"It seems so long ago, when my world was upside down, when my life was filled with tears and the skies were grey, but then you came around. I never felt love so profound, I never knew that happiness could feel this way. I'll shout it out to the heavens, thank God for your love and all the things you do. You've got the key to my heart, right here in my arms. I'll keep you safe and warm, and you'll never have to worry, never want for nothing, 'cause I'm the prince you charmed." ("Prince You Charmed", Youngstown)
Chapter Twenty-One
"Where are we going??" Kerry asked for at least the 20th time, as she lay her head on Nick's shoulder, trying to get comfortable in the airplane seat.
"You'll see when we get there!" Nick replied again, same answer as every time before.
"I hate that!" Kerry whined.
"Then quit asking!" Nick smiled.
Kerry made a face at him and stuck her tongue out.
"Don't stick that out unless you intend to use it."
"Oh, but I do." Kerry whispered and then licked along the outline of his ear, before nibbling gently on his earlobe.
"I am SO ready to be there." Nick said, squirming in his seat.
Kerry giggled and tried to rearrange herself again to be able to lean up against him. She tried to figure out where they were going, based on what she could see out of the window, which wasn't much. Nick had had the whole thing planned out- Miah had known about it and was staying at Kerry's parents. They'd been the last to board the plane- she hadn't had time to try to take a look at the plane/destination listing and Nick had made her put headphones on so she couldn't hear the flight information.
Nick was happy that this had worked out so well, the trial, the trip... his life now. He'd checked his bag about a million times to make sure the other reason for this trip was tucked safely away, not to be lost or detected by Kerry. He wasn't sure exactly when or how he'd do it, he just had a feeling the right time would present itself, seemed to him like it always did.
Five hours later he and Kerry were being led on a stone path through a jungle of greenery to their 'home' for the next few days. Kerry hadn't stopped gasping since they got off the plane, amazed by everything she was seeing.
The host opened the door to their villa and took their bags inside the main room. "'Ere ya go. We'come to Jamaica, mon." he smiled and hurried off.
Kerry stood in the middle of the room looking around for about a second and then dashed off towards the back of the villa, flinging the doors open to the white sand beach, and a hammock tied between two palm trees. She squealed and ran outside, with Nick right behind her.
He caught up with her right before she went splashing into the turquoise water, grabbing her in a hug. "You like this?"
"It's .. ohmygod.. I can't believe this! I've always wanted to come here!" she said excitedly.
"I know, that's why we're here." he said, holding her tightly.
"And there's like.. no one here.. wow.." Kerry said, scanning the beach.
"There's only seven villas here.. they're all, like, a half-mile apart... we won't be seeing anyone unless we go looking for them." Nick smiled.
"And why would we want to do that?" Kerry asked, pulling him down to kiss her.
"I love the way you think." he said, before slipping his tongue in her mouth and gliding it over hers.
After they'd unpacked and thoroughly explored the room- the jacuzzi, open-roof shower, bottle of champagne chilled and waiting, they went back out to lay in the hammock, wrapped up together.
"Thank you so much for this," Kerry said, putting her arm over his chest and moving her head up to lay on his shoulder.
"Kerry, you don't have to thank me. I love doing things for you." he replied, running his hand lightly over her arm.
"I just want you to know I appreciate the things you do, whether it be planning a romantic getaway or sitting through court with me everyday."
"With you is the only place I want to be- so wherever you go, I'm gonna be there, too." he said, turning to kiss her forehead.
She sighed contentedly, "I feel so.. relieved. For the first time in, god, I can't remember when.. I have nothing to worry about. There's nothing nagging in the back of my mind, no wondering when everything's going to fall apart. I can just relax and enjoy my perfect life now.. no one's going to fuck with my fairy tale."
Nick smiled, "Perfect, huh?"
"Yep. Absolutely perfect. Well, besides one little detail, that would make it even more perfect..."
"And that would be?" he asked.
Kerry moved carefully so she wouldn't tip the hammock, and slipped off it. She leaned down to kiss him, and said, "If you'd make love to me."
Nick practically fell off into the sand trying to get out of the hammock. He jumped up and lead her to the bed, quickly removing his clothing before slowly undressing her. He slipped her shirt up over her head, and tossed it off to the side, then moved around her to kiss across her shoulders as he unhooked her bra and slid it down her arms. His hands slid around her waist, meeting in the center to undo her shorts and tug them down, along with her panties. He picked her up and lay her on the bed, kissing lightly all over her face.
