A Few Days of Peace – Part III

Ron's "Bike Tour of the Island" went far, far better than she had suspected. For the first thing, he had taken her into consideration much more than she first anticipated. She was expecting a ten-speed (road bike, Ron would correct her) or one of the heavy looking old fashioned beach cruiser single-speeds that both tourist and native alike made their way about the island on. Instead, waiting outside of their rooms after breakfast and some freshening up were two rather unusual looking bicycles. Their frames were elongated and the seat was much closer to the ground with a back made of nylon webbing stretched over an aluminum frame. The handlebars were tall, allowing the rider to hold his or her arms straight out. The whole contraption could best be described as a chaise lounge merged with a bicycle. He called them recumbents, or 'bents for short. The ride was pleasant, slow and the wide, padded seat did not cause any of the discomfort she was afraid of. She found herself pedaling along side him as their guide chattered away about the various points of interest, from the wide, sandy beaches to the small but quaint lighthouse. Kim found all of it beautiful and romantic, though she found herself spending more time just looking into his eyes. The riding was that easy and the pace was such they never really tired.

Once the ride meandered its way back to the resort, they were loath to turn the bikes in. Since they had rented them for the day and not specifically for the ride, they packed a picnic and headed out once more, intent on exploring the island at an even more leisurely pace. It dawned on Kim that Ron must have planned on this, as he led her to a secluded meadow in the hills just outside of town, with a picturesque waterfall and an uninterrupted view of the ocean below them. They spread out a large, traditional checkered picnic blanket and settled in for a meal of local delicacies.

Ron found himself looking at the waterfall. Over the centuries it had worn a deep, round pool at its base, the water draining from it in a series of smaller falls before winding down the shallow slopes to the sea.

"Penny for your thoughts." Kim said, her arms wrapped around his waist as they lounged on their picnic blanket.

"It's nothing, just remembering things."

She looked up at the falls. By itself the waterfall was not overly impressive. It was only the setting that made it part of the beautiful whole. She looked back to Ron, who was holding a tiny bit of grilled fish on a tortilla for her to eat. They had taken their time with the meal, feeding each other tiny bites, enjoying each other's company.

"Peru?" She finally asked, remembering the mission where Ron and her twin brothers ended up being responsible for saving her.

"Huh? Oh, yeah. That's it, I think."

"You're expecting some super-freak to emerge from behind that waterfall, aren't you?" She rolled toward him, giving him a light kiss.

"No. Well, now that you mention it, maybe, yeah, but that's not the main thing I was thinking of."

"Okay, what then?" she asked, draping an arm around his chest and nuzzling his cheek.

"I was just thinking it would be fun to go skinny-dipping in that little pond at the base of the waterfall."

She sat back slightly and looked at his face. Instead of the sly smile he had given her at the pool the day before, he had a lopsided, goofy grin.

"We went 'skinny-dipping' yesterday." She said playfully.

"That doesn't count. That was a private pool with a big, high wall around it. Nah, that's not what skinny dipping is about. Out here we can get caught. That's the fun!"

She put her head down on his chest again, giving him a light squeeze. "Ronnie, I think today what we need is a bit of…rest."

"Kim, I'm fine. I talked to the resort physician this morning, he said at my age I should do just fine, and if I don't, I don't."

"You talked to a doctor…about that?" She let go of him and sat up, her expression changing just a little.

"Well, not in so many specific, uh, words and all, but this being our honeymoon and, well, I didn't want you to be disappointed."

"Disappointed? How on Earth could you disappoint me, Ronnie?" she started to look slightly concerned.

"I was getting worried that I wouldn't be able to keep up with you. I mean, you're like a force of nature sometimes and I'm just a normal guy…"

"Ron, you are so not a normal guy. Normal guys don't confront their very real fears time and time again like you do. Normal guys don't deliberately expose themselves to their own worst nightmare like you do. You are a bigger hero than I ever will be, simply because you make yourself be one."

"I know, KP, but I'm just a little guy. I'm stronger than I ever believed possible, but I'm never going to be anything like, well, Brick or big Mike or like Ted from college. Besides this Monkey Kung-Fu stuff, for a guy who used to say 'Never be normal' I'm really very, very normal."

