Moving On:
Chapter Twelve
Angela rushes up to me with the
papers filled out from our vows. “Mom, what should I do with these? You don’t
have to take the time to deal with them. Let me do it for you.”
“Thank you sweetheart. I appreciate
it. Put them into my file cabinet at home when you pick up Ma Barker. Her food
is already packed on the kitchen counter.”
“I’m glad Angela will watch her
while we’re gone. I love Ma Barker.” I tell Michael while
We stand in the hall, after our
reception, I look up at him, 6’ tall, thick sandy hair with just a hint of grey
at the temples, hazel eyes, standing tall and athletic lean, grinning at me…gosh,
he looks good enough to kiss, a lot. “Shall we go home and finish packing so we
can get out of here?”
“Yes, except we have a bit of a
glitch I didn’t tell you about. Last week I had a call that Rosario had messed
up our reservations. They will be a week late but they are giving us the same
price, so since we have several extra days before we can enjoy Rosario, I
decided to give you a surprise in the meantime. Let’s go home and I’ll fill you
in on my gift to you.” He takes my arm and gives it a loving squeeze.
“OK,” Now I’m curious as well as
disappointed. I hold onto hope.
We drive home talking about the wedding.
Michael pats my hand and tells me, “Several years ago I had a sloop. I took her
out often and loved it. I thought of the two of us enjoying the peace and
tranquility of being on the water. Thinking about how much fun my sail boat was,
I called Anacortes Yacht Charters and rented a beautiful 34‘ sloop. You’ll love
the feel of the fresh air wash over us while listening to the slap of the sails
against the winds. It’s very restful. I have had it stocked with food, wine and
all the trimmings. It comes with instructions and Mae Wests.” He winks, and
gives me a satisfying grin.
“I hope Mae West doesn’t have to
come back from the dead to rescue me. I sink like a rock and I’ve never floated.”
I bat my eyes at Michael.” I guess I’m ready for our new adventure, it’ll go
swimmingly well.” I’m thinking words to myself I must never utter.
“Trust me, sweetheart. I truly
believe you’ll love the peaceful feelings when we are on the water and if you don’t,
you can throw me overboard.” His eyes twinkle and he grins ear to ear.
“It’s picturesque watching the sailors
on the straight, but if the seas get rough and rock us like a carnival ride I
will upchuck Chicago.”
“We’ll be just fine. It’s not just a
sailboat, it has a motor and there are many bays we can pull into with
restaurants, shops, we can take leisurely walks, even use them to get out of
any pending storm. We’ll have fun at
night docking in different ports and inlets. We have to get to Anacortes so we
can pick the boat up. The guy promised me it would be ready when we get there
tonight. All we need to add to our packing list is our bedding and personal
stuff. OK? I know you’re already packed for finer things but you can add the few
warmer clothes and tennis shoes, right? It’s time to go, sweetheart.” He
changed his clothes into comfortable dockers, a white pull over and boat shoes.
I hadn’t known him to wear boat shoes before. Aha, he has more to him than I
knew. There are still secrets I have yet to uncover.
“OK.” I’m a wreck. My dreams of a
sweet, soft, easy, peaceful honeymoon may have just exploded into a pile of
seaweed. I promise myself to be happy and look at the bright side. I’ve taken my
share of trips, to the supermarket, over steps, dog toys, my dirty clothes
pile, the hose outside, and I’ve tripped up on a few other things, too. This is
way different. A pleasant trip, I mull that over in my head.
“I’m ready for our honeymoon, for
better, for worse, for comfort or curse, for rich foods, or poor boys, and of
course, in change of plans. You are so sweet to give me this new experience.” I
kiss Michael reassuringly while my mind screams NO, nononono! I really must be
positive. I shake thoughts out of my cluttered brain. “I really love to watch
the sail boats on the water. I’m ready to be part of the scenery now, instead
of the observer.” I cross my fingers as I take a big breath for bravery.
“I’m ready for our honeymoon too,
sweetheart. We’ll have fun. If we don’t, then we can tune the radio to a
miserable talk show, stand in rain without an umbrella, not wear coats to
freeze to death. We could go hungry, too. None of that will happen, though. I
will certainly entertain you.”
He hums the tune ‘Let Me Entertain
you’ and does a little dance around me.
He makes me laugh. I had to pack quickly
for the boat, and hope I remembered all the important things. My mind is
racing. I was calm and excited, full of warm cuddly thoughts. Now I envision my
butt freezing on a cold hard seat that rocks like an 9.0 point earthquake, and
frigid winds slapping me senseless while the smell of fish and the sound of
seagulls fill my olfactory instead of Michaels heavenly cologne. I can’t
imagine being sexy wearing long john style PJ’s. My hair will be blown to bits
and my makeup will be washed out to sea. What a sight I imagine it to be. I kiss my new husband as we walk toward the
car, our bags loaded with our things, ready, willing and not too stable.
…………………………………………………………………..
As we pull into the parking lot at
the Yacht Charter office in Anacortes, a man is standing at the front door,
looking at his watch. We meet up with him and he greets us, “Welcome. I’m
Bill,” his smile is forced. He must have missed something important like an
invitation to the grand opening of a used car dealership offering
hors-d’-oeuvres and free drinks. He invites us into the office. I notice his picture
is not on the wall of photos of salesmen. He must be a temporary employee. He
has papers already on the desk, waiting for us. “We have insurance papers
here,” he hands them toward Michael, “and the rental agreement. Also, I have
the currant NOAA navigation charts with all up to date corrections for you.
Here is all you will need to board the “Sound Hound”.
Michael signs all the necessary
papers and, since he pre-paid, we shake hands, ready to leave. Bill had pointed
us toward the sloop. “Do you need the tour?” he asks, with a monotone voice. I
get a little pissed at his demeaner and say, “Yes, I need to know all about everything.”
Michael chimes in, “Besides its’
customary for the Charter to show customers the boat and check out all the
systems before we take her out. It’s to insure the boat is in good experienced
hands when out on the water.”
He glares at us with a dead pan
face. We walk toward the boat and I climb aboard first. It’s a sweet looking
sloop. I like it. It’s rocking as we get on board. The guys climb in and Bill
begins to point out all the interesting things we need to know. It’s not big,
but has everything we need. In the cabin on the galley counter I see a basket
with big blue bows that hold wine, cheese, sausages and crackers. It’s really
sweet. Bill tells us he put ice in the refrigerator. It’s actually an ice
chest. Bill confides he is the Charter owners neighbor and is filling in as a
favor. He’s here just for today.
He and Michael go through all the
systems. They start the engine, check the sails and everything else I don’t
know about. Bill leaves us waving as he
walks off. We are now alone and hug each other then go back to the car and
empty everything we’ll need on board. I feel excited now. It’s getting close to
dusk so we hurry. We look for a dock cart and find one tucked aside at the top
of the gangway.
We empty the car, lock it and get
back to the boat. Unload and sit down, rocking gently we relax. Tonight we stay
right here, docked. It’s too dark to leave. Our night begins as we open a fine Cabernet,
sample some of the cheese, and rock the boat.