I popped the rear waistband of her bikini bottoms, and she laughed and ran to the bathroom.
“You undress while I run bathwater for you. How about that?”
“Are you gonna bathe me?” she asked, looking up at me from underneath her lowered lashes.
“I’ll do whatever you want me to do, sweetheart,” I replied, cupping her ass and pulling her closer. We kissed again.
“At this rate, I don’t think I’ll ever get a bath.”
I laughed and released her. While she undressed, I ran her bath water and added scented oils to it.
When I finished bathing her, I lifted her from the tub, wrapped her in a bath sheet, and carried her into the room. She yawned repeatedly as I dried and moisturized her body.
“I miss my flower shop, but I’m going to miss being here when it’s time to go back home.”
“What do you love most about this place?” I asked, applying oil to her legs.
“The peace. The ocean breeze. The beauty. The sun and sand.” She giggled.
“So just about everything?”
“Mm-hmm.”
“Would you like to own a vacation home on the island one day? We could escape for vacations and long weekends.”
“You’re already planning your future with me in it.”
“You are my future, girl.” I walked to the dresser and grabbed her hairbrush, oil, and bonnet.
She remained still while I applied a light oil to her hair before I carefully brushed it. She relaxed after a while and started talking again.
“You were gonna marry Daniella.”
“I was, but Paloma and Wryn always told me that it was a mistake, even before I asked her.”
“If she hadn’t turned you down, would you be married to her by now?”
“Married and miserable as a bitch.” I chuckled lowly, and she smiled and met my gaze in the mirror. Dove reached up and touched my hand, and I lowered my lips to kiss hers.
“I guess the doping scandal helped you out. You never know how God will turn a bad situation around and work it for your good.”
“Yeah. I guess.” I finished brushing her hair, wrapped it, and then placed the bonnet on it.
“Why are you so good at this?”
“I watched Paloma in the earlier years. I would sit on her bed and talk to her about what life might be like for us when Mama got better. She would be doing her hair and dreaming with me. This reminds me of those times with her. Something about it was soothing to me, just like when she braided my hair when she got older—like my mama used to.”
“Thank you for taking care of me tonight.”
I lay down beside her, and she rested her hands in prayer position on my chest.
“You’re easy to take care of.”
She stared at me with drowsy eyes. “I love you, Reighvyn Bloom.”
My heart was full, and I couldn’t help but beam at her just as her eyes closed, and she drifted off to sleep. I climbed out of the bed and returned to the bathroom to shower. My thoughts turned to how we had transitioned from good friends to lovers now. Just like the bird symbolized peace and confirmation, she was my peace and confirmation that everything was as it should be.
THREE DAYS LATER
