Lost and Found: A Stranded in Paradise Romance

Awkward Homecoming 2

When I got home, I returned messages from friends and work colleagues while Carol prepared dinner. Everybody wanted to know what it was like being stranded with a hot blonde on a deserted island for so long, but I was in no mood to elaborate on my experience. After our icy departure at the airport, the last thing I wanted to think about was my dreamy adventure with Jenny. But the harder I tried to purge her from my thoughts, the more I kept returning to our tender and flirty moments on the island. I knew we'd made a powerful connection, she'd told me as much on the cargo ship on our return to San Francisco, but she was determined to keep me at arm's length while she reconnected with her family. I decided to give her a few days to ease back into her old life, then send her a message to see if she wanted to meet for coffee.

When Carol called to tell me dinner was ready, I walked into the dining room to find the lights dimmed and tall candles burning, with our place settings arranged kitty-corner at the side of our large table.

"Wow," I said, peering at the impressive spread. "You didn't need to go to all this trouble–"

"Of course I did," she said. "You've been subsisting on coconuts and crabs the past few weeks. It's the least I could do."

"It smells delicious," I nodded, holding out the chair for her while glancing down at the four-course meal she'd laid out on the table.

"I made your favorite," she smiled. "Stuffed pork tenderloin with roasted potatoes and braised Brussels sprouts."

"They don't grow stuff like this in the middle of the ocean, that's for sure," I chuckled, picking up my knife and fork and digging into the tender meat.

We savored the first few bites of food together then she raised her wineglass, beaming at me happily.

"To good food and good partners," she smiled. "I'm happy your journey has come to an end, but it's the journey that matters in the end."

"Indeed," I said, clinking my glass against hers.

"You seemed a little quiet on the cab ride home from the airport," she said, noticing me appear a bit distracted. "If you don't want to talk about your ordeal, I understand–"

"It's not that," I said. "It's just a lot to process. So many people lost their lives and we didn't even know if we were going to be found..."

"I can imagine how frightening it must have been," she nodded. "At least you had some companionship while you were stranded on the island."

"Yes," I said, trying to deflect her suspicions. "Jenny was a welcome travel partner while we tried to make ends meet. It would have been much harder trying to cope with all the hardships all by myself."

"What did the two of you do for food?"

"It wasn't as bad as you might imagine. There were plenty of indigenous fruits and nuts, and lots of seafood."

"Were you able to cook any of it?"

"Yes, we managed to build a fire and sterilize the fresh water. The fish was actually quite tasty..."

Carol peered up at me with a wrinkled forehead and I quickly placed my hand over hers to reassure her.

"Nothing that comes close to this, of course," I said, motioning toward her elaborate spread. "Nothing could ever replace your masterful cooking."

"I noticed that she's quite pretty," she said. "I imagine you didn't miss my cooking all of the time."

"We were too busy to think about anything else most of the time," I said. "Between keeping a lookout for passing ships and planes and keeping our signal fire properly stoked, there wasn't much time to do anything else."