by Allie Able
“You’re awfully quiet,” Nick says, giving my hand a squeeze.
I look up at him and smile. “Just thinking that I wish I lived on the beach.”
He nods his head. “Yeah, but you’re only a little walk away. It’s not that bad.”
We come to the wooden walkway, that leads us over the dunes, and I can practically taste the salt in the air. The first glimpse of the ocean makes me sigh.
“I know, but wouldn’t you like to look at this, every morning when you wake up?” I ask, not taking my eyes off of the waves crashing against the shore.
I can feel his eyes on me as we continue down the old, worn stairs. “Yeah,” he whispers and I have a feeling he’s not just talking about the ocean.
We both slip off our tennis shoes and leave them in the sand as we walk further onto the beach. It’s little chilly this morning, but nothing too unbearable. Nick lets go of my hand and spreads the blanket out on the ground and sits down. He spreads his legs wide and motions for me to sit between them. I sit down and lean back into him, as he wraps his arm around my stomach. We are both quiet while we drink our coffee and take in the beauty of the first rays of light touching the ocean.
“I miss surfing,” Nick says, nuzzling his face in my neck.
I shiver at the feel of his lips so close my skin. Nick must feel it, because he pulls me closer to him, probably thinking it was because I’m cold. I don’t correct him; his body feels too good against mine.
“I bet. I never learned to surf. My balance is horrible, but I love to watch others do it.”
Nick kisses my neck and holds me close, as we continue watching the sunrise and the waves. This morning is unlike anything I’ve ever experienced. I’ve watched the sunrise a hundred times, but watching it with Nick, while he holds me, is something I will remember for the rest of my life. I close my eyes and take a breath, trying to remember every detail. The smell of salt and sand. The warmth I feel coming off of the beautiful man behind me. I want to remember everything about this moment.
“We should bring Abbi seashell hunting before I go back overseas,” he whispers into the silence. While I hate thinking about him leaving, I love that he wants to include my daughter. He doesn’t see us a package deal, having to accept her because he wants me in his life. She’s not a burden in his eyes, she’s a bonus.
“She would love that,” I whisper, my voice full of emotion.
He must notice because he lifts his hand to my cheek and turns my face towards him. He searches my eyes for a second, before leaning down and capturing my lips in a sweet kiss. He kisses my cheeks and my nose, before turning to look back out at the ocean. I take a sip of my coffee, as I watch the sun get higher in the sky, making the dark water twinkle and shine a beautiful shade of blue. I feel Nick blow out a breath and lay his lips on my neck again.
“I’m in love with you, Katie,” he whispers in my ear. He says it with so much emotion and I feel my eyes starting to tear up. “I know it’s soon and you don’t have to say anything back, sweetheart, I just couldn’t let another second go by without telling you how much you mean to me. I love you and your daughter with every piece of my heart.”
Tears are now streaming down my face and I lay my hand over his, where it’s resting across my stomach. I hold his hand tightly in mine and sink deeper into him. I am so overcome with the intensity that I hear in his voice. My throat feels like it’s closing up, but I somehow squeeze the words out. He deserves my honesty. After laying his heart on the line, the least I can do is tell him how I feel.
“I love you too, Nick, so much that it scares me.”
“Don’t be afraid, sweetheart. I’ve got you.”
I turn my head towards him and I see that his eyes are already on me. They are soft and reassuring. In that one look, I know that he will be my light in the darkness, my shelter during the storm, and the beat in my heart. He will love me fiercely and unapologetically, until his last breath. I can see all of that clearly. Without another word, I lean towards him and capture his lips. I try to tell him everything I feel for him in that kiss, all of the things that I can’t put into words, because no combination of words could ever describe what I feel for him. He is mine. I make a promise to myself right then, no matter what happens in our future, I will fight for him. I will fight for us.
Chapter Fourteen
Nick
“HEY MAN, IT’S GOOD TO see you,” I say, giving a one arm hug to my buddy Grant.
