To Love And Be Loved

Chapter 20

She sat next to a table at the bow cockpit. The Bimini top shielded her from most of the sun.

"Why do you call your boat Thorn Bird?" She raised her voice so he could hear her above the rumble of the engine.

"What?" Victor said, from the helm. He switched off the engine and came to seat by her side. He was wearing a white long sleeved shirt and brown chinos. Cass tried not to look at the way his cloth clung to his body but at his face. She realised it was much harder.

"Why do you call it Thorn Bird?"

"You offend me," he gasped, clutching at his chest. "You insult my boat, its a she."

Cass laughed. "What is it with guys and stuff like this?"

"What? My car is a she. My boat is also a she."

"That is weird if you ask me."

"Alright, don't tell me you didn't have a doll when you were little?"

"I did."

"Now, did you call your doll it?"

"No?"

"Good. Why should I call my boat an it?"

"That... that is the worst argument I've ever heard," she said, giggling. "So, why that name?"

"I named her after one of my favorite books."

"Colleen McCullough's Thorn Birds?" Cass said. She could feel that sense of joy she usually felt
bubbling up her chest when she talked about books.

"When we press the thorn to our chest, we know, we understand and still we do it," Victor said. "What I love most about the book is its realism. There is a part of me that still thinks they exist, somewhere in the Australian outback."

"Me too," she said. "What's the best book you've read?"

"The best book I've read is Anna Karenina. Its probably the best work of fiction ever written."

"I've always wanted to read that book."

"Remind me to borrow you a copy."

"That'd be great," she said. "How do you have time to read?"

Victor smiled and shrugged. "Books are like an escape from reality for me. When I read a good book, I get immersed into the story, I see and hear the characters as if they were real."

Cass smiled. That was what she loved most about reading; the brief escape it gave you.

"So, whats the best book you've read?" said Victor.

"Jane Eyre."

Victor squeezed his eye. "I haven't read it."

"You should read it. I have read Jane Eyre a million times, but I never tire of the story."

"Charlotte's protagonists were into some deeply weird men. They consistently fell in love with assholes and, Mr. Rochester, if he isn't an asshole, he's a psychopath - or simply creepy, " said Victor, unabashed by his lie.

"I thought you said you haven't read Jane Eyre."

Victor grinned. "Can you believe he was voted most romantic literary character in a British poll? That's freaking messed up. Are they kinkier in England?"

Cass laughed. "How would I know?"

"Well, Mr. Rochester locked up Bertha, he kept her a secret from everyone in the town - including Jane. After the truth came out, Rochester insisted that he was planning to tell his new wife the truth after a year and a day of marriage."