Chapter 82: Family Beach Trip

Amanda's POV

"You could have joined me Randy! You could have joined me in my plans, my vision for the future, but you just threw it away like a fucking, dimwitted asshole!"

Rochelle practically screams the statement at my man as her wild red hair flies unabashedly around her face thanks to the sea breeze that was hitting us left and right. Her disheveled appearance matched her mood; her eyes easily showing her fury as she looked at the two of us.

"I could have joined you, but I declined every single time . . ." Randy tells her calmly as he stood his ground. "And I declined with good reason . . ."

"Oh yes, yes . . . With good reason you say . . ." Rochelle says in a mocking tone as she flails her arms. "Your job . . . your daughters . . . your mate . . . Am I missing anything else or did I get that all right?"

"No . . . you got it," Randy tells her simply as he did a small shrug. "I wasn't planning to give up all that just so I could help you, but you wouldn't understand. You asked me to join you time and time again, and I told you no every single time. You just wouldn't listen. It never got through that thick skull of yours' Rochelle."

"Like you probably said before Randal: I can be very persistent when I want to be," she growled out in response as she took a step forward. "Do you want to know why I was always persistent towards you Randal? I saw you as a challenge, a challenge that I wanted to break, to destroy actually."

"I guess I proved you wrong huh?" Randy says with a shake of his head. "I just proved to be too unbreakable for you . . . I was the one person you couldn't break . . . That you couldn't control . . . That you couldn't have for yourself, is that it?!"

"Shut up you fucking bastard!" Rochelle yells as she starts to claw her fingers through her hair, which wasn't helping to tame the disorder that plagued it. "You have proven nothing. You hear me! NOTHING!?"

"Why is it so hard for you to accept it?!" Randy exclaims back. "After what you pulled back when we were in the military, did you really think that I would join your side that easily? Did you really think that I would just let go everything you did to me in the past? I remember everything Rochelle. You only bring misfortune and misery to everyone you come across dammit!"

"Old grudges die hard I see . . ." said Rochelle as she shook her head. "You were always the one that didn't believe in the line 'forgive and forget'."

"How could I forget it? My military days are a dark part of my life that I kept hidden from everyone I care about for the better part of sixteen years!" Randy yells back as I start to see veins start to show under his skin as his anger really starts to rear its head. "That year was one of the worst ones in my life. I was too ashamed to tell anyone about it, about what you put me through. Of course I wouldn't forgive and forget!"

"Hmm . . . Wouldn't you just love to put that year behind you for good," Rochelle tauntingly said as she weaved her fingers together. "But that's not going to happen as long as I'm still around. My plans may have crumbled to dust, but I'm still standing. I may be alone now, but that's not going to stop me from following after you until you finally give in."

"You just won't give up!" Randy says with a sad shake of his head. "Look Rochelle . . . It's over. You've lost your allies; your plan to control the West is all in shambles; and I'm certainly not going to give into you . . . I have a life Rochelle. A job, a family, a mate that loves me . . . and what do you have? Nothing . . . Absolutely nothing; all because you just can't give up this sick fantasy of having me in your slimy clutches."

"I'm giving you a final warning Rochelle: Leave me and my family alone. If you come anywhere near my family, I will not hesitate to rip your head off and burn your body into ashes," Randy tells her before turning around to walk away. "This is your one chance Rochelle. Leave, and never come back."

Rochelle's face becomes a mask of no emotion, but then, her left eye starts to twitch erratically a few times before she lets outs a feral, eardrum-shattering scream. As soon as she leaps for Randy, I start moving to block her, but as soon as we were close enough to make contact . . .

. . . Everything goes black . . .

~X~X~X~

"'Manda . . .'Manda . . . It's time to wake up baby."

"Huh?" I ask incoherently as I slowly open my eyes. I feel something brush along my shoulder, so I look up to see Randy hovering above me with a pleasant look on his face as his hand rested on my shoulder. "What's going on Ran?"

"Don't you remember 'Manda?" Randy asks me with that mischievous smirk of his as I slowly get up into a sitting position. "We're going to the beach today, and we decided to go early so that we could get a nice spot."

"Oh . . . yeah, I forgot." I mumble as I look out the window to view the landscape outside, my thoughts more so preoccupied on the dream I had than on the planned beach trip today.

