Monday, December 28, 2015
Good and bad news
Hey everyone,
Well I'm currently 7 weeks pregnant with my third child! !! Very excited however the morning (all day) sickness is so bad I can barely function let alone stare at a computer screen for longer then a few minutes. So I am going to have to take a few days, hopefully not too long, to get better. Sorry, I will post again just not sure when.
Juliette
Thursday, December 24, 2015
Alicia's news
August 2003
"So, we wanted to go the end of summer but it turns out the best time to go is November through May, the dry season." Dean said before taking a bite of his burger.
"I have a break around Thanksgiving I could go then. Or maybe Christmas! I've always wanted to spend Christmas in another country. " Alicia piped in.
"I could do either, I mean I still have to request time off and make sure I don't have a midterm or something but I think either sounds fun." I added my part.
"Well that was easier then I thought this conversation would go. I thought we'd have to go back and forth about when would work." Dean laughed.
"Fine neither work, let's just forget it!" Alicia dramatically exclaimed, she couldn't hide her smile as she kissed Dean on the cheek while he just rolled his eyes.
"Are you going to bring Jacob Jules? " Dean said turning his attention to me.
"I don't know, I mentioned we were thinking about going, and he does love to surf..." I paused not sure what else to say. Alicia saw my hesitation and quickly changed the subject. I don't know why I haven't asked Jacob to go yet. That's a lie, there's one reason and it's a curly head boy. I don't think I necessarily want to be with Dominic but I feel weird bringing another guy around a guy I have chemistry with.
We finished our meals and continued chatting about all the things we wanted to do on our trip. We decided we would all check our work and school schedules and pick if we will go over thanksgiving break or Christmas. We walked back to the complex and I was surprised when Alicia kissed Dean goodnight and followed me inside.
"You're not staying at Dean's tonight?" I asked curious.
"What? We don't have to spend every moment together, can't a girl want to spend time with her friend?" Alicia complained. I rolled my eyes as I threw my flip flops off and fell on the couch.
"Actually, I really did want to spend some quality Jules time. But I did want to talk to you..." She said sitting next to me.
"What's the matter," I asked sensing the concerned tone in her voice.
"It's nothing the matter, it's just, Dean asked me to move in with him. We found a little house to rent not far from here." She wouldn't look at me, she kept her eyes on the wall behind me.
"Alicia that's great! I mean I'll miss you but I am happy you guys are at that place in your relationship." She looked at me and squealed throwing her arms around my neck. We spent the rest of the night catching up and hearing about the little house they found.
I climbed into bed later that night and it hit me, I was going to need a roommate. I couldn't afford the rent here by myself. I know she wasn't moving out until the first of the year but I couldn't think of anyone right now. I fretted about the issue until I finally passed out.
The next morning I hurried to work. I was still worried about the roommate issue but in the light of day I knew I'd figure something out. I passed Don's office and noticed Taylor sitting next to him focused on his computer screen. I continued on to my desk and got to work. I replied to a few emails from underwriting and answered a couple calls. Before I knew it, it was lunch. I was just about to run to Wendy's when Taylor met me at the back door asking if I would like to join her for lunch. I couldn't think of any reason not to so we walked to a nearby deli.
The deli was crowded but we managed to find a table after we grabbed a couple pre made sandwiches. I tend to be a little shy so I struggled some trying to make small talk. Luckily Taylor was easy to talk to and had many stories to tell. She has traveled all over the world and knows spanish, italian and french. From the sounds of it her upbringing was very, privileged. But you wouldn't think that talking to her. She never came across as bragging during the conversation.
"So did you leave a boyfriend back in South Carolina?" I asked as we started walking back to the office.
"Yes, actually ex-fiance to be exact." I whipped my head around to see her face. Her usual perky demeanor had changed, her shoulders fell as she sighed.
"Steve, I met him in college. We fell in love instantly. He purposed six months after we started dating. He was a few years my senior and after university he got his dream job in marketing. Unfortunately it was in New York. He broke off the engagement and flew out the next day. I haven't seen him since."
"That sucks I'm sorry." I said. She turned to me and smiled.
"Oh honey, I don't mean to be so gloomy. It all worked out, I was able to move here with my mother." She put on a large grin and stood up straight.
"How's your mother doing?"
"She's is doing better, she caught pneumonia and spent three days in the hospital. She's back home now, we are staying at grandmama's house, I'm grateful she has her own room there. I'm staying on the couch now but eventually I would like to find a place of my own." She said as she held the door to the office open for me.
"Taylor, I think we should talk..."
Note: hope everyone has a Merry Christmas, happy holidays and a happy New Year! Juliette
"So, we wanted to go the end of summer but it turns out the best time to go is November through May, the dry season." Dean said before taking a bite of his burger.
"I have a break around Thanksgiving I could go then. Or maybe Christmas! I've always wanted to spend Christmas in another country. " Alicia piped in.
"I could do either, I mean I still have to request time off and make sure I don't have a midterm or something but I think either sounds fun." I added my part.
"Well that was easier then I thought this conversation would go. I thought we'd have to go back and forth about when would work." Dean laughed.
"Fine neither work, let's just forget it!" Alicia dramatically exclaimed, she couldn't hide her smile as she kissed Dean on the cheek while he just rolled his eyes.
"Are you going to bring Jacob Jules? " Dean said turning his attention to me.
"I don't know, I mentioned we were thinking about going, and he does love to surf..." I paused not sure what else to say. Alicia saw my hesitation and quickly changed the subject. I don't know why I haven't asked Jacob to go yet. That's a lie, there's one reason and it's a curly head boy. I don't think I necessarily want to be with Dominic but I feel weird bringing another guy around a guy I have chemistry with.
We finished our meals and continued chatting about all the things we wanted to do on our trip. We decided we would all check our work and school schedules and pick if we will go over thanksgiving break or Christmas. We walked back to the complex and I was surprised when Alicia kissed Dean goodnight and followed me inside.
"You're not staying at Dean's tonight?" I asked curious.
"What? We don't have to spend every moment together, can't a girl want to spend time with her friend?" Alicia complained. I rolled my eyes as I threw my flip flops off and fell on the couch.
"Actually, I really did want to spend some quality Jules time. But I did want to talk to you..." She said sitting next to me.
"What's the matter," I asked sensing the concerned tone in her voice.
"It's nothing the matter, it's just, Dean asked me to move in with him. We found a little house to rent not far from here." She wouldn't look at me, she kept her eyes on the wall behind me.
"Alicia that's great! I mean I'll miss you but I am happy you guys are at that place in your relationship." She looked at me and squealed throwing her arms around my neck. We spent the rest of the night catching up and hearing about the little house they found.
I climbed into bed later that night and it hit me, I was going to need a roommate. I couldn't afford the rent here by myself. I know she wasn't moving out until the first of the year but I couldn't think of anyone right now. I fretted about the issue until I finally passed out.
The next morning I hurried to work. I was still worried about the roommate issue but in the light of day I knew I'd figure something out. I passed Don's office and noticed Taylor sitting next to him focused on his computer screen. I continued on to my desk and got to work. I replied to a few emails from underwriting and answered a couple calls. Before I knew it, it was lunch. I was just about to run to Wendy's when Taylor met me at the back door asking if I would like to join her for lunch. I couldn't think of any reason not to so we walked to a nearby deli.
The deli was crowded but we managed to find a table after we grabbed a couple pre made sandwiches. I tend to be a little shy so I struggled some trying to make small talk. Luckily Taylor was easy to talk to and had many stories to tell. She has traveled all over the world and knows spanish, italian and french. From the sounds of it her upbringing was very, privileged. But you wouldn't think that talking to her. She never came across as bragging during the conversation.
"So did you leave a boyfriend back in South Carolina?" I asked as we started walking back to the office.
"Yes, actually ex-fiance to be exact." I whipped my head around to see her face. Her usual perky demeanor had changed, her shoulders fell as she sighed.
"Steve, I met him in college. We fell in love instantly. He purposed six months after we started dating. He was a few years my senior and after university he got his dream job in marketing. Unfortunately it was in New York. He broke off the engagement and flew out the next day. I haven't seen him since."
"That sucks I'm sorry." I said. She turned to me and smiled.
"Oh honey, I don't mean to be so gloomy. It all worked out, I was able to move here with my mother." She put on a large grin and stood up straight.
"How's your mother doing?"
"She's is doing better, she caught pneumonia and spent three days in the hospital. She's back home now, we are staying at grandmama's house, I'm grateful she has her own room there. I'm staying on the couch now but eventually I would like to find a place of my own." She said as she held the door to the office open for me.
"Taylor, I think we should talk..."
Note: hope everyone has a Merry Christmas, happy holidays and a happy New Year! Juliette
Sunday, December 20, 2015
Welcome to the hotel California -present post part 3
I didn't want to break it up again so this is a long post :)
November 2015 -present post part 3
I set down my empty margarita and got off the swing.
"Let's take a water taxi back," my husband suggested. When else do you get to take a boat as transportation, it's part of the fun.
I had a slight buzz so I was a little concerned about climbing the moving ladder to get in. I put one foot up and lifted just as a wave came and jerked the boat back to sea. Thankfully my husband went first and grabbed my hand to steady me.
There was a cruise ship in port today, it was massive. The tiny water taxi went by and you had to lift your head to the clouds to see the beast. I could only imagine how busy the marina must be with how many tourists you could fit on that ship.
We got to the resort quickly and took a short cut back to the room through the pool. I'm not sure who initiated it first, but we got distracted in bed for an hour. So nice to have afternoon sex and not have to put a show on for our kids in the other room to distract them. Before we got a lock on our door, I remember one time being right in the middle of it and having our, (at the time) 3 year old barge in exclaiming his show cut out. Needless to say we installed a lock the next day.
We got dressed again and walked to the travel agency office on site. There were dozens of brochures on exciting excursions and tours. I flipped through several. One in particular caught my eye, it was a tour to Todos Santos. I had heard about Todos Santos when I looked up what to do in Cabo. It was a small old artsy town that had the Hotel California, the one some say the song is based off.
"Let's do this!" I shoved the brochure at him.
"You want to tour a blanket factory and walk around an old town? You realize we will be the youngest people on the tour? "
"Yep I'm sure, besides according to you, we are old. " I gave him a look and he agreed to go booking the trip for friday. He also booked a snorkel trip on a catamaran sailboat for tomorrow.
Feeling satisfied we went back to the room to get ready for dinner. We had reservations at a place called, Edith's. I took my time getting ready. I had bought a curling wand just for the trip, I love the look of thick ringlets all over. Spritzing some hair spray on I moved to pick out a dress.
I decided on a low cut, short blue and white print dress. It was tight in the waist with a thick belt, and sorta poofed out at the hip. My favorite part was the pockets, I love dresses with pockets. With a whistle from my husband we were off. He looked extra handsome in his slim dress shirt and dark jeans.
The cab dropped us off outside a dark peach building, the arch entrance was painted blue with a mosaic pattern outlining. Inside the busy establishment we were greeted by the hostess and shown our table. The grand palapas above us had colorful glowing lanterns hanging all around. Even the palm trees had these glowing coconut shaped lanterns. I pointed them out and told him to make them for our palm trees back home.
Our waiter appeared quickly and got our drink order, I got a gin and lime drink this time since I've had too many maragaitas to count. Once our drinks arrived the waiter brought out a platter of meat, he pointed out the specials and combinations you could make. I decided on the lobster tail and shrimp, my partner chose the red snapper. We also heard they were famous for their caesar salad and ordered that as well.
Another friendly man appeared at our side with a table and started preparing the salad there. We said yes to anchovies and he got busy making the dressing from scratch. While he made it my husband got into a conversation about celebrities he has seen dine here. Turns out Kobe Bryant was here not long ago.
The salad was as amazing as we hoped. We ate, chatted and people watched throughout the meal. After getting over filled on dessert we paid our bill and went for a walk.
The next morning we grabbed breakfast from local coffee shop and walked to the marina to make our snorkel trip. Along the way we passed several stores, I made a mental note to come back tomorrow for souvenirs. We found the dock for our trip and were early so we grabbed a beer at Seńor Frogs. Once we were able to board we were greeted by a petite lady passing out drinks. I declined and found a spot to sit.
There was only supposed to be about twelve passengers but a quick count showed there was at least twenty. Unfortunately the two nets at the front of the boat were already filled. We wanted to sit on the net and watch the water pass by. We found a seat near the captain at the back instead.
The music was turned up and we headed out. The boat was going to sail by the arch and lover's beach. In front of lovers beach we stood and took a handful of pictures, mostly kissing. Then again when we got to the arch. It was so picturesque, being here with my favorite person only made it even more memorable.
We made our way toward the snorkel spot. I had relaxed and accepted the fruity rum drink offered this time around. The captain cast several fishing lines at the back of the boat. My husband was excited and started up a conversation about what they've caught in the past.
They raised the sail, watching the process was exciting, the giant fabric tight against the wind was impressive.
Everyone was having a good time drinking and dancing that the trip to Santa Maria Bay flew by. We brought our own snorkel gear so we were the first ones off the boat while everyone else tried on their sets. Jumping into the warm water we headed toward the rocks.
Vibrant fish swam by, some I recognized from past adventures while others I had never seen. My favorite was the parrot fish by far. Someone fed the fish nearby making schools of fish go crazy. We explored a small opening between the rocks, a wave came in sending the shallow water rushing forward. Before I slammed into a rock I stuck my feet out and braced for impact. My fins pressed against the large rock and as soon I felt the water recede, I pushed off with force and started swimming as fast as I could out of the inlet. My husband was right next to me and helped by giving me a shove on my rear to push me out further.
"Are you ok? I'm sorry I shouldn't have brought us that close to the shallow rocks." He said after we popped up from the water. I told him to relax it was fine we were ok. We got back to snorkeling and as soon as we heard the signal we headed to the boat. The petite lady appeared at the stairs and rinsed us off. There was a large spread of sandwich makings and fresh guacamole laid out. We dried off and grabbed a couple plates and a couple more drinks.
On the way back to the marina everyone was in party mode. A couple girls held onto some rope dancing, while others sang aloud with the music. After we ate we were able to find a place on the net and watch the water rush by for a while. We actually enjoyed our spot by the captain more, so after a while we went back.
The petite lady who I had learned was named Rosa, went downstairs and came back up wearing a leather batwomen mask and some leather corset. She was also carrying around a bottle of tequila pouring it down everyone's throat. I gave her a dirty look when she sat on my husband's lap and poured the liquid down his throat, afterward blowing a whistle and pinching his nipples. My husband just laughed , I knew it was all in good sport so I laughed along with him. We continued to accept the free drinks and by the time we were off the boat I was tipsy to say the least.
Back at the resort we were able to make the 3:30 volleyball game, when I say we I mean my husband played and I sipped on a Pina colada watching. He joined me after his team won.
"What are some other drinks you have, I know the usual like margarita, Pina colada, Mai tai. But are there any others I should try?" My husband asked our server.
"Si señor, dirty monkey is good, we also have a WTF." He said grinning. My husband asked what was in it, it sounded a bit like a dirty monkey with more shots of different alcohol. I said what the hell and ordered one, even though I wasn't a banana fan.
I regretted my decision immensely when I was curled up in bed that night trying to feel better. Everything was spinning and it was worse when I closed my eyes, I tried so hard to not throw up but in the end the acid in my stomach won out. My husband tried to comfort me without laughing but he failed. I kicked him out of the bathroom and proceeded to suffer. Once I cleaned up I crawled into bed I thankfully passed out.
The next morning I woke up cursing the world. My head was spinning. I got ready and grabbed a pack of pop tarts and bottle of water as we headed to the van for our tour. We were going to see Todos Santos today, I hoped I would feel better along the way so I could actually enjoy the little adventure I insisted on. Our guide, Daniel was friendly and chatted with us as we drove to pick up the other couple joining the group.
"50 bucks says they are over sixty," my husband grinned at me. I just shook my head and ignored him. When we pulled up to another grand resort I excused myself to go use the restroom. Returning I was met with an elderly couple, maybe in their seventies getting into the van. I said hello to them and gave my husband a 'shut up' look as I got in.
Our first stop was the blanket factory. We saw and even tried out the large loom where they make many of their blankets. In the shop, hand loomed blankets in vibrant blues, oranges ,purples, any color you name it, were hanging for display . Some had intricately woven patterns in bright colors, others had images like animals or flowers. We ended up buying a vibrant blanket, mostly red with a Aztec style pattern in blue, yellow and green.
