“Yes, hold on,” I hastily removed my shirt and put on the pile of our bag and her leggings. “Wait, don’t you want photos first?” I asked, already knowing her answer so I pulled out my phone.
“In the water or right here?” She asked, looking at her surroundings.
“We can do both, just move a little more to here,” I adjusted her so her background would be just as breathtaking as hers. Mia nodded and got in position, striking a different pose for every photo I just took for her. I assumed it must be a solid 15 pictures that I took of her so surely at least three should be good right?
“Do I just go in?” She asked, her toes dipping into the water. By the reaction on her face, I could tell the water was cold. I hummed and gave her a nod then watched as she got in the water. The waterfall fell down onto a series of rocks, a few others were already sitting there but there was enough place for Mia. She sat down and looked at me with a smile on her lips as I took her photos.
“I can take a photo of you both if you’d like,” A man walked up to me. His face was all red from the sun and he seemed a little out of breath. I remember him, he walked the fastest, he started behind Mia and me and at the end, he was right next to the guide.
“Sure, thanks man,” I handed him my phone. “Once you’re done, can you hold onto it for me?” I asked and earned a yes and nod. I made my way over to Mia and was utterly careful not to fall down into the cold water. After a few photos, the man gave us a thumbs up.
Mia and I dipped into the water, the cold water pooling around my body. I dipped my head in to even out the coldness and watched as Mia was still shuddering a little. I watched as she swam over to me, of course. She was quiet as she wrapped herself around me.
After about 30 minutes of swimming around, we got out of the water and dried ourselves. Sadly I hadn’t packed lunch. Mia and I only carried a change of clothes which was hard for her to get into. Mia just threw a dress over her body and slid on her sneakers.
“A true fashion icon,” Emilia commented on her own outfit before I had a chance to. I just smiled and shook my head. She handed me the bag.
“Come on, let’s get going,” I told her and took her hand in mine.
“Are we allowed to go back by ourselves?” Emilia wondered, looking over her shoulders at the rest. Everyone was still swimming, exploring and relaxing. Even their guide was still there.
“Yes, we just have to check in when we arrive back at the hotel,” I assured her, following the slightly paved path.
“Do you know the way back?” She questioned, staring at me and didn’t take a step further.
“Yes,” I assured her and rolled my eyes. Sure this was my first time here but I could memorise the path back.
“Are you sure? Shouldn’t we wait?” Emilia was still unsure and untrusting and to be fair, everything was green with just a bit of colour here and there. Getting lost would be easy. For others, but not for me.
“They’ll be here for another two hours or so,” I pointed out to the others. We were both hungry and there’s no food here, by the time we’d leave her she would’ve killed me out of hangry-ness.
“Let’s get going,” She immediately decided after hearing the time it would take us to get back.
I took my time going down the path, lucky for us we didn’t get lost or had any dangerous animals coming our way. When we reached the starting location we had to walk or call for a taxi which would’ve taken us some time. I decided to look into getting my own vehicle whilst we’re still here, it would be much easier than relying on others.
“Grayson, I’m hungry, I won’t survive walking or waiting for a taxi,” Mia whined and leaned against the tree at the entrance and took big gulps of her water.
“Goddamn it, uhm,” I looked around and then remembered we had one option. “There’s a botanical garden right around the corner, we can have lunch there,” I offered. We both knew the place and it was quite expensive.
“Are you sure?” Mia raised a brow at me as if we had any other options around. I did not want to deal with a hangry Mia. I dealt with her a few times before and I don’t want to meet that side of her ever again if possible.
“Come on, we’ll find something to at least fill us for a few moments,” I took her hand and started walking down the road.
“It’s expensive, we shouldn’t waste that much,” Mia started to complain, I tugged her over and looked down at her. “Listen shortcake, we’re both hungry, let’s just go to that place and enjoy some lunch,” I explained and started walking again. “The money shouldn’t be an issue, I make enough to enjoy an expensive lunch.”
