyal fan requesting an autograph. She had plenty more to give, and was happy to give them to all.
“The boat's arrived at the docks.” came the voice of a young steward on the ship, bearing the reputable superstar the good news.
Sara was overjoyed by the tidings, she leapt up from the desk, eager to the extreme to set foot on dry land and wow the inhabitants of the resort, as well as having the time of her life, it was a win-win situation “I'll be on my way.”
She headed to her luggage, opened a case up, scoured through her abundant selection of fashionable clothing, she searched for the right attire to bid the crew and the passengers of the ship a farewell and greet the residents and tourists of the island a hello.
She didn't have to search for long, she found the perfect choice of clothing to wear for the occasion. “That'll do nicely” she said to herself, she had made her choice and was happy with it. She was always a decisive woman who knew what she liked and what she wanted in life. It made choices so much quicker and easier for her.
The ramp was lowered onto the dock, its timing was impeccable, right on cue. Sara stepped onto the deck to be given a grand farewell by the Captain, crew and passengers all lined up bearing her the priceless gift of their appreciation and respect for her. She gave them something in return too, instantly she dazzled them all in her immensely stylish orange and yellow dress, and her cream and blue summer hat. Tommaso, of all, could feel his heart skipping a beat.
“You are so brilliantly gorgeous and so brilliantly entrancing with all your intense illustrious beauty and all your intense radiant sensuality burning so intensely hot as an immense flame of true divine and true breathtaking womanhood that makes every man on the planet so immensely heated under their sweltering collars with your absolute womanliness. Me, truly the most of all. I am always so extremely hot under my collar and always will be with your extremely undying womanly heat.” he wanted to break his composed silent formality as a personal assistant and be a man to tell her that so badly. Fearing he would blunder it up and screw the words out, he kept it to himself.
One of the days he would tell her how he felt, it's what he constantly told himself to give him the dutch courage to man up and profess his strong feelings towards her, but he never did. Tommaso had a habit of stalling what he wanted for himself, focusing his energy on others and denying himself. He figured it was down to always being afraid in his subconscious that he would be rejected.
To be denied the love of Sara Sarracini, it would have destroyed him as a man. He was waiting for the right time for so many years, he wasn't sure when that would be or what it would look like when it presented itself to him. Tommaso could only stall for so long, he was aware it could do more harm than good, if he kept her waiting any longer, he ran the risk of losing her to another. That would have triggered a destruction on the same catastrophic level as rejection.
He was stuck between two devastating outcomes, Tommaso decided he would stop his stalling, become courageous and come clean to her during her summer vacation.
Tommaso had to do it, it was now or never. If he didn't tell her soon, he might not ever get the chance and he could not live his life hounded at the unanswerable question, always wondering what could have been.
It would have been an excruciating ordeal, losing the woman he adored, it was a hard road he did not have the strength to walk down.
CHAPTER 10
“It gives us all a great honour to wish to you a marvellous vacation.” announced the Captain with much esteem in his voice full of swelling appreciation to the beloved Sara Sarracini, treating the superstar like the honourable guest she was on his ship graced with her astonishing radiance livening the decks up tenfold.
Sara was lost for all words, she was touched by their warmth and
kindness to her. She felt so special, like royalty, she was their queen and they were presenting their loyalty to their lovely majesty.
“You are true royalty in this whole world, a truly beautiful and truly elegant Royal Highness admired and idolized by the entire enchanted and entire devoted kingdom, you are more absolutely majestic than the finest of dresses, more absolutely dazzling than the greatest of jewels and more absolutely magnificent than the throne and crown combined, a true divine majesty showered always in such immense splendour and immense tribute dedicated in your glorious name and prestigious honour, and deserving so. When you step outside the grand place, the whole land and the hearts of countless hearts are illuminated as you are basking in the wide green pastures, living life so free and so innocent in the brilliant sun made that extra brilliant in the true radiant and true excellent presence of you, the most truly captivating and truly wonderful queen of all time for you are a true queen of heaven on earth.” the Captain gave out his exceeding speech, written by himself, his source of inspiration came from thinking of the great Sara Sarracini herself.
