Chapter Six
The more time Amy spent with Ray, the more she liked him and the more she wanted to know about him.What was his favorite color?Favorite food?She already knew he liked history and travel, even if he hadn’t had much chance to see the world yet.Her list of questions grew with every passing conversation.
Sitting near him gave her a thrill that made her toes tingle.Watching him walk over to his sister, ready to knock heads together if necessary, had Amy ready to swoon like a teen dreaming of her knight in shining armor.If that wasn’t the silliest thing at her age, but she couldn’t help it.Something about him just felt… different.Special.Maybe she was letting herself be carried away by the romance of paradise, but, for now, she had every intention of enjoying the ride.
“Ready to head back to the bus?”Doug pushed to his feet, offering Emily a hand.
“Yep.”Emily swung her legs over the bench and stood beside her fiancé.“We’ve got about two minutes till the driver leaves without us.”
Doug waited a beat for his sister.“Coming?”
“Do you think I have time to use the restroom?”
“Sure.”Emily nodded.“See you on the bus.”
Gathering all her trash into a sack, Amy glanced around for a closer garbage can.
“I’ll take that,” Ray said.“You go on to the ladies’ room.”
A smile tugged at her cheeks, and her heart did a little two-step.It was a silly little thing, but the best things in life came in small packages and small gestures.“Thanks.”
Hurrying in and out of the restroom, Amy wasn’t at all surprised to see Ray waiting for her at the bus.
“Ready for dessert?”he asked.
Dessert?
“Next stop,” he explained.“The shaved-ice place.”
“Oh, Mitso… Matsu…” She chuckled.“That place.”Already she felt as though she’d been on and off this bus a bazillion times.Unlike the times before, instead of finding an empty seat waiting for her by her brother, Emily sat by the window.
“You don’t mind if I sit by this big galoot for a while, do you?”Emily curled her arm through Doug’s and smiled.And, if Amy wasn’t mistaken, winked at her.Her brother, on the other hand, looked directly over her shoulder at Ray.He didn’t seem displeased exactly, buthappywasn’t a word she’d have used either.
“No, not at all.”She scooted over to the window and turned in time to see Doug drill Ray with a stern look, and Ray respond with a single curt nod.What the heck was that all about?
Ray settled in beside her, glanced up at the bus driver, over to Doug, and then, leaning back, blew out a slow breath.“What do you think the odds are your brother would skewer me if I held your hand?”
She didn’t know or care.Immediately winding her fingers with his, she leaned back and smiled at him.“What’s your favorite color?”
“Blue.Yours?”
“Most of my life pink, but now purple.Your favorite food?”
“Steak.Ribeye.Medium.You?”
“My mom’s lasagna with gobs of gooey cheese.”Back and forth they went down her list.By the time they’d gotten to all the siblings on the family tree, the bus had pulled over to let the tourists out.
“Remember, folks,” the driver repeated, “we are not allowed to park the bus here.You will have to deboard quickly, and then we will pick you up in thirty minutes at the bus stop just ahead.”
Miscellaneous responses of “Got it,” “Uh-huh,” and “Yes” blended in with head bobs and people bustling to exit the bus.
Ray waited for Doug and Emily to slide from their seats and move ahead before he exited their row.Never letting go of Amy’s hand.
So far everything he did made her feel like a giddy teen.
Off the bus, Doug and Emily were already taking their place in the long line of tourists wanting dessert.The quaint shopping village reminded Amy of an Old West town.In the back of her mind she’d expected a tiny shack, passing customers shaved ices through a cut-out window.She hadn’t anticipated a full-size shop with multiple food and gift items for purchase and an overhead menu as wide as the room.
“Know what you want?”Ray asked.
