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He held my hand on the plane. He held my hand in the lobby of the hotel as we patiently waited to be checked in. He even held my hand as we entered our hotel suite together. He’s been holding my hand all day, and he’s still holding my hand as we stroll seventeen thousand feet above the ground below at Lovers Leap in Jamaica.
When I looked over at my husband and cracked an uneven smile, he grinned back at me and asked, “Katie, why are you looking at me like that?”
I walked beside Eric admiring his perfectness. I guess I’m still in the honeymoon stage because I just can’t seem to keep my eyes, or my hands, off him.
Eric is a picture-perfect specimen from the top of his short black mane, to his oiled abs, all the way down to the bottom of his feet. I looked down at his manicured toes that were peeking through his Prada flip-flops. I quickly thought, I never knew Eric had a pair of Prada flip-flops.
“What’s on your mind, Katie?” He snapped me out of my sequestered thoughts of him.
“Nothing in particular; just enjoying this beautiful scenery here with you.” Eric smiled and looked down at the beige sand under our feet.
“So, Eric, what’s on your mind?”
He answered, “My mind is always on you.” He then nudged my shoulder. Before I could respond, he ran off into the short distance ahead of us.
I questioned him as I giggle aloud. “Eric . . . What are you doing?” He didn’t answer me. I call for him again. “Eric? . . .” He walked back over to me with a flower of some sort in his hand. I hope it’s not poison ivy.
“This is for you.” I smiled when he handed it to me. “They call this flower Hibiscus. It’s a genus flowering plant in the mallow family, Malvaceae.”
I looked up at him. “How did you know that?”
He looked right into my eyes when he says, “I know a beautiful rarity when I see it.”
I wanted to melt right here in front of my husband from his soft words.
“Why don’t you put this right . . .” Eric took the flower from my fingertips and placed the stem behind my ear. “Here.” He adjusted it a little. “It’s perfect.” He then kissed my lips ever so gently. I wasn’t sure how long the kiss lasted because I was no longer present. I was swept away by Eric’s romance. This must be what heaven feels like.
He grabbed my hand, locked his fingers with mine, and restarted our walk. Our arms swung in-between us as the afternoon glow painted our bodies.
“Eric, where do you see us in say . . . five years?” I don’t know where that question came from.
He surprised me when he said, “I don’t think about the future . . . I live in the moment. We can’t control the future no matter how hard we try, so why waste any time or energy trying? Planning for a future that we may never see is a setup for failure.”
Eric suddenly seemed distant, almost as if he was talking to himself. Not only talking to himself but in another world all by himself. “I live in the moment. I don’t plan. I don’t set aside. I don’t save for a rainy day. I just live.” He looked at me. “Everything happens for a reason.” He looked away from me. “Everything happens just when and how it is supposed to happen.”
I asked, “Do you think we were supposed to just happen? Do you think we were meant to be?”
He gave me the oddest look when he said, “Like I said, Katie . . . everything happens for a reason. You and I were meant to be together, so we’re together. I chose you, so here we are.”
Did he choose me? What he should’ve said was I chose to let him have me, but I didn’t want to mess up the mood with that small technicality.
I rubbed his hairy arm when I said, “I love you, Eric.”
He looked at me as he speaks. “Katie, you mean the world to me. Regardless of what happens in our lives, I love you, and I thank you for becoming my wife.” He lightly caressed the side of my face. “I gave you this flower because it reminds me of you: Beautiful and fair, alone in a patch full of thorns waiting to be rescued at just the right moment. Like that flower, I could’ve searched high and low to find you, but until the timing was right . . . until the stars lined up in the galaxy at the appropriate moment, you would’ve been next to impossible to find. But I did find you, and I’m grateful.” Water started to roll down his cheeks. “Katie, I want to spend the time I have left on this earth, making you happy. All I can do is pray you’ll allow me to. Accept me and all my flaws; have me as more than just your husband, baby. I want to be your best friend.” He dropped down to his knees in front of me and latched onto the lower part of my body.
I didn’t know what to make of this. My husband was showing me yet another side of him. A side I had never seen before. He was so vulnerable, sensitive, and even defenseless at this moment. Who was this man latched onto my legs? Eric was usually so strong and in control, but not today. Today, he surrendered himself to me.
