Hello, Darlins!
We are so incredibly thankful for your reviews and support of our new story. It makes us eager to share all our little secrets with you!
Well, we can't share them all. But we CAN tell you that the guys — our favorite guys that we all know and love — will be introduced into the story at the right time.
We just have to dive into the girls first.
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Thank YOU for reading and Pamela for prereading!
-1-
Alice
2017
Jacksonville, Florida
"This will be a good thing, Alice," Peter says, offering a hopeful smile. Standing directly in front of me, he holds me by my shoulders, praying his optimism seeps through from his gentle touch. His gaze holds mine, and as I always have since we were kids, I cave to his good nature and smile back as we stand in the sun in the parking lot of our apartment complex. Even though it is only a little past eight in the morning, the Florida sun boasts its heat early in the day, warning those to prepare accordingly. Having lived in Florida all of our lives, both Peter and I are well-equipped to handle the weather today.
It's where I have to go this morning that leaves me unsettled and annoyed at everything in existence.
My husband included.
Sighing, I nod my head reluctantly, almost as if I'm forcing myself to believe him. "I know."
New jobs aren't supposed to feel like this, right?
Instead of feeling hopeful and excited about my new endeavor, I'm dragging my feet and dreading what lies ahead of me. Like Peter said, it's a good thing — or maybe it's the right thing — to do. I groan inwardly as I replay our decision over again in my mind. It was never a question if I was doing the right thing – we both know being unemployed was not an option for me. The only option we had was for me to take the first job available, and after a year of odd jobs here and there, I know what I'm doing is right. It's the right thing to do for our future.
Who cares if it crushes my hopes and dreams, right?
A girl's gotta grow up sometime, and it appears today is that day for me.
"It's not forever, babe," Peter reminds me as he hands me a brand new lunch bag he bought for me over the weekend. "It's just for now. We'll keep looking in the meantime."
"I know I'll be fine," I reply, taking the bag from him. "I just may die of boredom in the process."
"You never know," he says. "Maybe you'll find the world of HR exhilarating."
I look at him, my face void of expression, and yet it still manages to tell him he needs to back off before I explode on him in a matter of seconds. He laughs again, like he has always done when he knows he has gotten under my skin, and I feel my lips twitching at the sound of his laughter. He has the kind of laugh that is contagious; even if nothing is funny, I usually find myself laughing at whatever he is simply because of him.
As much as I love my husband, and as much as he means well right now, he's wrong. Exhilarating to me won't be found within the walls of an office or a cubicle in front of a computer screen. To me, exhilarating was when I shot a wedding on Saturday and snapped photos of a live birth on Sunday. Those moments are what make my life colorful.
I live for moments of color in my life.
And now, because my photography business hadn't quite taken off the way I had dreamed of in my head since I was a kid, I am a half hour away from trading in those moments of color for a typical Monday through Friday, nine to five kind of job that makes me want to scream a little.
Sensing how despite his best efforts he is unable to change my mood, Peter sighs and reaches for my hand, bringing it to his lips to give me a single kiss on my fingertips. "It's just for now, baby. I promise."
Our eyes meet again, and just like all those years ago when we first started dating in high school, I feel the reassurance I need to muster through the day. I smile softly at him, pressing my hand to his cheek before stepping towards my car.
"Thanks for my lunch," I tell him as I turn to unlock the door. "I'll call you when I can, okay?"
"Leave a message if I can't pick up. Newton scheduled a company-wide meeting and I don't know what that'll mean or how long it'll take."
"Good luck," I say, knowing that although Peter may worry about meetings like this, he remains at the top in sales in his department and has worked his ass off the last few years to get to where he is. He had graduated two years before I did, and while I struggled to make ends meet with my photography business in the last year since I graduated, Peter had risen up the ladder easily and steadily since taking an entry position right out of college. After a year of waiting for my business to take off, we knew it was time to put my dreams on hold a bit in the spirit of practicality.
Which leads us to now.
"Love you!" He calls from my vacant parking spot as I pull away, and in return, I blow him a kiss and send it out the window. It's been our thing since I was fifteen and he was seventeen, and even though back then we were young and stupid, sometimes I'm not sure if much has changed between us over the years.
"It's just temporary," I say to myself as I slide onto the highway to begin my first morning commute. "It's not forever."