Our next stop was a small candy stand where we sampled and purchased hand made Mexican candy. Some of the items I thought looked weird were actually the best tasting. We bought a container of this bright yellow coconut candy and two mini bottles of coke. I felt ten times better then this morning and my husband who was joking about the trip earlier, looked like he was having more fun then I was.
Hotel California was next on the list. Daniel parked the car and gave us a tour of the hotel, which felt more like an intimate estate, besides the gift store of course. Past the big rod doors we entered the area for hotel guests only. There was a small pool surrounded by lush plants and large gargoyle statues. Almost every wall was painted in dark colors, purple, blue, orange, and red. Candles were lit everywhere in the dark hallways. The hotel was small I think he said only 11 rooms, but it was beautifully decorated and felt like you were brought back in time at a luxurious Mexican estate.
Daniel informed us this point in the tour was were we all split up for lunch and explore on our own. The other couple chose to have lunch at the hotel California. We decided to try Daniel's recommendation and walked to a quaint outside cantina. We were once again blown away by the delicious food. My husband tried their house margarita while I nursed another bottle of water, after last night I was scared to try another drink for a while.
Afterward we walked to a surf shop, where my husband fed his growing desire to surf while he is in Cabo. He chatted with the owner about the waves while I petted the sweetest puppy I've ever met. We bought a couple souvenirs and walked around the cute little old town before heading back to the van. One if my favorites was an old brick hotel, at one time it was a boarding school. Now it was a quiet pretty boutique hotel.
"That was fun I'm glad you made us go, " he said giving me a long passionate kiss. The kiss was just enough to get me excited and I was dreading the hour trip back. With traffic and having to drop off the other couple we got back to the hotel a couple hours later. I picked back up where we left that kiss and practically jumped on my husband sending us both tumbling down on the bed.
The next day we took a water taxi to Lover's Beach to snorkel. After a look at divorce beach on the Pacific side, we walked down to the water to jump in on lovers side. The roped off area looked weak and small so we made our way back toward pelican rock where we saw several snorkelers and divers on our way to lover's. It was tricky getting in because in order to go left we had to get in when there wasn't a water taxi dropping off or picking up passengers, which was constantly. We saw a opening and jumped in hugging the rock as we swam. Once reaching pelican rock we were extremely happy with the abundance of wildlife below. My husband saw tourists jumping off pelican rock, so of course he had to join. I got video of him making the long leap into the water below. We continued to explore until it was time to head back.
That night we were going to the famous, The Office, it was Edith's sister restaurant. I put on my new Aztec print cocktail dress and got dolled up. The restaurant was packed so we grabbed a drink at the bar while waiting for a table. Luckily we didn't have to wait long before we stepped down into the sand and made our way to our table.
Everything was in the sand, it was fun sitting in the chair and slightly sinking. We feasted on a whole fried fish and crab as we made fun at the drunk group of ladies next to us. They went up to the live band several times and joined them on stage, they weren't terrible singers but not great either, it was entertaining to say the least. We purchased the photo they took of us and had another flaming coffee before calling it a night. Back at the hotel we found some hidden energy and had some hot shower sex before getting some sleep.
The final day we went shopping, I got little stuff for the kids like a hand carved box with a whale on it, and a captain America ukulele. We also picked up some ornaments and pottery before heading back to the resort to check out. We packed up and headed to Cabo Surf Hotel. My husband was giddy to surf even though the waves were small. He rented a chair and umbrella for me and asked again if I was sure I didn't want to surf too. I wasn't in the mood to get wet again before the flight so I shoo'd him away. He rented a longboard and got a good hour in before heading back in for lunch.
We took our time eating before we had to get the cab to the airport. On the ride I thought about how anxious I was to get home and see my boys. We had video chatted almost everyday, but I missed them and was ready to get back.
I walked through the stores at the airport and got a couple last minute souvenirs for people I hadn't. Finishing I sat next to my husband to wait for our departure. We were sad to leave cabo because vacation was over but happy to go home. All in all I would say it was a successful trip, and I look forward to going back.
November 2015 -present post part 3
I set down my empty margarita and got off the swing.
"Let's take a water taxi back," my husband suggested. When else do you get to take a boat as transportation, it's part of the fun.
I had a slight buzz so I was a little concerned about climbing the moving ladder to get in. I put one foot up and lifted just as a wave came and jerked the boat back to sea. Thankfully my husband went first and grabbed my hand to steady me.
There was a cruise ship in port today, it was massive. The tiny water taxi went by and you had to lift your head to the clouds to see the beast. I could only imagine how busy the marina must be with how many tourists you could fit on that ship.
We got to the resort quickly and took a short cut back to the room through the pool. I'm not sure who initiated it first, but we got distracted in bed for an hour. So nice to have afternoon sex and not have to put a show on for our kids in the other room to distract them. Before we got a lock on our door, I remember one time being right in the middle of it and having our, (at the time) 3 year old barge in exclaiming his show cut out. Needless to say we installed a lock the next day.
We got dressed again and walked to the travel agency office on site. There were dozens of brochures on exciting excursions and tours. I flipped through several. One in particular caught my eye, it was a tour to Todos Santos. I had heard about Todos Santos when I looked up what to do in Cabo. It was a small old artsy town that had the Hotel California, the one some say the song is based off.
"Let's do this!" I shoved the brochure at him.
"You want to tour a blanket factory and walk around an old town? You realize we will be the youngest people on the tour? "
"Yep I'm sure, besides according to you, we are old. " I gave him a look and he agreed to go booking the trip for friday. He also booked a snorkel trip on a catamaran sailboat for tomorrow.
Feeling satisfied we went back to the room to get ready for dinner. We had reservations at a place called, Edith's. I took my time getting ready. I had bought a curling wand just for the trip, I love the look of thick ringlets all over. Spritzing some hair spray on I moved to pick out a dress.
I decided on a low cut, short blue and white print dress. It was tight in the waist with a thick belt, and sorta poofed out at the hip. My favorite part was the pockets, I love dresses with pockets. With a whistle from my husband we were off. He looked extra handsome in his slim dress shirt and dark jeans.
The cab dropped us off outside a dark peach building, the arch entrance was painted blue with a mosaic pattern outlining. Inside the busy establishment we were greeted by the hostess and shown our table. The grand palapas above us had colorful glowing lanterns hanging all around. Even the palm trees had these glowing coconut shaped lanterns. I pointed them out and told him to make them for our palm trees back home.
Our waiter appeared quickly and got our drink order, I got a gin and lime drink this time since I've had too many maragaitas to count. Once our drinks arrived the waiter brought out a platter of meat, he pointed out the specials and combinations you could make. I decided on the lobster tail and shrimp, my partner chose the red snapper. We also heard they were famous for their caesar salad and ordered that as well.
Another friendly man appeared at our side with a table and started preparing the salad there. We said yes to anchovies and he got busy making the dressing from scratch. While he made it my husband got into a conversation about celebrities he has seen dine here. Turns out Kobe Bryant was here not long ago.
The salad was as amazing as we hoped. We ate, chatted and people watched throughout the meal. After getting over filled on dessert we paid our bill and went for a walk.
The next morning we grabbed breakfast from local coffee shop and walked to the marina to make our snorkel trip. Along the way we passed several stores, I made a mental note to come back tomorrow for souvenirs. We found the dock for our trip and were early so we grabbed a beer at Seńor Frogs. Once we were able to board we were greeted by a petite lady passing out drinks. I declined and found a spot to sit.
There was only supposed to be about twelve passengers but a quick count showed there was at least twenty. Unfortunately the two nets at the front of the boat were already filled. We wanted to sit on the net and watch the water pass by. We found a seat near the captain at the back instead.
The music was turned up and we headed out. The boat was going to sail by the arch and lover's beach. In front of lovers beach we stood and took a handful of pictures, mostly kissing. Then again when we got to the arch. It was so picturesque, being here with my favorite person only made it even more memorable.
We made our way toward the snorkel spot. I had relaxed and accepted the fruity rum drink offered this time around. The captain cast several fishing lines at the back of the boat. My husband was excited and started up a conversation about what they've caught in the past.
They raised the sail, watching the process was exciting, the giant fabric tight against the wind was impressive.
Everyone was having a good time drinking and dancing that the trip to Santa Maria Bay flew by. We brought our own snorkel gear so we were the first ones off the boat while everyone else tried on their sets. Jumping into the warm water we headed toward the rocks.
Vibrant fish swam by, some I recognized from past adventures while others I had never seen. My favorite was the parrot fish by far. Someone fed the fish nearby making schools of fish go crazy. We explored a small opening between the rocks, a wave came in sending the shallow water rushing forward. Before I slammed into a rock I stuck my feet out and braced for impact. My fins pressed against the large rock and as soon I felt the water recede, I pushed off with force and started swimming as fast as I could out of the inlet. My husband was right next to me and helped by giving me a shove on my rear to push me out further.
"Are you ok? I'm sorry I shouldn't have brought us that close to the shallow rocks." He said after we popped up from the water. I told him to relax it was fine we were ok. We got back to snorkeling and as soon as we heard the signal we headed to the boat. The petite lady appeared at the stairs and rinsed us off. There was a large spread of sandwich makings and fresh guacamole laid out. We dried off and grabbed a couple plates and a couple more drinks.
On the way back to the marina everyone was in party mode. A couple girls held onto some rope dancing, while others sang aloud with the music. After we ate we were able to find a place on the net and watch the water rush by for a while. We actually enjoyed our spot by the captain more, so after a while we went back.
The petite lady who I had learned was named Rosa, went downstairs and came back up wearing a leather batwomen mask and some leather corset. She was also carrying around a bottle of tequila pouring it down everyone's throat. I gave her a dirty look when she sat on my husband's lap and poured the liquid down his throat, afterward blowing a whistle and pinching his nipples. My husband just laughed , I knew it was all in good sport so I laughed along with him. We continued to accept the free drinks and by the time we were off the boat I was tipsy to say the least.
Back at the resort we were able to make the 3:30 volleyball game, when I say we I mean my husband played and I sipped on a Pina colada watching. He joined me after his team won.
"What are some other drinks you have, I know the usual like margarita, Pina colada, Mai tai. But are there any others I should try?" My husband asked our server.
"Si señor, dirty monkey is good, we also have a WTF." He said grinning. My husband asked what was in it, it sounded a bit like a dirty monkey with more shots of different alcohol. I said what the hell and ordered one, even though I wasn't a banana fan.
I regretted my decision immensely when I was curled up in bed that night trying to feel better. Everything was spinning and it was worse when I closed my eyes, I tried so hard to not throw up but in the end the acid in my stomach won out. My husband tried to comfort me without laughing but he failed. I kicked him out of the bathroom and proceeded to suffer. Once I cleaned up I crawled into bed I thankfully passed out.
The next morning I woke up cursing the world. My head was spinning. I got ready and grabbed a pack of pop tarts and bottle of water as we headed to the van for our tour. We were going to see Todos Santos today, I hoped I would feel better along the way so I could actually enjoy the little adventure I insisted on. Our guide, Daniel was friendly and chatted with us as we drove to pick up the other couple joining the group.
"50 bucks says they are over sixty," my husband grinned at me. I just shook my head and ignored him. When we pulled up to another grand resort I excused myself to go use the restroom. Returning I was met with an elderly couple, maybe in their seventies getting into the van. I said hello to them and gave my husband a 'shut up' look as I got in.
Our first stop was the blanket factory. We saw and even tried out the large loom where they make many of their blankets. In the shop, hand loomed blankets in vibrant blues, oranges ,purples, any color you name it, were hanging for display . Some had intricately woven patterns in bright colors, others had images like animals or flowers. We ended up buying a vibrant blanket, mostly red with a Aztec style pattern in blue, yellow and green.
Our next stop was a small candy stand where we sampled and purchased hand made Mexican candy. Some of the items I thought looked weird were actually the best tasting. We bought a container of this bright yellow coconut candy and two mini bottles of coke. I felt ten times better then this morning and my husband who was joking about the trip earlier, looked like he was having more fun then I was.
Hotel California was next on the list. Daniel parked the car and gave us a tour of the hotel, which felt more like an intimate estate, besides the gift store of course. Past the big rod doors we entered the area for hotel guests only. There was a small pool surrounded by lush plants and large gargoyle statues. Almost every wall was painted in dark colors, purple, blue, orange, and red. Candles were lit everywhere in the dark hallways. The hotel was small I think he said only 11 rooms, but it was beautifully decorated and felt like you were brought back in time at a luxurious Mexican estate.
Daniel informed us this point in the tour was were we all split up for lunch and explore on our own. The other couple chose to have lunch at the hotel California. We decided to try Daniel's recommendation and walked to a quaint outside cantina. We were once again blown away by the delicious food. My husband tried their house margarita while I nursed another bottle of water, after last night I was scared to try another drink for a while.
Afterward we walked to a surf shop, where my husband fed his growing desire to surf while he is in Cabo. He chatted with the owner about the waves while I petted the sweetest puppy I've ever met. We bought a couple souvenirs and walked around the cute little old town before heading back to the van. One if my favorites was an old brick hotel, at one time it was a boarding school. Now it was a quiet pretty boutique hotel.
"That was fun I'm glad you made us go, " he said giving me a long passionate kiss. The kiss was just enough to get me excited and I was dreading the hour trip back. With traffic and having to drop off the other couple we got back to the hotel a couple hours later. I picked back up where we left that kiss and practically jumped on my husband sending us both tumbling down on the bed.
The next day we took a water taxi to Lover's Beach to snorkel. After a look at divorce beach on the Pacific side, we walked down to the water to jump in on lovers side. The roped off area looked weak and small so we made our way back toward pelican rock where we saw several snorkelers and divers on our way to lover's. It was tricky getting in because in order to go left we had to get in when there wasn't a water taxi dropping off or picking up passengers, which was constantly. We saw a opening and jumped in hugging the rock as we swam. Once reaching pelican rock we were extremely happy with the abundance of wildlife below. My husband saw tourists jumping off pelican rock, so of course he had to join. I got video of him making the long leap into the water below. We continued to explore until it was time to head back.
That night we were going to the famous, The Office, it was Edith's sister restaurant. I put on my new Aztec print cocktail dress and got dolled up. The restaurant was packed so we grabbed a drink at the bar while waiting for a table. Luckily we didn't have to wait long before we stepped down into the sand and made our way to our table.
Everything was in the sand, it was fun sitting in the chair and slightly sinking. We feasted on a whole fried fish and crab as we made fun at the drunk group of ladies next to us. They went up to the live band several times and joined them on stage, they weren't terrible singers but not great either, it was entertaining to say the least. We purchased the photo they took of us and had another flaming coffee before calling it a night. Back at the hotel we found some hidden energy and had some hot shower sex before getting some sleep.
The final day we went shopping, I got little stuff for the kids like a hand carved box with a whale on it, and a captain America ukulele. We also picked up some ornaments and pottery before heading back to the resort to check out. We packed up and headed to Cabo Surf Hotel. My husband was giddy to surf even though the waves were small. He rented a chair and umbrella for me and asked again if I was sure I didn't want to surf too. I wasn't in the mood to get wet again before the flight so I shoo'd him away. He rented a longboard and got a good hour in before heading back in for lunch.
We took our time eating before we had to get the cab to the airport. On the ride I thought about how anxious I was to get home and see my boys. We had video chatted almost everyday, but I missed them and was ready to get back.
I walked through the stores at the airport and got a couple last minute souvenirs for people I hadn't. Finishing I sat next to my husband to wait for our departure. We were sad to leave cabo because vacation was over but happy to go home. All in all I would say it was a successful trip, and I look forward to going back.
Wednesday, December 16, 2015
Happy ending -present post part 2
Nov 2015 present post part 2
I woke up naturally around 7:30am. Groaning I rolled over and tried to fall back asleep, after about a half hour I gave up and got up. My husband stirred beneath the covers.
"What time is it?" He said as he stretched.
"About 8, it's vacation, and we're kidless. I should be able to sleep in." I was a little annoyed, I had pictured sleeping in, I don't think I've slept in, for the last five years.
"That's because we're old and that's what old people do, they get up early." He grinned.
