Chapter 46
Chapter Forty-Six
Brad offered me the window seat for our direct flight to Cancun from Philadelphia, yet I hesitated.
Did I honestly want to watch us rise above the ground and fly into the clouds?
I knew he preferred the aisle seat in order to occasionally stretch his legs, so I agreed.
After all, I could always close my eyes.
He hurriedly stashed our carry-on bag in the overhead bin, then took the seat next to me. “We’ll be there in just a little more than four hours, honey.”
I grinned excitedly. “It’s hard to believe!” I watched as other travelers came aboard in an orderly line, and most seemed willing to wait patiently for the person in front of them to get settled.
“It’ll be interesting to see if anyone else is going to the same resort as we are. Did you arrange for the airport shuttle?”
I nodded, though my eyes followed a young couple moving to two rows behind us. They had the look of honeymooners. “Yes,” I replied automatically until I realized what he’d asked. “Actually, the travel agent took care of it. You have the confirmation with the rest of the papers I gave you.”
“Okay, it’s in the pocket of our carry-on.” He gazed above us, then at the line of people. I guess it’ll be fine up there.”
“Are you nervous?” I teased.
“No, I just like to be prepared.”
I reached for his hand. “Me, too. What activities would you like to do this week?”
“We could make love under a palm tree.” He said it softly, so I hoped no one else heard him.
“That’s a given, but didn’t you look at the brochures?”
“Not in any detail because I had a really busy week. Besides, you’re the travel writer.” He nudged my shoulder as if I should cut him some slack. “Do they offer zip-lining?”
“Yes, but we’re not doing that.”
“I think you’d like it. In fact, I can show you the ropes.” He laughed at his play on words, which I agreed was pretty clever. “Do you want to go scuba diving? That could be fun, too”
I frowned. “Aren’t there sharks and barracudas that can eat you alive?”
“Probably not where they take the tourists, but we should consider that. Anyway, I think we should go for it.”
I looked out the window, still seeing the concrete tarmac and another plane parked at the gate next to us. Turning back to him, I remarked that our resort offered fine dining and evening entertainment. “I thought those might be enjoyable activities.”
“Sure,” he agreed. “Afterwards, we can make love under the palm trees.”
I laughed, squeezing his hand.
Before long, everyone had settled in and the doorway was closed.
I listened to the flight attendant who gave instructions in the case of an emergency and I reviewed the laminated card in the pocket of the seat in front of me.
Tensing, I felt the plane back out of its spot at the terminal while I watched our progress from the window.
We turned onto a runway, then paused. Brad must have felt my anxiety because he tightly held my hand. “This is the fun part, honey. The pilot and copilot know what they’re doing, so lean back and enjoy the ride.”
My heart lurched as the plane picked up speed, yet before I knew it, we were soaring above the clouds. I felt excited and happy, and could hardly wait to be in Cancun. I squeezed Brad’s hand as an expression of my love, then leaned back to enjoy the ride.
Brad and I awoke in our suite with its ocean-front view on Monday morning, and we could barely believe the upgrades our travel agent had arranged for us.
We made love while the waves pounded on the sand and the seagulls squawked above, but barely heard those noises.
Afterwards, we rested side-by-side as we spoke about our plans for the day.
We compromised with a beach and pool day if I’d agree to zip-lining on Tuesday. I gave in when Brad promised breakfast in bed and cocktails at sunset with the couple who shared a ride with us from the airport.
It tickled me when he called in our order for “huevos fritos” and “tostada” as fried eggs and toast, and I made sure to take lots of photos of our meal that I could post on my blog. I ate every bit, including the churros on the side, which I found to be delicious.
After breakfast and a shower, Brad and I dressed in shorts and tee-shirts for our walk on the beach. We had a relatively warm day that was cooled by the delightful ocean breezes.
“I’m so glad we came here for our honeymoon,” Brad said, taking my hand. “I didn’t realize how much it would mean to us as a couple.”
“Your sister convinced me that it was an important part of beginning our lives together. She and Mike may have conceived their first child on their honeymoon.”
He chuckled. “That’s why we need to find a palm tree.”
“It might be too late for that.”
He paused mid-step, then pulled me toward him. “Are you pregnant?”
“I’m not sure, but maybe.”
“Oh, my gosh,” he exclaimed, embracing me. From there, he skipped around me, then held me again. I’d never seen him so excited, yet that response made me happy. “Should we hop a ride into town and buy a pregnancy test?” he asked.
“Let’s let the little nugget take hold and wait on the testing until we get home.”
“Aren’t you excited?”
I looked into his eyes. “More than you can imagine, but I also want our honeymoon to be special. I’d like to do all the things we planned without worrying about anything.”
“Okay, but we’re not going zip-lining.”
“Sure we are. That was our deal.”
“What about scuba diving?”
“All right,” I said after a pause. “I can give that up.”
He laughed and we continued our walk.
Later, we met our new friends at the tiki bar but I abstained from the tequila shots “just in case.” I’d never liked hard liquor anyway. Brad may have ordered one to be social, though he barely touched it. I had a feeling he wanted to support me.
From there, the four of us went to the on-site restaurant which I’d have considered fine dining. Unfortunately, the other couple had something negative to say about everything from the menu to the food we’d ordered. By then, they’d also had too much liquor.
Brad and I finished our meals and made our excuses as to why we didn’t intend to join them for the evening’s entertainment. They didn’t seem put out about that, and I was happy to spend the evening in our suite with my husband.
“Those two aren’t my type,” I told him when we opened the sliding doors to the ocean air.
He sat on the love seat next to me, wrapping his arm around my shoulders. “I guess we’re not their idea of a ‘fun couple.’”
“Is that okay with you?” I asked.
“As long as we’re together.”
Later, we made love under the palm trees.