Chapter Fourteen
Fourteen
The morning sun, just rising, pressed through the screen of trees and brightened the breakfast patio.
Lulu sipped her black coffee, nursing a chiliguaro-and-unrequited-lust hangover.
Coffee and toast. That was all Lulu could stomach today.
Last night, they had danced and danced, her body craving his with the hunger of a starving woman.
Lulu had not had sex in nearly four years.
At least not with another person. Four years! But who was counting?
Lulu was. And she was still counting, because by the time they headed back to the hotel at three in the morning, her overwhelming exhaustion won out over her craving to quench her four-year dry spell.
Now, barely back in control of her senses with the light of day, Lulu forced away her lingering intrusive thoughts.
Last night the press of his hand and the feverish rhythm had conspired to override her common sense.
Now, the single mom at the back of her brain butted in, reminding her to make responsible choices.
It was for the best that they hadn’t come back earlier. She would surely have lost herself.
Over his coffee cup, Tyler flicked his eyes toward her, and hell if his attention didn’t send another saucy spark down her core. Stop it, body, Lulu commanded, no more in control of her response than seconds earlier.
Gwendy trundled in, Bill tagging behind.
Seeing Lulu, Gwendy scraped a chair along the concrete floor and pulled in beside her, a look of surprise marking the older woman’s face.
“You look like crap,” she told Lulu and continued on to her monologue.
“While you kids were out partying last night, Bill and I did the mud baths and the natural hot spring.” Bill gave his wife a sheepish grin.
“Naked. Don’t tell the management. Although cameras and whatnot. Anyhow, hope they enjoyed the show.”
Groaning, Ariana dropped her head until her forehead rested on the table. “God, Mom. We’re eating here.”
Filling her water glass, Gwendy ignored her daughter and added, “Then they tried to give us the royal treatment,” she said, swiping a piece of toast off Tyler’s plate and waving it for emphasis.
“They offered us the couples massage.” She chomped on the toast. “But I said, hell no!” Gwendy exclaimed.
“Why not?” Tyler asked.
Gwendy clucked as if the answer were obvious. “Couples massage? Well, for starters, how would that even work? I mean, who would get to be on top?”
Lulu and Tyler blinked at Gwendy. Suddenly, the older woman exploded with laughter. “You should see your faces! That was totally worth getting up this morning.” She clapped Tyler on the shoulder. “Totally worth it. Oh! And nobody even mentioned my new look. Whaddya think?”
Ariana glanced up from her phone and fixed her gaze on Gwendy. Her eyes flew wide. “Mom! What happened? You look so…surprised.”
“I got my eyebrows tattooed on. No more plucking for me.” Gwendy said. “They came out a little higher than I expected.”
It was an understatement. Nobody said another thing about it, each of them as stunned by her appearance as Gwendy looked.
After breakfast, Alejandro gathered them outside for the daily briefing.
Last night’s drizzle had passed, and the morning was cool and clearing.
Overhead, blue skies peeked over the edges of the jungle, and the low clouds built a wall that pushed up against the horizon.
Alejandro pointed to a spot and assured them Arenal Volcano was there, just waiting to reveal her splendor.
The storm, according to their guide, had shifted direction and was unlikely to hit this region of Costa Rica.
Lulu breathed her relief and pleaded with the weather gods to take it one more step and shed some light on the scene; it would be awesome to see the volcano in all of its glory.
Tyler, energized as ever, said to Alejandro, “So today is our final adventure challenge day, right?”
Alejandro nodded happily. “And I hope you’ll approach it with an open mind and an open heart. Who’s ready to accept a challenge?”
Lulu’s senses went on alert. But remembering her vow to step out of her comfort zone, she steeled herself.
She hoped it was a mental challenge, like a brain teaser or a word puzzle.
She loved those! But she knew better. She was in Costa Rica, and the challenges all seemed to revolve around cliffs and rushing waters and poisonous animals.
Please don’t let it be a snake challenge, she prayed.
“Hi,” Tyler said. His sudden nearness made her cheeks go hot.
For a moment, he stood there, taking her in, and her heart pounded against her rib cage so forcefully she feared he would hear it.
