I wake to the sound of Charlie's guitar playing a soothing riff. I roll to my side, feeling something loose rubbing against my bare skin. I open my eyes to find my top half is still naked. How can Charlie leave me like this when he's the one who wanted me naked? Mr. Twitchy strikes.

I sit up, discreetly slipping on the button-up shirt that was draped over me. I find Charlie outside our shelter sitting on makeshift stool Mr. Locke made for us. His guitar is resting on his leg. Aaron is on a blanket in front of him, happily chewing on his fingers.
"Now, Turniphead," Charlie says enthusiastically, his hands flying about. "I need you to sing backup for this song we're gonna do for your Mum. It's quite simple. Follow my lead-" He bends his head, placing his fingers on the strings and starts to play. "If I had a million dollars - you got that?"

Aaron is staring up at his Dada, intently still chewing on his fingers. I smile. I live for these moments.

Charlie glances up. "Where's my backup?" Aaron responds with a grunt. "I know you just started talking yesterday, but c'mon Turniphead, I'm sure you can do this. Let's try again." Charlie starts playing and sings, "If I had a million dollars, I would buy you a house-" and puts his hand behind his ear, waiting for his backup. He heaves a sigh when none comes. "You have to learn this song before your Mum wakes up."

"You're a little late," I say loudly. I laugh when Charlie jumps, and turns to me, wide-eyed.

"Don't give me a heart attack, Claire!"

"Oh, you're fine." I plop down behind Aaron, kissing his fuzzy head. Charlie pouts.

"What? No kiss for your husband?"

I sigh, and shake my head. "Come here." He leans over his guitar as I gently lean over Aaron, and we meet in the middle. "What have you been up to today?" I ask when we finally break apart.

"After lying awake for hours fondling you while you slept, I got up to take a squat and came back to find Aaron awake." So amusing, our mornings. There's always something unexpected that flies out of Charlie's mouth. "We walked about the beach for a while, and came back to eat some breakfast. While we was walking," a brilliant and somewhat crazed glint flashes in Charlie's eyes, "I got an idea!"

His smile is radiating his face again. "I am going to build you a house!" Charlie proclaims, proudly. I cock my head, taking in the idea.

When I was a girl, my parents would bring me to a beach about an hour from our home. I always wanted to stay, and would ask why we couldn't live in one of the houses that stood in a row along the beach. Am I getting my wish?

Charlie stands, placing his guitar back in it's case, and points down the beach. "The house will be built down there where we can have all the privacy we want."

Oh, so that's the reason why - privacy for what we didn't get to do last night, I don't doubt. "But how are you going to build it? Building a house takes a lot of planning, and we don't have the materials to do so."

"I already have that figured out, Claire!" He kneels down in front of me, smiling broadly. "Michael will be our contractor. He built that raft. He'll know what to do." Charlie takes my hand, and places a warm kiss on my palm. "Just trust me, Claire. I want to do this for my wife and son."

Whether Charlie is doing this out of the goodness of his heart or out of his lust, I'll take it either way.