The title tells it all. This is the first of two (or possibly more?) chapters chronicaling Annie and Auggie's honeymoon. The second chapter is almost done and will be posted as soon as Mandy58 has a chance to look it over. It has the scene that I know y'all want that is lacking in this one. *giggle*
Mandy58 has deemed it good.
I still don't own the original Covert Affairs. I do, however, now own another *hot* item signed by Auggie's alter ego Christopher Gorham - a 'Hot in Cleveland' metal water bottle signed by the cast of 'Hot in Cleveland' and their guest star Chris Gorham. The episode will air sometime in mid-March according to my sources. [Some one asked, jealously I think, how I come by all these autographed Chris Gorham items. I follow Chris on Twitter (and he follows me) and when he announces that he's signed something for a charity auction, I go and place a bid and the maximum I'm willing to donate to get it. I guess I have more resources than most of Chris's fans. I'm usually successful in my bids, usually at an amout well below my limit. What can I say, I'm older and have had a financially successful life. I'm not going to apologize for that either.]
Most of the last thirty-six hours were but a blur for Anne Catherine Walker. Take that back, she was no longer a Walker, she was now an Anderson: Anne Catherine Walker-Anderson, hereafter to be known simply as Annie Anderson. Yesterday afternoon she'd married her best friend, August David Anderson, better known as Auggie.
Annie had been fascinated for years by the suave, debonair, confident man that had shown her around their workplace that first day. They had bonded almost instantly over a similar fondness for the jazz artist Charles Mingus. Then over the ensuing years, as he'd walked, and talked, her through some trying times in her employment – and she in his – friendship had blossomed into something more. Much more. Both had dated other people for the first few years, sometimes seriously, but the easy way they had with each other kept bringing them back to the other. Then one day, in front of his parents and one of his brothers, he'd asked her to marry him. To say that she'd been surprised would have been an understatement. She was, to put it mildly, shocked. They had never discussed the possibility of even moving in together before he'd popped that question. Saying no had never crossed her mind.
And now here she sat next to the man she loved more than life itself on her way to some mysterious tropical location. Not totally mysterious. Annie knew she was on her way to San Juan, Puerto Rico; but where they were heading from there she did not know. All Auggie had told her was to pack for somewhere tropical. So, she had. Early May in the Caribbean was bound to be warm, bordering on hot, so her suitcase was full of sundresses, shorts and tank tops, and several bikinis. The indisputable fact that her new husband could not appreciate the sight of her in the bikinis was not lost on her. Her husband had never seen her in the traditional meaning of the word, for, you see, he was blind. Totally. He had not always been so, but she had never known him as anything but the smart, witty, confident blind man sitting beside her who gently held her hand.
"Mrs. Anderson, you're staring at me," Auggie stated with conviction from behind closed eyes and an amused expression.
"Am not, Mr. Anderson," Annie retorted playfully.
"Are too."
"Nu-huh. I just now turned to look at you. I've been looking out the window and trying to make the things that happened the last few days fall into place. They're all in a jumble in my mind."
"Getting things straight in that pretty head of yours?"
"Starting to. The wedding itself is clear. The reception seems like a dream; like I can't quite believe some of the things that seemed to happen." Annie shifted a bit in her first class seat so that she more fully faced her husband of less than twenty-four hours. "Did you really toast the fact that yesterday was the fifth anniversary of the explosion that took your sight?"
"I vaguely recall doing just that. I didn't know whether to be happy that it only took five years to go from the worst day of my life to one of the best; or pissed because it took me so long to realize what I had in you all the time since you first came to work with me."
"I don't know either. All that should matter is that we found each other and are together forever now."
Auggie rolled the ring on the third finger of Annie's left hand around for a moment then lifted her hand and kissed the back of it. A contented look settled over him for a brief moment and then he whispered, "I still have the feeling that I'm being stared at."
Annie glanced around the first class cabin. Her eyes met those of one of the female flight attendants – a statuesque auburn haired beauty – and the other woman quickly looked away. "One of the flight attendants has been coyly watching you. I can't say as I blame her. You are the most handsome man in the cabin right now. But remember you are a married man now."
"How can I forget?" Auggie asked as he raised his left hand from where it was resting on his lap and wiggled his ring finger. "This is so new that it's hard not to notice it."
"At least it's on your finger and not through your nose like they sometimes do with bulls," Annie said and poked Auggie I the side. As she did that, Annie could not help but notice the red-headed flight attendant sigh and turn her gaze away from Auggie. She thought for a minute then leaned over and whispered to her husband, "That flight attendant that had been checking you out, just sighed and turned away when you displayed your wedding ring."
"Yeah. Kinda figured she might. That's part of why I did it," Auggie whispered back.
"You knew?"
"Knew – no. Strongly suspected – yes. I've flown a lot. I know the ways of some flight attendants and nice-looking passengers. Remember Franka?"
"You would bring that up," Annie said as she shifted her body to put some distance between her and her husband. The move was not lost on Auggie.