“Listen,” he said. “Don’t tell Alejandro I told you, but I know how you like to be prepared. Today, it’s zip-lining.”
He was right. It was good that he had ripped the bandage off now so she could get started early on her busy panicking schedule.
“Can you do me a favor?” he asked. “I want you to tell me what you need today. Don’t make me guess. And I’ll be there for you. That’s a promise.”
She wanted to believe it. It couldn’t hurt to give him the benefit of the doubt. Lulu gave him a small smile, the beginning of an accepted trust. And when he smiled back, she felt his efforts laying a foundation in her core.
He turned to go but halted mid-step.
“That was fun last night. Dancing.” As he said it, he lifted his brows suggestively toward his hairline.
“What’s that supposed to mean?” she asked, playfully mimicking his expression.
“Nothing. Just showing you what I’ll look like with my eyebrows tattooed.” He grinned. And she couldn’t help but giggle as he hoisted his backpack and headed toward the parking lot.
Lulu grabbed her bag and moved to follow, but Alejandro called her name and waved her over to the table where he sat with Ariana.
“I have an idea for you,” Alejandro said when she’d pulled up a seat.
“I remember at the beginning of our adventure that you told me you wanted to practice your Spanish. I have the perfect opportunity,” he explained.
“We need to make a reservation for horseback riding this afternoon. Lulu, do you want to try making the call?”
“You mean talking on the phone in Spanish? And then listening in Spanish? And responding in Spanish?”
“That’s usually how a phone conversation goes, yes.”
Ariana piped in. “I can help you if you get stuck. Give it a try.”
Lulu swept aside the clutter of self-consciousness and made room for the confidence and risk-taking that she always asked for in her students.
This could be a low-pressure tick mark in her get-out-of-the-comfort-zone box.
And there would be no progress with her language acquisition if she didn’t take a leap.
“Sure,” she said, and Alejandro handed her the phone. The line was already ringing. “Now?!” she asked, nerves creeping up her neck. And when Alejandro nodded, she managed a warbling “Hola?”
The response came in rapid-fire Spanish, and she blinked, bracing herself to continue. She covered the receiver and whispered to Alejandro, “What should I ask?”
“You’re just asking to rent horses for a couple of hours. Make a reservation.”
She wished she was more prepared. Under normal circumstances, Lulu would have planned the conversation ahead, practiced it in her mind, and recorded a series of potential responses so she wouldn’t mix up words or get her tenses wrong.
“I suddenly don’t even remember how to say horse,” she said, panicking. “I always get it mixed up. Is it caballo or caballero?”
“Let me help,” Ariana said, feeding her the answer. “And you got this. Just do your best.”
Haltingly, Lulu began. The conversation, if that’s what it could be called, was flooded with awkward pauses, and with what sounded like chuckling from the other end of the line.
And after a torturous forever, which in real time was probably about three minutes, it was over.
She had done it! She had made the reservation entirely in Spanish.
After ending the call, she turned to find Ariana’s and Alejandro’s faces contorted with silent laughter.
“What?” Lulu squinted. “Why are you laughing?”
Catching her breath, Ariana repeated the Spanish words Lulu had used. “Quiero rentar un caballero. Uno pequeno caballero. Para montar por dos horas”—another giggle escaped—“means I would like to rent a gentleman. A little one. That I can ride for two hours.”
Alejandro’s eyes streamed and his laughter turned into a coughing fit. Ariana doubled over and clutched at her stomach, and despite herself, Lulu joined in. Gosh, it felt good to laugh hard.
But dammit. Caballo and caballero really did sound alike.
When she stepped into the gear line at Arenal Canopy, Lulu’s heart lodged securely in her throat.
Alejandro’s zip-lining surprise had her tourmates whooping with excitement.
Ready as she could be, Lulu had already slathered on sunscreen, pre-hydrated with electrolyte tabs mixed into two bottles of water, and dressed in the Gortex zip-ankle, convertible shorts-pants she had bought especially for this trip.
But her preparations had only just begun.
At the zip line’s open-air intake center, the activity’s risks became real.