Sorry for the lack of updates - finally back from my vacation, and hopefully my life will start to calm down again, which means more time to write and update. :)
Please keep the reviews coming! I love to hear what you have to say! :)
Crosby drove up to the house and parked his car in the driveway and sat there for a moment. He had spent the day on the Wizard getting things done on the boat before their upcoming departure. He was leaving the next morning for Dutch Harbor, a day before Joelle was supposed to fly up, since he had to help get the boat up to Seattle. He saw that Joelle's car was parked next to his, and he wondered if Kendra was still at the house or if she had already taken her to the airport. As much as he loved having Kendra visit, and as happy as Joelle was when she was around, he was kind of hoping she was gone already, so he could spend the night alone with Joelle, since he wouldn't get the chance to do it again for a few months.
He crawled out of his car and walked in the front door of his cabin and was immediately hit with the sound of a Michael Jackson song coming from the kitchen. He set his keys on the table next to the front door, and then smiled to himself when he caught a glimpse of Joelle's keys under the nearby couch. He bent down and picked them up, setting them back on the table where they should have been, deciding to save Joelle the trouble of searching for them later.
He turned to head towards where the sound was coming from, and peaked around the corner to see Joelle, wearing one of his button up shirts and a pair of boyshorts, her hair was pulled back in a messy pony tail that was falling out, but she didn't seem to care. She was dancing in front of the stove as she was cooking them dinner. Every now and then, she would bring the spoon she was stirring with, up to her mouth to use as a microphone as she sang along with the song. He smiled to himself at the sight, and leaned against the door frame as he watched her dance, oblivious to his presence. She looked beautiful to him at that moment, and he couldn't help but feel like the luckiest man in the world.
Joelle suddenly spun around, belting out the words to the song with her eyes closed, and Crosby couldn't help but laugh at the sight. Joelle's eyes immediately opened at the sound of him there, and she smiled at him.
"How long were you there?" She asked, turning back towards the food to make sure everything was alright. She then turned the radio down so it wasn't as loud, then turned towards him.
"Long enough." He answered, smiling. He walked over to her and leaned against the counter next to the stove. He looked at the stove and saw that she was making spaghetti, which was going all out for her. "If I would have known this is how you cook our dinners, I would be home more often for when you cook."
"If I would have known that, I would have told you sooner." She said, leaning into him as she gave him a kiss.
"I see we're having your specialty again." He said, grabbing a couple plates out of the cubbard to set the table.
"Yeah, but I'm trying something new this time." She said.
Crosby spun around dead in his tracks at the comment.
"Aunt June gave me the recipe for her spaghetti sauce that I absolutely love, so I decided to try it out."
"Do I have to try it?" Crosby joked, making a face.
"Will you try it, knowing that I have this just in case?" She asked, grabbing a jar of spaghetti sauce that was sitting on the counter.
"Well, if you have that…" He stated, smiling at her.
"I really think I did well with this sauce though. I followed the directions very carefully."
He nodded, smiling at her.
"What do you want to drink?" He asked her.
"Just some water." She answered, pouring the sauce into a bowl. She then put the pasta in a serving dish as well, then put them on the table.
"I want you to be the first to try it." Joelle said to him as they sat down at the table.
"Why? Did you poison it so that I didn't have to leave tomorrow?" He asked.
"Wow, never thought of doing that. Good thinking. I'll try that next time." She joked.
Crosby grabbed a piece of the garlic bread that sat on the table, and then dunked it a little into the sauce, then stuck it in his mouth. Joelle watched him intently, waiting for a reaction.
"How much salt did it ask for?" He asked.
"1 tablesoon, why?" She asked.
"Are you sure about that?" He asked, taking a drink of his soda that was on the table.
Joelle stood up and grabbed for the recipe, then handed it over to Crosby, who looked at it. A smile then crossed his face.
"What?"
"This is one teaspoon, babe. Not one tablespoon."
"No, that's not what it said." She said, snatching the piece of paper from him to look at it. She then made a face when she read it. "So, the little t means teaspoon. What does tablespoon look like?"
"Big T." He answered, smiling at her.
"Dammit. Is the sauce that bad?" She asked, dipping her finger in the sauce, then stuck it in her mouth. She then made a face.
"I'll heat up the jar sauce."
"I really thought I did well." She said, sounding defeated.
"Don't get down on yourself. I appreciate the effort."
She stood up and walked over to the counter next to the stove and sat up on it, watching Crosby pour the sauce into a pan.
"Did you find your dress?" Crosby asked her, standing in front of her as he ran his hands up her legs. He stopped at her hips, his hands under her shirt, as he fingered the edge of her boyshirts.
"Yes, I most certainly did. It brought Sig to tears, if that means anything." She said, her arms going around his neck.
"I can't wait to see it." He said, giving her a gentle kiss.
"You have a little while yet."
"I can be patient." He responded, kissing her again before breaking away from her to stir the bubbling sauce.
"When did Kendra leave?" He asked, glancing over at her.
"A couple hours ago. She was excited to get home to the baby, plus wanted us to have the evening alone, since you are leaving me tomorrow."
He nodded, pouring the sauce into a serving dish. They then sat down to eat dinner, Joelle moving the salty sauce out of the way.
"I will be gone only a day before you leave yourself. I will see you soon." He said.
