All I Believe (Firsts and Forever, #10)(11)
“I hope you’re right,” Remy said. “So, what else is going on with you? Have you been dating anyone?”
“No. I’ve been too busy with school.”
He gave me a knowing look and said, “So, maybe that’s the other benefit of law school. You can claim to be too busy to get involved with anyone again.”
“You missed your calling,” I told him. “Clearly you and your theories would have done well in the field of psychology.”
“The only reason I bring any of this up is because I like you, Nico, and it’s been hard watching you be so unhappy for the last couple years. You were so much fun when we were kids. I’ll never forget that summer I got to spend with you in California. But then…well, you became pretty quiet after your parents split up. And when you broke up with Erik…I don’t know. It kind of seemed like you lost your spark.”
“Maybe I just grew up. I was twelve when you stayed with us that summer. It’s not like any of us can act like kids forever.”
As if to totally disprove me, Jessie burst into the suite just then wearing a huge, colorful jester’s hat and carrying an armload of shopping bags. “Hi!” He called cheerfully as he deposited the bags in Nana’s bedroom. When he returned to the living room, I introduced him to my cousin, and the two shook hands. Jessie was still wearing the hat. It was red, blue and gold, and little golden bells hung from each of the six points.
“Did you or Nana get my messages?” I asked him.
“No, sorry. Our phones seem to be having trouble with international roaming,” he said, before turning his attention to RJ and saying in a high voice that made him sound like a cartoon character, “Hi there, baby! How are you, little dude?” Then he turned back to me and said in his normal voice, “What were the messages?”
“My wallet was in the pants you guys took to the cleaners.”
“Oh crap, sorry! I’ll go back right away and get it.”
“Thanks. Where’s Nana?”
“She ran into a childhood friend of hers, Rose something. They’re catching up at a café a couple blocks over. I told Nana I’d drop off our purchases and bring her a sun hat.” He visited with us for a couple minutes before retrieving a wide-brimmed woven hat from Nana’s room and leaving the suite again.
Remy glanced at his watch and said, “I need to pick up my girls from their playdate. I’m looking forward to catching up some more at dinner tonight! Be sure to bring your appetite. Nonna’s cooking enough to feed the whole town.”
After I promised once more that we’d all be there, Remy returned RJ to the carrier, slung the diaper bag over his shoulder, and took off with a cheerful, “A presto,” meaning see you soon.
I ate a granola bar that had been in my backpack, then opened my laptop like a book and left it running on top of a towel, so the last of the lube would hopefully drain out. At least it hadn’t fried the inner workings. I looked around for something to do, but just couldn’t face the stack of law journals, so instead I turned my attention to the tiny, fluorescent Speedo. I really wanted to go for a swim, and suits like that weren’t uncommon in Europe, so maybe I wouldn’t totally stand out.
I changed into the swimsuit and looked at myself in the full-length mirror. Good lord. Things like that were clearly not made for people with any sense of modesty. It covered what it needed to, but just barely. If I accidentally got an erection while wearing that thing outdoors, I’d be hauled straight to jail for public indecency.
I pulled the sheer shorts on over it, pocketed my new room key, and tucked a towel around my waist for good measure before heading downstairs to the pool. It proved to be completely full of kids and families, so there was no way I’d be able to swim laps in it. Instead, I stepped out onto the sand and deposited my towel, clothes, and glasses on one of the lounge chairs lining the beach. I was glad that without my glasses, I couldn’t really see people’s reactions to my Speedo as I hurried to the water’s edge.
The Ionian Sea was the same temperature as the air, maybe eighty degrees Fahrenheit. Since Viladembursa had been built on a sheltered bay, there weren’t many waves to contend with as I waded into the water. A few people splashed and played near the shore, so when the water reached my waist, I started swimming away from the beach. When I was a few hundred yards out, I changed my trajectory and began swimming parallel to the coastline.
It felt incredibly good. I swam back and forth for at least an hour, working out the kinks in my back and shoulders from that long flight. Swimming had always been my favorite way to work out, and I pushed myself to keep going even when my muscles began to protest, just like I always did. I was pretty tired when I finally got out of the water.
I’d thought I’d been using the hotel to orient myself while I’d been swimming, but as I stood on the beach, I realized I’d lost my bearings. I could have really used my prescription swim goggles, but of course they were in my lost luggage with everything else. Without them or my glasses, the hotel just looked like a blur, which I’d expected, but it blurred right into the buildings on either side of it as well. I tried to spot the row of chairs along the beach, but there wasn’t enough contrast between the white chairs and the sand.
I closed my eyes and listened. There weren’t any people around me, but I could make out faint voices in the distance. I turned to my right and began to walk toward the voices, since there had been a fair number of people at the hotel. After a couple minutes, I spotted a tall figure approaching. The person was wearing black, so he was visible against the light background.