She gave him a very long, slow kiss, one that told him very clearly how much she loved and cared for him. Then she fixed his light brown eyes with her luminous green orbs. "First of all, you are not a little guy. Average size does not make an average guy. I didn't fall in love with Brick or Mike or Ted or any big hulking guy. Think about it. Did I ever crush on anyone like that?"

He thought about that. It had never occurred to him before. Josh Mankey wasn't much taller than him back then and he was really no bigger than him over all. Of all the men she had ever confessed to being attracted to, only one was significantly more muscular and he wasn't even real, and even he wasn't the big 'ripped' type. In fact, she had been embarrassed almost to tears when she had been forced to accept a date with Brick.

"In hindsight, I think I had already decided what I wanted in a man. It just took me way too long to recognize that. It took me too long to realize that falling in love had to be with the person, with the soul. Do you remember what you asked me when you proposed?"

"I remember getting really wet." He laughed, remembering the park sprinklers coming on at the very moment he popped the question.

"You asked me if I believed in soulmates. Then you asked me to be yours. That was the easy part, because, at least in my heart, I knew I already was. There you were, your car had broken down for good, the restaurant kicked us out when they lost power, the park sprinklers coming on, yet you still dropped to your knee and asked me to marry you. That's not an average, ordinary guy…" Her eyes narrowed a bit, her smile deepening seductively. "…and let me tell you, you are by no means a little guy."

His eyebrows went up. "Oh, and should I be worried about what you have to compare?"

"Ron!" she popped him lightly on the shoulder.

"Gotcha." He smiled back at her.

"Anyway, I have girlfriends, you know, and they…talk."

"Okay, I think we just turned down TMI street." He blushed slightly.

"Sorry," she laughed, "though I have been careful about one thing. You notice how little I say 'no big' any more?"

"I've noticed there's a lot of things you stopped saying so much. I just thought maybe you were growing out of them."

"Huh, maybe you're right. Okay, how's this. You are a ferociously spankin major hottie!"

"I can live with that." He laughed.

"I do have a bit of a confession to make, though."

He raised one eyebrow, as if to say this should be interesting.

"I was actually getting worried about keeping up with you."

"Wait a sec. You mean to tell me I was getting all worried that I'd run out of steam, and you were too?"

"Uh huh." She giggled.

"You don't think we've been overdoing it, do you?"

"I didn't say that."

"I just didn't want you thinking I was losing interest or something if I got too, uh, too pooped to pop, so to speak."

"Ron, you're a human being. We both are. Okay, let's get this straight, right here, right now. Making love is just that and it doesn't work unless it's something we both want and need so I promise to you, if you don't feel up to it then I won't feel hurt. Got that?"

"Sure, KP. Just promise me one thing, though."

"Uh huh?"

"Promise you won't give it up too easily if I need some…inspiration."

"Deal." She leaned over and kissed him again, caressing his ear with her hand. He leaned back, pulling her down with him so she was draped halfway across his body, not breaking the kiss, letting her warm body form against his, letting the embrace be the wholeness of their passion without having to take it any further.

After what must have been many minutes, Kim came up for air. She sat up, then got up on her knees and pulled her light purple tank top over her head, revealing a white bikini top under it. Standing, she shimmied out of her shorts.

"It may not be true skinny-dipping, but lets get wet." She said cheerily, holding her hand out to help Ron up. He was already wearing his trunks, so he wasn't able to perform a striptease for her in return. He pulled his t-shirt over his head and started following her to the pool. He happened to glance at her bottom as she led him from their picnic.

"KP, when did you get that?"

She looked over her shoulder at him, wearing her most seductive smile. Her hair was long enough now that it covered her entire backside, but it swung out of the way to give him an unrestricted view of the barely-there white bikini "Oh, this old thing? Monique helped me pick this out as a wedding present for you. You like?"

"Booyah!" He shouted as he watched her step into the water.

Ron followed her in, thankful for the trunks, as the water was very cold, with all the physiological effects that came along with it.