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“Sure,” she said dubiously.

“Hey, later I’ll pick up dinner for us, and
maybe some popcorn.  We have a microwave here.  We can munch on popcorn and watch
movies together.”

“Brady, thanks for…”

He gave a dismissive wave.  “Don’t mention it. 
Why don’t you try to sleep until dinnertime?”  He crossed the room and checked
her forehead for fever.  “You’re still burning up,” he said worriedly.  He
walked into the bathroom and moistened a rag.  He returned and laid it on her
forehead.  “Boy, when you get ear infections, you get ear infections,” he
commented.

“Yeah, it’s been a lifelong curse.”

“Well, try to sleep.  You should be feeling a
lot better in a couple days.”

She nodded and rolled over, experienced a wave
of nausea because of the vertigo, but forced it back.  Brady squeezed her
shoulder.  “Try to sleep.”

***

“Ike, this is the most fun I’ve had in years,”
Liz announced as they crested the gangway and stepped onto the cruise ship.  An
attendant hurriedly snapped their photo and passed Liz her camera back.   

The couple had managed to be among the first in
line to board.  Soon, they were directed to their rooms.  Ike had booked
gorgeous, adjoining suites for the two of them.  Both were luxuriously
appointed and Liz gasped at the sight of the expansive space.  “Oh, Ike, this
is too much,” she cried.

“No, it’s not.  Besides, you deserve it, Liz.”

She smiled widely as she hurried across the room
to peer out the window.  “Oh, just look at that view.”  She could see the
terminal, and beyond it, the sparkling Atlantic Ocean.  She couldn’t believe
that soon, she would be out there cruising that beautiful ocean.  It was like a
fairy tale.

“Well, honey,” Ike said.  “I’m going next door. 
I’m going to unpack, and then perhaps we can take a walk together and get the
lay of the … ship.  After, we’ll decide where we’re going to have dinner.”

“This is all so exciting.”

After Ike had left, Liz got a call on her cell
phone.  She checked the screen and saw it was her daughter Denise, Amanda’s
mother.  “Denise!  How was Idaho?” she asked.

Her daughter laughed.  “Not as good as Cocoa
Beach, I’m betting.”

“So you heard…?”

“Yes.  I spoke to Amanda.”  She chuckled. 
“She’s awfully worried about you, Mom.”

Liz gave a withering sigh.  “I really didn’t
want her to worry, or anyone else, for that matter.”

“I’m not worried,” her daughter said brightly. 
“I’m so happy for you.  You deserve some fun, Mom.”

“Well, I appreciate you saying so, dear.”

“So, have you kissed him yet?”

“Who?”

“Don’t play coy with me, Mother.”  She gave a
burst of laughter.  “I’ve seen how you and Ike look at each other.  The silver
devil!”

“Denise!” Liz cried.  “Are you…?  What are…?” 
She reddened at the very notion of physical contact between her and Ike. 

But then again…

“You spoke to Amanda then?  She told you about
her ear infections?” she said, changing the subject.

“Yes, the poor thing.  She is forever battling
them.”

“I know,” Liz said with a sigh.  “I really
should get off this ship and stay with her.”

“No, you shouldn’t.  Besides, Brady is with
her.  And it sounds like he’s taking good care of her.”  She paused for a
moment.  “So, I guess your plan is working out nicely…”

“What plan is that?” Liz asked innocently.

“Oh, you know.  The one where you set Amanda and
Brady up.”

“Did … Amanda tell you about that?”

“She mentioned it.  I know you’re worried Amanda
works too much, doesn’t make time for a personal life…”  She chuckled.  “I know
you want great grandchildren.”

“I…  I mean…  Denise, you know she works too
hard!  And Ike’s grandson does too.  They’re so focused on their jobs, they
don’t make time for much else.”

“Well, that’s true, but they’re young, Mom. 
They’ll figure things out eventually.”

“Yes, I guess so.  I’m a … meddler, huh?”

