Total pages in book: 26
Estimated words: 24119 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 121(@200wpm)___ 96(@250wpm)___ 80(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 24119 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 121(@200wpm)___ 96(@250wpm)___ 80(@300wpm)
“I had an amazing time here with you,” I say as I kiss her temple.
She smiles warmly as she holds me tight. “I did too. On to the next adventure.”
With this wild woman, life is always an adventure.
We’re both sad to leave as we watch the speedboat approaching, but it’s better this way. We have a child to think about now and a desert island is no place to raise a kid.
The plane crumples in on itself as the flames consume it. I smile as I think about my grandfather looking down at us, knowing he was right all along.
That plane took me exactly where I needed to go—right to this amazing girl who’s perfect for me.
“Thanks, Gramps,” I whisper.
Wendy looks at me with a smile. “What was that?”
I smile as I gaze into her stunning green eyes. “Nothing. I’m just thankful for this whole experience. I wouldn’t change any of it.”
She holds me tight. “Neither would I.”
And just like that, the boat arrives and three cruise ship workers jump out to get us.
Our hidden oasis is no longer hidden, but that’s okay. We’re going home. Together.
And anywhere with Wendy is paradise to me.
EPILOGUE
Wendy
* * *
Twenty-seven years later…
* * *
“I think it’s time to move back to the beach,” Ethan says as he hands me a slushy margarita. I grin as I look him up and down in his bathing suit. He’s still as gorgeous as ever. Maybe even more so. The man is aging like a fine wine.
“What do you think about that?” he asks as he sits in the beach chair next to me and sips on his drink.
I inhale the warm ocean air as I watch our kids playing in the waves. They’re not so small anymore. Our youngest of the four is turning eighteen next month and she’ll be starting college in the fall. Our other three are already there, so the house has been pretty empty.
We took them down to Hawaii on vacation before everyone splits up again and goes off, doing their own thing. Henry is studying in London, Daniel is in Montreal, Ivy is in Seattle, Arya will be going to Austin, and we’re living outside of Chicago. I hate that we’re all spread out like this, but maybe if we have a place on the beach, we’ll entice them to come and visit more.
Ethan and I have always talked about moving away from it all and buying a house on the beach somewhere in the Caribbean when the kids have all moved out. It’s just hard to realize that the time is here. Arya will be gone by the end of August and it will be just Ethan and I left.
“Do you think we’re too old for it now?” I ask with a grin.
He frowns at me. “You’re as sexy as the day I met you.”
“I’ve had four kids, you know,” I say as I watch them playing in the big Hawaiian waves. “They cause some wear and tear.”
“Stop,” he says as his heated eyes narrow on me. “Don’t make me ravage you to show you how drop-dead sexy you are.”
“Save that energy for later,” I say with a grin as I put the straw in my mouth and I take a big sip.
We smile as we watch the kids. Henry tries to stand on the surfboard and lasts about half a second before he falls off with his feet in the air.
“I’m going to miss this,” I say with a sniff. Ethan reaches out and squeezes my hand.
“I loved making a family with you,” he says as he looks at me with those sexy brown eyes. Even after all these years, they still get me every time. “But now… it’s our time again.”
I raise my eyebrows.
“Let’s buy a place on a secluded beach,” he says in that deep rich voice. “A little hidden oasis, only this time we’ll have electricity and plumbing.”
“Definitely need those,” I say with a laugh. “I’m too old to go without the luxuries this time.”
“We’ll find one with a hidden lagoon nearby and a white sand beach. Palm trees. Turquoise water. It will be just like our time on the island, only we’ll have a fridge and a nice comfy bed. The best of both worlds.”
I feel the excitement building inside as he plans it all out.