Short story-Chaa Creek Resort, Belize

When she woke up that morning, it took Joanne Carter a minute to remember where she was. She was lying on an incredibly comfortable bed, looking up at a thatched roof. Ah. Right. Last week, she had walked into her travel agent’s office, having just finished the last week of her residency, having slept less than three hours a night for more than 8 weeks, needing desperately to just get away, somewhere, anywhere. She had grabbed a handful of brochures from a display rack on her way in, thumbed through them quickly, and had settled on the one with the photo of a tropical rainforest on it. It was an adventure vacation in the rainforest of Belize. Perfect.

And now the hospital was a distant memory as she walked out of her Garden Suite holding the photocopied schedule that Chaa Creek resort had mailed her. Today’s activity choices included hiking, canoeing, horseback riding, or mountain biking. Just what she needed after 8 weeks of breathing sterile hospital air, she thought. Slipping into a vacant chair at the restaurant, she looked up from her schedule to find herself looking right into the eyes of the man sitting across from her.

“Oops!”, she said, rising from her chair. “I didn’t see you sitting there, I’m sorry.”

He waved his hand dismissively. “It’s all right, I don’t mind sharing. I’m Ben.”

“Joanne.”

Ben was cute, or at least cuter than the bleary-eyed residents she had been looking at for two months, and Joanne was suddenly glad she had combed her hair and slashed on some lipstick before leaving her room. She scanned his hand surreptitiously for a ring, finding herself strangely relieved when she didn’t see one. Having a vacation fling hadn’t been part of her plans, but why not? It was romantic here in belize, with the fragrance of the lush tropical plants heady in the air, and the sound of the surf always in the background. Perhaps this Ben was also traveling alone, and would be looking for a hiking companion. She took another sip of the wonderful coffee and glanced at Ben over the rim of the cup. Definitely cute, she thought.

And that was when everything got very weird. She heard a phone ringing, and realized it was coming from Ben’s side of the table. He picked up the slim black phone and raised to his ear, and was soon murmuring urgently into it. She kept sipping her coffee, wanting to eavesdrop in the worst way. He stood up suddenly, eyes darting around the room as he signaled the waiter and signed the bill. At the last moment, his eyes landed back on Joanne.

“I’m sorry, I have to go. It was nice to meet you, Joanne.”

“Sure, Ben, no problem” was all she was able to say before he was darting out the door. What the heck was going on? In that split second, Joanne decided to do exactly what the brochure had said. This was supposed to be an adventure vacation, so darn it, she was going to have an adventure. She threw some money on the table and ran after Ben. She wanted to know exactly what had made him leave so quickly, and she was going to find out, even if it meant spying on him. Spying! A shiver of excitement ran through her at the thought.

She came out of the restaurant expecting to see-well, she didn’t know what. Just then, she saw Ben on the other side of the street, standing alone. Well, that was odd, she thought. Why had he rushed out if there was no one outside waiting for him? As she started across the street, the biggest car she had ever seen in her life pulled up and stopped in the street in front of where Ben was standing. She watched as he glanced around, and then stepped into the car. The door clicked shut, and the car pulled away from the curb and glided down the street and out of sight. There was no indication on the car as to where it was from or where it was going. He was gone, just like that, and she had no idea if he was coming back. Adventure, indeed.

Did you like my story? Thoof counts you reading this post as a “vote”, and if you want to link to it on your blog, that would be great! You don’t have to click anything And please enjoy this short video showcasing the beauty of Chaa Creek Resort.

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