Chapter 14

The Honeymoon (Part III)

Well, after that happy little evening spent under the Northern Lights and a few blankets, our newly married couple now plus sprout continue on during their trip to visit a few more of the most memorable sites before returning home for the inevitable family discussion that will follow as we officially wrap up the wedding events in this second series.


DAY 3: 2:30 pm Wednesday
Near the Valley of Skagafjörður

"Edit Katalin, if we stay in this water any longer I'm gonna be taking a prune back to the hotel with me tonight," Jamie chided as he tried to entice his wife to exit the natural hot pool of Grettislaug on the beautiful Reykjanesströnd beach. The private, peaceful location offered a picturesque view of the North Sea on one side and snow covered fjords on the other. "How about if we get going now and check out the other part of the valley for a few hours?"

"Mmm… if my other option for the afternoon is to try riding one of those famous furry Icelandic horses down a cliff on the side of the glacier, then the answer is definitely no," she balked once more as she floated by on her back with a happy smile on her face. "You know how I am with animals, Jamison," she reminded.

"This could be your chance… they're supposed to be 'friendly and sure-footed purebreds since settlement times,'" he reminded.

"Nope," was the answer with particular emphasis on the second syllable. "Let's stay here. Tell me more about this place," she demanded, knowing her walking, living, breathing and quite sexy historical guidebook would have an answer for that and his little almost involuntary rendition of facts would give her more time to soak in this wonderful location.

"Grettislaug is where Grettir the Strong, one of Iceland's most notorious outlaws in the Saga Age supposedly bathed after swimming from Drangey shortly after 1000 AD," he revealed with a smirk, knowing full well that she was playing him in an effort to stay put at her favored activity of the trip… well maybe second-most favorite he grinned considering the events of the night before while continuing with his little history lesson.

"The Sagas of Icelanders… Íslendingasögur… were written in the thirteenth and early fourteenth centuries and are fairly realistic accounts of events, usually conflicts over wealth, prestige, and power taking place between the ninth and the eleventh century on the island. The account of Grettir Ásmundarson's life was likely based on a previous work by Sturla Þórðarson."

"Ooh, so he really was an outlaw," Eddie mused as she latched onto that little tidbit and proceeded to do a relaxed backstroke in a circle around him. "I feel a little dirty now…" she teased.

"Grettir's intentions were not necessarily bad, but he was bad-tempered and often did things that he later regretted even though at times he was thought of as a proper hero," Jamie added with a laugh and shake of his head at her continued taunting which frankly he couldn't get enough of.

"Hmm, are you sure your family doesn't have any Nordic blood?" she asked with a cheeky grin. "Because I've gotta admit I'm picturing Danny standing there in one of those puffy red heavy velvet onesies with tights and a sword and shield getting ready to slay a dragon or something."

"Well, thank you for that... there's another image I'll never get out of my brain," Jamie admitted with a frown as he paddled over, carefully inspecting the view of her in yet another new swimsuit that he did intend to keep front and center in his mind. "Now, sweetheart, will you please agree to get out if I tell you there are more thermal baths where we are going tomorrow?"

"And where exactly is that, O Great Master of the Grand Plan?" she inquired as he continued to surprise her with the next day's itinerary while the rest of the trip was still held as a closely guarded secret to add to the adventure.

"Tomorrow we drive to Akureyri, the 'friendly capital of north Iceland' situated in Eyjafjörður. There are museums and cafés to explore before we visit Goðafoss… the waterfall of the Gods... on our way to Lake Mývatn which is 'beautifully located in an area of surreal landscape, bubbling hot springs, moon-like pseudo craters and hot pools,'" he quoted once more. "We can see the sizzling mud-pots at Námafjall, the craters at Skútustaðir, the lava maze Dimmuborgir or visit the Krafla volcanic region… your choice," he added.

"Oh, it all sounds so nice," she pondered. "Wait! Where are those thermal baths? Is that at the lake? That's my choice!" she kidded as she splashed a bit of water at him. "I love this place!" she exclaimed. "Who knew I would have so much fun swimming next to glaciers and driving around over an ice-covered volcano," Eddie wondered.