“You too man. I feel like I haven’t seen you much since you’ve been home on this leave.” He opens the front door wider, gesturing for me to come inside.
After the beach yesterday, Katie and I went back to her house and had a lazy morning in bed. I made love to her over and over again. We would talk about nothing and everything and our soft kisses would turn into lingering touches, until we couldn’t take it anymore and I would roll her over and bury myself as deep as I could go. The things I feel for this woman are deep and intense and it is scary as hell. She had to go pick Abbi up in the afternoon, and I reluctantly pulled myself from the bed and went home to shower. I met up with them for dinner at the local burger place and, since neither of us are comfortable sleeping in the same bed with Abbi there, I went home. If you can even call the little apartment I stay at a home.
That’s one of the things I want to talk to Grant about today. He works in construction, building new houses and renovating old ones. I know he has a good real estate agent and I think I’m ready to finally buy a house. I’m almost 32 years old, I think it’s about time. I also need to talk to him about taking that job he offered me awhile back.
“Where’s Summer at today?” I ask, taking a seat on the sofa in their living room.
“She’s at the bakery for a little while. You sounded strange on the phone and I think she wanted to give us some privacy,” he smirks at me.
I shoot him a look, but otherwise don’t comment. He’s bound to figure out what’s bothering me. We’ve been friends since we were kids. We are more like brothers and we can read each other pretty damn well.
“How has Summer been?” I ask, gently. They both went through something traumatic a few months ago, when Summer’s crazy ex-husband came looking for her. I have never seen my friend as freaked out and scared as he was when Summer was shot.
He get’s a faraway look on his face, but shakes his head and smiles. “She’s perfect.”
“I know,” I say waggling my eyebrows up and down. I have absolutely no interest in Summer, but it’s fun to rile my friend up.
I think he actually growls at me, before another smirk comes to his face. “How’s Katie?”
If I didn’t know that he was madly in love with his fiance, I would punch him in the face right now. Damn, it’s not so fun when the tables are turned. I know I don’t do a good job of controlling my reaction when he chuckles and shakes his head. “Has the laid back, go with the flow, nothing ever bothers me Nick Sinclaire, finally found something that he is protective over?”
“You are making her sound like an object I just found. Shut the fuck up, Grant.”
He throws his head back and laughs and I feel my lips twitch in amusement. The fucker was just trying to push me, like I knew he would, but I fell for it anyway.
When he finally get’s control of his laughter he stands and walks towards the kitchen. “Want a beer?” he asks, when he passes my chair.
“Yeah,” I stay where I am and look around their living room. It’s feminine, but not overly so. You can tell this is a home where both Grant and Summer are both comfortable and the view is fucking amazing.
Grant comes back into the room and hands me my beer, before sitting in the chair across from me. “So, what’s up?”
I take a drink and scrub my hands down my face. “It’s two things actually. First, do you still have a spot open at the construction company for me?”
He looks surprised at first, but covers it up.
“Always.” He responds immediately.
&nbs
p; I nod my head. “Second, can you get me in touch with a good real estate agent? I’m ready to buy a house. I’m thinking an older one on the beach, that I can renovate.”
“Really?” he asks in confusion, “What’s wrong with your apartment?”
“I’m getting out of the military for good. The apartment is too small for me to live in all of the time,” I explain.
“Nick, I’m happy you’re getting out of the Marines and coming home, but I got to ask, what brought this on? I thought you were dead set on staying for a few more years.”
“Since you came home, I’ve been thinking about it. I miss the ocean and I miss my family, but if I’m honest my final decision had a lot to do with Katie.”
He studies me over his beer bottle, before leaning forward and setting it down on the table. “I didn’t realize you two were that serious.”
Grant knows me better than anyone and he knows how much I love being a Marine, but I’m ready to have a family and I want that family to be with Katie and Abbi.