She was inspirational to many, an eternal flowing fountain of muse, filling the heart with the spark of inspiration, the body with the energy of determination and the mind with the light of creativity, fuelling them to create beautiful works in her honourable beauty.
“It saddens us all to see you leave, so we have a special gift for you.” The Captain said with a deep regret to have to see her step off his ship.
On his mark, the first mate stepped forth from the line and presented Sara the ship's tribute to her: a bottle filled with high quality champagne. Only the best for a woman who was definitively the best.
“A bottle of our finest champagne, courtesy of the Lupo di Mare.” announced the Captain.
The First Mate handed the sparkling bottle to the Captain who in return handed the bottle to Sara.
Her eyes watered, it was on the same emotional height as winning an award, the gratitude her fans were showing her spoke volumes to her. She was grateful and honoured.
“Thank you, thank you all. You've made me feel so special. My return feels that extra grand. I look forward to returning to the Lupo di Mare.” Sara's speech from her moved heart was the ultimate gift of her appreciation to them, for without the fans, she would not be where she was today, standing in front of a passionate audience all in love with her.
“We all look forward to having you back.” the Captain said hopefully, making her a proposition he could see she was willing to accept.
Sara blew them all a tremendous loving, thoughtful kiss. “I love you all.”
Sara walked to the ramp with Tommaso. She spotted the Bartender in the line, she gave him the signed photo with a sultry voice to get him worked up. She hadn't lost her sensual touches, she was just as alluring, even more so. “Enjoy.”
She gave him a wink, carried onward down the ramp with her loyal personal assistant faithful at her side.
The Bartender unfolded the photo, his eyes stared deeply at the picture, he was instantly blown away. “Whoa.” was all he could utter from his stunned lips.
A naughty smile curled on Sara's smooth lips, she knew he would like it.
Sara and Tommaso stood onto the sturdy wooden dock over the glistening waters, they observed the paradise that surrounded them. It was monumentally inspired in every way, it was the perfect place to spend a retreat in a sun filled harmony.
“What a place.” Sara said, her mouth gaping wide in absolute reverence, she could hardly wait to get started and explore the wonders the resort had in store for her.
“Beautiful, isn't it?” smiled Tommaso, her amazed reaction gave him unbridled joy. He had made her happy, that was reward enough to give him happiness throughout her holiday in the closest thing to heaven on earth.
“Very.” Sara inhaled a deep breath, taking in the enriching taste of the fresh, salty sea air. She could tell she was going to love every second of it there, it would be the ultimate vacation. “Smell that air, it's so fresh.”
Tommaso's eyes were lost in Sara's beauty rather than the beauty of the resort. “Certainly is something.”
She concurred with that statement, it really was something, and so was he.
“I knew you'd love it when I found the place.” and as often in the past, his prediction was accurate. Tommaso was connected to his diva, he knew her well, from her tastes, to her hobbies, to her personality. He was one step ahead to give her precisely what he was positive she would take much enjoyment from. Being with her for three decades, he knew her better than a husband could. Had he been one to her, she would have been spending her days with the quintessential perfect spouse.
Sara displayed her downright appreciation to him with a fevered kiss on the cheek. Tommaso could have fainted from her delicate touch.
“You're the best.”
Tommaso looked at her with great affection, feeling her soft lips and hearing her sweet voice detached him from his regular trepidation when it came to voicing his more closer and stronger emotions towards her. He spoke with a calmness and clarity “I love you.”
