The wind blew dust in Eugenia's eyes, making her eyes blink spasmodically. When she opened them again she found herself squinting up at a clear blue sky and a bright sun. She had been told more than once that her green Irish eyes turned a shade lighter, sparkling like emeralds, when they reflected the brilliant sunshine, and that thought always made her happy to be outdoors in the summertime.
The car she rode in, a shiny blue convertible with whitewall tires, travelled swiftly down a country road, in the process spewing pink billows of dried clay into the sky. Eugenia inhaled, enjoying the heady potpourri of fragrances conspiring, along with the colorful patchwork of wild summer flowers growing roadside, to overwhelm her.
She quickly glanced to her left, suddenly remembering, her heart skipping a beat in expectancy. Eugenia gazed at the man sitting beside her in the driver's seat, a contented smile on his face.
Zachary. Black hair, cut just like after his release from the military, following his stint with the Van Doos. Beneath the tanned skin, a square jaw and clean-shaven face that seemed to mysteriously be both rugged and tender. Zachary's callused hands, the skin hardened and cracked by hard farm work, rested comfortably on the steering wheel as he guided the '57 Meteor down the serpentine roads. Yes, her Zachary was there beside her. Of course he would be.
"Zachary," Eugenia sighed, love and devotion warming her voice.
"What are you smiling at, sweetheart? Surely it's not this old mug?" Zachary glanced at her.
Eugenia returned his smile. His gazes made her feel like a treasured prize won at the county fair. "It's just that..." Eugenia's voice became somber as she added, "I've missed you so much, Zachary." The rushing wind tossed strands of Eugenia's hair into her eyes and she was momentarily surprised at its length and color; the dark henna of her youth, grown out over her shoulders. She marveled at Zachary's crew cut, obstinately resisting the onrush of air in the convertible.
Eugenia leaned over and grasped her husband's free hand. She gave it a tender squeeze before resting her head on the leather seat and closing her eyes against the pressing wind.
The car went up and over a small rise in the road and she exclaimed, "Ooh... That tickled my tummy!" She laughed easily and slid closer beside him, feeling the warmth of his body through her dress.
A feeling of dread darkened her mood, but she ignored it when Zachary smiled, white teeth, perfectly beautiful.
"You still haven't told me where we're going." Eugenia's small voice was all but lost in the roar of the wind and the rumble of the car's powerful engine.
"Port," Zachary replied, keeping his eyes fixed on the road.
"Port?"
"Port Colborne. To look at the boats sailing through the canal," he added after they had driven a few more miles down the scorched road.
"The boats!" Eugenia exclaimed. She clapped her hands in jubilation. "Oh, I just love to watch those big ships squeeze through the canal. It's been such a long time since we've gone to see them!" She tugged on the sleeve of Zachary's white shirt. "Remember the last time? We spent the whole afternoon just watching those huge, grey ships float by on their way to the east coast? Or was it the west coast?"
"It was both. They go both ways, Genie." Zach laughed, his deep baritone making her blush at her forgetfulness.
They rode in silence, happy to be in each other's company, until Eugenia asked, "When are we stopping for lunch?" She glanced at the Lady Timex Zachary had given her for her twenty-second birthday a month earlier. He had it inscribed with the words: To keep track of the seconds when we're not together. "It's going on quarter to twelve and I'm getting a bit hungry. How 'bout you?"
"I could eat—"
Zachary began. The sudden expression on his face made Eugenia turn to face forward.
A black and white Holstein lumbered across the road. It stopped and blocked their path.
"Hold on!" Zachary stomped on the brake pedal, but...
"Oh, Zachary..." whispered Eugenia, feeling the familiar hot tears spill and roll down her cheeks.