"Okay, what's wrong?" Randy instantly asks me as I feel his arms wrap around my waist. "You don't usually act this moody after a good night's sleep."

"It's just the dream I had last night is bugging me a little . . ." I quietly say as I lean back into his chest. "My dream was basically the vision Dani had yesterday, but with sound included."

"I see . . ." Randy whispers in my ear as I feel his lips on my shoulder. "So, what was said in the dream?"

"It was basically you and Rochelle arguing back and forth. The mention of your military past was included in the dialogue," I say as I did a small shrug. "You give her a final warning. . ."

"Did I threaten to rip her head off?" Randy asks rather bluntly as his lips travel from my shoulder to my neck.

"That; and that you would burn her body into ashes if she continued to come after you and our family," I say with a smirk. "She didn't take the news too kindly, so she tried to attack you while your back was turned. I leap in, and then nothing. It went absolutely black after that."

"Hmm . . . Sounds like the typical stuff to me . . ." Randy says absentmindedly as I feel his lips on the side of my right temple. "All I know for sure is that we're going to encounter her sooner or later before this vacation is over, and I will be ready for her. We both will . . . Now, go get ready. We'll be leaving soon."

"And what will you be doing while I'm getting ready?" I ask curiously as I turn around to see that he was dressed in a simple black t-shirt and dark blue trunks.

"Making breakfast of course . . ." he tells me with a cheeky grin on his face. "I'll also be waking up Nate and Alanna so that they could get ready. You can handle the twins."

"You just want to avoid diaper duty again," I say with a small pout on my face as Randy quickly scrambles out of the bed and over to the door.

"Well . . . yeah." Randy says with a smirk before walking out the room, leaving me alone with the twins and my thoughts.

Normal POV

"Alright, I got everything packed away in the car!" Randy yelled toward the house. "I'm just waiting on you guys now. Let's get moving. We're burning daylight and I want to get to the beach so that we could find a good spot!"

"I'm ready!" Alanna exclaimed as she ran out the house dressed in a light green sundress and black sandals. The straps of her blue swimsuit were peeking out from underneath the straps of the sundress. "Since I came out first, does that mean I get to sit shotgun with you in the front seat daddy?"

"Uh . . . no," Randy told her with a small shake of his head. "You're not riding in the front seat until you're old enough to do so. Safety first missy, plus, I don't want to be stopped in the middle of the highway by a cop because he spotted you in the front passenger seat. I don't plan on getting ticketed on this vacation, or anytime soon."

"Fine . . . You made your point. I'll go sit in the back." Alanna playfully grumbled with a small pout to boot as she got into the one of the SUV's middle seats. Randy only shot her a small smirk in return before turning his attention back to the front door, just in time to see Amanda, wearing a violet bikini top and jean shorts, walking out the building with the twins' car seats in hand.

"Need a little help there my lady?" Randy asked in a gentleman-like manner as he walked up the steps and met her halfway.

"I certainly do," Amanda said with a chuckle as she handed Gabi's car seat over to Randy. The two quickly descended the staircase and got to work fastening the girls' seats onto the car's backseat. "I just need to get my tote bag and pluck Nate away from his mirror. Apparently, he's having trouble deciding on which pair of his sunglasses he wants to bring along with him to the beach."

"Classic Nate behavior . . ." Randy said with a shake of his head. Amanda shook her head in agreement before disappearing at vampire speed back into the house. The sounds of Nate voicing his complaints could be heard easily as he was dragged out of the house by his ear, Amanda smirking the entire way as she pulled the middle Orton sibling down the stairs and over to the car. "Did you decide on a pair of sunglasses for yourself Nate?"

"I was forced to thanks to your fiancée dragging me out the house," Nate said with a scowl on his face as he got into the front passenger seat. "Expect a dunking into the ocean water in your near future 'Manda, because it's coming for you."

"I'll be ready and waiting for it Nate," Amanda told him with a smirk as she turned to her fiancé. "Do you have everything you need Ran?"

"I have everything . . ." said Randy as he checked the pockets of his trunks, his face forming a small pout when he realized that he was missing a couple of items. ". . . I have everything except for my wallet and my cellphone. I'll be right back."

