It's About Time (Hunt Family #5) (14 page)

Chapter 19

Evan and I talked to his mom for a little while before we decided to go down to the beach. Cupcake wanted to come, but we left her at the house because I knew she'd be excited about her first visit to the ocean, and I didn't feel like keeping up with her.

There was a huge deck extending off of the backside of the house. It was accessible from the first story, which meant it was set up on pillars like the rest of the house. A straight, wooden staircase led from the deck to the sandy path below that took you to the beach. Evan led me across the deck and down the staircase for our much-anticipated walk.

"This all needs to be pressure washed and stained," he said, gesturing to the rail as we walked down the stairs.

It had been a few minutes since he first mentioned the idea of buying the house, and I was still having trouble letting the idea sink in. The thought of being responsible for this grand place was inconceivable to a girl like me who grew up with her mom in a tiny, two-bedroom house.

"How in the world would you afford a place like this?" I asked since it was the main worry on my mind.

He put his arm around me. "Honestly, it's a lot for me to take on while I'm trying to get a restaurant off the ground. I would basically be buying my aunt and uncle out," he said. "My mom and dad want me to have it, and they're willing to wait on their piece until I can afford to give it to them. Plus, Dee-dee and the other two are being really fair with the price since they'd all like to see it maintained. I'm not sure about the timing, but I figure it's best to consider it while everyone else is on board with making it happen. It's a cool place, and it's almost too good to pass up."

He took my hand, and we walked down the path toward the beach. It was windy and the closer we got the more I could smell and hear the ocean. I tried to imagine this being my backyard, and let out a little uncontrollable laugh at the thought.

"What?" he asked.

"It's just a lot to think about," I said.

"I obviously have some money saved, otherwise I couldn't even think about something like this, but I'll be honest, it might be a little tight for a while. Between the restaurant and the house, we might be eating ramen for a couple of years." He glanced at me as we walked, and I smiled at him.

"I know how to make biscuits," I said. "They're cheap. Plus, I'd be working. Don't forget about that."

He smiled and abandoned holding my hand in favor of putting his arm around me. "I feel like I should go ahead and disclose something else," he said, cringing like he thought it might be some kind of deal-breaker.

"Termites?" I asked, making him laugh.

"No."

"Hurricanes?"

"No."

"Bad neighbors?"

He laughed again. "No."

"Hit me."

"The family visits probably won't be limited to one week out of the year. I think each of the families, maybe all but the California crew, are accustomed to visiting the house a time or two on their own during the year."

"You're saying if we live here, then the members of your family are going to come visit us?"

He nodded. "They'll probably want to stay here, too." He shook his head. "It shouldn't be that big of a deal, though. It's not like it's all the time."

I laughed.

"What?"

"You're saying the people we just had dinner with will be coming to see us every once in a while."

"Yes," he said, seriously as if waiting for my reaction. He shrugged. "It's part of the reason I'm getting a good price on the house. They sort of think they can some spend the weekend once or twice a year. I know Cody and Paige do for sure."

I glanced at him and I could tell he was actually concerned. "Evan, I
love
your family," I explained. "The idea that they'd come visit us only makes me more okay with moving here. Oh my goodness," I said, coming to a stop once we were on the shore. With all the talk of buying the house, I hadn't been able to appreciate the breathtaking expanse of water in front of me. It was amazingly beautiful, and I took a deep breath in, feeling like my lungs were better off for having a little salt-air in them. "It's a lot to think about," I said. I paused and gestured around me. "But who wouldn't want to live here if given the chance, right?"

We were both quiet for a minute before I said, "I love your family. Please don't ever feel like I wouldn't want them around. If anything, I'm the new girl, and they're tolerating having
me
around."

"Not when you're the lady of the house," he said, pulling me into his arms. I turned into him so his body would block the wind coming off of the ocean. His hair was pulled back, but little wisps of it flew wildly in the wind all around his face.
Had he just called me the lady of a house? And if so, had he been referring to this house? What kind of backwards world were we living in?
I stared up at his scar, wondering if God had used that accident to bring us to this—to bring him to me.

"My mom will probably want to visit quite a bit, too," I said. "She might even end up selling her house and moving here once she sees this," I gestured at the ocean, and absentmindedly shook my head at its magnificence.

