Page 20 of Eat Your Heart Out

He showed me where we left the dishes for the staff. “Maybe we can figure out what movie that was and stream it.”

I followed him back inside and remembered years of school and teachers not being able to get movies to play. “Can you work a projection screen on your own?”

He pressed his hand to his heart. “I can figure it out.”

Good. We walked to a lower floor and found a room with no windows. When he opened the door, recliners lined the back of the room. It truly was a theater and not a living room with a couch.

“Who’s working the beauty salon and spa?”

“You’ll meet the staff later. Maybe we can get joint massages before dinner.”

I giggled as I took my seat. He asked the computer for movies set in the Azores. I didn’t recognize the actors or settings. I asked for movies starring Shirley MacLaine, then I found what I had been thinking of.

He read the blurb and said, “The Canary Islands are closer to Africa. We can stop there after we visit Europe.”

I winced. I had no idea about the differences, but when we settled in to watch the movie I’d chosen, I swallowed my embarrassment. In one year, maybe I would have a better understanding of the world and myself. Then I would be in better shape to figure out what came next. No way would I end up with Gerard, but for a while, I could pretend he was mine. That would have to be enough.