"Haha, get up old man, let's explore! " I threw a pillow at his face and went to change. I knew we wanted to walk to town but I also knew there was a high possibility of diving into the water at some point. So I put on my new swimsuit. It was a seagreen halter tankini, the part around my waist was lace so it was see through without being a bikini. I had worked hard on loosing my baby weight but I still didn't love my stomach, some women don't get stretch marks some do, I am the latter. I threw some whitewash jean shorts on over my suit and put my hair in a ponytail.
The hotel had a small market on site so we grabbed some breakfast there first. We climbed down the stairs and for the first time on this trip, our feet touched the sand. The view of the El Arco rock formations was stunning, just like the turquoise sea in front of it. We were approached every few feet by vendors selling everything from pottery to Sombreros featuring your favorite football team. I wasn't ready to get souvenirs so I tried to politely say no to each one.
The sun was beating down with a force and there wasn't a cloud in site. We weren't far from town however walking on sand seemed to make it feel like forever. Half way through we rested a bit. Sitting down in the warm sand I laid back and tried to relax. I had my hand over my face to shelter from the sun so I didn't see when my husband got up. I did hear him holler something before hearing a splash. Sitting up on my elbows I saw him splashing in the water.
"Come in baby its so warm," he called out.
I pulled off my shorts and tank top I had over my suit and ran in. I made the mistake of trying to dive in right when a wave came so I pretty much hit the sand, the drop off was very quick though, so with a kick I was already shoulder deep.
"Oh my gosh, the water is sooo warm!" The water back on San Diego was freezing right now, here it had to be 80 degrees it was so nice. We floated around for a while before we decided to continue our journey into town. Once we reached the inlet to the marina we searched some of the shops for a pair of sunglasses, I brought mine but the hubby forgot his. A handful of vendors called out to us offering snorkel trips, jet ski rentals, horseback riding on the beach and more. The hotel had a travel agent on site offering the same excursions at pretty much the same price, we decided earlier to just book with them. It got a little tiring having to say no over and over.
We passed the mall and were now on the hunt for an atm for pesos, we passed several that dispensed US dollars. We wanted pesos because with the exchange rate our money would go further. We spotted a machine next to Cabo Wabo.
"Wait don't get out 2000 bucks, what if someone robs us?!" I whispered as loud as I could.
"Relax babe, it's a little over a hundred dollars." He laughed. I felt a little embarrassed that we literally just had this conversation this morning about the conversion rate. He leaned down and kissed my forehead, "you're cute. Now let's go get some lunch." Walking back to town in the direction of the hotel, he grabbed my hand.
"Justin from work recommended a place called, Happy Ending, it's just over there wanna try it?" He laughed when he saw the look on my face.
"I'm going to ignore the name and try it."
I'm glad we did the tacos were great and the cheap beer was even better. We were exhausted from walking so we grabbed a cab back to the resort. Entering the room I colapsed on the bed and curled up to take a nap.
I was slowly fading when I felt my halter being untied. His hands softly moved to untie the other knot in the back. I worked on removing my shorts and suit bottom.
"Hey I was just thinking you'd sleep better out of your suit. But I mean...if you want to we could do something else." He grinned mischievously. We spent the next hour getting sweaty and then drifting off to sleep. The nap lasted only about a half hour before we got up.
Putting our suits back on we left and hit the pool. My husband joined a volleyball game and I floated around watching. Several Pina coladas later we got out and went back to the room to get ready for dinner. After showering I changed into a short black dress and put on my favorite anchor shaped earrings.
We tried the Italian restaurant at the resort nextdoor. I was surprised how good all the food has been so far. We went to Playa del Carmen several years ago and I remember the food was very mediocre. I know the two places were no where near each other, I guess I just assumed the food wouldn't be as good as it is.
We ended up going to bed around ten, my husband of course joked about being old but we didn't care, we were exhausted.
The next morning we managed to sleep in an extra half hour before trying out the buffet breakfast. We ended up meeting a friendly couple at the table next to us, Mary and Luke. They were from Colorado and had two boys around the same age as ours. We made plans to meet up later for some drinks by the pool.
Today we were going to go jet skiing. I've been jet skiing before but never in open ocean. After signing some waiver we climbed into a water taxi. The boat was glassbottom so you could see the clear water below. The ride was short and we were dropped off where the jet skis were parked.
As we were putting on our life jackets I spotted a stingray swimming in the shallows. I pointed it out to my husband, the one stingray turned out to be about five or six stingrays. They were swimming around right next to several tourists wading in the water. Grabbing his GoPro he went to get some video of the rays. There was a very loud and obviously drunk guy walking into the water to get a better look also. He was being stupid trying to grab at them. I heard my husband try to warn him about getting stung but the guy just blew him off. I didn't want to see this guy get stung so I went to listen to the instructor give instructions on how to use the jet ski and my husband joined my side.
We got on the ski and were about to head out when we heard a loud yelp coming from the area where we saw the rays.
"That's why they're called sting rays," he yelled as he pulled on the gas handle to bring us out. We had to go slow until we were further from shore, as soon as we were deep enough, he sped up. The water was rough and choppy and each time we hit a little chop it felt like we were going to fall off. I was screaming so loud, every few seconds I would say it had probably been a half hour and we had to get back. A couple times he slowed to see if I wanted to go back but for some crazy reason I would shake my head no and hold on for dear life. About half way through our time we switched and I drove. I was going super slow at first until I started creeping up the speed. Being in control was less frightening, however I hit a little wave in the water and over turned slightly, almost sending us flying. After that I told him I was good and he should drop me off so he could spend the last minutes left going as fast as he wanted.
Once on shore I took off my life vest and sat on the beach. The cotton sundress I wore over my suit was now soaked. A vendor walked by carrying swimsuit cover ups, I saw a cute black sheer one and hoped he would still be near when my other half got back. He was the one carrying the money in a waterproof pouch around his neck.
About ten minutes later he appeared with a huge grin on his face.
"You loved that didn't you?" I laughed at how excited he looked.
"Yeah, sorry if you didn't, thanks for going though." He said as he unclipped his vest.
"No...I did, I just think I prefer jet skiing on a flat lake." I overheard the instructor telling some other tourists that it wasn't very choppy today and pretty flat, yeah right.
I pointed out my soaked dress and how I needed a cover that was better suited for getting wet. He quickly agreed and walked with me to find the vendor who was in all white, with a big straw hat. We spotted him near an outside bar and I picked out the black one and left the bartering to my husband. Taking off my wet dress I slipped on the new one and was happy with my purchase. It exposed my cleavage a lot but my guy didn't have a problem with that of course.
The outdoor bar had swings instead of barstools, so of course we had to grab a drink. I ordered a margarita and he ordered some type of cerveza. The swing idea was pretty cool, we rocked back and forth as we chatted with a couple on our left about our trip. The bartender set down two margaritas and two beers in front of us, apparently it was happy hour. Fine by me, we raised our glasses to toast to our trip.
Note: I have to break this trip up into 3 posts. Sorry it's just too hard to get seven days on paper and shorten it, I promise to wrap up the trip on the next post. Thanks for reading and commenting
I woke up naturally around 7:30am. Groaning I rolled over and tried to fall back asleep, after about a half hour I gave up and got up. My husband stirred beneath the covers.
"What time is it?" He said as he stretched.
"About 8, it's vacation, and we're kidless. I should be able to sleep in." I was a little annoyed, I had pictured sleeping in, I don't think I've slept in, for the last five years.
"That's because we're old and that's what old people do, they get up early." He grinned.
"Haha, get up old man, let's explore! " I threw a pillow at his face and went to change. I knew we wanted to walk to town but I also knew there was a high possibility of diving into the water at some point. So I put on my new swimsuit. It was a seagreen halter tankini, the part around my waist was lace so it was see through without being a bikini. I had worked hard on loosing my baby weight but I still didn't love my stomach, some women don't get stretch marks some do, I am the latter. I threw some whitewash jean shorts on over my suit and put my hair in a ponytail.
The hotel had a small market on site so we grabbed some breakfast there first. We climbed down the stairs and for the first time on this trip, our feet touched the sand. The view of the El Arco rock formations was stunning, just like the turquoise sea in front of it. We were approached every few feet by vendors selling everything from pottery to Sombreros featuring your favorite football team. I wasn't ready to get souvenirs so I tried to politely say no to each one.
The sun was beating down with a force and there wasn't a cloud in site. We weren't far from town however walking on sand seemed to make it feel like forever. Half way through we rested a bit. Sitting down in the warm sand I laid back and tried to relax. I had my hand over my face to shelter from the sun so I didn't see when my husband got up. I did hear him holler something before hearing a splash. Sitting up on my elbows I saw him splashing in the water.
"Come in baby its so warm," he called out.
I pulled off my shorts and tank top I had over my suit and ran in. I made the mistake of trying to dive in right when a wave came so I pretty much hit the sand, the drop off was very quick though, so with a kick I was already shoulder deep.
"Oh my gosh, the water is sooo warm!" The water back on San Diego was freezing right now, here it had to be 80 degrees it was so nice. We floated around for a while before we decided to continue our journey into town. Once we reached the inlet to the marina we searched some of the shops for a pair of sunglasses, I brought mine but the hubby forgot his. A handful of vendors called out to us offering snorkel trips, jet ski rentals, horseback riding on the beach and more. The hotel had a travel agent on site offering the same excursions at pretty much the same price, we decided earlier to just book with them. It got a little tiring having to say no over and over.
We passed the mall and were now on the hunt for an atm for pesos, we passed several that dispensed US dollars. We wanted pesos because with the exchange rate our money would go further. We spotted a machine next to Cabo Wabo.
"Wait don't get out 2000 bucks, what if someone robs us?!" I whispered as loud as I could.
"Relax babe, it's a little over a hundred dollars." He laughed. I felt a little embarrassed that we literally just had this conversation this morning about the conversion rate. He leaned down and kissed my forehead, "you're cute. Now let's go get some lunch." Walking back to town in the direction of the hotel, he grabbed my hand.
"Justin from work recommended a place called, Happy Ending, it's just over there wanna try it?" He laughed when he saw the look on my face.
"I'm going to ignore the name and try it."
I'm glad we did the tacos were great and the cheap beer was even better. We were exhausted from walking so we grabbed a cab back to the resort. Entering the room I colapsed on the bed and curled up to take a nap.
I was slowly fading when I felt my halter being untied. His hands softly moved to untie the other knot in the back. I worked on removing my shorts and suit bottom.
"Hey I was just thinking you'd sleep better out of your suit. But I mean...if you want to we could do something else." He grinned mischievously. We spent the next hour getting sweaty and then drifting off to sleep. The nap lasted only about a half hour before we got up.
Putting our suits back on we left and hit the pool. My husband joined a volleyball game and I floated around watching. Several Pina coladas later we got out and went back to the room to get ready for dinner. After showering I changed into a short black dress and put on my favorite anchor shaped earrings.
We tried the Italian restaurant at the resort nextdoor. I was surprised how good all the food has been so far. We went to Playa del Carmen several years ago and I remember the food was very mediocre. I know the two places were no where near each other, I guess I just assumed the food wouldn't be as good as it is.
We ended up going to bed around ten, my husband of course joked about being old but we didn't care, we were exhausted.
The next morning we managed to sleep in an extra half hour before trying out the buffet breakfast. We ended up meeting a friendly couple at the table next to us, Mary and Luke. They were from Colorado and had two boys around the same age as ours. We made plans to meet up later for some drinks by the pool.
Today we were going to go jet skiing. I've been jet skiing before but never in open ocean. After signing some waiver we climbed into a water taxi. The boat was glassbottom so you could see the clear water below. The ride was short and we were dropped off where the jet skis were parked.
As we were putting on our life jackets I spotted a stingray swimming in the shallows. I pointed it out to my husband, the one stingray turned out to be about five or six stingrays. They were swimming around right next to several tourists wading in the water. Grabbing his GoPro he went to get some video of the rays. There was a very loud and obviously drunk guy walking into the water to get a better look also. He was being stupid trying to grab at them. I heard my husband try to warn him about getting stung but the guy just blew him off. I didn't want to see this guy get stung so I went to listen to the instructor give instructions on how to use the jet ski and my husband joined my side.
We got on the ski and were about to head out when we heard a loud yelp coming from the area where we saw the rays.
"That's why they're called sting rays," he yelled as he pulled on the gas handle to bring us out. We had to go slow until we were further from shore, as soon as we were deep enough, he sped up. The water was rough and choppy and each time we hit a little chop it felt like we were going to fall off. I was screaming so loud, every few seconds I would say it had probably been a half hour and we had to get back. A couple times he slowed to see if I wanted to go back but for some crazy reason I would shake my head no and hold on for dear life. About half way through our time we switched and I drove. I was going super slow at first until I started creeping up the speed. Being in control was less frightening, however I hit a little wave in the water and over turned slightly, almost sending us flying. After that I told him I was good and he should drop me off so he could spend the last minutes left going as fast as he wanted.
Once on shore I took off my life vest and sat on the beach. The cotton sundress I wore over my suit was now soaked. A vendor walked by carrying swimsuit cover ups, I saw a cute black sheer one and hoped he would still be near when my other half got back. He was the one carrying the money in a waterproof pouch around his neck.
About ten minutes later he appeared with a huge grin on his face.
"You loved that didn't you?" I laughed at how excited he looked.
"Yeah, sorry if you didn't, thanks for going though." He said as he unclipped his vest.
"No...I did, I just think I prefer jet skiing on a flat lake." I overheard the instructor telling some other tourists that it wasn't very choppy today and pretty flat, yeah right.
I pointed out my soaked dress and how I needed a cover that was better suited for getting wet. He quickly agreed and walked with me to find the vendor who was in all white, with a big straw hat. We spotted him near an outside bar and I picked out the black one and left the bartering to my husband. Taking off my wet dress I slipped on the new one and was happy with my purchase. It exposed my cleavage a lot but my guy didn't have a problem with that of course.
The outdoor bar had swings instead of barstools, so of course we had to grab a drink. I ordered a margarita and he ordered some type of cerveza. The swing idea was pretty cool, we rocked back and forth as we chatted with a couple on our left about our trip. The bartender set down two margaritas and two beers in front of us, apparently it was happy hour. Fine by me, we raised our glasses to toast to our trip.
Note: I have to break this trip up into 3 posts. Sorry it's just too hard to get seven days on paper and shorten it, I promise to wrap up the trip on the next post. Thanks for reading and commenting
Friday, December 11, 2015
Cause I'm your lady - present post part 1
Nov 2015
"You know I read somewhere to treat the the little bumps in the air during a flight, like a bump in the road." I said to my husband while pulling on the zipper of my suitcase.
It was the day of our trip and I was a mixture of nerves, excitement and a little sadness. We have taken trips in the past without the kids, but never more then once in a year, and never over 4 nights. This time we were going for 7 nights. Up until this day I had been counting down the hours. We finished the packing and I made a mental note to check off everything I needed before heading to the car. At the airport we all got out of the car, I knelt down to say goodbye.
"Bye momma I'm going to miss you pretty lady." Raen said wrapping his arms around my neck and squeezing me tight. He was my little charmer, always telling me how how pretty I am, my favorite line being, 'you're as pretty as a rose mom'. I kissed Raen and gave him a speech about being the man of the house while I'm gone before turning to Kai.
"Mom!" Was all he yelled as he tackled me. He squeaked a few times and kissed me goodbye.
I hesitantly pulled away to head inside. Sliding my hand through my husband's, I blinked back the tears.
"Babe don't cry, I know you'll miss them but we will be back before you know it!" He raised my chin and softly wiped a tear away. Funny just the other day I was complaining about how much I needed this vacation now I was feeling guilty. I brushed it off and focused on the self check in screen. My husband punched in the info, when he got to the choose your seats screen I panicked.
"Wait, I need to be in the window seat, we can't have the middle and isle seat!" I exclaimed. I felt calmer when I could visually see everything.
"Relax it's not even a two hour flight." He said trying to calm me down.
"At least choose those two by the wing, I heard it's less turbulent there." I inhaled and looked to the ceiling. I know I was being over dramatic but I hate flying. I could feel myself realizing I was overreacting but I couldn't wipe the worried look off my face.
"Juliette, STOP. I need this vacation it's been so stressful at work. I really need you to stop freaking out and come on vacation with me." His eyes pleaded with me to stop, I could tell I had pushed it. With all the comments I made today about flying and worrying.