"Hurry; the sooner we leave, the sooner we can find a nice spot on the beach." Amanda said with a smirk as she got into the car while Randy ran back into the house. A few seconds later, Randy was out the house and in the car. Once he got the key into the ignition, he drove the car out of the driveway and back onto the road. Soon enough, they were back on the highway heading for the coastline, the sea breeze pouring in through the open windows as they neared the coast.

"How much longer till we get to the beach daddy?" Alanna asked as she leaned forward in her chair and rested her chin on her dad's seat.

"We'll be there in another few minutes Alanna, so just sit back and relax," Randy advised his daughter as a small smirk showed up across his face. "We'll be there soon enough."

"Okay . . ." said Alanna as she quickly turned her attention on her soon-to-be stepmom and her little sisters. "'Manda, what kind of powers do Dani and Gabi have? Do they have the exact same ones you do yet?"

"For starters Alanna, you're sisters are still very young. They're less than a year old, so it'll be a while before their full powers are fully on display," Amanda said with a smirk on her face as she looked at the girls on either side of her. "Dani and Gabi have shown that they have a psychic connection with each other. Besides that, Daniella here has shown that she can have visions, but that's just it for now."

"I see . . ." said Alanna as a thoughtful look came across her face. "Do you think either of them will ever develop that weird power you have?"

"What weird power?" Amanda asked curiously.

"The one where your eyes get all black and red," Alanna says with a cheeky smile on her face as Amanda looked at her in slight disbelief. "I heard Aunt Becky talking about it once with Uncle Marvin. She said when you use that power, you can very scary."

"Well . . . She's right on that one," Amanda said as she looked forward, her eyes instantly noticing the sheepish look on her mate's face that was being reflected via his side mirror. "But I'll admit it. It's . . . possible for at least one of your sisters to develop that same ability I have."

"It's really possible?" Randy asked as they arrived at a parking lot that only had a few cars within its midst. "Like . . . really?"

"Yeah . . . really," Amanda said with a motherly smile on her face as she looked at the twins. "But I'll find out for sure when they're a little older."

"Well, if I learned anything from watching you go into that other version of yourself with that power of yours, it's to not make you angry," Randy said with a shake of his head as he parked the SUV in the row that was closest to the barrier that separated the beach from the lot. "So as long as we don't make the twins angry, very, very angry might I add, we should be fine."

"Uh huh . . . I hope you keep that in mind when the girls become two year olds," said Nate as Randy cut the engine. "A toddler's second year of life is known as 'the Terrible Twos' for a reason."

"You're telling me . . ." Randy said with a roll of his eyes as he unbuckled his seatbelt. "I did have Alanna after all, little brother."

"Hey! What do you mean by that daddy!?" Alanna said with a scowl on her face as she put her hands on her hips. "I wasn't that bad when I was two years old daddy . . . Was I?"

"You were quite the troublemaker missy, well, from what I saw when I wasn't on the road." Randy said with a smirk on his face as he got out of the car and headed for the trunk. Nate quickly followed after him and helped the Viper unload the blanket, towels, and small cooler they brought with them from the trunk while Amanda and Alanna got the twins out of the back seat. Once everything was in order, the family walked out of the lot and onto the beach to see that only a few couples and families were there. Randy quickly scanned the area, smirking when he spotted a nice shady spot under a couple of palm trees. The family quickly made their way over to the spot and once Randy placed a large blanket down onto the ground, everyone piled on and sat down, ready to get their beach day up and running.

"Nice spot you picked out for us bro . . ." said Nate as he shook his head in approval. "It's shady and easy walking distance from the food shacks down the beach. Plus, it's hidden enough that other people will have trouble trying to figure out who you and 'Manda are at first glance."

"I know . . . That's why I picked it," Randy said with a smirk on his face as Alanna and Amanda allowed the twins to start moving around on the blanket. "Hmm . . . Dani and Gabi are crawling now. It won't be long before these two start walking."

"That's true, and they're both too curious for their own good sometimes . . ." Amanda said with a chuckle as she moved a hermit crab out the way before Gabi could get her hands on it. "It's nice to be curious, but I worry for them and the things they grab on to."

"Why do you worry for the things they grab on to?" Nate asks me curiously as Dani and Gabi both sit up and look at us, as if they finally figured out that we were talking about them.

