Disclaimer: I don't own these characters, Stephanie Meyers does. However, I do own this plot and storyline. I also own my own original characters.
All publicly recognizable characters, settings, products, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any franchise. No copyright infringement intended.
AN: So, when I originally started writing SLR, this is the first chapter I wrote. This chapter, along with the next two, is where everything comes together so hang on tight.
Chapter 22: Ready to Love Again
EPOV
"Little man, if you don't chill out," I chide Lleu, who's acting like a crazy dog this morning.
"Quit fussing at my nephew," Alice pipes up from behind me. "He just knows you're leaving and wants some attention."
It's early Monday morning, and we're in the process of loading up Bella's SUV and the small utility trailer. Lleu has been underfoot since I woke up an hour ago. I bend down to scoop him up, feeling bad I fussed at him now that Alice pointed out why he's acting like he is.
"Sorry, little man," I whisper, cuddling him while I load my bags into the trailer.
"Cassandra," I hear Bella growl behind me. "We aren't moving, baby girl, it's just a vacation. You cannot take everything from your room."
"Mine," Cassie rebuts, staring down her mother. "Need it."
"You already picked what you're takin'," Bella chides. "Go put your pillow back on your bed. You have pillows on the boat already."
"Baby girl," Sarah interrupts. "Let's go put these up and get your blanket. We need to get on the road if we wanna go on the boat."
A disgruntle Cassie follows Sarah into the house while Bella plops down on the porch step, her head in her hands.
Taking the space next to her, I wrap my arm around her shoulders and pull her close. "You wanna cancel the trip? I know you're worried, and I don't want you miserable on this trip."
"No, I wanna go," she protests. "We need this trip; I need this trip. I'm just tired and have too much goin' on in my head."
"I know this ranch is your life, pretty girl," I emphasize, keeping my voice calm. "But you gotta let go a little, for Cassie and for you. Let the burden go and trust that everyone here will take care of it for you. Just have fun. I want to see that smile I love so much.
"Or, you could just stay here while we go have some fun and relax," I state, smirking at her pout. "I'm sure Cassie will have a blast with us."
"You would still go without me?" she questions, tears filling her eyes.
"Yep," I answer softly, staring into those glistening pools of chocolate. "Because that baby is excited to go on this trip and that's the most important thing. It's not about diving or fishing. It's about Cassie having fun and learning new things."
"You know what? You're right!" she states firmly after wiping her eyes. "Let's go have some fun!"
"Well, get your cute ass up then," I snarl playfully at her before kissing her firmly on the lips. "I'm gonna get baby girl while you finish getting your stuff. You better hurry before we leave you."
I pull her up and she runs into the house before I can pop her ass. "Not sure how you get through to her the way you do, but I'm glad ya can," I hear behind me, turning to see Jessica standing there. "Make sure she has fun too, please? And, Edward," she calls quietly as she passes to go into the house, "just love 'em both."
I nod, following her inside. I go in search of Cassie, both pups right on my heels. I find her and Sarah in the playroom. Sarah's zipping Cassie backpack closed.
"Ready for a fun week on the sea, baby girl?" I ask in excitement.
Cassie's eyes light up and her smile grows. "Yeah."
"Well then, let's go," I demand, scooping her up and throwing her over my shoulder. She squeals all the way down the hall, bringing the attention of her mother and anyone else who's up.
"Gimme some lovin', Sassy," Jessica pleads to her upside-down niece. "Bring me some sea shells back, OK?"
"Pretty?" Cassie asks, grabbing Jessica's face with her tiny hands.
"Pretty, shiny ones," Jessica responds, kissing Cassie all over her face, making her giggle and kick her feet in the air.
"All right, tell the pups and Dasher bye so we can go," Bella commands, walking up toting the captain's tote she received from the boat dealer and a bright orange beach bag.
"Y'all need to get on the road," Seth scolds, taking Cassie from me. "Ya need to get your licenses and those tanks filled. Call or send an email if ya have a signal. Oh, and have fun." He kisses Bella and Sarah on the cheek as he carries Cassie to the SUV, strapping her in.
Bella and Sarah sit on each side of Cassie, which leaves me the passenger seat while Jasper climbs in the third row behind Bella. Billy makes sure the trailer is secure before climbing in the driver's seat.
