The kitchen has been done with all stainless steel appliances and a dark granite bench top that has a small drop when it becomes a breakfast bar that looks out the window.
The first bedroom is for Grace, with a beautiful white sleigh cot, with a matching chest of drawers and change table. It has been decorated almost entirely with butterflies, the most exquisite butterfly mobile hanging above the cot, and there is every toy a baby girl could ever hope for.
Next up is the main bathroom, it has a sleek bath tub with spa jets inside and a glass partition to turn it into a shower. The large mirror has vanity lights around it, and the sink is shaped like a bowl and rises out of the counter top.
I gasp when I see the main bedroom, it almost looks like the bed and breakfast we went to. Above the bed is a blown-up photo of Elliot and I, kissing on our wedding day. I look over at Erica, trying so hard not to cry, “This is so beautiful, Erica,” I breathe.
“Wait, you haven’t seen all of it yet,” she says pulling me towards a door that I assume leads to an en-suite. I’m surprised with it opens to a walk in wardrobe before it becomes an en-suite, she has even put a chair in the middle of it. It is quite simply amazing.
The en-suite itself is also gorgeous with a his and hers basin and a corner mini spa bath and shower combined.
I look around with my mouth open, never in my wildest dreams did I think that I would live in a place like this. “This is so amazing Erica.”
She has her hands clasped in front of her as she watches me happily, “Let me show you the view,” she says, pulling me over to the sliding door on the other side of the bed. “You can see the ocean,” she tells me as I step out and take in the panorama before me.
“I think I just went to heaven,” I say looking out at the roaring black ocean encircled by the dotted lights of the city surrounds.
Elliot
“I can’t believe you did this for us,” I say to my father as Erica takes Paige through the flat.
My father gives me a half smile and shrugs. “Thank Erica, it was all her idea. She’s a good woman. She made me see that I was being too hard on you.”
“She did, did she?”
“She’s helped me alter my perspective. Everything doesn’t seem so black and white to me anymore.”
“I’m glad dad. I'm really very glad that you found someone who obviously makes you happy.”
“Thank you son, I can say the same to you, you seem to have found yourself one amazing woman... Although son, I do have to say that I’m sorry for the choice I forced you to make with your last girlfriend. I was wrong. I should never have done that to you.”
Looking at my father right now, was like I was meeting him for the first time, gone was the man who intimated me all through my youth. Instead, I’m faced with a man who is only human, just like me. I regret that I felt so much hatred towards him for so many years, knowing Paige and all she went through has altered my own perception, I don’t care about things that happened in the past anymore. I only care about now and what’s ahead for all of us.
“You don’t need to say sorry dad, if she meant as much to me as I thought she did. I would have fought for her. The fact I didn’t says it all really doesn’t it?”
“And you’ve found your girl worth fighting for now?” he asks me.
“Yes dad, I found her. I fought for her, and I’ll fight for the rest of my life if that’s what it takes to keep her,” I tell him seriously.
He pats me on the back, urging me to follow him through the flat to find Paige and Erica, “I’m proud of you son,” he says walking ahead of me. I can’t help but smile as I follow him through the flat that used to be my home, but now looks like a new flat entirely.
Chapter 41
Paige
“Hey you,” Elliot says as he steps out onto the balcony with me. “Enjoying the view?”
I lean into him as his arm slips around me, and we look out at the ocean together, “It’s amazing. I feel like I’m dreaming,” I say as I rest my head on his shoulder.
“This is all really strange for me too. It looks so different now. The front door is the same, but everything else has changed, even the view looks a little different.”
“What did it look like when you lived here?”
“Old, everything was some variation of brown.”
I laugh a little, “I’m imagining a sepia photo.”
“Yeah, I suppose it did look a little like that… Listen Paige, in the interest of full disclosure. This is where I was living when I was dating Katrina. If it bothers you, we’ll sell it and choose something different.”
“Wow,” is all I can say for a moment, I turn around and lean against the railing, looking back inside the room. “All the furniture’s different isn’t it?” I ask.
“Yeah, everything is different. It's like they’ve gutted the place and changed it all,” he tells me.
I take him by the hand and lead him into the main bedroom, “What does this room remind you of?” I ask.
I see him look around for a moment, taking everything in. “Honestly? It reminds me of that B&B we went to before I came home the first time.”
“Really?”
“Yeah.”
“Then we’ll keep it,” I say, sliding my arms around his waist and tilting my head up so he can kiss me.
Erica and Robert decided on that moment to enter the room. “Whoa lovebirds! Give us some time to get out of here before you christen the room ok?” Erica exclaims.
I walk towards them both and hug each of them, thanking them profusely for doing this for us.
“It’s our pleasure Paige,” Robert says kindly before clapping his hands together. “Now, I had already set this up with Kathy, so she isn’t expecting either of you go back to her house until tomorrow morning. However, I just called her to be safe, and she said Grace is still fast asleep.
“So you two enjoy. We’re going to head off now and let you have some time alone in your new home. Congratulations again on your wedding and your baby. We’ll see you all soon.”
