The Tutor

Chapter 43: Fun in the Sun

An: Only the epilogue after this, okay guys?

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Somewhere in the South Pacific

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"Oh wow, feel that humidity, and look at the sun!" Sumire declared as they stepped off the plane.

"This is actually considered a winter month, even here," Nick told her as they descended the stairs.

"Really? because it feels and looks pretty damned summery to me," she replied, doing a little twirl on the tarmac. "God, this is glorious!"

They quickly gathered their bags and found the car that would take them to their hotel.

At least, that's what Sumire thought when she fell asleep on Nick's shoulder.

She woke up, feeling refreshed, not sure how much time had passed.

"How far away is this hotel, Nick?" she asked, looking around. The road had narrowed to a twisting, two lane affair, with the thick, jungle growth coming right up to its edges.

"Well, it's not a hotel, exactly," Nick admitted with a smile.

"What? I thought you said it was a resort," Sumire reminded him.

"No, I said it had all of the amenities of a resort," Nick corrected. "You said that you'd gotten used to being around lots of people, but you still preferred being alone, and I thought it would be nice if we could have some alone time, so I rented us a house. You don't mind, do you?"

"No, I don't mind. Sounds nice. Cozy, even."

"It is nice, it's right on the beach, but has valet service to a hotel that's about five minutes away," Nick informed her.

"Sounds expensive," Sumire worried.

"Merry Christmas!" Nick told her, pressing a kiss to her temple.

And when they saw the place twenty minutes later, after checking in at the main building, Sumire had to revise her opinion.

"I guess 'cozy' wasn't really the word," she said as they stepped out of the golf cart they'd ridden in from the hotel. "I'm going to go with 'opulent, luxurious, gorgeous, and insane,' wow, Nick!" She turned to him. "All this space, just for us? We're not sharing or anything?"

Nick shook his head as he tipped the driver of the golf cart to carry their bags to the bedroom. He smiled at her happiness. "God, I hope not. I paid for privacy."

Sumire planted her hands on her hips and stared at him. "I didn't marry you and forget or anything, did I? We're not, like, actually on our honeymoon or something? Because this place is so over the top in every way!"

"And you haven't even seen the private beach yet," Nick said.

"Private beach?"

Nick just nodded, reaching for her hand.

"So you've been here before?" Sumire asked as they walked around to the beach side of the villa.

"I brought Darcie here for her birthday a couple of years ago," he said. "We had a great time, and I thought you'd like it, so I requested the same place."

They rounded the corner of the house, and Sumire stopped in her tracks, floored by the sight in front of her.

Wow.

"I mean, I saw the water from the plane and everything, but it's not the same as seeing it all spread out in front of me, with the sand and the sky and the waves breaking and the trees moving in the breeze?"