Bondi Beach (11 page)

“Martin?”
I said softly.

“Yeah
?” he asked.

I intertwined my fingers with his.
“Thank you for telling me.”

He looked into me for a long moment.
“Thanks for not running away,” he said quietly.

“How could I
? I fall in love with you more every day.”

He kisse
d the top of my head and, we both fell asleep.

*****

Every now and again, a woman needs to know that she’s loved. Every now and again, a woman also needs to know that her feet are planted firmly in reality and that she’s not off living in a fantasy.

A small war was starting
to rage inside of me. On the one hand, I felt loved and protected by Martin. He was almost too good, and it felt somewhat impossible. How can a relationship be so good and easy and two people be so happy? Were we just in the “falling in love” part of the relationship? Would things go downhill over time as most relationships do? Our timing with one another was great – not just physically but in many other ways. He often knew what I was thinking. He’d shown up right when Drew had arrived at his house to see him, and he’d gotten home just when Mike was being, well, Mike.

My relationship with my husband had been
great. He’d been a good man and very solid and responsible. However, I was starting to sense that, with Martin and me, there was something else that I’d missed out on before. Something that I had stopped believing in years ago. Chemistry. Magic. Soul mates. The Perfect Man – at least for me. Call me crazy, but my relationship with Martin opened up an entirely impractical lens through which to see our relationship.

I realized that, like many who were experienced in love relationships, I had adopted
a pragmatic view. I’d bought into the myth that the practical relationship is the good relationship and that nothing more is needed but a slow and steady warmth. It certainly works for a lot of people. “Great guy. Supportive. Communicative. Good parent. Emotionally mature and steady.” All of these virtues are important, but I was beginning to wonder if they were enough. At what point had I discarded the idea of “Prince Charming”? Or the more mature but equally unrealistic desire for a “soul mate”? What had I lost as a result of viewing relationships merely from the warm and practical angle? Passion? An abiding faith in what lies beyond our human perception? A belief in destiny?

Perhaps I would never know
. However, I realized that I was deeply grateful to Martin for the chance to view our relationship through his lens… and to see how much fuller and more joyful that lens could make my life.

Chapter 21

FEBRUARY 8

We awoke to find the skies cloudy and worked quickly to take down the tent and pack the car. Though we’d planned to hike that day, we decided to head home early and left just before the sky opened up with rain.

We returned to the house by early afternoon
, and it was pouring there as well. Martin suggested that we leave everything in the car until the skies cleared, and we ran to the door and into the house, still managing to get soaked in that short distance. A crash of thunder followed, and Martin turned on the TV to check the weather. It looked like it would be raining for the next few days.

“Scrabble?” he asked.

“Sure,” I chuckled, pouring a glass of wine for each of us. Until I’d come to Martin’s, I hadn’t played Scrabble since I was a kid.

He set up the board, and we sat side by side on the living room sofa to play
. I was getting the hang of the game, again, and finally won with “synchronicity.” “Just the fact that I could win with that word was synchronous, don’t you think?” I joked.

“Everything about us is
,” he mused.

“Do you ever wonder what would have happened if we hadn’t met at Bondi that day
? If I’d been somewhere else?” I asked.

His face became serious, and his eyes locked on mine.
“Yeah. I do. I think we help to make our own destinies. Either one of us could have not shown up. When I had that dream, I had no idea when I was supposed to meet you. When I got married, I didn’t think about my dream for a long time. But, after things ended with Melanie, I remembered it one night and kind of panicked. I thought that maybe I’d missed you already. Then, I realized that you could have taken another path, too, and just had to make peace with that possibility.”

“So, you weren’t sure whether I’d show up or not?”

“No. Then, I stopped thinking about it – until you showed up on Bondi.”

“Right o
n schedule,” I smiled. No one would believe this. Many people don’t believe that these things happen in the real world. It reminded me of a song I’d always liked about meeting your soul mate in another life.

A smile grew on Martin’s face.
“What is it?”

“Oh, there’s a
Kenny Loggins song – ‘Sweet Reunion.’”

Martin smiled, getting up and walk
ing over to his stereo. He rifled through his CD collection and pulled one out, holding it up. It was Kenny Loggins’
Leap of Faith
CD.

