Posted by hummingbird on 9/25/2014, 7:53 am VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV
Chapter Seven
Bo’s hammock was empty when Nora awoke the next morning. As she cautiously entered the bungalow, she found him cooking over the stove. He noticed her wary glances around the kitchen as she made her way to the coffee pot.
“Don’t worry. I found your little friend this morning...may he rest in peace.”
“He’s no friend of mine,” she said sipping her coffee. “How did you get him?”
“With your shoe,” Bo grinned.
She put her cup down with a frown. “Oh Bo!”
“Don’t worry! I cleaned it off,” he defended himself. “You wanted me to get him, didn’t you? So ungrateful,” he said.
He shook his head as he looked at her.
“What?!” she asked him.
“You,” Bo said flipping the content of the skillet, “the fearless attorney who makes prosecutors shake in their boots, afraid of a little spider.”
“That was no ordinary spider, Bo. You yourself said he was the spider from hell. And I want you to know that...I am grateful. I’ll sleep a lot better tonight knowing he’s no longer with us.”
“Well, he’s gone but there could be others. A spider of that size had to be pretty old...I imagine he has children and grandchildren still living around here…”
She gave him a look. “Okay now, that’s enough. Like you said, may he rest in peace. I don’t even want to think about the possibility of descendents.” She changed the subject. “So, what are you making?”
“French toast and bacon. I made you some.”
“You did?!” she asked with a smile. “You’re so thoughtful...even after I deprived you of sleep last night. Thanks, Bo.”
“You’re welcome and it’s ready. Could your pour me a cup of coffee?” he asked placing the plates on the table.
Nora did so and sat down in the chair across from him. They ate in companionable silence for a few moments before Nora spoke.
“So...what are you going to do today?” she asked him.
“Mmm!” he said finishing his last bite of french toast. Wiping his mouth and taking his plate to the sink, he said, “I’ll show you.”
She heard him rummaging through a bungalow closet behind her before he returned to the table. In a muffled, Darth Vader-type voice he said, “This is what I’m doing today. Remember these?”
When she turned around Bo was wearing a mask and snorkel. Nora burst into immediate laughter. “You still have those?! Well, that brings back memories,” she said.
“Yeah...memories we never made...it stormed, remember? So...what do you say? Want to make some memories? Better late than never,” he breathed in his Darth Vader voice.
Looking at him standing there in his wrinkled shorts and t shirt, hair tousled from sleep, masked and snorkeled, her mind was saying, You are so adorable. Of course I want to make memories with you! But she heard her voice saying, “Are you sure you want me along? I don’t want to intrude on your day…”
Through the snorkel he wheezed, “Nonsense. I’d love the company. Besides, it’s like drinking...you shouldn’t do it alone. What do you say?”
After only a moment’s hesitation she replied, “I say ‘let’s snorkel’! But let me clean up these dishes first…”
Bo interrupted, “Ah, just leave them. I’ll deal with them later.”
“No. I'll deal with them...you made breakfast. I can at least do the dishes, and I’m going to do them now so no tropical vermin comes after the sticky plates.”
“Spiders don’t eat syrup, Nora.”
“Ohhh!” She thwacked him with the dish towel. “I didn’t mean spiders. I meant other creatures. I don’t want to hear another word about that spider, Buchanan! Why don’t you go get ready and get our flippers and stuff. This won’t take long.”
When he didn’t make a move to leave, she glanced up and found him grinning at her. Their eyes met.
“And...just what are you smiling at?” she asked him.
He wanted to say ‘memories’ because that’s what their interaction had evoked. Instead he shook his head and replied, “Nothing. I’ll go get the stuff.”
* * * * * * *
“It’s good to get started early like this,” Bo commented as he rubbed sunscreen on Nora’s back on the places she couldn’t reach, “before the waves get too rough.”
When he finished, he turned around and allowed her to do the same for him. The feel of his skin under her hands was almost too much for Nora. She had to fight back the memories of gripping and running her hands across this same back as they made love so many times over the years. The memories were maddening. She shook her head to clear it as she let out a sigh.
Bo looked over his shoulder. “You okay?” he asked.
“Mmhm,” she replied tossing the sunscreen on the sand. “I’m fine. Ready?”
“Let’s go,” Bo said. They waded into the surf until it was up to their knees. Guess we can put these flippers on now.”
He handed Nora hers, and they slipped them on their feet under the water. Then they continued walking until the water got waist deep.
“This is just amazing, Bo. I can still see my feet and this water is up to my waist. It’s just gorgeous!”
“I know. I love it,” Bo responded. “Let’s swim toward that outcropping of rock over there and see what we find.”
Nora watched as Bo spit into his face mask and spread the saliva across the lenses. Then he dipped them in the salt water to rinse before putting them on.