Two hours later, we're pulling into the parking lot of Bass Pro Shop, Bella and Cassie rushing inside the store. Baby girl has had to potty for the last twenty minutes, and I don't think she can hold it much longer.
Billy's wide-eyed, looking around. He starts for the fishing section before Sarah's voice stops him cold. "I don't think so, mister! You do not need anything else."
"But ..." he starts, but she narrows her eyes, turning to walk toward the customer service counter. He hangs his head and follows her, Jasper and I tagging along. Both of us laughing at a disgruntled Billy.
Bella and Cassie meet us a few minutes later. Thanks to Jessica making our employment on the ranch effective in February, Jasper and I are able to get resident fishing licenses. The man explains which stamps we need and circles a few spots on the map provided. He's even nice enough to circle a couple of great diving spots along with an island we can explore.
Surprisingly, it only takes thirty minutes for all of us to get our licenses. Even after he has a sales clerk shows us the best bait to use. Bella finds a cool pair of sunglasses for Cassie, who loves them. She refuses to take them off, so Jasper just snaps the tag off and hands it to the woman at the register.
Forty minutes later, we arrive at the scuba shop. Morning traffic through Houston is a bitch. Jasper, Billy, and I carry the tanks in, following Bella. The guy behind the counter smirks as soon as he sees her.
"You going on a trip?" he asks as she smiles at him. He leans over the counter to hug her and I see red. I had better rein in the jealousy quick before she sees it.
"Hey, Derek," she greets. "We're takin' a vacation. Can I get these filled?"
"Sure," he agrees, motioning for us to follow him. "Where y'all going?"
"The Gulf for a week," Billy answers, shaking the guy's hand when we set the tanks down next to what looks like a high tech air compressor.
"How many are diving?" he inquires, as he pulls the caps off the tanks.
"Three," Jasper blurts out. "Bella and us two," he elaborates, pointing at himself and me.
"On two tanks each?" he implores, surprising me with the concern in his voice. "That's only two safe dives. Get Bella, please, while I fill these."
I leave Billy and Jasper to go find my girl talking to a woman, showing her the map the person gave us when we got our fishing licenses.
"Hey, pretty girl," I interrupt. "Derek wants you. He's concerned about only having two tanks each."
She frowns, taking my hand and walking to the back.
"What's wrong, Derek?" she questions as soon as we near him.
"These tanks will only last you two dives each," he explains, capping the tank he just filled. "Where are ya gonna refill them offshore?"
"Won't any marina we stop at to fuel up the boat be able to refill them?" she wonders, tightening her grip on my hand. "When Jessica called to get the marina's coordinates, they told her they had an air refill station."
"Not good air," he clarifies, shaking his head. "Those people tell ya anything to get business. The only places with high pressure compressors for tank air are in Corpus and Morgan City."
"Oh," she mumbles, turning to look at me with worried eyes. I'm not going to let this put a damper on our plans.
"What are our options?" I request, looking at Derek.
"You got your own boat?" he wonders. At my nod, he continues. "You can either buy more tanks to be filled or purchase your own compressor for the boat."
"How big is this compressor?" Billy cuts in, sounding intrigued. "Can it go in the engine room?"
"They're not cheap," Derek confirms "but, yeah, it can go in the engine room. Runs off gas and can fill a tank in less than twenty minutes. Maintenance is pretty easy; you gotta replace the air filters frequently though."
We all look to Bella who's pressing her lips together, eyes narrowed— her thinking face.
"Can you show me the compressor and how it's maintained?" Jasper requests. "Can't be any harder than a job-site air compressor, right?"
"You work in construction?" Derek inquires. Jasper nods in confirmation. "Oh, this is easier. You won't have a problem at all."
Once the tanks are full, we carry them back to the front. Derek shows us the compressor. It's not very big, only eighty-five pounds and will easily fit in the engine room. Jasper's smiling as Derek shows us how to maintain it, so I assume it's easy.
"I'll take it," I blurt out, and Bella's head whips around to look at me. "What? You bought the boat; I can add this to it. It's for me too, pretty girl."
"I'll go in half with ya, bro," Jasper states with authority, smirking at Bella.