“Well, it happens to the best of us.  But hey! 
You’re having some fun.  That’s definitely a positive.”

Liz chuckled lightly.  “Yes, and I’d better go. 
We’ll be departing soon.  I wish you could see this ocean, Denise.  It’s so
beautiful.  And Florida!  Until you’ve seen these blues skies, well, you really
haven’t seen blue skies.”

“Sounds wonderful.  Well, call me when you’re
back from the cruise.  I won’t expect a phone call from you, since I understand
cell phone coverage can be spotty on the ocean, and that you may be charged
exorbitant rates.”

“Oh, I didn’t know that.  I’ll be careful about
using it then.”

“Have fun!”

After they’d signed off, Liz unpacked her
clothing and hung it in a lovely armoire, affixed to the wall.  She hurriedly
freshened up in the stunningly appointed bathroom—was that really a Jacuzzi
tub?—and then sat for a moment in an overstuffed Queen Anne chair.  She glanced
around.  This was a space designed for comfort—and she’d thought the retirement
center was nice!

A half hour later, Ike knocked lightly on her
door.  “I understand we’re departing in a few moments.  Shall we go on deck and
wave to the masses?”

Liz giggled.  “Ike, I didn’t see any masses.  I
did see a few people waiting to board their own cruise ships.”

“Well, we’ll wave to them then.”

Together, they strolled through the hallway and
to the elevator to the upper deck.  Liz gasped at the sight of the massive main
deck, with the multiple swimming pools, myriad lawn chairs, and refreshment
bars at every turn.  It was almost too much to take in.

“Ike, this is…  It’s…”

He took her hand.  “I know,” he said softly,
searching her face.  And then, to her utmost surprise and delight, he kissed
her softly on her lips.  He pulled back, smiling into her eyes.  “I’ve wanted
to do that since the first time we met,” he said.

She raised a hand to her mouth and watched him
with questioning eyes.  And then she smiled, lowered her hand, and she kissed
him
this time.

“Do you think the grandparents are having fun?”
Amanda asked Brady, as she sat on the bed, propped up on pillows.  Her ears
were still hurting, but felt incrementally better. 

“It’s day two of the cruise.  My guess is they’re
having a good time,” he said.  “I imagine they’re onshore in the Bahamas,
either shopping or spending time on the beach.”

Amanda gave a wistful sigh, and then chuckled. 
“Brady, did I tell you Grandma loved flying?  She’d never been on a plane
before, but she really enjoyed it.”

He made a mock sad face.  “Pity you didn’t
inherit her adventurous streak.”

“Hey, how do you know I don’t have an
adventurous streak?”

He pinned her with a look.  “I’ve flown in a
plane with you, remember?”

She eyed a pillow lying beside her and
contemplated throwing it at him. 

“Don’t even think about it,” he warned.  “It’s
time for your pain pills, by the way.”

She gave him a speculative glance.  “You’d have
made a good nurse.” 

“Oh, sure,” he said, but rose to get her medication. 
He moved to her bedside and checked her forehead.  “Still warm,” he muttered. 
“I should have picked up a thermometer at the drug store.”

“Ah, we don’t need it,” she said.

“How’s the vertigo?” he asked.

“Comes and goes.”

He retrieved her pills and gave them to her. 
“I’m going to go get us some lunch.  What sounds good to you?”

“Anything,” she answered, yawning.  “Are you
going now?”

He nodded and sat down on the bed to pull his
shoes on.  “Seafood or burgers?” he asked.

“Surprise me.”  She reached over to her bedside
table and pulled a pad of paper from the top drawer.  “Lunch, May 23rd, Brady
paid,” she wrote, and then glanced at him.  “Be sure to tell me how much lunch
costs so I can reimburse you when we get home.”

“I’m not worried about it,” he said.

“I am,” she said with a wince, and glanced
around.  “We should have stayed at a cheaper hotel.”

“I’ve got the hotel costs,” he told her.  “I’m
the one who picked it.”

