Tenacious TuesdayChapter 5, Part 1: Tuesday Travels
by Lindsey Michelle
Tuesday had barely settled into her airplane seat when Nancy grabbed her arm dramatically. Across the aisle, Andrew seemed to snap to attention as well, leaning across to join the conversation.
“Andrew and I have a very important request,” Nancy began.
Andrew interrupted. “Request? Order is more like it.”
Tuesday’s eyes widened with curiosity.
Nancy continued. “This is not only a vacation from work – and so that Andrew can avoid reading any movie reviews – but a vacation from your man drama.”
“What?” Tuesday exclaimed, laughing.
“There will be no discussion about Kenneth, or Peter…”
“You mustn’t even utter their names,” Andrew added.
“You two are insane,” Tuesday responded. “It’s not as though I devote that much time to them. And anyway, after my last dinner with Kenneth, I don’t even…”
Tuesday trailed off as Nancy and Andrew looked at one another in dismay.
“That’s strike one,” Nancy warned.
Tuesday slumped in her seat. “What happens after three strikes?”
Andrew smirked. “You’re on the first plane back to London.”
Andrew’s house didn’t disappoint. If there was anything that could take Tuesday’s mind off of the two men she wasn’t allowed to name, she was in the right place. The ocean was visible from almost every window, as the sand was just steps away.
Though Andrew and Nancy already claimed their usual rooms, Tuesday still had her choice of bedroom. She didn’t really care which room she slept in, but finally Andrew convinced her to put her bags in the room at the far end of the hall.
“Then you won’t bother us when you arrive home in the early morning hours,” he teased her.
She tried to smile, but somehow she worried it’d be the other way around. Nancy noticed Tuesday’s wavering smile.
“Hey, don’t worry, Tues,” she said. “We’re not leaving you behind.”
Nancy plopped on the sofa and stared at the high ceilings. “In fact, I think I have a new mission. We’re going to find Tuesday a fling!”
“We are?” Andrew asked.
“She needs our support.”
“Well, picking out the perfect guy may be fun for you two, but I’m far more interested in discovering what women are around.”
“”Oh please, that’ll take all of five minutes – girls throw themselves at you...”
Tuesday frowned as they carried on the conversation as if she wasn’t there. She cleared her throat.
“Contrary to popular belief in this room, I’m not completely incapable of attracting a man,” Tuesday said.
Nancy sat up. “That isn’t what I meant, obviously.”
“And,” Tuesday continued, “Prior to… recent times, I’ve had more than one…”
Tuesday trailed off, searching for the word. “Conquest?” Andrew offered.
“Sure!” Tuesday responded, and the three of them dissolved into laughter.
Finally, Nancy spoke up. “Good! It’s settled then. Tonight we head to The Bar.”
The Bar was located in a nearby hotel, located on its main level, its patrons spilling out onto a large patio. The outdoor tables and chairs were all occupied, but many people stood around the edges and onto the grass, talking and holding their drinks.
Nancy immediately pulled herself and Tuesday away from Andrew.
“Don’t look like you’re with us,” she scolded him lightly, then flashed a smile.
“See you girls later,” he agreed.
Andrew stopped at the bar to order a drink, then he disappeared into the crowd.
“Where’s he going?”
“The bar winds all the way around the corner,” Nancy explained.
Tuesday mumbled a response, distracted as she scanned the crowd. Everyone seemed to be paired off already, or at least in groups of four. She instinctively reached to touch her Tuesday Takes London necklace, then remembered that she, indeed, had left it in London.
“Let’s find you someone,” Nancy declared.
Tuesday tried to smile. “I don’t think you can just scan the crowd…”
“What about him?” Nancy pointed to a man with dark, wavy hair.
“He’s wearing a flowered shirt,” Tuesday said, wrinkling her nose.
“He’s on vacation!” Nancy argued. “Besides, you’re not marrying the guy. You don’t even have to tell him your real name.”
Tuesday bit her lip. She remembered giving Kenneth a false name, June, when they first met, and how that had essentially backfired when she discovered he knew who she was anyway. She was about to remind Nancy of this story, but she stopped before she uttered a word. No talk of Kenneth, she remembered.
Instead, she noticed a beautiful blonde approach the flower-shirted man and kiss him, knowingly, possessively.
She turned to Nancy and smiled wryly. “I don’t think we’re having much luck from this viewpoint.”
“You’re right. You stay here and look pretty. I’m going in.”
Tuesday laughed as Nancy made her way past the couples around them, until she was out of sight.
Tuesday slipped onto an empty barstool, resting her drink on the bar. She tried to appear casual, pleasant, that she was enjoying herself despite sitting alone. When no one approached her, she left her empty glass and wandered around the corner, where in addition to barstools and tables, there were outdoor loveseats and ottomans (all taken, of course.)
She stood near the bar, contemplating whether she should look for Nancy, when she heard a soft, “Buy you a drink?”
She looked up into the piercing eyes of a tall, young man, who looked as though he belonged perpetually on a tropical island. She managed to nod as he ordered a drink for each of them, and when he handed the cool glass to her, introduced himself.
“Zack Meadow,” he said, shaking her hand. “And you are?”
She hesitated. She knew Nancy would’ve pushed her to use a false name, but she couldn’t bring herself to lie. Tuesday took a deep breath.
“My name’s Tuesday,” she said. “It’s nice to meet you.”
She braced herself for a comment – a comment about her name, her occupation, her photo spread, her latest role. But Zack simply smiled at her.
“What brings you here?” he continued.
“Vacationing with friends,” Tuesday replied. “We thought it’d be fun to take a break from our jobs.”
“Stuck in the corporate world?” he guessed.
She grinned. “Something like that. Yourself?”
“I love this island. I guess I needed a little beauty,” Zack replied. He smiled at her. “But I didn’t expect to find such a gem.”
Tuesday blushed a little, laughing. “Very smooth.”
He asked if she was staying at the hotel. He was, and had just flown in earlier that day. She revealed that she was staying at the house of a friend, and his eyes widened. He began to articulate his appreciation for the homes on the island, their simple but beautiful architecture. Before Tuesday knew it, she was inviting him back to Andrew’s house.
“I’d love to see it up close,” Zack admitted.
Tuesday found Nancy long enough to relay the turn of events, to which Nancy gave a little shriek.
“Please,” Tuesday said, “I’m just showing him around.”
“Well, I’ll make sure Andrew and I stay out very late tonight,” Nancy responded with a grin.
To Be Continued...
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