“Why did you do that?” she questioned. “I’ve never seen anyone do that before.”
“It keeps the goggles from steaming up. I don’t know why it works, but it does. Try it.”
Nora followed the same process. Once her mask and snorkel were in place, they set off toward the rocks.
The reef they found was a breathtaking array of animal and plant life. They saw a large variety of fish, brightly-colored, swimming and darting among the corals and anemones. Tiny neon fish and angelfish in varying sizes. Some were yellow, some blue, some spotted, some striped, but all beautifully detailed. The largest fish, bright blue with stripes, was about 2 feet long. Nora kept her distance from this one even though it was harmless. But her favorite sight was a seahorse! It was rare to find a seahorse. She could hardly contain her excitement as she motioned for Bo to come see her discovery.
After exploring this reef, Bo motioned her out of the water. As their heads surfaced, Bo said, “Why don’t we rest up here on these rocks. Then I know another spot we can try.”
Climbing onto the jagged rocks was not an easy feat. Bo went first and gave Nora a hand up. They found themselves sitting on a strip of land that stretched out into the sea. They could see the bungalow far in the distance.
“I think what amazes me most is the array of colors here,” Nora said. “Have you ever seen so many varieties of blue and green? And the fish we saw! They were all so brightly colored and unique! I just love it!”
Bo watched her excitement as she spoke. One of the many things that endeared her to him was her childlike enthusiasm over the smallest of things.
“Bo?”
Suddenly Bo realized Nora was talking to him. He pulled his mind back from it’s wanderings.
“I’m sorry...what?” he asked.
“Welcome back,” she said before restating her question. “I said, out of everything you’ve seen so far, what was your favorite?”
Bo thought a moment. “It’s hard to choose, but I really liked that big fish the best...you know, the one with the poochy lips and blue stripes.” He made a gesture like a big, fierce fish while pooching his lips.
Nora’s laugh rumbled from her depths...another thing Bo loved about her...that laugh…
“What about you?” he asked her. “What was your favorite?”
“The seahorse of course! I really didn’t think we would see a seahorse at this depth, so that was a nice surprise.” She looked around. “I’m rested, so where are we going next?” she bubbled.
“See that pinnacle of rocks jutting out of the water?” Bo asked pointing. “Let’s explore over there.”
“Sounds good, let’s go,” she agreed.
* * * * * * *
Exhausted from a day of sun and snorkeling, they dragged themselves back to the bungalow. Bo crashed on the couch with a beer. Nora changed into dry clothes and dropped into bed for a nap. When she awoke, it was already dark. Throwing on a dry swimsuit and grabbing a towel she made her way to the hot tub.
“Oh!” she said, startled, when she found Bo already soaking. “Looks like we both had the same idea. I’ll just come back later…”
“Nonsense,” Bo said. “This hot tub was made for eight people. There’s plenty of room. I don’t mind sharing if you don’t.”
She gave him a questioning look. “Are you sure?”
“Positive.”
“Okay, but if I chatter too much, just tell me to shut up.”
“Deal,” he said leaning back and closing his eyes.
Nora let out a sigh as she slid into the bubbling water across from him. She waved her hands across it’s surface feeling the churning as her legs floated out in front of her. She leaned her head back and closed her eyes.
“You know, I’m really thinking I need one of these at home…” she said quietly.
“You know,” Bo responded, “I’m really thinking that if you get one of these at home, I’ll be coming to see Matthew a lot more often.”
“Bo Buchanan, that’s a terrible reason to come see your son,” she scolded.
“It wouldn’t be the reason I came...it would just be a fringe benefit of my visit,” Bo said in his own defense.
Nora laughed softly.
Suddenly their peaceful moment was disturbed by a WHOOSH and a THUMP on the porch floor behind Nora.
“OhhhHHhh!” Nora squealed. Quickly moving across the hot tub close to Bo’s side and clutching his arm, she whispered “Bo! What was that?!”
“I don’t know,” he said quietly. Loosening his arm from her grasp, he slid it behind her shoulders to reach the controls. He turned off the jets and the hot tub became suddenly quiet. “Shhhh...listen,” he whispered.
Nora’s eyes were wide as they listened to scratching across the porch. Bo craned his neck in the direction of the sound. Then he saw it.
He slipped his arm down around Nora’s shoulder and pulled her close. “Come here,” he said softly. “Look. See it?”
Nora leaned toward him and looked where his eyes were cast. “Yes,” she whispered. “What is that? It looks like a monkey...or a lemur?...”
Their heads were mere inches apart as they stared quietly in the same direction. Suddenly the animal let out a screeching noise making them simultaneously jump. They could see it’s eyes glowing in the dark.
Nora snuggled closer to Bo. “Oh my gosh, Bo,” Nora said quietly, “What are we going to do if he jumps into this hot tub?”
