Chapter 110
THE BEST PARTY EVER lasted long into the night. We didn't skimp on the food, bringing in a friend's catering company for endless amounts of jerk pork, coconut rice, fried plantains, and something Sampson had decided to call a Breelex. It was two kinds of rum, pineapple, ginger, and a cherry – or just pineapple, ginger, and a cherry for the kids, although Damon sampled the adult beverage once, that I know of.
Jerome Thurman jammed with his combo, Fusion, in the backyard, where there was plenty of dancing under the stars and even a little bad singing from me, after a Breelex or two. Or three. The kids said I was 'pitchy' and 'absolutely dreadful.'
We were all up bright and early the next morning, though. A cab took us to the airport for a flight to Miami, and then on to Nassau. At the other end, a limo picked us up and whisked us off to the aptly named One amp;Only Ocean Club.
Bree and I had seen this place in my favorite James Bond movie, Casino Royale, and I swore I'd get her here one day. The Bond jokes started as soon as we pulled into the familiar teardrop-shaped driveway, with the drool- worthy cars everywhere you looked.
'Cross,' she said as I helped her out of the limo. 'Bree Cross.'
She'd surprised a lot of people, I think, by taking my name. It was entirely up to her, but I loved that she did. I liked hearing it as much as saying it.
'Dr. and Mrs. Cross, checking in,' I told the gracious, very welcoming woman at the front desk. Bree squeezed my hand, and we laughed like a couple of kids. Or maybe just a couple of newlyweds. 'How soon do you think we can be out in that ocean in your backyard?'
'I'd say about three and a half minutes,' the woman told us, and slid our keys across the desk. 'You're all set here. That's one double suite in the Crescent Wing and one ocean-side villa. Enjoy your stay.'
'Oh, we will!' Jannie had just come up behind us. Nana, Damon, and Ali were still outside ogling the white sand beach and turquoise water. It really was turquoise.
'Here you go, Miss J.' I handed her the suite key. 'I'm officially putting you in charge of that, and we'll see you guys for lunch tomorrow.'
'Daddy, I still think you're crazy for bringing us,' she said, and leaned in as if she had a secret to tell. 'But I'm really glad you did.'
'Me, too,' I whispered back.
Besides, it would still be a honeymoon. That's what DO NOT DISTURB signs are for.
Chapter 111
OUR VILLA WAS the piece de resistance. Just like in the movies, as they say. There was a full wall of sliding louvered doors that opened up to a private terrace and infinity pool, with stairs leading down to the beach. The staff had placed fresh flowers everywhere, inside and out, and the mahogany California king bed alone probably cost a year's salary.
'Yeah, this will do,' I said, closing the door to the outside world behind us. 'Good enough for Double Oh Seven, and all that.'
'Oh, James, James,' Bree joked some more, pulling me down onto the bed. 'Ravish me, James, as only you can.'
And that's what I did. One thing very quickly led to another, and our immediate beach plans got moved to sometime in the future. Still, we did manage to work up an appetite. By the time we were on our feet again, the sun was dipping down and we were both ready for a great meal.
I'm not sure which was better that evening – the French-Caribbean food at Dune, the amazing bottle of Pinot Noir we ordered, or just the feeling of having nowhere else I needed to be for a change, nowhere else I wanted to be either.
We made a full night of it, too, and stopped at the casino at the Atlantis Resort after dinner for some blackjack. Bree was up for a while, then I was, but we left around midnight a few dollars in the hole. And who cared? Not us.
We walked back to our place the long way, holding hands along the beach.
'Happy?' I said to Bree.
'Married,' she said. 'Happily married. It doesn't even feel real yet. This is the real world, though, isn't it? I'm not dreaming this, am I, Alex?'
I stopped to put my arms around her, and we stood watching the moon's reflection bouncing off the ocean.
'You know, we still haven't been in that blue, blue water yet,' I said. My fingers started in on the top buttons of her shirt. 'Up for a night swim, Mrs. Cross?'
Bree looked around. 'Is that a dare?'
'Just an invitation,' I said. 'But I'd feel a little silly, all naked and alone out there.' She was already working on my pants.
We left our clothes on the sand and swam out. I could hear steel drums coming from the hotel somewhere, but it was as if we had the whole ocean to ourselves. We kissed in the water for a while and then ended up making love again, right there on the shore. It was a little risky, and sandy, but just the kind of danger I'll take any day of the week.
Chapter 112
WE SLEPT IN LATE the next morning and took our time getting ready for the day. Bree was just looking over the room-service menu and I was pulling on a T-shirt when the phone rang. It was still early for the kids to be calling, but I didn't mind. Actually I was looking forward to taking some razzing from them.
'Good morning!' I answered.
'Yes, it is.' Kyle Craig's unmistakable voice wormed into my ear. 'And how was the wedding?' he said.
I should have seen it coming. Should have taken more precautions. These calls had become a signature of Kyle's.
Before I said another word, a plane roared overhead – and I realized with a sudden jolt that I could hear it over the phone, too.
I ran to the front window to look out. 'Kyle? Where are you? What's going on?'
'Did you notice I kept my promise?' he said. 'I told you I'd let you get married, and I did.'
'Let me?'
There was no sign of him outside, but that didn't mean anything, did it? He could have been hiding anywhere. Clearly, he was here. And close, too.
'And do you want to know why?' he asked.
My breath was heavy in my chest as I continued to check out the grounds. 'No,' I said. 'I don't.'
'Because I believe in marriage,' he said, aping Nana's voice. 'Isn't that what she said the other night?'
Suddenly I couldn't breathe at all.
'And besides,' he went on, 'a wife's so much more fun to take from a man than a girlfriend. I've been patient, Alex, but it's time to move on.'
'Move on? What the hell are you talking about?' I said, but I was afraid I already knew.
'Enlightenment, my friend,' he said. 'Look down toward the water. See what you see.'
I threw back the glass door and looked out. It took me a second, but then I saw them.
Jannie and Ali were down on the beach, waving my way. A few steps behind them, somehow, impossibly, stood Max Siegel. He was in shades and a loud shirt, with a beach towel covering his right hand and a cell phone in the other. He smiled when he saw me, and then as his mouth moved, I heard Kyle Craig's voice in my ear.
