Page 82 of Never
‘I know. I just enjoyed saying it.’
But he was serious. ‘I want a whole weekend, somewhere else, without interruptions, without people we have to pretend to.’
Tamara was beginning to find this exciting, but she did not see how it could be done. ‘You mean, like, take a vacation?’
‘Yes. It’s your birthday soon, I know.’
She did not remember telling him that. But it would have been easy for him to find out. He was a spy, after all. ‘Sunday,’ she said. ‘I’ll be thirty. I wasn’t planning to make a big fuss.’
‘I’d like to take you away, as a birthday present.’
She felt a warm flush of affection. Oh, God, I like this guy, she thought. There was a snag, though. ‘I love the idea,’ she said. ‘But where could we go? It’s not like there’s a resort where we could check into a hotel and be anonymous. Anywhere in this country other than here in the capital we’d stick out like a couple of visiting giraffes.’
‘I know a good hotel in Marrakech.’
‘Morocco? Are you serious?’
‘Why not?’
‘There are no direct flights from here. You have to go via Paris or Casablanca or both. It takes a day to get there. You can’t do it for a weekend.’
‘Suppose I could solve that problem?’
‘How else could we travel? Jet-propelled camel?’
‘My mother has a plane.’
She burst out laughing. ‘Tab! How will I ever get used to you? Your mother has a plane! My mother has never even flown first class.’
He smiled ruefully. ‘You’ll find this hard to believe, I know, but I find the thought of your family intimidating.’
‘You’re right, that’s hard to believe.’
‘My dad is a salesman – a brilliant salesman, it’s true – but he’s no intellectual. Your father is a university professor who writes history books. My mom has a talent for creating watches and handbags that rich women will pay ridiculous prices for. Your mother runs a high school, responsible for the education of hundreds of young people, maybe thousands. I know your parents don’t make any money, but in a way that’s even more impressive. They’re probably going to see me as a spoiled rich kid.’
She noted two things in that little speech. One was his humility, which she thought was pretty unusual in men of his social group. The other, more important, was the assumption that he was going to meet her parents. He had a vision of his future, and she was in it.
She did not remark on either, but said: ‘Could we really do it?’
‘I’ll have to ask if the plane is free.’
‘This is so romantic. I wish we could make love right now.’
He raised an eyebrow. ‘I don’t see why not.’
‘In the fountain?’
‘Perhaps, but I don’t want to draw the spotlight away from the bride and groom. It would seem discourteous.’
‘Oh, all right, you old stick-in-the-mud. Let’s go back to your place.’
‘I’ll go first. I’ll slip out without saying goodbye. You could pay your respects to Drew and Annette and follow me a few minutes later.’
‘Okay.’
‘And that gives me a chance to make sure my apartment is reasonably clean and tidy. Unload the dishwasher, throw my socks in the laundry hamper, put out the garbage.’
‘All that, just for me?’
