sweetie
Refugee
Greetings 
Disclaimer - Nothing real here. Not even a smidge!
THE RIGHT ROAD IS WRONG WHEN YOU REACH THE FORK BETWEEN Crúachu and Temuir
THE WAY WILL BE REVEALED WHEN YOU BRIDGE THE DISTANCE BETWEEN THE FLAMES
THE WELL OF WATER THAT FEELS LIKE RAIN AND LOOKS LIKE RAIN, BUT FALLS NOT FROM CLOUDS
THE ONLY CHANCE TO GO FOREWARD IS TO GO FOREWARD
They were walking again. After Bono had explained to her where they were and what they were supposed to do with the necklace they had spent sometime studying the map.
They agreed the clues were cryptic and useless. There was just no way they could possibly know what the clues meant until they happen upon their meaning. They also noticed that the pretty picture on the map did have some merit, it at least confirmed that they were heading in the right direction, sort of. Bono made some notes on the map with a pen that Gioia fished out of her backpack. Her bag was becoming very important to the both of them.
Gioia had memorized the next clue. THE WAY WILL BE REVEALED WHEN YOU BRIDGE THE DISTANCE BETWEEN THE FLAMES
She kept repeating it over and over in her mind. She kept that in her thoughts to try to keep the flurry of emotions from enveloping her. They were in a strange land, for an indeterminate amount of time. Even though they knew they were supposed to return the necklace, they really had no idea what they were up against.
They had no idea how exactly they were supposed to return it. Were they to leave it on a shrine or hand it to a priestess or what? They were just going to wing it. Yup, just like how they were pretending to understand the map. She hated winging it, and she surmised that Bono liked it even less.
Something told her that they were in an alternate time, possibly even a fantastical, fictional time. Winged unicorns would be at home here she thought wryly.
She believed Thornton’s explanation. Or at the very least, Thornton believed his own story. What confused her was that Bono thoroughly trusted it. He seemed to be the type that would be skeptical. Instead, he relayed it to Gioia , which told her that he took the story as fact. All she could do is trust in his judgment.
The possibility of never seeing her family, friends, and home again made her throat constrict with unshed tears. What was going on at home? Was time passing? Or was it standing still. Would she ever find out? And then---there was Bono.
She glanced over at him. She couldn’t fathom his thoughts. She still couldn’t believe that she was in this situation with him. She didn’t know if she was yet comfortable with him. She kept telling herself that she had to emotionally keep her distance from him. She knew she couldn’t afford to feel that way about him. It would make all this more difficult to deal with. To have him so close but not be able to---to what?? She didn’t know. She had idolized, admired, and yes, loved this man from afar for so long. She had known that if she ever had the chance to meet him and get to know him that he couldn’t possibly measure up to what she had built him up to be like. She had been wrong. Heart-achingly wrong. He was exactly as she imagined him to be, and more. She was finding that he was very easy to get along with. She found herself feeling more comfortable with him every hour they were together. She never imagined it could be this way. He was real. She remembered the vision of him in her bed this morning. Yes, very very real.
“Do you have family, Gioia ?” He asked her out of the blue.
Gioia looked at him in surprise. “Yes, why do you ask?”
He shrugged. “You were at the concert alone. You’re American. That’s quite a distance to be traveling alone. I thought that perhaps you didn’t have a choice.”
“Yeah, I have a large family that I’m very close with. I had to buy a ticket at the last minute. I had a passport, but my friend didn’t. Not really a big deal because I was only supposed to spend the weekend. I was going home the day after the concert.”
“Then you would’ve been home already, huh?” He said softly.
Gioia nodded.
“Why did you have to buy a ticket at the last minute?”
Gioia suddenly felt silly. She bought a $500 concert ticket and a $1500 airline ticket just because she had won backstage passes. Passes that she knew now had been a fake. “I had won backstage passes.” She said in a small voice.
Bono didn’t say anything else. He knew what she was saying without explanation. She traveled alone and must’ve paid a fortune just for the chance to meet the band. He felt uncomfortable. He didn’t know what to say. The silence became awkward.
“Bono?” How she loved saying his name. “Do you understand what’s happening to us? Do you believe the story about the amulet?” She fingered the pendant that hadn’t removed since putting it on yesterday afternoon.
