Danica Williams: Hot Vacation

Into the quiet, Lily asked, “When do you leave, August?”

The question was like a punch to his sternum, as if she could read the thoughts in his head. Clearing his throat, he said, “Three days.”

She said nothing, just nodded and kissed his pec before stepping back to wet her hair. He watched as she washed it, then her body, and realized he and his ex-wife had never showered together in all the years they’d been married. When she was done, she stepped out to the small bath rug and began to dry off. He quickly washed and when he was dry, he wrapped a towel around his waist and went in search of her.

Nothing prepared him for the sight of her slipping her feet into her sandals, fully dressed again by his front door. Before he could say anything, she stepped close and kissed his jaw. “ Gracias por la hermosa tarde , August. For the beautiful afternoon. I will not forget it. Or you.” Going up on tiptoe, she left a fragile kiss on his lips and slipped through the door before he could wrap his mind around her words.

August didn’t follow her. The next day, he returned to the cantina and Marcio told him she wouldn’t be in. Still, he lingered over his food and drank several more beers than he usually did. Part of him knew he was waiting to see if Lily would appear.

She didn’t.

What he didn’t understand was the irrational anger he felt about it. He was the one who’d set boundaries. She was adhering to them at his request, his insistence, really.

She wasn’t there again the day before he was to leave and this time he left her a note asking her to call him or let him take her to dinner before he left. There was no response and he wondered at his rising panic that he’d leave Puerto Vallarta without ever seeing her again.

The morning of his flight, he considered delaying it but forced himself to pack instead. He sat down at the table where he’d taken her…he hadn’t even been considerate enough to fuck her on a bed he belatedly realized…and wrote her a letter.

Lily,

I enjoyed meeting you, talking to you. The time we spent

together will remain with me for the rest of my life. It filled

up a hollow place inside me that I thought would always be

empty. Thank you for that.

If you ever want to talk, or if you ever visit the States,

my contact information is below. I don’t have any other

information about you except the bar but I’ll write you there.

I’m sorry if I hurt you. That was never my intention.

August

The cab arrived and he dropped the letter off at the restaurant where Lily still had not appeared. There was no more time. His real life waited for him in Boston. First, he was stopping to visit his parents in Miami. His fourth such trip since his separation and divorce from Madeline. He had a lot to make up for.

His mother picked him up from the airport, insisting as she always did that she loved having every moment possible with him and a taxi wasn’t necessary. As he waited for his luggage, she appeared beside him, pulling him into a tight hug. “Mom, you didn’t have to park and come in.”

She was small and slender, a blond-haired, blue-eyed beauty. The light of his father’s life. “Don’t be ridiculous. I wanted to see you as soon as possible.” She stepped back, holding him at arm’s length, and smiled, “You look wonderful, darling. That trip was just what you needed.”

“Thanks. I think so, too.”

Grabbing his suitcase from the carousel, he held out his arm to her and she took it with a mini hug. “I’ve missed you. Tell me how you’ve been. What did you do while you were away?”

“I…” his voice trailed off as the only thought that entered his mind from three weeks in another country was about Lily. “Nothing. I hung out, ate, and drank beer.”

“No ladies? Really? I can hardly believe that. You have that look,” she told him smugly.

“What look?” Even he could hear the trepidation in his voice so it was doubtful his all-knowing mother missed it.

She smiled, waiting until they crossed the street to the parking garage before she answered. “You look like a man who’s had sex with a woman he didn’t see coming. The kind of woman who shook up all your carefully laid plans and made you question everything you’ve ever wanted. That look, August darling.”

He said nothing because he wasn’t certain what would come out of his mouth. Instead, he opened her door for her and took his time putting on his seatbelt.

“It isn’t going to work, August. It didn’t work when I asked you about drinking at that party when you were fifteen, it won’t work now.” She turned to him as she slid her sunglasses on and smiled. “Fair warning.” Then she put the car in gear.

Spending time with his parents reminded him about the truly wonderful life they’d given him. They were wealthy because of hard work. They’d made him wealthy by investing his inheritance and trust funds before he was old enough to drive. Most importantly, they saw him and they heard him. After years of Madeline’s complete lack of interest, he soaked up their attention like a small child.

His mother was a fantastic cook; his father could hold a conversation about anything and everything. August had taken over his dad’s company when he graduated college and Daven had retired to Miami with his “sweet little Lana”. After three days of laughing and hanging out, his father asked, “Don’t really care but how’s the business?”

“Good, Dad. I kept an eye on everything remotely while I was in Mexico. You don’t have to worry. I’ll pass that company on to my own children someday…you know, if that miracle ever happens.” Suddenly he was bitter, the anger boiling up out of nowhere at the time wasted.

Daven Lang leaned forward, cutting a look at his wife before focusing on their only child. “I’m going to tell you what I just heard, son. ‘ I’m doing what I think you want me to do until I can get my own kids — whom I don’t believe I have a hope in hell of ever having — to take it over. ’ That about right, August?”

Eyes widened in surprise, he quickly said, “No, Dad. I like what I do.”

“You’re a bad liar, August. Always have been. I didn’t even like that company but it made a shitload of money so it had that going for it.” He sat back and picked up his spiked lemonade, “Sell it.”

“What? Dad, I’m not going to sell the company you spent your entire life building. No way.”

“August. I worked there; I did what I did to provide a life for my family. I have everything I want right here on this patio. You and your mother matter, August. Not my name on a door I haven’t bothered to even see for almost eight years. Sell it.”

His mother placed her hand over his, “Darling, we’re so glad you got Madeline out of your life. She was poison to your heart and mind. She’s gone now. Sell the company and take a couple of years off. Figure out what you really want to do and make sure you love it. Don’t you know that was all we’ve ever cared about? Dad never expected you to offer to take over the company.”

“We built your fortune so you would have freedom, August. To choose the life that will make you happy. Not to get caught in a repeat of mine.”

They sat for a long time and August stared at the ocean from their condo balcony. It seemed right to tell them, he needed to tell someone. “I met a woman.” Chancing a look at his mother, he wasn’t surprised to see her smile. “She isn’t…what you’re used to seeing me date.”

“What the hell does that mean?” his father demanded.

“I only knew her for six hours. Not enough to connect like I did. She isn’t skinny or well-educated. She has a child by someone else. She’s poor, works in a bar in Mexico.”