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"Are you sure you can give all that up for me?" I ask.
He shrugs. "I've been diving and working on boats for close to ten years. I think it's time to take a turn on dry land. Especially when I have such a pretty lady back home."
I laugh and nestle into his embrace. "And maybe a family soon."
He holds me tighter. "You have no idea the thrill I get when you say that."
As the morning sun streams through the window, we lie in each other's arms, imagining a future together. A future that may include a child, but most importantly, a future that involves the two of us.
We'll make it work, no matter what.
Chapter twenty
Jake
Ifeellikeamillion bucks as I roll up to the worksite for the day, Johnny already parked and waiting for me with his gear beside him. I grin as I get out of the car, shaking his hand in a one-armed hug as usual.
"Well, you're chipper today," he laughs. "What the hell happened to you?"
I chuckle. "You'll never believe it...but I'm staying in Fern Hollow."
His brow shoots up and he gives me a quizzical look. "For real?"
"For real."
"Let me guess...a girl?"
I blow out a breath, practically sighing when I say her name. "Yeah. Sarah."
Johnny nods knowingly, a smirk on his face. "Ah, I see. That Sarah is something else, huh?"
I nod, unable to suppress a smile. "Yeah, she sure is. I can't get enough of her."
As we gear up and begin working, I can't help but think about Sarah. She's the reason I'm so damn happy these days. The way she moves, the sound of her laugh, the way she looks at me - it's all intoxicating. I know it's foolish to be so smitten with someone, but I can't help it. She's got me under her spell.
As the day wears on, I find myself lost in thoughts of her, barely paying attention to the job at hand. I'll need to lock down permanent employment...then, I'm buying her a ring. Or maybe I'll buy the ring first, because I can't fucking wait to make her my wife. After that, we need to get a house--to upgrade out of that little apartment, make room for our baby.
She seemed so excited this morning about the prospect of starting a family, even if she's a little scared. And I have no doubt she'll be a great mom--I've known it since I met her, since I saw her interacting with my cousins' kids.
She's gonna be a Hart, just like she's supposed to be.
Johnny's voice crackles in my helmet as I'm working on clearing debris from around the dam, down where it's a dark, mossy green. I'll need to start taking more precautions soon; this work gets dangerous once you clear enough out, but the dam is old and it'll still be a bit before it's too bad.
"Hey, man, you might want to get out of the water," he says. "Looks like there's a storm rolling in."
"I'll be right up," I reply. I'm grateful in that moment that I bought fancier gear; otherwise, he'd have just had to wait to let me know, if I only had a mask and mouthpiece. "Go ahead and tug on the line; I'll be up soon."
Johnny starts to pull on the line and I feel myself being pulled upward. When I catch sight of the surface, it becomes clear that the storm is coming faster than either of us could have anticipated; it wasn't even int he forecast, and now the sky is dark and raindrops dot the surface. The gloomy black expands beneath me, spookier than I'm used to.
I feel like something is wrong.
"Looking...bad..." Johnny's voice comes over the radio, crackling with interference. These summer storms can be unpredictable, but this is a whole other ballgame--and I've seen some bad storms over the years. My heart starts pounding, and I have this moment of realization.
I'mreallygoing to have to stop diving.
For Sarah.
Because if I got hurt...if Idied--I would leave her behind.
