One Hundred Sixty-Nine

“Sunshine?  Baby, we’re getting ready to land.”  He moved his shoulder slightly, in an effort to nudge her awake.

“Huh?  We’re here already?”

“You fell asleep,” he informed her gently, smiling as he traced the sleep crease his shirt hand left in her cheek.  Seeing her so soft and rumpled from her nap made him long to rumple her in another way.  Richie couldn’t remember the last time he’d ached with desire, but he sure as hell was aching now. 

Stiff and aching.

Enough that he, for a fleeting moment, considered disregarding her ‘hands off’ request.  He speculatively eyed the lavatory, but the sign indicated that it was occupied. 

Temptation removed.  For now.

Two nights.  Then this bullshit will be over and her feet won’t touch the floor for a week.

“I can’t believe I fell asleep,” she bemoaned, pushing upright and scrambling to right her hair while slipping on her sandals.  She craned her neck around to check on Ava.  “Is Ava asleep?”

“Not likely,” he snickered.  “She didn’t get up until right before we left for the airport and she got a Starbuck’s infusion before we got on the plane.  She’s good to go until about midnight.”

Leaning back, he saw that he was right.  His baby – first baby – girl smiled up at him from where she was playing Angry Birds on her phone.

An hour later, they were in the rental car and pulling into a shell coated driveway.  Richie had spent that hour dodging a thousand questions and pleas for hints about where they were going.  Placing the gearshift in Park, he turned to them with a grin.  “We’re here.”

Both his fiancée and daughter ducked their heads to look out the window at the house he’d parked before.

“Are we visiting someone?” Allegra asked.

“Are we staying here?” Ava piped up. 

“You know we have hotel reservations,” he reminded Ava, answering without really answering.  “And no, we’re not visiting.”  He unfolded his long frame from the vehicle, circling the car to open Allegra’s door.  Ava was already hopping out of the back seat.

With the curiosity and enthusiasm reserved for the young, his daughter quickly pounded up the few steps and was busy looking in the windows.  Allegra was simply standing next to the car, a hand at her forehead blocking the sun from her eyes.

“Cute house, huh?” Richie asked, his muscled forearm coming to rest at her waist with a squeeze.

Allegra took in the one and a half story bungalow-style house with bright eyes.  Painted a pale shade of lime green, it seemed much brighter against the surrounding lawn and foliage.  The wrap-around porch with its bright white railing was reflected in the shiny glass of the first-floor windows.  Waves lapping in the distance indicated that the ocean was close behind the house.

“It’s gorgeous,” she crooned, totally infatuated with the scene. 

An inexplicable peace seeped into her pores as she inhaled the warm, salty air. She could easily sit in one of the porch rockers and while the day away with the sweet breeze stirring, the sound of the tide lulling her into tranquility.

“So I did good then?”

She craned her neck to find that boyish grin lighting up his face.  “What exactly is it you did?”

“Daddy!”  Ava barreled down the steps toward them.  “There’s a private beach out back!  Please, please tell me we’re staying here!”

His eyes were locked on Allegra’s even as he spoke to Ava.  “Isn’t it great?  There’s supposed to be a spectacular view of the sunrise from that beach.”

Allegra pressed an uncertain hand to her throat, unwilling to try and interpret what his pointed comment may mean.  “Richie?”

Spinning her toward him and cinching both arms around her waist, he urged her forward until she was flush against him.  His dimple winked and he spoke softly.  “I figured if you were marrying me, you may as well get something good out of it.  Do you like your wedding present, Sunshine?”

Apparently teenagers heard everything loud and clear when they wanted to.

“No way!  This is our house??  We have a house in Hawaii?  Oh.  My. God.  Wait until I tell Sierra.  She will be so jealous!”  It was a good bet that task would be accomplished in under a minute by the way her fingers flew across the little touch screen. 

The first tear slid down Allegra’s cheek unnoticed in the wake of the little blonde whirlwind and she lifted up on tiptoe, burying her face against his neck before he saw the ones that were lined up behind it. 

But Gay Richie had his sensitivity radar on full tilt, making the effort futile.

“Hey, crybaby,” he chided with a laugh, fiercely returning her embrace.  “If you don’t like it just say so.”

Her words were muffled against his skin when she blubbered, “The problem is, I don’t know what to say.”

“Do you like it?”

Her head moved up and down against his shoulder and the broad hands she loved so much stroked along her spine.  Placing a sweet kiss on the top of her head, he said simply, “That’s all I need to know.  Wanna see the inside?”

“I do!” Ava declared, having evidently finished spreading the news to the pre-teen set back home.  “I have my own room, right?”

“No, you’re sleeping in the kitchen,” Richie teased, ruffling her hair as he towed Allegra up the steps behind him.  Key poised in front of the lock, he paused and spoke over his shoulder.  “Baby?  You still haven’t said anything.  Is this okay?”

“It’s so much more than okay that okay isn’t even on the same field,” she snuffled, wiping the lingering moisture from her eyes.  “I just still can’t believe it.  Thank you.  Yes, I’d love to see inside.”

Again, the grin popped out, consuming his features and detaining him enough that Ava swiped the key and pushed her way into the house ahead of them.  Allegra could hear the girlish sounds of delight from where they stood on the porch.

“Little Miss Impatient, isn’t she?” he laughed, grasping Allegra’s hand once again.  “Now, don’t get hung up on the furniture and stuff.  It came furnished and you can change whatever you want.  I’ve made one tiny addition to the place, but that’s it.”