The instance he said the immortal words, he realized what he had just verbalized, his body was shook up by a numbness, it instinctively slipped out without his sentient side in control. It was back with calamity, it could have been too soon, she might not have been ready to have such a giant proposal in a small package dropped on her, she could have reacted badly to his true feelings for her, never knowing until now how he really felt and be astounded, she might not have felt the same and would never do. He had to save face and prevent their working and personal relationship from falling into disarray. “Platonic, of course.” he clumsily added. He wished to himself he hadn't panicked and said that, he could have blown his chance and stalled it with another delay.
“I know.” she giggled, he never ceased to put a wide, sparkling smile on her radiant face.
Tommaso held in his embarrassment of making a fool out of himself a second time in such a short span in one day, he was setting a new record.
“I love you too.” she said, with the same calmness and clarity, it was as natural as her feelings for him.
CHAPTER 11
Gloria strolled along the resort's plaza, engulfed in the centre of the rows upon rows of stores, it was her adored hot spot anywhere on the globe, it was her favourite place to pass some time and find all sorts of gifts that took her fancy, it had everything a young woman could want, and more to spoil herself. There wasn't a single plaza that wasn't explored to the fullest capacity when she was around, and there never would be. Plazas were meant to be seen, who knew what treasures were just waiting to be found, she could not afford to miss out.
The same enthusiasm for shopping plazas could not be said for Paulo, her boyfriend tagged along behind, he was struggling to carry the amount of shopping bags she had assembled from her spree, hauling it along was strenuous on his shoulders, they were giving in to the weight, it was taking its toll on his weakening arms, he could not hold onto the sagging bags forever, each step added more numbing pressure on his reddening hands and blistering fingers.
“Nothing beats a little vacation shopping.” Gloria was pleased with what she had purchased, she wasn't coming home empty handed. She couldn't stand it when she did, it made her feel like the day had been wasted. Today had not been the case, it had been the most prosperous.
“A little?” retorted Paulo with a touch of justified sarcasm in his outburst as he strived to keep a hold of the multitude of bags housing all sorts of items clustered in an intense pile. “I think you bought from every store.”
“Don't exaggerate.” laughed Gloria, indifferent to the herculean task of carrying the bags “We haven't been to every store. If we did that, we'd have nowhere to go next time.”
“Next time?” Paulo was taken aback by her comment. “There's a next time?” It was bad enough slogging around her luggage all afternoon, he didn't have it in him to do it again. The very idea of
having to go through the excruciating trial a second time overwhelmed him.
His balance faltered, he tumbled onto the terra firma. Gloria heard the thudding sound of the her boyfriend and bags crashing. She halted on the spot, turned to find Paulo and the bags sprawled on the concrete.
“What happened?”
Paulo looked up at his girlfriend standing over him. “I just tripped.”, he couldn't tell her the real reason that Gloria and her addiction to shopping were responsible, he'd never have any peace from her for the rest of his life.
Gloria shook her head, “Oh you.”, he was so hopeless when it came to carrying her bags. She was contemplating on suggesting he worked out, if he was in greater shape with some muscles on his sleek body, he could hold her shopping with no problems, there would be less accidents for him and less risk of her purchased goods getting smashed.
Paulo got himself up onto his feet.
“Are you hurt?” she asked, concerned for his safety. Despite her love for indulging on goods, he was more important than any superficial things in the world. She could buy them again, there would never be another Paulo.
“Yeah, I'm fine.” he was grazed on his knee and his elbows, it was nothing serious, Paulo would survive.
Gloria pulled him close to her, under her nurturing and caring wings, she would aid her wounded hero, “Let me kiss you better anyway, just to be sure.”
Paulo didn't have a problem with that, he did not mind having a little fuss made about his minute injury from his gorgeous nurse and her sexy healing. “Lay it on me, I could do with your booster.”
Gloria planted a kiss on his expecting lips, it energized him back to his full strength. His throbbing arms and sore hands gripped by a heaviness were healed, the arm muscles could have picked up held a tons of weight and his fingers could have held onto its gravitational pull without any unwarranted crashes to earth, Newton's laws of physics would not be triumphing over his appendages, they could handle it.