"Annie. Honey. I'm sorry. But if I hadn't connected with her that time we never would have caught Khanni."
"And you thought you were going on a suicide mission when you got on that plane. As good as the outcome was, I still shudder to think what could have happened to you."
"Nothing happened except we got a terrorist. And that's all in the past now; far in the past. We are going forward now; into a new life together. That's what matters now." Palm up, he extended his right hand slightly.
After a moment's hesitance, Annie put her left hand into her husband's and he closed his larger hand around her smaller one. They sat like that the rest of the way into San Juan.
Once on the ground in Puerto Rico, Auggie told Annie to be on the lookout for someone with a sign with their last name on it. Fifteen minutes after they'd retrieved their checked bags and were beginning to wonder if they'd been forgotten, a harried, youngish looking man rushed up to them. In English but with a definite French accent he asked, "Mr. and Mrs. Anderson?" And then he continued when Auggie nodded in the affirmative, "my sincere apologies for not being here earlier to greet you. A bit of weather delayed my departure. All is well now and we should be at the hotel in a couple of leisurely hours. I am Pierre, by the way."
"All's well, Pierre," Auggie began in a conciliatory tone. "You are here now, that's the important thing. Has the weather cleared or will we have a rough crossing?"
"Yes, weather has cleared. Just a pop-up thunderstorm," Pierre replied. "We get them this time of afternoon sometimes. Quick to come, quicker to leave."
Pierre gathered up Annie's bags, "Follow me and I'll get you to the marina and then to the island in time for your diner reservation."
A bit under half-an-hour later Annie and Auggie were onboard the thirty-five foot cabin cruiser on their way to the Caribbean island of Saint Barthélemy better known as St. Barts. During the seventy-five minute journey from one marina to the other, Annie snuggled into Auggie's side as they relaxed on the leather sofa in the front of the cabin and tried to describe the scenery – or more the lack thereof – to him as the boat bounced across the light chop. About an hour into the journey, and before Annie said anything, Auggie remarked, "We must be close to land now. The gulls are more numerous as well as being a bit more raucous and the waves are breaking onto land."
"Right you are, Mr. Anderson," Pierre remarked from the captain's chair on the raised platform in the very front of the cabin. "We're about a mile offshore. We'll be entering the harbor shortly and mooring up within twenty minutes. There'll be a car waiting to take you to the hotel when we dock. As I understand, this car and driver will be at your disposal while you are here; as will I."
"That's nice to know," Auggie commented. "I was wondering what else we could do when we got bored with each other and honeymoon activities." A playful grin plied the corners of his mouth as he prepared to receive the punch to his shoulder the comment was bound to elicit from his new wife.
"Auggie!" Annie exclaimed. "I can't believe you just said that." Annie shifted away from his side and sat up straight, but she didn't slap or lightly punch his arm or shoulder.
Grinning broadly Auggie drew her back into his side. "What can I say Mrs. Anderson, but the truth. There are other things to be done around here, I am sure of that. Perhaps a bit of scuba diving one day?"
Once again Annie pulled away from Auggie in alarm. "No! Absolutely not," she exclaimed. "I know you don't let your lack of sight get in the way of doing what you want, but I have to draw the line on that. No. We are not going scuba diving. And that's final!" Annie stated firmly and crossed her arms across her chest.
"I may have been stationed in the middle of the desert that last tour, but I do know how to dive. And I know that you do, too, Mrs. Anderson," Auggie stated matter-of-factly. The faintest hint of a smile threatened to dissolve the serious face that he wore. "It might have been awhile …"
"That may very well be, Mr. Anderson," Annie began in a serious tone, "but I cannot fathom how a blind man can scuba dive safely. Or why he would want to. I don't want to be a widow before my marriage has even begun. No, Auggie, no." He tone softened significantly as she spoke and the last was spoken tenderly – almost apologetically – as she softly touched his arm.
"Very well, then. Scuba diving is off the schedule, but that still leaves time for hang gliding or parasailing," Auggie said brightly, the corners of his mouth lifting into a sly grin.
"August Anderson you are not serious. Are you?" Annie drew back another fraction of an inch in wide-eyed disbelief.
"Not completely serious," Auggie reluctantly admitted. "I was just teasing a bit. Testing to see how far you might let me go."
The boat's speed slowed as it entered the main port's harbor.
"Auggie, I am not completely opposed to doing those things with you, I just need more than a few hours notice to work out the logistics in my head. That you want to do these things is wonderful, I just don't know if they are wise in this locale."
"And I do not know if they are even available here," Auggie admitted. "Just wanted to see what you would say. I know now. You have some reservations about the wisdom of a blind man perusing some activities without some preparation first. And I guess that is a good thing."
"Auggie, where are we? I mean what island are we going to?" Annie asked suddenly. Abruptly changing the subject.
"This is Saint Barthélemy or more commonly known simply as Saint Barts," Pierre said from the captain's chair. "Why are you alarmed Mrs. Anderson?"