Bono breathed deeply. “Understand? No. I won’t pretend to understand it. But believe it? Maybe.” He paused.
“The story about the amulet is Irish folklore. Celtic mythology.”
Gioia ’s eyes widened. “So you know more than what Thornton told you? Tell me.”
Bono heard the strain in her voice. He looked over to her and his muscles tensed at the uncertainty on her face.
He stopped walking, turned to her and took her hands in his. “I don’t know much really. Aine’ was the goddess of love and fertility. Some have said that she was a vengeful goddess and it was not a safe thing to offend her. There were some stories about her and over the ages the stories got distorted. Some applied to her and some really applied to other malevolent goddesses. Her name was linked to those legends to make them more interesting. I don’t know which ones are correct and I’m not about to go into all the details of those yarns when I’m not at all certain which are the accurate ones. The particulars may frighten you with no reason. ”
Gioia fingered the necklace nervously. “Are we in danger?” She asked fearfully.
“Bono looked into her frightened eyes. “You’re not alone here, Gioia . I will do everything I can to protect you.”
Without thinking, Gioia wrapped her arms around his waist and held tightly. Bono let her cling to him, as he hugged her to him. One hand rubbed her back while the other hand smoothed her hair.
Gioia had her eyes closed with her head on his collar, reveling in his warmth and strength.
Bono didn’t know what to make of this girl. Her need was different than what he was used to. He knew other women who would be in hysterics right now, or complaining about their surroundings, or making demands on him. He thought about all the women that he had known over the years. Some were close genuine friends and others—well, let’s say that he had every reason to avoid the others. Oh it was nothing serious. Just a case of celebrity worship. But he wasn’t into that. It made him feel empty. He considered himself to be an intelligent, talented musician with morals. How did he get this far? He smiled to himself. He gently kissed Gioia on the temple and pulled away.
Gioia seemed to realize what had happened.
“I’m so sorry! I don’t know what came over me.”
Bono just smiled. “We needed a hug.”
Gioia chuckled softly and looked into his blue eyes. “Yeah, that’s it. Are you ok now? We can’t keep stopping for hug breaks.”
Bono realized that Gioia ’s arms were still around his waist, while his hands were on her shoulders.
He ran his hands down her arms. The smile faded as he met her soft brown eyes. Her teasing tone belied the moisture gathered there. His eyes dropped to her lips for a moment and then back to her eyes.
“I say!! Do you realize that you’re in the middle of the road?”
Gioia ’s eyes widened as she looked around Bono’s shoulder to see who was speaking to them.
Bono twisted around to look.
All he saw was a horrifically oversized bullfrog in the middle of the road. It was massive, quite possibly the size of a small dog.
Dumbfounded, Bono and Gioia stared hard at it. The voice couldn’t have come from that! Or could it have?
“Ahem.” It cleared its throat. “I see that you are surprised. This isn’t my normal form I’ll have you know. Had an unfortunate run in with a faery.” He said matter-of-factly. His speech was quite proper and his voice not unpleasant. Then he let out a loud riiibbbiiit. This seemed to upset the frog because he exploded with an expletive, which made the two travelers jump.
Gioia squeezed Bono’s arm. Bono rubbed his forehead as if trying to press some thoughts into words. A frog! A frog was talking to them! Should he pretend not to notice and act naturally?
“So – you do realize that you are a--a frog?” He inquired politely.
“I had a feeling, although, I can’t completely tell. My eyes are in the strangest spot.”
Gioia was starting to feel lightheaded.
Bono smiled and started to approach the frog. “What was your original form?”
The frog ribbitted loudly. “A man, of course!”
“My apologies.” Bono quipped. “We had no way of knowing.”
“That’s quite alright. I’m not angry. And of course, it’s not as if I can do anything to you or your lady in my present condition.”
Gioia thought that was an odd thing to say.
“Is there anything we can do to help you?” She asked, surprising herself with a voice.
“No my sweet. I just have to wait this out. It’ll pass in time. Fae spells do not last very long.”
Bono nodded in agreement and then felt foolish for doing so.
“Where are you folks off to? Off on a romantic escapade?” His ribbitt sounded suspiciously like a chuckle.
Bono cleared his throat. “We’re heading to the temple at Leanan Sidhe”.
The frog belched loudly. Gioia jumped. “Why would you want to do a fool thing like that?”
