“I know," she said with a teasing smile. “Weird, isn’t it?”
“No, not weird but…confusing.” He tilted his head as he looked up at her. "It’s as if, once the bun came down and you let your hair fall free, a totally new Asia was born.”
“Well,” she said, rolling off him, “the question is, do you like the new Asia.” She lay down beside Rico, closed her eyes, and drew in a deep breath of salty air. She almost didn’t want to hear his answer. What if he hated who she really was? What if he preferred the demure, unflappable Asia she’d projected for her professional world? She bit her lip and waited, not wanting to breathe till he’d given his verdict.
She felt him move beside her and knew that he’d shifted from his back and onto his side. He was staring down at her. She could feel it. And still she did not open her eyes.
“Asia,” he said quietly. “Look at me.”
Slowly she exhaled and opened one eye to peer up at him, then the other. She remained silent.
“I love the new Asia Miller,” he said. “This is the Asia I want.”
He’d said love. Okay, so he didn’t really mean love as in, ‘in love’. It was just a figure of speech but still, it had sounded darned good.
The tension in her dissolved and she gave him a wide smile. Then she began to giggle. She couldn’t help it.
He frowned down at her. “Now don’t tell me there’s a third Asia Miller in there somewhere, a can’t-stop-giggling one?”
“Oh, shut up,” she said and gave him a light punch on the arm. He’d already made her day and there was nothing he could say that would spoil it.
In fact, she’d even dare to say nothing could happen that day that could dampen her mood. Asia rolled away and hopped onto her feet. “Come on. Time to go explore the island."
“Yes, boss,” Rico said in a teasing tone then got up to stand by her. “I’ll be your tour guide,” he said with a flourish. “And now if you’ll just follow me.” They set off along the beach toward a tiny river that flowed into the sea. As they strolled along Rico pointed out various trees that lined the sand and told her their names. He was even able to identify many of the shrubs along the seacoast. Asia listened intently, surprised at his knowledge of the flora of the island.
They got to the river and Asia realized that it was really no more than a stream. They took off their sandals and waded barefoot through the water which was almost ice-cold.
“It’s bubbling from an underground spring,” Rico told her, “and that’s why it’s so cool.”
After crossing the stream they walked along the beach another twenty minutes or so then they turned onto a grassy path that led inland. "What if we get lost?” Asia asked as she stared at the mass of trees in the interior. “Do you know the island that well?”
“Crossed it at least a hundred times,” he said. “You’re safe with me, Asia. Didn’t I tell you you’re in good hands?”
“Uh, huh,” she said, still staring ahead and still not convinced they were totally safe. What if there were wild animals Rico hadn’t encountered before? What if they ran into quicksand? “Maybe we should go back now,” she said. “In fact,” she pointed to the sky, “it’s sort of gray right now. Maybe it’s going to rain?”
“Nonsense. I checked the weather report before we headed out this morning. Sunny skies all day.”
“Well, it's not sunny now,” she pointed out and made to turn back.
“So, after all that big talk about being in charge,” he scoffed, “Asia Miller is nothing but a chicken.”
“What did you say?” Asia turned on him.
“Chicken,” he said again and the laughter tumbled from his lips.
“We’ll see about that,” she said and headed up the path ahead of him. She’d shown him the other side of her so now he wasn’t expecting a wilting flower. She was supposed to be bold and fearless. So she would be. She’d go a little way in, not too far, just enough to show him she was no wimp.
Rico followed and soon overtook her on the path. He ended up leading the way, totally messing up her plan to lead them a short distance and then turn back. With him leading there was no telling how far inland he’d go.
“I want to show you something,” he said over his shoulder. “A waterfall with a pool at the bottom. We can take a dip.”
“Sounds…lovely,” she said, all the while thinking, 'maybe we should go back now'.
They’d walked ten more minutes up the path when Asia heard the first rumble of thunder. She stopped and looked up but it was like being in a tropical rainforest. The foliage was so thick overhead they could only see patches of the sky. And it was gray. Not the light gray it had been when they turned onto the path but a deep and ominous gray.
“Uh, oh,” Rico said looking up, too. “Looks like rain.”
Asia could have slapped him. Wasn’t that what she’d been saying all this time?
“Let’s go back,” she said, already turning around.
And then a streak of lightning ripped across the sky. Asia jumped, almost knocking Rico over for the second time that day.
“It’s okay,” he said. “No need to be scared.” He put out a hand to steady her.
“I’m not scared,” she muttered and clung to his hand.
The two of them started running back the way they’d come but they knew it was hopeless. With all the walking they’d done it would take them over half an hour to get back to the boat.
Then it started to rain. Huge drops fell from the sky, the kind you saw only on a tropical island. It came swift and sudden, the only thing saving them being the thick canopy of leaves overhead.
By the time they broke out of the trees and reached the beach the rain was coming down in torrents. Thunder rolled and lightning streaked over the water. For Rico and Asia there was no more need to hide from the rain. They were both soaked straight through. That was the least of their problems. With the lightning flashing they were both in danger of getting struck.