"I did," Jamie admitted with a smile as he considered the now locked-in steakhouse bets he had placed with Danny and his grandfather back in New York.

###

DAY 6: 1:20 pm Saturday
Near Egilsstaðir and the Lagarfljót River Basin

The couple next spent two days hiking and exploring the region near Lake Mývatn, including the natural phenomena of Jökulsárgljúfur where eight thousand years ago a volcanic eruption directly underneath the river and glacial ice left a chaotically formed canyon and volcanic formations with interesting colors including the 'rock of echoes' Hljóðaklettar and the 'red mountain' Rauðhólar. They also explored the horseshoe canyon Ásbyrgi and the most powerful waterfall in Europe, Dettifoss. Afterwards, Jamie and Eddie found themselves on the road once more driving towards the tranquil fjords near Berufjörður. A few hours of sightseeing at Mount Búlandstindur occupied their late morning before, and unknown to a certain blond someone, they headed directly into the renowned monster-habitat of the Lagarfljót River Basin.

"Alright, Reagan… so what exactly are we looking for here?" Eddie finally puzzled after they got out of the car and hiked for nearly an hour next to a cold-looking barren lake with murky water and a dark, rough sandy shore before circling back towards the vehicle. There certainly didn't appear to be any of her favored hot springs nearby and this locale wasn't even on the same scale when compared to the exquisite sights they had taken in during the past few days, especially the magnificent waterfalls and volcanic landscapes.

"The Lagarfljótsormur," he finally revealed in a mysterious deep voice as he scanned the quiet surface of the water with his binoculars. "It's a cryptid," he added as if that should have explained everything.

"Lager-float-so-what?" she demanded as a little shiver went up her spine and she looked around nervously. It was a cloudy early afternoon without even the slightest hint of air moving which made the whole environment look flat and one-dimensional as the sky, mountains and water reflected in gray, adding to her unease. "English, Harvard!"

"The Lagarfljót worm… better known as the Icelandic Worm Monster," he explained and laughed when her expected shriek echoed forth across the water as she jumped onto his back and held on in tight piggyback fashion with her legs wrapped around so her feet no longer touched the ground as if she expected the mythical beast to appear with just the mere mention of its name.

"THE WHAT?!"

"A serpentine creature said to live here in the freshwater below-sea-level lake Lagarfljót, which has very poor visibility as a result of siltation from the river. It's supposed to be longer than a bus with many humps on its back, and has also been reported outside the water... lying coiled up or slithering into the trees," he added in a sinister inflection with evil intent before her grip tightened around his throat, nearly cutting off his airway.

"JAMISON REAGAN, ARE YOU FREAKING KIDDING ME?!" she screeched. "We've only been married a week and you're ready to sacrifice me to some slithering creature?! Get us out of here!" she demanded. "You know I hate worms, especially monster-sized ones!"

"Never stopped you from getting to the bottom of a tequila bottle," he choked out as she continued to cling to him for all she was worth. "I need air, Janko," he gasped. "Or I'm gonna drop you in the water and let him come for you!" he threatened with a laugh when she granted him that mercy as he finally relented and carried her up the slope towards the car.

"Is there really a Loch Nessie wormy thingie living in there?" she asked when she finally felt secure enough to look around and touch ground once they were several hundred feet away from the water and on firm high open land near the vehicle.

"Depends who you believe," he offered. "Sightings have been logged since 1345 and continue into the 21st century, including a 2012 video supposedly showing the creature swimming. There's a folk tradition about a little girl growing a dragon from a lingworm and a gold ring. According to the legend she threw it in the lake when it started to frighten her and it continued to get bigger and wound up terrorizing the countryside, eating people and animals while spitting poison."

"Well, for the love of all that's holy… please don't share that super cutsie bedtime story with your baby girl when we get home or she'll refuse to take a bath for a month!" Eddie griped as she sat back against the car. "I miss her, Jamie," she added quietly as her eyes got glassy and an overwhelmingly intense feeling of homesickness for the little one washed over her.

