"You didn't think that the kid would get you all to yourself the entire trip, did you, Erin?" David asked as they climbed out of the taxi just outside the Hercules Cave.
She shook her head with a smile, rolling her eyes affectionately as they went over to the entrance, not saying anything when he paid for them to get into the art cave as well. "I had the feeling that you might want to get me alone after finding out just how deeply I'd fallen for Spencer. You were the one who arranged for this, you know."
He nodded as they got in line with the other tourists, humming beneath his breath a little. She recognized the song as one of his favorites, and began to hum along as they waited for the line to move. Once they were inside looking at the art of the walls, she listened to him clear his throat, and she glanced over at him. "Are you truly happy together?"
"Ecstatic, David. I want to try for a child, if we decide to stay together. I'm nearing the cusp of that being an option, but I want to give that gift to him, if I can. Much though I loved you, I never felt that urge? I'm sorry."
"There's nothing to be sorry for. After losing James, I never felt the desire to have another child. I didn't want to take the chance of losing a baby again. I know that Caroline and Hayden wanted to have a child with me, but Krystall always understood my reticence." She shuddered a little at the mention of that woman's name, causing him to chuckle deeply. "You never liked her."
"She was faker than a three dollar bill, David. Even her hair came from a bottle!"
He nodded as he knocked his shoulder against hers. "I know, but she reminded me of you, even if she was a pale imitation. You were solid with Alan when I married her, after all."
She let out a little chortle as she shook her head. "If you only knew. We were good at putting on a front for all our friends and loved ones, but there were cracks in the foundation. Cracks that Alex found and reached in to help comfort me. Why do you think that it's been so hard for us to find this even footing that has happened on this trip?" His arm slid around her waist, hugging her quickly before letting out a deep sigh. "I know, I'm good at being maudlin when I think about certain times. But you still managed to work a miracle here. I have so much to thank you for."
"My thanks are found in the way that you're happy now. I wish that we could have made things work, but I'm glad that our breakup didn't cause you to slip. You worked so hard to get dry, and I didn't want to derail that."
She nodded as they made their way through the art, feeling her heart jump and connect to certain pieces as they went along. Finally, though, they were done with that and moving on to the Hercules Cave. A short gasp slipped from her lips when she gazed through the entrance of the cave to see the Mediterranean Sea, and she lifted her camera to take a few pictures before David took the camera from her hands and snapped a few pictures of her framed in the entrance. "Spencer will love that you've managed to capture me by the sea. He knows that the water calls to me, just like it calls to him. You were my fire, and I needed that fire for the time I held it. He is my peace, my water, and exactly what I need at this time in my life."
David's smile grew as he nodded, and they began to walk through the cave, and when Erin came to the opening that looked out on the sea, she noticed that there were people down on the beach. "You want to go down there, don't you?"
"Yes. Do you mind?"
"I suppose that I can sacrifice these shoes if you want to head to the sea." She shrugged a little, giving him a sly wink as they explored the rest of the cave in companionable silence. The way they lingered meant that they were inside the cave for forty minutes before heading back out into the sunshine, and Erin slid her sunglasses onto her face as they followed the rocky path down to the sea. As they passed other tourists, she smiled as she understood bits and pieces of what was being said. She looked over to see that David was not as engaged, realising that he didn't speak French or Arabic. Sighing, she stepped a little closer to his side when they reached the beach, allowing him to tuck her hand into the crook of his elbow as they walked along, closer and closer to the water.
"Sit on one of the rocks, Erin," David said as he took the camera from her hands once more, and she nodded as she scrambled atop one of the flatter rocks, turning her body so that she was looking out at the waves crashing against the shore. "I'm imagining a little you or Reid running around in ten months' time. They are going to be so loved and so smart, and I don't know if that scares me or not. Because given his intelligence, and your skills at organizing, they could very easily take over the world, given enough time."
"I'll be happier if they change the world, David. It would be nice to have another doctor in the family, since Karen thinks that she's going to follow me into psychiatry."
"That's wonderful!"
"Yes. She's doing dual enrollment next year, and fully expects to be half way through her bachelor's degree when she graduates high school. If I had had that opportunity, back when I was in school, I would have taken it in a heartbeat. Tabitha is my little dreamer, though. I see a lot of her in Penelope, now that I've gotten to know the woman better. They're both free spirits and if my Tabby girl can grow up to be half the woman Penelope is, I will be so proud of her."
He nodded as he took a few pictures of her, before handing the camera up to her and then joining her on her perch so that he could look out at the sea as well. "Kitten is an amazing woman, isn't she? Even if I find myself a bit overwhelmed by her at times."
"She's good at that," Erin murmured as she leaned back against his chest, feeling entirely comfortable with where they were in their friendship to do that. "She and Derek were pushing Spencer and me together, you know. They were able to see the chemistry between us from almost the very first night. Which is a little terrifying, if I'm honest. What happens if I do mess up and fall off the wagon?"
"Then you have the best possible partner in the world to help you through that. He's had his own demons to fight, and he can help you claw your way back up out of that hole if you should happen to slip. I don't think that you will, but I know that you can't say that for certain. Here, let me take a few of those selfies that Kitten loves to have of us all."
Erin grinned as she pulled out her phone, handing it to him. It didn't surprise her that he was great at taking good selfies, and she sent the best two off the Spencer, Penelope, and Alex before slipping her phone back into her purse. Then she leaned back against David once more as she gazed out into the sea, content to rest and be for a few minutes longer.