Bono shrugged. “We’d rather not say if it’s all the same to you.”
“Don’t mind at all but let me leave you with a bit of advice. Be very careful and if you are following a designated path, stay on it. Rumor has it that the amulet of Leanan Sidhe has been stolen and until it’s returned, Aine’ is on the rampage.”
Gioia gasped. “Rampage? What does that mean?”
“Let’s go Gioia .” Bono said suddenly, taking her hand. “Thank you for the warning, Mr.—uh Mr.?”
“Fletcher. My name is Fletcher. And you are?”
“Nice to have met you Mr. Fletcher”. Gioia smiled politely as they walked past him. “Good luck to you.” Why burn your bridges, she always thought.
“Farewell friends.” The bullfrog croaked. Ah my beauty. Why did you have to be the one with that amulet around your neck? He lamented to himself.
Gioia didn’t know how to analyze what she was feeling. Why did she still get the feeling that Bono knew more than he let on? Fletcher was trying to warn them of something but Bono didn’t want to hear it. Or rather didn’t want her to hear it.
“We need to stop for the night.” He said, breaking into her thoughts. Would she ever get used to the sound of his voice? His Irish accent fed by his deep rich voice was so appealing to her that each time he spoke she could feel the goose bumps rise on her arms.
She nodded. They set up camp under a large tree just off the path they had been traveling on. A river could be seen off in the distance. The kindly Wareings had provided two thin bedrolls, which Bono opened up so that they had one large one as their pallet and one to use as a blanket. Gioia tried not to think about how casually Bono made one bed.
They also had a water skin and a few days supply of bread, hard cheese, and fruit. The grass was soft beneath the bedroll and Bono and Gioia had a bit of a picnic beneath the deepening twilight.
She watched Bono quietly as he ate. He looked up and caught her watching him. His heart skipped a beat, surprising him. He smiled at her.
“Bono?” She started. “Are you keeping something from me?”
His smile faded and he sighed. She simply wasn't going to let it go, was she? He laid back on the bedroll, one leg bent and one arm behind his head. Without his knowing, the pose he struck was highly sexual. His pants were stretched taught across his groin, and his un-tucked shirt had risen a bit so that his belly was slightly exposed.
If he started talking at that point, Gioia wouldn’t have heard one bit of it over the slamming of her heart against her chest. As it were, he hadn’t said a word.
After a minute he turned to look at her. “There is more to the story of Aine’ than what I’ve told you”.
In a burst of nerve she lay down beside him and lifted herself on one elbow. He turned on his side to face her. They were less than a foot apart.
Bono smiled softly and wouldn’t meet her eyes. He reached out and touched two fingers against her throat. He pressed gently and ran them slowly down her neck until he reached the pendant resting between her breasts. He lifted it away from her skin and held it in his hand.
Gioia didn’t move a muscle. She watched his face, memorizing every angle of his face in the moonlight.
He then looked up at her and the worry in his vivid blue of his eyes took the last of her breath away.
To her absolute astonishment, Gioia closed her eyes, leaned in and kissed him gently on the mouth.
It was quick. She pulled away the instant her lips touched his. Bono was shocked. The kiss was unexpected. Although feather light, it still affected him. He was flattered. He knew that she wasn’t the type to kiss a total stranger, no matter who he was. And noting the stunned look on Gioia’s face and the obvious horror in her eyes, she didn’t know what to do next. Truthfully, he didn’t know what to do next!
“I’m sorry.” Gioia said almost inaudibly. She moved away from him and sat up, cross-legged. She looked down at her hands, which were folded in her lap. She burned with embarrassment.
Bono sat up also and took her hands in his. Gioia looked up but wouldn't meet his eyes. He lifted one hand at a time to his mouth and placed a soft kiss on each.
At that point Gioia truly was convinced that she hadn’t breathed normally since before the concert. Had it really been only 4 days?
Bono ran a hand through his hair. “I don’t think the Wareings told us the truth about the amulet.” He started.
The conversation was back on safe ground.
“What makes you think so? They seemed so nice. They created that map for us, packed a bag, and provided us with shelter. What would be their reasoning for lying to us?”
Bono shrugged. “Perhaps not lies, perhaps not the entire story. There was something that Fletcher said today that made me stop and think.”
