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expensive dark suit and a large diamond ring.
    Their reaction to my arrival was odd. Each man just stared, then turned abruptly and walked quickly away from me and from each other, in opposite directions, without another word.
    I just stood there in the moonlight. Jay was nowhere in sight.
    I shivered. I was alone in the lush, tropical garden. There were no sounds except for the faint melody of a piano coming from the hotel and the crunch of gravel receding as the two men retreated.
    The moon drifted behind some clouds, making the night even darker, and the deep shadows of the overhanging trees suddenly made me feel very lonely indeed.
    I hurried back toward the hotel, getting pebbles in my sandals, but I definitely wasn’t stopping in the deserted garden to empty them.
    In my haste, I tripped over something, a broken tree limb, maybe, and went sprawling. I didn’t investigate. I jumped up, brushed myself off, and jogged off as fast as I could go toward light and people. My dress was okay and I wasn’t hurt, just shaken.
    As I neared the hotel, I was glad to see George, leaning on a railing, smoking a cigar.
    “Hello, Sidney. Isn’t this a great hotel? Don’t you wish you could just check in here for a year or two and paint or something?”
    “Yes, I do,” I laughed, “but my budget won’t allow one night, much less a couple of years. What are you doing here, George? I thought you were going to a disco.”
    “Changed my mind when I heard you and Jay had headed here. Thought I might as well have a look. I’m glad I did. This place is impressive.”
    “It is, isn’t it?”
    “Where’s Jay? Why isn’t he with you? Were you out in the garden all by yourself?”
    I wasn’t about to tell George about my embarrassing encounter with two strange men in the garden.
    “Yes,” I said, trying to quell the faint tremor in my voice. “I just strolled out from the bar for a moment to get some fresh air.” I thought back to the men in the shadows of the deserted garden. I couldn’t quite shake the notion that I had seen something clandestine. Maybe it was that look of rage in the face of the handsome man ...
    “It’s really beautiful, isn’t it? See anyone you know in the garden? Did you take any pictures?”
    I shrugged and held up my hands to show that they were empty. “No , and I didn’t bring my camera with me tonight. Travelling light. I’m not sure how well pictures would turn out, in any case. Low light, you know.”
    “Yeah, depends on how good the camera is, I guess. Where’s Jay? Did he go in the garden?”
    “I think Jay’s inside. It’s getting late.” I started walking toward the hotel. “I better find him, grab a cab, and head back to the Waterfront. Want to share a ride?”
    “No, thanks. I haven’t been here long. I think I’ll stay awhile. Good night, Sidney.”
    He turned back, facing the steps, puffing on the cigar.
    “Good night , then, George,” I called, “See you in the morning.”
    I had just stepped into the bar when I saw Jay, the real Jay this time. There was no mistaking that red hair in the lights of the bar. In the dark, all colors just wash out.
    “Jay! I’m so glad to find you. I’ve been looking all over the place. I almost grabbed a perfect stranger out there in the bushes because I thought it was you. Then I ran into George, who asked about a million questions about it. He has so much curiosity, maybe even more than I have.”
    Jay smiled down at me. “No one has more than you, Sidney.”
    I sat down on a chair to fish the pebbles out of my shoes, shaking my head at how many I had managed to accumulate. “I walked all over that garden looking for you, Jay. I did a little dance, too, when I tripped over something on the path. I almost fell on my face.”
    “Well, I’ve been looking for you, too, babe, because that plane ride from hell is beginning to catch up with me. I hate to admit it, sweetie, but Big Jay is tired.” He stifled a yawn. “What do you think?