Right here on the island, Eric and I shared a moment that I wished would last forever . . .
Four Days Later . . .
I sat silently in the backseat of the Uber that picked me up from the airport. The flight from Jamaica was exhausting. Or maybe I’m just exhausted. Besides all the sightseeing and shopping, Eric and I made love in every inch of our hotel suite. Eric and I made love in every inch of our hotel! In the steam room. In the shower off the beach. On the beach. In the lobby. I’m so glad we didn’t get caught in the lobby. I watch enough Locked Up Abroad to know I would never want to be locked up abroad, especially if it meant being separated from my husband. No thank-you! But, of course, I am separated from him. As soon as our plane touched back down in Baltimore, he whisked me into an Uber right before he jumped into another one that headed in the opposite direction. The last thing I remember Eric saying to me was he had to take care of some business and promised he’d be home tonight.
Maybe I’ll make him a big dinner and prepare all his favorites. And then I’ll serve his favorite dessert: Katie A La Carte.
“Right here, driver!” If he kept his eyes on the road and out of the rearview mirror to look at my cleavage, he wouldn’t have almost passed . . . my . . . What the . . . Whose truck is that in my driveway?
I hopped out of the car the second the driver stopped. I didn’t bother tipping him. Eric already took care of that, so I wasn’t giving him another penny.
When I got out of the smelly Mazda, I ran up the driveway. A brand-new black Range Rover was sitting there with a big red bow on top. I thought this must be a mistake as I searched in my bag for my cell phone to call Eric. Just as his name flashed across my screen with calling printed underneath, our front door swung open. It was Eric. He was inside the house. He made it here before I did, and in enough time to change clothes because he was wearing a totally different outfit from when I left him at the airport.
Before I could walk up to him, he headed toward me. “You like?”
“Eric, I don’t understand. What is this?”
“Just say you like it . . . It’s yours.”
“Eric, what-what did you do? You didn’t have to do this.”
“Katie, I know these past few months haven’t been easy for you.”
I wanted to shout they sure haven’t been.
“This gift is just my way of saying thank you for sticking by me and not giving up on us.”
“Eric, I—”
“Katie, I’m not finished.” What came out of his mouth next was unexpected. “I want you to promise me, Katie. Promise me you’ll never leave me.”
I froze. I didn’t know what to say. I wasn’t planning on leaving Eric. Well, there was that time I threatened to call Daddy to come and rescue me, but I didn’t make the call. I didn’t leave my husband that night, and I’m not going to leave him now. I love Eric, and I love our life together. Sure, things can get a little rocky at times, but we get through it.
“Forever, Katie.” There he goes again. “Promise me we’ll be together forever.”
Eric was scaring me. His eyes were scaring me. He looked at me almost the same as he did when we were in Jamaica at Lovers Leap right before he burst out into tears.
“Please, Katie.”
He seemed to be shivering. And is he crying again? I didn’t know what to say. I was at a complete loss, so I just threw my arms around him. I held my breath until he wrapped his strong arms around me. He is shivering. And yes, he is crying again. I eased back and looked up into his red eyes.
“Eric, what is it?”
“I don’t want to lose you, Katie. I couldn’t live without you.”
“Eric, you will never lose me.”
“Then promise me, Katie. Please, just promise me.”
“I-I promise, Eric. I promise I’ll never leave you.” There, I said it. I said what he wanted me to say right here outside for the world to see. Well, for our neighbors to see that is. I hope none of them are watching.
Eric looked at me. His eyes widen. His face lit up with a smile. His tears seemed to be controlled because they were coming to an end.
“What . . . what did you say, Katie?”
“I said, I promise. I will never leave you. No matter what happens. No matter what we face, Eric, I will always be with you.”
I meant those words. I wouldn’t leave Eric. I never actually planned on leaving no matter how many times I told myself I would. I love my husband with all my heart.
“Thank you, Katie . . . You have just made me the happiest man on earth!”
He picked me up and swung me around in his arms. We cried, laughed, hugged, and kissed all at once. We were together now forever. After all, I promised. I promised, and I meant it . . .