Page 63 of Paradigm

“We’re at the river. Have you been here yet?”

“No,” Eline replied.

“It’s wider in other areas, but this is where they have the smaller boats you can rent.”

Arlowe pulled into a parking spot and turned off the car.

“Boats?” Eline asked her, surprised.

Arlowe turned to her then and said, “I know it’s not a canal, and this isn’t really Amsterdam, but I thought we could rent a boat like we were there. And I know we’re moving forward, but I thought this would be a nice first date; a way for us to celebrate the good parts of our time together then while talking about being together now.”

Eline smiled over at her and said, “That is very sweet, Arlowe.”

“Well, I’m a sweet person; when it comes to you, at least. Not other people.”

Eline chuckled and said, “I remember when I first figured that out about you. We met and had that whole day and night together on our own, so I hadn’t seen you with anyone else, but when we hung out with your friends for the first time, you were a little – what’s the word I’m looking for – sassier with them.”

“I’m sure they deserved it. Come on. We only have the boat for two hours.”

Arlowe got out of the car, walked around to the other side, and waited for Eline to get out so that she could close the door behind her. Then, she locked the car, took Eline’s hand, and they walked in silence toward the dock where people just like them were waiting to get on boats they’d rented. Arlowe looked around for the one she had booked for them and found it at the end of the dock. It wasn’t cheap, booking the whole boat just for them, but she prayed that it would be worth it.

“Where’s everyone else?” Eline asked once they were on board.

“Everyone else who?” Arlowe asked.

“The other people going on this boat.”

“Oh, I booked it just for us. We’re the only people going on it tonight,” she replied.

“Ma’am, my name is Captain Paul,” a man in a white uniform said when he approached them. “I believe we have the two-hour dinner cruise booked?”

“Yes,” Arlowe said.

“Great. I have a steward. His name is Chris, and he has your dinner prepared and ready to serve right after we get going here. Would you like to eat downstairs next to the galley, or up on the deck? It’s getting a little cooler, but we’ve got blankets should you need any.”

“Eline?” Arlowe checked.

“Can we eat up here?”

“Yeah, of course,” Arlowe said. “We’ll eat up here,” she told the captain.

“Great. We’re just wrapping up with some checks, and we’ll be off soon, but I do need to walk you through some quick safety items before we get moving.”

Captain Paul talked to them about what to do if something went wrong, showed them where the life jackets were stowed and where a life raft was located, reminding them that the river wasn’t all that wide or deep, so none of that would likely be necessary so as not to scare them, and then showed them around the boat, which only had the upper deck and the galley, a small sitting area, and an even smaller bathroom below.

Arlowe would probably never be wealthy enough to afford a giant yacht, nor did she want one, but this would do because Eline hadn’t stopped smiling since she’d found out what they were doing tonight.

There was a table set up for them with a chair on one side and a bench with a cushion on it on the other, so she’d planned to give Eline the bench seat, but when they walked over to sit down and she went to take the chair, Eline took her hand.

“Sit next to me?”

Arlowe obliged, smiling because this felt real now. She got to sit next to Eline. They were on a date. If she wanted to, she could wrap her arm around Eline’s shoulders, pull her in, and hold her for the first time in so long. She wanted to do all of those things and more, but before she did, she wanted to make sure that Eline was warm, so she stood, pulled one of the available blankets from a pile, and handed it to Eline, who took it, seemingly grateful, and placed it over her legs.

“Do you need one for your shoulders?” she asked.

“I’m all right for now. Sit down with me, please.”

Arlowe returned to her seat and placed her arm over the back of the bench seat. Right when she did, the boat started up, jolted, and a second later, it began moving on the river.