“It’s okay.” He used his thumb to wipe away a single tear from her cheek. “I think we’re off to a good start for a team, Mrs. Marcus.”
“Start?”
“Yeah, you know, a team could be three or more—”
“Or less.” She laughed. “The only condition I’m evoking in round one is that I never have to wear that maternity dress I had to wear for three long days and nights.”
“Sounds like a deal.”
Buddy sat quietly on his haunches, directly behind them, a Frisbee in his mouth. Marcus laughed and took it, tossing the Frisbee far across the yard. Buddy ran after it, jumping high in the air, defying gravity just for a moment. It was at that same moment the sun slipped into the coppery sea. A gull rode the trade winds above them and laughed. Buddy seemed to smile in midair with the Frisbee caught between his teeth. Time soon dissolved into a full moon rising over the darkening ocean, the tide ebbing its way over rocks and barnacles.
The wind picked up bringing the scent of the night-blooming heather. “I’m cold,” Alicia said.
Marcus stood behind Alicia and reached his arms over her, pulling her closer to him. They watched the yellow moon rise higher, the islands now mammoth silhouettes ascending from the depths of a golden sea.
Beyond the horizon, an ancient volcano slept quietly while the moon climbed high over the summit and cast light deep into the unblinking eye of Etna.