“Thank you dad, thank you Erica,” Elliot says, embracing them both before we follow them to the door to walk them out. I think we thank them a hundred more times on the way.
We both lean against the front door as it closes and look at each other with giant grins on our faces. “Can you believe this?” he says first.
“No, can you?! Have you seen Grace’s room? Have you seen our wardrobe?!"
“Did you see the lounge room?"” he replies and we both laugh and walk through the flat again, pointing things out to each other as we go room to room. As we walk towards the main bedroom, Elliot stops me.
“What?” I ask turning to face him.
“We’re on our own for the first time since we were married, I have to do this right,” he says kissing me before reaching down and scooping me up in his arms to carry me over the threshold of our room.
“I think you were supposed to do that at the front door,” I laugh.
“Aw hell,” he says, turning around and starting for the door.
“No, no don’t!” I call out laughing, but he ignores me, jogging to the front of the flat.
“Open the door for me,” he says as he holds me in front of it.
Continuing to laugh, I oblige, he takes one step onto the landing and immediately turns and re-enters, using my feet to swing the door shut before carrying me back down the length of the flat to the bedroom and laying me gently on the bed.
“I love you,” I whisper to him as he holds himself above me.
“I love you forever,” he says as he dips his head and takes my mouth in his. We kiss slowly, letting our tongues slide against each other as we take turns leading. Touching each other softly and lovingly, our passion for each other feels as though it’s alive and dancing around us as we move together.
Elliot
It’s been over a week since we’ve been together this way as we’ve felt strange being intimate in my mother’s house while Grac
e was in the room with us, so we’ve held off. But right now, we’re alone with nothing to worry about but each other.
Slowly, I pull her dress from her shoulders before sliding it down her body, treating her like a gift for me to unwrap and tasting every part of her as I expose her silken skin.
Leaving her dress at the foot of the bed I lie down next to her, trailing my fingertips over her skin until I reach the lace edge of her underwear.
“I love that you wore these,” I whisper in her ear as I slide my hand underneath the lace and silk toward the apex of her thighs. My breath hitches as I feel her arousal on my fingertips, my own need throbbing as she moans when I curl my fingers inside her. I love the way she moves against my hand, writhing under my touch.
“Oh god Elliot!” she calls out, her hips rolling as my thumb circles her clit.
“God I’ve missed this,” I murmur as I crash our mouths together wanting to be connected when she comes. Her whimpers fill my mouth and cause my arousal to pulsate harder. I press it into her side, taking advantage of her rolling hips.
As her hips spasm, she clamps her thighs together, locking my hand in place as she moans into my mouth, her cries reverberating through my chest. When she grabs my hand to stop my movement, I willingly oblige as she rolls us both, so she’s on top of me.
“I want you inside me so badly,” she gasps, undoing my shirt quickly and pulling it open, dragging her fingers over my chest and down towards my pants.
“Wait!” I call out as her hands start to undo my belt, “I haven’t got anything with me.” I don’t make it a habit to carry condoms around with me anymore. Our life these days doesn’t generally give us the option for spontaneous sex while we’re out and about.
“Oh…” she breathes, pushing her hair back as she straddles me still clad in her bra and panties. “Well… do we really care?” she asks.
I think for a moment, “No. I don’t think we do,” I reply honestly. She smiles wickedly at me and goes back to work, removing my pants and dropping them at the foot of the bed along with her panties before climbing back on top of me, making a show of it like she’s a feline, stalking her prey. She purposefully drags her arousal, soft and silk, over my erection causing a moan to rumble out of me. I’m close to bursting. I want inside her so bad right now.
Positioning me at her opening, she pauses and glides my tip back and forth up over her clit and down along her opening. Gasping for breath, my fingers grip her thighs as she continues to tease herself and me with my tip. Just when I think I can’t stand it anymore she slides down on top of me accepting me into her hot wet depths.
My hands are everywhere as she rides me, my own orgasm at bursting point. I force myself to hold on, wanting to climax along with her. Pulling the cups of her bra down, I take her breasts in my hands, focusing on her as I attempt to maintain control. Her hands slide over mine, and she presses my hands firmly against my chest as her moans become more erotic and I know she’s close.
“Elliot!” she calls, holding tight and squeezing me internally. “Oh!” she yells repeatedly, as she explodes again, throwing her head back and thrusting her chest forward as she maintains her grip on my hands. I burst inside her, pressing my hips up to increase the pressure of our connection as her movements slow, and she continues to milk me, gently easing us both back down to earth.
She releases my hands and drops hers to my stomach, trailing her fingertips up and down my abs as she catches her breath. I pull her towards me to kiss her deeply. “You’re so fucking beautiful,” I whisper to her before rolling her over and starting to move inside her all over again.
Chapter 42
Paige
The next morning I wake early, not used to sleeping in anymore. Elliot on the other hand, is still fast asleep beside me. I watch his peaceful face for a moment before I slide off the most comfortable bed in the world and pad out to the kitchen naked, because I don’t have any clothes here besides the dress I was wearing last night.