“But I’m staying here too.”

“Yes, but we’re sharing a room.”

Her eyes widened.  “Oh, wow.  It didn’t occur to
me that if the grandparents knew we were sharing a room…”  Her words trailed
off.

“Ah, heck, for all we know,
they’re
sharing a room.  Besides, it’s not as if anything is going on.”

“True,” she conceded.

He left to get lunch and she laid back and
watched TV.  When her cell phone rang, she started.  “Hello,” she said
sleepily.

“Hello, Amanda, this is Lois.”

Her boss
.  She sat up taller in the
bed.  She’d forgotten to call her boss, as had been the plan.  “Hello, Lois. 
How are you?”

“Well, to be honest, I could be better.”  There
was a pregnant pause before she spoke again.  “Listen, I understand you had a
family emergency and had to leave town, but we’re having a bit of an emergency
ourselves here.”

“What is it, Lois?”

“As you know, you left before finishing the soap
campaign—really left us in the lurch, if truth be told.”

“I’m really sorry.  I…”

“Amanda, I understand you’re in a tough
situation, and it’s commendable that family comes first for you, but in this
industry…”

Amanda sighed.  She knew what was coming.  She
hurried to speak, determined to keep her job.

“I’m sorry for putting you in a bind by leaving,
but I’ll be back…”  She was going to say soon, but that wasn’t actually the
case.  She was scheduled to see the doctor in five days, to learn if she was
well enough to fly.  If she wasn’t…

“When will you be back?” Lois asked.

Amanda pressed her eyelids together and sighed. 
She explained her current health predicament. 

“I’m sorry you’re not well, of course,” her boss
replied, “but Amanda, business must come first.  I’m afraid we can’t wait
another week to finish up the campaign, and Jennifer has agreed to step in for
you.”

Amanda gasped.  Jennifer was a rival at work,
who spent much of her time gossiping and attempting to take credit for others’
work.  She was both lazy and a brown noser, and had somehow managed to stay
under the radar of her supervisors.  

“Lois, I…  I mean, Jennifer isn’t…” 

What could she say?  She was a world away from
her job and that campaign needed to be completed and presented to the client. 
She couldn’t very well do it from Florida, and even if she could set up
something via a laptop, she didn’t feel like working anyway.  “I … understand,”
she said finally.  “Lois, will I have a job when I return?” she asked, bracing
for her answer.

“To be honest, it depends on when you come
back.  You know we’re fast-paced here, and that the work hours are terrible. 
Things didn’t slow down because you left.  With you gone, we’re even more under
the gun.  If you’re not back within the week then…”

“You’ll have to replace me.”

“You know I don’t want to.  You’re the best I’ve
got here, and you work harder than anyone.  But again, those traits don’t do me
any good when you’re not even here.”

“I understand.”

“Please keep me apprised of your situation.  If
we can make this work, we will—provided you’re back within the week.  Where did
you say you were?” she asked.

She hadn’t said.  “Cocoa Beach, Florida,” she
told her.  She winced, wondering if she should have fibbed.  But if she’d
ultimately learned the truth, it wouldn’t bode well for her on the job.

“Cocoa Beach,” Lois repeated. 

Was Amanda imagining it, or had she heard a note
of suspicion in her boss’ voice.  “Uh, yes, you see, my grandparents…”

“We’ll talk later,” Lois cut in briskly.

“Okay,” Amanda said.  “Thank you for … calling.”

She rolled over onto her face and began pounding
the mattress in frustration.  That call was the last thing she expected, but
then, who was she kidding?  She’d up and left her job on the spur of the
moment, and should have known her absence was creating hardships for her
employer.  She was the hardest working person there.  Without her, they would
have to scramble to adequately service their accounts.

When Brady walked into the hotel room five
minutes later, she was still face-down on the bed.   “Amanda, are you okay?”

“No,” came her muffled response.

“Are you feeling worse?”

“Yes.”

“Your ears are hurting worse…?”