"Whatever," she concedes. "We need to hurry before Cassie decides she needs something, too."
Cassie ends up getting something, or more like things: goggles, a float, and some purple water shoes. Bella just shakes her head as I hand Derek my credit card.
We finally make it to the marina and unload the trailer. Bella and Sarah organize everything as we set it on the dock. After it's all unloaded, Jasper goes to the store to buy an extra gas can. We have one already, but that's for the jet ski and tender. Billy parks and locks up the SUV and trailer, signing us out at the office.
We settle in after undocking the boat and I pilot over to the fuel dock. We fill the boat and jet ski, along with both gas cans and the clean water tanks. Once I'm pulling out of the marina and into the bay, it's lunchtime, and Cassie wants "bites."
"You wanna fix somethin' or stop somewhere?" Sarah asks, looking at Bella.
"What's up there?" Jasper questions, pointing toward the boardwalk across from the marina. "Do you think they have guest slips?"
"A lot of different places," Bella answers, shrugging her shoulders. "I guess they'll have boat slips for people dining there. Let's go see."
We find a boat slip and pull in. The security guard walks over and Billy explains we just want to get food. He writes down the tag number and boat name, along with Billy's driver's license number, before directing us toward a walkway where we can access the boardwalk and restaurants.
We decide on the Bayside Grille, it's casual and quick. The chicken salad is delicious, so good Bella asks the server if we can get a container to go. It'll be easy for sandwiches for lunch or even on a salad. We're back on the boat soon enough, ready to get our trip started.
As I navigate us out of the bay and into the Gulf of Mexico, Bella calls into the Coast Guard, relaying the boat's name, tag number, expected time at sea, and number of people on board. She also informs them there's a special needs child on board, as well.
Our first destination will be ten miles from Stetson Bank on the Flower Garden Banks National Marine Sanctuary. Bella wants Jasper and I to have an easy, less crowded place for our first, real open water dive. She and Billy go over the rules and regulations as we travel toward our stopping point. We'll anchor for the night so we can play and fish. We will not actually moor at Flower Gardens until tomorrow morning.
Sarah and Cassie are currently sitting on the aft lounge enjoying the view and sun. When I hear the whistle, I slow the boat and turn to see Sarah waving for me to stop.
"What's that?" she questions, pointing off the starboard side of the boat. "It keeps coming up out of the water."
Bella grabs the binoculars from the holder and walks aft, looking out across the water.
"Oh … wow … amazing," she mumbles. "I'm pretty sure it's a whale shark. Here." She thrusts the binoculars at me and walks to the helm. She slowly accelerates toward the huge mass, cutting the engines when we're about a hundred yards from this massive animal.
We watch this amazing creature; it passes right next to the boat before moving on. Jasper explains everything he knows about the whale shark to Cassie as she quietly watches it swim by the boat. I swear the child would climb in the water with it, if her mother hadn't had a hold of her the whole time.
It's not long before we make it to the area where we'll be staying for the night. Once the anchor is in the water and the stabilizers engaged, Cassie is ready to have some fun.
"Do I need to marinate the steaks or are you catching us dinner, old man?" I ask, addressing Billy. In turn, he flips me off when Cassie isn't looking.
"I'm gonna get my fishin' on while you young'uns play," he responds after Sarah playfully slaps his arm for his gesture.
Billy retrieves a fishing pole and tackle box, heading to the deck. Jasper and Bella take Cassie on the jet ski since she's safer riding between them.
Sarah and I just look at each other and burst out laughing. "I guess they don't think we know how to have fun," she states, shaking her head.
We blow-up the double tube and tether it to the dive platform, I push us away from the boat some, and we float, soaking up the sun.
It's so calm and relaxing, the noise of the jet ski in the distance. At least it is until we hear Billy yelling.
"YES!" he shouts. "Holy shit! Come on … OH FUCK!"
Sarah and I look at each other with wide eyes before I grab the rope and pull us in. We climb onto the swim platform and then hit the deck running. Billy's struggling with the pole, while Sarah and I look over the side to see what he caught.
"That's … a skate," I stutter. "Let that bitch go. Hand me that net, please," I direct toward Sarah.