"I figured it might come to that," he said, "which will be good since before too long we might be needing a babysitter."

"Evan Hunt, you're saying all sorts of stuff I'm gonna wish I could hear all over again."

"Then, I'll just say it again," he said wearing his confident smile as he stared down at me. "What you need me to say? That I love you and I want to have babies? That I want to buy you this house because it's the best thing I can think of buying you?" He paused and smiled at me. "Just ask me when you want to hear me say it again, and I will." He shrugged. "I might not get it word-for-word, but I'll get close."

"How close?" I asked, smiling up at him as he held me around the waist.

"You want me to try again?" he asked.

I nodded. "I want to buy you this house, Annabel, because it feels right. You feel right. I'm pretty sure we're gonna live here and have babies, and your mom will probably end up babysitting like I said."

I giggled at the feeling of pure joy that came over me. "Evan, this is crazy," I said, staring up at him.

He tilted his head at me. "Really?"

"Yes, really. This is the last conversation I planned on having with you when I drove over here today."

"Is it okay?" he asked.

"Yes, it's okay," I said, smiling and shaking my head. "It's just crazy. I feel like I'm in some sort of crazy dream world."

"It's a pretty good backyard isn't it?"

"Are you kidding me?" I asked. "I haven't even fully taken it in because my brain's going haywire on other stuff."

"Like picking up your life and moving to the beach with me?"

I smiled. "Yep," I said. "Like that."

"Like marrying me and making babies and stuff?" he asked, smirking at me.

"Yep," I said, my heart pounding in my chest. "Stuff like that."

He turned with me in his arms and then positioned me with my back to his chest again so I could stare out at the water. I turned so that my cheek rested on his chest and closed my eyes as the breeze hit my face. It felt as close to Heaven as I'd ever been.

"I'm gonna give you a minute to look out at it, and then I'm gonna turn you around and kiss you like I've been wanting to kiss you for weeks. Then after that, I'm gonna ask you again if you want to get married and run away with me to Myrtle Beach."

"All that stuff's gonna make it impossible for me to say 'no'," I said.

His chest shook as he laughed. "That's the idea."

"Then, I should just go ahead and say 'yes' if you're gonna make it so hard for me."

He made a disapproving clicking sound. "Don't say 'yes' yet," he said.

"Why not?"

"Because I'm gonna kiss you like I'm trying to talk you into something, and it won't be as good if you agree to it beforehand."

The feeling of longing that came over me at the promise of this kiss made me squeeze my eyes tight.

"Look at that sailboat out there," he said, pointing into the distance. The sun was going down, but I could still see the boat he was talking about in the distance.

I was overwhelmed with sensations. I shifted slightly so that I could stare up at the man who held me in his arms. My eyes were even with his neck, and I stared upward at his jaw and cheek. I wanted him go ahead and kiss me already. He said he was going to let me look at the ocean for a minute, but hadn't a minute passed? I lifted up to put a kiss on his neck, right under his jaw. I just couldn’t help myself. I was glad I had been able to talk to him when he was in Haiti, but it only made me more desperate to hold onto him now that he was right here in front of me. I used my own arms to hold his in place, making sure he held me tightly as I snuggled up to him. I placed another quick kiss on his neck because I could wait no longer.

"Oh, you wanna skip right ahead?" he asked, teasing me for getting antsy.

I shrugged shyly.

"Because I'll gladly skip to that part if you want me to."

"I've been missing you," I whispered. I hadn't meant for it to be, but the vulnerability I was feeling was evident in my voice.

"Say that again," Evan said, leaning down to get his ear closer to me.

"It's true," I said, right into his ear. "I missed you something terrible."

"That sounds good," he said. He glanced at me with a curious expression. "What else?" he asked.

"What do you mean?"

He shrugged. "I like you whispering into my ear," he said, shifting again. "Let me hear one more thing."

I laughed at his silliness but wasted no time lifting onto my toes to whisper to him again. "I think I'm at home where you are, Evan Hunt."

"And I think I'm at home with you," he said. "Annabel?"

"Yeah?"

"Turn around."

I knew what he was going to do simply by the tone of voice he used. He was planning on kissing me, no doubt about it. I did as he asked, and turned with absolutely no hesitation. I did a 180 in his arms, and smiled up at him.

