"I am so glad that you're a morning person," Spencer said as he leaned over and kissed Erin softly. She shrugged, giving him a small smile as she gave him another kiss. "But if we spend the entire morning exchanging kisses, we'll never get to the mosque in time for our tour."
"It's only quarter after seven, Spencer. As long as we're finished with breakfast by eight, we should be fine. I mean, you did have the concierge hire a car for us, so we don't have to worry about that." She stretched against him and then sighed as she slipped from the bed and padded over to their bags on the table. "Purple or green this morning?"
"Purple."
She nodded as she pulled that blouse out of the bag, along with a skirt and underwear. "I'm going to wash up in the bathroom and then dress. See you in a few minutes?" Internally, she rolled her eyes at how inane she sounded, but then Spencer smiled at her as if he understood completely, and everything felt right. He gave her a small nod, and she smiled in return before heading into the bathroom. After laying out her clothes, she wetted a washcloth and cleaned the morning grime off her body and gently dried off before dressing. She kept her makeup light, knowing that that was the preferred look for the area, and wanting to blend in.
By the time she had rejoined Spencer, he was already dressed, and she smiled as she drifted over to his side, kissing him softly before picking up her purse and the scarf she'd be using as a head covering. "Are you ready to head down and eat?"
"I think so. Do I look all right?"
He nodded and slung his arm around her waist. Erin loved the comfortable feel of that gesture, and she allowed him to pull her closer to his side. "I think that your phone buzzed a few times while you were in the bathroom."
"I'll check it after we get food." She allowed her head to come to rest on his chest as the elevator continued down to the ground floor. Erin knew that it was early in the morning for most tourists, since no one joined them the entire time, and it was nice to have these extra moments without prying eyes watching them. She knew that it was only because they were very obviously tourists that they were getting looks, but it was still a bit disconcerting. "Spencer?"
"Yeah?" he asked as they stepped out of the elevator and made their way over to the restaurant.
"I just wanted to thank you for taking those pictures last night. You have a good eye for photography, and again, you made me look beautiful."
"You are beautiful, I just manage to capture a little of that beauty in a brief second of time." She shrugged as she tucked a piece of hair behind her ear. "I know, you have some hang ups that I am going to try and dispatch before we head home in a few weeks. Because we are going to leave your insecurities here in Morocco, I promise you that." This made her nod a little, quick tears stinging her eyes as they were shown to a table. Spencer instinctively knew that she was a little too preoccupied in her thoughts to order, and he did so for them as she poured coffee into their cups.
"After the mosque, what are we going to do?"
"I thought that we could spend more time on the beach. You see at home near the water, and I want you to feel as comfortable around me as possible as we settle the foundation of our relationship." Erin nodded as she picked up her coffee and took a small sip, trying to find her center once more. "I know, this makes you feel uncomfortable."
"A little. But it's good to be thrown from my comfort zone every once in a while. And I know that you are not going to deliberately hurt me, so there's that." She fiddled with the strap of her purse, wondering if he would be okay with her checking who had messaged her, now that they were waiting for food. Without saying a word, he pulled out his own phone, and she allowed her shoulders to relax as she unzipped her purse and pulled out her phone. As she scrolled through her notifications, Erin felt her brow furrow in confusion as she noticed a series of texts from a number she wasn't familiar with.
Unlocking her phone, she hurriedly called up her messages, and tapped on the unfamiliar number. I truly hope that I'm not being presumptuous here, Erin. But I did ask Garcia for your phone number after she showed me the latest pictures that Spencer has taken of you. You seem happier here than you have in years, and I think that I was wrong to have treated you the way I did when we first landed in Tangier. That isn't to say that I'm entirely comfortable with the way that Spencer seems to have staked his claim on you, since there is that rather large age gap, and the fact that he is the same age that Ethan would be, had he survived. I suppose that this is my rather longwinded way of saying that I accept the olive branch that you've been holding out these last six months, and I truly hope that we can spend some time together on this trip catching up on what we've lived through, and maybe getting to know each other better as we are now. And Garcia will hurt me for telling you this, but I think they're waiting on you and Spencer to return so that Derek can propose. Or, at least that's what she thinks. I think that we just need some happiness on this team after everything that we've been through lately. And I'm going to leave this here, hoping that you write back to me. I'll also send along a few pictures that I took while Dave and I explored Tangier yesterday. I hope to hear from you. Lex
She had to blink back tears as she read and reread the words Alex had written, including the use of her nickname. And then, she scrolled down to see the pictures attached, finding her breath taken away by what Alex had captured. The best picture, in her opinion, was of Alex staring out at the ocean. It was a lot like the picture Spencer had taken of her, and Erin wondered if David had been the photographer. Glancing up at her lover, she noticed that he was grinning at her, as if he knew about the texts she had received, and she smiled in return before bending her head back over her phone to tap out a reply.
It was so good to hear from you, Lex, and see the pictures you had taken. I'll attach a few of mine, since it seems like we're all in a sharing mood. I was thinking about what you asked, before Spencer and I left for Casablanca, and I think that, if you're truly open to communicating with me, that I'd like for you, and maybe David, to join us in Marrakech before we return to Tangier for the remainder of our trip. I know that David wanted us all to bond and heal while here, and a large part of that will happen if we can be open to each other. I've missed you, I hope you know. Rin
Before sending off the text, she attached a few of the pictures that she'd taken with her phone before sending the message off and turning her attention back to Spencer. "I've invited Alex to spend some time with us in Marrakech, which means that we'll have Fez all to ourselves. I hope you don't mind, but I'd really love it if I could leave Morocco with our friendship in a better state than it currently is. I could be doubly blessed, you know. Finding new love and renewed friendship, thanks to David."
Spencer nodded as their server set their plates down in front of them. "I think that sounds like the best possible outcome, Erin, and I am more than willing to help you see it become a reality." She smiled softly as she nodded, looking down into her food as she tried to keep from crying at the loveliness that was quickly filling her life.