The Eternity that Follows

by Diane Marie

  “Aww Joey, you’re too sweet.”

  “I try.”

  Joey held Gabriella from behind as they watched the sunset, at times giving Gabriella sweet kisses on the back of her neck. Gabriella felt as though she were in heaven. The sunset was so beautiful, the sky was setting in pink and orange tones as it glowed, and mirrored over the water.

  “Joey, look how beautiful it is.”

  “Not as beautiful as you.”

  “Really you think so?” Gabriella asked, turning around to meet Joey’s eyes.

  Joey took a step back, and knelt down on one knee with the ring box already behind his back. Without giving Gabriella a moment to ask what he was doing, he took the ring box from behind his back, and opened it. Gabriella’s eyes didn’t leave Joey’s.

  “Gabriella, my sweetheart, will you please marry me?” Joey said, in a kind, soft tone, then making a ‘please puppy dog face.’

  Gabriella looked down at the ring as the end of the sunset caught the diamond. The ring lit up in orange and pink as Gabriella replied,

  “wow.” Gabriella was stunned by the ring.

  The ring Joey designed for Gabriella was the heart of a rose. From the heart of the rose came the band of the ring, that was swirled vines on each side of the band with two thorns opposite one another. The band in the back was solid white gold, the vines dyed out around the sides of her finger and grew thicker around the back. In the heart of the rose lied a diamond. Joey didn’t want to cheap out on the diamond, but actually designed the ring to have a tiny diamond, finding it looked well in it’s setting. Since the diamond wasn’t as big of a rock Joey had always dreamed of giving his wife, he had four ruby’s placed on each of the thorns, to keep the color of a rose in check with the design. Joey was still waiting for an answer. Gabriella caught Joey’s eyes and then spoke, “oh yes Joey. Of course I’ll marry you. Forever and the eternity that follows, I’ll be yours.” she said,. Joey had slipped the ring on her finger in the middle of her words, he then stood to his feet.

  “You promise the eternity that follows?” He asked, not waiting for an answer, and bringing Gabriella into his arms. Gabriella gave Joey a kiss, vowing eternity to answer to his question. When the kiss was over, Joey held on tight to Gabriella with his arms wrapped around her hips. Gabriella took a look at her ring, holding her hand up behind Joey’s shoulder, and saw blue and yellow sparkles beaming off the lights of a passing boat. “I bet I could see the whole rainbow in this diamond.” Gabriella said, complementing the diamond Joeypicked out.

  “Its custom made.” Joey said. “Every last detail. I drew it up myself.”

  “Oh Joe.”

  “Oh Joe?” Joey said, with a sigh.

  “You like that?” .

  “I do Gabriella, only you though.”

  “K.” Gabriella said, with a kiss afterward sealing another vow between them.

  Joey turned Gabriella around to catch the last of the sunset, holding her tightly behind, while watching himself. He nestled his face into her neck, then resting his chin there. “I can’t wait to get you home.” Joey confessed, whispering in Gabriella’s ear, insinuating he wanted to make love. “Let’s finish this wine and watch the stars for awhile.” Joey said, wanting Gabriella to know she meant a lot more to him then sex.

  “I’d like that.”

  Joey and Gabriella sat back down on the chairs on the back of the boat. Joey wrapped his arms around Gabriella as she snuggled into his chest for a moment and said,

  “I wish I could spend forever like this with you.” Gabriella then grabbed Joey’s arm from around her, put his hand in hers, and held it in her lap. They both looked out above the boat and gazed at the stars. Gabriella looked up and saw the Virgo constellation. “That’s my favorite constellation you know.” Gabriella said. “I can’t always find it, but when I do, I can’t help but feel there’s something powerful out there.”

  “Like heaven?”

  “Yes, like heaven.”

  “For the eternity that follows?” Joey asked Gabriella, giving her a sweet kiss.

  “For the eternity that follows and whatever else there is after that.” “There is nothing after that Gab. Eternity goes on forever.” “Well, then.” Gabriella acted stumped. “Then I’ll love you in the next lifetime too.”

