Captiva Ever After (Captiva Island Series #7)

The soft music played as she moved her hands over the water, creating swirls with the bubbles. She’d done this many times before back home and looked forward to doing it again when she returned to Captiva.

She played the speech she would give over in her mind and knew that she had to deliver it tonight before she changed her mind.

Christopher would be home in an hour, and the closer the clock ticked to six o’clock, the more resolved she became.

Over these last months, Becca had searched her soul to understand what it was that worried her so, but no answers would come. She’d finally made up her mind about what she should do. With the wedding only a few weeks away, something drastic needed to happen.

“Honey, I’m home,” Christopher yelled out in his best Ricky Ricardo accent.

“Up here,” Becca answered.

“I’m sorry, but I can’t come in if you’re in the tub. I’ll stay right here at the door and we can talk that way. So, I’ll go first. My day was wonderful, thanks for asking. And now, my love…how was your day?”

Hoping to hit Christopher, Becca threw a loofah at the door. “My day was stressful as always. That’s why I’m in here. I’m anxious and tired.”

“Ah, so what you’re saying is that you’re hiding from me and the world and plan to stay under the bubbles?”

“Pretty much,” Becca responded.

“Okay, but how will I feed myself?”

Becca laughed. “Be patient. I’ll be down in a bit. I just need a few more minutes of quiet time.”

“I think I can handle that. Would you care for a glass of wine?”

“Yes, that would be great.”

“Okay. See you downstairs.”

By the time Becca reached the living room, Christopher had started a fire and dimmed the lights. Two glasses of wine sat on top of the coffee table and Christopher was sprawled out on the sofa, in his pajamas.

“I see you’ve chosen a similar attire. Nice jammies.”

“Thanks.”

Becca joined him on the sofa and picked up her glass, looking at the fire through the light yellow liquid. Christopher massaged her back and Becca took a deep breath waiting for the words to come.

“What’s up, buttercup? You seem pensive tonight. Rough day at the hospital?”

Becca turned to face him. “Chris, I’ve been struggling lately with everything. Work, school and…and the wedding.”

“The wedding? You mean the whole dress thing? I thought you and Beth were working that out.”

Becca shook her head. “No, it’s not the dress…I mean, it is the dress, and the hurricane and all these people who we invited aren’t coming for one reason or another. I’m sure the damage on the island must have bothered people, but…I don’t know. To be honest, I don’t even care about that. If I was absolutely certain about everything, I wouldn’t care if it was just the two of us.”

Chris sat up straight and looked her in the eyes. “If? What do you mean if? I thought we’d worked through all this months ago. I didn’t think that you still had doubts about us.”

“No. Not us. I love you more than life and I want to grow old with you. I’m confused, that’s all.”

“If you want to grow old with me, then what exactly is confusing you?”

“I don’t know. All I know is that something doesn’t feel right. You and I together for the rest of our lives feels right, but there’s something missing and I don’t know what that something is. I’m done with classes and tests this year. I think I need to go home.”

“Your home is here, with me,” he said.

“I mean I need to go home to Captiva Island.”

“For how long?”