Love & Marry
Marry Markham wheeled her new red, organizer luggage through the revolving doors of the beachfront resort and waited her turn in the check-in line.
“Next,” the clerk called out.
“Marry Markham,” she told the clerk. “That’s Marry with two ‘r’s. My parents’ sense of humor. I was born on their anniversary.”
The dark-haired young man didn’t laugh. She wondered if he was listening.
“I didn’t think it was funny, either,” she said. “But it’s a good gimmick for my wedding planning business.”
The clerk continued to ignore her while tapping the touch screen on his computer. She looked around the luxurious lobby. Glass tiles, marble floors and soothing pastel colors all led up to a serpentine shaped staircase and elevators beyond. It had the feel of being on a cruise ship.
“You’re in room 432,” the clerk said. “You have an oceanfront balcony, queen-sized bed and Jacuzzi tub.”
Wow. Mom spared no expense , Marry thought. “Sounds wonderful,” she said to the clerk.
“And here is the schedule for all of the week’s activities,” he continued. “Including the Meet and Greet Breakfast tomorrow morning, bachelor auction tomorrow evening and of course, the Looking For Love In All the Right Places seminar taught by talk radio personality, Dr. …”
Marry stood back and held up her hands. “Wait a minute. Bachelor auction? Love seminars? What kind of place is this?”
A shocked expression registered on the clerk’s face, and he pointed to the mural that decorated the wall behind him.
“ Encontrar el verdadero amor en La Luna Resort ,” she read in her best tenth-grade Spanish accent. “It’s been twenty years since I took Spanish. Could you translate?”
The clerk continued to point to the sign as he spoke. “Find your true love at La Luna Resort.”
“So you’re telling me that this is some kind of matchmaking resort?”
The clerk shrugged his shoulders. “If you want to call it that.”
“And there would be no mistake about that in any of your advertising?”
He shook his head. “La Luna is advertised as a resort for singles.”
Mom! She wanted to shout out loud, but she took a deep breath and weighed the positives. She’d always wanted to see Puerto Rico, and she desperately needed a vacation after all of the hours she’d been working.
“Thank you,” she said and pushed aside the schedule. “But I won’t need this. What I’d rather have is information on touring the island.”
“Of course,” he said and pointed to the rack of pamphlets and brochures at the end of the counter. “Feel free to pick up brochures on whatever interests you, and I’ll get a bus schedule and riding pass for you. Most of the tourist sites have buses that pick up and drop off at different times during the day.”
“Good, I won’t have to rent a car.”
After collecting her bus schedule and pass, she headed for the elevators and was almost tempted to stop in for a stiff drink at the bar located across the lobby. A margarita would definitely take the edge off. What was Mom thinking ? Silly question. She knew exactly what her mother was thinking. Marry is thirty-five and running out of time to give me grandchildren .
The elevator dinged and the doors opened onto the fourth floor. She’d expected to emerge into a darkened, narrow hallway. Instead she stepped out into bright sunshine emanating from floor-to-ceiling windows in a well-appointed lounge area. She stepped over to the windows to take in the view of the resort gardens below, rich with blooming foliage and paths that led to private nooks and gazebos. It couldn’t be more idyllic , she thought.
“Beautiful day, isn’t it?” someone in close proximity said.
She turned and looked at a tall stranger with clean-cut brown hair, a friendly smile and nice build from what she could see in the loose shirt and trousers he wore. The guy was just her type if she had come to La Luna Resort
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