He smiled back and put his hands on my face. "Dimples," he said, rubbing my cheeks with his thumbs.

My smile broadened, and he leaned in to kiss me while I was still smiling. My lips were stretched tight as he used his relaxed lips to kiss me—small repetitive kisses that lined my mouth. My lips, which had been stretched tight with a smile, began to relax under his careful attention. Evan must have kissed me eight or ten times before my smile faded completely.

My hands instinctually went to his face, and I held onto him the same as he held me. Our kiss deepened slowly. It went from a one-sided kiss on his part, to both of us finding a slow rhythm as our lips came down on each other's gently time after time. Evan completely took the lead. He kissed me like someone who was trying to convince me of something. He took control and helped me get from nervous and giddy to deliberate and patient.

Evan Hunt brought out the best in me, and I mean that in every way, including kissing. I could clearly feel the intention in our exchange. He kissed me like he was exploring a newfound part of himself, and it made me feel like I was finally where I was supposed to be. Evan's mouth was still on mine when he breathed my name. "Annabel," he said, with no intention of saying anything else.

I let my hand go around the back of his neck, allowing my fingers to lace through his hair. I pulled his face toward mine, giving him the clear idea that I wanted him to kiss me more deeply. I opened my mouth to him, and he answered by kissing me the way I wanted to be kissed. His tongue dipped into my mouth, and I welcomed it, pulling it deeper into me before letting it go again.

"Annabel," he whispered again once we broke contact.

"Evan," I said in a slow whisper to match his.

He turned his ear to me, and without him having to verbally ask, I repeated myself.

"Evaaaan," I whispered into his ear.

I felt his face stretch as he smiled. "Yeah, that's good," he said, wiggling a little like a king who was adjusting on his throne.

I laughed at him. "You're a mess," I said.

"Your mess," he added.

I wrapped my arms around his neck. "Mine," I agreed.

Chapter 20

Evan and I stayed out on the beach until past sunset. He said some or all of the family would likely come down to the shore and inadvertently interrupt us, but they never did—either they didn't feel like coming, or they were trying to give us some privacy. Either way, I got to enjoy a private stretch of ocean with the man that I loved for what must have been a couple of hours.

Being that it was on the east coast, the sun didn't go down over the water. For whatever reason, I hadn't really thought the geographic implications of being situated on an eastern coast, and I just sort of pictured all beaches with the sun setting on the far side of the water. That feeling of surprise was something I didn't share with Evan since it only took two seconds of me thinking about it to realize it had been a ridiculous assumption.

There were some cloud formations over the ocean that were equally as beautiful as the sunset, so we stared out at them as we talked and laughed. We stood there, holding each other, talking, kissing, and watching it go from light to dark.

"We better go check on C.C.," I said. (It was a nickname I had for Cupcake, which I called her about a quarter of the time.) Evan had heard me call her that before and didn't skip a beat when I said it.

It was now dark, but the half-moon was bright over the ocean. We had gradually worked our way into the water as we talked. We were up to our ankles in it, so our feet were wet as we started back toward the house. I had been wearing shoes on our way out there but had taken them off to put my feet in the water. I picked them up and held them in one hand, and Evan did the same with his. Both of us strategically held them in the hand furthest from the other person, so that the hand closest to each other was free. He reached out and grabbed me, lacing his big fingers between mine, and giving me butterflies all over again. I wanted to never let go of his hand for as long as I lived. He led me up the path toward the house. I remember walking up those stairs to the deck, thinking how amazing it was that I might call this place my home. It still seemed surreal even though we had just had a long, reasonable, adult conversation about it.

He said if we decided to move forward with things that we would make the transition within the next six months so that he could be here to oversee the process of opening the restaurant. He said he knew it was springing a lot on me at once, but that he would want to go ahead and get married before we moved. Before his accident, I wouldn't have pegged Evan as the type to marry a girl before he'd move in with her, but he was a very different person now. I
wanted
to marry him, so I told him during our conversation that if we decided to go through with everything, then I thought getting married was the right thing to do. He didn't seem to want to rush me into agreeing to everything without having time to think about it, but more than once, he referred to our future as if there were no question that it would all work out.

