on the couch. She's got so many words inside that she needs to get out.
“So what did you want to talk about, honey?” I ask.
Whitney jumps up and runs over, hugging me. “Tell me everything.”
I laugh and push her a little bit back, seeing the worry twisting with the excitement in her eyes. “Honey, first, stop worrying. Second, let’s get out of here. I didn’t mean to sleep this late.”
Whitney's still anxious as we leave my bungalow and head toward the resort's pool area, a waste of concrete if I've ever heard of one when the entire resort is on the edge of a beautiful ocean, but whatever. I get a fruit juice in a bottle and a tuna crudo wrap from the little grill that's there while Whitney gets just a fruit juice. “So where's Laurie?”
“Off playing with Greg,” Whitney says, waving. “Honestly, I think she's got her first crush. But Dani did say that she was a total angel last night.”
“That's good,” I reply, gesturing toward the beach. “Shall we?”
Ironically, the beach that Whitney walks toward is the same one that Cory and I made love on last night, and I smile as the familiar sand flows over my sandals and in between my toes. “So how'd you find out?”
“Well, finding Cory outside your door this morning when I came to ask if you'd like some breakfast pretty much was the last piece of the puzzle,” Whitney says, chuckling. “He was dropping off that note that I saw you holding when you opened the door. Can I ask?”
“Yes, we were together last night. I don't think you need more details than that though, do you?”
Whitney shakes her head, chuckling. “No, Mom, I don't need more details than that. Can I ask, though, how'd it start? I mean, I know yesterday was magic, but you never have been a one-night-stand type of woman. At least, not to my knowledge.”
I take a bite of my wrap and nod, watching the waves lapping at the sand, and take a seat on the beach. “Actually, sweetheart, it sort of started years ago, a few months after you went to Europe, the day after the Winter Formal. Have a seat, and I'll tell you things I really should have a while ago.”
Chapter 11
Cory
I 'm still walking on clouds when I knock on the door of Patricia's bungalow for our dinner. When she opens the door, I'm stunned again at just how beautiful she is, even after spending most of the day together. “Wow . . .”
She looks down at the simple tropical shift that she's wearing, then looks at me and smiles. “Wow yourself. You look positively dashing.”
“I tried. So are you ready?”
“I've been looking forward to this,” she tells me, entwining her arm with mine. “Our second real date.”
“I couldn’t help but keep thinking that maybe last night was . . . just last night.”
She stops and tugs on my arm. “I hope not.”
We reach our table, having a seat in the corner. Across the room, there's a few of the other guests, but the space around us is pretty clear. The waiter lights the candles and dims the lights, and we're more or less alone.
“Patricia, before we get started, there’s one thing I wanted to bring up just to clear the air. I don’t know how else to say it, so I’m just going to come out with it. You're still active in a church that's pretty conservative. Are you okay with the two of us being intimate?”
Patricia smiles and blushes a bit. “You're right. When we first met, I was much more conservative than I am now. I talked about this, kind of, with Whitney soon after she and Troy got back together. Maybe I should have talked with you about it too.”
“I'm listening,” I say, leaning in. “I want to hear everything you want to say.”
“Years ago, I probably would’ve had more reservations against it, but time changes us, and I think for the better. I’ve realized that a lot of the faith that I was hanging onto was hollow. It was a shield to prevent me from being hurt. But it was also pushing away people who could have been special to me. It pushed
“So what did you want to talk about, honey?” I ask.
Whitney jumps up and runs over, hugging me. “Tell me everything.”
I laugh and push her a little bit back, seeing the worry twisting with the excitement in her eyes. “Honey, first, stop worrying. Second, let’s get out of here. I didn’t mean to sleep this late.”
Whitney's still anxious as we leave my bungalow and head toward the resort's pool area, a waste of concrete if I've ever heard of one when the entire resort is on the edge of a beautiful ocean, but whatever. I get a fruit juice in a bottle and a tuna crudo wrap from the little grill that's there while Whitney gets just a fruit juice. “So where's Laurie?”
“Off playing with Greg,” Whitney says, waving. “Honestly, I think she's got her first crush. But Dani did say that she was a total angel last night.”
“That's good,” I reply, gesturing toward the beach. “Shall we?”
Ironically, the beach that Whitney walks toward is the same one that Cory and I made love on last night, and I smile as the familiar sand flows over my sandals and in between my toes. “So how'd you find out?”
“Well, finding Cory outside your door this morning when I came to ask if you'd like some breakfast pretty much was the last piece of the puzzle,” Whitney says, chuckling. “He was dropping off that note that I saw you holding when you opened the door. Can I ask?”
“Yes, we were together last night. I don't think you need more details than that though, do you?”
Whitney shakes her head, chuckling. “No, Mom, I don't need more details than that. Can I ask, though, how'd it start? I mean, I know yesterday was magic, but you never have been a one-night-stand type of woman. At least, not to my knowledge.”
I take a bite of my wrap and nod, watching the waves lapping at the sand, and take a seat on the beach. “Actually, sweetheart, it sort of started years ago, a few months after you went to Europe, the day after the Winter Formal. Have a seat, and I'll tell you things I really should have a while ago.”
Chapter 11
Cory
I 'm still walking on clouds when I knock on the door of Patricia's bungalow for our dinner. When she opens the door, I'm stunned again at just how beautiful she is, even after spending most of the day together. “Wow . . .”
She looks down at the simple tropical shift that she's wearing, then looks at me and smiles. “Wow yourself. You look positively dashing.”
“I tried. So are you ready?”
“I've been looking forward to this,” she tells me, entwining her arm with mine. “Our second real date.”
“I couldn’t help but keep thinking that maybe last night was . . . just last night.”
She stops and tugs on my arm. “I hope not.”
We reach our table, having a seat in the corner. Across the room, there's a few of the other guests, but the space around us is pretty clear. The waiter lights the candles and dims the lights, and we're more or less alone.
“Patricia, before we get started, there’s one thing I wanted to bring up just to clear the air. I don’t know how else to say it, so I’m just going to come out with it. You're still active in a church that's pretty conservative. Are you okay with the two of us being intimate?”
Patricia smiles and blushes a bit. “You're right. When we first met, I was much more conservative than I am now. I talked about this, kind of, with Whitney soon after she and Troy got back together. Maybe I should have talked with you about it too.”
“I'm listening,” I say, leaning in. “I want to hear everything you want to say.”
“Years ago, I probably would’ve had more reservations against it, but time changes us, and I think for the better. I’ve realized that a lot of the faith that I was hanging onto was hollow. It was a shield to prevent me from being hurt. But it was also pushing away people who could have been special to me. It pushed
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