"You're right, let's do this." I lifted up on my tippy toes and kissed him. He was still a little stiff but he at least kissed me back. We quickly went through the short security line. As always I cursed at forgetting to wear socks, I hate having to take off your shoes and walk through that nasty damp carpet that millions of people have walked on, ew!
Once through security we sat down at the airport bar to grab a quick bite and drink.
"She'll have a long island," my husband asked the waitress before I opened my mouth to speak. I apparently needed it, no objection here.
Two long island's later I was feeling much more relaxed. Still nervous but not like before. Before I was anxious as mouse in a snake's cage. We boarded the plane and I was happy to see a smiling older woman sitting next to us. She was friendly throughout the flight and even gave us a lot of tips, where to eat and activities we should hit up when we get there. Thank God the flight was smooth most of the way with only a couple mild bumps.
Hand in hand my husband and I joyfully made our way through the terminal and up the stairs. Our grins faded slightly at the sight of the immigration line. The zigzag queue was packed with hundreds of tourists. We got in and surprisingly kept moving at a comfortable pace. About forty minutes later we made our way through and got our passports stamped.
"Welcome to Cabo!" The man behind the counter smiled and waved his hand to let us continue on. We got our bags and waited in another line. They must have had several planes land at once because the couple in front of us kept commenting on how they've never seen it like this before. After pressing the magic button we got a green light meaning our luggage didn't need inspecting, with a high five between us we headed to the exit. I lost track of how many people approached us to sell something between each sliding glass door we went through.
Outside we were met with a sea of people waiting to get transportation to their resort. The outside bar area was packed and about ninety percent of the population scattered around carrying either a margarita or a beer. It was still light out and despite the crowd we were just excited to start our vacation. After finding our resort shuttle a man in an orange guayabera told us the wait would be about an hour. After debating we decided to find another shuttle, luckily there was one leaving in the next five minutes. The shuttle was going to drop off passengers at five other locations. One being in San José and the rest in Cabo San Lucas, including ours. By the time we dropped off the last couple it was dark outside. Most of the passengers had been to Cabo several times and we're happy to give all their advice to us Cabo virgins.
I was growing tired of traveling and starving. Pulling up to our resort I instantly perked up when I saw the grand entrance. During check in I took in the lobby, the sparkling marble floors seemed to go on and on. Giant bouquets of vibrant tropical flowers were everywhere in beautiful spanish vases. We got our keys and made our way to the room, only getting a little lost along the way.
The room was gorgeous, the floors were a dark brown travertine. There was a small kitchenette with granite countertops. I was excited to see a whirlpool tub in the bathroom.
"Let's get some food, I'm getting grumpy without food." My husband said setting his suitcase on the bed.
"I wanted to shower and change..." I saw the look on his face and I knew he was going to need food, now. "Nope never mind let me pee and then we'll go." I laughed when he perked up.
Walking around the grounds of the hotel made me feel as if vacation had really started. The pathways were lit up, palm trees and lounge chairs aligned the three pools we passed. And even though I couldn't see it, I could hear the waves crashing in the dark distance.
There were three restaurants in the resort, we quickly decided on dining at the Mexican food place that overlooked the beach. Bright torches shined, illuminating the restaurant. We were seating at a table on the patio, not against the wall but one over.
"Good evening, my name is Carlos and I will be your server tonight. Can I get you anything to drink senorita? "
"Good evening, yes do you have any jalapeño margaritas?" What kind of first night in Mexico would it be without a margarita?
"Si senorita, maybe a little extra spicy for you." He said with a wink. My husband ordered a Pacifico and some ceviche. We chatted a bit about what we should do tomorrow, we were both anxious to snorkel, I wanted to horseback and he wanted go jet ski. We decided exploring the resort after breakfast was a good idea, then we would walk to town along the beach.
During dinner we heard loud music coming from the beach, it sounded like karaoke. It was a lot of fun listening to strangers belt out the classic wedding songs like, 'can't take my eyes off of you' and 'at last'.
"How was your dinner mis amigos?" Carlos appeared at the table with another margarita and Pacifico. We quickly thanked him and praised on the delicious food.
"If I may, I would like to make a special surprise dessert for you?" His smile was so bright and genuine we had to say yes.
"Just no bananas please," I asked.
"No, no bananas." He grinned walking away.
We heard the song 'I'm your lady' coming from the beach below, it was way too good to be karaoke. When I saw a couple people get up and peer over the wall I decided I needed to see for myself.
Taking a peek I saw the small wedding set up on the sand. There were about 4 tables of guest all staring forward. Their eyes were fixed upon a petite blonde woman with the mic. She belted out the chorus, 'cause I'm your lady, and you are my man, whenever you reach for me, I'll do all that I can'. With every high note she would step to the right and push off to gain momentum. My husband had joined me and was leaning on the wall listening.
"Wow, I thought it was a recording, she's good." I said turning to him.
"Whenever you reach for me," he started, singing off key. I slapped his arm playfully and headed back to the table. We were busy laughing about something when Carlos returned rolling a small cart. He happily showed us the brandy and tequila before setting a plate in front of us with a slice if cheesecake and strawberries. He then poured some brandy and tequila in what looked like a gravy boat. He lit the boat on fire and proceeded to pour the flaming liquid between two boats. It was pretty seeing the bright blue flames. Pouring the mixture on top of our dessert he told us to enjoy.
Back at the room I collapsed onto the bed, I was well stuffed and the exhaustion from traveling was creeping back. My husband joined my side. He began softly kissing my neck then moved to my shoulder.
"Mmm, I love vacation. First night was perfect." He lifted my shirt and started kissing my stomach.
"It isn't over yet," he looked up at me with a devilish grin. Instead of responding I just shook my head and laid back.
*note: sorry meant to have this post up earlier in the week but have had company. This was part one of our trip and I hope to get another post up soon. Please please comment, I Love hearing what everyone thinks and that there's readers out there ! :) thanks for reading and commenting- Juliette
"You know I read somewhere to treat the the little bumps in the air during a flight, like a bump in the road." I said to my husband while pulling on the zipper of my suitcase.
It was the day of our trip and I was a mixture of nerves, excitement and a little sadness. We have taken trips in the past without the kids, but never more then once in a year, and never over 4 nights. This time we were going for 7 nights. Up until this day I had been counting down the hours. We finished the packing and I made a mental note to check off everything I needed before heading to the car. At the airport we all got out of the car, I knelt down to say goodbye.
"Bye momma I'm going to miss you pretty lady." Raen said wrapping his arms around my neck and squeezing me tight. He was my little charmer, always telling me how how pretty I am, my favorite line being, 'you're as pretty as a rose mom'. I kissed Raen and gave him a speech about being the man of the house while I'm gone before turning to Kai.
"Mom!" Was all he yelled as he tackled me. He squeaked a few times and kissed me goodbye.
I hesitantly pulled away to head inside. Sliding my hand through my husband's, I blinked back the tears.
"Babe don't cry, I know you'll miss them but we will be back before you know it!" He raised my chin and softly wiped a tear away. Funny just the other day I was complaining about how much I needed this vacation now I was feeling guilty. I brushed it off and focused on the self check in screen. My husband punched in the info, when he got to the choose your seats screen I panicked.
"Wait, I need to be in the window seat, we can't have the middle and isle seat!" I exclaimed. I felt calmer when I could visually see everything.
"Relax it's not even a two hour flight." He said trying to calm me down.
"At least choose those two by the wing, I heard it's less turbulent there." I inhaled and looked to the ceiling. I know I was being over dramatic but I hate flying. I could feel myself realizing I was overreacting but I couldn't wipe the worried look off my face.
"Juliette, STOP. I need this vacation it's been so stressful at work. I really need you to stop freaking out and come on vacation with me." His eyes pleaded with me to stop, I could tell I had pushed it. With all the comments I made today about flying and worrying.
"You're right, let's do this." I lifted up on my tippy toes and kissed him. He was still a little stiff but he at least kissed me back. We quickly went through the short security line. As always I cursed at forgetting to wear socks, I hate having to take off your shoes and walk through that nasty damp carpet that millions of people have walked on, ew!
Once through security we sat down at the airport bar to grab a quick bite and drink.
"She'll have a long island," my husband asked the waitress before I opened my mouth to speak. I apparently needed it, no objection here.
Two long island's later I was feeling much more relaxed. Still nervous but not like before. Before I was anxious as mouse in a snake's cage. We boarded the plane and I was happy to see a smiling older woman sitting next to us. She was friendly throughout the flight and even gave us a lot of tips, where to eat and activities we should hit up when we get there. Thank God the flight was smooth most of the way with only a couple mild bumps.
Hand in hand my husband and I joyfully made our way through the terminal and up the stairs. Our grins faded slightly at the sight of the immigration line. The zigzag queue was packed with hundreds of tourists. We got in and surprisingly kept moving at a comfortable pace. About forty minutes later we made our way through and got our passports stamped.
"Welcome to Cabo!" The man behind the counter smiled and waved his hand to let us continue on. We got our bags and waited in another line. They must have had several planes land at once because the couple in front of us kept commenting on how they've never seen it like this before. After pressing the magic button we got a green light meaning our luggage didn't need inspecting, with a high five between us we headed to the exit. I lost track of how many people approached us to sell something between each sliding glass door we went through.
Outside we were met with a sea of people waiting to get transportation to their resort. The outside bar area was packed and about ninety percent of the population scattered around carrying either a margarita or a beer. It was still light out and despite the crowd we were just excited to start our vacation. After finding our resort shuttle a man in an orange guayabera told us the wait would be about an hour. After debating we decided to find another shuttle, luckily there was one leaving in the next five minutes. The shuttle was going to drop off passengers at five other locations. One being in San José and the rest in Cabo San Lucas, including ours. By the time we dropped off the last couple it was dark outside. Most of the passengers had been to Cabo several times and we're happy to give all their advice to us Cabo virgins.
I was growing tired of traveling and starving. Pulling up to our resort I instantly perked up when I saw the grand entrance. During check in I took in the lobby, the sparkling marble floors seemed to go on and on. Giant bouquets of vibrant tropical flowers were everywhere in beautiful spanish vases. We got our keys and made our way to the room, only getting a little lost along the way.
The room was gorgeous, the floors were a dark brown travertine. There was a small kitchenette with granite countertops. I was excited to see a whirlpool tub in the bathroom.
"Let's get some food, I'm getting grumpy without food." My husband said setting his suitcase on the bed.
"I wanted to shower and change..." I saw the look on his face and I knew he was going to need food, now. "Nope never mind let me pee and then we'll go." I laughed when he perked up.
Walking around the grounds of the hotel made me feel as if vacation had really started. The pathways were lit up, palm trees and lounge chairs aligned the three pools we passed. And even though I couldn't see it, I could hear the waves crashing in the dark distance.
There were three restaurants in the resort, we quickly decided on dining at the Mexican food place that overlooked the beach. Bright torches shined, illuminating the restaurant. We were seating at a table on the patio, not against the wall but one over.
"Good evening, my name is Carlos and I will be your server tonight. Can I get you anything to drink senorita? "
"Good evening, yes do you have any jalapeño margaritas?" What kind of first night in Mexico would it be without a margarita?
"Si senorita, maybe a little extra spicy for you." He said with a wink. My husband ordered a Pacifico and some ceviche. We chatted a bit about what we should do tomorrow, we were both anxious to snorkel, I wanted to horseback and he wanted go jet ski. We decided exploring the resort after breakfast was a good idea, then we would walk to town along the beach.
During dinner we heard loud music coming from the beach, it sounded like karaoke. It was a lot of fun listening to strangers belt out the classic wedding songs like, 'can't take my eyes off of you' and 'at last'.
"How was your dinner mis amigos?" Carlos appeared at the table with another margarita and Pacifico. We quickly thanked him and praised on the delicious food.
"If I may, I would like to make a special surprise dessert for you?" His smile was so bright and genuine we had to say yes.
"Just no bananas please," I asked.
"No, no bananas." He grinned walking away.
We heard the song 'I'm your lady' coming from the beach below, it was way too good to be karaoke. When I saw a couple people get up and peer over the wall I decided I needed to see for myself.
Taking a peek I saw the small wedding set up on the sand. There were about 4 tables of guest all staring forward. Their eyes were fixed upon a petite blonde woman with the mic. She belted out the chorus, 'cause I'm your lady, and you are my man, whenever you reach for me, I'll do all that I can'. With every high note she would step to the right and push off to gain momentum. My husband had joined me and was leaning on the wall listening.
"Wow, I thought it was a recording, she's good." I said turning to him.
"Whenever you reach for me," he started, singing off key. I slapped his arm playfully and headed back to the table. We were busy laughing about something when Carlos returned rolling a small cart. He happily showed us the brandy and tequila before setting a plate in front of us with a slice if cheesecake and strawberries. He then poured some brandy and tequila in what looked like a gravy boat. He lit the boat on fire and proceeded to pour the flaming liquid between two boats. It was pretty seeing the bright blue flames. Pouring the mixture on top of our dessert he told us to enjoy.
Back at the room I collapsed onto the bed, I was well stuffed and the exhaustion from traveling was creeping back. My husband joined my side. He began softly kissing my neck then moved to my shoulder.
"Mmm, I love vacation. First night was perfect." He lifted my shirt and started kissing my stomach.
"It isn't over yet," he looked up at me with a devilish grin. Instead of responding I just shook my head and laid back.
*note: sorry meant to have this post up earlier in the week but have had company. This was part one of our trip and I hope to get another post up soon. Please please comment, I Love hearing what everyone thinks and that there's readers out there ! :) thanks for reading and commenting- Juliette
Friday, December 4, 2015
Past few weeks
August 2003
The past few weeks seemed to fly by and it was already August. My second year at the community college was starting soon and I was a little anxious about whether or not I wanted to go on to University after this year or not. My dilemma was being so damn indecisive. One minute I was sure I wanted to be a teacher, the next I thought I should go to school and become a chef or interior designer. I envy Alicia and her pure passion for marine biology. For now I was just going to focus on school and work and hope that I have more of an idea of what I want to do with my life, next semester.
Jacob and I seem to be closer then ever, there's not a night spent where we don't talk, whether by phone or in person. I find myself on more then one occasion falling asleep with the phone between my head and the pillow. Through all the talking though we have never had 'the talk'. I don't know if he considered me his girlfriend or his friend with benefits? I knew in my heart I wanted more then anything to be his girlfriend, but there was something holding me back. I feel like I'm too young to feel like I've met the boy I want to run off into the sunset with, aren't I? There was a time when I thought Cal could have been the one, look how that turned out. Just like my future life career options, I'm going to put it off and just enjoy what we have right now. Maybe he'll bring up the topic? That thought made my heart race.
My alarm went off on the nightstand next to me. Groaning I hit my palm against the clock silencing the obnoxious melody. I had stayed up way too late last night for a weeknight. Amanda had come over, we were supposed to hang out, watch chick flicks, maybe paint our nails. Instead I opened the door to be greeted by a hysterical Amanda.
I helped her in and sat her down on the couch. About 10 minutes later she had calmed down enough to talk. I quickly got her a washcloth for her red swollen face.
"Miles and I broke up!" She managed to get out before the hiccups hit. I went to get her a glass of water, on the counter I saw a candy bowl full of M&M's and grabbed that too.
"OK, do you want to talk about what happened?" I said handing the glass of water over and placing the chocolate on the coffee table in front of her. She shook her head yes but didn't speak. After gulping down half the water and stuffing a few candy pieces in her mouth she let out a deep breath.
"I went to meet him for dinner, it was at this fancy restaurant on the beach in Del Mar. I got us a table and ordered a drink. I was on my third drink and fifth text message when he finally showed up. An hour and a half late Jules! If I didn't order an appetizer and drinks I think they would have asked me to give up my table."
"Ok, did he say why he was late?" I didn't like Miles, it was taking all I had not to just say 'fuck him'.
"He said...he said he couldn't do this anymore. He was with his wife and they had a talk about starting a family. He said he didn't want an affair on the side if he had a child."
"Wait, I thought you said he was leaving her?" The shock in my voice was evident.
"He was, up until this he always talked about how much he didn't like his wife and how he only stayed with her for his parents, he didn't want to disappoint them." I rolled my eyes at this. What grown man let's his parents have such an influence. But then I thought about it, he was probably lying to Amanda.
