Page 102 of Forever Fascinating

“I love running away with you.”

“Same here,” he admitted. “But for someone who’s a little insecure… okay, a lot insecure… I would like to make sure my bride doesn’t run away screaming if I am suddenly pulling her before a minister.”

“Nope. No freakouts. Commence pulling at any time,” Jana quipped happily. “I can’t wait to see you in ten days.”

“Same here.”

CHAPTER27

JANA

Reykjavik, Iceland

Stunned,Jana looked around at the landscape, realizing just how lovely and different the world was from Massachusetts or Greece. In Athens, everything seemed so light colored, bleached, or it was bright varying shades of blue. Back home everything was green, covered in moss or shaded by massive pine trees… and here?

Here it was lush, but in an indescribably barren way that was surprising. If you looked past some of the buildings of town, you could see craggy cliffs in the distance topped with snow, despite the flowers blooming in the valleys.

“Jana!”

She turned, hearing her name, and saw Matthew’s incredible smile as he literally hurdled over one of the rows of plastic seats at the airport – hugging her immediately before kissing her passionately, dipping her in the middle of the walkway.

She could hear people speaking all around them in a variety of languages… and could only imagine what they thought about the display. He was obviously military, in uniform, and she was wearing white slacks and a summer sweater with a bright, colorful print.

“Gosh, you’re a sight for sore eyes, Mrs. Barlow…” he smiled tenderly, raising her back from where he’d dipped her.

“You’re not so bad yourself, flyboy…” she teased, feeling a little giddy at the fact that he’d called her by his last name. “So, what’s the plans, or are you still keeping them a secret?”

“A secret,” he grinned, winking at her. “Let’s get through customs and grab our rental vehicle.”

An hour later, their gear loaded in a strange looking car called a Seat, they were on the road. The rental office told them to be very aware of sheep on the roadways, especially when driving after dark.

As they drove, Jana sat quietly in the passenger seat, watching Matthew’s profile, and taking a moment to glimpse at the passing world around them.

There was so much open road, rolling hills, and expanse before them that seemed so surreal. They saw a few little ‘baths’on the side of the road in places where people had stopped their cars, soaking in the hot springs.

As they pulled up to a building, Matthew ran inside and came back a moment later, holding up a key. His bright smile was enchanting, and she took a quick photo of him, needing to save this joy forever.

“A little bit longer,” he smiled, leaning over to kiss her quickly. “We are up the road a ways.”

Nodding, she smiled at his enthusiasm as he backed out of the parking lot, driving again down the uninhabited road. It was surprising at how secluded everything was, and she was touched by his efforts to surprise her.

Looking around, she saw a glass and dark paneled building off in the distance that reminded her of a very contemporary cottage or container building… but half of it was glass. There was a massive deck that ran the length of the building – and a hot tub. Pulling up, she could already see that the bed was in the glass portion of the cottage, making her feel a flush of awareness.

He put the car into park, turning it off, and got out of the vehicle before coming to her side. Opening her door, he held out his hand, smiling at her.

“This is incredible…” she breathed openly, her eyes drinking in everything around them. The mountains looked like smudges on the horizon and the sky was breathtaking, while rolling flatlands seemed to go on forever – a mixture of dark rock and green grasses.

Matthew swept her up in his arms, catching her by surprise as he carried her to the cottage door, struggling to unlock it, causing Jana to chuckle with understanding as he smiled, his face so close to hers.

“I love you,” she beamed tenderly.

“Don’t laugh,” he chided, laughing lightly. “I really want to carry you over some threshold for luck, if we aren’t at home.”

“We aren’t married yet,” she teased.

“I’m correcting that in three days,” he replied, and hesitated. “That’s all the hint you get. That, and we need our plane tickets and passports to prove we are travelers when we say our vows. I’ve got everything else filed already for our marriage license.”

“You do?” she beamed happily – seeing his nod.

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