“Oh, me too, believe me.” She returned Ocky’s hug and caught herself inhaling the scent of Ocky’s cologne. “Thanks a lot for the airport pick up. If I’d taken the train I’d have woken up at the end of the line.”

“Sleep in tomorrow if you need to,” was Ocky’s parting advice.

Marissa watched her oldest and dearest friend lightly run down the stairs, firm legs wrapped into snug-fitting leggings topped by an eye-catching sweater that highlighted her slenderness. Yes, the attraction to Ocky was still there but at the moment it felt like a habit she might finally be able to break.

There were three messages on her answering machine, all from her mother. She clicked through the expressions of concern, trying not to be disappointed that Linda hadn’t called. Linda was on her way to New Zealand—was there by now. She would hear from her in a couple of days. A postcard, a note, a call—something.

Fighting a sense of dread, she dialed her mother. With relief she heard the voice mail greeting. “Hi, Mom. I’m home safe and sound but totally exhausted. I’m going right to sleep. Talk to you later this week.”

She managed to stay awake until seven, heeding advice that the best way to fight jetlag was to get back to the sleep pattern of her time zone as quickly as possible. Hot tomato soup was a far cry from seafood gazpacho and she made a sleepy vow to do better in all of her bad habits.

She showered, brushed her teeth, combed her hair. Was very glad she’d put clean sheets on the bed before leaving. She sank blissfully into her own bed, the familiar smells, light and sounds— sleep came in like a wave, floating her to dreamland.

Blinking in the unwelcome glare of the bathroom light, Marissa stepped off the scale. Stepped back on. Stepped off again and went in search of a new battery for the thing.

She popped open her first Diet Coke of the day on her way back to the bathroom but held off taking a sip until she squared away the scale. She wanted to know what the damage was from the trip so she could add the pounds to her ever-present weight loss goals.

New battery in place, she stepped back on the scale. Stepped off again. Something wasn’t right. Stepped on—there was no way she’d lost nine pounds. They’d been eating constantly. No hellacious exercise, just the paddling in the lagoon and walks on the beach. Yet the scale didn’t change its result.

Even after she’d consumed more than half the Diet Coke, the scale didn’t change. Remembering what Linda had said about eating in the morning made her unearth a box of cereal. She ate the rice squares in the car on her way to the office.

“You look fantastic!” Heather greeted Marissa like a long-lost sister. “Octavia said you were tanned and gorgeous and she was right.”

Flushing, Marissa had a hard time believing Ocky had said anything of the sort. “Oh, she says that about all the girls.”