"I tried to protest but he kept saying how much he still loved her and how this was a mistake..a MISTAKE, Jules he called me a mistake." Her eyes watered and back to sobbing she went. Reaching across the couch I snatched the box of tissues and handed them over.
"Amanda, you can't let this guy get to you. You're 21, you have your whole life ahead of you. Screw him and his lies."
"But it had been so long, I loved him, I thought he loved me. He doesn't love her, I have to make him see that. " She reached for her phone in her purse. As soon as her fingers started dialing away I yanked the cell away from her. I got up to hide it in the kitchen.
Pulling a couple beers out of the fridge I came back into the living room and spent the next few hours consoling her. When the clock hit 1:30 am I fetched a blanket and pillow and demanded she sleep over. I didn't have to convince her and within minutes she was sound asleep on the couch. I don't know how someone could believe that a guy capable of cheating on his wife was actually telling you the truth. I really hoped this was the last Amanda would see of Miles but something told me she wasn't going to let him go that easy.
I showered quickly and got ready for work. I was surprised to see the blanket I gave Amanda last night folded and placed neatly on the pillow when I walked into the living room. She must have left earlier. Alicia never made it in last night so I assumed she spent the night at Dean's. I ate my breakfast speedily and in silence before heading to work.
There was a green civic I didn't recognize parked in the back lot of work. It was too early for an interview, must be someone from one of the other businesses. The owner was revealed when I opened the door and saw the back of a women's head sitting in Don's office. Don was rarely ever at the office before 10, he must of had an appointment. I continued to my desk when Don called out. Stepping into his office the blonde woman turned around and I recognized her from a few weeks back.
"Taylor how are you, I thought you moved back to South Carolina? " after her interview Don offered her the job. She had declined saying she decided to go back home to South Carolina.
"Yes miss, I did plan on it. Unfortunately my dear mother took ill and I couldn't leave her. I decided, as much as I miss home I would miss being here for her." She smiled kindly, her southern accent was so sweet sounding I instantly wished I had one.
"Well the good news out of that is she is going to join our team. " Don said cheerfully.
"Well welcome to the team." I said grateful for the extra help.
"I'm going to train her and show her around. If I need anything I will let you know Juliette." Don said, it sounded like a dismissal so I said welcome again to Taylor and went to my desk. It was surprising that he was going to train her. I specifically remember him mentioning I would do the training for new hires. I brushed it off and got to work.
Half way through the day I got a text from Alicia.
Alicia - dinner tonight with Dean and I? We are picking trip dates!!
I instantly replied I was in. I had about 2 weeks vacation time so I wasn't worried about that. And now that Taylor was here, we luckily had someone with experience. Let's just hope she gets licensed quickly and hopefully before I leave.
Note: I was thinking about making the next post about the trip I just went on. It would be a present post, but that does mean the only present posts have been about vacations. Would anyone be interested? Or I could do a flash forward post about something else or just a regular post? Please comment :) Juliette
Tuesday, December 1, 2015
French Toast and Potatoes
July 2003
I woke up feeling like someone was staring at me. When my eyes met Jacob's I was correct.
"Morning sleepy head," he said softly, brushing a strand of hair out of my face.
"Mmm, morning." I rolled onto my back and stretched my arms, this made the sheet fall below my chest exposing my bare breasts. Jacob leaned over in a flash and placed his mouth on my breast. I pushed him away giggling and raising the sheet to cover up. When he pouted I threw the sheet off and smiled. We spent the rest of the morning in bed having lazy amazing sex. When we finally decided our hunger for food outweighed our desire to stay in bed we quickly dressed and walked to a diner nearby.
"I want sausage, but then I want potatoes too, ooh and french toast. Why is it that most places don't serve hashbrowns with French Toast, I mean they do with pancakes? What why are you looking at me like that?" I looked up from my menu to see Jacob smiling at me with his thick brows raised as high as they could go.
"Nothing, you're just cute."
"I like breakfast, leave me alone. Besides you've been looking at me for years don't look at me like you are surprised by me."
"Jujie, I have been looking at you for years, but trust me, I only had one thing on my mind." He grinned.
"Oh really, so when we were like 10 you only had one thing on your mind? " I questioned him.
"At ten, yes. It may have been more innocent thoughts then at 13 but yes, they were still a little perverted." He confessed.
"What!?" I squeaked. I should be a little weirded out but I was only flattered.
"Juliette, you were and are still the hottest girl I know. When I was younger I was lanky and a nerd, I didn't have a lot of confidence. When I hit sophomore year my family moved. My acne was clearer and I wasn't lanky anymore. I decided I was going to go into the school year and act like I owned my confidence. It worked, I got on the varsity basketball team and made a lot of friends. Even though I dated other girls, it was always in the back of my head that I wished you were near." He looked down, a flash of embarrassment on his face, but then he straightened up and looked me in the eyes and smiled.
"Really? I thought you were going to marry your high school sweetheart, Kim?" I said with a small laugh and he joined in.
"She sure thought that, but no. I even told her once about you. " I raised my head back up from reading the menu and gave him a surprised look.
"I didn't say you specifically but I did tell her that there was this girl I'd known forever, I told her I had always thought that girl was the one. " I swallowed and felt my heart speed up at this. I didn't know what to say back. I didn't have to, he changed the subject and began talking like he didn't just say that.
Our waiter appeared and we spent the rest of breakfast chatting about everything from school to work. Walking out of the diner hand in hand we made plans to see a movie next week. When we reached the front of my complex Jacob stepped down off the curb and wrapped his arms around my waist. Even though I was standing on the curb I still had to raise on my tippy toes to kiss him goodbye. The kiss was long and I was sad when he had to part. He said goodbye before he got in his car and headed for work.
I went inside to shower. I was getting ready to go shopping with Amanda. Passing by I noticed a new travel book that was on the coffee table, it was a guide to Nicaragua. We hadn't picked out an exact date to go. I realized I still hadn't told Jacob about going, part of me wanted to invite him. He does love to surf, but I also felt weird about inviting him when Dominic would be there, would it be weird?
Sorry for the short post today, I'm working on another and hope to post soon :) Juliette
Friday, November 27, 2015
Interviews and surprises
I had hopes for getting this up Wednesday but the busy holiday got in the way. Hope everyone had a good thanksgiving! Thanks for reading and commenting :) Juliette
July 2003
"Juliette, did you hear me?" I looked up to see Patrick standing beside my desk.
"Sorry, I must have spaced, what's up?" It was Wednesday morning and I was kind of over this week already. I spent most of the week training with Don and sitting in on interviews. It's amazing how many people show up to interviews unprepared. One girl showed up in sweats, another one answered his phone in the middle of the interview. I was raised to put your best foot forward in an interview, sell yourself, dress up, ask questions etc. But it seems like some people just don't care anymore. I'm not yet 20 and I sound like an old lady talking about the good ol' days.
"I said, Shelly called me yesterday. She doesn't sound so good, I think she may be moving back to Maryland." Patrick repeated.
"Really? I mean I guess I'm not surprised, she is probably having a hard time finding work." A part of me felt sorry for her, it must suck loosing your insurance license and job, but she did bring it upon herself.
"Well I know she messed up but she seems like she really regrets it, you should call her." I was surprised at this, ever since Shelly was fired Patrick has done nothing but bad mouth her. My guess was she probably stopped their little side fling and he was butthurt about it.
"I don't know, wait why did she call you?"
"Her and Gavin broke up, she's in a bad place, her lease is up this month. She needed someone to talk to." He nodded his head forward in my direction. Luckily the phone rang and I was saved from needing to respond. I picked it up quickly, rambling off my memorized greeting. He whispered for me to think about it before he headed back to his desk. The rest of the day dragged on without any mention of Shelly.
I was finishing up an application when Karen informed me the 4 o'clock interview was starting soon. I grabbed my notepad and followed her into Don's office. Don handed me a resume for Taylor Ashwell while Karen went to the front to grab Taylor. I was happy to see he or she had previous experience in insurance, about 3 years to be exact. The rest of the resume was looking promising, I was relaying my hopes to Don when Karen walked back in.
"Taylor, it's nice to meet you. You've met Karen our office manager, this is Juliette, our assistant manager." Don said standing to shake Taylor's hand. I got up also to greet Taylor.
"Nice to meet you, thank you for meeting with me today." Taylor said before taking the seat beside me. Karen sat in the chair on the side of Don's desk facing us.
Taylor was petite with blond hair cut in a short bob. What stuck out was her thick southern accent. Just then I remembered seeing on her resume she attended college in South Carolina. She was dressed to the nines in a fitted white jacket and skirt suit.
"Taylor, I see here you have previous experience working in the insurance world. Tell me a little bit about your day to day duties at your last company. " Don said leaning forward awaiting her response.
I couldn't help but notice the way he was listening to her, as if she was about to tell him the secret to everlasting youth. She went on to list the responsibilities she had at her job back in South Carolina. I was excited to hear the majority were the exact tasks we needed filled here. She seemed nice enough to me, I also appreciated she came dressed up and with extra resumes. Based on her graduation date and work experience I would guess she was 22 or 23.
Don surprised me by asking if I had any questions for Taylor, I looked at my notes and decided I knew enough about her job so I decided to get a little personal and asked what brought her to San Diego. Her smile faded and she lowered her head slightly.
"My father passed away about 4 months ago, my mother has some health issues and she wanted to come live near her sister and my grandmama. I didn't like the idea of her out here without me, in case her health got worse. so I decided I would move here too." She answered.
"I'm so sorry for your loss. Moving across country is hard enough as it is, let alone loosing a family member on top of that. " Don said with sympathy.
"Yes, well I'm hoping to settle in, get a job and make some friends out here. I know that will help." Taylor said sitting up straight again and smiling. This perked Don back up and he began discussing salary and start dates.
"Well it was a pleasure meeting with you today Taylor. We hope to make our decision by Friday. If we have any other questions we will be in contact before then, otherwise expect to hear from me no later then Monday. " Don said standing up. "Please let me walk you out."
We all got up to leave and Taylor turned her attention to us, shaking our hands again and telling us she enjoyed meeting us.
When I got back to my desk I watched Don escort Taylor out, I expected them to shake hands and part ways. Instead he kept walking until they were out of sight. I guess he wanted to walk her to her car. Shrugging I turned to my computer and got back to work.
Moments later I sensed a presence at my desk, looking up I was met with Patrick standing at my desk.
"Was she the new hire? She's hot!" I rolled my eyes, figures the only thing he would notice was her looks.
“Yes, well she has a great resume and experience.” I raised my hand to shoo him away, I wasn't in the mood to be around Patrick.
It had now been about fifteen minutes and still Don hadn't returned. I was just about to get up and peek out the giant glass window when I saw him approach. He opened the door and practically floated in, his happy mood was evident across his face.
“I have a good feeling about her.”
“Yeah, I really like that she has experience, and didn't wear sweatpants to the interview.” I stated. Don hit my desk startling me and started laughing way too hard at my comment. He shook his head still laughing as he left to get back to his office.
“Okaaay,” I mumbled under my breath before turning back to my work. The rest of the day went smoothly. When I walked past Don’s office on my way out I noticed he had already left. Usually he stayed about an hour later then I did but I guess he had plans tonight.
On the way home I called Jacob, we chatted about our 4th of July. From the sound of it he had an uneventful visit with his mom and sister. I hadn't talked to his sister in a while and made a mental note to call her. He made my heart flutter when he mentioned missing me and we made plans to meet up soon before hanging up.
I was happy to see Alicia there when I got home. After the graduation party she went to Dean’s and spent the rest of the week there. After changing out of my work clothes I plopped down next to her.
“So, you going to tell me about what happened when you went MIA for half of the party this weekend?” I raised my brows giving her my best ‘fess up’ face. She instantly lit up.
“Dean told me he loved me, and I said it back!” She sang.
“I assumed you guys were already passengers on the love boat. It took you this long to say it? The rest of the world knew, hell even the mailman knew it.” I teased her. She wasn't laughing along with me.
“It's not funny, you know how I feel about falling in love, I never wanted to. We never said it before we broke up and hadn't since we got back together. It's a big deal, act surprised and happy for me will ya?” I instantly felt bad for laughing.
“I'm sorry Alie, I guess I was surprised you guys hadn't said it yet. I know how you are about committed relationships, but I figured you were over that since getting back together with Dean. I'm excited for you though!" I smiled widely and nudged her for a reaction, hoping she would forgive my innocent face. She smiled back and agreed about being excited.
"Wait, I almost forgot, what was with Viviane hugging you all tightly? I thought she wasn't your biggest fan?" I asked.
"Yeah, I ran into her at the party, she was crying, alot. Turns out she's just having a hard time grieving her husband. " I remember Alicia mentioning her husband had passed awhile back. She went on to tell me about their conversation and how she hoped the sudden change in attitude would stay.
"Looked like you and Dominic were sure enjoying yourself at the party, did his pretty blue eyes win you over? " Alicia said giving me a suspicious look.
"He was really nice, it was fun hearing some of his stories about Nicaragua. Doesn't hurt that he's freaking hot! Although I thought he had green eyes not blue?" I remember the resemblance to Dean was obvious but I guess I don't remember exactly what color his eyes were. They could be like Jacob and change between blue and green, apparently I have a thing for blue green eyes.
We were busy laughing about something when the door opened wide. Dean stood beaming in the doorway but his smile quickly fell when he saw us sitting there.
"Babe, how many times do I have to tell you to lock the door. Any mad man could come in here!" He shut the door locking it behind him.
"Look a mad man made it through already!" She raised her voice and pointed at Dean with one hand and slapped the other across her chest playing dramatic.
"Real funny woman, I'm serious," he leaned down to kiss her hello.
"So, I opened all my gifts from the party. There was a total of 25 thousand dollars in checks and cash." Dean announced. Alicia and I looked at each other wide eyed.
"I've decided to invest most of it, but I also thought maybe I could use some for something fun." He glanced at Alicia before continuing.
"What do you think about taking a trip to my brothers surf camp? You mentioned wanting to go..." Alicia squealed and jumped into Dean's arms almost making him fall backwards.
"I'll take that as a yes?" He leaned down pressing his forehead to hers, smiling. I started sensing a moment here and got up quietly to give them privacy. As I tiptoed away Dean called out.
"You're coming too Juliette!"
July 2003
"Juliette, did you hear me?" I looked up to see Patrick standing beside my desk.
"Sorry, I must have spaced, what's up?" It was Wednesday morning and I was kind of over this week already. I spent most of the week training with Don and sitting in on interviews. It's amazing how many people show up to interviews unprepared. One girl showed up in sweats, another one answered his phone in the middle of the interview. I was raised to put your best foot forward in an interview, sell yourself, dress up, ask questions etc. But it seems like some people just don't care anymore. I'm not yet 20 and I sound like an old lady talking about the good ol' days.
"I said, Shelly called me yesterday. She doesn't sound so good, I think she may be moving back to Maryland." Patrick repeated.
"Really? I mean I guess I'm not surprised, she is probably having a hard time finding work." A part of me felt sorry for her, it must suck loosing your insurance license and job, but she did bring it upon herself.
"Well I know she messed up but she seems like she really regrets it, you should call her." I was surprised at this, ever since Shelly was fired Patrick has done nothing but bad mouth her. My guess was she probably stopped their little side fling and he was butthurt about it.
"I don't know, wait why did she call you?"
"Her and Gavin broke up, she's in a bad place, her lease is up this month. She needed someone to talk to." He nodded his head forward in my direction. Luckily the phone rang and I was saved from needing to respond. I picked it up quickly, rambling off my memorized greeting. He whispered for me to think about it before he headed back to his desk. The rest of the day dragged on without any mention of Shelly.
I was finishing up an application when Karen informed me the 4 o'clock interview was starting soon. I grabbed my notepad and followed her into Don's office. Don handed me a resume for Taylor Ashwell while Karen went to the front to grab Taylor. I was happy to see he or she had previous experience in insurance, about 3 years to be exact. The rest of the resume was looking promising, I was relaying my hopes to Don when Karen walked back in.
"Taylor, it's nice to meet you. You've met Karen our office manager, this is Juliette, our assistant manager." Don said standing to shake Taylor's hand. I got up also to greet Taylor.
"Nice to meet you, thank you for meeting with me today." Taylor said before taking the seat beside me. Karen sat in the chair on the side of Don's desk facing us.