The little ones were in bed, and so it seemed, were Dee-dee, Nathan, and most of the parents. Logan and Charlotte, along with their spouses, were downstairs with Mia, Cody and their significant others. Charlotte and Logan's parents were still down there, but they excused themselves just as we came in the house.

We had been gone a long time, and Cupcake was excited to see us. She jumped around for a few seconds as she sniffed Evan and me like she hadn't seen us in years.

Mia wanted to play a game, so the ten of us broke up into two teams of five and played charades. We did our best to be quiet for everyone who had already gone to bed, but the whole lot of us were clowns, and we wound up laughing for the next few hours as we played games and told embarrassing stories.

I thought about repeating this experience every summer for the rest of my life, and felt an undeniable sense of rightness.

I was where I belonged.

Three out of five of the couples that were downstairs playing games were sleeping upstairs on the third floor, and Evan and I were included in this group. There was one bedroom up there, but Cub and Charlotte and their little one took it. Logan and Rachel, along with Evan and I were couch surfing in the upstairs living room, and we decided to put on a movie before we went to bed. We took turns showering while Rachel decided on a movie.

The couches were almost as wide as a single bed, and rather than lay on their own, Logan and Rachel curled up onto one of them.

I was sitting on my designated couch when Evan got done with his shower. He went to a couch that was closer to the TV and sat down on it. He looked at me right after he sat down. "Come on," he said, patting the seat next to him.

I walked over there, snuggled up in the plush blanket I had already claimed as my own. Evan stretched out, letting his body hug the back of the couch so there was space for me on the edge. He pulled a blanket over himself before leaning back onto a pillow with his arm resting behind his head.

"Just sleep over here," he said, motioning for me to lie next to him. "I'm not gonna do anything."

I stretched out beside him, resting my head in the comfortable place where his arm met his chest. He ran his hand over my head as if it comforted him to hold me close. So distracting were my feelings for him that I had no idea what movie we were watching for the first twenty or so minutes—I just stayed there, thinking about everything but the movie.

Several times, Evan turned and placed a kiss on my forehead as if he was just checking in with me. Every time he did it, I would pick up his hand (which I was holding) and put a kiss on his knuckles like I was just checking in with him in return. Then we'd go back to watching the movie only to repeat the process again in ten or fifteen minutes.

We fell asleep like that, and before I knew it, it was morning. I woke up before Evan, and it took me a second to realize where I was. The previous night seemed like a dream, and I might have thought it was had I not have woken up in the crook of Evan's arm.

Evan woke up the instant I shifted, and he began to stretch. There was a layer of blanket between us, but I still loved the feeling of waking up next to him. He stretched and then squeezed me.

"Mornin'," he said in a deep, raspy tone.

"Mornin'," I whispered back to him as I sat up and turned to look at him. His hair was all over the place, and I smiled as I reached up to clear some of it off of his face.

"You have dimples," he said sleepily, but as if he was noticing for the first time.

I smiled. "You do too," I said.

"Not like yours," he said. "There's something on the floor," he added, still in that sleepy tone.

I gave him a curious look.

"Ryan snuck up here a little while ago," he said. "She was holding something and she put it down right there." He gestured with a quick flick of his head to show me it was next to us, and I turned to reach down for it. There was a yellow letter-size envelope with Evan's name printed on it. I sat up a little bit, but Evan stayed in his place, stretched out on the couch.

"It's for you," I said, seeing his name.

I handed it to him but he just shook his head. "You can open it," he said.

I tentatively started to open it and looked at him like maybe he knew something that I didn't. "What is it?" I asked, feeling nervous.

He smiled and shrugged. "I have no idea," he said.

"I carefully opened it and looked inside. There were two pieces of paper enclosed, and I pulled them both out. The one on the bottom was thick, art-paper and the one on top was regular piece of wide-ruled paper torn out of a legal pad.

There was a handwritten note on the top sheet, and I took time to look down at it even though I was curious about what was underneath. I turned it so that Evan and I could both see it at the same time, and I stared at the handwriting, thinking it looked like Walt Disney's signature. I focused at the top and began reading the words.

Evan, I apologize if you see this as an invasion of privacy, but I came across you and your girlfriend on the beach last evening, and you were just begging to become art. I hope you don't mind—capturing moments like this is, after all, why your grandmother hired me. All the best, Nathan

Evan must have finished reading the note before I did, because he said, "Let's see it," before I had even finished reading.