“That’s it!” I said
. He put it into his CD player and sat down on the sofa beside me. As it played, he reached out and held my hand. We leaned back into the cushions, and I looked up at the ceiling as he closed his eyes. It was uncanny how much it reminded us of our situation though the song was more about soul mates over lifetimes than destiny in this one.

I
looked over at Martin. Smiling, he said, “You’re right. This song is perfect.”

*****

That night in bed, Martin and I talked for hours. We talked about past lovers, the people who had loved us well and those who had not. We talked about the lovers whom we had failed. We discussed our marriages, including the qualities that we thought we had seen in our partners and whether we were right in our assessments or terribly wrong. These included the nagging thoughts, the challenges and struggles in our relationships, and the lessons we had learned.

We also talked about what we wanted now
. Boiled down, what had we learned in our lives and what did we want the most? That day on the beach behind his house, Martin had told me that he wanted peace. What he really wanted was someone in whom he could entrust his heart… forever. Someone to take care of and someone who would take care of him. Someone to talk with about the things most important to him – life, love, God. He wanted quiet days working at home punctuated with world travel accompanied by the love of his life. He wanted an adventure, albeit a peaceful one, that would include a kind of synchronicity and depth that seemed to elude most couples that often become too busy with their day-to-day responsibilities, children or not.

I can’t say that what I wanted was any different
. I’d already worked from home for nearly two decades and loved being able to work without interruption, a cup of tea and some quiet music playing in the background. I loved having the freedom to move according to the rhythms of the day and shift gears whenever I needed to without stressing out. I also enjoyed traveling and meeting new people. Martin and I agreed that love and relationships are the most important things in life. Money was a tool that helped to grease the skids for an easier life, but the real joy for us came from meaningful relationships with the right partner and with friends and family.

Chapter 22

FEBRUARY 9-11

The next few days flew by as we spent time walking on the beach, talking at home, and getting together with more of Martin’s friends. One evening, we had dinner with Bud and his family at their home. Bud was a computer programmer by day and a surfer whenever he could squeeze it in. He’d met his wife Tricia at work. She was a programmer, too, and was very warm and welcoming. They were a great family with three energetic young boys aged 3, 5, and 9. The kids already knew how to surf and loved playing in the water.

After dinner, I offered to help her clean up, and we took the dishes into the kitchen
. Martin offered to help, but she told him that she and I could handle it. So, he and Bud played with the boys, who clearly adored their “Uncle Martin.”

“Thanks so much for having us over for dinn
er,” I said, laying some dirty dishes on the counter.

Tricia smiled
. "I'm really glad that you could come.” She hesitated for a moment, but I could tell that there was something more she wanted to say. I rinsed the dishes while she loaded the dishwasher. She lowered her voice. “It's nice that Martin finally has someone he can spend time with.”

I looked at her
inquisitively, and she continued. “Well, we’ve been worried about him for a long time.” She stopped what she was doing. “Ever since he got together with Melanie really. Nobody thought that was a very good idea.” She paused and shook her head. “I shouldn’t be saying anything.”

“No, it’s okay.
” I put my hand on her arm. “From what Martin’s told me, they were never a good match.”

“That’s an understatement
. We met Melanie in college. Drew and Bud tried to warn Martin, but he felt sorry for her. He thought he could fix her, but all she ever did was think about herself. It didn’t matter what Martin did. It was never enough for Melanie.”

“He’s such a good man
,” I said. “It must have been awful for him.”

“He’s
a great man, and it tore him apart.” She shrugged. “Anyway, all that’s water under the bridge. You’re with him now. Thank goodness.”

“Tricia
, where is Melanie now?”

She stood up from the dishwasher and looked at me
. “She lives in Sydney. And, from what Mike told Bud, she’s been asking about Martin. A lot.”

“Do you know why?”

“No. But I don’t trust her. Just watch your back.” She paused for a moment. “And Eva – I’m sorry about what happened with Mike. He never would have done that before. It’s like he’s become a different person.”

I nodded. “I’m just glad Martin came home in time, or I don’t know….” my voice trailed off.