"Oh, my, Auggie, we don't belong here," Annie said in awe of her surroundings.
"What's wrong? I was assured that this island was perfectly safe. The pirates were dispatched centuries ago," Auggie said calmly.
"It's not that, Auggie. The boats in this marina are more than just boats; they are yachts – luxury yachts."
"Yeah. Saint Barts is the playground of the rich and famous," Auggie said self-consciously, shrugging his shoulders slightly.
"We are not rich and we are definitely not famous. What have you done, August?" Annie asked accusingly.
"What I did was leave the honeymoon arrangements to my mother. This is her doings not mine. We wouldn't let her give us a big wedding, so she gave us this for a honeymoon. I didn't learn any details until she told me where we were going last night when she handed me the plane tickets and gave me the flight number and time; even then all she told me was we were flying into San Juan, and would be met by someone who would take us to our final destination. I knew we were in trouble when we were seated in first class. I didn't know we were coming to St. Barts until Pierre told us just a few minutes ago. All I told Mom was that I wanted to go somewhere tropical and how much I'd set aside. I was thinking Hawaii or maybe Atlantis, but no – here we are in St. Barts."
Pierre throttled the boat down and eased into its mooring spot on the dock. As the boat was being secured, two young men jumped on board and took off Annie's and Auggie's luggage. The pair followed their bags off the dock to the waiting car. A scant half-hour later the newlyweds were entering their suite in the Carl Gustaf Hotel.
"After you, my love," Auggie cooed as he pushed the door open. "Where are our bags?" He whispered quickly before Annie moved off into the room.
"Oh, my Auggie," Annie softly exclaimed.
"That bad, huh?"
"Yeah. It's pretty horrible. I don't see our bags – they're not out in the middle of the room for you to trip over," Annie replied quietly. After they'd stepped inside the room and the door closed behind them, Annie described the basic layout of the room to Auggie.
They freshened up a bit and Annie changed from her traveling clothes into one of the sundresses she'd packed. With a good bit of self-consciousness, Annie led Auggie to the hotel's onsite restaurant Victoria's for their dinner reservation. Well over an hour later the newlyweds almost staggered back to their room somewhat tipsy from the copious amount of wine they'd washed the delicious meal down with.
"What direction does our room face?" Auggie asked as they entered the main room of the suite.
"West mainly," Annie replied. "The hotel in on a ridge and our terrace faces pretty close to due West and overlooks the city and the harbor. Why?"
"It's about sunset isn't it?"
"Yeah, the sun is beginning to set."
"Let's go sit on the terrace and watch the sunset," Auggie said in a seductive tone. "We are fairly secluded here are we not?"
"Yes, it's quite private here," Annie replied taking Auggie's hand and leading him out onto the granite paved terrace. The pair settled onto the wicker settee. Auggie leaned back and stretched his legs out in front of him and Annie kicked off her sandals and tucked her legs up under her as she snuggled into her husband's side. For the next half-hour Annie described the view at her feet – the white buildings with the red tile roofs surrounding the horseshoe shaped harbor full of smaller boats while the larger ones anchored just beyond the mouth of the harbor; and the brilliant reds, yellows and oranges of the sunset. Once the last remnant of the sun sank below the horizon, Auggie opened his eyes and sighed contentedly.
"Thank you, my love," he crooned to her. "I now have a feel for this place. And I'm completely relaxed for the first time in quite a few days. Maybe I won't be too harsh on Mom when we get back home. I know this is costing her a small fortune. She must really like you. And now," he said as he shifted Annie's weight so he could stand up, "I'm heading in to bed. It might be a bit early, but I'm so ready to … sleep."
"And I'm so ready to join you," Annie replied stretching out her legs and standing up also. She brushed her hand against her husband's and led him to the foot of the bed. "You got it from here?" she asked softly.
"Yeah, I think so" Auggie whispered back a bit self-consciously. "I'll have it all down by this time tomorrow."
"I know," Annie responded turning around and patting him tenderly on the chest. "Let me know if you need to find anything," she added.
Within a few minutes both were cuddled in the middle of the king-sized bed. A few minutes later Auggie was asleep with Annie cradled in his strong arms. Annie, contentedly secure in her husband's arms, listened to his soft breaths that gently moved the hair on the back of her head. Despite her best efforts, her mind wandered back to other nights in a tropical paradise. This, she soon decided, was far more satisfying than that time and August Anderson was a far better man than Ben Mercer could ever hope to be. She had no regrets from her time with him, just as she was sure that Auggie had no regrets for the time he'd spent with Parker. It had taken them a while to find each other, but now that they had she knew that they'd have a long and wonderful life together. Soon she joined her husband in blissful slumber.
I've got them to their destination. The next chapter will chronicle some of their honeymoon activities. We'll go at least one more chapter. Let me know if you'd like a bit more and I *might* oblige. I do have another 'chapter' on another slice of Anderson life nearly ready to go, too. Just some expansion of one section of it and a bit of a wrap-up.