"They may eventually crush whatever they touch with their inhuman strength," Amanda told him bluntly as Randy slid his hand across her flat stomach while wrapping his arm around her waist. "I'm sure for someone who's lived the life of a baby vampire, you would understand."

"'Manda makes a good point Nate . . ." Randy said in agreement as Alanna started to play peekaboo with her sisters. "You, me, and Alanna have all been in Dani and Gabi's shoes before. We've all been curious with stuff when we were babies, and sometimes we crushed things because we didn't understand our full strength yet."

"I almost crushed one of mommy's old necklaces once when I was a baby," said Alanna as she shook her head. "I also almost crushed Grandpa Bob's Hall of Fame ring when I found it on the floor of his and Grandma's room."

"That would explain the baby fingers sized dent I see on it every time I see Dad wear that ring these days," Randy said with a look of realization on his face. "I should have known that was your doing Alanna."

"What was the worst thing you almost crushed when you were little daddy?" Alanna asked him suddenly with a smug look on her face.

"'Manda's fingers," Randy shamefully said as Amanda shot him a blunt look. "Amanda and I were about two years old at the time. Our moms were hanging out at your great-grandparents' old house. They were in the kitchen while 'Manda, Monica, and I were playing in a small play yard your great grandpa set up for us in the living room. My memory is pretty foggy on the details leading up to the finger crushing, but I remember for sure that I crushed 'Manda's fingers that day."

"At least you remembered that you crushed my poor digits," Amanda said with a shake of her head. "And all because you wanted back your toy soldier."

"He was my favorite toy soldier!" Randy argued back. "You were hogging him for too long and I wanted him back."

"I would have given it to you if you had just asked!" Amanda said with a chuckle as she shook her head. "But no! You just had to be a big meanie and crush my fingers till I let go of your precious G.I Joe action figure. You never even asked for it back! Not one time!"

"Dang Randy . . ." said Nate as he held back his laughter while Alanna shook her head at her father disapprovingly. "How mean were you when you were two years old?"

"I was quite the mean child. I think I epitomized the phrase "the Terrible Twos" back when I was that age," Randy said with an embarrassed look on his face. "Did I really hurt your fingers that much 'Manda?"

"You crushed my fingers so badly that I lost the feeling in my left pinky and ring fingers for a good month and a half," Amanda told him bluntly as Randy looked at her apologetically. "Your mom tried to get you to apologize to me for that incident. Guess what you said instead . . ."

"Do I really have to?" Randy asked her bluntly as Nate got up from his seat. "I have a feeling that whatever you're going to say is worse than what I'll probably guess."

"You said that I was a sissy and that I deserved the finger crushing and that you would probably do it again if I touched any of your G.I Joes," Amanda said with a narrowed eyed gaze as her red eyed stare begin to show. "Your mom then revoked your G.I. Joe privileges until you properly apologized to me."

"Wow . . . That was definitely not what I was thinking about guessing. I was way out of the ballpark," said the Viper as he picked up his mate's left hand and kissed her pinky and ring fingers. "I was definitely a mean little punk when I was two."

"I'm glad I didn't have to go through that with you . . ." said Nate as he pulled off his shirt and dropped it onto the blanket. "Well, I'm off to take a dip in the ocean. Is anyone coming along?"

"Race you there Uncle Nate!" Alanna suddenly exclaimed as she quickly got to her feet and ran toward the water, with Nate soon following after her.

"Shall we join them?" Amanda asked Randy with a smirk on her face as Dani and Gabi began to play around with the sand just off the side of the blanket.

"Let them have their fun first . . ." Randy said with a smirk on his face as he landed a chaste kiss on the side of 'Manda's neck. "I'm content with just enjoying the view while holding you in my arms missy."

Randy's POV; An hour and a half later

"I think we've hid ourselves in the shade for long enough babe . . ." I say with a smirk on my face as Amanda gets up from her spot. "It's time we get Dani and Gabi acquainted with the Pacific Ocean."

"Way ahead of you Ran . . ." she tells me with a smirk as she slides her shorts off her cute little ass to reveal the bikini bottoms underneath. I notice Alanna and Nate jogging over to us from the corner of my eye, both of them soaking wet, but with smiles on their faces as they reached the rest of us. "How's the water?"

"Absolutely perfect!" Alanna exclaims as she picks Dani up in her arms. "Are you taking Dani and Gabi to the water now?"

