Ryan gritted his teeth as he tried to maneuver
his way up the staircase. He was holding an enormous
trunk of Gillian’s stuff. He was positive that she hadpacked bricks in there.
“Ryan, be careful,” Gillian cried. She was
watching anxiously from the top of the stairs. “Ryan,
maybe you should have waited for Jake to help,” shesaid.
“I’ve got it, Gillian,” Ryan replied. His muscles
ached, but he forced himself to keep going. He got the
trunk up the stairs and into their room. He dropped it
a few inches inside the door and breathed a sigh ofrelief.
“Oh Ryan.” Gillian came in and rubbed her
husband’s back. She had warned him repeatedly that the
trunk was heavy. It had taken three people to move it
at Wildwind. But Ryan had insisted on carrying it. She
chalked it up to his macho pride.
“I’m okay, Gillian,” Ryan said. The truth was he
was out of breath and he didn’t think he would ever be
able to lift anything again. He made a mental note to
increase his workout regime.
“Well that was the last of the stuff,” Gillian
said brightly. She closed the door.
“Good thing.” Ryan looked around the small room.
The floor was covered with trunks and boxes. Suitcases
littered the bed. Ryan knew one of them was his and
everything else was Gillian’s.
“How come you didn’t have all this stuff the
first time we moved in here?” Ryan asked. He sat downon the trunk.
Gillian shrugged. “We left Wildwind in a hurry. I
only had time to take a few things.”
“A few things?” Ryan stared at his wife
incredulously. “Gillian, you used all the drawers and
every inch of the closet. I don’t know where we’re
going to put all this stuff,” he said.
“We’ll find a place,” Gillian replied positively.
She was too happy to let the little things get her
down. She moved behind Ryan and began massaging his
neck. “My poor baby,” she said.
Ryan closed his eyes and enjoyed the feeling of
her fingers kneading his flesh. “You’re good at that,”he muttered.
“Thanks,” Gillian replied. She extended the
massage to include his back and shoulders.
Ryan felt his pulse start to race. “We really
should clean up this mess,” he said. “Okay,” Gillian agreed.
Ryan shifted so he was facing her. Their eyes
locked and she was in his lap in a heartbeat. Gillian
wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed himfrantically.
“I thought you wanted to clean up,” Gillian
muttered between kisses. She pulled Ryan’s shirt out
of the waistband and caressed his strong chest.
Ryan moved his hands through her hair. It was so
soft. He cupped her face in his hands. “We’ll clean
later, “ he said before kissing her softly.
Gillian stood up and quickly unbuttoned her
shirt. Ryan stood as well and helped his wife slide it
off. He began kissing her neck and shoulders.
“I love you, Ryan,” Gillian whispered.
“I love you too,” Ryan replied, and he did. He
knew that his life would never be complete if Gillian
wasn’t in it. He had wasted too much time with her and
he wasn’t ever going to make that mistake again.
Gillian pulled back slightly and stared into
Ryan’s blue eyes. “Where did you go?” she asked.
Ryan stroked her cheek. “I was just thinking
about how lucky I am to have you,” he replied. He
covered her mouth with his in a soft, lingering kiss.
Gillian smiled. “I’m lucky too,” she said. Her
mind drifted to the night they had spent together in
New York. She didn’t think she could have been any
happier after Ryan had asked her to move back in with
him and then he had spent the night making love to
her. But coming back to Pine Valley had been just as
wonderful. Eugenia was the first person they sharedtheir happiness with.
“It’s about time, my darlings,” she had toldthem.
Ryan had insisted that Gillian pack her things
right away. He didn’t want to spend another night
without her by his side. It had taken three
chambermaids to help her get all her stuff together.
None of that mattered now, Gillian thought. She
was back in Ryan’s arms and everything was going to beperfect.
“Gilly, where did you go?” Ryan asked gently.
Gillian smiled lovingly at her husband. “Nowhere.
I’m never going anywhere without you ever again,” she
promised before pulling Ryan into a deep kiss.
Ryan responded eagerly. He glanced at the bed
over Gillian’s shoulder. It was overflowing with
clothes and suitcases. He lowered Gillian to thefloor.
The intensity of their kisses grew as they
fumbled with buttons and zippers. They were eager tobe skin to skin.
A knock on the door startled them both.
“Who is it?” Gillian called breathlessly.
“It’s Myrtle.”
“Myrtle!” Gillian cried. She scrambled away from
Ryan and began putting her clothes back on.
“One second,” Ryan called. He stood up and
hurriedly put on his shirt. He straightened out his
hair and glanced at Gillian to make sure she was
decent before he opened the door. “Sorry about that,Myrtle.”
“It’s no bother,” Myrtle replied. She glanced
around the small room, amazed by all the clutter. “I
might need to rent you another room to keep all thisstuff in,” she teased.
“Don’t worry, we will clean up,” Gillianpromised.
Myrtle smiled. “It’s no big deal. I’m just happy
to see the two of you back together where you belong,”she said.
Ryan and Gillian exchanged knowing smiles. No onewas as happy as they were.
“Well I won’t keep you long. I’m sure you want to
get back to what you’re doing,” Myrtle said. She
smiled knowingly. “You missed a button, Ryan,” she
added as she made her way to the door.
Ryan’s face flushed and he glanced at his shirt.
It was buttoned all wrong. Gillian laughed at herhusband.
“I think Myrtle sees all,” she teased.
“I guess so,” Ryan agreed. He pulled Gillian into
his arms. “She’s right though. I’m so happy we’re
finally back together,” he said.
Gillian rested her head against Ryan’s heartbeat
and whispered something in Hungarian.
Ryan smiled at her. “I didn’t quite catch that,”he teased.
Gillian stared into Ryan’s eyes, her face
serious. “You’re the key to my heart’s happiness. My
mother used to tell me that someday I would find the
right man to say that too, because for each princess
there is only one prince. You’re my prince, Ryan,” shesaid.
Ryan pulled Gillian into another sweet kiss. “I
love you so much, Gilly. I want to spend the rest of
my life proving that to you,” he said.
“You don’t have to prove anything to me,” Gillian
replied as she began unbuttoning Ryan’s shirt. She
placed her hand over his heart. “I know you love me,Ryan,” she said.
“Good.” Ryan slipped off his shirt and helped
Gillian take off hers. They undressed each other
slowly. Ryan carefully lowered Gillian to the floor
and their bodies melted into one.
An hour later, Ryan and Gillian were still lying
together on the floor wrapped in a blanket. Ryanstroked Gillian’s hair.
“Just one question, Princess,” he said. “What’s that?” Gillian asked.
Ryan propped himself up on his elbow and stared
down at his wife. “What’s in the trunk?”
Gillian laughed. “Clothes,” she replied.
Ryan shook his head. “I should have known.” He
smiled. “Someday, we’re going to have to clean thisplace up,” he said.
Gillian nodded. “Someday we will.” She reached
for Ryan. “That day doesn’t have to be today, does it?” she asked.
“Of course not,” Ryan replied. He lowered himself
back down to Gillian and kissed her passionately.
* * * THE END * * *
Comments? Please e-mail me with any and all feedback. Thanks for reading.
