Chapter Eleven: Part Four
The night air was filled with the clean scents of the scrub. Whilst Alegria was blessedly free of biting insects, other creatures of the night filled the darkness with all manner of chirping, croaking and buzzing. Strolling along the path, Natalie said, ‘Kate, you have really got that lad’s heart and mind, but let’s put that to the side for now. How is Catherine Jones doing?’
‘Oh God Natalie! I have absolutely no idea!’ Kate cried out, much louder than she’d intended. In the muted light reflecting from the path, she looked into Natalie’s empathetic eyes and continued. ‘Today has been a day I will never forget. From first thing this morning to last thing tonight, I seem to hear more and more things I’ve never even considered until today. I… I…’
Seeing Kate taper off, Natalie caught both of Kate’s flapping hands and held them, looking into her eyes. ‘Kate, today you saw those men at play. Those are all men who are worthy of a worthy woman’s attention. You've been exposed to ideas and histories that most people have a bit of a chance to work up to. You even had your first live sex show, and it was a little kinky at that.’ Natalie’s teeth shone white with a wicked smile before she went on.
‘You’ve been exposed, without censor, to all of us, and our ways, which are a little less than orthodox. We live in gratitude and with a level of honesty and acceptance not often found in our modern world. Last, I doubt that there are many times in your life when you have felt like you were in a room of intellectual equals?’
‘Facial Analysis is another way of saying lie-detector, isn’t it?’ Kate asked. Natalie shrugged a little with a smile. Kate took a breath and said, ‘Yes, I am used to being the smartest person in a room, and I love talking with you guys. It’s as if my brain has the room to speed up here. I hope that doesn’t sound horrible, I don’t mean it to be at all.’
‘Relax, Kate. Your IQ is where? Hmmm, early 140s?’
Kate nodded. ‘143, nice ‘guess’. Yours?’
Natalie said, ‘156. Amongst our transient population of Alegria, you are still in the upper-middle of the curve, three points ahead of Rick, by the way. Now, let’s talk about you. You have just found yourself interested in an intellectually, emotionally and physically compatible man, who is also interested in you. I am guessing that you are feeling scared witless of both falling in love, and of not falling in love with Ricky, and that you have absolutely no idea what to do about it. How am I doing?’
After a wicked giggle at Kate’s wide-eyed look of affirmation, Natalie continued. ‘You need to give yourself a chance to think about where your happiness lies. Kate, I know Ricky as well as anyone on this earth does. He will not push, but I have never seen him like he is with you. I would wager that you never expected this sort of connection either?’ Kate shook her head. ‘So give yourself a chance, Kate. Give yourself time to digest what you’ve seen and heard, and to think about what is on offer.’
‘Sorry?’ Kate asked.
‘Rick is a permanent part of Alegria. We are family in this place. Grandmother recognised you from her dreams. That wonderful old shaman did not name you her granddaughter lightly. Kate, granddaughter is not an honorific title here. She did not say welcome home as a quaint custom, she meant it. Dom and Rick are inviting you into our world, we all are. Maybe a little more has been shared than first intended, but maybe that’s a good thing too. In case you hadn’t noticed, I am a Band-Aid-off-fast kind of girl. This is a magical place and the bonds here are like none you are likely to find anywhere else.’
‘This is a lot to take in, Nat.’ Kate paused, taking a deep breath. ‘If you had asked me before we came here if I was even considering the possibility of another relationship, the answer would have been a decisive ‘No’ or even ‘Hell No’. Two-and-a-half days here and so much is different. I don’t even know if Rick and I are compatible.’
Natalie’s musical laugh took Kate off guard. ‘Oh Katie! You are made for him, and he is made for you. Grandmother, Uncle, and every other person here saw it the moment you were both in the same space. We watch ourselves become background to both of you when you’re near each other.’
Seeing the look on Kate’s face, she added, ‘Catherine, Ricardo Myers is an impeccably honest and honourable man who is utterly trust-worthy and very, very capable in all things. Don’t overthink this. The only goal worth striving for is happiness, and when you two are together, I see happiness. It’s not about what you think you feel, and it’s not about what you think you should feel. Your head lies to your heart, and your heart lies to your head. Trust your chemistry. I see you light up when he is near, just as he does near you. The answer is clear… to me anyway. Sleep on it, Kate.’
They strolled on, enjoying the clear night air and each other’s company. Kate asked, ‘So are you and Dom…’
‘We are lovers. Kind of like friends-with-benefits, but we are far closer than that bland term implies.’
‘How does that work? I’ve never gotten my head around it.’
‘I would describe it as neither of us wants to possess the other, but we love each other deeply. I love him enough to know that if he found someone else, I would be the first to genuinely cheer for his happiness. I also know that if the reverse happened, he would be the first to genuinely cheer for my happiness too.’
‘What about love?’
‘The emotional kind? Some people are wired for it, and some are not. Neither Dom nor I seem to be. You have probably found yourself questioning whether love even exists after your recent experiences?’ Kate nodded.
‘That’s because if you think past a certain point, you understand the fragility of such concepts as absolutes. I love Dom and he loves me. Not in a walking-down-the-aisle kind of way, but in a profoundly satisfying way that works for us. Since we’ve known each other, Dom and I have had three significant relationships between us, during which we ceased all intimate contact.’
‘How do you not fall in love?’
‘We do! Every single time. I am in deep love with everything about Dominique, Kate, and that love is fully reciprocated. We just have no desire to possess each other. We are both quite repelled by the idea of being possessed too. We are too similar. We’re great lovers and excellent companions, but our joint track records suggests quite strongly that we are both totally crap at the actual relationship thing. We are very comfortable in who we are as individuals; and in who and what we are to each other.
‘I desire variety and experience. I love exploring different roles. I desire both men and women. Many of my desires are counter to the concepts of a contemporary romantic relationship. Dom is about as close as I’ve come. Apart from one woman, a long time ago now, I am also the closest he has had.’
‘Could you ever see yourself with Dom… as a couple?’
‘I can’t say no, Kate. In some ways, we have been for some time. But for Dom and I to become a conventional couple? I don’t know what would precipitate such a change in our dynamic. Nobody knows the future of course, but at this point, I can’t see it.’
Kate realised they were at the entrance to her cabin. ‘Nat, I really enjoy talking with you. You make things feel familiar when you talk about them, and that’s a real gift. Thank you.’ They said goodnight and Kate watched Natalie strolling up the ring road for a moment before heading inside, still smiling.
Kate made herself a cup of the bedtime tea and had a quick shower to freshen up. The tea worked quickly and she felt her body relaxing into nothingness under the warm covers as her mind replayed visions of Rick’s muscles glistening in the sun, especially the way the muscles of his stomach narrowed into a ‘V’ over his hips. Kate was asleep for a few minutes before her smile finally faded.
~~~~~