I put the handwritten note at the back of the stack so we could see what was sketched on the thicker paper. It was a pencil drawing of Evan and I standing on the shore. Nathan had used a small amount of watercolor to lightly shade areas of the piece. It was absolutely beautiful. My eyes started stinging as I saw the way we were standing there holding each other's faces. I knew what it felt like being there when it happened, but seeing us from someone else's perspective sent an unexpected wave of emotion through me. I opened my eyes super wide as I stared at it in an effort to stop the tears that instantly threatened to form.

"That's pretty cool," Evan said. "I'm glad he did that." He paused for a second, waiting for me to say something, but I was too torn up to form any words. "Do you like it?" he asked.

"Oh my goodness, I really like it," I said. "I can't believe he did this. I didn't even see him."

We went downstairs to find that most of the family was already awake. The young ones were playing with toys in the living room while the adults either sat around in the living room or kitchen.

"Did you get your picture?" Ryan asked the very instant we came downstairs.

"Yep," Evan said, catching her when she ran to him. He lifted her up to give her a kiss before setting her to her feet again. Izzy came up and did the same thing; only she was light enough for Evan to hold, so he placed her on his side since that was where she wanted to be.

"Where is it?" Ryan asked, tugging at Evan's arm.

"Ry, they just woke up," Paige said. She glanced at us apologetically. "Mr. Voth wouldn’t let us see it till he showed it to you first." She paused and pointed at her daughter. "She loves looking at his sketches. She knows that one exists, but she hasn’t seen it yet, so she was hoping you'd bring it down with you."

"We're gonna get some coffee, squirt," Evan said. "But you can go get it and bring it down if you want. Just be careful with it, and let your mom take it out of the envelope for you."

Ryan gave us a big toothless grin before running upstairs.

"Careful!" Cody called as his daughter whizzed past him on her way up.

Evan sat Izzy down before taking my hand. He pulled me through the living room and into the kitchen where Dee-dee was standing near the coffee pot. Nathan was sitting at the dining room table with a few others, but he was close enough to hear when she said, "That's a beautiful picture, isn't it?"

"Amazing," Evan said to her before shifting his attention to Mr. Voth. "Thank you," he said sincerely, causing the other man to smile and make a tiny saluting motion.

Dee-dee was in the middle of pouring us each a cup of coffee when Ryan came back downstairs with the envelope in her hand. I vaguely registered people in the living room passing it around and commenting on it, but my focus turned to Dee-dee who had my stomach tied in knots from the first question she asked.

"Did Evan tell you he's thinking about taking this old place off of my hands?" she asked, as she handed me a mug.

"You better hope I did, Dee-dee, otherwise you just messed up," Evan said, pulling me into his arms, so I could stand in front of him.

Dee-dee looked at me with a smile. "He said he had to talk to you first," she said with a wide-eyed expression.

"Stop putting her on the spot when she just woke up," Evan defended, hugging me and digging his face into my back like he might use me for a pillow and fall back asleep.

"You would have to be a fool not to get excited at the chance to live in a place like this," I said, not wanting to come across as ungrateful or insincere, but not knowing what else to say.

"Do you like it here?" she asked.

"It's amazing," I said. "I can see and feel that the ocean is God's handiwork. I could definitely get used to staring at every day."

"And before you ask," Evan said from behind my back, "yes, I did already ask her to marry me."

"You did?" I asked. I turned so quickly to face him that it came across as a jerking motion that made everyone in the vicinity laugh.

Evan was smirking at me as if wondering where his pillow had gone. "Sure," he said. "I thought we said we'd just go ahead and get married if we go through with the house."

"Evan Michael!" Dee-dee said, reaching out to push his shoulder. "Where's the romance in that?"

"Don't worry, Dee-dee, there's tons of romance," he said, with a smile in his voice. He held me to his chest again and squeezed like he never wanted to let me go.

"You can't just say
we'll go ahead and do it
," Dee-dee said.

"She's right," Christy added, shaking her head at Evan. "That's not the same as asking her to marry you."

Evan shifted so he could stare down at me. I turned and looked up at him. "You need me to get down on one knee or something?"

I shook my head fervently. I did
not
need him to do that.

"Should I at least say it like an official question so we can get these women off our case about it?"