Billy starts walking along the deck toward the stern and I follow. I get the thrashing skate in the net long enough for Billy to remove the hook before releasing it back into the water.
"I think you might want to go ahead and start those steaks," he mumbles, clearly upset he didn't catch what he wanted.
After dinner, Sarah gives Cassie a bath and puts her to bed while Billy and Jasper go flounder gigging. Bella and Jasper found a sandbar close by when they took Cassie on the jet ski; it's apparently full of flounder.
Once Bella and I have the galley clean and everything put away, we go sit on the deck sun lounger to look at the stars. It's quiet as everyone else is asleep and the water calm; the feeling of being in the middle of nowhere overcomes me, and I look over to Bella. She's so beautiful, and I can't wait any longer. I feel like if I don't tell her, my heart will explode from keeping these feelings to myself.
"You remember on our first date when we were naming the top five from our lists of things we wanted to do?" I ask, breaking the silence.
"Our bucket lists? Yeah," she answers, turning toward me a little more.
"And I told you I didn't like calling it that?" I chide playfully, and surprisingly, I'm not nervous. "I have one I didn't tell you, but I finally get to experience it now."
"And what would that be?" she inquires, looking up at me, the stars reflecting in her eyes.
"To find the love of my life," I reveal softly, looking down at her.
Her eyes glisten with tears as she rests her hand on my cheek. "Say it again."
"I love you, Isabella Swan," I whisper, as I place my forehead against hers. "You're the love of my life, and I couldn't go another minute without telling you."
"I never thought I would hear those words again," she admits as the tears run freely down her face. "But to hear you say 'em, they couldn't sound more perfect. I love you too, Edward Cullen."
My lips crash into hers and it's the best kiss I've ever had; full of truth, relief, and most of all, love.
"Love me," she whispers, pulling me closer to her. The breezy, salty air surrounds us.
"Are you sure, pretty girl?" I want nothing more than to feel all of her, but that's not why I confessed my feelings and she needs to know. "I want all of you, but that's not why I told you."
"I'm sure. I wanna show ya how much I love you," she counters, her fingers leave a trail of warmth as her hands moves up my back.
We make love underneath the starry sky, in the middle of the ocean, on a warm September night. I have never felt as complete as I do in her arms. We fall asleep wrapped in a blanket and each other. I mark another item off my list as I share the experience of sleeping under the stars with Bella. A memory I'll never forget or take for granted.
The next morning is full of excitement. It doesn't help that Bella and I can't stop smiling at each other, sharing sweet kisses, or keeping our hands to ourselves.
Billy enters the coordinates for Stetson Bank, where we'll be going diving, while I prepare breakfast and Bella gets Cassie dressed.
Jasper puts together the three flagpoles; two will be permanent, holding the American flag and Texas flag. The third is a pop-up pole to hold the Diver-down flag for when we're in the water or a distress flag. There's also a float with another Diver-down flag on it and a drop rope with a glow stick tied to it, so we know where the boat is when we surface.
There's no anchoring allowed at Flower Garden Banks. Instead, they have mooring buoys that you attach an anchor line to in order to not harm the reef.
Once we reach the bank, Bella ties a rope to the anchor hoist and dives off the boat. She swims to the buoy and secures the rope. She's a great swimmer, and I'm so grateful to have her with Jasper and me on our first open water dive.
We ready our gear and suit up, waiting for her directions.
"Okay, remember guys, no touching. Don't sit or lay on anything and watch your fins," she reminds us. "You don't wanna kick someone's mask off or disturb the reef.
"I'm Jasper's buddy, so he'll watch out for me. I'll watch Edward while Edward, you watch Jasper. Got it?" she asks as we both nod.
"We're gonna be down about forty minutes, depending on Edwards's tank air since he's the bigger of us. Most of all, remember to not panic and surface. Y'all ready?"
"Hell yeah!" Jasper boasts. "Let's get this party started."
We sit in full gear on the swim platform as Billy lowers it into the water. The flag is already flying high and the diver down float is in the water.
"Let's do this," Bella bellows as we sink underwater.
Bella uses her compass and dive computer to lead us to the reef. There aren't many corals, but the sea life is a plenty: Angelfish, Barracudas, Groupers, Snappers, and Wrasses. I have to keep reminding myself to look for Jasper because there's just so much to see; I keep losing focus.