  “Do you believe we live on earth again?”

  “Sometimes. I think so, don’t we have a bloodline?”

  “We sure do.”

  “So?”

  “So, well I’ll love you in my next lifetime too.”

  “Will you be faithful till then?”

  “I sure hope my next life will lead me to be.”

  Joey's kind words, was enough for Gabriella to know he truly loved her. Gabriella got comfortable in Joey’s arms again, she had brought new thoughts and philosophies to Joey’s mind from her thoughts she shared with him.

  “Hey Gab, just in case I’m going to leave something behind with our kids, that they can pass down to their kids, and their kids, and their kids, and so on. That way we know our exact family tree since the last time we lived on earth, and I’ll make a note for my parents when I’m born that I’m to be faithful because in my destiny, awaits the most beautiful girl on earth that deserves me to be.”

  Gabriella found sweetness in his words, while he got Gabriella thinking about his parents, and if they would fall in love and have him again in the next lifetime, she couldn’t help but say something.

  “Do you think your parents will meet again in the next lifetime? Do you think we’ll meet in the next lifetime?”

  “Gabriella, you and I are soul mates. If we do indeed get a next lifetime, it will be together. I promise you that.”

  “But how can you promise that?”

  “Well, I’ll tell God I don’t want to be born again, and I won’t leave heaven without you. And you must do the same if my parents don’t fall back in love, okay?” Joey said, with tears in his eyes over the thoughts of his parents and how they weren’t together anymore.

  “Okay Joey. I promise I won’t be born without you.” Gabriella said, with tears swelled up in her eyes too.

  Joey sat in silence for a moment.

  “Do you know why my dad left?” Joey finally said.

  “No.” Gabriella said, without moving.

  Joey grabbed Gabriella’s chin, causing her to look up, she was relieved because she wanted to look into Joey’s eyes. “Me either.” Joey admitted.

  “Oh.” Was all Gabriella could say. Joey smiled lightly at Gabriella as she smiled lightly back.

  “Forever, girl?”

  “Forever.” Gabriella said, knowing she had become the closest thing on earth to Joey. “Can we go make sweet, sweet love now?” Gabriella asked. Joey had no protest to that.

  After Joey and Gabriella had made sweet love to each other, Gabriella got out of bed and turned on the light. She then went over to her computer desk to grab a piece of blank paper from the printer. Gabriella also grabbed a pencil and a book for Joey to lean on. Gabriella laid on Joey’s body, describing her dream dress to him.

  “I want it to form around my hips.” Gabriella began, while she laid in Joey’s lap, with him holding the book with the paper on it on the palm of his right hand as he drew with his left. Joey drew the form of Gabriella’s hips. “I want it to stay tight until it reaches my knees. When it reaches my knees, I want the sides to puff in and out, half an inch all the way to the bottom.” Gabriella said as Joey drew wiggly lines down her body, drawing tight where she wanted it, and then letting go, for an eyeball half an inch, then making it tight again, to draw the puffs she was speaking of. “Are you getting all this?” Gabriella asked, trying to look at the paper, Joey pushed her off. “Okay so on the way up from the hips, I want it to be all tight and form to my body, clingy tight.” Gabriella described, so Joey drew up from her hips. “And when it gets to my boobs, I want it to swoop down in a V with a cris cross tie between.”

  “How low?”

  “To right in betw
een the center of my boobs.”

  “Gabriella?”

  “What Joey? I want the lace to cris cross up until where the v-neck started”

  “Fine.” Joey said, agreeing, and drawing a low v-neck with a cris cross lace between.

  “I want there to be two long skinny straps at the top of each side where the v starts on top that will cris cross around my neck once and tie in the back.”

  “Separate from the lace in the middle of your boobs or do you want it to be the same lace?” Joey asked, still not approving such a low-cut dress.

  “I want the lace in the v-neck to tie in a bow at top, in the back. Yes different lace.”

  “Okay.”

  “And then for the back I want a big bow above my tail bone.” “So the dress is going to be tight in the back correct?” Joey asked, in disapproval.