“Fletcher? The frog?”
Bono smiled. “Not just any frog. Enchanted. He f*cked with someone. Someone powerful.” He still couldn’t’ believe he was having this conversation. Yeah. He went from discussing third world debt to enchanted amphibians.
“Something tells me that he was looking for us. And in his present condition he couldn’t do much. Problem is, I couldn’t tell if he was looking for us to help us or to harm us. So depending upon that, who ever turned him into a frog, is either for us or against us. The Wareings did give us the map and helped us on our way, but they did not explain that this would be more than just returning jewelry.”
Gioia was silent for a bit, considering what Bono was telling her. “We really don’t know, do we? Everything the Wareings told us could be false.” She fingered the pendant. She knew deep down that she could not take it off and leave it somewhere. She also knew that they wouldn’t be in this situation if she hadn’t picked it up in the first place.
Bono was eyeing her dejected look. “This isn’t your fault .” He said firmly. She blinked at him, surprised by his perceptiveness. “Everything happens for a reason”.
She nodded sullenly. “So.. knowing this, what do you think is happening?”
He didn’t answer. Instead, he laid back down on the bedroll. With one hand he motioned for her to join him. She hesitated only for a moment before lying down beside him. She rested her head on his shoulder as he covered them with the other bedroll. He wrapped his arm around her shoulder. She was pressed against his left side. Unconsciously she snuggled closer.
The night was bright with a full moon and a million twinkling stars. There were many sounds in the forest. Some belonged to birds, some indiscernible. Bono didn’t know what tomorrow was going to bring. But tonight--tonight he had this beautiful woman in his arms. She was completely in his care. He was amazed at her trust in him. He pulled her arm across his chest as he drew her into his embrace. He felt her breasts crushed against him and wondered what exactly he was doing. Why was he testing his control? He heard the softest sigh come from her and he smiled. He looked down at her soft chestnut hair, her head resting half on his chest and half on his shoulder, and he wondered if she were asleep.
“Gioia?” He whispered, half hoping that she wouldn’t answer and disappointed when she did not. He would have to wait until tomorrow to tell her his thoughts about the situation. She was asleep.
Til tomorrow --toodles
Disclaimer - Nothing real here. Not even a smidge!
THE RIGHT ROAD IS WRONG WHEN YOU REACH THE FORK BETWEEN Crúachu and Temuir
THE WAY WILL BE REVEALED WHEN YOU BRIDGE THE DISTANCE BETWEEN THE FLAMES
THE WELL OF WATER THAT FEELS LIKE RAIN AND LOOKS LIKE RAIN, BUT FALLS NOT FROM CLOUDS
THE ONLY CHANCE TO GO FOREWARD IS TO GO FOREWARD
They were walking again. After Bono had explained to her where they were and what they were supposed to do with the necklace they had spent sometime studying the map.
They agreed the clues were cryptic and useless. There was just no way they could possibly know what the clues meant until they happen upon their meaning. They also noticed that the pretty picture on the map did have some merit, it at least confirmed that they were heading in the right direction, sort of. Bono made some notes on the map with a pen that Gioia fished out of her backpack. Her bag was becoming very important to the both of them.
Gioia had memorized the next clue. THE WAY WILL BE REVEALED WHEN YOU BRIDGE THE DISTANCE BETWEEN THE FLAMES
She kept repeating it over and over in her mind. She kept that in her thoughts to try to keep the flurry of emotions from enveloping her. They were in a strange land, for an indeterminate amount of time. Even though they knew they were supposed to return the necklace, they really had no idea what they were up against.
They had no idea how exactly they were supposed to return it. Were they to leave it on a shrine or hand it to a priestess or what? They were just going to wing it. Yup, just like how they were pretending to understand the map. She hated winging it, and she surmised that Bono liked it even less.
Something told her that they were in an alternate time, possibly even a fantastical, fictional time. Winged unicorns would be at home here she thought wryly.
She believed Thornton’s explanation. Or at the very least, Thornton believed his own story. What confused her was that Bono thoroughly trusted it. He seemed to be the type that would be skeptical. Instead, he relayed it to Gioia , which told her that he took the story as fact. All she could do is trust in his judgment.
The possibility of never seeing her family, friends, and home again made her throat constrict with unshed tears. What was going on at home? Was time passing? Or was it standing still. Would she ever find out? And then---there was Bono.