"Hey, oh baby don't cry! I miss our sweetness too," he admitted as he hugged her, neither realizing at this time that there perhaps was another important hormonal factor coming into play behind her strong maternal feelings. "What are you getting all emotional like that for? Huh? That's not like you and now you've got me going. We've talked to Kaylin every single day and video chat if we can… you know she's having a blast ruling the roost with her grandpas. They're spoiling her rotten. We'll be lucky to talk her into moving home and giving up her job at 1PP when we get back," he laughed. "Dad says she's demanding a desk next to Baker's."

"I bet Garrett just loves that," Eddie griped with a sniff of disdain as the perceived snub a certain DCPI's absence at the wedding still left a bad taste in her mouth.

"Eddie, let that go," Jamie warned as he continued to hold her close. "It's between Dad and him… it really has nothing to do with the two of us or Kaylin, okay? They'll either work it out or Garrett will move on, but it's not our concern either way. What we do have to be worried about is finding something special to take home for our little ducky and souvenirs for everyone else in the family. We're supposed to spend the rest of the day exploring the little seaside fishing villages between here and Djúpivogur. Maybe we should rent a couple of poles and see if we can catch our dinner? Tonight we are eating at the Hótel Framtíð which 'offers a robust menu of locally sourced seafood, homemade bread, desserts, wines and fresh local vegetables,'" he hyped. "Mussels and fresh lobster are high on travelers' favorite lists."

"Great, more seafood," Eddie sighed as they finally broke apart and prepared to leave. "I feel like I'm about to sprout gills, Reagan. Guess it's better than eating a reindeer for red meat though… those are kind of cute and fuzzy," she admitted as they'd had to stop the car several times already to watch as the majestic creatures crossed the road in small wandering herds. "But I'm getting a real hankering for steak."

"Honey, you just enjoy the rest of this trip, and I promise you when we get back to New York I will take you out for the best steak dinner of your life… or even two of them," Jamie added with a wry smile, safe in the knowledge that the bets with Danny and his grandfather were surely as good as money in the bank at this point as this trip had truly been exceptional, even with the little blip of seasickness on the radar.

"Okay if you say so. Maybe I'll try my hand at fishing, but I surely won't touch any worms to put on the hook now!" she called after him as he got in the driver's seat with a laugh, ready to pilot them to their next destination.

###

Sunday the following week
Bay Ridge, NY

"So Aunt Eddie… wow, isn't it cool that I get to officially call you that now?!" Nicki laughed after thanking them for her gift of a pretty lava stone adorned bracelet as Jamie distributed the carefully chosen souvenirs they brought back for everyone. "What did you do on the last couple of days of the trip, when you were in the southern part of the island? Was it warmer there? Did you bring anything interesting home with you?" she questioned as the entire Reagan family was gathered once more for a regular Sunday dinner, this time back in the normal locale at Frank's house where the discussion had of course centered on the newlywed's honeymoon tour around Iceland.

"Oh, the last three days we saw some of the most beautiful places on the whole trip," Eddie revealed, not even guessing at that moment they had indeed brought something special home from their week abroad and there was another tiny Reagan with them partaking in a very first family dinner at that precise moment. "I can actually pronounce some of those names," she laughed. "We went to the Glacial Lagoon…"

"Jökulsárlón," Jamie filled in obsessively in perfect inflection.

"Right," Eddie smirked without even trying to conceal the roll of her eyes. "There were real icebergs floating on the lake there and we hiked around the glacier on the trails by Skaf-ta-fell," she enunciated the easier word cleanly and deliberately. "Including one to the waterfall Svartifoss, which drops more than sixty feet from the edge of a wide cliff of black basalt columns."

"That night we stayed in Kirkjubæjarklaustur," Jamie added with a self-righteous smile, knowing that his glowing bride was not even going to attempt that one but he was proud of her for the other efforts.

"Oh, God… was he like that on the whole trip?" Danny grimaced as he imagined his little brother spouting facts and history in ultimate tour guide mode. "I would have shoved him off one of those cliffs by that point, and what's with this book about the 'Saga of Grettir the Strong'… I'm supposed to read about some fat guy in a red velvet tutu with a sword and shield? Maybe this was for Jack? I'd rather have the booze that Pop got," he insinuated as his oldest son had also received several adventurous sailing books.

