“Kissing every single freckle you have,” he murmurs,continuing to kiss me, moving down my jaw to my chest. “I love them so much.”
“You’re going to be kissing me for a long time,” I shriek as he tickles my ribs.
“Worth it,” he murmurs. We slide down so we’re lying on our backs. My head rests on his chest as we catch our breath from our laughter.
“How long do you think we’ll be here?” I ask, hoping that I don’t pop the precious bubble.
“Probably a few more weeks. Hopefully not long, though. I know you miss your family.”
I nod in agreement. “You miss yours too.”
“I do. As much as I love this time with just us, it will be nice to be home.”
I nod into his chest, resting my palm over his heart. The anxiety creeps in at the thought of going home and losing him, losing the constant time with him. Don’t get me wrong, I want to go home, but I also don’t want this fairytale to end.
“You’re going to laugh,” Thomas says, his voice rumbling in my ear. “I’m about to ask you the most basic question.”
I chuckle. “Go for it.”
“Where do you see yourself in five years?”
I let myself think, but I already know that I’m not going to tell him my real answer, or the answer that I so desperately want to happen. It all includes him, and that’s not realistic for me. I can’t keep pining over a future that may not happen.
Shrugging, I hide myself in his chest. “I don’t know. Probably working, probably still in Ivy Ridge. What about you?”
Thomas shifts so he can look down at my face. “That’s all? You don’t see anything else for your future?”
I shake my head. I don’t want to say it out loud. I can’t risk the embarrassment of saying that I want to be married in five years. I don’t want to say that not only do I want to be married, I want to be married tohim. I want to have a family of my own, complete with the house, kids and dog, preferably Arson.
Thomas sighs. “Fine, my turn. In five years, I see myself married. Not only that, but I see myself married to a beautiful woman.”
I catch my breath at his admission. He doesn’t give me a moment to think on his words though, as he continues speaking.
“Someone kind, with a servant's heart. I see myself in our home, maybe with a kid, or one on the way. I see us going to Sunday brunches with my family, her becoming best friends with my sisters and brothers, being the best aunt to my nieces and nephews, and being a part of my amazing family.”
He takes a deep breath, running his fingertips up and down the length of my arm. “I see it all with you, Hannah.”
His admission hits me right in the chest. He’s so confident, and for a moment, I sink into the fantasy. It’s beautiful, like he said. I see it all with him too.
Instead of shutting down the fantasy, I let myself dream right along with him.
The sun sets in the distance as we hold each other, dreaming about a future that I can only dream about. We don’t know what the future holds, but right now, it seems pretty amazing.
As the sky grows dark, the moon and stars illuminate the sky. We lie on our backs, pointing out constellations to each other. The air grows cooler, but we wrap up in the blankets Thomas brought, keeping us warm.
“Truth or dare,” Thomas says, surprising me. We’ve been lying in comfortable silence for a while.
“Truth,” I reply.
“Who’s the most influential person in your life?”
I don’t even have to think about the question for more than a moment before answering. “My grandma.”
“Why?”
“She’s been through hell. She should have had at least twenty to thirty more years with the love of her life, and it was cut off early. Then, she lost her child in a car accident, and had to finish raising her granddaughter.” My eyes burn at the mention of her.
“She taught me everything. I already wasn’t a fan of driving, so when my parents died in a car accident, I wanted nothing to do with cars. She helped me get over that anxiety, and taught me how to drive. She got me into therapy, helped me get my license, and basically helped me figure out how to be an adult. It’s still hard. I have a lot of anxiety as you know, a lot of it stemming from my grandfather and my parents’ death, but she’s been there for every step.”