Taylor was petite with blond hair cut in a short bob. What stuck out was her thick southern accent. Just then I remembered seeing on her resume she attended college in South Carolina. She was dressed to the nines in a fitted white jacket and skirt suit.
"Taylor, I see here you have previous experience working in the insurance world. Tell me a little bit about your day to day duties at your last company. " Don said leaning forward awaiting her response.
I couldn't help but notice the way he was listening to her, as if she was about to tell him the secret to everlasting youth. She went on to list the responsibilities she had at her job back in South Carolina. I was excited to hear the majority were the exact tasks we needed filled here. She seemed nice enough to me, I also appreciated she came dressed up and with extra resumes. Based on her graduation date and work experience I would guess she was 22 or 23.
Don surprised me by asking if I had any questions for Taylor, I looked at my notes and decided I knew enough about her job so I decided to get a little personal and asked what brought her to San Diego. Her smile faded and she lowered her head slightly.
"My father passed away about 4 months ago, my mother has some health issues and she wanted to come live near her sister and my grandmama. I didn't like the idea of her out here without me, in case her health got worse. so I decided I would move here too." She answered.
"I'm so sorry for your loss. Moving across country is hard enough as it is, let alone loosing a family member on top of that. " Don said with sympathy.
"Yes, well I'm hoping to settle in, get a job and make some friends out here. I know that will help." Taylor said sitting up straight again and smiling. This perked Don back up and he began discussing salary and start dates.
"Well it was a pleasure meeting with you today Taylor. We hope to make our decision by Friday. If we have any other questions we will be in contact before then, otherwise expect to hear from me no later then Monday. " Don said standing up. "Please let me walk you out."
We all got up to leave and Taylor turned her attention to us, shaking our hands again and telling us she enjoyed meeting us.
When I got back to my desk I watched Don escort Taylor out, I expected them to shake hands and part ways. Instead he kept walking until they were out of sight. I guess he wanted to walk her to her car. Shrugging I turned to my computer and got back to work.
Moments later I sensed a presence at my desk, looking up I was met with Patrick standing at my desk.
"Was she the new hire? She's hot!" I rolled my eyes, figures the only thing he would notice was her looks.
“Yes, well she has a great resume and experience.” I raised my hand to shoo him away, I wasn't in the mood to be around Patrick.
It had now been about fifteen minutes and still Don hadn't returned. I was just about to get up and peek out the giant glass window when I saw him approach. He opened the door and practically floated in, his happy mood was evident across his face.
“I have a good feeling about her.”
“Yeah, I really like that she has experience, and didn't wear sweatpants to the interview.” I stated. Don hit my desk startling me and started laughing way too hard at my comment. He shook his head still laughing as he left to get back to his office.
“Okaaay,” I mumbled under my breath before turning back to my work. The rest of the day went smoothly. When I walked past Don’s office on my way out I noticed he had already left. Usually he stayed about an hour later then I did but I guess he had plans tonight.
On the way home I called Jacob, we chatted about our 4th of July. From the sound of it he had an uneventful visit with his mom and sister. I hadn't talked to his sister in a while and made a mental note to call her. He made my heart flutter when he mentioned missing me and we made plans to meet up soon before hanging up.
I was happy to see Alicia there when I got home. After the graduation party she went to Dean’s and spent the rest of the week there. After changing out of my work clothes I plopped down next to her.
“So, you going to tell me about what happened when you went MIA for half of the party this weekend?” I raised my brows giving her my best ‘fess up’ face. She instantly lit up.
“Dean told me he loved me, and I said it back!” She sang.
“I assumed you guys were already passengers on the love boat. It took you this long to say it? The rest of the world knew, hell even the mailman knew it.” I teased her. She wasn't laughing along with me.
“It's not funny, you know how I feel about falling in love, I never wanted to. We never said it before we broke up and hadn't since we got back together. It's a big deal, act surprised and happy for me will ya?” I instantly felt bad for laughing.
“I'm sorry Alie, I guess I was surprised you guys hadn't said it yet. I know how you are about committed relationships, but I figured you were over that since getting back together with Dean. I'm excited for you though!" I smiled widely and nudged her for a reaction, hoping she would forgive my innocent face. She smiled back and agreed about being excited.
"Wait, I almost forgot, what was with Viviane hugging you all tightly? I thought she wasn't your biggest fan?" I asked.
"Yeah, I ran into her at the party, she was crying, alot. Turns out she's just having a hard time grieving her husband. " I remember Alicia mentioning her husband had passed awhile back. She went on to tell me about their conversation and how she hoped the sudden change in attitude would stay.
"Looked like you and Dominic were sure enjoying yourself at the party, did his pretty blue eyes win you over? " Alicia said giving me a suspicious look.
"He was really nice, it was fun hearing some of his stories about Nicaragua. Doesn't hurt that he's freaking hot! Although I thought he had green eyes not blue?" I remember the resemblance to Dean was obvious but I guess I don't remember exactly what color his eyes were. They could be like Jacob and change between blue and green, apparently I have a thing for blue green eyes.
We were busy laughing about something when the door opened wide. Dean stood beaming in the doorway but his smile quickly fell when he saw us sitting there.
"Babe, how many times do I have to tell you to lock the door. Any mad man could come in here!" He shut the door locking it behind him.
"Look a mad man made it through already!" She raised her voice and pointed at Dean with one hand and slapped the other across her chest playing dramatic.
"Real funny woman, I'm serious," he leaned down to kiss her hello.
"So, I opened all my gifts from the party. There was a total of 25 thousand dollars in checks and cash." Dean announced. Alicia and I looked at each other wide eyed.
"I've decided to invest most of it, but I also thought maybe I could use some for something fun." He glanced at Alicia before continuing.
"What do you think about taking a trip to my brothers surf camp? You mentioned wanting to go..." Alicia squealed and jumped into Dean's arms almost making him fall backwards.
"I'll take that as a yes?" He leaned down pressing his forehead to hers, smiling. I started sensing a moment here and got up quietly to give them privacy. As I tiptoed away Dean called out.
"You're coming too Juliette!"
Thursday, November 19, 2015
The Unexpected
Sorry this post is a little long, couldn't find the right cut off-
July 2003 Alicia POV
"What are you doing here?" Viviane may have been glaring but her voice didn't match her expression. She barely uttered her words as tears fell down her cheeks. She looked away from me quickly and covered her face with her hands. I turned to go realizing she probably didn't want me here.
Instead of walking away like I should, I felt my feet carry me to Viviane. Sitting beside her I hesitantly raised my arm and stroked her back. I stiffened and prepared for her wrath when I felt her move. She turned towards me and laid her head in my lap and broke down, my hand still on her back, moved up and down with her sobs. I didn't know what to say so I decided silence was best. Gosh I really wish Dean would show up right now. We sat there for a few moments, when her breathing began to steady and she was no longer crying, she sat up. I expected her to come back to reality and be angry at me for being there, I was surprised when she gave me a small smile.
"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to cry on you like that." She reached in her bag next to her and pulled out some tissue to wipe her face.
"It's ok, are you ok?" I didn't want to push it, the fact she actually apologized was huge, but curiosity won out and I had to ask.
"Yeah, I mean...no, no I'm not. Today is mine and Drew's anniversary. We would have been together 6 years today." She swollowed and raised her head and blinked back the tears. I'm guessing Drew is her late husband so I decided it was best not to ask.
"I'm sorry, it's difficult to loose someone you love." Gosh that sounded so cliché. Hopefully the sudden nice side of Viviane was here to say and she didn't get annoyed with me.
"Oh really, how would you know, right now you and Dean are in the honeymoon stage of your relationship." She snorted, guess my luck was fading.
"Well, I lost my dad, I was young so I don't remember much but I did watch my mother suffer." She looked at me quickly and I saw her face fall.
"I'm sorry, how did your mom get over loosing your dad?" Two apologies, maybe she isn't so bad after all.
"I don't think you ever really get over someone. It took time for her, she took it really hard but one day it just didn't hurt as bad as the day before and each day after it got a little easier. Until she didn't cry at every little thing that reminded her of him." I didn't like talking about the past, my mother went into a deep depression after my father's death and I don't want to bring up the memories. I wasn't about to get into detail about the length of time it took my mother to start functioning normally, I don't think it would help any.
"I'm scared I'll forget him. I don't want to move on because whenever I start to I feel like I'm forgetting him. The first time I laughed after his death, I felt so guilty, it was some stupid joke Dean made. It had only been a week, I couldn't believe I laughed when I should have been mourning Will." I saw the water form in her eyes and felt my own eyes begin to tear up.
"You will never forget him and you should never feel guilty about moving on. It doesn't mean you gave up on him. My mom always said she used to think she couldn't enjoy anything because she didn't want to think she was happy he wasn't here. Over time though she knew he would have wanted her to be happy and her time with him may have been cut short, but it wasn't her choice."
She nodded her head at this and before I knew it she enveloped me in a tight hug. When I stiffened she pulled away.
"I know I've been a real bitch to you. Since Will passed the thought of anyone else being in love makes my stomach churn. I see the way Dean looks at you and I see the way you look at him. It was how I used to look at Will. I know you're still young but I've had my share of guys before Will and let me tell you, when you fall in love you know. Somewhere in there I'm happy for you guys." She put her hand to her chest.
I'm not used to this much sappy talk, especially from her. Just fifteen minutes ago Dean told me he loved me and now his sister has poured her heart out at me. What's with these Lockwood's?
"Who said we were in love?" I tried to laugh it off.
"Oh come on you guys can't keep your hands off each other. And ever since you got together Dean won't shut up about you." I tried to force a smile but she must have seen right through me.
"What's the matter you look like you ate something spoiled?"
The last person I wanted to talk to about this was Dean's sister, but she did just do a 180 and I did want to talk to someone.
"I never wanted to fall in love, I don't even think I can." I felt guilty just saying this.
"When you wake up in the morning, what's the first thing you think about?" Viviane asked.
"Dean, if I'm not with him I wish I was, and if he's there I wake up happy." This made me smile just thinking about his arms wrapped around me as we lay there.
"What's the last thing you think about at night?"
"Dean..."
"First person you want to tell good news to?"
"Dean," I wanted to say Juliette but I knew I always talk to Dean first.
"Alicia, you may say you can't be in love but only you know how you really feel. Take it from my experience, life's short, don't waste time being dramatic about it." Viviane stood up and smoothed her dress.
"I'm sure Dean will be wondering what happened to his date, let's get back to the party, I'm sorry for crying all over you." And with that she turned walking back toward the party. I sat there unable to move, I knew she was right it was obvious we were in love. Then why was it so hard for me to say it? I figured I would get up the courage to tell him how I feel as I walked back to the party, lucky for me the property was large and I had a good trek back.
I scanned the crowd in front of me until my eyes rested on him. Dean was standing next to his brother, he threw his head back and laughed at something. I felt my cheeks get hot as I made my way over to him. Spotting me his eyes lit up. God those blue eyes got me every time. I wrapped my arms around him inhaling his scent. Dean lowered his head and gave me a soft kiss.
"You think we can sneak away for a little?" He nodded in agreement and grabbed my hand yanking me toward the house. We quickly walked through the house until we reached the staircase at the front entrance. Once upstairs Dean turned to the right and continued down a hall. We must have passed fifteen doors before the hallway ended and came to a set of french doors.
"Want to see my room?" He said with a mischievous grin. Nodding I followed him in. The size of the room was shocking, it was easily twice the size of our apartment. There was a matching leather couch and chair on the left side of the room, they sat facing a large brick fireplace. Above the mantel was a large TV mounted. On the right was a large king size bed. Everything was decorated in a nautical theme with navy blue, white and red. A giant wooden ships wheel hung above the bed. There were a handful of ships in bottles on the dresser, I moved closer to take a look.
"Did you make all these?" There were at least a dozen in all different styles and sizes.
"Yes, a couple of the first ones I did with my dad but most were me." He gave me a look of triumph. I pointed to one in a bell shaped bottle and asked if it was a Spanish galleon replica, little did he know that was the only type of ship I knew. He smiled in surprise and told me a little bit about it.
"I'm boring you now aren't I?" He closed the space between us and held me around the waist.
"No I think it's adorable, your little hobby." I couldn't help the giggle that escaped.
"Hey, this collection has worked on impressing the ladies before." He tried to hide a smile.
"Oh really Mr. Lockwood, how many?"
"One, it worked on you. I'm pretty sure you like me more now that you've seen my childhood room." Leaning down he kissed me. I pulled away when something caught my eye.
"What is this?" I wasn't holding back the laughter this time. I picked up the picture frame and examined it closer. Dean must have been around ten, he was wearing a blue polo shirt and khakis, the funny part was his hair, his blonde curls were unruly on the top and trimmed short along the sides. His face was turned to the side so you got a clear view of his mullet!
"You did not have a mullet, oh my gosh." I was laughing so hard right now my side began to hurt.
"It was 1991 ok, didn't you ever see Lethal weapon? It was cool, stop laughing at me woman." Luckily he was grinning when he took the picture out of my hands and put it back face down this time. He grabbed my hand and pulled me to the bed.
"I'm not going to show you the picture where I'm sporting some sick MC Hammer pants." Before I could laugh again his lips met mine. Putting my hand on the back of his head I pulled him closer. When his tongue brushed across mine I knew I needed to talk to him before this went to far. Pushing away I moved my hand to his cheek. Looking into those deep blue eyes I knew it was true, I was head over heels in love with this man. Now I just needed the courage to say it out loud.
"I love you too," there it is I did it, and it felt great to say. So I said it again and again. His face lit up before he kissed me hard on the mouth.
"I know." Was all he said before leaning me down on the bed.
Within seconds we were frantically ripping at each others clothes. After removing his belt and lowering his slacks he lifted the skirt of my dress up and moved my panties to the side. Lowering himself on top of me he thrust into me and we got into a quick rhythm. I lifted my head to kiss him forcing his mouth to open for me. It didn't take long before I was moaning into his mouth in pleasure. Shortly after he gently tugged the hair at my scalp and cried out as he climaxed.
We laid there catching our breath before deciding we had probably been away from the party suspiciously long. We adjusted our clothing and I tried running my hands through my long hair to calm it.
When we felt presentable we made the journey back to the guests. Fortunately everyone seemed occupied in their own discussions they didn't seem to notice our absence. I spotted Juliette who was busy giggling away at something Dominic was saying. I grabbed two glasses of champagne from a server walking by, handing one to Dean I pointed toward his brother and walked over. Juliette saw us approaching and her lips curled into a smile and gave me a knowing look.
"Nice of you guys to join the party," Juliette said her smile widened.
"Dean was just giving me a tour, that's all." I tried to sound convincing. Hell if Dominic weren't standing there I would have just said 'yep we had a quicky upstairs' and moved on.
"Oh yeah? Did little bro here show you his ballroom dancing tropies?" Dominic said smacking Dean on the back. A look of embarrassment flashed across Dean's face.
"I'm not going to deny that. Mom made me take lessons, it's not my fault I apparently have a gift and went on to win multiple competitions." He tried to straighten up and say that with confidence, it worked until we all burst out laughing.
"I think it's cute, I have to see a picture of you in those costumes!" I said wrappimg my arm in his.
"Oh there's pictures, but even better, there's video evidence." Dominic revealed.
We continued laughing about old stories Dominic and Dean had. I didn't realize how late it had gotten until I noticed the sky was dark and half the guests had filtered out. Dean left my side for a few moments to say goodbye to the ones still here. Juliette and I grabbed our purses and met Dean at the front where he was thanking his parents for throwing this get together.
"Alicia I'm so happy you came, my son talks very highly of you and I'm enjoying the chance to get to know you." Anna said enveloping me in a hug. I thanked her again and took Frank's out stretched hand, he surprised me by pulling me in for a hug also. The butler, Henry, appeared holding a large box.
"Oh yes Dean, here are your gifts. There's a couple small wrapped gifts in there, but it looks like most everyone brought envelopes." Dean's father said taking the box away from Henry and passing it on to Dean. I peeked into the open box and was shocked at the amount of envelopes in there.
"Wait, I forgot to give you my gift. " Viviane came up to us, panting like she just ran a few blocks. She handed him a shiny gold watch with a black leather strap.
"Sorry it's not wrapped. It was Will's, he bought it after he graduated, he said it was the first nice thing he ever bought for himself. He engraved it. " She motioned for him to flip it, revealing an inscription 'dream big, live bigger' on the back. Dean grabbed Viviane giving her a long hug. He whispered something to her and she nodded giving him a smile.
