Page 19 of The Biker's Second Chance
But I’m joking, slipping into the easy banter we’ve always shared. Whatever happens between us, my time with Sean has always been the best time in my life. When I've felt the most awake, the most alive.
Not knowing if I'm leading myself to more heartbreak, I get on the back of the bike.
As we head out of town, I slide my arms around Sean’s waist and hold him tight. It feels too good, and I lean my head against the back of him. Even if it's the last time I do it, I vow I will enjoy this ride.
We take the Pacific Highway, and this time we go up the coast. There's a little bay we used to come to when we were together. We used to dream about owning one of the cottages there. The perfect place to start a family, close to the ocean and close to the road, the two things that the both of us love.
We turn in there now, and Sean slows the bike.
There's a row of houses along the beach, and we pull up in front of one that has a for sale sign out front.
“Come on.” He slides off the bike. “The real estate agent told me where to find the key.”
“You've already looked at this?”
A kernel of excitement unfurls in my stomach. Why is Sean showing me this house?
“Stop asking questions, Gina. Just come with me and tell me if you like it.”
I already know I like it. It’s perfect. My dream home, with a white brick wall out front and large shady orange trees in the garden. Honeybees buzz around a bright flower garden, and the scent of lavender hangs on the air.
Sean squeezes my hand as he walks me up to the front porch. He takes a key from under a potted plant and lets us in.
Polished wooden floorboards run all the way to an open plan living room and kitchen area, with French doors that lead out the back of the house to a large deck and backyard. Beyond the yard, there’s a path through the trees that leads to the sand dunes and ocean beyond.
I always wanted to live by the seaside. I can see us living here. A big yard for the kids, a walk to the beach. My heart’s racing with excitement, and I need some answers.
“Why are you showing me this place?”
“I’m thinking about buying it.”
“You can't be serious.”
“I’ve never been more serious. Do you like it, Gina? Could you live here?”
We’re on the deck now and I grab hold of a wooden chair, needing to ground myself.
I can imagine what it would be like watching our kids play in the garden. Coming back from the beach sunburned with salt on our skin.
“It's like we always dreamed about. A little cottage by the ocean. Just you and me. And our ten children.”
I snort laugh and turn to face him, ready to make some smartass remark, but my voice catches in my throat. Sean’s down on one knee, holding up a little box.
“Gina, we've wasted too much time and I don't intend to waste another minute. Will you marry me?”
He tilts the box up, and it's the most beautiful ring I've ever seen. A string of blood red rubies with a diamond in the center. But it's not the ring I care about. It's the man that's holding it. The man that my heart sings for, the man I never stopped loving.
The man who broke me once but still is everything to me. The man who has the power to give me everything I've ever wanted. A family, the house, but the most important thing is him. Only we’re not young anymore. Things are different now.
“I’ll be thirty-four next month, Sean. I don't know if I can still give you children.”
I twist my hands nervously, not wanting to look at him. “A woman’s fertility tapers off; it might be too late…”
Sean shakes his head, exasperated.
“Gina. You’re all I need. Of course, I'd love to have a family with you. But you, just you, are enough.”
Tears sting my eyes, and my heart opens. I think about Sean and me when we were younger, how much in love we were. I think about the loss of the baby and the heartache and loneliness of the last seven years. And I think about the last few days, and how my body and soul have felt alive in a way that I had forgotten they could, in a way that I never thought I'd feel again.
