The sun was shining. I knew this because for the first time on this trip, the curtains were open. Hell, the adjoining door was even open and had been all night! Of course, Alan and I didn't sleep together. The kids didn't know that their lives were about to change, and we decided to keep it that way a little longer.
Everything I did, from dressing the kids to packing my purse seemed as though I was doing it for first time. When Alan looked at me, I felt little shocks of electricity run through my body to all my naughty bits. If cartoon bluebirds, squirrels, and deer appeared, I wouldn't be surprised. I felt like Cinderella. Well, better than that. Unlike her royal wuss, I was getting laid.
For once, I felt like my life had a chance of really coming together. Even better, I had a true partner. Not a husband who thought of me as nothing more than a nanny. In Alan's eyes, I found so much more…love, friendship, oh…and searing sex.
So why did I have this weird little tremor in my heart? Maybe it was just those goddamned teacups and their hellish spinning. But it returned while we ate lunch. A nagging, niggling of nerves made it feel like my limbs were asleep.
At first, I thought it was a stroke. Actually, I kind of hoped it was a stroke. But it wouldn't do for me to get cold feet. Not now.
"What have you been thinking about all morning?" Alan smiled at me.
Should I tell him? I mean, if he was now my partner, shouldn't I mention it? "Oh, nothing." Okay, so I was a complete coward.
The kids were silent, refueling like fiends and ignoring us completely. I couldn't remember if we fed them breakfast or not. That would be a lousy way to begin—by forgetting to feed the kids. Alan called the waitress over and ordered another round of chocolate milk.
"You're distracted," he said calmly.
"Am not!" I lied. Unconvincingly, I might add.
Alan's hand slid beneath the tablecloth and began caressing my inner thigh. My eyes rolled back into my head and my nipples immediately punctured my shirt.
"If you can't tell me what's on your mind now, how are we going to make this work?" He called my bluff.
"You're right," I said, removing his hand from my thigh. I mean, we still had the afternoon to get through without temptation. "What else can happen to spoil this? We've already had the worst that could possibly go wrong, right?"
He nodded. "Well, if by that you mean attempted sexual assault by your husband's friend, being confronted on our affair by our spouses, in person, and leaving behind our lives as we know them, then yes, I guess you could say it can only go uphill from here."
I leaned back in my chair and sighed, "Exactly. Nothing to worry about."
And still, the niggling continued all through the afternoon, into the evening, even as we closed the door to the rooms and took up our usual sentry positions on the terrace. It was still there.
Alan peeled the label off his bottle of beer. "You know, people used to go to Vegas to get divorced. Leave it to us to use the ultimate family vacation for that purpose."
I laughed. "Maybe we will set the next big trend. People Magazine, here we come."
He smiled that absolutely, heart-shattering smile. "So, I suppose there are a few things we should know about each other. Can't base this relationship strictly on how great we are in the sack."
I sat bolt upright. "Of course! That's it!"
Alan raised his right eyebrow. "I thought that was a little clever, but I hardly expected to incite a Eureka moment."
Shaking my head, I continued, "No! Don't you get it? We've jumped into this relationship emotionally and sexually but not intellectually. I don't even know your favorite movie. I mean, I know what it was twenty years ago, but not now." I nodded like one of those wobbly-headed dogs you see in the back windows of cars owned by the elderly.
It dawned on him. I could see it. "I didn't think about that," he said quietly.
"Well?" I asked impatiently.
"Well what?"
I rolled my eyes. "Duh! What is your favorite movie?"
"Let me get this straight," he started slowly, "you've been quiet all day because you don't know what my favorite movie is?"
I threw my hands into the air. "Yes! I mean, no! I mean, sort of. Something like that."
His hand reached for mine in the darkness. "Okay. My favorite movie is Toy Story."
"What?" I thought maybe he had switched to conversational Klingon for a moment.
"You asked what my favorite movie is," he said patiently, "and it's Toy Story."
"Huh." Was all I could say to that.
"What do you mean by that?" His green eyes narrowed.
"It's just that, I thought it would be something more highbrow than that."
Alan frowned. "Toy Story is a complex story, filled with fleshed out characters, driven by a meaningful plot."
"It's a cartoon, Alan." I never would've guessed that about him. I was thinking Citizen Kane or Inception. Not a goofy kid's movie.
"I guess it's a good thing we are getting to know each other then." He relaxed. "What's your favorite movie?"
"Sean of the Dead," I replied without hesitation.
"A zombie movie." Alan tilted his head to the side.
I nodded. "A funny zombie movie."
He laughed this time. You know how there's a frequency of sound that only dogs can hear? Well, there was something in that laugh that I swear only my body could hear.
"So, is it alright for us to proceed, now that we know these earth-shattering things about each other?" He arched his right eyebrow.
"You have won the day this time, evil doer." My loins were begging me to end this stupid line of questioning. "But I'll be back, and when I am, you will submit to my interrogation."
"Do your worst," he challenged me, "but for now, I will claim my prize." Alan actually rose to his feet, lifted me into his arms, and kicked his bedroom door open. As he laid me on the bed, I thought at this rate, getting to know him intellectually was going to take a long, long time.
Toy Story! I mean really!