She had to say something. “We . . . can’t . . . do this again! I can’t get pregnant, at least not now.”

A long silence. Jorden clenched her fists.

“I know I shouldn’t have, but I couldn’t stop myself,” Alex replied.

“We could have used something.” A condom was what Jorden meant to say, but didn’t.

Alex gazed at her. “I promise I can be strong.”

Well, he sure closed the door on using birth control. “We both have to be strong,” she corrected him.

Silence fell over them. Fortunately, she didn’t get pregnant.

Chapter 29: Flight Arriving in Hawaii, January 16, 1970

Chapter 29

Flight Arriving in Hawaii, January 16, 1970

“Prepare for landing. We are on our final descent to Honolulu.” Jorden raised the window shutter. Bright lights dotted the landscape below. She wondered if Alex had already arrived. After landing, she hailed a cab to their hotel. She looked out and caught the moon shining over the horizon. She really was in paradise.

Jorden had lost her concentration when she realized someone had spoken to her.

“Miss. Your name please.”

“Jorden . . . Jorden . . . Whelan,” she stammered as she signed the hotel’s register. She could see Alex hadn’t signed in. What if something happened, and he couldn’t come? She barely remembered the hotel attendant taking her luggage to Room 418. Her fingers shook while pulling out a tip. She gasped as she realized she had drawn a five dollar bill. She saw his smile and knew she couldn’t easily exchange it for two ones. Reluctantly, she handed him the larger amount.

Jorden focused on the room. A queen bed dominated the space with a television, double drawer dresser, and the bathroom off to the right. She slid open the balcony door. The sea air renewed her spirits. The view heightened her awareness she was in Hawaii. The lights from the hotel picked up the white caps of ocean waves as they rolled toward the beach.

A key turned in the door. The sound seemed to explode in her ears even though it was actually hard to hear. Alex. He dropped his duffle bag, rushed forward, and grabbed Jorden. Tears flowed down her cheeks. “What’s this?” He tilted her chin upward and kissed them away. “No time for tears, we have much more to catch up on.”

The next morning, room service knocked at nine. Alex clambered out of bed and asked them to come back later. He showered while Jorden slept—the sound of the running water soon roused her. Last night seemed like a dream, but thankfully it wasn’t. Alex had lost weight, but he still had his boyish smile, the one she loved.