Kerry brushed her hands up over his shoulders, and put her hands on the back of his neck, bringing his lips to hers for a fiery kiss. She'd missed this more than she realized, being so close, so intimate with him. She'd enjoyed the long night of cuddling, just being held, but being on the brink of making love to him again, made her see that no matter how much she enjoyed snuggling, there was really no comparison. She arched her back as his kisses trailed down over her chest to her breasts, his tongue swirling over her nipples before moving down over her stomach and dipping into her belly button, making her moan. She could feel his hands sliding between her thighs to part her legs as he kissed down from her navel. "Nick..."
He looked up, "You want me to stop?"
"Yes... I need to feel you inside me. Now." she said, reaching for him to pull him back up to kiss him again.
He moved quickly up her body, his lips meeting hers as he positioned himself and slowly thrust into her. He moaned in the kiss as her wet velvet walls tightened around him. He began moving against her, his tongue continuing to fight sensuously with hers. It seemed like it had been forever, since he'd felt her like this. He hadn't minded waiting until she was ready- but now that he remembered exactly what he'd been missing- he was extremely happy the wait was over.
Kerry wrapped her arms and legs around him, holding him as close to her as possible. Her hands wandered down his back, feeling his muscles move as he slid in and out of her. She cupped his ass, trying to draw him in deeper, hold him closer. "I love you", she whispered as his broke the kiss and dropped his head to kiss across her neck.
His kisses moved up under her ear, and he spoke softly to her, "I love you, too. I love feeling you like this, wrapped all around me, holding me, I wish I could keep you like this forever, never have to let you go..."
Her lips skimmed over his cheek, "You don't have to let me go, ever." She raised her hips, beginning to meet his thrusts. She wiggled around underneath him, "I wanna try something..." she said quietly, pushing him to roll over.
Nick rolled onto his back, letting her take control. His hands went to her breasts, squeezing them, brushing his thumbs over her nipples. He moved his hands down her sides, tracing over her curves, and rested them on her hips as she settled herself on him and began moving- rocking against him. He smiled as he watched her, eyes closed, lips slightly parted- little whimpers and soft moans escaping, her hands roaming across his chest. His hands slipped around her hips, to lightly grab her ass.
Kerry started thrusting a little faster on him, finding that if she moved just so her clit would brush over his cock and send shocks of pleasure jolting through her. She leaned down onto him, wanting to feel his arms around her again. She ground her hips against his and clenched her muscles around his cock as she felt her climax beginning to build.
Feeling her chest rubbing against his and her beginning to tighten around him was making Nick crazy very quickly. He started thrusting up under her, groaning softly.
Kerry raised back up, going back to her previous position of being able to rub her clit against him and began moving faster, as she felt her orgasm about to explode. She grabbed Nick's hands and held them above his head as she felt all her muscles tense up and shuddered as her release overtook her body.
Nick came with her, moaning her name, emptying himself into her as her walls gripped him over and over. He let go of her hands, sliding them up her arms to her shoulders, and pulled her down, hugging her to his chest.
She moved up a little to kiss him, but not enough to allow him to slide out of her. She liked the feeling of having him inside her, whether they were doing anything or not, just having him be a part of her in some way. "I love you."
"I love you too.. and whatever gave you the idea to try that." Nick replied, smiling.
Kerry giggled softly, "Well, you know, this is my worry-free phase of life.. thought I'd try something new to celebrate."
"The worry-free phase... I like that, we're gonna have to keep it that way." he said, kissing her lightly.
"As long as I have you to help me, I see very good chances for that." She slipped her arms under his neck and hugged him tightly.
He looked out the window, and saw the sun beginning to drop in the sky, and got an idea. "Let's go outside and watch the sunset."
"Sounds good." Kerry kissed him again and got off him, and went to their luggage to find her swimming suit to slip on and tossed Nick's his when she came to it.
They dressed and walked out onto the sand, and sat right where the water came rushing up around them, washing over their feet. They sat in silence for a long time, each lost in their own thoughts watching the sunset sinking into the water.
After a while Kerry spoke, her voice quiet and somber, "When I found out I was pregnant, I wrote a letter that was intended to be an apology to my child for what I was going to do... I put it in a bottle and tossed it off the end of the pier, the whole fanciful notion of the message in a bottle just seemed appropriate at the time-something cutesy in the middle of a mess. I sat there on the pier all night, thinking about it.. what I'd just written and who'd find it... and by the time I finally went home, I'd changed my mind... because I couldn't stop thinking about what the person that found the letter might think. Sitting here watching the water made me wonder about it.. where it ended up, if anyone found it, if they could tell how desparate I was... I hadn't thought about that in a long time."