She reached out and squeezed my arm. “I know. Bud told me. Have you thought about pressing charges?”

I nodded. “It crossed my mind. But after Martin finished with him, I don’t think he’ll ever bother me again.”

Tricia nodded. “Mike told Bud that he was drunk and that he was sorry for what happened. He also told him that Martin was angrier than he’d ever seen him. Mike was afraid that Martin was going to kill him. I can’t imagine he’ll ever come near you again,” she told me.

We stood silent for a moment. “
Come on,” I finally said. “Let’s go out and join the others.”

We enjoyed the rest of our evening with Bud and Tricia and their kids
. A short while later, we said our “goodbyes” and headed home.

“Is everything alright?” Martin asked
as we drove up the coast toward Narrabeen Lakes.

I nodded, thinking about what Tricia had said
. “Yeah. Tricia said that Melanie’s been asking Mike about you.”

“I had a feeling something was up
. I almost came into the kitchen to see if I could help you both, but you finished up before I could break away from Bud and the boys. Did she say anything else?”

“
Yes. Mike’s sorry about what happened. He’d never seen you so angry and thought you were going to kill him.”

“I considered it,” Martin said quietly.

I finally said, “Tricia also said that they weren’t fans of Melanie.”

He
chuckled. “Nobody was. That’s why I felt so sorry for her and ended up marrying her.”

I reached out to put my hand on his leg
. “You’re a good man, Martin. You have a big heart. It’s one of the things I love about you.”

He put his hand on mine and squeezed it
. “I hope you had a good time, anyway.”

“I had a great time.”

“Good,” he said grinning. “Because, tomorrow, you get to meet my mom and my sister.”

Chapter 23

FEBRUARY 12-13

Florence and Janine flew in
from Brisbane to see us the following afternoon. Apparently, Martin’s mother had called to check in on him several hours after he’d hit me with the surfboard on Bondi Beach. She’d had no idea what had happened before she called.

When the phone rang, h
e’d just read his old journal and had glanced over at his phone to see who was calling. He’d picked it up, still reeling from the fact that he’d just met the woman whom he’d dreamed of years before. Hearing something different in his voice, his mother had asked what was wrong.

“Remember when I had that surfing accident when I was 15?” he’d asked her.

“Of course,” she’d replied. “We almost lost you that day.”

“Mom, do you remember that
dream I had the night that I stayed at the hospital?”

She
’d wondered why he was bringing this up now. “Yes.”

“
I met my wife this morning.”

He told me that there
had been a long silence on the other end of the line. “How in the world….?” she’d begun, trailing off.

He
had explained to her what had happened at Bondi and that he’d come home to look for his journal. When they were on the phone, he’d read the passage to her again.

Since
then, he’d spoken with her a few times about me. She knew that he had taken me home to stay with him and had simply warned him to “be careful” because I might not be interested in a relationship or share his dream. I’m sure that, as a mother, she must have also wanted him to take care to not get hurt by a strange woman he barely knew.

S
he knew that we were together, now, and had wanted to meet me before I flew back to the States. His sister Janine came, too. They knew that our time together was short so planned to fly in one day and out the next. I wasn’t sure if Martin would want to meet them alone or if I should come to the airport with him, but he insisted that I join him.

He
had arranged to pick them up outside of the baggage claim area. Staying for only two days, they had packed light and arrived only a few minutes after Martin pulled his car up to the curb. Janine was the first out the door, and I immediately saw the resemblance between Martin and his younger sister, six years his junior.

“Hey, big brother!” Janine called out
. Tall and slender with wavy brown hair and a small nose, she ran up to him and gave him a hug.

“Hey, Sis,” he said, smiling broadly and lifting her off the ground by a few inches
. She shrieked.

Florence was a few steps behind
. She glanced over at me, smiling warmly and nodding, and I returned the gesture.

“Hello,” she said, her hand outstretched
. “You must be Eva. I’m Flo. Martin’s told me so much about you. I’m glad that we could meet.”

“Likewise,” I said, taking
her hand in mine. “It’s really a pleasure meeting you.”

She turned to her daughter
. “This is Janine.”