Turning her attention to me she leaned in to say "thank you," before giving me a hug. I saw Juliette's confused expression and reminded myself to talk to her later.
All our goodbyes were made and we headed back for home. Juliette sat rambling about something in the back seat, I half listened as I stared out the window. Dean entwined his fingers with mine. Turning to face him he mouthed "I love you" making my heart beat a little bit faster I mouthed back, " I love you too."
July 2003 Alicia POV
"What are you doing here?" Viviane may have been glaring but her voice didn't match her expression. She barely uttered her words as tears fell down her cheeks. She looked away from me quickly and covered her face with her hands. I turned to go realizing she probably didn't want me here.
Instead of walking away like I should, I felt my feet carry me to Viviane. Sitting beside her I hesitantly raised my arm and stroked her back. I stiffened and prepared for her wrath when I felt her move. She turned towards me and laid her head in my lap and broke down, my hand still on her back, moved up and down with her sobs. I didn't know what to say so I decided silence was best. Gosh I really wish Dean would show up right now. We sat there for a few moments, when her breathing began to steady and she was no longer crying, she sat up. I expected her to come back to reality and be angry at me for being there, I was surprised when she gave me a small smile.
"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to cry on you like that." She reached in her bag next to her and pulled out some tissue to wipe her face.
"It's ok, are you ok?" I didn't want to push it, the fact she actually apologized was huge, but curiosity won out and I had to ask.
"Yeah, I mean...no, no I'm not. Today is mine and Drew's anniversary. We would have been together 6 years today." She swollowed and raised her head and blinked back the tears. I'm guessing Drew is her late husband so I decided it was best not to ask.
"I'm sorry, it's difficult to loose someone you love." Gosh that sounded so cliché. Hopefully the sudden nice side of Viviane was here to say and she didn't get annoyed with me.
"Oh really, how would you know, right now you and Dean are in the honeymoon stage of your relationship." She snorted, guess my luck was fading.
"Well, I lost my dad, I was young so I don't remember much but I did watch my mother suffer." She looked at me quickly and I saw her face fall.
"I'm sorry, how did your mom get over loosing your dad?" Two apologies, maybe she isn't so bad after all.
"I don't think you ever really get over someone. It took time for her, she took it really hard but one day it just didn't hurt as bad as the day before and each day after it got a little easier. Until she didn't cry at every little thing that reminded her of him." I didn't like talking about the past, my mother went into a deep depression after my father's death and I don't want to bring up the memories. I wasn't about to get into detail about the length of time it took my mother to start functioning normally, I don't think it would help any.
"I'm scared I'll forget him. I don't want to move on because whenever I start to I feel like I'm forgetting him. The first time I laughed after his death, I felt so guilty, it was some stupid joke Dean made. It had only been a week, I couldn't believe I laughed when I should have been mourning Will." I saw the water form in her eyes and felt my own eyes begin to tear up.
"You will never forget him and you should never feel guilty about moving on. It doesn't mean you gave up on him. My mom always said she used to think she couldn't enjoy anything because she didn't want to think she was happy he wasn't here. Over time though she knew he would have wanted her to be happy and her time with him may have been cut short, but it wasn't her choice."
She nodded her head at this and before I knew it she enveloped me in a tight hug. When I stiffened she pulled away.
"I know I've been a real bitch to you. Since Will passed the thought of anyone else being in love makes my stomach churn. I see the way Dean looks at you and I see the way you look at him. It was how I used to look at Will. I know you're still young but I've had my share of guys before Will and let me tell you, when you fall in love you know. Somewhere in there I'm happy for you guys." She put her hand to her chest.
I'm not used to this much sappy talk, especially from her. Just fifteen minutes ago Dean told me he loved me and now his sister has poured her heart out at me. What's with these Lockwood's?
"Who said we were in love?" I tried to laugh it off.
"Oh come on you guys can't keep your hands off each other. And ever since you got together Dean won't shut up about you." I tried to force a smile but she must have seen right through me.
"What's the matter you look like you ate something spoiled?"
The last person I wanted to talk to about this was Dean's sister, but she did just do a 180 and I did want to talk to someone.
"I never wanted to fall in love, I don't even think I can." I felt guilty just saying this.
"When you wake up in the morning, what's the first thing you think about?" Viviane asked.
"Dean, if I'm not with him I wish I was, and if he's there I wake up happy." This made me smile just thinking about his arms wrapped around me as we lay there.
"What's the last thing you think about at night?"
"Dean..."
"First person you want to tell good news to?"
"Dean," I wanted to say Juliette but I knew I always talk to Dean first.
"Alicia, you may say you can't be in love but only you know how you really feel. Take it from my experience, life's short, don't waste time being dramatic about it." Viviane stood up and smoothed her dress.
"I'm sure Dean will be wondering what happened to his date, let's get back to the party, I'm sorry for crying all over you." And with that she turned walking back toward the party. I sat there unable to move, I knew she was right it was obvious we were in love. Then why was it so hard for me to say it? I figured I would get up the courage to tell him how I feel as I walked back to the party, lucky for me the property was large and I had a good trek back.
I scanned the crowd in front of me until my eyes rested on him. Dean was standing next to his brother, he threw his head back and laughed at something. I felt my cheeks get hot as I made my way over to him. Spotting me his eyes lit up. God those blue eyes got me every time. I wrapped my arms around him inhaling his scent. Dean lowered his head and gave me a soft kiss.
"You think we can sneak away for a little?" He nodded in agreement and grabbed my hand yanking me toward the house. We quickly walked through the house until we reached the staircase at the front entrance. Once upstairs Dean turned to the right and continued down a hall. We must have passed fifteen doors before the hallway ended and came to a set of french doors.
"Want to see my room?" He said with a mischievous grin. Nodding I followed him in. The size of the room was shocking, it was easily twice the size of our apartment. There was a matching leather couch and chair on the left side of the room, they sat facing a large brick fireplace. Above the mantel was a large TV mounted. On the right was a large king size bed. Everything was decorated in a nautical theme with navy blue, white and red. A giant wooden ships wheel hung above the bed. There were a handful of ships in bottles on the dresser, I moved closer to take a look.
"Did you make all these?" There were at least a dozen in all different styles and sizes.
"Yes, a couple of the first ones I did with my dad but most were me." He gave me a look of triumph. I pointed to one in a bell shaped bottle and asked if it was a Spanish galleon replica, little did he know that was the only type of ship I knew. He smiled in surprise and told me a little bit about it.
"I'm boring you now aren't I?" He closed the space between us and held me around the waist.
"No I think it's adorable, your little hobby." I couldn't help the giggle that escaped.
"Hey, this collection has worked on impressing the ladies before." He tried to hide a smile.
"Oh really Mr. Lockwood, how many?"
"One, it worked on you. I'm pretty sure you like me more now that you've seen my childhood room." Leaning down he kissed me. I pulled away when something caught my eye.
"What is this?" I wasn't holding back the laughter this time. I picked up the picture frame and examined it closer. Dean must have been around ten, he was wearing a blue polo shirt and khakis, the funny part was his hair, his blonde curls were unruly on the top and trimmed short along the sides. His face was turned to the side so you got a clear view of his mullet!
"You did not have a mullet, oh my gosh." I was laughing so hard right now my side began to hurt.
"It was 1991 ok, didn't you ever see Lethal weapon? It was cool, stop laughing at me woman." Luckily he was grinning when he took the picture out of my hands and put it back face down this time. He grabbed my hand and pulled me to the bed.
"I'm not going to show you the picture where I'm sporting some sick MC Hammer pants." Before I could laugh again his lips met mine. Putting my hand on the back of his head I pulled him closer. When his tongue brushed across mine I knew I needed to talk to him before this went to far. Pushing away I moved my hand to his cheek. Looking into those deep blue eyes I knew it was true, I was head over heels in love with this man. Now I just needed the courage to say it out loud.
"I love you too," there it is I did it, and it felt great to say. So I said it again and again. His face lit up before he kissed me hard on the mouth.
"I know." Was all he said before leaning me down on the bed.
Within seconds we were frantically ripping at each others clothes. After removing his belt and lowering his slacks he lifted the skirt of my dress up and moved my panties to the side. Lowering himself on top of me he thrust into me and we got into a quick rhythm. I lifted my head to kiss him forcing his mouth to open for me. It didn't take long before I was moaning into his mouth in pleasure. Shortly after he gently tugged the hair at my scalp and cried out as he climaxed.
We laid there catching our breath before deciding we had probably been away from the party suspiciously long. We adjusted our clothing and I tried running my hands through my long hair to calm it.
When we felt presentable we made the journey back to the guests. Fortunately everyone seemed occupied in their own discussions they didn't seem to notice our absence. I spotted Juliette who was busy giggling away at something Dominic was saying. I grabbed two glasses of champagne from a server walking by, handing one to Dean I pointed toward his brother and walked over. Juliette saw us approaching and her lips curled into a smile and gave me a knowing look.
"Nice of you guys to join the party," Juliette said her smile widened.
"Dean was just giving me a tour, that's all." I tried to sound convincing. Hell if Dominic weren't standing there I would have just said 'yep we had a quicky upstairs' and moved on.
"Oh yeah? Did little bro here show you his ballroom dancing tropies?" Dominic said smacking Dean on the back. A look of embarrassment flashed across Dean's face.
"I'm not going to deny that. Mom made me take lessons, it's not my fault I apparently have a gift and went on to win multiple competitions." He tried to straighten up and say that with confidence, it worked until we all burst out laughing.
"I think it's cute, I have to see a picture of you in those costumes!" I said wrappimg my arm in his.
"Oh there's pictures, but even better, there's video evidence." Dominic revealed.
We continued laughing about old stories Dominic and Dean had. I didn't realize how late it had gotten until I noticed the sky was dark and half the guests had filtered out. Dean left my side for a few moments to say goodbye to the ones still here. Juliette and I grabbed our purses and met Dean at the front where he was thanking his parents for throwing this get together.
"Alicia I'm so happy you came, my son talks very highly of you and I'm enjoying the chance to get to know you." Anna said enveloping me in a hug. I thanked her again and took Frank's out stretched hand, he surprised me by pulling me in for a hug also. The butler, Henry, appeared holding a large box.
"Oh yes Dean, here are your gifts. There's a couple small wrapped gifts in there, but it looks like most everyone brought envelopes." Dean's father said taking the box away from Henry and passing it on to Dean. I peeked into the open box and was shocked at the amount of envelopes in there.
"Wait, I forgot to give you my gift. " Viviane came up to us, panting like she just ran a few blocks. She handed him a shiny gold watch with a black leather strap.
"Sorry it's not wrapped. It was Will's, he bought it after he graduated, he said it was the first nice thing he ever bought for himself. He engraved it. " She motioned for him to flip it, revealing an inscription 'dream big, live bigger' on the back. Dean grabbed Viviane giving her a long hug. He whispered something to her and she nodded giving him a smile.
Turning her attention to me she leaned in to say "thank you," before giving me a hug. I saw Juliette's confused expression and reminded myself to talk to her later.
All our goodbyes were made and we headed back for home. Juliette sat rambling about something in the back seat, I half listened as I stared out the window. Dean entwined his fingers with mine. Turning to face him he mouthed "I love you" making my heart beat a little bit faster I mouthed back, " I love you too."
Monday, November 16, 2015
Back
Hey everyone, I'm back from my trip! I'll work on some posts and hopefully have some up this week. Next post will be another Alicia POV.
Thanks for reading and commenting :)
-Juliette
Saturday, November 7, 2015
Butlers and tears- Alicia's POV part 1
July 2003
"Coffee, need coffee," a very grumpy Juliette stumbled into the kitchen around 10:30am. I laughed at her smudged eye liner and her knotted hair.
"Don't you think you should be drinking water not coffee?" I'm not sure how much she had to drink, but based on how she stumbled to her room last night like a toddler learning to walk, I would say she must be hurting. Putting another waffle into the toaster I poured her a glass of water and set it in front of her.
"You know I'm still on edge about this party, it'd be great if you could get some life in you before we leave." I said handing her a plate. She shot me a dirty look then drank the water. After she demolished her food and the rest of the water she perked up some.
"Why are you so anxious, you've already met his family?" Juliette got up to make another waffle and coffee.
"I met his parents and sister, his parents were nice enough but his sister, ugh she was such a snob." I sighed just remembering the night we met.
It was at a fancy restaurant in a upscale hotel. I had been both excited and nervous to meet his family. The entrance to the hotel was very grand and luxurious, walking through the lobby I had been dreaming about staying here one day with Dean when a tiny well dressed woman approached us. Dean instantly greeted her with a hug before introducing her.
"Viviane I would like for you to meet my girlfriend Alicia." She turned her attention to me giving me a short tight smile before shaking my hand.
"Nice to meet you Viviane, I've heard so much about you," I shook her hand with a grin.
"Really? Well hopefully only good things." She turned her attention back to Dean and asked about the status of his parents. He shrugged and said he wasn't sure. Rolling her eyes she impatiently told us we might as well get a table and wait over some drinks.
"Alicia, Dean tells me you are attending UCSD also, what are you majoring in?" Viviane asked picking up her martini.
"Marine biology," I smiled widely, for as long as I remember I wanted to be a marine biologist, funny since Colorado was a landlocked state.
"What so you can work at SeaWorld and dance around with seals on stage?" She started laughing loudly at this. I frowned and looked to Dean, he gave me a sympathetic look before telling his sister to knock it off. Once his parents arrived we were distracted for awhile. Though she made her jabs frequently, the worst was after we finished dinner, Dean and his parents were chatting and Viviane turned to me and asked what it was like dating someone with so much money. I was shocked and didn't respond so she carried on and on about how I won't need to feed dead fish to the whales if I married Dean. His mother, Anna, saved the moment by enveloping me in a hug saying goodbye.
On the drive home I asked what her deal was and Dean apologized explaining how she has been pretty bitter since her husband died a little over a year ago. I decided to give her a break but hoped I wouldn't have to see her much.
"Earth to Alie!" Juliette said breaking my daze. Looking at the clock I panicked and ran to hop in the shower. By noon I was on my fifth outfit, a floral knee length dress, looking in the mirror behind my bedroom door. In the reflection Dean walked up behind me, wrapping his arms around my waist and kissed my neck.
"You look beautiful Alie, I don't want to share you today, can we just stay here?" He spun me around and began placing kisses along my neck.
"I'm sure your family would love that, it's your graduation baby. Now stop that I have to finish getting ready." I shoved him off before I let his touch convince me to stay. Luckily I was mostly ready and Juliette was also so the three of us hopped into Deans Jeep and headed north. I was quiet during the drive, only piping in when someone asked me a direct question. I know I was probably being dramatic and the party would go smoothly but I couldn't shake my nerves.
We pulled up to a large circular driveway with a grand fountain in the middle. The house was even bigger then I imagined. It was a brick colonial style mansion. Walking up the stairs I took in the beautiful white and purple flowers in pots taller them me that aligned the stone steps. Dean took my hand in his before using the other to ring the doorbell. Almost immediately a short stocky man in a uniform opened the door.
"Mr. Lockwood very nice to see you sir, please come in." He opened the door wider and motioned for us to step in. I shot a glance to Juliette, she stared at me wide eyed and mouthed 'wow' before following us in. The front foyer was just as grand as the front of the house. The floor was a sparkly sort of cream and gold speckled stone with a dark diamond shape in the middle. There were two staircases with black iron railings one the left and right both curved until they connected at the top. Walking through the middle we continued to follow the man who greeted us, Juliette leaned in and asked if he was the butler, I just shook my head and a giggled escaped.
Once we reached the backyard I was taken back by the amount of guests. Dean was spotted quickly and the majority turned their attention to him yelling out words like "congratulations!" and "cheers!" His parents hurried to greet us.
"Alicia I'm so glad you could join us," his mother Anna said giving me a kiss on the cheek. His father, Frank said hello with a handshake. Dean introduced them to Juliette before they filled us in on who was here and told us to go get some food. Getting some food didn't come easy as we were bombarded by several people along the way. After a dozen introductions we finally made it to the buffet tables.
"They're using China for a backyard party," Juliette said reaching for a plate.
"Yeah Dean this is not what I was expecting, was that the butler?" I said placing a hand on his arm.