Nick listened to her and when she finished, turned to look at her, little tears trickling down her cheeks. He moved to sit behind her, wrapping his arms around her and put his chin on her shoulder. "What was it you were going to do?" he asked softly. He thought he had a pretty good idea, but didn't want to assume and be wrong.
Kerry didn't answer him right away, but finally said, "I was going to have an abortion."
He'd been right. He thought for a moment, not being able to picture his life without Miah now- her giggles, watching tv with her on his lap, the tea parties, tucking her in a night, hearing her call him daddy. He hugged her tighter, "Why were you going to?"
She leaned back against him, glad he hadn't freaked out when she started talking about this. "I was sixteen, I wasn't ready for a baby. I didn't think I could handle it, didn't want to bring a kid into the mess of a life I had then."
"Do you think you made the right decision?" he asked.
"I know I did now. I wasn't so sure for a while. It was so hard when she was really small. But looking back I know it was the right thing. I don't think I'd be alive if it wasn't for her - there were alot of times I wanted to kill myself, but wouldn't because of her, I didn't want her to not know her mother, and for my parents to have to raise their grandchild. I can't imagine what things would be like if I didn't have her now though." She turned her head to kiss his cheek. "And I probably wouldn't have met you if it wasn't for her. I seriously doubt I would have been hanging out at the park that day if I didn't have a kid to entertain."
Nick's grip on her tightened again when she was talking about wanting to kill herself. He didn't even want to think about not having her. When she turned to kiss his cheek, he dipped her to the side a little so when she finished talking he could give her a real kiss. "I'm glad you didn't do it... I don't know what I'd do without either one of you."
Kerry wiped her eyes and said, "I'd never told anyone about that before. The letter or that I'd thought about that."
"Thank you for telling me. I want you to be able to tell me anything." he said, lightly running his hand up and down her arms.
"I feel like I can. And I want to, I don't want to have any secrets from you." Kerry whispered.
Nick hugged her and asked, "Wanna give that champagne a try?"
"Sure, bring it on." she smiled.
"I'll get it," he said, getting up and going into the villa. He first went to his bag, digging into the deep inside pocket, retrieving the black velvet box from inside. He flipped it open, glancing again at the ring. He thought it was beautiful, and couldn't wait to see what it would look like on Kerry's hand. He and Haley had both seen it at the same time, and agreed it would be perfect for her. He took the ring out of the box, slipped it in his pocket, and went to get the champagne. He poured two glasses and went back outside. He stopped in the doorway, and looked at the scene in front of him. Kerry was sitting in the same spot, but the sun had dropped completely out of the sky, leaving only traces of indigo against the darkening star-filled sky. The rising moon danced off the calm water and illuminated everything with a soft silvery glow. He couldn't have planned a more perfect setting if he'd tried. He walked up behind her, taking the same position he'd been in before, sitting behind her, arms around her, chin on her shoulder. He handed her the glass of champagne and asked what she'd been thinking about.
She took a sip of the champagne and replied, "How lucky I am... to be alive... to be here... have Miah... and to have you, my very own Prince Charming."
Nick kissed the back of her neck, and put his glass in the sand. He patted his pocket, and reached for the ring as he stood up and moved around in front of Kerry. He knelt on one knee in front of her, and said, "Prince Charming wouldn't be complete without his Cinderella.. I love you, Kerry.... will you marry me?"
"Ohmygod" she breathed, staring wide-eyed at him. As soon as his question actually registered, she shrieked, "YES!"
Nick smiled and grabbed her left hand, sliding the ring on her finger. He pulled her into a tight hug, his lips brushing against hers in a tender kiss. "Now everything is perfect."
Kerry gently pushed him over into the tiny waves lapping at the shore, and straddled his waist. She leaned down to trace his lips with the tip of her tongue and kissed him deeply. After a while she pulled away to catch her breath, and say, "I love you... it really is perfect.. because you make it that way."
Nick put his hands either side of her face and brought her lips to his again. "I don't do anything by myself, what makes it perfect is us being together."
She got up off him, and led him over to the hammock. Nick lay down and Kerry lay on top him, and asked, "So, is this when happily ever after begins?"
He wrapped his arms around her, and replied, "It already has. All we have to do now is enjoy it."