Apparently, I've lost focus for too long because Bella's in front of me before I know it. She grabs my console, tapping the PSI gauge. Jasper's behind her shaking his head. He'd probably be smirking if he didn't have a regulator in his mouth.
Bella points up and we follow her to the surface slowly. She's never further than an arm's length away from us. As soon as we break the water, her regulator is out of her mouth and her mask raised on her head.
"Edward Cullen," she barks out, fire in her eyes, "you were in your own world down there. What am I gonna do with you?"
"Love me," I reply brilliantly. Her face softens immediately. "Sorry, pretty girl, everything was just so cool and colorful."
"You're gonna have to pay better attention, sweetheart," she scolds. "The bigger banks are gonna be crowded with so much more to see. We need to stay together and watch each other's back. Don't make me take you down one at a time."
"I'll do better; I promise," I plead, not wanting her to worry about me. I will do better, too. I honestly didn't mean to forget everything around me or that I was getting low on air.
We swim back to the boat, taking off our gear and piling it on the platform so we don't get everything wet. Sarah hands us towels and bottles of water.
"Looks like Bella was handin' you your ass out there," Billy remarks with a smirk.
"Yeah," I sigh, shaking my head at how stupid I was. "Lost my focus and didn't look out for Jasper like I should've and let my air get low."
"Guess you won't do that again," he states before walking off toward Bella.
Sarah sits down next to me, grabbing my hand in hers. "I know the answer, but I wanna hear it anyway," she orders softly. "Did ya tell her?"
"I did," I vow quietly. "Thought my heart would explode if I waited any longer."
She squeals as she hugs me, getting herself wet in the process. "Swim out there and unhook us from the buoy. I wanna find a place baby girl can swim and play in the water. It's too busy 'round here."
I do as she asks, untying us from the buoy and pull the dive float in on the way back to the boat. Bella's standing on the platform when I get there and helps get the float onboard, using the same rope used to tie us to the buoy to secure it.
"Hey," she whispers, grabbing my arm as I start to walk onto the aft deck. "I'm not mad at you. I did the same thing on my first open water dive. I love ya and just want ya to be safe down there."
I kiss her softly, pulling her into a hug. "Love you too, pretty girl. Let's go find a place for baby girl to play."
We find a sandbar about twenty miles from Flower Gardens Banks and away from all the dive boat traffic. Since we can't get the boat close, Billy launches the tender so all of us can go to the sandbar.
Billy, Jasper, and Sarah ride in the tender while Bella and I take Cassie on the jet ski. We're able to pull right up on the sandbar since it has about six inches of water covering it.
The sand is white and crawling with hermit crabs, sand dollars, and starfish. What we thought was going to be swimming and playing around turns into a learning experience for us all. Cassie's more interested in the sea creatures than playing. She just sits on the sand letting the starfish climb all over her legs and feet.
Her giggling makes everyone's day and the trip completely worth it. Jasper takes some pictures before he and Billy swim around for a little while. We stay on the sandbar for over an hour before Sarah announces it's lunchtime.
We head back to the boat with Cassie reluctant to leave her new friends. Bella promises her we'll get a saltwater aquarium when we get back home so she can have starfish.
We spend the rest of the day relaxing, fishing, and floating on the tube. Billy cleans the flounder he and Jasper caught last night, which I stuff and bake for dinner.
Bella and I make love again tonight, this time in our bed. Completely blissed out, I fall asleep quickly.
Wednesday morning, after breakfast, we head to the West Flower Garden Bank. This is where we'll see a lot of coral and colorful fish. Bella reminds us to be diligent and stay together since it'll be crowded.
It's amazing! I'm in complete awe seeing these creatures up close. I do keep my wits about me though, and the three of us explore together. We dive three times in order to see everything, and I still believe we didn't see even half.
On our last dive, I turn to make sure Jasper is still next to me and something catches my eye. It's a ray swimming above us. I get the attention of the other two and point. Jasper starts clicking away, getting as many pictures as he can. The ray swims so close we could touch it, but we don't. It could harm the fish or us, and that's not a risk any of us are willing to take.
