Tanya had been planning this trip for months. An exotic getaway to South America with her sister Melissa, and mother, Brenda. A three week tour of Brazil was a once in a lifetime opportunity for the thirty five year old banker. The three women weren't going alone they were going to be part of a small group tour. It was at the insistence of Tanya's husband, Brad, that the three not venture out in South America all on their own as neither him or Brenda's new husband would be joining them.
Brad, a police officer, was all about safety. He worried about Tanya which she usually found sweet, when she didn't find it suffocating. The two had been married for almost ten years already. They had met in college and Brad was the only man Tanya had truly been with. A new found love of fitness and healthy eating had caused Tanya to drop a considerable amount of weight in the last couple of years but in her younger days she had always struggled with being heavy and was never one to have guys fighting over her.
Tanya struggled with seeing her body for what it was now. Even as she stood in front of the full length mirror in her hotel room on her first night in Brazil.
"You look great," Brenda told her, as she tried to coax her daughter out the door.
"You think so?" Tanya asked, pulling at sides of her blue dress. "My boobs don't seem too big?" she continued as she eyed her still bountiful cleavage.
"I would kill for your rack, now let's go!" Brenda joked, as she opened the door. "Our tour orientation starts in five minutes. We can't be late!"
"Fine," Tanya relented, as she ran her fingers through her shoulder length red hair, making sure she had straightened every strand.
Tanya wasn't usually one for tours, or travel in general for that matter. But her Mom had insisted on taking a big trip for her 65th birthday. Tanya was looking forward to the chance to spend time with her Mom and sister who she rarely saw as the three of them each lived in a different corner of the country. And the more she planned out the trip the more excited she seemed to get.
The three women made their way to a small meeting room in the back corner of the hotel's lobby. A big sign reading "Vista Tours" sitting on an easel outside the meeting room door told them they were in the right place. Inside there were four rows of chairs facing the wall, where a projector was sliding through staged pictures of all the various places the tour company went. In the front row sat a man and woman, seemingly in their mid sixties. The woman was scouring the tours itinerary that had been handed to everyone by the tour guide on the way into the room. Seated next to them were three younger men, probably all in their mid twenties all scrolling through their cell phones.
In the back row was a man with salt and pepper hair, sitting by himself also reading the tour's itinerary. Unlike the people in the front he looked up when Tanya's group entered. Tanya who was casually surveying the room, made eye contact with the stranger, and the two politely smiled at each other.
Adam, who had taken a seat in the empty back row didn't want people to pity him for being on this trip by himself. He wasn't used to traveling alone, and when the first group had come in he had tried to make it look like he was waiting for someone else to join him, putting his information folder, on the empty chair next to his.
But when Tanya came into the room he couldn't help but hold his gaze. Her red hair was striking, her body had curves in all of the right places (at least in Adam's mind) and she carried herself with a confidence Adam found insanely attractive. He hadn't come on this trip to "hook up." If anything it was supposed to be a detox from a bitter end to what at one time had been a great marriage. In fact, he had selected this specific tour group because it seemed to cater more to older people, people who he wouldn't be tempted by. That idea quickly seemed to vanish.
Tanya and her family took their seats in the second row. Melissa immediately pulled her cell phone out of her wallet and began to text her boyfriend. Seeing this, Tanya rolled her eyes. Would Melissa who was now almost thirty ever learn to be independent? Tanya had texted Brad earlier in the day to tell him they had arrived safely. Maybe, she'd call him before going to sleep to say goodnight, but in between she was perfectly content to do her own thing.
The tour guide, a short man with thinning gray hair soon came to the front of the room and with a thick Brazilian accent started to praddle off times and rules with corny jokes that didn't always make sense laced in between most sentences. Tanya half followed along with the itinerary half listened to what the tour guide was saying.
Adam, was also having trouble concentrating on what the tour guide was saying.
At the end of the orientation, the tour guide gave a recommendation of places to go for dinner, and told everybody to meet back in the same room promptly at seven AM the next morning.
The small group dispersed from the room, each going their separate ways. Melissa was tired, and not hungry so she went back to her hotel room. Leaving Brenda and Tanya to go to dinner on their own. Being tired themselves they decided to eat at the hotel restaurant and try to make it an early night.
As the two sat waiting for their food, it became painfully obvious to Tanya that her and her mother had very little to talk about when left on their own. The notion gave Tanya an uneasy feeling about how the next three weeks would turn out. But before she could go too deep down that rabbit hole a new voice brought her back to the present.
"You guys are on the Vista tour right?" the voice said.
Tanya looked up to find the man who had been sitting in the back row standing behind the empty chair at their table. She felt her breath catch in her throat. She hadn't taken a good look at him in the meeting room, beyond noticing his existence. But as he stood over her, she was a bit overwhelmed. He was tall, at least six feet and two inches. His salt and pepper hair gave him that distinguished look, but his face which was punctuated by deep brown eyes, still looked young.
"Yes we are," Brenda replied before Tanya could gather herself.
"I thought so, I'm Adam," he said extending a hand out to Brenda.
"Nice to meet you, Adam, I'm Brenda and this is my daughter, Tanya," Brenda said as she shook Adam's hand.
"The pleasure is mine," Adam said, with a smile as he shook Brenda's hand and then extended it to Tanya.
All Tanya could do was smile, as she shook Adam's hand. There was an overwhelming warmth in his touch. His grip was firm yet gentle, and left Tanya's skin tingling even after the handshake ended.
It was then that Adam first noticed just how blue, Tanya's eyes were. They were the type of blue he felt he could get lost in, if given the chance. The feel of how soft her hand was, sent a small shiver up his arm and for a second he could swear he was going to get goosebumps.
"I don't want to impose but would you mind if I joined you for dinner? I hate to dine alone," Adam asked, eying the empty chair in front of him as he struggled to hide how taken aback he was by Tanya.
"Of course, please, take a seat!" Brenda said.
Maybe Brenda sensed the same thing Tanya did, their lack of conversation hinting at just how much they had drifted apart over the years. Or maybe she was feeling the same thing about Adam, Tanya was. Either scenario, Tanya felt, was going to spell trouble for the rest of the trip.