“I’m in love with her and I think I have been for a while now. Maybe it wasn’t love before we officially got together, but I think I knew she was it for me the moment I met her. Did you feel like that with Summer?” I ask, genuinely interested.
We don’t usually sit around having a heart to heart about our feelings, but I really do want to know if he’s felt this with Summer or if I’m just crazy.
A smile tugs at the corner of his mouth and he looks towards the kitchen, seeming to be lost in thought. I finish off my beer and set in on the table. His eyes come back to me and he nods his head. “Yeah, I had that with Summer. I would have done anything for that woman. Summer’s situation was a little different, but I knew the moment I walked into the bakery and saw her, that she was it for me. I was blinded by her. Shit, I still am,” he chuckles.
I nod my head, because I completely understand. When Katie is around, I only have eyes for her. There could be a million beautiful woman in the room, but I would only see her.
“So, does Katie want to look at houses with you?” he asks with a smile.
I laugh and shake my head, “No, I think I’ll make that a surprise. I want to go ahead and find one, before I leave, and start the renovations when I come home.”
He nods his head. “I’ll have my real estate agent call you tomorrow.”
I hear the front door open and close and I look towards the entry way, right as Summer walks into the room.
“Hey, Nick,” she smiles and gives my shoulder a squeeze as she walks towards Grant.
Grant stands up and cups her cheek, leaning down to brush his mouth against hers. “Hey, beautiful.”
“Hey, honey,” she whispers.
This is such an intimate moment and I know I should give them their privacy, but I can’t look away. I want that with Katie and I hate we are going to have to wait awhile before we can have it. I rub my hand over my head and stand up.
“Alright, I’m going to get out of your hair.”
Summer turns and looks at me, as Grant tucks her under his arm. “You don’t have to go, Nick.”
She’s so sweet, but when I look over at her fiance, he is telling me with his eyes, that I better fucking go. I smirk and shake my head. “I know, Summer, but I was supposed to be at my parents’ house thirty minutes ago.”
She smiles and nods her head and I reach out to shake Grant’s hand. “Bye, man. See you soon.”
He nods his head. “We want to have you all over for dinner, before you go back.”
“Sounds good.” I turn and walk towards the door.
“Who’s ‘you all’?” I hear Summer whisper and I can’t help but laugh. Well, I sure hope Katie is ready to tell everyone now.
The ride to my parents’ house is quick. They live in the middle of town and have since I was a baby. Both of my parents are from the North, but they decided to move here, before I was born. Dad opened the clinic shortly after moving here and has run it ever since. I actually don’t think he has ever had another Veterinarian working with him, until Katie. It’s funny how things work out sometimes.
I shut the door to my truck and walk towards the steps leading to the front door. I love this house. It’s old, but they did a little work when they first moved here and they did more renovations a couple of years ago, when me and Lexie moved out.
The front yard has several large trees and I can remember climbing them with Lexie when we were kids. I step onto the wrap around porch and look around. Nothing ever changes. Mom has a book and a blanket laying in the swing and I see dad’s reading glasses sitting on the table next to a rocking chair. When I get closer to the door, I can hear Lexie talking, so I don’t bother knocking.
“Hello,” I call, walking through the door and down the hallway. I’m guessing the voice are coming from the kitchen.
Mom turns from the stove to look at me and smiles. “Hey, sweetie.”
I walk over to her and press a kiss to her cheek. “Hey, Mom. It smells good in here.”
“I’m making Gumbo. You’re right on time, it should be ready in about 20 minutes.”
I nod my head and turn towards where my sister is sitting at the counter. “Hey, Lexie.” I give her a quick hug and settle onto the stool next to her.
“Hey, big bro. I haven’t seen you much. Where have you been?” Her eyes are gleaming with mischief and I smile in response. She’s such a little shit starter.
“Where’s dad?” I ask, ignoring her question.
“He had to run up to the clinic. Someone called because their dog was having puppies. He’s been gone for a while, so he should be back soon.”