Bella's refilling our tanks with Jasper's help while Cassie and I watch a movie. I think we're all a little waterlogged. I guess the two of us fall asleep watching the movie because I'm startled awake when someone tries to take her out of my arms. I just tighten my hold on her.
I blink awake to see Bella smiling down on us. "Let me put her to bed, handsome."
I release my hold on Cassie and Bella scoops her up. I sit up and look around. Sarah and Billy are sitting on the aft lounge and Jasper is nowhere in sight. A few minutes later, Bella comes back, snuggling next to me. We go to bed as soon as we both start dozing off again.
The next day we take five dives, three at the East Bank and two at Bright Bank. There's just so much to see, it's hard for Bella to get us out of the water.
Once we start to descend, several barracuda seem to be guarding the reef. Then I catch sight of the coral, there is so much I can hardly believe my eyes. As my sight adjusts, I'm able to spot the different sea life: wrasses, schools of chromis, and a variety of damsels. We see so many different species, it's hard to keep track. With a closer look, I spot a few eels hiding in a nook or cranny. Then we make it to the sea floor and you'd think it's just sand, but a nurse shark, resting stingray, and sea turtle surprise me.
There is sensory overload everywhere you turn.
When the sun starts to set, Bella calls it a day. She explains that we'll do a night dive, but she's going to take us down separately for that, and not at Flower Gardens.
Friday, we head to Dauphin Island, just off the coast of Alabama. We find the marina easily. First order of business is to fill up the fuel tanks and gas cans, dump the wastewater, and fill the clean water tanks. Billy, Jasper, and I handle all of that while Bella, Sarah, and Cassie go check us in and rent a golf cart.
The plan is to clean up and take Cassie to the Sea Lab. Bella wants to find out where we can see the dolphins. We'll be staying overnight here and then going to Alabama Pinnacles tomorrow.
The Pinnacles will be the last place we dive before heading back to the Texas coast. We'll be stopping along the way to fish and play.
Bella meets us back at the fuel station with a big smile, "We have slip eighty-two, and they don't rent golf carts, but the owner, Scott, said we can use his."
"That's great, pretty girl." I chuckle at her excitement. "But, where's baby girl?"
"Oh, at the store with Sarah," she confirms. "They have a huge aquarium that she refuses to leave. There's a restaurant here, too; we can eat dinner there."
After securing the boat, we go get Cassie and Sarah from the marina store and make our way to the Sea Lab. Cassie's on cloud nine with all the aquariums and the touch tank. The dolphin tour is cool, but I'm tired of being on the water; I think we all are.
Dinner's at the marina grill before returning the golf cart and going back to the boat for the night. Bella fell in love with the quaint island and couldn't stop talking about it. I finally had to turn out the light and make love to her. She's just too cute with all her excitement.
The next morning, we explore the island, finding a beach park where Cassie collects shells for Aunt Jessica and plays in the waves. I have to admit, after having a good night's sleep, I too, can see the charm in the island. Everyone is so friendly and social, very welcoming. Once Cassie has enough shells and is tired of the water, we visit a few of the local shops on the way back to the marina. Sarah and Bella buy gifts for everyone back home. Jasper finds a beautiful dolphin necklace for Alice, it's white gold with two dolphins making a heart shape. Alice will love it.
We decide to eat lunch at the grill before departing for The Pinnacles. Afterward we stop at the marina store and buy some fresh fruit and veggies for the remainder of our trip before boarding the boat.
Instead of going the way we came to get back out to the Gulf, we make our way through Dauphin Island Bay. We're close to the opening for the gulf when Bella shrieks, lowering the binoculars she's using and pointing off the starboard side of the boat.
"Love," I call as she bounces on her feet. "Is everything all right?"
"There," she bellows, still pointing. "Go over there, please."
I turn us in the direction she requests where there are several bay houses. I still have no clue what is causing her excitement.
"You wanna explain what's got you so chipper?" Billy insists. "You're gonna bounce off the boat if you don't settle down."
"That house," she quips, pointing toward the bank. "I wanna see it up close."
I pull up to a dock with a "For Sale" sign on it. There's a concrete block fence around the backyard with an iron gate. The back of the house is windows, a lot of windows. Once we tie off to the boat dock, Bella climbs off the boat with her cell phone in hand.