I said, “It’s really nice to meet you, Janine
. Thank you both for coming such a distance.”

Janine came in for a hug while Martin put his arm around his mother’s shoulders
. “It’s not every day I get to meet one of Martin’s girlfriends.”

A little embarrassed, Flo said, “Janine!”

Defensively, she said, “That’s not what I meant!  I mean he hasn’t
had
one in such a long time.” She looked apologetically at her brother, who simply chuckled and wrapped his other arm around her waist.

“It’s so great to have you both here,” he told them
, looking from one to the other. “Let’s get out of this traffic and head back to the house.”

Despite her protestations, I climbed into the back seat of the car so that Flo could ride up front
with Martin. Janine and I sat in the back and became acquainted with one another. She wanted to know exactly how Martin and I had met. I could tell that Flo was listening so I suggested that Martin tell the story, but he deferred to me.

“Well, I came to Australia
in early January. On my third day here, I went to Bondi Beach. I was on my way to get something to drink when I passed a small group of surfers,” I gestured toward Martin, who was smiling warmly at me in the rear view mirror. “Bud was standing down by the waterline and called out to them from behind. When they all turned around, Martin didn’t realize that I was passing by right next to him, and he accidentally hit me with his surfboard.”

“Were you hurt?” Janine asked
. It was clear that Martin’s conversations with his mother regarding me had been kept private.

“
A little,” I smiled.

“She was in the hospital for a few days,
” Martin said, and she looked surprised.

“
I had a cut above my right eye, some bruises, and my eye was swollen shut.” I pointed to the small scar on my forehead.

“Oh,” she said
. After a long pause, she asked, “How did my brother get you to go out with him after he hit you with a surfboard?” The three of us laughed, and Janine didn’t understand what was so funny.

“Oh, Janine
. I love you already,” I told her, still chuckling and wiping a tear from my eye and continuing with the story. “Martin actually sent me flowers and came to see me in the hospital the next day.”

“
That’s so sweet,” Janine cooed.

“
Two days after the accident, Martin was visiting me at the hospital when the doctor said that he would only release me if I had someone to look after me. I was still having a lot of dizziness when I would get up to walk, and he was afraid that I might fall and hurt myself if no one was there to help. Your brother offered to take care of me until I was well enough to travel. And he did.”

Martin
looked back at me in the mirror, his expression serious and tender. I was sitting directly behind Flo but could tell that she didn’t miss a thing. She turned around a little. “Eva, I understand that you fell at Martin’s.”

“Yes
,” I chuckled. “I managed to hurt myself anyway.”

“
What happened?” Janine asked.

“After the accident, I was dizzy
for several days. I was also taking vicodin for the pain, and I’m sure that contributed to the dizziness. Anyway, they knew that I had a concussion but weren’t sure if I had more serious brain damage. During my first night at Martin’s, I had to get up to use the bathroom. It was late, and I didn’t want to bother him so I went alone. I was okay until I was on my way back to bed. Then, I became dizzy and blacked out.”

“
It scared me to death,” Martin told his mother quietly. “I was sound asleep and heard a loud crash. Eva was in the guest room and had knocked a serving tray on the floor when she fell. When I got to the door, she was face down on the floor with blood on her forehead and eye.”

“Oh!
” Janine said.

“Not the brightest thing I’ve ever done
” I said, hoping that we could change the subject soon. Talking about myself for an extended period was not something that I relished.

“It
must have been awful, Dear,” Flo said sincerely.

“I just felt bad for Martin.
It was already late when he took me to the emergency room. I think we got back around six o’clock that morning. Then, he took care of me for days. Every morning, he changed my dressing. For my wound,” I added a little too hastily. He glanced back at me in the rear view mirror, and I could tell he was trying to stifle a laugh that no one else seemed to pick up on.

Flo shook her head
. “It sounds like a frightening time.”

“It was,”
Martin said, glancing over at his mother. “But,” he said looking back at me warmly, “if it hadn’t happened, we probably never would have met.” She reached over and patted his knee as Janine looked out the window and contemplated it all in silence.