She glanced over at him. She couldn’t fathom his thoughts. She still couldn’t believe that she was in this situation with him. She didn’t know if she was yet comfortable with him. She kept telling herself that she had to emotionally keep her distance from him. She knew she couldn’t afford to feel that way about him. It would make all this more difficult to deal with. To have him so close but not be able to---to what?? She didn’t know. She had idolized, admired, and yes, loved this man from afar for so long. She had known that if she ever had the chance to meet him and get to know him that he couldn’t possibly measure up to what she had built him up to be like. She had been wrong. Heart-achingly wrong. He was exactly as she imagined him to be, and more. She was finding that he was very easy to get along with. She found herself feeling more comfortable with him every hour they were together. She never imagined it could be this way. He was real. She remembered the vision of him in her bed this morning. Yes, very very real.
“Do you have family, Gioia ?” He asked her out of the blue.
Gioia looked at him in surprise. “Yes, why do you ask?”
He shrugged. “You were at the concert alone. You’re American. That’s quite a distance to be traveling alone. I thought that perhaps you didn’t have a choice.”
“Yeah, I have a large family that I’m very close with. I had to buy a ticket at the last minute. I had a passport, but my friend didn’t. Not really a big deal because I was only supposed to spend the weekend. I was going home the day after the concert.”
“Then you would’ve been home already, huh?” He said softly.
Gioia nodded.
“Why did you have to buy a ticket at the last minute?”
Gioia suddenly felt silly. She bought a $500 concert ticket and a $1500 airline ticket just because she had won backstage passes. Passes that she knew now had been a fake. “I had won backstage passes.” She said in a small voice.
Bono didn’t say anything else. He knew what she was saying without explanation. She traveled alone and must’ve paid a fortune just for the chance to meet the band. He felt uncomfortable. He didn’t know what to say. The silence became awkward.
“Bono?” How she loved saying his name. “Do you understand what’s happening to us? Do you believe the story about the amulet?” She fingered the pendant that hadn’t removed since putting it on yesterday afternoon.
Bono breathed deeply. “Understand? No. I won’t pretend to understand it. But believe it? Maybe.” He paused.
“The story about the amulet is Irish folklore. Celtic mythology.”
Gioia ’s eyes widened. “So you know more than what Thornton told you? Tell me.”
Bono heard the strain in her voice. He looked over to her and his muscles tensed at the uncertainty on her face.
He stopped walking, turned to her and took her hands in his. “I don’t know much really. Aine’ was the goddess of love and fertility. Some have said that she was a vengeful goddess and it was not a safe thing to offend her. There were some stories about her and over the ages the stories got distorted. Some applied to her and some really applied to other malevolent goddesses. Her name was linked to those legends to make them more interesting. I don’t know which ones are correct and I’m not about to go into all the details of those yarns when I’m not at all certain which are the accurate ones. The particulars may frighten you with no reason. ”
Gioia fingered the necklace nervously. “Are we in danger?” She asked fearfully.
“Bono looked into her frightened eyes. “You’re not alone here, Gioia . I will do everything I can to protect you.”
Without thinking, Gioia wrapped her arms around his waist and held tightly. Bono let her cling to him, as he hugged her to him. One hand rubbed her back while the other hand smoothed her hair.
Gioia had her eyes closed with her head on his collar, reveling in his warmth and strength.
Bono didn’t know what to make of this girl. Her need was different than what he was used to. He knew other women who would be in hysterics right now, or complaining about their surroundings, or making demands on him. He thought about all the women that he had known over the years. Some were close genuine friends and others—well, let’s say that he had every reason to avoid the others. Oh it was nothing serious. Just a case of celebrity worship. But he wasn’t into that. It made him feel empty. He considered himself to be an intelligent, talented musician with morals. How did he get this far? He smiled to himself. He gently kissed Gioia on the temple and pulled away.
Gioia seemed to realize what had happened.
“I’m so sorry! I don’t know what came over me.”
Bono just smiled. “We needed a hug.”
Gioia chuckled softly and looked into his blue eyes. “Yeah, that’s it. Are you ok now? We can’t keep stopping for hug breaks.”
Bono realized that Gioia ’s arms were still around his waist, while his hands were on her shoulders.