"It was, Henry, he's been with our family since I can remember. It's a lot I know but I'm not the wealthy one my family is so I just don't like talking about it, feels like I'm bragging or something."
"Well, I don't think I would ever leave this place, I saw a tennis court a pool and some huge greenhouse already and I haven't even seen everything." Juliette said in amazement.
We, or should I say, several servers, piled our plates high with lobster, rice, shrimp, bread and root veggies. Finding a table with three empty seats we sat down to eat. A server in white came and placed three glasses of bubbly champagne in front of us. In the middle of a mouthful of bread a young attractive man sat down. He resembled Dean with his curly blonde curls and deep blue eyes. He smiled the same panty dropping grin that Dean was an expert at and I knew instantly they were related.
"You must be Alicia, Dean you told me she was beautiful but I think that doesn't do her justice. How'd you get her to stay with you little bro?" He said this while wrapping an arm around Dean's neck and playfully messing his hair up. Dean laughed and yanked away throwing a punch in the air toward his brother.
This must be Dominic, Dean's older and only brother. From what I've heard Dominic was quite the free spirited wanderer. After high school he went to Berkley, dropped out after his first year and had since traveled around the world. His parents funded his lifestyle for two years, thinking it was just a phase and that he would return to school. When they found he was down in Nicaragua surfing his days away with no intention of returning, they finally cut him off refusing to fund his 'bum' life as they called it.
Dean was 6 years younger, when he graduated high school he hadn't seen Dominic in years so he boarded a plane and spent the summer with his brother. It turns out when he got there he discovered his brother had saved a large majority of the money his parents had been sending him and started a surf camp. His surf camp housed about ten people every three weeks, minus expenses he also set it up where most of the money went to preserving the wetlands in the area. Dean said it had been the best summer of his life, he worked along side his brother and met a lot of great people from all walks of life. When he came back he told his parents what his older brother was up to and the tension they once had when Dominic was brought up was gone. They were so proud he wasn't just wasting his life away down there, they donated a large chunk of money with the stipulation that he had to visit home twice a year at least. Dominic sounded like such a character I was excited to meet him.
"Dominic it's so great to meet you, how's life in Nicaragua?" His face lit up as he told me about the camp and all the work they were doing down there. It sounded like such an adventure, not sure I'd do the surfing part though, but helping out small rural communities develope and maintain safe clean drinking water sounded interesting.
"Wow that sounds amazing, maybe we could pay a visit this summer?" I said turning to Dean.
"Yeah that'd be great, I just got settled at work though so probably closer to the end of summer, maybe for a week. " I clasped my hands together and squealed. I've heard between Costa Rica and Nicaragua they have one of the highest concentration of sea turtles in the world, I would love to get in some research.
"Um hello, I'm so going with you!" Juliette piped in as she sat down next to me. She had left for a moment but must have returned somewhere at the end of our conversation.
"Juliette sorry I didn't introduce you, this is my brother Dominic, Dominic this is Juliette." They exchanged greetings and I couldn't help but notice how the rest of our conversation Dominic couldn't keep his eyes off of Juliette. Our talk was interrupted by Frank he had tapped his glass to get everyone's attention. Making a beautiful speech about how proud he and Anna were of Dean, he raised his glass and asked us all to toast to Dean. As soon as the glass left my lips Dean surprised me with a kiss, it was a short sweet kiss but still made my knees weak. Breaking the kiss he leaned down and whispered in my ear.
"I love you Alicia," he turned away before I could respond and got up to hug his parents. I froze, this was the first time he's said that, other then when he slipped in that he was falling in love with me, back when we got back together. My heart began racing like a horse at the Kentucky derby. I looked to Juliette who was busy talking with Dominic. I had to get up, I needed air, ha I was outside I had plenty of air, then why couldn't I breath?
I got up and started walking, I found a pathway away from the party and just kept walking. The path curved to the right and I saw a large ornate gazebo, walking towards the gazebo I figured I would sit and do some thinking. When I approached the table I was startled to see Viviane curled up on a bench, what was more surprising was the tears running down her face. She looked up with fear etched across her face, when she noticed it was me she scrunched her brows and glared at me before speaking.
"What are you doing here?"
-hey guys, this is my last post for over a week. I'm going on Vacation!!! Hoping to write some but not sure I can post. Thanks for reading and commenting!
Juliette
Thursday, November 5, 2015
4th of July buzz
July 2003
I asked Alicia if I could speak with her alone. A look of concern flashed across her face before she quickly shoo'd Dean out. He didn't take it to heart and made a joke about girl talk. Once he shut the door behind him I sat in the chair across from Alicia.
"Jules, say something you're freaking me out." Alicia blurted, filling the uncomfortable silence that had filled the room.
"Did you sleep with Cal?" I asked searching her face, knowing she couldn't hide the truth from me. When she flinched and lowered her head I knew it was true.
"Jules it was a long time ago, before you two got together. We were never a couple." She explained quickly.
"But you knew I had a crush on him our entire time in high school?" A part of me knew it didn't really matter it's not like Cal and I are still together, I guess what's really bugging me is how she never told me.
"Jules, you never told me you liked him until after homecoming. We hooked up right after school started, it was at some junior's party." She leaned forward and reaching across the coffee table she grabbed my hands in hers. I didn't say anything but also didn't pull away so she continued.
"I promise you, I would have never done that to you. You know me."
"Yeah I do know you, and I know sleeping with someone isn't really that big a deal to you." I knew it was a low blow, I was still upset. I leaned back yanking my hands away folding them over my chest. She flinched and turned her face like she had just received a slap, I guess in a way it was.
"That was mean, I'm sorry. I'm not really mad you slept with him, I'm mad you never told me." I had been waiting for her to apologize about the lying, when she didn't I decided to throw it out there.
"You're right I didn't tell you. Part of the reason was because...because I had feelings for him." I looked up instantly at this. She sighed, her attention was suddenly fixed to something in the corner behind me. Without looking at me she continued.
"As you know by high school I wasn't new to sex. The first time sucked and so did the couple of guys after. No one hurt me or anything, I just felt like they were using me, or maybe I was using them. Then I met Cal at a party. He was so nice to me, we talked for hours. I told him about my mom, which is Not something I do." It wasn't, if I hadn't known her for so long and hadn't personally witnessed the state that was her mom, I wouldn't have known either.
"Alicia, if I would have known you liked him, especially since you slept with him, I would have never carried a torch for him for so long." Great, this conversation started with me feeling hurt because of something I thought she did to me. Now I was hurting for her.
"Because I never let it go anywhere, after I slept with him I freaked. It was the first time I felt like this, all I did was think about him. I also felt horribly embarrassed, I didn't know how to be a 'girlfriend'. Even though my mom got better when I was 10, I was nervous she'd coil back, I couldn't bring a guy home. He called a few times and tried talking to me at school but I just blew him off." She sighed.
"And why didn't you tell me this." I said calmly, my anger had died down. Staying mad at each other was not something we practiced. I still needed to know though.
"The look on your face after the homecoming dance, " she smiled at the memory. "You went on and on about him, how hot he was, how nice he seemed. I knew how picky you were with guys, I didn't want to ruin that. Your my best friend Jules, I didn't want to hurt you. By the next semester I was over him so I figured no one ever needed to know." She looked so crestfallen. I got up and joined her on the couch and wrapped my arms around her.
"Ok, I still wish you would have told me but I believe you. Let's forget it, we always promised we'd never let a boy get between us, we're not about to start. Remember Robert Lawson?" We broke the hug and tried to laugh off the heavy air looming over us. Back in 3rd grade Alicia and I were in opposite classes and hadn't met yet. We found out Robert was 'dating' both of us. I confronted her first on the playground, I looked crazy shaking my love note in the air to prove he was with me. She also had the same note (do you like me circle yes or no.) Once we found out he was playing the both of us we dumped Robert and have been best friends ever since.
"Sorry for breaking up your moment with Dean," I suddenly noticed the popcorn bowl in front of me, smiling I picked it up and started munching away.
"That's OK, we've been a little on edge since he told me about the graduation party. I know my anxiousness is just coming off as bitchy." We chatted awhile longer before heading off to bed. Tonight definitely didn't go as planned but I was glad I went out with Cal tonight. Despite the bomb he threw in I enjoyed catching up.
Friday was the 4th of July, it also happened to be the one year anniversary of Dean and Alicia's first date. Dean being the polite neighbor he is, had invited us to a big party at the beach, a handful of people rented out rooms at a seaside inn. The people we met were great and it was a way to break in our first 4th away from home, especially for Alicia.
The fireworks over the ocean were unreal, I was ecstatic when Dean invited us again to the same party this year. I had immediately called Jacob to invite him, unfortunately he already promised his mom he'd drive north to visit her. I was disappointed about going alone but sucked it up and went. We spent the night drinking, dancing and eating a lot of barbecue. Laying on my giant little mermaid beach towel I took in the majestic firework show. On my right Dean and Alicia were too busy groping each other to bother watching. If I wasn't buzzed from the fruity punch I had too many refills of, I would have felt alone. Luckily the combination of alcohol and the warm summer breeze kissed my skin and I felt nothing but bliss. After the grand finale the lovely sober Dean drove us home.
Alicia reminded me about leaving around noon to make it to LA as I stumbled to my bed. Passing out in my swimsuit and sundress, I knew I would wake up feeling like a truck hit me, but nothing felt better in this moment.
Hoping to get another post in by the weekend. Next post will be Alicia's POV.
Thanks for reading and commenting!
-Juliette
Monday, November 2, 2015
Just toss that in there
July 2003
"OK Alie, should I wear this or...this?" It was Wednesday night and I was skimming through my closet for the perfect outfit. I don't care if I didn't want to get back together with Cal, a girl had to look her best for an ex. I was deciding on a short pink form fitting in the waist sundress or the same black strapless I wore the first night we kissed.
"The pink one, makes your butt look good." Alicia said with little enthusiasm. She encouraged me to go out with him again yet ever since I asked her to help me get ready she has given me attitude. I sat down next to her on my bed and asked what was up.
"Nothing really, I think, I just, I don't know why all of a sudden you seem so anxious and excited about tonight. I thought you were over him. I remember how much he hurt you and I feel like you forgot." She looked me in the eyes with concern.
"Ok listen, I do remember how much he hurt me and I'm not going to run back into his arms if that's what you're worried about. It's just, he was my high school crush you know. It's hard not to get a little nervous about going out with him again. If anything I just want to look good to show him what he's missing." I bumped her with my shoulder and smiled hoping she'd perk up.
"Well then let's show him," she jumped up and started helping me get ready. Once I put the final touch of lipstick on I looked in the mirror to inspect my reflection. Sexy, but not too much, I ran my hands through my hair to loosen the curls some. Don't want to look like I tried too hard.
There was a knock at the door and Alicia ran to beat me to it.
"Hello Cal," Alicia greeted him with a small grin, not even trying to hide her annoyance.
"Alicia, nice to see you again." Cal said sounding quite genuine.
"Juliette wow, you look amazing." He commented with his hands out for affect. He smiled, his dimples still got me, I wondered if they always would.
"Hey, I thought we were meeting there?"
"You don't think I'd let a hot girl like you walk there by herself do you?" That was kinda sweet, I looked at Alicia who was standing behind him rolling her eyes.
We said goodbye, and with a curt wave and fake smile Alicia shut the door behind us. I laughed to myself as I kept up with Cal, Alicia was never one to be subtle.
We ended up walking to the pub and I was grateful for opting to wear flat sandals as apposed to heels. We were seated in a dark booth and handed our menus. Within seconds a busty blonde appeared at our table. I couldn't help but notice her gaze linger upon Cal. He was attractive in his fitted black top hugging him tightly along his upper arms. I also now noticed his once black wavy hair was trimmed very short. It almost made the rest of his head look to big, I thought.
I realized I was still staring when the waitress asked me again what I would like to drink. I quickly turned my attention back to her and ordered a coke. She leaned in toward Cal, sticking her bust in his face and recommend the mozzarella sticks for an appetizer. Not sure why she had to show him, wasn't like there was a picture but whatever. I was actually a little surprised at this, back when we were dating, the flirty attention of a waitress would have really bothered me. However right now I was finding it kinda funny how obvious she was being. Cal agreed and put an order in for the mozzarella sticks before turning back to me. We caught up some about the last semester of our first year. Turns out his team did really well and made it to the Mountain West Conference, I didn't really know what that meant but I just nodded along.
"So how was Rosarito?" I grabbed a piping hot mozzarella stick and dropped it quickly on my plate.
"Oh man, Mexico was awesome Jules, you gotta come with us next time." His eyes glossed over and he had a dreamy expression on his face.
"Well I doubt I'll get the invite from Shelly anytime soon." I said rolling my eyes. My cheese stick cooled some so I popped it in my mouth, greasy goodness, I was glad little miss flirt recommended them.
"Yeah, Gavin said something about her being thrown under the bus?" I almost choked on that statement.
"Hold up!? You do know why Shelly got fired don't you?" I knew I should probably shut my mouth but I was annoyed. When he just raised his brows and shook his head I continued.
"She was lying to customers and selling policies because of those lies." I felt the warmth creep to my cheeks.
"Wow, according to Gavin she got wrapped up in some selling practice the whole office did and got blamed for it?" I'm glad he seemed to be questioning this statement.
"No, she was the only one lying. Cal, listen I know Gavin is your friend but you should know I think Shelly is a pathological liar. Everything she's ever told me, well most everything has been a lie." Right then I paused, I knew I would regret what I said next but I couldn't stop.
"Shelly has been sleeping with her coworker, Patrick, for almost a year." I flinched a little nervous for his reaction, Gavin was his best friend. I opened my eyes and was surprised to see him so calm.
"Yeah, I know. Actually, I didn't know she was sleeping around at work. I suspected she was cheating with someone, I over heard her talking on the phone. It was obvious by what she was saying, that she was fooling around with whoever was on the other line."
"Wow, have you told Gavin?"
"Yeah, he's just so head over heals for her that he thinks I heard wrong." He shook his head and grabbed my hand. "Listen I'll try and talked to him again but I didn't take you out to talk about their messed up relationship. " I agreed and we got back into a more uplifting topic. Busty came back and took our orders, I noticed she never took her eyes off of Cal, even when she took my order. I was surprised how easily our conversation flowed, I would say even easier then when we were together. Maybe the romantic tension wasn't there anymore.
"So Alicia seemed real happy to see me," he grinned.
"Ha, yeah, she's not your biggest fan." I laughed.
"Is she still with Dean?"
"Yeah, they're pretty hot and heavy." My fish and chips arrived and I suddenly regretted all the fried choices I was making tonight.
"Alie was never one for relationships, she didn't even return my call after we slept together." He threw this in casually. I didn't respond I just stared at him with my mouth open wide. His laughter immediately stopped when he saw my face.
"Oh God Jules, I swear I thought you knew. It was back in high way before we got together." A look of worry spread across his face.
"No, I didn't know. Was it serious?" Why was this new information, why didn't my best friend tell me this? I'd like Cal since the beginning of high school, she knew that. I was speechless, grabbing for my coke I started biting at my straw.
"No, like I said, it was once. It was freshman year we didn't even go out on a date. Listen I feel bad enough saying anything, just don't be mad at Alicia." I wasn't sure why his sudden loyalty to Alicia but I wasn't in the mood to discuss this further.
"Alright alright, let's just talk about something else, please?" And that's exactly what we did for the next hour. We talked about him going home for the summer and what our plans were for the 4th of July. I tried to focus and enjoy myself but a part of me was dying to get home and talk to Alicia. When the waitress brought our check I wasn't surprised to see a smiley face and number written boldly on pink ink. We argued a moment before I agreed he could pay then headed back toward the cottage.
"Juliette I really enjoyed tonight, aside from putting my foot in my mouth, I miss talking to you." He laughed a little testing the waters, I gave him a smile but didn't feel like laughing yet.
"Well who ever said we couldn't talk? No harm in talking right?" I believed that until he hit my lips with his. I wanted to pull back but the familiarity of his warm lips kept me there. Deeping the kiss I felt as if I was searching, not sure for what. Pulling away I thanked him for dinner and hurried inside. Letting out the breath I was clinging to I opened my eyes to see Alicia and Dean cuddled up on the couch.
"How'd it go?" Alicia asked sitting up.
"There's something I need to ask you.."
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