“Jump out?” Bo suggested.
Nora stifled a giggle.
Then, as their visitor grabbed a coconut and swung himself off the porch, Nora whispered excitedly, “He’s taking one, Bo! Do something!”
He looked at her incredulously. “You’re kidding me, right?! You don’t seriously want me to fight a monkey for a coconut?! I already have a head wound,” he said pointing to his face, “but now you want me to fight a monkey?! I don’t think so!”
Nora leaned against Bo giddy with laughter. He shook his head and asked, “What’s so funny?”
“You...just your reaction....” she said laughing and sitting up beside him.
Bo grinned.
When she continued giggling, he asked her, “You gonna be okay?”
“Yes,” she said laughing, “I just have this mental vision of you and that monkey…it struck me funny, that's all...I’m sorry…” she said waving her hand at her face.
Bo just shook his head. “How much wine have you had?” he asked.
She gave him a look. “Not that much.”
“Mmmhm,” he murmured looking at her and nodding his head knowingly.
“Stop it,” she said elbowing him.
He was so close...she could feel his breath on her cheek and knew his eyes were watching her. She was aware that his arm was still around her shoulders and knew she should move back to her own corner, but...
“You poor thing,” she said glancing at him. “First you get that gash on your head trying to get me a coconut, then you hunt down the spider from hell...and now I want you to fight a monkey.” She smiled as she leaned back against his extended arm. “This hasn’t been a very relaxing week for you. Maybe when Vince returns, you should just send me back and stay here another week on your own to recuperate.”
He smiled. “Well...what fun would there be in that?” he asked quietly, looking into her eyes.
Nora noticed a change in him, and was not surprised when he leaned toward her. When she didn’t object or move, he placed a soft kiss on her mouth...then another...and another… He felt her respond and pulled her closer. Her lips were so warm and tender beneath his. It had been so long...He felt her arm encircle his neck and her hand run through his hair. Their lips parted as their kisses became more passionate…
“Bo?” Nora whispered pulling back a little. “What are we doing?” she asked breathlessly.
“We’re kissing,” he murmured softly. She emitted a nervous laugh at his obvious answer. He claimed her mouth again. After another all-consuming kiss, Nora pushed gently against Bo’s chest.
“Bo…” He pulled away a little and finished his kiss by gently sucking her bottom lip. Then he moved his head to pursue her earlobe and neck. Nora sighed and closed her eyes enjoying his soft breath against her cheek as he nibbled her ear. No one else ever made her feel like this…she wanted to just give in with greedy abandon...but instead, she spoke again...
“Bo…we really need to talk...please…”
He leaned back a little still looking at her with desire.
“You’re right...we do need to talk. Is it okay if I go first?” he asked quietly.
She nodded.
After some hesitation, he began. “I was pretty angry with Pa for pulling this stunt and putting us in this situation, but...Pa’s a pretty smart guy. He knew that this would make me deal with some things that I have been pushing back and ignoring. Mainly...my feelings for you.”
Nora looked at him.
He continued, “In Llanview I bury myself in work and my social life and just push my thoughts aside. But here...I have to confess, I’ve had trouble escaping my thoughts.” He looked at her. “I’ve been enjoying your company...our conversations and laughs...it’s been like old times. I look at you and remember how it was for us...then when I lay down at night...I replay it all in my mind. I can’t sleep.” He sighed. “That’s why you found me out here on the hammock the other night. Truth is, Nora….that I realize I really haven’t moved on completely. Now I’m wondering if Pa is right...and wondering... if...we should try again…” He looked into her eyes. “What do you think, Red?” he asked.
She hesitated. “You’re not...afraid...to take another chance with me?” she asked softly.
“No. Why would I be afraid?”
She lowered her gaze. “Well, because…”
“No…” He shook his head gently. “What happened between us...those mistakes were driven by many circumstances...mistakes on both of our parts...mistakes that will never happen again. I’m really not afraid. Are you?”
“Mmhm,” she nodded, “to be perfectly honest, I am. I’m afraid you’ll never trust me...I’m afraid it won’t work out and we’ll open old wounds…and most of all...I’m afraid Matthew will be hurt in the process.”
He found her hand under the water and held it tight. “Don’t be...don’t be afraid. Let’s just...make a fresh start, Red. You know we’re good together...we were very happy...'annoyingly happy' you once told me…”
Her eyes filled with tears as she entwined her hand with his.
Bo smiled, looking into her eyes. She leaned her head onto his shoulder. “I want to try too,” she murmured against his neck.
He pulled her close in his arms. As she raised her face to meet his, their lips met again...warm, soft, and needy for each other. A feeling of welcome abandon fell over them both. In those moments in each other’s arms, they abandoned their regrets of the past and their fears of the future. They were ready to try again...