He ran his hands down her arms. The smile faded as he met her soft brown eyes. Her teasing tone belied the moisture gathered there. His eyes dropped to her lips for a moment and then back to her eyes.
“I say!! Do you realize that you’re in the middle of the road?”
Gioia ’s eyes widened as she looked around Bono’s shoulder to see who was speaking to them.
Bono twisted around to look.
All he saw was a horrifically oversized bullfrog in the middle of the road. It was massive, quite possibly the size of a small dog.
Dumbfounded, Bono and Gioia stared hard at it. The voice couldn’t have come from that! Or could it have?
“Ahem.” It cleared its throat. “I see that you are surprised. This isn’t my normal form I’ll have you know. Had an unfortunate run in with a faery.” He said matter-of-factly. His speech was quite proper and his voice not unpleasant. Then he let out a loud riiibbbiiit. This seemed to upset the frog because he exploded with an expletive, which made the two travelers jump.
Gioia squeezed Bono’s arm. Bono rubbed his forehead as if trying to press some thoughts into words. A frog! A frog was talking to them! Should he pretend not to notice and act naturally?
“So – you do realize that you are a--a frog?” He inquired politely.
“I had a feeling, although, I can’t completely tell. My eyes are in the strangest spot.”
Gioia was starting to feel lightheaded.
Bono smiled and started to approach the frog. “What was your original form?”
The frog ribbitted loudly. “A man, of course!”
“My apologies.” Bono quipped. “We had no way of knowing.”
“That’s quite alright. I’m not angry. And of course, it’s not as if I can do anything to you or your lady in my present condition.”
Gioia thought that was an odd thing to say.
“Is there anything we can do to help you?” She asked, surprising herself with a voice.
“No my sweet. I just have to wait this out. It’ll pass in time. Fae spells do not last very long.”
Bono nodded in agreement and then felt foolish for doing so.
“Where are you folks off to? Off on a romantic escapade?” His ribbitt sounded suspiciously like a chuckle.
Bono cleared his throat. “We’re heading to the temple at Leanan Sidhe”.
The frog belched loudly. Gioia jumped. “Why would you want to do a fool thing like that?”
Bono shrugged. “We’d rather not say if it’s all the same to you.”
“Don’t mind at all but let me leave you with a bit of advice. Be very careful and if you are following a designated path, stay on it. Rumor has it that the amulet of Leanan Sidhe has been stolen and until it’s returned, Aine’ is on the rampage.”
Gioia gasped. “Rampage? What does that mean?”
“Let’s go Gioia .” Bono said suddenly, taking her hand. “Thank you for the warning, Mr.—uh Mr.?”
“Fletcher. My name is Fletcher. And you are?”
“Nice to have met you Mr. Fletcher”. Gioia smiled politely as they walked past him. “Good luck to you.” Why burn your bridges, she always thought.
“Farewell friends.” The bullfrog croaked. Ah my beauty. Why did you have to be the one with that amulet around your neck? He lamented to himself.
Gioia didn’t know how to analyze what she was feeling. Why did she still get the feeling that Bono knew more than he let on? Fletcher was trying to warn them of something but Bono didn’t want to hear it. Or rather didn’t want her to hear it.
“We need to stop for the night.” He said, breaking into her thoughts. Would she ever get used to the sound of his voice? His Irish accent fed by his deep rich voice was so appealing to her that each time he spoke she could feel the goose bumps rise on her arms.
She nodded. They set up camp under a large tree just off the path they had been traveling on. A river could be seen off in the distance. The kindly Wareings had provided two thin bedrolls, which Bono opened up so that they had one large one as their pallet and one to use as a blanket. Gioia tried not to think about how casually Bono made one bed.
They also had a water skin and a few days supply of bread, hard cheese, and fruit. The grass was soft beneath the bedroll and Bono and Gioia had a bit of a picnic beneath the deepening twilight.
She watched Bono quietly as he ate. He looked up and caught her watching him. His heart skipped a beat, surprising him. He smiled at her.
“Bono?” She started. “Are you keeping something from me?”
His smile faded and he sighed. She simply wasn't going to let it go, was she? He laid back on the bedroll, one leg bent and one arm behind his head. Without his knowing, the pose he struck was highly sexual. His pants were stretched taught across his groin, and his un-tucked shirt had risen a bit so that his belly was slightly exposed.
