Brenna woke the next morning to someone gently shaking her shoulder. She opened her eyes, confused at her surroundings, then remembered where she was. She turned around to see Howie smiling down at her.
Half an hour later Brenna opened the bathroom door, clad in the skort and tank she'd picked, her hair hanging down her back in a long french braid. She was wearing a tiny bit of pinky-purple eye shadow, a brush of black mascara and clear lip gloss. Howie looked up and smiled at the sight of her. To his mind she was the most beautiful girl he'd ever laid eyes on. Turning off the bathroom light Brenna walked over to the bed, grabbing her black low heeled sandals on the way, and sat down next to Howie.
"Morning." He said simply.
"Morning." She replied. "What time is it?" She wondered aloud.
"It's 9:45." He answered. "We have to meet AJ for breakfast in forty-five minutes. You want to have a shower?" Howie asked.
"Yeah." Brenna rubbed her eyes lightly, and sat up, stretching. "Thanks for waking me up. I would have slept for hours more. I haven't stayed up that late for a while."
Brenna got to her feet and walked over to her suitcase to grab clean clothes. Digging down she found a black skort and a sky blue tank top, as well as clean underthings.
"Aren't you going to shower?" She asked Howie, seeing him already dressed and ready to go.
"I already did." He grinned. "I've been awake since 7:00. You're so cute when you sleep."
Brenna blushed. "Thanks, I think."
"Now go get showered and dressed, girl." Howie grinned again. "Before I say 'to hell with morning breath' and start kissing you."
"Okay, okay, I'm going." Brenna laughed and ran into the bathroom and shut the door.
Hearing the water turn on, Howie smiled and sat down on the bed, sighing contentedly. He hadn't been this happy in a long time. He'd met the potential girl of his dreams in the last place he would have imagined... a skating rink on board a cruise ship. He shook his head at the idea. Who would have thought it?
"Hey." She said, pulling on one of her sandals and buckling it.
"Hi." He answered, watching as she pulled on the other sandal.
"There." Brenna said, triumphantly as she finished putting on her sandals. "All ready to go." She looked up at Howie, smiling gently.
"You look beautiful." Howie said softly, his eyes meeting hers. Without a word, Brenna slid closer to him and tilted her head to meet his lips as they came down on hers, whisper soft. The sparks between their bodies were almost visible as they kissed again and again, each kiss deeper than the last. When they finally pulled apart they were both breathing heavily.
"Wow." Howie whispered. "It's never been like this.... never."
Brenna nodded, breathless from Howie's kiss. Out of the corner of her eye she saw the clock on the night table. "As much as I hate to say this, we better get going. We have to meet AJ in less than five minutes."
"Yeah. We better go." Howie stood up, reaching a hand down to help her up. He bent his head and brushed his lips against hers once more. "Okay, sweetie, let's blow this popsicle stand." He said, grinning.
Hand in hand they walked across the room, opened the door and stepped into the hall, closing the door behind them. Howie's left hand laced through Brenna's right, they walked down the hallway in the direction on the restaurant.
