I kneel next to my son, smiling as I ruffle his hair. "Grandpa would be so proud," I tell him. "He taught me how to swim, you know."
"But I can't really swim," my son sulks. "I only did one lap, Mom."
"Yes, but you will get better each day," I try to console him, then whisper in his ear. "And if your grandpa were here, he'd teach you a special trick – how to float on your back. I know how to do it, and I can show you tomorrow."
His eyes are full of excitement as he looks up at me. "Really?"
I give him a solemn nod and he beams right away, my heart swelling with pride.
"Are you going to tell us a story, Mommy?" Sophie asks with her eyes wide.
"Don't I always?" I say with a smile, and the three of us sit down on the bench next to the gravestone.
My eyes flitter around the cemetery until they land on my eldest, Raina. She is the spitting image of me, and as much as it makes me proud, it also makes my head hurt, knowing she'll be just as rebellious as I was.
"Raina, do you want to come and listen?" I call out to her, and she rolls her eyes, stuffing her phone back in her pocket. She comes over to us, her face contorted in a smirk that is the mirror image of her father's favorite expression.
Sitting down, she sighs like I'm making her do something awful, but I don't let it deter me, because I have a special story to tell today.
"Did I ever tell you that Grandpa is the reason your daddy and I are together?" I ask them and the twins shake their heads, their eyes wide. Raina isn't even listening, or maybe she’s pretending not to.
"Well, I'm going to tell you a secret today," I say in a hushed tone as the kids' eyes grow wide. "You want to know a secret about Grandma Val?"
They nod enthusiastically.
"Well, once upon a time, she was married to another man, not Bert," I tell them.
"You mean Daddy's dad?" Rocco asks in confusion, and I smile at him, proud of my son for being so clever.
"Yes, but she had another husband after that," I say as they urge me to go on. "That husband was Grandpa Tony."
Finally, I have Raina's attention, too. "But that means you and Daddy were brother and sister," she says with her eyebrows raised. I get ready for a barrage of questions, knowing they're about to come out of her mouth.
Strangely, she just gives me a questioning look.
"We were stepsiblings, yes," I say. "We met when we were much older, when Grandpa and Grandma got married. And we liked each other, a lot. But we were so scared what others would think…"
"What happened? Did you kiss him?" Rocco asks with his mouth hanging open.
"Obviously, doofus," Raina rolls her eyes. "She's married to Dad, isn't she?"
"I am," I say with a mischievous smile. "I did kiss him, but we were afraid of what would happen, and we didn't stay together."
I lean in closer to the twins who are hanging on my every word. "But then, after your grandpa died, I found his notebook. And in it, he said he knew about me and your daddy, and he wanted us to be happy. To be together."
"Oh!" Sophie claps her hands excitedly. "And then?"
I smile, remembering everything that happened afterwards. "And then your daddy surprised me because he always kept in touch with Grandpa, even when we weren't talking. And he showed me all those videos of Grandpa we've been watching."
I wink at Rocco whose pupils are huge. "And the rest, as they say, is history."
The twins wriggle and laugh in delight, but my gaze is focused on Raina. She worries me so much, and the worst thing is, I know exactly what she's going through, but she won't let me help her. I wish badly she'd let me tell her it will be okay, it's just a period she's going through.
Her expression is cold and she's refusing to look at me. My heart hurts, swelling with the knowledge that I may have just pushed her further away.
"Daddy!" Rocco and Sophie suddenly exclaim. They're already jumping up from the bench and running towards an approaching figure. I shield my eyes from the sun and make out my husband walking towards us.
He laughs as the twins attack him, dropping his briefcase in the sand, and I smile as I take in my husband and two of my children.
Every day of my life, I love Dominic Manning a little more. Even when I don't think it's possible for my heart to swell with more love, it surprises me by growing fonder of him. And I know that will never change.
Dom's eyes are glued to mine as he strips off his blazer and undoes his tie. His tattooed hands are a sharp contrast to the crisp shirt he's wearing.
"Mom been telling you stories again?" he asks and the twins laugh with him as I rush into his arms, never having enough of my husband.
He holds me close, his arms a safe harbor, and I relish his scent, his touch, his love. But before I can express it all, he lifts me off the ground and I screech as he throws me over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes.
"Dom!" I yell, pounding his back with my fists as he carries me down the path that leads from the cemetery to the beach it overlooks. "Would you put me down, you crazy man!"
He just laughs and the kids run after us as he carries me all the way to the water, wading in with me still in his arms. He completely ignores the fact that he's still in his work clothes. Soon, my screams turn into laughter as the cooling water hits my skin.
He finally puts me down, placing me inches away from him. Dom looks me straight in the eye, his signature smirk still present. "For old times’ sake," he teases me, then leans down and kisses me deeply.
Our kisses now are different than when we were younger. They're often rushed when we're trying to get the kids ready, sleepy when it's late, fleeting when we're leaving. But they're always full of love, a love that grows stronger and more beautiful with each look we exchange.
And I let the kiss sweep me off my feet, smiling against my husband's mouth as he envelops me in his arms.
He moves away for a second, whistling. "Dirty Cassidy," he whispers in my ear. "Can't wait until tonight."
It's our anniversary.
He grins at me and with an ear-piercing cry, he plunges us into the water to the delight of my twins. My eyes find them all on the shore, Raina standing off to the side, removed from what's going on like always.
I want to start wading out of the water when I catch her expression. And she's smiling right at me.
When she catches me looking, she mouths the words ‘I love you', and my heart fills with love. And for a second, the sun glints off the sand just so I can almost see a figure next to her.
My father, smiling proudly, his arm around my eldest daughter's shoulders.
I blink, and the image is gone. But Raina is still smiling.
And that's all I need.
I fall back into the water, a blessed smile on my face as my husband calls out to our children and they shout back happily.
Heartbreak summer is over.
THE END
About Isabella Starling
USA Today bestselling author Isabella Starling describes her books with three words: dark, dirty and forbidden.
She spends most of her time in her author group on Facebook, interacting with readers & coming up with new, forbidden and twisted book ideas.
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Heartbreak Summer Page 17
