Kiss Me, Lynn (17 page)

Chapter 1
8

The next morning, Lynn went back to her room to change clothes for the ride back to Machu Picchu. Sharon was already up and dressed.

“A post
just came from your father. They did the surgery last night and removed the aneurysm. Your mother came through the surgery with no problems. She’s sleeping. She’ll be in the ICU for a day or two, then move to a regular room if everything goes the way they expect.”

Lynn
didn’t say anything. She just got into the shower and let the hot water wash away some of her fear. Her mother had made it through the surgery. The aneurysm was gone. Her chances for a full recovery had improved immeasurably, but they wouldn’t have a complete prognosis for a good while.

She had to do what her mother had always suggested when she had a problem that
had overwhelmed her. She had to “take two steps back in her mind” so she could see the situation objectively and positively.

They had
Coca tea and something light at the breakfast buffet since they’d be having an early lunch at Machu Picchu before their last day of touring—the best day of the tour, according to Alex. No better way for Lynn to remain “two steps back” today. Then, they’d ride the train back to Ollantaytambo, then go back to Cusco.

They boarded the bus.
Alex was up front, talking to the driver. When she passed him, she let her fingers trail along his lower back, eliciting a smile from him. In a few minutes, he sat next to her and took her hand.

“S
houldn’t the bus have left by now?”

“One of the
other buses broke down on the way up. The schedule is delayed until they can get that bus out of the way.”

“Will
it be very long?”

“Not long.
This happens sometimes. They’ll get it to the nearest pull-out and do the repairs there. It’s still early, so the buses haven’t started coming back down the mountain yet.” He leaned closer and whispered, “You look beautiful this morning.”

“So do you!”

“When you wear blue, it makes your eyes look bluer. They look like the skies over Machu Picchu.”

It wasn’t
more than ten minutes before the bus pulled out.

“See?
Not long. What have you heard this morning?”

Lynn
told him about the surgery. “Mom is in the Intensive Care Unit and will be there a day or two. There’s a good chance she’ll be all right, unless there are complications.”

“Your father has my cell phone number
if he has more news for you. Or, you may call him any time you wish.”

When they reached Machu Picchu, b
efore hiking to the Watch Tower, they went into the restaurant near the entrance. It was, without surprise, a buffet, and, also without surprise, Alex ladled
ceviche
onto his plate. When he sat down at the table, he took a bite then said, “They fixed it with quinoa! I’ve never had it fixed that way before. It’s good!”

Lynn tried not to laugh but couldn’t help herself.
“I didn’t think there could be a single way to fix
ceviche
that you hadn’t tried! We need to put your picture in the newspaper with the headline, ‘Alex Vereau Discovers New Way to Fix
Ceviche
!’”

He laughed and even
blushed a little.

The restaurant was crowded with tourists
, and noisy with excited children and adults. It wasn’t difficult to spot them, with cameras hanging around their necks, huge purses or tote bags, and floppy-brimmed hats, some of them garish with splashes of bright colors that didn’t match their clothes. Lynn thought about her own hat, which she’d bought at the market. It looked more like an Indiana Jones hat than one a tourist would wear. At least she didn’t think it looked touristy. It reminded her of Alex’s white straw hat.

After they’d eaten, Alex gathered the group
. They entered the city the same way as before, but headed for a long flight of steps that meant a strenuous hike to the Watch Tower overlooking the city. From there, guards would’ve been able to see down the mountain on both sides of Machu Picchu to spy anyone approaching, long before they could reach the city. Lynn wondered how many stone steps she’d climbed since arriving in Peru. It had to be thousands, without exaggeration. Some of these, though, were the tallest she could remember, and most of the way there were no hand rails. The only thing to hold onto was the vegetation on the inside of the never-ending steps.

“Alex, I’m not sure I can make it to the top.
My legs are rubbery.”

“Rest whenever you need to,
mi amor
. I won’t let you stumble or fall.”

She stopped to catch her breath.
“Your name for me has changed.”

“Yes.
Querida
means ‘sweetheart.’ But ‘
mi amor
’ means ‘my love.’ My dearest love. That’s what you’ve come to be for me.”

“I hardly know what to say.”

“There’s no need to say anything.” He kissed her, then asked, “Are you ready to climb a bit farther?”

“Sure.”
She released a sigh and tackled the steps again, with Alex’s hand on her elbow to steady her. She had to rest several more times before they made it to the top, where the others were waiting, gazing in awe at the incredible view.

Lynn turned to face the city.
Tears came when she realized she was looking at the “classic view,” but not from a great distance. From where they were standing, she felt she was almost close enough to touch the walls, rooms, and terraces that made up the lost city of the Inca.

“Oh, my…”

“Every time I see it, my heart catches a little. Spectacular.”

“This is why I came to Peru—to see the city where the Inca lived and walked and loved
, surrounded by these incredible mountains.”

“I think there’s another reason you came to Peru.”

She glanced at him. “And what is that?”

“To meet me, of course!”
Another kiss. “And to fall in love.” He excused himself to check on the others.

“What have I gotten myself into?” she whispered,
then smiled. Something wonderful.

Lynn spied a
stone bench with only a few feet between it and a drop-off to the level about thirty feet below. She wandered over and sat down, still enamored with the sight of the famous city. She knew she could sit here the rest of the day and be perfectly happy not to go anywhere else.