“I can’t have you paying all the time, you know,” She followed me, our hands still connected. “I can and I will please no more discussing, I don’t want to meet hangry Mia right now,” I looked over at her and stopped in front of the gates of the botanical garden. Shit, it really was pretty, there were so many luscious greens and floral decorations. I’m pretty sure there might be a snake here somewhere.
~~~
Mia’s point of view.
Well, lunch was fucking incredible. The best food I’ve ever had till now, thankfully because of the price Grayson paid for us. During dessert, we called for a taxi. After paying for our meal we walked through the garden, somehow our hands connected again as we enjoyed the walk, making our way to the front gates. After lunch, Grayson barely said a word. Even the whole taxi ride he didn’t say anything. In fact, we weren’t even heading to the hotel. Fuck, is this the part where he kills me? Perhaps he’s part of a cult and I’ll be offered? It would explain why he fed me so well these past couple of days.
“We’re heading to a car centre, we need to get a vehicle of our own,” Grayson broke the silence over the low-volume background music.
“How did- never mind, that sounds better,” I stuttered at first wanting to ask how he knew what was on my mind but decided not to.
“Mhm,” He hummed and stared out the window.
“Are we heading back to the hotel afterwards?” I asked, eyes trailing over his body. He clearly forgot to use sunscreen today and his skin seemed very sensitive against the sun.
“Is there anything you’d like to do today?” He looked over at me.
“I think after the hike and swim today I might want to relax and watch a movie,” I admitted. I was tired out, all my muscles hurt and I knew for a fact it would continue to hurt till tomorrow.
“Sounds good then,” He decided and kept quiet for a while before talking again, “I noticed there’s a free house to rent, it’s much closer to fun attractions and we’d also be closer to meet up with that friend of yours.”
“Rent a house? For how long?” Wasn’t the hotel good enough for him? Perhaps it was the glass-walled shower? Or the fact that we still had to share a bed? No privacy? Okay, I could see his reason for wanting some peace.
“The duration of the trip, it’s really cheap in my opinion plus we’d have our own separate rooms, there’s a kitchen for us to cook so we won’t starve,” Grayson shrugged and handed me his phone with the place he was talking about.
“There’s room service,” I pointed out, finding the only thing I could say to counter his idea.
“Only their breakfast is great,” Grayson reminded me. As good as the hotel was, their food could definitely be better.
“You want to go, don’t you?” I knew determination when I saw it and this man was very clearly determined.
“Yep, it’s not like we’ve unpacked much,” He shrugged.
“We’d have wasted Prashant’s money,” I pointed out, which he very clearly did not care about. I could now only start to wonder how rich this man really is. I know he owns his own condo, he’s a lead project manager who had been there since the start with Prashant but even that wouldn’t explain the amount of money he clearly has.
Well, Grayson didn’t answer me anymore. We arrived at the car centre and I paid for the taxi before he could even do that. When we walked further to the car centre an agent popped up, literally popped up. Neither of us had seen that man coming from anywhere.
“What car would you like to rent? These are the ones you can choose from,” The dealer asked. Pointing towards the selection of for rent.
“Which one do you like to be in?” Grayson removed his shades and hung them over the neckline of his shirt.
“What?” I frowned, why was this being passed onto me?
“You can choose for us,” Grayson turned around to have his back against the sun.
“But you’ll be driving,” I pointed out.
“And you’ll be the passenger princess so have your pick,” He patted my back.
“Are you going to be broke after this trip?” I teased.
“I’m sure I can stay with you if I miss my rent,” He smirked.
“Hey!” I laughed. That one-person apartment was the perfect fit for me but for a giant like him? He’d struggle to breathe.
“I’m kidding, don’t worry, I really have it covered,” He assured me.
“Might I suggest ones with hybrid engines? It’s a lot more environmentally friendly,” The car dealer spoke up. After going through the option the one I liked the most ended up being quite expensive but Grayson assured me he had it covered. I loved this car and had my eyes on it for a while. Once I had the money I planned on buying this so these few weeks in this car would actually be great.
