“That sounds good to me,” she whispered and they shared a lingering kiss.
Her stomach growled and it made them both laugh. He got up and walked toward the door. “I’ll go see about your breakfast, honey.”
“Okay,” she answered.
She watched the man she loved walk out the door with the knowledge that he was coming back to her. She looked down at Grayson who opened his eyes and yawned before staring up at her. She knew they said babies couldn’t really see for the first two weeks or so, but Marie was sure that he focused on her face, looking into her eyes. This was the new love of her life and he shared that special place in her heart with his father.
“Oh, my sweet boy, you changed me for the better and made us a family,” Marie said softly and kissed his head. She could smell the sweet baby scent of him and that was the balm that healed any and all scars and doubts she ever had in her life. All she had gone through was on that path that led directly to this perfect moment in time. With the man she loved and the baby in her arms.
In Kaneohe Bay, where the Marine Corp Base sat in Hawaii, two things happened. One, the Corp welcomed the Light Attack Helicopter unit aptly named Scarface to the base. Second, Brody and Rafe moved their families to Hawaii.
Marie sat on the beach on a large blanket with the sun warming her face. Beside her Ivy sat with her four month old twins Nicholas and Nicola in their double bouncy seat. Rafe was swinging Bonnie high over the surf and her squeals of happiness filled the air. Brody was in the middle of a beach football game with some of the men of their unit and the mood was light. Marie made sure that Grayson’s hat covered his head and that the two umbrellas they had stuck in the sand kept the sun off the children. It was all so beautiful one could almost forget how harsh the sun could be, especially on children’s skin.
The air smelled sweet of exotic plants and fertile soil. In the distance, you could hear the drums and music from a luau. Their homes were close enough to a resort that on their first week there, Grandma watched the kids while they danced the night away. Marie knew it was a good choice to move to Hawaii. It could have been easy for the men in their lives to move back and forth between the sun and surf to Maryland, but Brody and Rafe both wanted their families close by. It worked out so well that both Ivy and Marie were able to transfer to Naval Health Clinic. They started work only a few weeks after arriving, even though they had thought there might be a few months waiting until positions opened up. All in all, things were blissful and they were content.
Brody ran up to them, shirtless and his feet covered in sand and sat beside Marie, smacking a kiss on her cheek. “How are my two favorite people in the world?”
Grayson let out a happy squeal and held out his chubby hands to his daddy. Brody scooped him out of his mother’s arms and lay back in the sand, lifting Grayson over his head.
“He wants to play football too. Don’t you, big boy?” Brody said.
“No, he gets to sit here with mom for a while longer until he can walk and talk,” Marie said with a laugh.
“Hey, can you watch the twins for a minute? I want to go get my feet wet in the surf with Bonnie and Rafe,” Ivy said.
“Sure, go ahead, the twins are both sleeping. I’ll wave if they wake up and want something to eat,” Marie said.
She watched Ivy run down the beach and Rafe wrapped one hand around her waist while he had Bonnie lifted in the other. He kissed Ivy as they walked into the surf.
“Are you happy?” Brody kissed her shoulder and bit the string of her bikini. “I so want to take this off you.”
“Later you can be as bad as you want,” Marie purred. “To answer your question, yes, I am so happy I could burst for it. I love you, I love our home and this place.”
“Good, now let’s go home and make another baby.” Brody give her a sexy grin.
She gave him a look. “How about not until he is potty trained and old enough to feed himself?”
“I guy can hope,” he said.
“There’s no hope necessary. We’ll have more kids eventually and enjoy making each one,” Marie replied.
“Did I mention I love the heck out of you?” Brody said.
“I’ll never get tired of hearing it.” Marie kissed him gently. “Now, take your son and sit in the surf with him, let him get his feet wet.”
“Okay, honey.”
She smiled, watching Brody walk off down the beach with Grayson in his arms. Those were her boys, her life, and her dreams all wrapped up in one. Ivy’s twins made a sound and she looked over at the wonderfully cute sleeping cherubs.
Maybe one or two more,
she mused with a smile. There was so much love between her and Brody, it was more than enough to share.
The End