Vicki called her to come for a group photo with the city in the background.
Lynn complied happily, knowing she would print and frame the photograph so she could remember this time forever, and the people who had shared the experience with her.

Alex stood off to the side.

Sharon grabbed him by the arm. “No, you don’t! You have to be in this picture, too! Without you, we wouldn’t be here! Let’s see. Who should you stand by? How about Lynn?”

They all smiled at his bashful expression and the blush that crept across his cheeks.

The guide who would take some of them to the Sun Gate took their picture over and over, using all their cameras, including the one on Alex’s phone.

Alex’s arm around her waist felt wonderful to Lynn.
Sadly, she’d begun counting the hours until she’d have to fly home. Tonight, they’d go back to Cusco to the hotel where they’d stayed before—where she and Alex had danced around the fountain. Then, tomorrow, they’d fly to Lima, board the plane for Houston, then spend a layover before boarding the plane for Virginia. Or for Santa Fe…

After the photos were taken, the group divided for the different hikes.
Lynn and Alex were the only ones staying at the Watch Tower. With hundreds of people milling around on this upper level, and hundreds more below in the city, Lynn marveled at her feeling of being alone in the city, of being the only one there to experience what she was seeing. It had become easy to mute all the voices, the laughter and cries of children, and the sounds of endless photographs being taken. Thank goodness she’d found a place where no one would block her view of the city below.

When she was able to take her eyes off Huayna Picchu, the mountain at the
far end of the city, she turned slowly, taking in the panorama of the Andes peaks, soaring to incredible heights from the Urubamba River valley far below. The vegetation-covered peaks didn’t seem real, standing verdantly green against an impossibly clear blue sky. Yet she knew they were real because she could feel their presence, as though they were alive, comforting and reassuring her while she waited for news about her mother, and while she thought sadly about the rapidly approaching time when she’d have to tell Alex good-bye.

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After the rest of the group had left for their hikes, Alex made his way to where Lynn was sitting and sat on the opposite side of the stone bench. It reminded her of the arrangement of a Victorian “courting couch,” where a young lady sat on one side of the S-shaped settee, while the young man courting her sat on the other side.

He trailed one finger down her arm
, creating a shiver of pleasure. “What are you thinking about?”

“How long I’ve waited to sit
here and see what I’m seeing now.” She turned toward him. “I was also thinking about you.”

He seemed really pleased with that.
He pulled out his cell phone. “Would you like to e-mail your father and see if he has any news?”

“Yes!
That would be wonderful!” She gave him the address. “Please tell him I’m thinking about both of them, hoping for the best. Also, tell him we’re at Machu Picchu, and I’m taking lots of pictures. They’ll be thrilled to know where we are.”

Alex sent the post then put his phone back into his pocket.

“Will you’ll go to Santa Fe to be with your mother during her treatment?”

“Probably.
She’ll tell me not to come, though.”

“Why would she tell you that?”

“Because she’s a strong-willed woman, and she won’t want me to ‘fuss over her.’”

“What about your father?
Will he need you there during the treatments?”

Lynn
thought about it. “Maybe. He knows my mother better than anyone, and he knows we haven’t always gotten along well. He might think it best if I didn’t come.”

“My mother and my sister who lives in Lima don’t get along well, either.
My sister thinks my mother shouldn’t tell her what to do, and my mother thinks she should keep taking care of my sister, even though she’s twenty-seven years old.”

“That sounds a lot like
my mom.”

“Sometimes, though, a child has to live her own life the way she wants to live it, and not the way her mother thinks is best.
That’s what I told my sister, anyway.”

“What’s her name?”

“Connie.”

“And the others?”

“Henry, Joe, Robert, and Kathy.”

Lynn knew their names were
probably Consuela, Enrique, José, Roberto, Katarina—and Alejandro. Beautiful names.

“Are you the eldest, youngest, or in the middle?”

“In the middle. My brothers are older. My sisters younger. Connie has always wanted to leave home and live on her own. But not me. I still live close to my mother, to take care of her when she’ll allow it.”

“You’re a good son.”

“I try to be. And you’re a good daughter. Sometimes, it’s best not to crowd your mother too much. If I go by to see my mother every day, she starts to worry there’s something wrong, and I’m not telling her what it is. But if I don’t go by often enough, she thinks the same thing.” He laughed. “She’s a dear, sweet, funny, fussy woman, my mama.”

“I’d love to meet her.”
Lynn immediately wished she hadn’t said that because it could give Alex the wrong idea.

“
If we decide to get married, will I need to ask your father for his permission?”

She felt her face flush.
“No. I would decide for myself.”

His kiss
came so quickly and was so passionate, it took her breath away.

“This isn’t exactly the best place…”
she said softly when they parted.

“I know.”
He looked down shyly, then away. “When will you be able to decide if you can stay in Peru a while longer?”

“I don’t know.”

He looked into her eyes. “Do you want to stay with me, so we can get to know each other better?”

She sighed.
“I’d like that very much.”

His grin widened
, then he laughed. “You have no idea how happy I am to hear that.”

His phone pinged.
“An e-mail.” He checked quickly. “It’s from your father.” He handed her the phone without reading the post.

She
read the post then told Alex, “Mom is still sleeping after the surgery. He wants me to enjoy the rest of the tour. He’ll let me know how she’s doing tonight.” She squeezed her eyes shut but couldn’t stop the tears.