When I open the fridge, I’m really not expecting anything to be there, I’m just opening it for the sake of it, so I’m surprised to find it stocked with the basics. I pull a bottle of water out of the door and unscrew the cap, drinking as I start to open the cupboards, now curious about what else I’ll find.
Next to the fridge is a pantry, also stocked with some basics, I pull out a bag of coffee and inspect our new fully automated coffee machine in an effort to work out how to use it.
It has its own grinder, so I fill the barrel up with the beans, fill the reservoirs up with water and milk then start pressing what I hope are the correct buttons. When the grinder starts, I jump a little, then realise I should probably put cups under the spout, so I don’t get coffee everywhere.
I quickly grab two cups off the top of the machine and set them under the spout, watching as steam starts to rise and coffee begins to pour.
“Hmm, nice view, and I’m not looking out the window,” Elliot says as he walks up behind me and slips his arms around my waist, kissing my neck.
Turning around in his arms, I slide my hands around his neck to kiss him, “Good morning my love, how was your sleep?”
“Freaking awesome, that’s what it was,” he tells me, trailing soft kisses down my neck. He sighs, “Mum just called me. Grace is a bit upset, so she offered to bring everything to us. I think she’s desperate for a sticky beak at the renovations actually, because I couldn’t hear Grace at all,” he laughs.
“That’s fantastic, because honestly, I don’t want to leave –I feel like I’m in a design magazine. Oh! Did you ask her to bring the pin board?”
“I did,” he says grinning proudly at me.
“You’re a good husband. How long do you think we have before they get here?” I ask, smoothing my hands down his body and gripping his firm naked arse suggestively.
Elliot
“Oh Paige, we will have to be so fast, they were loading the car then she called me,” I tell her already becoming hard.
“I’ll meet you in the shower then,” she says winking at me and slapping me on the arse as she saunters off.
I’m quick to follow and we just make it to dressed and ready before the buzzer for the front door goes off.
I leave Paige in the kitchen cleaning up the mugs from the coffees we never drank and bounce down the stairs to meet my mum, Steve and Grace, who I have missed so much overnight.
Steve is unloading the boot of the car, so I give my mum and Grace a quick kiss and hold the door open for them to enter before going over to help with the bags.
“Gday Elliot, this is an easy way to move house isn’t it?” Steve says as I approach.
“Yeah, it is – this was such a wonderful surprise. Did you know about it?”
“Sure did, are you happy to be back here in the old place?”
“Yeah I am actually. I thought it would be weird, but it’s not.”
We carry the bags up the stairs together and deposit them in the dining room. Voices filter up the hallway and I can hear Paige and my mother talking from inside Grace’s room.
Paige
“I can’t believe how different this place is, you should have seen it before Paige, it was so old and out dated. I have to give Erica credit; she has a great eye,” Kathy says as she inspects Grace’s room. Grace is happy bouncing in her new jumperoo. Every time she jumps it sets off lights and music in the toys surrounding her. I’m not sure that smile will ever come off her face.
“Thank you so much for taking care of Grace last night Kathy, we both really appreciate it.”
“It was no trouble, you two didn’t get a honeymoon, so we all thought that for one night, you could just be a couple. Little Grace is such a good little girl, I'm happy to look after her any time – and you know I’m all set up to have her whenever you need me.”
“Thank you Kathy, that means a lot.”
“What are you two ladies gas bagging about?” Steven booms as he enters the room.
“I was just telling
Paige how lovely Grace was last night, and that we’re happy to have her whenever they want to go out.”
“Yeah we’re really going to miss the little one, bring her over whenever you like,” Steven says as he watches her bounce.
Elliot comes to stand by me, and after we finish showing Kathy and Steven through the flat, I offer everybody coffee. I’m dying for one now after skipping the one I made earlier.
We all settle around the dining room table, drinking coffee, chatting and eating biscuits, while we pass Grace between us as she makes a game of reaching out to us all.
By the time Grace gets grouchy, signalling that she’s ready for a nap, Kathy and Steven are preparing to leave, congratulating us on our new home as they do. We thank them for everything they have done for us. Supportive parents mean the world to me. I can only hope that I’ll be half as good to my family as they are to theirs.
Once Grace is sleeping and Elliot and I are alone again, we spend some time sitting together on the couch, enjoying the peace while we watch some television.
“Elliot,” I say to get his attention.
“What is it?” he asks, kissing the side of my head affectionately.
“I’ve never really thanked you – for coming into my life, for understanding me…and especially - for forgiving me,” I say turning to face him.
“Paige, you don’t have to thank me.”
“But I do Elliot, eighteen months ago I never, never would have even let myself dream that my life could be like this. I didn’t think I could ever be this happy. But you,” I pause as I climb on his lap and face him, “have given me everything, Elliot, everything.” I hold his face in my hands and bring my mouth to his, putting everything I am feeling for him into my movements as I kiss him.
A Beautiful Forever Page 24
