Chapter Eight

The sand was warm and wet under her toes as she walked along the water’s edge; the light breeze fluttered the wrap around her thighs and lifted the ends of her hair.  This was a vacation of a lifetime, a romantic getaway just for the two of them.  He had surprised her with the trip out of the blue.  Just because.  Pulling her gaze from the rolling waves, she smiled as she turned. He was walking down the beach toward her.

Having loved him for more than half her life, she’d know him anywhere.  His dark hair was covered by his hat, his shoulders were broad and tanned, his waist trim.  He had always kept himself in good shape.  She wished she could see his eyes.  They were hidden in the shadow of the brim of his hat.  They were the most incredible shade of blue.  How lucky she had been to find him twenty years ago.

She took a step toward him as he drew nearer.  He opened his arms and she went to him willingly.  “There you are darlin’.  I was beginning to think you left me.”

Looking up she frowned.  That wasn’t her husband’s voice.  This voice was all whiskey-tinged-with-jersey.  Her eyes met his.  They were a warm, velvety brown not the incredible blue she loved so much.

“Richie?  But you’re not…”

She opened her eyes slowly, a tear slid across her temple and got lost in her hair.  That wasn’t right.  She shouldn’t be dreaming of Richie.  This was crazy.  Getting out of bed she stood before the window, staring out at the backyard.  How could she be dreaming of another man?  Just because she had run into him a couple of times, literally last night, that was no reason to be dreaming of him.  At the soft throat clearing sound behind her she turned and found Catte watching her from the bathroom doorway.  

“Are you okay?”  Showered and dressed for the day, Catte had watched her move from bed to the window, wiping her face with her hand.

Stephanie nodded.  “Just a weird dream.”  She turned to squint at the clock and her eyes widened.  She had slept half the morning away.  When was the last time she had done that? She hadn’t even taken a pill last night.  Sighing, she pushed her hair back from her face and turned back to straighten the bed.  She needed to put all this out of her head and enjoy her friends today. 

Catte stopped her.  “Do you want to talk about it?”

Stephanie sat heavily on the edge of the bed.  She did and she didn’t.  She was tired of feeling sad and depressed and she didn’t want to bring her friends down, but maybe if she talked about it, her chest wouldn’t hurt quite so much.  “I was dreaming of the last trip Mark and I took.  The one he surprised me with.”

Catte nodded her understanding.  Steph had e-mailed them all excited about a romantic get away he had planned for the two of them.  “I remember you telling us about it.”

“About what?” 

Steph and Catte turned to find Hath and Willow in the doorway.  Stephanie motioned for them to join her and Catte on the bed.  “About that last trip Mark took me on.  I had a dream and I was just starting to tell Catte about it.”

The girls settled on the bed to listen.

“Anyway, I was standing on the beach by the water and turned to find Mark walking toward me.  Only when I stepped into his arms, it wasn’t Mark.  It was Richie.”

After what she had told the girls last night about her run in with Richie in the hallway in the restaurant, the girls weren’t surprised.  The girls all waited for more.  “And?”

Stephanie shrugged.  “And what?  That’s when I woke up.”

Catte turned to the girls, “she was crying when she woke up.”

Steph shook her head, “one tear does not constitute crying.”

“Why were you crying?”  Hath got the question out first.  “Because it was Richie instead of Mark in the dream?”

Stephanie shrugged.  “I don’t know, maybe.”

“Maybe after all the times of running into him in the last few days you just have Richie on the brain?”  Willow smiled at her.

Steph giggled.  “That’s probably it.  Not to mention he invaded a very intimate memory for me.  That trip was the first time Mark every did anything like that for me.”  It was also the last.

Shaking her hair back, Stephanie stood and headed into her closet.  “Enough of this; let me get showered and dressed and then we can hit LA.”

~

The day sped by.  After lunching on hot dogs at Pinks, the girls went to the Grammy Museum, drove down Hollywood Boulevard, walked the Hollywood walk of fame, tried to take their picture with the big Hollywood sign, toured the Walt Disney Concert Hall, voted that Universal was a little too pricey and decided that walking up and down Rodeo Drive and quoting the movie “Pretty Woman” would be more fun.

They ended their day with dinner at Spark Woodfire Grill on Ventura Boulevard.  Stephanie had been too busy enjoying her friends to even think about anything else.

Monday morning came all too soon.  Before the girls knew it, they were packing their suitcases and loading back into Stephanie’s car and heading back to the airport.  With a near tearful goodbye, Stephanie left her friends standing in the line to go through security to get to their flight.

Sitting behind the wheel Stephanie tried to figure out what to do.  She didn’t want to go back to her empty house just yet.  She looked up to the sky, the sun was shining again.  She put the top down and left the airport, heading out Route 1 toward Malibu.

Finding a parking spot at Zuma Beach, she tossed her shoes to the floor, locked the car and headed down the beach.  She could smell the salt in the air and the sand was warm under her feet as she walked.  The breeze teased the ends of her hair as she tucked a lock behind her ear. 

There weren’t many people out on a Monday morning, but it was October and school was in session.  That didn’t bother her.  She was getting better at being alone.  And, it gave her time to think.

Sitting to roll up the cuffs of her jeans she looked up and down the beach.  There was someone else out taking a walk.  Rising from her spot she dusted the sand off her butt, preparing to continue on her way.  She stopped as she noticed the other person again.  Raising a hand to fend off the sun’s glare she waited.

“If I didn’t know any better I’d swear you were following me.”

He smiled, his dimple winking at her.  He had seen her car when he pulled up and couldn’t help himself.  His run was going to wait until after he talked to her and found out her name.  When he came upon her sitting on the beach, he had all he could do to keep his pace even the closer he got to her.  “I could say the same.”

She smiled back.  “What are you doing here?”

He sat down in the sand, gesturing for her to do the same.  “I was coming out here for a run and saw your car.”

“My car?  Do you have a crush on my car?”

He smiled sheepishly.  “No.  Maybe.  A little.  I can’t help it, it’s a sweet car.”

She ducked her head, trying not to laugh.  “I agree; it is a sweet car.  But what is it you really want Richie?”

Turning, he slid his sunglasses off, “you left the restaurant so quickly the other night I didn’t get a chance to ask your name sweetheart.  That’s what I want."

Reaching over, he slid her sunglasses down her nose so he could see her eyes.  "Will you tell me your name darlin’?