Five Months Later August 2008
"The suite is satisfactory, Mrs. Morgan?" the hotel clerk asked Carly when she walked through the lobby the morning after checking in to the Jamaican resort.
Mrs. Morgan, God she loved the sound of that. She could hear it a million times and never grow tired of it.
"Yes, it's perfect. My husband and children will have breakfast in the room while I do a little shopping." She placed an order for him to pass on to the kitchen and then slipped outside and into a cab.
Jason had promised, way back in May when his work was keeping him out late every night, that they would have a family vacation during the summer. Carly planned three different trips and work always kept Jason from joining them.
Finally, without her knowing, he ordered Leticia to pack their bags and booked rooms in Jamaica for a week.
Carly always suspected- no, she knew- that being Jason's wife would be amazing. That it would be a high she never wanted to lose. And even when she was mad at him, or longing for his kiss that she feared would never be hers again, even when she was scared to death to face the two year deadline, she adored being Mrs. Morgan.
And a huge part of her heart and soul believed she was born to end up just where she was, with these beautiful boys as her sons, and Jason as her husband.
Life finally was clicking into place. But she still couldn't exhale. Not until she knew if March of 2009 would end this dream come true.
LATER THAT NIGHT, the sun was fading into the horizon, and the kids were exhausted from an afternoon in the ocean. Jason scooped up a sand covered Morgan and they headed up to the hotel. Carly and Micheal walked slightly in front of them.
Jason loved to watch his wife- he thought of Carly as that now, loved thinking of her as that actually-
surreptitiously these days. Because lately she seemed even more vibrant and alive than she was back in the days of Jake's. Her eyes held even more fire now, dragging him into the world behind her eyes. Making his whole life boil down to needing to keep those gorgeous eyes of hers happy.
And he figured he was doing a better than average job at it so far. This marriage of convenience was not killing their friendship, it was bonding them more than anything, other than the kids, ever had before.
Morgan yawned and brushed his hand over Jason's cheek, leaving a trail of sand. "We'll get you some dinner and then straight to bed, buddy."
"I'm not tired."Morgan said in a sleepy voice.
Carly looked back and caught Jason's eyes. They smiled at each other.
"I don't want to go to sleep either. We should stay up all night and keep having fun. " Micheal said, his voice excited. "This is the most awesome vacation ever!"
"It's only day one, Mr. Man."
Micheal said,"Yeah, but I know it's the best one already. Because we are all here together."
They crowded into the elevator, a typical family on a typical outing. And that fact made the moment all the more exquisite to each of them.
Jason said, looking at Micheal, "I think you're right. Don't you, Carly?"
"Yeah, I do."
WHEN THE BOYS fell asleep, Carly changed into a t-shirt and crawled into the bed next to Jason's. It did feel ridiculous to not be sharing a bed with this man she was married to, this man she loved to a depth that she hadn't even imagined love could go before knowing him.
But she refused to rock the boat. If Jason chose to go there, she would know it was on his own accord. If he could resist, so would she.
He lay, shirtless, on his back, flipping channels with the remote.
Her eyes moved over his chest, down to his jeans, and back up again.
His eyes slid sideways, "Liking Jamaica so far?"
"Loving it." she drug out each word, a sexy smile curved onto her lips.
Back at home, he kept himself in his own bedroom across the hall from her. Nearly every night, she fell asleep to a fantasy of him coming into her room, she could feel his breath on her body as she drifted off.
Carly wondered how she would manage to sleep with him so nearby. If only he would reach out for her, just give her the slightest sign... but why should tonight be different, she asked herself?
He said, " After I skipped out on those other trips this summer, I didn't want you to have to stress about planning another one. So I asked Emily to suggest a place and ...here we are."
"Remind me to send your sister flowers."
"That would shock the hell out of her. Are you mellowing in your old age?"
Carly jumped out of her bed and pounced on him. He laughed.
"Who are you calling old, Mr. Morgan?"
"Not you, Mrs. Morgan."
"Damn straight." Her smile slipped away as she realized her knees were on either side of his body, her hand on his bare chest. His hand moved to touch her thigh, right under the hem of her shirt.
"Carly..." he said softly
"Yeah?" Their eyes were saying everything their lips couldn't. Do you want this? Do you love me? Are we in this forever now? Should we...
Jason said, "We should get some sleep, huh?"
She moved off of him, his eyes watching the way her white tee crept up to reveal her lace clad rear, and onto her own bed. She gave him a shaky smile, trying not to feel let down.
"So, good night then, Jase."
He nodded, but couldn't pull his eyes away.
She lay on her side, facing away from him. In her mind the old familiar fantasies started, causing a dreamy smile to take over her face. She sighed.
Jason shook his head, trying to push out images he wasn't sure he wanted there, but they were and had been from the start.
"Sweet dreams, Car."
"That won't be a problem," she whispered, closing her eyes and letting her Dream Husband give her what her real one still would not.