Surprisingly, with it being a Saturday, the realtor agrees to meet us within ten minutes so he must be close, not that the island is that big. Dennis, the realtor, arrives shortly and gives us a tour of the house.
He explains the features as we wander from room to room. "There's a water view from every room; four bedrooms, three bathrooms, and three-thousand two-hundred and forty-four square feet of living space. A local architect built the house in 1959 and it has sixty-five feet of waterfront. It's constructed of pre-stressed concrete, secured and reinforced with eighteen foot pilings beneath the ground."
We continue to look around the one-story brick and concrete home. Bella opens every door and cabinet, asking Jasper questions about different things she sees. After she has been through the house twice, she excuses the two of us and pulls me into the master bedroom.
"As much as I would love to have you in this room, pretty girl," I joke, pulling her into my arms, "I don't think the others would appreciate it very much."
"Smart ass," she sasses, looking up at me. "I wanna ask you something privately."
I can see the seriousness in her eyes. "What's that, pretty girl?"
"This love we share," she starts, her eyes beginning to glisten. "It's permanent for me; I'm all in. I need to know if it's the same for you, too."
Still confused as to why we are discussing this now, I keep my answer short and honest. "Love of my life, remember? So for me that means all in."
She reaches up on her toes and kisses me quickly. "I wanna buy this house: for us, for Cassie, and for the family. A place we can all come to get away, by either boat or flying. I wanted a beach house, but now that we have the boat, this is perfect."
"It's a beautiful house," I agree. "But just because we're in a relationship, one I expect to last forever, doesn't mean you have to get my permission to buy something you want. You're your own person and always will be."
"I know that," she counters. "It's just I wanted us, you and me, to buy this for us. I love this island and I know you do, too. I want this to be our place."
Finally realizing what she is trying to say, I kiss her hard and deeply. "Then this will be our place. Let's go tell Dennis we want it and figure out what we need to do. Oh, and pretty girl, I'm paying half."
"I love you," she chokes out as the tears fall from her eyes. "Let's go buy a house."
Bella calls Jessica to inform her of our plan to purchase the house while I go over the contract with Dennis. If the seller agrees to our offer, he'll contact Jessica to get the ball rolling. We'll need to come back for the closing, but everything else we can do over the phone or through email, and he'll even order the home inspection for us.
Jasper walks back through the house, taking pictures for us and making notes of things that need an upgrade or repair considering the house looks to be in great condition, I can't imagine the list being very long.
Two hours later, we're back on the boat and heading out to sea. Bella is completely blissed out, her smile never leaving her beautiful face.
"You coming into her life changed her," Billy confesses, sitting next to me, "changes that needed to be made. I can't thank you enough for that."
"You don't have to," I admit, choking up a little. "She and Cassie have changed me, too. And I'm so blessed they did."
We both sit quietly, looking through the house pictures on my iPad. Next thing I know, Cassie is pushing the iPad away and climbing onto my lap.
"Bites," she whispers, looking up at me with her wide blue eyes. Her stomach rumbles, backing up her statement.
"Is my baby girl hungry?" I ask, tickling her belly.
"Yeah," she answers softly. "Bites."
"Let's go see how close we are to anchoring, and I'll fix you some dinner," I suggest, picking her up as I stand.
Bella is slowing the boat as I walk to the cockpit. "Perfect timing, pretty girl 'cause I got a hungry, giggle monster to feed."
"Well then, get to it," she sasses me with a bright smile. "I'm hungry, too."
Jasper gets the grill heated up while Sarah and I make the crab cakes and veggie kabobs. Bella and Billy are on the deck helping Cassie fish, more like keeping her occupied while we get dinner ready.
Dinner is full of excitement and contentment. Bella can't stop talking about the house and the fact we're buying it together. I swear I can feel the cracks in my heart fuse together. She's it for me, as I told her: 'I'm all in', and the fact she feels the same, there are no words.
We laugh, enjoy a delicious meal with family, drink wine, and watch the stars light up the night sky. Life is perfect. I couldn't ask for anything more.
Remember, if you would like teasers, pics, playlists and SLR discussions, come join the SLR group at groups/StoriesbyJRFaab/