Shit, I wonder if Katie had to go up there, too. “Is he by himself?” I ask.
Mom gives me a strange look over her shoulder. “I’m sure Katie met him up there.”
“Did she take Abbi with her?” I ask.
Mom lays the spoon down and turns to face me. “I’m sure she did,” she says slowly.
I nod my head and pull my phone of out my pocket to text Katie. It bothers me to think of her not having anyone to watch Abbi. I know Abbi likes it up at the clinic, I just hate that their afternoon was ruined because the clinic had an emergency. I don’t notice both women staring at me, until I finish my text and look back up.
“What?” I ask, looking from my mom to Lexie.
Mom opens her mouth and then shuts it again, shaking her head.
Lexie chuckles and takes a sip of her wine. “I think Mom wants to know if you’re boning Katie.”
“Lexie!” Mom yells, and I turn to scowl at her, too.
“What? It’s a good question.”
Mom rolls her eyes and looks back at me. “While your sister could have worded that differently, I would like to know if your seeing Katie.”
My phone dings and I look down at it, before looking back at Mom. “Yeah, I’m seeing Katie and do you mind a couple more people coming for dinner? I’m going to run and pick Abbi up at the clinic right quick.”
She smiles wide and I swear her eyes get suspiciously wet. “Go get that sweet little girl. I will have a couple more places set at the table by the time you get back.”
“Thanks, Mom. I’ll be right back.” I kiss her cheek and make my back towards the front door.
“Tell me everything you know,” I hear my mom whisper to Lexie.
I chuckle and shake my head. Well, this should be interesting.
Chapter Fifteen
Katie
I PUT MY PHONE BACK in my pocket and breathe out a sigh of relief. Usually bringing Abbi to work with me is no big deal, but today she’s restless and has asked me no less than 20 times if we’re leaving soon. I feel bad, because I know she would rather be home playing, but the simple truth is that I don’t have anyone to watch her when we have an emergency at the clinic.
I don’t know how Nick knew we were here, but I’m thankful he asked if I wanted him to watch Abbi. She is going to be so excited too.
I walk to the office and see that
she is still sitting in my chair coloring. “Hey Kiddo.”
She looks up at me with a bored expression on her face. “Hey, Mom. Are you almost done.”
“Yeah, we just have to monitor the puppies a little longer, but Mr. Nick just asked me if you could go hang out with him. Would you like to do that?”
She smiles wide and nods her head. “Really?”
“He should be here soon. So go ahead and get your stuff together,” I smile.
I watch as she packs all of her stuff into her bag and we both walk up front. Nick walks through the front door right as we come around the corner.
“Hey,” he smiles.
“Hey, Mr. Nick!” Abbi exclaims, as she hugs him.
He looks down at her with a tender smile. “Hey, Abbi. Do you want to go to my parents’ house for a little while?”
She nods her head quickly and he looks back over at me. “We will be at my mom and dad’s house whenever you finish up here.”
I nod my head and hold my arms out for Abbi to come hug me. “We shouldn’t be too much longer.”
I squeeze Abbi close to me and kiss the top of her head. “Be good. Okay?”
“I will,” she responds.
I hear footsteps behind me and I turn to see Mr. Sinclaire walking down the hall.
“Hey, Son, what are you doing here?”
“Hey, Dad. I’m just picking up Abbi. She’s going to come hang out with me while y’all finish up here.”
I bite my bottom lip, while Mr. Sinclaire looks between me and Nick, his forehead wrinkled in confusion. I’m not sure if he will like his employee dating his son. Nick and I haven’t talked about finally telling people that were in a relationship and I really can’t afford to loose my job.
He seems to come to some sort of realization, because his face breaks out into a wide smile.
“Alright then. Katie and I shouldn’t be here too much longer.”
Nick nods his head and kisses my cheek. “She’ll be fine. I’ll see you in a little bit.”