  “Yes Joey. I want to show off all my good features.”

  “What happened to long, flowing gowns with trains?”

  “Joey, did you, draw it the way I said or not?”

  “Yes. I'm just drawing your backside now separate, and adding your bow. How long did you want the strands of the bow?” Joey asked. “And did you want it red?”

  “Joey that’s not funny! I’m not a whore.”

  “I didn’t say you were.”

  “Did you finish yet?”

  “How long did you want the strands of the bow?” Joey asked, again but without the rude comment.

  “Oh till the end of the dress.”

  “Ok. We’ll I’m done.” Joey said, showing Gabriella the paper. “Joey.” Gabriella screamed. Joey had shown her the back side of the paper where he had written ‘no way.’

  “Just flip it over Gab.” Joey said. Gabriella flipped over the paper. “Oh Joey.” Gabriella’s heart beamed. “It’s just what I wanted.” Gabriella said, in delight.

  “Good I’m glad.”

  “You don’t like it?”

  “I’m not supposed to see it before the wedding.” .

  “Oh.” Gabriella said, feeling they were sworn to bad luck. “But don’t, worry I tend to forget things that excite me until they come up again.” Joey said, remembering the check he got today. “So you do like it?”

  “I can’t wait to see you in it and punch everyone else that does.” “Joey, you’re such a bad boy.” Gabriella said, in a sexy tone. “Nope. I just have one sexy lady.”

  “What did you mean by things that excite you, you don’t remember?”

  “I got a royalty check today in the mail from Tie’s dad for my blueprint.” Joey said, acting as though the money he received today was no big deal.

  “And you weren’t expecting it?”

  “Nope. I forgot that I’d be making ten grand for every house he built using my blueprint.”

  “That must have been a huge shock. How many houses did he build?”

  “I guess fifteen in the last year and a half.”

  “Wow.”

  “Yup.”

  Joey, with Gabriella still in his lap, brought her closer to his face, while Gabriella got comfortable in Joey’s arms. He told Gabriella all about his finances, how much money he had saved up in the bank, how much he took a loan out for, how much he had in another account to pay the workers with, and how much he spent on all materials for the house, counting up every cent he had spent as he ended with how much money he had left in the bank for his personal needs.

  “And now I have this check.” Joey said, proudly of himself. “You know I'm going back to school for Business Management in the fall, maybe I should switch my career. You seem to have business down pact.”

  “Not quite Gabriella.” Joey then told Gabriella how he wanted to keep the house he was building now, and what it would take to do so. “If someone wants me to build my blueprint for them, they’d have to buy the land, they would then have to either pay out of pocket or take out a loan from the bank for the funding of their house being built. The money wouldn’t come to me all at once, but rather in payments as the house is being built. Which means I need the money from this house, I wish to keep so bad for you, to help fund the next project. Of course once the house is done, I can always buy it from my company, and take out a mortgage on it, that way my company still gets paid, which may be what I plan to do.” Joey said, trying to explaining the finances, the best he understood it himself.

  “Or you could buy a piece of land and divide it up, build all your different blueprints on one street, and then sell them in the market.”

  “How would I afford that?”

  “Well, it just sounds to me that you wanted to build a house. You don’t need to finish or sell this house to build more.”

  “Well for funding I do.” Joey said, reminding Gabriella his last home sold for two point two million dollars, and his company now was still new.

  “Joey, I’m tired.” Gabriella said, walking away to wash up in the bathroom, Joey joined her.

  “Well how would I fund that?”

  “I don’t’ know investors. You know people invest their money in you, in your blueprints, in your dreams. They trust you and invest in your company.”

  “Oh.” Joey said, not before thinking of investors. “So this is like our company Gabriella, we are getting married.” Joey said, while Gabriella spit into the sink.

  “If you see it that way.”

  Joey didn’t respond, he brushed his teeth, washed his face and went to bed. Gabriella followed behind when she was done in the bathroom, and snuggled up to his chest. She threw her leg around the lower part of his body and said,

  “we did say hold each other all night every night.”