*****

Back at the house, Martin settled Janine and Flo into their respective guest rooms. He and I had prepared a meal earlier and put it into the refrigerator so I busied myself with heating up the food since it was nearly dinner time.

About
ten minutes later, he came into the kitchen to help. As soon as I saw him enter the room, my stomach fluttered. This was becoming a common occurrence. Ever since we had been intimate with one another, it didn’t take more than a certain look of his to leave me feeling a little breathless.

His eyes were focused on mine so intensely that I couldn’t look away. “How are you doing?”

“I’m fine,” I looked up at him and smiled.

He cocked his head to the side a little. “You’re not nervous, are you?”

I shook my head. “Not so much. I was a little earlier.” I thought that everything was going well with his mother and Janine, whom I liked a lot.

He walked over to me and reached his arms around me, pulling me to him. “They love you.” He pulled back a little and looked into my eyes.
“Just like I do.”

Flo entered the room
and helped Martin set the table when dinner was ready. We all sat down to eat, and I enjoyed watching Martin interact with his family. Clearly, the three of them were very close.

Janine talked about her job in advertising and her new boyfriend Bill
. I enjoyed getting to know both Janine and Flo. Flo was well mannered, warm, and polite. Her love for Martin was evident, and I wondered if my being here presented a concern for her.

After dinner
, I offered to put on some water for tea. Martin and Janine carried the dishes to the kitchen before Janine excused herself to call Bill and Martin had to answer a call from Bud. I was left alone with Flo, who seemed to want to talk while I poured a mug of tea for each of us. She was quiet for a moment.

“Flo,” I leaned
over and put my hand on hers. “I don’t mean to be forward, but is there something that you want to discuss with me?”

“Oh, dear,” she said, smil
ing, “you’re very perceptive.” She looked into my eyes and was quiet for a moment. “When Martin was 15 years old,” she said softly, “he had an accident.”

“Yes.”

“Did he tell you about it?”

“Yes.”

“We almost lost him. Well, he actually was gone for a few minutes.”

“That must have been terrible for you.”

“It was,” she said, her eyes watering. She chuckled then shook her head. “Just the memory….” I waited for her to continue, but she seemed to be struggling to maintain her composure.

“Are you wondering if he told me about his dream?

“Yes,” she whispered. “Well, he said he told you.”

“Yes,” I put down my cup of tea on the
coffee table. “He did.”

“So, you know.”
I nodded, and she looked relieved. “When he told me about it so many years ago, I thought he’d just had a colorful dream that night, but he insisted that it was real. In that one dream, he was sure he’d seen his wife. He said that when he saw you at Bondi last month, everything was just as it had been in the dream. Down to what you were wearing and a pearl necklace you had on.”

I pulled my neckline down a little to reveal my necklace of lavender pearls.

“Well,” she said softly. “And here you are.”

“I must say,” I
looked up as Martin walked into the room, “I was surprised when Martin told me about his dream.”

Sensing that we were discussing something serious, he arched a brow as he came to sit beside me
. “What did I miss?” he asked, placing his hand on mine.

“We were just talking about your dream
,” I told him, squeezing his hand.

He glanced at his mother. “Ah.”

“What did you think about it?” she asked me then hesitated. “Did you believe it was true?”

Martin looked down as I answered
. “At first, I wasn’t sure what to think. I believed what he told me, but it was a lot to take in. He told me that, in his dream, he knew that I was his wife and that he had to help me. I didn’t have that same dream so could only go by what he told me about it and what he showed me in his journal. I’ve thought about it a lot, and I don’t know the larger meaning of the dream. You know, why was Martin being shown part of his destiny? If he hadn’t had the dream, would his life have been different? I just don’t have the answers to those things.” I looked over at Martin. “What I do know is that I’ve never met anyone like him. He is loving, kind, and smart. He has a good heart. He’s been so caring and so kind to me that I don’t even know how I’ll ever begin to repay him.” Looking humbled, he shook his head, and I continued. “One of the things that’s impressed me is how much faith he has. Even with a dream like that, it took a lot of faith to continue to believe in something that he saw in a dream 21 years ago.” He leaned over and kissed me on the side of the face, and I smiled at him. He reached his arm across my shoulders and rested it there.