If he started talking at that point, Gioia wouldn’t have heard one bit of it over the slamming of her heart against her chest. As it were, he hadn’t said a word.
After a minute he turned to look at her. “There is more to the story of Aine’ than what I’ve told you”.
In a burst of nerve she lay down beside him and lifted herself on one elbow. He turned on his side to face her. They were less than a foot apart.
Bono smiled softly and wouldn’t meet her eyes. He reached out and touched two fingers against her throat. He pressed gently and ran them slowly down her neck until he reached the pendant resting between her breasts. He lifted it away from her skin and held it in his hand.
Gioia didn’t move a muscle. She watched his face, memorizing every angle of his face in the moonlight.
He then looked up at her and the worry in his vivid blue of his eyes took the last of her breath away.
To her absolute astonishment, Gioia closed her eyes, leaned in and kissed him gently on the mouth.
It was quick. She pulled away the instant her lips touched his. Bono was shocked. The kiss was unexpected. Although feather light, it still affected him. He was flattered. He knew that she wasn’t the type to kiss a total stranger, no matter who he was. And noting the stunned look on Gioia’s face and the obvious horror in her eyes, she didn’t know what to do next. Truthfully, he didn’t know what to do next!
“I’m sorry.” Gioia said almost inaudibly. She moved away from him and sat up, cross-legged. She looked down at her hands, which were folded in her lap. She burned with embarrassment.
Bono sat up also and took her hands in his. Gioia looked up but wouldn't meet his eyes. He lifted one hand at a time to his mouth and placed a soft kiss on each.
At that point Gioia truly was convinced that she hadn’t breathed normally since before the concert. Had it really been only 4 days?
Bono ran a hand through his hair. “I don’t think the Wareings told us the truth about the amulet.” He started.
The conversation was back on safe ground.
“What makes you think so? They seemed so nice. They created that map for us, packed a bag, and provided us with shelter. What would be their reasoning for lying to us?”
Bono shrugged. “Perhaps not lies, perhaps not the entire story. There was something that Fletcher said today that made me stop and think.”
“Fletcher? The frog?”
Bono smiled. “Not just any frog. Enchanted. He f*cked with someone. Someone powerful.” He still couldn’t’ believe he was having this conversation. Yeah. He went from discussing third world debt to enchanted amphibians.
“Something tells me that he was looking for us. And in his present condition he couldn’t do much. Problem is, I couldn’t tell if he was looking for us to help us or to harm us. So depending upon that, who ever turned him into a frog, is either for us or against us. The Wareings did give us the map and helped us on our way, but they did not explain that this would be more than just returning jewelry.”
Gioia was silent for a bit, considering what Bono was telling her. “We really don’t know, do we? Everything the Wareings told us could be false.” She fingered the pendant. She knew deep down that she could not take it off and leave it somewhere. She also knew that they wouldn’t be in this situation if she hadn’t picked it up in the first place.
Bono was eyeing her dejected look. “This isn’t your fault .” He said firmly. She blinked at him, surprised by his perceptiveness. “Everything happens for a reason”.
She nodded sullenly. “So.. knowing this, what do you think is happening?”
He didn’t answer. Instead, he laid back down on the bedroll. With one hand he motioned for her to join him. She hesitated only for a moment before lying down beside him. She rested her head on his shoulder as he covered them with the other bedroll. He wrapped his arm around her shoulder. She was pressed against his left side. Unconsciously she snuggled closer.
The night was bright with a full moon and a million twinkling stars. There were many sounds in the forest. Some belonged to birds, some indiscernible. Bono didn’t know what tomorrow was going to bring. But tonight--tonight he had this beautiful woman in his arms. She was completely in his care. He was amazed at her trust in him. He pulled her arm across his chest as he drew her into his embrace. He felt her breasts crushed against him and wondered what exactly he was doing. Why was he testing his control? He heard the softest sigh come from her and he smiled. He looked down at her soft chestnut hair, her head resting half on his chest and half on his shoulder, and he wondered if she were asleep.
“Gioia?” He whispered, half hoping that she wouldn’t answer and disappointed when she did not. He would have to wait until tomorrow to tell her his thoughts about the situation. She was asleep.
Til tomorrow --toodles