  “I didn’t protest.” Joey said, turning Gabriella around and holding her from behind.

  “When do I get to see your real life blue prints?”

  “Tomorrow.” Joey said, realizing that they hadn’t even been together for a week yet.

  “When you have the time, Mr. Romantic.”

  “Sweet dreams, my love.”

  “You really want to just go to bed?”

  “Aren't you tired?”

  “Yeah, but someone gave me a gorgeous ring tonight, and now i'm really in the mood.”

  “Oh yeah?” Joey asked, excicted, turning Gabriella around and brining her into his arms.

  “Oh yes.” Gabriella said, as they procceed to make love.

  Chapter Thirteen

  Joey woke up Thursday morning, with a better attitude then the day before. When the alarm had gone off, Gabriella was the one to try and keep Joey in bed.

  “Hold me a little longer Joe?”

  “Baby, I have to make it to the gym today and I need to unload my truck.”

  “Fine. I’ll go make you something to eat.” Gabriella said, stretching out her arms while getting out of bed.

  “Hold on a second, there's something I want to do.” Joey said, causing Gabriella to stay lying naked in bed. “Open up.” Joey said, seductively.

  “Oh no.” Gabriella replied.

  “No really, I just want a taste.” Joey said, parting Gabriella's legs.

  Joey didn’t say a word at first, getting close to Gabriella who left her legs opend for him, knowing what Joey wanted to do. Joey licked Gabriella for a simple a taste, he then got up off the bed and said,

  “yum.” He meant it too, he really liked the way Gabriella tasted. “Joey.” Gabriella screamed at him. “You’re not funny.” Gabriella said, wanting more.

  “I have to get back to work.”

  “Oh no, you’re not. Finish what you started.”

  “Nope, I just wanted to taste my almost wife for the first time.” “Whatever, that was so rude” Gabriella said, mad.

  “I promise more later.”

  “Well, what did you do that for?”

  “I simply wanted to know what you taste like, and I couldn't wait.” “So you teased me instead?”

  “Oh, Gabriella.”

  “What, cause you won't get pleasure?”

  “I'm sorry, that's n
ot in. I really need to get my day started.” “Fine, make yourself something to eat.”

  “Oh, don't hold a grudge.”

  “I'm not.”

  “Won't you please come down to the kitchen with me?” “I guess so.” Gabriella said, standing from the bed and taking the hand Joey offered.

  “You really are yummy” He said, causing Gabriella to giggle. Joey then whispered in her ear, “I like the way you taste so much, I want you naked in that bed when I come home for more.” “Okay Joey.”

  When Joey had left for work, Gabriella finished in the kitchen, and then walked into her room, noticing all of Joey’s boxes he had unloaded on the floor of the room. She wasn’t mad, he had thrown them on the floor, but she felt she was expected to care for his things and unpack everything. Gabriella started in her closet first, she had more then enough space in her walk in closet for Joey’s clothes. Next, Gabriella emptied out her tall dresser giving it to Joey, then spending her whole morning going through her own clothes, deciding what she no longer wore, and packing it up for Good Will. She then hung up all of Joey’s nicer clothes, folded his other clothes, and made his stuff comfortable in her room. Then she looked at his safe, she couldn’t lift it and noted, he would have to store that in the closet, she didn’t want to have to look at it every day. When she got to his movies and CD’s, she mixed them in with her own. It was around lunchtime when she was done refining the room, and had a home for all of Joey’s things.

  Joey spent his day at work, dreaming about Gabriella. He worked hard, while having nothing but love making, and tasting her again on his mind. It was hard for him to deny getting back in bed with her this morning, and he felt badly for what he started and didn't finish this morning. He craved her all day long, and when he got home that night, he thought about eating dinner first, but he was too selfless, letting Gabriella's desire come first.

  “What are you in the kitchen for?” Joey asked, when he got home. “I'm making dinner.”

  “Oh, I see, come on.” Joey said, taking Gabriella's hand and walking her from the kitchen into their bedroom. He smiled as he noticed all his boxes had been cleared away. He then undressed himself, with Gabriella following, doing the same.