"That's the plan . . ." I say with a smirk on my face. "Nate, are you staying here?"

"Yep . . . I'm going to let myself dry up a bit before going back into the water . . ." Nate says with a smirk as he grabs his towel. "The rest of you guys can go enjoy yourselves. I'll handle things here."

"Good . . ." I say as I pull my shirt over my head. "Follow me girls . . . Alanna, I'll be taking Dani now."

Once I finally get up on my own two feet, I take Dani from Alanna before leading the girls over to the water. Alanna practically welcomes the water with open arms, quickly belly flopping into the water once she was far enough. Amanda and I only go far enough that the warm water was only around our ankles.

"Gabi, why are you pouting?" Amanda asks as I turn my head to see Gabi looking not to fond of the water. "This is going to be your first time touching the ocean missy. I don't need you scowling before actually trying it."

"Be like your sister Gabi," I say with a smirk on my face as I held up the smiling girl in my arms. "Your sister is actually looking forward to it."

To further help my point, Dani lets out a squeal of delight as she starts patting me on the chest. Gabi lets out a retorting squeal of displeasure, more directed at her sister than either me or her mother.

"Uh . . . Did these girls just argue in their baby language?" I ask, curious to know Amanda's input in all this.

"I think they did . . ." Amanda says with a smirk on her face. "Maybe Gabi was complaining to her sister that she doesn't want to get her hair wet."

"Sounds like the making of a true Diva . . ." I say with a smirk as I hold Dani at arms' length. "Alright 'Manda, we'll put the girls down into the water in three . . . two . . . one."

We both kneel down and place the girls' feet first into the water. Dani instantly squeals in delight in my arms as she lets the water splash all around. Gabi instantly squeals in protest as Amanda holds her waist deep in the water, but as time goes on, she quickly settles down, but she still doesn't smile.

"Well . . . I guess her not yelling in protest is a start," Amanda says with a shake of her head as she adjusted herself so that she was sitting on her ass in the water with Gabi sitting right on her lap. "I think it'll be a while before she gets fully used to the water."

"I think as long as her hair doesn't get wet, she'll be fine," I say with a smirk as I turn to look at the beach to see if anyone had figured out who we were and were starting to take photos of us. Only a couple of people have their cameras out, but that's not the thing that really got my attention. What really got my attention was the woman with the wild red hair and disheveled clothing staring right at me from the nearest food hut, her wide-eyed, crazy stare boring down on me like a laser. ". . . I can't believe it."

"Believe what?" Amanda curiously asks me as Alanna swims right over to us. "What's going on?"

"Rochelle's here. She's right by that food hut over there," I say as I point in Rochelle's direction. Amanda follows my gaze and as soon as she notices that both my mate and I were staring right at her, she hightails it from the scene. "That's strange . . . She just left."

"Good thing too . . ." I mumble with a scowl on my face as I sit down right next to her and place Dani right on my lap. "I have no idea what I would do if she made her way over to us."

"Hopefully not something where I would have to do some serious damage control and memory erasing," she tells me with a raise of her left eyebrow. "I don't need you revealing the existence of the vampire race to every human on this beach alright?"

"Fair enough . . ." I say in defeat as Dani started to splash water at her sister's direction. "I shouldn't be focusing on Rochelle. I should be focusing on you and the family."

"Now that's the spirit . . . Plus, I can keep you on track by periodically checking your mind to make sure you aren't thinking about you know who," Amanda tells me with a grin as Gabi starts splashing water in her sister's direction. "Who do you think is going to win this splash fight?"

"Actually, my money's on Gabi . . . I have a pretty good feeling Gabi isn't going to allow Dani to get her hair wet," I say with a chuckle as Dani suddenly starts splashing water on me. "Really Dani? Just because I didn't take your side!"

"That's what you get for betting against her I guess," Amanda says with a cheeky grin on her face as she, Alanna, and Gabi start splashing water on me. "Yes girls! Continue the water assault on your father."

"What did I do to deserve this?" I ask as I try to fend off the water as best I could.

"Yeah . . . We have no idea. We're just doing this for kicks." Amanda tells me with a chuckle as she continues the attack with the girls. I just sit back and take it all in stride because sometimes, I just know when I'm beat.

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