Page 39 of Charming
“Tabatha,” Asher says, “But I’m having breakfast with my wife.” And there go the chills at that description. “We’re in the middle of an important conversation so I’m not really able to answer all of your questions right now. Thanks again though for stopping by.”
“Can I get a picture with you first?” And I’m convinced it’s going to take brutal force to get her the hell away from my man.Wait, my man? Where did that come from?Anyway, she’s not leaving.
“Um-” Asher hesitates and looks at me then back at her. Looking at Tabatha I see that she’s sticking her lower lip out in a pout silently pleading with him to give in. “Okay, sure.”
She cheers when he agrees and jumps up and down in her seat making things… jiggle… god help me. Looking away from her so that it keeps me from attacking, I see a couple girls by the door watching every move their friend makes with avid eyes. I suppose I should be thankful that they didn’t all mob our table.
With regret and apology in his eyes, Asher pulls his hand from mine and I give him a smile, knowing this just goes with the territory of what he does for a living.
Tabatha holds up her phone and puts her face close to Asher’s. Without warning, Tabatha turns her face and tries to plant her lips right on his. Somehow he manages to see her coming and turns his face so she misses his lips, but they still land near the corner of his mouth. Asher jerks away, and this time, I do partially lift from my seat, because she crossed a line, but she yells thanks over her shoulder and jets out of the restaurant as fast as she can. My eyes follow her as she jogs away with her friends and they are all giggling and looking at her phone. When I look back at Asher, I see he’s dragging a napkin over his face trying his best to get the bright pink lipstick off but it’s just smearing even more.
Dipping my napkin into my water glass, I move to his side of the table, place my hand on the side of his face and gently nudge it to look at me. “Ugh, I’m sorry,” he says.
“Why are you apologizing?” I ask him as I dab my napkin on his face and try to remove the lipstick he hasn’t already removed himself.
“Because, she kissed me, right in front of you.”
“Does that happen a lot?”
He lifts his shirt up at his stomach and uses the inside of it to scrub at his mouth. “Some people are definitely more aggressive than others, but for the most part people are respectful. They just want a chance to say hi, shake my hand, exchange a few words and take a photo. There’s always someone that pushes too far though, like our new, uh, friend Tabatha.”
“You’ve been kissed more than once then, huh?”
“Kissed. Groped. Pinched. I’ve gotten gifts of lingerie sent to my hotel room, and have also received phone numbers and room keys. I’ve even had bras and underwear thrown at me before so I guess the answer to that question would be yeah, definitely.”
Instantly I feel bad for him, “That must suck… I mean… I’m assuming that must suck?”
He smiles, “Yes, it does. I’m not a fan of people that cross the line. That’s why I’ve been enjoying my time here so much. I mean, being an actor is my job and it wouldn’t be an easy thing to give up. I love it. And in some ways the fans and their quirks and actions come with the territory in great part, but I don’t care for being violated like that. I don’t care how famous someone is, or isn’t, no one no matter what deserves that kind of behavior. I’m sorry it had to happen when we were together.”
“Please stop apologizing. It’s not your fault.”
“No, but that doesn’t mean it’s something that’s easy to see or be around.”
“I’m not the kind of person that would let someone else change my mind about another. Certainly not someone that doesn’t know anything more about you other than your name, movies, and maybe a few random facts they read in a magazine. Shame on her for doing that. Now, let’s talk about something else.”
With a smile, we do just that. We talk about his family some more and some of his favorite childhood memories. We talk about some of the things he did with his friends in Cabo before we met up and we talk about some of his movies.
“So you’re telling me you don’t actually do any of the car chasing stunts in your movies? Oh my god, I just don’t think I can be with you now.”
He laughs and chases me down the street.
Asher takes me to a structure that looks like a small outhouse. He gives his name to the man working inside and the man points toward a boat. With a smile, he takes my hand once more and nods and thanks him. “Come on,” he says to me. “Look for boat number thirty-five.”
When we find it, Asher smiles and says hello to the men on the boat and hands them a piece of paper. They take a look at it and help us climb on board. As soon as we are seated comfortably, and offered life jackets, which we do not put on, but place at our sides, the men start moving around the boat. I’ve not been on a boat before so am unsure what they’re doing exactly, but a couple of them unwrap ropes around an anchor secured to the dock and curl them up on board the boat. Another man starts the boat and before long, we’re taking off moving rapidly away from the shore.
The wind is in my hair and the scent of salt water in my nose. The sun is warming our skin and I look at Asher with a big smile. I think I could get used to doing these firsts with him. “We’re going for a ride?” I ask him.
“Yes, but they’re taking us to a spot where we can go snorkeling. I rented the boat for a private snorkel session, just the two of us. Well and them,” he gestures with his head toward the guys manning the boat.
Grabbing sunscreen out of his bag he tells me to remove my cover up so he can protect me from the sun’s harmful rays, to which I giggle a little and then I do the same for him. Once thoroughly protected, we sit back and enjoy the ride to our snorkeling destination. Putting his arm around me, he holds me tightly as I snuggle up to his side, content to enjoy this with him.
Once we reach an alcove where we are promised the best snorkeling in Cabo, we suit up in our snorkeling gear. Life vests, fins, mask and snorkel in place, we’re shown where to go in order to see the most fish and are given safety instructions on what to do should we feel unsafe or see a shark. Nervous flutters occur at the mention of a shark, but I calm when we’re told that seeing one would be rare, they aren’t generally around this area.
When we carefully move to the side of the boat to jump, I look down into the water before looking back at Asher. I smile around the snorkel already in my mouth at how silly he looks in his snorkel gear. And then realize I likely look just as silly. He reaches out to grab my hand and removes his snorkel from his mouth, “Together?”
Nodding, he holds up his hand and says, “On three.” He puts the snorkel back in his mouth and counts with his fingers. On three, we jump. Our hands separate in the fall, and I squeal at how chilly the water feels. It takes a few minutes to get acclimated, but once we start swimming around, it’s hardly noticeable. Sticking our heads in the water is strange, and I keep forcing myself to breathe through the tube in my mouth. The sound of my breaths is distracting yet comforting at the same time. Asher reaches out and takes my hand again, and we explore the water together.
I have no idea how long we spend in the water swimming and exploring but it feels like ages. The volume, variety, and color of fish we see are astounding - some are normal looking and some are so crazy, I never could have imagined they exist. The most amazing part is how beautiful they are: from the lightest shades of yellow to brightest blues, and oranges and red – both the coral and fish are simply breathtaking. We definitely see every color in the rainbow. Some of the fish are as small as a pebble and others are so large they nearly cause me to panic, concerned about how they would respond to our being in the same vicinity. But they merely swam on toward their intended destination. Which made we wonder where they were all going. We continually pointed out our sightings to each other, eager to share. It was incredibly fun.
