Paige Byrne needs a vacation

Day 1: Arrivals

A lady is best served with a little dose of love every now and again (and hopefully again) across the decades (or millennia). It helps to keep the soul active. If there is no chance of love, may I suggest a good vacation with a side of rum? - from the stolen letters of Dame Cinzia

***

Hello, I've landed. Walking out now. I consider the message for a moment before sending it.

It takes a moment before my phone buzzes. I glance down to check the message. Aloha, welcome to Maui. On my way now.

I came here with one clear objective: fucking relax. It has been one year, five months, and twenty-three days since my last vacation. Of course, not all of it is my fault. Some of that has to deal with circumstances best not brought up when there is that one clear objective in mind, and forgetting is part of relaxing sometimes.

The wheels of my new suitcase hitch along the airport tiles as I push a strand of curly brown hair behind my ear. I was smart enough with my packing to only have carry-ons, so it was easy to side-step the other passengers on my way to find my ride to the hotel. Never-ending work trips can do wonders for a woman's ability to pack light.

Wind and daylight assault my jet-lagged senses as I move past the people grabbing their luggage to the road. My eyes take a moment to adjust as I scan the line of cars waiting. Near the end, I see a chestnut man in a Hawaiian shirt with tattoos spiraling up his right arm, standing beside a black Mercedes. He pulls out a sign, Paige Byrne.

"Push away the thoughts," I mutter, moving quickly towards the man. His eyes meet mine, and I give him a small wave.

The driver nods towards me, immediately taking hold of my roller. "Hello, Ms. Byrne. My name is Koa. I'll be your driver today."

"Thank you, Koa."

Koa quickly transitions from opening my door to putting my bag in the trunk. This is the type of vacation I need. No thinking.

"Two weeks of not worrying," I smile to myself.

My boss, Tammy, didn't make much of a fuss about my extended vacation. I've accrued enough PTO to be out for six months straight. The two weeks I'm taking isn't that much in comparison. I just might need to check—nope! Tammy said to tune out, and so I will. No need to get my boss mad at me for not listening to her by not relaxing. That shit-roaster of a case is finally over. I can breathe. I can sleep. I can not check my phone every 10-15 minutes to wonder if the world will fall apart because I'm not being a productive part of it.

"Just go get the fuck out of here, Paige," Tammy smiled, flashing perfect teeth with just a hint of her coffee addiction. She casually leaned against the doorway, checking the split ends of her auburn hair before turning her full attention back to leaning against the doorway of my office. "I don't want to hear from you for the next two weeks. We can discuss your next assignment when you get back."

My fingers paused on the keyboard; double-tasking is a habit that's hard for me to break. "So, my next assignment is already—"

Her hand flew up, so I could only see her palm and the back of well-manicured fingers. "Not your problem at the moment. Just get the report done and leave. Have a great trip!"

I lean my head against the car window, watching trees and farms give way to blue waves crashing against a black rocked coastline. Simply saying "blue" doesn't really do it justice. I just don't have the mental capacity after ten hours of travel to provide more mental juice than, wow, that's beautiful blue water.