We walked up and down the boardwalk all day. I had fallen in love with the place when Ellie moved here years ago, but it was fun to see it anew through Henry's eyes.
"Is that an art gallery?" he asked, pointing with our entwined hands.
"I think so. I've never gone in."
He grinned at me. "There's no time like the present."
We toured the gallery, then the local artist's shop next to it. I spent so much time admiring the delicately-worked seashell necklaces that Henry insisted on buying one for me. The artist beamed at us when he clasped it around my neck. "You two are just so sweet," she said with a sigh. "Seeing happy couples like you, oh, it just warms my heart."
Our next stop was my favorite café. We ate lunch outside on the patio so we could have a view of the ocean. "I see why you love this place," Henry said, gazing out over the water. "There are few places in the world that are this beautiful."
"I've always thought so." I took a sip of wine and continued, "I mean, I haven't traveled much, but this is such a calming place."
"Calming is a good word," Henry agreed. "Where shall we go after lunch?"
"We haven't gone downtown yet. There's a museum there I think you would enjoy – and by enjoy, I mean you'll probably tell me what the real history is, which is always enjoyable for me." I smirked at him. "What do you think?"
"Whatever you say, darling."
The museum was actually fairly accurate, by Henry's standards. He only went off on a tangent five times. After leaving the museum, we returned to the boardwalk and wandered along, stopping to get ice cream at one shop and fresh croissants from another. We ate at my favorite restaurant for dinner, sharing a piece of pecan pie.
Evening came before I knew it. We had discarded our shoes and were walking barefoot in the sand. "Look at the sunset," Henry whispered in my ear. "It's stunning, but even it pales in comparison with you, darling."
I smiled at him. "Thank you, Henry."
"I mean it."
"I know."
We walked in silence for a few minutes before Henry stopped, turning me around to face him. "Have I told you that I love you today?"
"No, you haven't." I tapped him on the nose. "Naughty."
He grinned. "I love you, Jo Martinez."
"And I love you, Henry Morgan."
He put his arms around my waist, and I stood on tiptoe for his kiss. When he pulled back, he said quietly, "I wasn't really on the phone with Lucas this morning. I needed to talk with Ellie and Matt."
My heart started to race again, but I fought to keep my face straight. "You did?"
"Yes. But what's more important is that I talked to Sarah last night. I didn't actually read her a story – she told me one instead. Would you like to hear it?" I nodded. "She told me a story about a princess. This princess wasn't just a princess – she was a warrior, too. This warrior princess fell in love with a prince, and they got married, but one day, the prince got sick and died."
Henry paused, his eyes searching mine. Tentatively I asked, "Is that the end?"
"No. The warrior princess was very sad for a very long time. She knew how to fight, but she didn't know how to fight the sadness. Then, one day, she met a cowboy." That startled a laugh out of me. "Her words, not mine," Henry promised, eyes dancing. "The warrior princess met a cowboy who found a way to help her with her sadness. When the warrior princess was with the cowboy, she was happy once more. They fought the sadness together."
He paused again. I could tell he was trying to decide what to say next. "Is that the end?" I asked, raising an eyebrow at him.
He took a deep breath. "Kind of. After she told me that part, she said, 'You'd better ask her to marry you, cowboy, because you're in love and that's how the story's supposed to end!'"
I froze. Henry was pulling something small out of his pocket. He took a step back and got on one knee in the sand. "So, Josephine Martinez, will you marry me?" he asked, holding up a ring.
For a few seconds, I just stared down at him. I'd known this was coming, had even heard him talking to Matt about it, but there's knowing and then there's knowing. "Yes," I said. It came out as a breathy whisper. I cleared my throat. "Yes, yes, Henry Morgan, I will marry you!"
He slid the ring on my finger, then stood and pulled me in for a long, slow kiss. It might have lasted forever, but suddenly I heard an excited voice calling, "Auntie Jo, did he ask you? Did he? Did he?" I looked around and saw Sarah running towards us, with Ellie and Matt coming more slowly.
I knelt down to give Sarah a hug. "Yes, he did," I whispered into her ear. "Thank you, Sarah."
"You're welcome, warrior princess," she whispered back. "Hey! Can I be in the wedding?"
"Of course you can," Henry said, kneeling down next to us. I smiled at him through my tears. I knew this marriage was going to be tough. Even being friends with an immortal was a trial at times. But I was no stranger to trial, and neither was Henry.
"You'll make a great flower girl," I told Sarah, wiping my eyes.
"Why are you crying?" she demanded. "You're supposed to be happy!"
"I am," I assured her, reaching out to grab Henry's hand. "My cowboy makes me very happy."
Awwww. The fluff. All the fluff! I had so much fun with this story - especially writing Sarah. :D I hope you all enjoyed the story! Thanks to everyone who read, followed, favorited, and reviewed.
Parkin24 - it actually wasn't a nod to Matt Miller, but now it is! Passerby - I thought about changing it, but from what I read up on it, almost everyone calls the tower Big Ben anyway. Plus, he was talking to a seven-year-old, so he was probably toning himself down a little bit!
