Amy's flight from Boston landed on time at Eleftherios Venizelos airport in Athens. It was a crowded flight and the throng outside her gate was thick. Jake had promised to pick her up, even though she had offered to get her own car. As she entered the main hub of the airport, she couldn't see him. I'll just wait here until the crowd thins out, then I'll text him if I can't find him. People milled all around her. She was scanning the crowd for his familiar face, but nothing. Maybe he's running late. She checked her phone, no text. She made to scan the crowd again when a man holding a sign near the back of the crowd caught her eye. It read:

Smoking Hot Harvard Babe

The whimsical nature of the sign made Amy smile; that guy had a sense of humor. It wasn't for her, of course. That could be anyone, plus, that man wasn't Jake. He wouldn't do anything like that anyway, he was way too serious for a flirtatious sign in a busy airport. She continued to scan for him. Where was he? She pulled out her phone and was about to unlock it, when something made her look back at the man with the sign. Then it hit her.

It was him.

But it didn't look at all like him! He began to slowly walk toward her and she toward him. Her mouth hung open taking in the scene.

Jake looked completely different! For starters, he was tan- really, really tan. He was wearing a Red Sox cap and mirrored sunglasses, but the biggest difference was his beard. He had grown a full beard covering much of his beautiful face! Amy put her arms out in an exaggerated shrug, as if to say, "I didn't recognize you!" Jake's smile widened as he neared her. Passengers nearby giggled at his sign, clearly meant for her.

They both ran the final four steps and Jake tossed his sign over his shoulder as he scooped and picked her up around the waist, bags and all, and kissed her while he twirled the two of them on the spot. A few people clapped as several others just smiled knowingly.

"I didn't recognize you!" Amy squealed. "Look at you?!" She said, running her fingers across his beard. It felt soft under her fingers. It was strange to see him look this different.

"Do you like it?" Jake said, teasing in his voice.

Amy removed his sunglasses and hat to really take in his new look. She ruffled up his hair to return it to some of its natural buoyancy. She tilted her head to the side in mock study.

"I think I do. It's just going to take some getting used to. What brought this on?" she asked.

Jake smiled. He grabbed her bags from her shoulders and took her hand in his. Together they turned toward the exit.

"Well, as you know, the Greek sun can be intense and I was tired of trying to smear sunscreen on me every couple of hours, so, I decided this was an easier way to keep from frying. All the guys on the site grew them."

Amy smiled at him and then remembered: the sign! She dropped his hand and turned around to grab it before it was gone. "I'm keeping this." She said waving his sign at him.

Jake laughed, "you know whose idea that was?" Jake asked. "Dan's. He said you'd never think it was me and he was right; you looked right at me!" Jake winked at her.

"Where are we going?" Jake asked, loading her bags into the waiting car.

"I thought you booked the hotel?" Amy said with surprise.

Jake's face went blank for a moment. Then, disbelievingly, "You told me you had it all covered, and all I had to do was show up at 3!"

Amy's surprise faded into a sly smile. "Gotcha."

Amy gave the taxi drive the address to their beachside bungalow where they were going to spend three glorious days together. Jake was on an excavation near the newly discovered city of Tenea just south of the ancient city of Corinth. He was helping to unearth this once-prosperous city that archeologists debated the location for decades. Jake had decided to make his doctoral dissertation about this site since there seemed to be a wealth of knowledge to be learned from this excavation which would take a decade to fully uncover. Any time he talked about it, he spoke in rapid-fire sentences and he animatedly waved his hands for emphasis. Amy found it endearing how excited he got about this Greek discovery.

He had been on site for 8 weeks and this short weekend visit would be their only visit for another 8 weeks. They both were savoring their time together and Amy had booked them a completely private bungalow with a pool, kitchen and beach-front access, though she was fairly sure they wouldn't be leaving the bedroom unless one of them needed food.

Jake pulled Amy close to him in the backseat and proceeded to start playing with her long reddish-brown hair. Amy linked their left hands together and rested her head on his shoulder. He had been looking forward to this weekend for two months, ever since he left Harvard and their Cambridge home they shared. He let his mind drift to their upcoming three days and he closed his eyes, mental images making him wish the taxi would drive faster.

He looked down at Amy, tired from her long flight and a flood of tenderness surged through him. She was busy with her Master's Degree in Ancient and Medieval literature, but she had taken a long flight for a short weekend, just to be with him. Her sacrifice wasn't lost on him and he loved her for it. They had just under 72 hours together and he was going to make the most of them.