She nodded. “I missed you. I wanted you with me.”
“This is the best gift, Cristie. The absolute best gift I’ve ever received. I don’t think there’s anything I could ever receive that contains more love and genuine emotion than this. I’ll treasure it always.”
She smiled at him. “You like it? Really?”
“I’ll never be given a gift filled with so much heart as this one.”
She smiled at him and leaned toward him, kissing him.
He kissed her twice, then set the Tennessee rock on the sofa and reached for another. “This might take a while. I want to visit all the places you went,” he said, choosing another and taking it out of the box. He held it up to her. “Do you remember where this one was from?” he asked, before turning it over to read whatever was written on the other side.
She grinned at him. “I remember where they’re all from. That one’s from Six Flags in Texas.”
He sat back against the cushions at his back, and held the stone in his right hand, his fingers closed over it, while holding up his left arm for Cristie to tuck herself under and lean against him. “Okay, tell me what we did at Six Flags,” he said, closing his eyes and imagining everything she said as she described everything she remembered about that trip.
They spent all evening going through the lifetime of memories she’d collected for him and the last thing they did when they went to bed was to place the box on top of their dresser, in a place of honor where they’d see it every single day as they went about building their lives together.
~~~
“Riley said it’s a done deal. Cristie and Remi are official!” Lucas said as he helped Anahla clean up the kitchen after dinner.
“I’m so excited for them. I don’t think there’s any time happier than when you find your mate, except for when you’re first mated and everything feels so magical. You get the feeling that no one in the world has ever felt what you’re feeling and nothing else will ever come close,” Anahla said.
Lucas chuckled, and pulled her in for a hug. “I still feel like that every time I look at you.”
“Good! Because you’re kind of stuck with me. I’m a little possessive,” Anahla said with a grin.
“I’m already planning my mating celebration,” Tia said as she flipped television channels in the living room.
“You are fourteen,” Keegan said tiredly.
“Doesn’t matter. You can meet your mate at any age,” Tia insisted.
“I didn’t think of that,” Anahla said. “I wonder if they’re going to have a big party or just quietly settle in together?”
“I don’t know. Riley didn’t mention it. We’ll ask them when we see them again. If they’re having a party maybe we could help,” Lucas said.
“Oh! Look! It’s Kaiser!” Tia shrieked excitedly.
Lucas and Anahla shared a concerned look. “Can we find a movie or something to watch?” Lucas asked.
Keegan put down her history book and leaned forward, focusing on the television.
“He’s wearing a tux! Do you see him, Keegan? He’s wearing a tux!” Tia squealed.
“Tia, let’s find a movie to watch. Not everybody wants to watch the sports channel,” Anahla said.
Tia turned to look at her mother over her shoulder. “But it’s Kaiser!”
At that point, a reporter as well dressed as Kaiser, lifted his microphone and waited for Kaiser to reach him on the red carpet in front of the Baseball Hall of Fame Museum.
Kaiser stopped walking as the reporter basically stepped in front of him. “Kaiser Lyakhov! We hoped you’d be attending tonight,” the reporter said.
“Any opportunity to raise money for education and athletics in school, and I’ll be here,” he said, smiling at the camera.
“Oh, we know that, we certainly do. But, I have to ask. I just watched you get out of a limo, and you’re alone! I just couldn’t believe my eyes. The most eligible bachelor in professional baseball is attending a charity event alone! How does that happen?!” he said, laughing and trying to pull a little information from Kaiser.
Kaiser smiled, and to any who knew him, it would appear strained. “Just the way it goes sometimes,” he said non-committally.
