The Wheels of Fortune (closed for DarkWarrioress)

[DarkWarrioress]

“Breakfast, Tess.”

She gently rubbed her eyes as she sat up. Arthur propped a pillow up behind her back and her eyes fell on the tray he brought up. The omelet was divine and melted on her tongue. The croissant was flaky and delicious, the butter melting on it. Freshly squeezed orange juice and coffee. Tess reached for the coffee, cradling it in her hands as she snuggled back against the pillows behind her.

“So, Tess, what will it be the morning? Some sight-seeing? The Empire State Building, perhaps, or some more shopping. What ever you want. But I have lunch planned, with a visit to two of my favorite places in the city afterwards.”

“Oh yes, please! I’d love to experience the Empire State Building.”

She could care less about shopping, feeling they had done enough of that earlier. Tess sipped her coffee and sighed in contentment.

“May I ask what you have planned for lunch? And what are these two favorite places? Or shouldn’t I ask? Are they going to be a surprise?”

Life with Arthur, so far, was vastly different than anything she had ever experienced so far. Tess was extremely grateful that she had chosen to take a chance on him. So far, he walked his walk and spoke his truth. So far. But then, hadn’t her ex started out the same way? She gave herself a mental shake. The two men were vastly different people and she had to keep reminding herself of that.

 

[Tio_Narratore]

“I’ll show you when we’re at the Empire State Building,” Arthur answered. “I’m looking forward to taking you there . . . And other places. It’ll be fun for both us. You’ll get to see new things and I’ll get to see old things with new eyes.”

They chatted as they ate, and when their breakfast was finished it was time for a quick clean up, a quick dressing, and out the door.

“We’ll take the subway uptown,” he explained; “a subway trip is an essential experience for a first-time tourist. Just watch out for the rats.”

Up to 34th Street, and the line was alreay lengthy for the observation deck. Eventually it was their turn, ad Arthur held Tess around the waist for the elevator trip. Once out on the deck he showed her the sights.

It was a clear day, and he began by pointing out the view over Queens to Long Island Sound. A few steps clockwise and the view was of Brooklyn and Long Island beyond. A bit further and there was the bridge to Staten Island, the ships in the Lower Bay, and Staten Island itself.

“There’s Liberty Island,” he explained as he pointed it out, “with the Statue of Liberty. Maybe we’ll go there tomorrow, if you’d like.”

New Jersey and the Hudson River were next as Tess and Arthur rounded the top of the Building. And then, as they completed their tour, the rest of Manhattan up to Harlem and beyond to the Bronx were in view.

“That enormous rectangle of Green is Central Park,” he explained. “Originally it was a swamp. The whole thing was designed by Olmstead as a park to give people relief from the city. It was believed that country living was good for one’s health.”

He pointed out a large building intruding on the park about half-way up.

“That’s the Metropolitan Museum of Art,” he said. “We’ll have lunch there and then spend some time in the galleries. Afterwards we’ll take a walk across the park through that rugged-looking section. It’s called ‘The Ramble.’ That and the Met are the two of my favorite places I said we’d visit.”

Down, then, and back on the subway. Over to the museum and up to the balcony lounge for lunch. A nice light meal and cheerful conversation, and then to the galleries. They spent over an hour in the American Wing, and Arthur said it was time to leave.

“The place is enormous,” he observed; “if you like, we can come here again. And again.”

Across the park and to The Ramble, stopping on the way at a willow tree with a number of suckers growing from the base. Arthur broke one off, a very thin one about three feet long. He peeled the bark from it as they walked and handed it to Tess.

“I really like the look and feel and scent of freshly peeled wood,” he said.

They continued to walk as Tess examined the willow withe and then handed it back to Arthur. They reached the edge of the Ramble, and Arthur urged her to leave the trail.

“Up this hill, Tess,” he said, “You first.”

She hesitated, and he gave her a light tap on the backside with the withe,

“Get going, girl,” he said with a laugh.

As she climbed the hill, he followed her, urging her on with playful strikes of the willow. When the reached the top, he came up and wrapped his arms around her.

“Great view,” he declared as he showed her all that could be seen from their vantage point. “Olmstead designed this to feel like the Adirondacks, up where the Lodge is. The boulders here all actually came from upstate.”

He held her a bit tighter and began nuzzling and kissing her neck. His hands began to roam as he kissed her, lightly passing over her torso from hips to shoulders, pausing more than once to gently fondle her breasts.

“Like two youngsters,” he whispered in her ear, “seizing some moments of intimacy in the park,”

 

[DarkWarrioress]

“We’ll take the subway uptown,” he explained; “a subway trip is an essential experience for a first-time tourist. Just watch out for the rats.”

“Rats?!”

Tess shuddered. She had no love for rats. However, she had little time to ponder on the issue as Arthur led her to the subway. Tess was nervous, but she strove to hide it. Nothing was going to deter her from this outing with Arthur.