I repeat those words to myself for the next half hour until I almost believe them to be true.
…
"So how is it?" Bella asks me several weeks later as the July sun beats down on us from above. I roll over towards her, a perfectly content sigh escaping my lips as my eyes flutter open. I didn't know how it was possible, but our trip to Maine this year is even better than our last. My limbs are so heavy with relaxation I almost forget Bella asked me about my job.
"I almost fell asleep watching those training videos," I yawn tiredly. "But, considering they let me take off for this two-week vacation after only working there for three months, I guess it's not too bad."
"Eh, there's always a learning curve to every new job," Rose chimes in.
"How much time are we talking here?" I groan with a laugh. "I don't remember you having a learning curve at your job. You've loved your studio since the moment you walked in!"
"I'm lucky, and I absolutely know it," Rose replies, thinking of her role down at a local radio station in Cincinnati. While still putting in her dues, she was fortunate enough to land a position in the year since graduation as a production assistant, and she's been loving every minute of it. "You're still working your photography business on the side?"
"Yeah, a newborn or engagement session every now and then," I reply, reaching for a sip of my water as we sunbathe on the private beach in front of our rental in Lighthouse Cove. "Nothing that would allow me to do it full time."
"Is that the plan still? For you to eventually go back to photography?"
"Eventually," I answer with a shrug. "When the timing is right."
"You've got time," Bella answers, sitting up to grab another White Claw from the cooler resting next to her. "No matter what you do, just enjoy it."
"Spoken like a true student," I laugh.
"This student is on summer break," Bella reminds us both, sitting back on her beach chair with her face pointed at the sun again. "There will be no mention of school or studying or semesters for the duration of this vacation!"
We all laugh and agree, eventually falling silent as we melt into our surroundings just like we did the last time we were here together a little over a year ago. Unlike last year when we spent a week here after graduation, this time we have two whole weeks to spend together catching up on what life has dealt us over the last fourteen months. To some, two weeks seems like a healthy amount of time to spend on a vacation with friends, but for us, two weeks will never be enough.
So much has changed in the last year, yet the feeling of safety and comfort I have from these two girls never has. The last time we were here in Lighthouse Cove, we had no idea what life would bring. We were about to embark on a new journey — adulthood — yet we still clung to the idea of freedom in any way we could. Now, I'm a married woman, Bella has one year of her doctorate under her belt, and Rosalie is the one with a new piece of jewelry adorning her left hand.
"I still can't believe it," Bella says in disbelief, reaching to see the ring again. "And you had no idea?"
"Nope! Not a clue!" Rosalie says happily. She has only been with Royce for about a year, but they seem to fit. Our Rose may have always been a dreamer, but love was never her focus. Royce seems to bring her back to the ground in a way she has always needed. "You'll have to help me plan the wedding. Other than lingerie for my honeymoon, I have no idea what I'm doing."
"Have you and Royce discussed anything about the wedding yet?" I ask, thirsty again for some more of my water. And maybe also some entertainment in the form of planning one of my best friend's big day. Under the sun on this gorgeous day, I can't get enough of this cold water, or the time with my girls.
"Not yet. It's still kind of new, you know?" Rosalie says, smoothing SPF 100 on her porcelain skin. I don't have enough hands to count how many times I've seen Rose turn into a head-to-toe tomato because she burns so easily.
"You two weren't kidding when we said the world is ours for the taking," Bella laughs. "One marriage and one engagement in a little over the year. Impressive."
"Yeah, because we're like, grown ups now," Rosalie jokes. "What's up next, a baby?"
I freeze. I was going to tell them sometime this week, but I was waiting for the right moment. I watch as Bella sits up quickly in her chair, lightbulbs of recognition almost appearing on the top of her head.
The fact I've stayed away from alcohol. The water I keep guzzling. My almost obsession with peaches.
"No fucking way, Alice," Bella breathes, lifting her sunglasses off her face so I can see the seriousness in her eyes.
"You're pregnant?" Rosalie squeals, and if we weren't alone on our private beach, we definitely would be now judging by the volume of her voice.
"Looks like next year I'll be bringing two of us to Lighthouse Cove," I say with happy tears in my eyes before the girls tackle me, safely, to the sand.
No, two weeks with them is never enough.