"Uncle Danny, not nice!" Kaylin tattled as she clutched her promised and now treasured big stuffed puffin ducky bird… one of the many presents her parents had brought back for her. "Mommy says it's bad to push people! That would ouch!"

"Yeah, D-a-n-i-e-l… out of the mouths of babes," Jamie drawled out with a smirk on his face as he remembered the infamous trip down the steps at Grandma's house and resultant opposite end boo-boos for both brothers. "Falling down would ouch, especially if there was something like a rake in the way."

"Keep it civil," Frank interjected as he paged carefully through the beautiful leather-bound hardcover coffee-table book with exquisite photos of the entire fleet of restored wooden sailing vessels while he sought to keep the conversation from going off the rails in front of his little granddaughter, and he in no way wanted to revisit that particular gem of a parental nightmare again. "These views of the sea and cliffs are utterly fantastic. What else did you see?"

"Well the drive along the southern coast for the last few days was mostly more of that," Eddie admitted. "Lots of hiking through gorgeous parks with waterfalls. We were even able to walk behind the water of the one at Selja… Selja-lands-foss… which was really cool. The last afternoon before we got back to Reykjavík we spent in the Geysir area with tons of spouting geysers and all these bubbling hot springs with different colors in the lava fields. It was one of the most beautiful things I've ever seen in my life," she admitted. "I can't believe how much I miss it already."

"So what was your favorite part of the trip?" Linda asked with interest as she fingered the beautiful volcanic rock necklace she had received.

"Oh," Eddie blushed instantly and involuntarily as her mind went immediately to one thing. "I, um… well, I really liked the night we spent in the cottage by the ocean where we watched the Northern Lights," she admitted truthfully with a nervous glance towards Jamie, omitting certain private details of course and hoping to leave it at that.

Erin was quick to pick up on her sister-in-law's little stutter of embarrassment though as she admired the lovely wool blanket in her gift box, and of course it was Reagan tradition to capitalize on all moments of weakness, plus as an official member of the family now Eddie would no longer be spared. "I thought Jamie told me your car was stuck out by the road in a rainstorm and the place was without electric that night," she prodded with mischievous intent. "And you both got soaked and had to warm up and dry off in front of a fireplace…"

"Oooh," came the all-knowing peanut gallery commentary from the entire table with the exception of Sean who had put on his new wool beanie cap to display.

"I still don't get it," he grumped as he always did when something like that went over his head.

"Yeah, but I bet your Uncle Jamie did," Henry chuckled once more as he pushed his new bottle of Brennivin Hard Liquor over towards Jamie and Eddie who were both glowing bright red with that revelation which thankfully had apparently stayed above the radar for Kaylin as well. "Perhaps you need a hit of this, kids," he advised. "Says here the alcohol content of Iceland's signature drink is strong enough to make whoever tastes the "black death" remember the experience for years to come."

"That's what got us in trouble in the first place," Jamie muttered under his breath as he finally broke down and laughed along with everyone else before admitting prophetically as he reached for Eddie's hand.

"I'm sure we'll remember that night for the rest of our lives."


So there you have it, the detailed story of the honeymoon and the big oopsie that resulted from it which will have Eddie considering old Norse names for the little bean before that notion gets shot down as Týlaugr Vincent or Hiálmgerðr Margaret Reagan just won't fly in their Irish Catholic household. I can't wait to visit Iceland myself next year as this research has definitely sparked interest in a trip for hubby and me!

For the next three-part multi-shot to post starting on Monday, we move forward to the occasion of Eddie's first doctor appointment which will confirm the presence of the little hitchhiking bean(s) to an exceptionally nervous Jamie and also start some debate between Linda and Danny regarding their family's future and the potential of a new addition for them as well. Written specifically because of all of the requests received towards the end of "It's all in the name..." but as always in my "werks" of course, it won't be as simple as that for our older pair of lovebirds! It wouldn't be fair!