Elevators were also not her thing, well, ones that went way up that is. Arthur’s arm around her waist helped calm her nerves. Once up on the observation deck, Tess’ breath caught in a soft gasp. It was a beautiful, clear day and she could see what seemed like forever.

“It’s beautiful, Arthur.”

“There’s Liberty Island with the Statue of Liberty. Maybe we’ll go there tomorrow, if you’d like.”

She turned her head to regard him, enthusiasm quite clear in her eyes.

“Oh, yes please! I’ve always wanted to see her.”

As they walked around the observation deck and during the whole time her eyes were riveted beyond the glass to the surrounding areas. As Arthur spoke and she listened, she was massively surprised how much she could actually see from up there. Eventually, Arthur advised her of where they were headed next.

“That’s the Metropolitan Museum of Art. We’ll have lunch there and then spend some time in the galleries. Afterwards we’ll take a walk across the park through that rugged-looking section. It’s called ‘The Ramble.’ That and the Met are the two of my favorite places I said we’d visit.”

Tess looked at where he was pointing to before glancing at him and giving his arm a gentle squeeze.

“I can hardly wait.”

When they returned to their starting point, they took the elevator down and headed back to the subway. Lunch was a sweet affair. They enjoyed good food and each other’s company. The galleries. Her eyes shone with excitement.

“The place is enormous. If you like, we can come here again. And again.”

“I would love that. I know we have barely scratched the surface of what they have to offer.”

To say she soaked everything in like a sponge, was putting it mildly. Tess was sad to leave but fortified with the knowledge that they’d be returning eased her sadness.

As they started to walk The Ramble, Arthur stopped at a willow tree and stripped it of one of its suckers. She eyed him curiously as he peeled off the bark.

“I really like the look and feel and scent of freshly peeled wood.”

She thought he was a bit eccentric until he handed her the stripped basal shoot. She lifted to her nose and inhaled. Now, she could understand what he was talking about. She handed it back to him and before long, Arthur was urging her to leave the trail.

“Up this hill, Tess. You first.”

She must have hesitated a bit too long for him. She felt the light tap to her backside and gave a small yelp of surprise.

“Get going, girl,” he laughed.

She grinned and started up the hill. He hurried her along with light, playful taps of the naked willow. When they got to the top, he wrapped his arms around her.

The view was breathtaking. In the comfort of his arms, she gazed about her surroundings as she listened to him.

His lips on her neck, distracted her from her surroundings. She wrapped her arms around him, leaning into him.

“Like two youngsters,” his voice breathed softly in her ear, making her shiver.

“Seizing some moments of intimacy in the park.”

She smiled.

“The youngsters don’t have a monopoly on these kinds of moments,” she teased.

Tipping her head back so their eyes could meet, hers grew serious for a moment.

“Thank you for bringing me with you, Arthur. I’ve enjoyed it so much. I’ve enjoyed you so much. I’m looking forward to getting to know you better.”

 

[Tio_Narratore]

“And I’m looking forward to discovering more of you, Tess.” he said softly and then kissed her.

They were standing next to a fractured boulder with a flat shelf just the right height for sitting. Arthur turned Tess around and guided her to sit, and then he sat beside her, his arm around her waist.

“This was one of my favorite haunts when I was young,” he began. “I used to come here at least once a week to explore, to think, to imagine. I learned the history of the park as well. A very interesting story, I believe I told you a bit back at the observation deck. The transformation over time from a swamp to a complex park with something for everyone amazed me. Olmstead created multiple worlds in one space; to me it was beyond reality.”

He paused and gave Tess a little squeeze around the waist before continuing.

“And look,” he said as he waved his free arm in a wide circle, “we’re here in the ‘Adirondacks,’ but we can see New York City all around us, see buildings showing a hundred years of architectural change. We can look down there and she the ‘Sheep Meadow,’ a rolling grassy slope right out of the Cotswold. The whole experience gave me ideas for some of my early short stories, and it was here, thinking of change over time, that I came up with my first novel.”

He shifted a bit sideways to look directly at Tess as he spoke.

“Times Square is the title, and it starts in the year 2000, the Millennium. A young man and a young woman come to the Square for the New Year, each alone, each looking for something they don’t know. They find each other, and stand with an arm around each other to watch the ball drop. As it signals midnight and the start of the New Year, they turn to kiss. But neither he nor she is there; all that’s left is the scent of the other. They find, too, that they are different people, in different times, each with a life. In that life, though, they have a dim memory of a night in the square and the scent of another. They return to the square for the next New Year’s celebration, and are again transported into different people at different time. Again and again, but I won’t tell you more. You can read it if you want.”

“Now,” he began after a pause, “I’ve told you a little about me; it’s time for me to hear a little about you. This is a place for imagination, and I’d like to see a bit of your imagination. I’d like you to imagine a place and a time and a romance that you would like to live.”