With no further introduction, he guided her across the threshold and into the living room. 

She was immediately enamored by the open, airy feel inside the four walls.  The living room, dining room and kitchen were a single open space that claimed the greatest portion of the downstairs.  Lined with earthen tile, the floor accentuated the oaken cabinetry and fluffy cushioned rattan furniture, lending the area a warm feel.

Her eyes were drawn to the back wall of glass and spectacular ocean view that lay beyond.  Nose nearly pressed to the glass, she allowed herself to be mesmerized by the wide porch with its Adirondack chairs and wicker hammock, the grove of palm trees shading the postage stamp yard, and stretch of sandy beach.

“I guess you heard me say the beach is private?” he whispered, kissing the sensitive spot behind her ear as she nodded.  “I want to make love to you on our beach while the sun comes up.”

She couldn’t find the words, and the ones she found she couldn’t get her mouth to form around, so she merely nodded again.  Someday, Allegra feared, she was going to wake up to find that this whole thing was a dream. 

“That’s all you have to say?”  His breath was hot against her as he nuzzled the shell of her ear.

“Daddy?  Which room is mine?” Ava hopped up onto the earthen marble countertop of the bar that separated the living room from the kitchen.  Her ankles crossed and swung back and forth as she looked at him expectantly.

He straightened slowly, with a nearly inaudible growl.  A soft huff blew across Allegra’s ear before he told his daughter, “They’re all fair game except the one upstairs at the end of the hall.  Which one do you want?” Richie nodded to a doorway off the dining area.  “You saw there was another one down here, didn’t you?”

She tipped her head to the side and smiled sweetly.  “Yeah.  That’s the one I wanted.  It’s closest to the kitchen.”

Allegra and Richie both laughed.  To be a skinny little thing, she certainly liked her food.

“So how many bedrooms are there?” Allegra asked as Ava stood in the doorway of ‘her’ room, snapping pictures with her iPhone.  What news story was complete without pictures?

“Four beds, four baths.  One bedroom down here and three upstairs.  That means one for us, one for each of the girls and a spare if we ever need it.”  He brushed a hand across her belly meaningfully before lacing their fingers together and tugging her along.  “Come look.”

The staircase was a rich oak that climbed five wide steps before leveling out on a landing and turning ninety degrees to the left, where there was another seven steps.  Planting her foot on the top step, she could see one bedroom immediately on the left.  Two more doorways lined the hallway to the right.

“Go right.” 

Following his instructions, she ducked into each of the bedrooms there, finding them similar in that they both were done in shades of beige and had wide open windows to let in the late afternoon sunlight.  The most notable difference was the bed in each - one room had a king-sized bed and the other housed a full-bed and set of bunks.  The king room also boasted a sliding glass portal the upper level porch.

“They’re great,” she enthused, automatically drawn to step through the glass door in the king room.

“No, no, no,” Richie protested playfully.  “You can do that from our bedroom.  Come on.” 

She was certain the grin was permanently affixed to his face, and it had every right to be.  This house, while it had probably cost a ridiculous fortune, was simple and understated.  It wasn’t a showplace, it was someplace to feel comfortable and revel in the lush tropics.  Someplace to relax.  She couldn’t have been more pleased if she’d chosen the house herself.  Nothing could top this.

Then he pulled her into what would be their bedroom.

The bed was a king-sized one, of course, and it was high on a platform, with four tall posters reaching toward the ceiling and a flowing white canopy.  The gauzy canopy material hung from the top of the posters, draping down and around each individual post like a luxurious scarf. 

On the other side of the bed was another sliding glass door, framed in the same gauze that adorned the bed.  Certain that this would lead to the porch, Allegra was half-way across the room to explore the view when the artwork on the wall caught her eye. 

Her footsteps stalled, and she slowly spun to her left so that she could inspect it more closely.

On the wall opposite the bed was a large framed photo, probably sixteen by twenty, that depicted a brilliant ocean sunrise riddled with pink and orange hues.    Silhouetted in that sunrise were two figures:  a shaggy haired man and a woman bearing a long dark ponytail, her head nestled into his shoulder.  They were contentedly staring out at the sunrise, oblivious to the world.

“Is that…?”

She couldn’t believe that it was them.  When could the picture have been taken?

“It was taken on our last trip here,” he explained softly.  “It’s to replace the one I got for your birthday that had only had one person watching the sunrise.  As soon as I proposed, I knew I wanted this to be your wedding gift.  Then…” Cue the Cheshire Cat grin.  “I had to get the house to hang it in.”

The mattress hit the back of her knees and bounced as she dropped her butt on it, not trusting her legs to support her.  Tears welled in her eyes as she sat staring at the beautiful piece of art that symbolized the beginning, middle and future of their relationship. 

He was so much more than a good man.  He was the best man.  Ever.  In the history of men.

Allegra would gladly go through every step of Hell she’d come through these last nine months with a smile on her face and a song in her heart if she knew it would lead back to this day, this moment, on the verge of becoming Richie Sambora’s wife.

“I love you seems incredibly inadequate about now,” she sniffled, basking in the love that poured from his eyes.  “But it’s all I’ve got.”

“Fortunately, that’s all I need.”  One easy nudge bowled her back onto the bed, instantly looming close above her, his lips clung to hers in a sultry kiss.  “I love you, too.”

Could life get any better than this?