“Let's hope.” Jordan reached across his body and pointed out the window. “Because I think we're almost there.”
Colin followed the line of Jordan's finger, and his heart started hammering as two islands, peppered on various sides by smaller islets, came into view. The pure turquoise mass of water slowly became darker blue the closer the water got to the iris of white sand beaches surrounding the islands. Lush green exploded within the inner portion of land, and nestled within the sea of trees, Colin could see the rooftops of some of the larger structures covered in terra-cotta tiles. Somewhere on the coast of the island Vanua Levu was a large bungalow where Colin and a handful of friends, three of whom also happened to be his partners in a private investigation firm back home in Austin, would live for the next ten days.
Jordan whistled, and Colin could hear the murmurs of appreciation from other passengers on the plane as they looked out their windows too.
“Man,” she said, “I think your suggestion of Fiji is going to end up being a great one. Would you look at how fucking beautiful that water is? I don't care that it's costing me and Tag a fortune. It will be worth it to have this celebration with no stress, only friends and Tag's immediate family.”
Turning from the window, Colin grinned at Jordan. “You're going to be a beautiful bride.” He took her hand and squeezed. “I can already see you crying like a baby when you exchange your vows under the setting sun.”
“Shut up.” Jordan punched him again. “I will not.” As an investigator and part owner of their business, Jordan took great offense at anyone accusing her of anything too girly.
“Should we make a bet?”
Jordan scrunched her brow at him, but shifted her focus through the window and back to the beauty below them. “What made you think of Fiji?” she asked.
The pull of the islands drew Colin's stare again too. “Don't know.” He found his attention shifting from the main islands to the scattering of smaller ones, and couldn't shake the strange sensation of familiarity. “I must have read something or saw something on the Travel Channel.” Saying that aloud made Colin wonder if that was where the house on the beach in his dreams originated. Maybe it was as simple as seeing something beautiful on TV, and it implanting a bug in his subconscious. Tropical islands were certainly a far cry from Austin, Texas, or, more, Henderson, the smaller town in East Texas where he'd grown up, so he knew the setting hadn't come from his everyday life.
“I didn't know when I threw the suggestion of Fiji out there that you'd actually jump at it.” Brushing the window with his fingertips, Colin imagined he reached through and touched the sand on the beach, already knowing it would be warm and ultrafine…because his feet had already stood in it, and he had already sank his toes into the smooth dampness of it as the water from the ocean lapped at its edges.
“I don't know why,” Jordan murmured, “but when you said Fiji, something inside me knew it was right. After that, I couldn't imagine getting married anywhere else.”
“Speaking of your wedding, where's Tag?” Colin mentioned Jordan's fiancé. He had been sitting next to the guy before having the dream. “Shouldn't you be sitting with him sharing this first view?”
“All that man is thinking about is 'Where are the topless beaches?' and 'Will I have to eat fish and fruit the entire time we're here?'“ Jordan chuckled and pushed a few strands of short auburn hair behind her ear. “He's a few rows up. You nodded off on him so he came and got me, then went to talk with his dad. I think he might have gotten a glimpse at your hard-on.”
Colin shifted and removed the magazine from over his crotch. “Problem resolved.”
Jordan glanced down at Colin's lap. “So I see.” The mischievous twinkle in her soft brown eyes quickly turned subdued. “Are you really all right? Maybe you need to talk to someone about the power of these dreams. You shouldn't be hiding in them and living a life with someone who isn't real. Maybe they're just a manifestation of something buried deep inside you, and until you take care of whatever that is, they won't go away.”
The dreams probably were about himself; Colin reluctantly accepted the truth in that, even though when he was asleep, everything about them felt so damn real and right, like he was supposed to be in that house with that man. If the dreams really were just a manifestation of himself, Colin didn't want to resolve whatever damage in his life or thoughts were responsible for creating them. If he did, the house and its owner would disappear.
Colin didn't know if he would be able to handle the loss.
“Colin?”
“I'm fine,” Colin insisted. A dinging sound captured Colin and Jordan's attention, and the FASTEN YOUR SEAT BELT sign soon followed. Colin closed his eyes and prepared for descent.
* * * * *
Colin braced his hands on the railing of the schooner, closing his eyes as the wind created by the speeding boat rushed over his face and rippled the fabric of his khaki shorts and T-shirt. Sun and heat beat down on his skin, and the occasional spray of water kicking up from the ocean tickled his arms and legs.
Chatter from his friends carried over the wind flapping in the boat's sails; they all “oohed” and “ahhed” at the view. They also relentlessly teased Jordan for forcing them out on this boat tour when they'd barely set down their luggage in the rented bungalow. She told them they could rest in ten days when they got home, but while in Fiji, they were going to cram every damn bit of touristy fun in, even if it killed them.
They would all bow to the woman's schedule for the next few days. Once the
