wet from having sat on the sand. Kris and Jack shared smiles with each other, but the two couples settled in different quiet corners, so they didn’t get to smile at them.
The waitress finally arrived; she wore a dress flowered like Kris’s muumuu, but cut tight into a sheath to show off her curves. She offered them a choice of fish or fish. She named both types, but they meant nothing to Kris. For a moment, the three stared at each other. Then Jack led off.
“Is one of them white fish and the other dark fish?”
The waitress stared blankly and renamed the fish. Apparently, if you were from here, you knew your fish.
“Okay, this is what we’ll do,” Jack said. “I will take one of them. Please serve the lady the other.” That satisfied the waitress, and she bounced off.
“Enjoying the view,” Kris whispered.
“I’m wondering why they didn’t provide one of those for your closet.”
Kris started to say something about how she had nothing to fill out the top but swallowed it. Jack said so very many nice things about her. Why should she repeat all her negatives? Especially since he wouldn’t agree with her.
The big liar.
She changed the subject. “So what are we going to do if I hate the fish I get?”
“You will switch with me.”
“And if you hate the fish I got?”
“I will be a gentleman and eat it so my lady can enjoy herself.”
Kris considered that. Jack had an all-encompassing definition of chivalry. “And if I don’t like either of them?”
“Don’t be such a pessimist. We’re surrounded by a lovely view. Notice how the moon is causing the waves to glow. We’re not on duty. No one’s trying to kill us. Have faith. We’ll love both fish and end up feeding tidbits to each other from our plates.”
Kris considered that. “Okay. You carrying?”
Jack scowled. “Yes. You?”
“Yes,” Kris answered. “But I left the spider-silk bodysuit off when I put on the muumuu.”
“So you and I are half on vacation.”
“Well, that’s more than I’ve been since college. Even there, most of my summer vacations were spent covering campaign gigs for Father.”
“You enjoy them?”
“Usually.”
“I loved my work at summer camps. I badly needed the money to help me through the school year. I enjoyed mountains, the hiking and fishing and the kids. Most of them.”
“Let me guess, the rich, spoiled brats weren’t in the ‘most of them.’”
“Sadly yes, but let’s not go there.”
“Gladly. They were a pain in my butt, too. Trust me, the Great Billy Longknife, Man of the People, would not have one of his kids misbehaving in public or otherwise.”
“But the other rich kids . . . ?” Jack left the question hanging.
Kris refused to rise to the bait. “So, you earned money summers to pay for college. What kind of college scholarship did you have? Let me guess. You’re big. It could have been football.”
Jack silently shook his head.
“You’re tall and fast. Basketball?”
This time Jack grinned as he shook his head.
“Soccer? Father played soccer in college.”
Again Jack shook his head, now grinning from ear to ear.
“Baseball? Boxing? Wrestling? Swimming?”
“I would have accepted a swimming scholarship if I’d been offered one.”
“Okay, you win. I give up. After five years of you constantly at my elbow, telling me when and where I can pee, I don’t know what sports scholarship you had in college.”
“I do not tell you when you can go pee,” Jack said.
“Scholarship? Scholarship? What scholarship?”
“Golfing,” Jack said.
“Golfing!”
The conversation had to be put on hold. The owner dropped by their table to apologize for the delay in their meal. “I know we rang the dinner bell, and I know we promised you that you could eat from six on, but our guests are usually much later. Our chef only does two specials a night and we don’t want them to be cold for our later guests, so, I’m afraid you are having to wait much longer than
The waitress finally arrived; she wore a dress flowered like Kris’s muumuu, but cut tight into a sheath to show off her curves. She offered them a choice of fish or fish. She named both types, but they meant nothing to Kris. For a moment, the three stared at each other. Then Jack led off.
“Is one of them white fish and the other dark fish?”
The waitress stared blankly and renamed the fish. Apparently, if you were from here, you knew your fish.
“Okay, this is what we’ll do,” Jack said. “I will take one of them. Please serve the lady the other.” That satisfied the waitress, and she bounced off.
“Enjoying the view,” Kris whispered.
“I’m wondering why they didn’t provide one of those for your closet.”
Kris started to say something about how she had nothing to fill out the top but swallowed it. Jack said so very many nice things about her. Why should she repeat all her negatives? Especially since he wouldn’t agree with her.
The big liar.
She changed the subject. “So what are we going to do if I hate the fish I get?”
“You will switch with me.”
“And if you hate the fish I got?”
“I will be a gentleman and eat it so my lady can enjoy herself.”
Kris considered that. Jack had an all-encompassing definition of chivalry. “And if I don’t like either of them?”
“Don’t be such a pessimist. We’re surrounded by a lovely view. Notice how the moon is causing the waves to glow. We’re not on duty. No one’s trying to kill us. Have faith. We’ll love both fish and end up feeding tidbits to each other from our plates.”
Kris considered that. “Okay. You carrying?”
Jack scowled. “Yes. You?”
“Yes,” Kris answered. “But I left the spider-silk bodysuit off when I put on the muumuu.”
“So you and I are half on vacation.”
“Well, that’s more than I’ve been since college. Even there, most of my summer vacations were spent covering campaign gigs for Father.”
“You enjoy them?”
“Usually.”
“I loved my work at summer camps. I badly needed the money to help me through the school year. I enjoyed mountains, the hiking and fishing and the kids. Most of them.”
“Let me guess, the rich, spoiled brats weren’t in the ‘most of them.’”
“Sadly yes, but let’s not go there.”
“Gladly. They were a pain in my butt, too. Trust me, the Great Billy Longknife, Man of the People, would not have one of his kids misbehaving in public or otherwise.”
“But the other rich kids . . . ?” Jack left the question hanging.
Kris refused to rise to the bait. “So, you earned money summers to pay for college. What kind of college scholarship did you have? Let me guess. You’re big. It could have been football.”
Jack silently shook his head.
“You’re tall and fast. Basketball?”
This time Jack grinned as he shook his head.
“Soccer? Father played soccer in college.”
Again Jack shook his head, now grinning from ear to ear.
“Baseball? Boxing? Wrestling? Swimming?”
“I would have accepted a swimming scholarship if I’d been offered one.”
“Okay, you win. I give up. After five years of you constantly at my elbow, telling me when and where I can pee, I don’t know what sports scholarship you had in college.”
“I do not tell you when you can go pee,” Jack said.
“Scholarship? Scholarship? What scholarship?”
“Golfing,” Jack said.
“Golfing!”
The conversation had to be put on hold. The owner dropped by their table to apologize for the delay in their meal. “I know we rang the dinner bell, and I know we promised you that you could eat from six on, but our guests are usually much later. Our chef only does two specials a night and we don’t want them to be cold for our later guests, so, I’m afraid you are having to wait much longer than
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