"You won't actually arrive up there for a couple of days though. I wish I could ride up with you guys, like Keith had offered, but Sig wants to get started on the boat as soon as possible."
"You will be so wrapped up in your work, you won't even realize that I am not around."
"Probably. Edgar and I are tearing apart one of the engines when we get there. It was giving us problems during salmon season, and I suggested fixing it before we left, but Edgar wanted to get home."
"Understandable, but that just means a lot of work in a short period of time before we head out for the season."
"It's why we are leaving a week earlier than we normally do. Edgar and I leave in a couple days, but the rest of the guys don't join us for almost a week."
"Sounds like you will have a fun filled week."
"Oh yes, Edgar breathing down my neck making sure I do things right is my idea of a perfect week. You would think he would have calmed down by now, but unfortunately, he will never change."
"You are more like your uncles than you let on, ya' know."
"Am not!" She said, getting defensive.
Crosby only laughed at her reaction.
The two of them finished eating, and Crosby sat back in his chair, looking at the messy table, not wanting to clean it up.
"You know the rules. I cook, you clean." Joelle said from her seat with a smile.
"Technically, we both cooked, if you really think about it."
"Heating up a jar of spaghetti sauce doesn't count as cooking." She responded with a smile.
"You pass it off as cooking in the past."
Joelle smiled.
"I know what you are capable of. I, however, can only do that." Joelle said, then stuck her tongue out at him.
"I'm starting to think you never learned how to cook for this exact reason." Crosby said as he stood up. He gave her a quick kiss, then started to gather the things on the table.
"Yes, I live to clean up all the time on the boat." Joelle said, making a face.
"Last I heard, the guys enjoy the arrangement that you guys have on the boat. And if you wear outfits like the one you are wearing now, I can't say I blame them."
Joelle smiled at him. "You figured out the biggest secret on the boat. Congrats."
"No wonder why you guys never have new people on the boat. No one ever leaves." He joked.
Joelle laughed as she started to help Crosby do the dishes.
The next morning, Joelle drove Crosby to the docks where the Wizard was docked, and then helped him carry his things to the boat.
"Well, well, well, look who it is." Travis said when the two of them walked up to the ship.
"You know you are excited to see me. Don't lie to yourself." Joelle responded with a smile.
"Where's your stuff? I thought you were coming up with us." He asked when he saw only Crosby's things.
"Have to fly up tomorrow to work on the engine. Too much to do, not enough time to do it."
"Well there went my trip." Travis said, walking away.
Joelle shook her head as she watched Travis walk away from them.
"I won't keep you guys. I know you have stuff to do before you leave. I will see you in a few days." Joelle said, giving Crosby a quick kiss.
"Have a safe flight." Crosby told her, giving her a hug.
"You have a safe trip yourself."
Joelle quickly left to get to her uncles house. She already had her things packed and in her car, and wasn't planning on going back to her house anymore before the flight the next morning. When she got to the house, she made her way inside, and was greeted by Linda and June, who were sitting in the living room.
"You're here early." June said to her.
"Just dropped Crosby off at the docks, and now I'm here."
"You ready for a fun filled week?" Linda asked.
"With your husband riding my ass, oh yes. I always look forward to tearing apart the engine with him. It's what I live for."
"I have a feeling you get just as pissy with him as he does with you." Linda joked.
"You got that right. I was raised by those husbands of yours."
"You poor poor child." June joked.
Joelle walked into the kitchen to grab herself a bottle of water, and then walked out onto the back porch where the rest of her family was sitting.
"Heeey, you're here!" Edgar said, smiling at his niece.
"Hey, are you really drinking already?" She asked when she saw a beer in his hand. "It's only ten in the morning."
"5 o'clock somewhere." Norman said, taking a sip of his own beer.
"Who knows when we will get a chance to drink again, so I'm taking advantage of it today."
"Great, so I get to deal with a bitchy, hungover Edgar tomorrow? Joy." Joelle stated, sitting down next to Norman.
"You know, you really aren't a joy yourself." Edgar said, giving Joelle a look.
"I only take after the best."
"I can't believe we are leaving tomorrow." Edgar stated, getting grumpy.
"We didn't have to leave tomorrow, but no. You wanted to leave the engine for now, and not take care of it before. This isn't my fault."
"Why don't you go up, and start, and then I will join in a few days." He suggested.
"Why, so you can join me in a few days, and start bitching about how much I fucked things up? I think not. Plus, if the engine is badly broken, it will take both of us to fix it to make sure it is running fully in time before we head out."
"You're both going up, and that is final." Sig said, chiming in.
Edgar scowled, finishing off his beer. He then walked off the deck, going back inside.
"What crawled up his ass and died?" Joelle asked Norman.
"Beats the shit out of me." He answered.
"This is going to be a fun week." Sig sarcastically stated. "Edgar is pissed, and you will just feed off of it."
"I don't get all bitchy like him. When he gets like this, he acts more like a female than I do."
"That is true." Norman said, nodding to himself.
"I think you should join us tomorrow." Joelle said to her uncle.
"Yeah, I'm not stupid." Norman said, laughing.
She made a face, taking a drink of her water.
The day was relaxing, everyone hanging around outside, talking about the upcoming fishing trip. Edgar did calm down, and she found him starting to enjoy himself. She only hoped that the new attitude carried on throughout the trip, and the cranky attitude stayed in Seattle.
There you have it! Please reivew and tell me what you think! I will love you forever! :)