Page 25 of Only Time Will Tell

“I want you to come just from me being inside of you.” He tilted my head to the side and covered my mouth with his. I whimpered into the possessive kiss.

Steam filled the shower, surrounding us. The feeling of being trapped and taken by the man who held my heart took me over the edge. I came so hard, so fast, had the wall not been there I’d have fallen.

“Damn, when you come, and it squeezes me inside you. It’s just…fuck,” Alex moaned, thrust as deep as he could and came. I felt the throb, the warmth inside me. His voice saying home, a sweet echo in my head.

Shower sex had its perks when it came to clean up. We finished washing then headed downstairs to see what we had to eat. Grilled cheese sandwiches and chicken noodle soup was about it.

“So, I was thinking,” Alex came up behind me and wrapped his arms around my waist, “that we could tell our family that we’re engaged tomorrow night during dinner at Mom and Dad’s.” He kissed the back of neck, raining chills down my spine.

I hid my grin and pretended to be serious. “Really, and why would you want to do that?”

He stilled behind me. “So, you don’t want to tell anyone?”

I turned in his arms so fast, I nearly whacked him with the spatula. “I want to tell the world you’re mine, Alexander Joshua Travers. Nothing means more to me than being able to call you my husband. I think tomorrow night at dinner is the perfect time to make our announcement.”

His face lit up and he smiled then picked me up and swung me around like I weighed next to nothing. “I love you, Charles Thomas DuBois.”

“I love you too, Alex, now why don’t you pull out the bowls and silverware, so we can finally eat.” We got situated and dug in. My brain was working overtime, off on wedding planning. “What would you say to getting married in a museum?”

“Well, that depends.” He got serious and set his spoon down.

“On what?” I wasn’t sure where this was headed and hadn’t expected to receive an ultimatum.

“Will the watch be anywhere in the vicinity?” It took a second for his question to sink in.

“I think I can make sure the evil has left the building. I remembered when I was going through my dad’s notes, the name Nolan Bradley kept coming up. He’s a museum curator that father had contact with him from time to time. I’ll give him first shot at Dad’s collection if he’s interested. As much as I love history, not knowing what any of this stuff is kinda gives me the willies after the whole pocket watch incident.” I wasn’t about to touch something else and see if a Genie appeared.

“I couldn’t agree more, and I think if they allow it then getting married there would make sense, as long as they promise to keep the artifacts safely locked away.” I have a feeling this whole event terrified Alex more than he was letting on. “Do you have a date in mind?”

“How about New Year’s Eve? Out with the old and in with the new and all that jazz?” It was corny, but at the same time it could be a great way to kick off our new life as husbands.

Alex reached over and took my hand in his, gently running his thumb over my ring. “I think that sounds wonderful, Charlie. It’s been a rough year, and ending it with such a beautiful event, full of love, sounds perfect for you.”

Why Alex thought so lowly, often referring to himself as a dumb jock, was beyond me. He always had kind, beautiful words. At least for me, he did. “For us, Alex. For us.” I leaned across the table and kissed him.

We arrived for dinner at Mom and Dad’s house, I loved how that rolled off the tongue now, with a bottle of wine to celebrate our engagement. Champagne would’ve given it away, however, in our haste, we forgot to remove our rings beforehand and ended up being greeted by a shrieking mom.

“Do not tell me you boys had the audacity to get married without us there!” she shouted, her hands wildly flailing about.

“No, Mom, we’d never do that,” Alex assured her. “We were hoping to announce our engagement, but so much for that.” Alex looked at me and shrugged. “We brought wine.”

She screamed, “You’re engaged! Congratulations! I am so happy and now I get to plan a wedding.” She patted our faces and kissed our cheeks before dancing from the room. Literally.

“There will be no living with her now,” Dad said. “I hope you’re both prepared for the onslaught of wedding planning mayhem she’s about to unleash,” he gave us each a hug. “Congratulations to you both. In case you couldn’t tell,” he gestured toward Mom’s retreating back, “We’re thrilled about this.”

Adrianna came over and hugged us both, I didn’t even know she was here since we hadn’t made it past the foyer. I joined her and mom in the kitchen while Alex and dad were in the living room talking. We called them into the dining room for dinner a short while later, as soon as our butts hit the chairs, Mom’s wedding plan quiz began.

“Have you boys set a date?” she asked, passing the salad bowl around.

“We were thinking New Year’s Eve. Out with the old and all that,” Alex said, placing a heaping scoop of salad on his plate.

“That’s a wonderful idea. But it will be too cold for an outdoor wedding. Where were you thinking of having it?” She was grinning from ear to ear, far more excited than I’d anticipated.

Alex squeezed my knee under the table. “I thought in memory of my father and due to my love of history, maybe we could have it at one of the local museums.” Anxiously, I chewed on the inside of my mouth, worried they’d think that idea was stupid. While this was Alex’s and my wedding, his parents’ approval meant a lot since they’d always been family to me.

Mom patted my hand, her unwavering gaze on mine. “Charlie, I think that’s a perfect place, sweetie.” She squeezed my hand then pulled hers away.

I glanced down at my lap, willing the tears away. I will not cry in front of them. I will not cry… When I looked back up, everyone was smiling at me.