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CHAPTER TWELVE
Hours later, Lucy woke up and stretched. Her body felt sore, likely from her and Jamie’s marathon love-making the night before, but it was a good kind of sore. It took her a few seconds to realize Jamie was no longer beside her. When she did, she sat up and looked around the suite. She could see light streaming in the windows, and when she looked at the clock at the bedside she was surprised to see that it was just after seven a.m.
“Jamie?” she called out to the empty suite. She threw back the covers and went over to the window. It was a beautiful morning; slightly overcast but it would likely burn off and make way for the sun later on in the day. Jamie had told her he was taking her sight-seeing today. So where was he? She wondered if he’d changed his mind, or if his sister was having a hard time of it. She headed to the bathroom, but was stopped short when she saw the note he had taped to the mirror of the armoire. It was penned in his bold handwriting and it said,
Lovely Lucy,
I checked with Brianne and she’s going to spend the day with my parents. I went to get a few things for our sight-seeing tour today. Dress comfortably—wear shorts if you have them, because it’s going to be warm. Oh, and socks with tennis shoes. If you didn’t bring any, feel free to buy whatever you need in the gift shop and charge it to the room. Your breakfast will be delivered at eight and your car will pick you up at nine. I can’t wait to see you.
--Jamie
Lucy smiled. This guy was a piece of work, but life was certainly never dull when he was around. She had brought shorts, a pair of white denim cut-offs. She showered and put them on with a snug-fitting Marilyn Monroe tank top. She’d only brought sandals with her so after she slipped those on, she went to one of the numerous boutiques inside the hotel and bought a pair of tennis shoes—using her own money, of course.
By the time she got back to the room, room service had set up her breakfast, which she ate quickly. Then she put on her tennis shoes and sat on the balcony, enjoying the ocean view, until she got a call notifying her that her car was waiting. She grabbed her small purse, in which she’d put sunglasses, sunscreen, and lip balm. She grabbed a light sweater, too, just in case.
Lucy realized when she stepped onto the elevator that the man operating it had been there yesterday afternoon, but not last night when she and Jamie had been practically ripping each other’s clothes off in it. She smiled at the memory.
When she got down to the lobby, the concierge directed her outside where the car should have been waiting. Instead, Jamie was there, standing next to two beachcomber bicycles, one green and one pink. She started laughing.
“Bikes?”
“Yes, I thought we’d go on a bike ride. Don’t you like to ride?”
“Um, yeah…I mean I used to. Other than the stationary bike at the gym, it’s been a long time. Where are we headed?”
“Coronado has over fifty miles of bike trail; I thought it would be a great way for you to see the Island and parts of San Diego. You really don’t mind the bicycle, do you?”
Lucy looked at the bike again. The seat was big and heavily padded. “Just to be clear, we’re not going to the whole fifty miles, are we?”
He chuckled and said, “No, but we’ll take a good ride.”
She took the pink bike from his hands and said, “I’m a little klutzy sometimes. What if I fall and skin my knees?”
Jamie reached into a backpack he carried and pulled out a white box with a red cross on the top of it.
“I have a first aid kit for just such an emergency.”
“I should have known; you’re practically a Boy Scout,” she said with a laugh. “Can I throw my purse inside that?”
In response, he held the backpack open and she tossed her purse in. Then she climbed on the bike.
“Wow,” Jamie said, “You even look good on a bike.”
Lucy just rolled her eyes, but she was truly flattered. When Jamie gave her a compliment there was no doubt in her mind that he really meant it. He looked pretty cute himself, dressed in long khaki shorts and a white button-up shirt with the sleeves rolled up to the elbow. She’d never seen him in tennis shoes, but he wore them well.
He pulled his bike up next to hers and said, “What are you smiling at?”
“I was just thinking that you’re looking mighty gorgeous, Jamison Whitcomb the Fourth,” she told him.
“Thank you, Lucille. Are you ready?” he asked.
“Are you sure your sister doesn’t need you? Or your friends?”
“Everyone’s good, Luce. This is my day to enjoy just getting to be with you.”
The fact he wanted to spend some of his precious time with her made her giddy. Lucy slipped on her sunglasses and got up on the seat of the bike with one leg dangling, barely able to touch the ground and said, “Then let’s go…”
Lucy followed Jamie, feeling a bit shaky at first, but getting the hang of it soon enough. “This is the roughest part of the ride,” he said. “It’s uneven and we have to pass through a lot of traffic, but it gets smoother later on. Oh, and look out for the railroad tracks. But believe me, they’ll be harder on me than you.”
