grabbed my hand and brought me to the sliding door and out onto the patio. There were several seating areas and a large firepit along with an infinity pool that backed up to the ocean’s edge. From there, a dock ran along the side of the property with a large black boat tied to it. The color alone made me assume it was Caleb’s, as his entire Boston home was decorated in the same shade.
“Florida looks gorgeous on you,” he said.
A blush moved across my cheeks as our eyes met again, and it definitely wasn’t from the heat. “I can’t believe this is all yours. It feels like we’re on our own island.”
He surrounded my face, his lips hovering over me. “I’m going to show you the world, places even more beautiful than here.” When he kissed me, there was a dominance in his movements, an intensity that dragged me even closer. “And I can’t wait to watch you smile each time.”
“Caleb, this smile has nothing to do with Florida. It’s all because of you, the happiness you make me feel.”
His hands lowered until they were on my ass, and he lifted me into the air, as though I were weightless, wrapping my legs around his waist. “Let’s get you in a bathing suit. It’s time to tan this pasty New England skin.”
I laughed, circling my arms over his shoulders, and kissed him as he carried me inside, unable to go another second without the feel of his mouth on mine.
“This is unreal,” I moaned as the blackened grouper hit my tongue. I dipped my fork into the creamy risotto and added that in as well. “And it just keeps getting better with each bite.”
“Florida has some exceptional fish,” Caleb said, watching me.
This was our second evening here, and after eating at his favorite restaurant last night, he had hired a private chef to cook for us tonight, enjoying the meal on his patio. The setting sun was dancing across the ocean, the color reflecting the brilliance of the sky. The clouds were thin whispers cast in a baby-pink backdrop, mixed with magenta, a fall orange, and highlighter yellow. After each mouthful, I found myself looking up at it, seeing something new each time.
“You were made to live in the sun,” Caleb said, holding his wine, a lazy smile spreading across that handsome face.
The humidity was strong. Instead of fighting it, I’d let my hair air-dry after the shower; my natural curls that I always straightened were lying in waves across my back. The maxi dress showed the tan lines I’d earned from our afternoon of parasailing, my cheeks so sun-kissed that I hadn’t added more than a little mascara and gloss to my face.
“I do love it,” I answered, “and living somewhere warm all the time would be wonderful, but I have to admit something …” I wiped the corners of my mouth before I continued, “Growing up, I never wanted to stay in Vermont, and whenever I go home to visit, I can’t fall asleep unless there’s noise blaring in the background, like the honking and ambulances I hear from our apartment.”
“Downtown Tampa has similar sounds.”
I shook my head. “I want to see the world more than anything. I want to taste my way through each country. That’s my passion, my dream. But my heart belongs to Boston; it’s the only place I’ve ever wanted to live.” I thought of the hallways I ran down each shift, patients still recuperating from that horrific day. “It has a lot of healing to do, and it needs my help.” My voice lowered. “It needs all of us.”
He reached across the table, the weight of his fingers landing on me. “I’m one lucky son of a bitch to be able to call you mine.”
We’d never had that conversation, but we didn’t need to. This moment belonged to Caleb, and so did I.
“I’m the lucky one.”
His thumb rubbed across the back of my palm. “When our eyes connected at that bar, I knew.” His stare was reaching through me, the same way it had that day. “We don’t have years of history between us, and there’s still so much we need to learn about each other, but forever is a word that has been haunting me since we met.”
My chest pounded with emotion. “That day was fate.” I took a breath. “I believe that, Caleb, and I believe in forever too.”
I didn’t know what the future would look like. Most of my