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“Have you touched one before?” he asked.
“Yes. If we found a snake in the garden, I was the one who had to relocate it if my father wasn’t home. Mom and my sister areantisnake, as you say. Plus there were field trips and visits to zoos where I had the chance to touch them.”
“Would you like to hold our albino python?” a young man asked. His staff T-shirt sported a faded red stain near the hem.
Rose looked at the indicated snake. “It’s enormous!” The creature was nearly as big around as Stavros’s thigh. Not that she’d been looking at his legs during his beach swims. “I don’t think I could hold it.”
“Perhaps if we all work together,” Stavros suggested. “What do you say, children?”
“Yes!” the kids chorused.
Rose found herself side by side with Stavros, the children flanking them, and the albino python being draped around her shoulders. Stavros helped her bear the weight with the snake across his shoulders. The children held the snake closer to the head and tail. She could feel the pulse of the snake’s breathing through her shirt.
Rose handed the staff member her phone. He captured several pictures, returned the phone, and then untangled the four of them from the snake.
“Will he try to eat me?” Adonis asked the man.
“No. He’s fed regularly. Humans aren’t part of his diet. But in the wild it could be a different story.”
“Thank you.” Rose smiled. She was pretty sure a snake that size could eat her if it chose to. Hadn’t she recently read about a reticulated python that ate a farmer in Asia?
Back in the car, Rose asked the children, “Which animal was your favorite?”
“The snake,” Adonis said without hesitation.
“I liked the chameleon the best,” Nefeli said. “He’s so cute. He reminds me of the one in the Rapunzel movie. I’d like to have one as a pet.”
Rose nodded.
“That might be difficult,” Stavros said. “Chameleons are hard work. They require very specific living conditions. You have to keep the humidity at the right level.”
“What’s humidity?” asked Adonis.
“It’s the amount of moisture in the air,” Rose replied. “And I would bet today, that level is very high.” She fanned herself with a hand.
“Can we go swimming?” Adonis asked, picking at a loose thread on the hem of his shorts.
“I think a nice swim in the sea sounds perfect,” Rose said.
“Hooray!” Adonis bounced in his seat. “When will we get there?”
Stavros gently placed a hand on Adonis’s shoulder. “In a few minutes. Try to keep it together until we get there.”
“May I play on my tablet?” Adonis asked Rose.
“Yes.” She passed the tablets to the children. Adonis was immediately engrossed in a game, while Nefeli worked on her drawing skills. A relative quiet settled over their group, and Rose’s eyes naturally drifted to Stavros. He held his tablet as well, and his mouth was drawn into a frown, his forehead creased.
“Something wrong?” she asked.
He turned off the tablet and shut the case. “Unfortunately a matter requires my attention when we arrive at the hotel. I’d hoped to join you at the beach.”
Disappointment settled over Rose like a light blanket. “I’m sorry too. The children enjoy your company.”
“Only the children?” He quirked an eyebrow.
Rose’s cheeks warmed. “Two sets of eyes are better than one when children and water are involved.”
“Agreed.” He held her gaze.