Joaquin peeked at his phone—he was running behind schedule—before zipping it back into his pocket. The boat was rocking, and the ocean was spraying, and he didn’t want to lose the device—not that it worked out here.
In a departure from his typical objectives, he was on a special Morale, Welfare, & Recreation op.
In just a few short hours, San Joachim Island would be invaded by Blakes (and Blake offshoots), and Dana wanted to make the beach house a little more comfortable before they arrived.
He’d liked the simple, barebones version of the island, but in every way that counted, his bachelor days were a bygone era that he was only too happy to kick to the curb. So they’d picked out rugs, pillows, curtains, and more linens; candles, wall hangings, and tear-free kid shampoo. Even a few pieces of furniture. That was why he’d rented the larger boat from Yiorgos at the docks. Unless they wanted to make a million trips, the speedboat wasn’t up to the challenge.
The house was already stuffed with food and presents. Every once in a while, they’d left the privacy of San Joachim to go shopping during their month-long holiday.
At their wedding, his old teammates had teased him mercilessly about his upcoming old-fashioned, month-long honeymoon. Apparently, that made him an obnoxious rich jerk, but public ridicule was a price he had been willing to pay.
He’d poured so much of himself into the remodel of Dana’s apartment/Hannah’s workshop over the last few months, and although it had been a surprisingly rewarding process, he’d been more than ready for a break. Pulling out more of his (mother’s gifted guilt) money to spend an entire four weeks with Dana in paradise was a no-brainer. He figured, you only get married once. At least, he knew that he would only get married once. Dana was it for him.
When he entered the foyer of the cavernous beach house with a ten-foot rug over his shoulder, his gaze landed on her immediately.
His beautiful wife sat on the floor, organizing a linen closet. Music blasted from a Bluetooth speaker she’d thought to bring, and he knew she hadn’t seen him yet. He dropped the rug to the ground with a thump.
She gave a start and then twisted around. “Joaquin! You shouldn’t have carried that by yourself!”
He smiled indulgently. His six-month bike crashiversary came and went, and Dana was the only one who still tried to coddle him. He snatched her up from the floor and into his arms, ignoring her protests that she was dusty and sweaty.
“Married for a few weeks, and my wife greets me like a shrew and refuses to kiss me.”
She laughed and hit his arm.
“And she has a mean right hook.”
“That’s not fair. You scared me.”
“This awful music is scaring me,” he murmured, kissing along her jaw and over to her ear. She shivered, and his lips smiled against her neck.
“Stop it,” she said, but the command was unenthusiastic. Then, stronger, “We’ve got to get this place set up!”
“We have hours.” She didn’t look convinced, so he added, “I bet they’d like to help decorate. We shouldn’t hog all the fun for ourselves.”
She shook her head in amusement and said, “You almost had me.”
“Where did I lose you?” He sighed. “Is it because traveling all day with infants pretty much guarantees that no one would want to help us hang frames and curtains?”
“Yep. Want some lemonade before we unload the rest?”
“Yes.”
He followed her into the kitchen and grabbed the clear blue glasses while she got the pitcher out of the fridge.
As he took a drink, she said, “I don’t mean to sound disloyal to the honeymoon, but I’m excited to go home.”
He paused in the middle of a swallow to study her for context clues.
“I love our magic treehouse so much,” she gushed, and, as a matter of habit, massaged his shoulder right where it used to be sore. “You and Mom have done such an amazing job.”
He smiled. “Gracias. I enjoyed working on it.”
“I think you might have missed your calling,” she said. “My mom is so impressed with your carpentry, she wants to steal you away from Clark.”
For some stupid reason, he felt his face heating up. “I was thinking about helping her with projects here and there.”
“That’s a great idea! Are you blushing?” she asked, as if it was the sweetest thing in the world.
“So this is how it feels.” He covered his cheeks dramatically. “Don’t look at me!”
Her eyes danced with reluctant amusement. “Shut up. And don’t change the subject. I think your mom was right.”
“Great.” He took another sip of lemonade. “About what?”
“You do have the soul of an artist.”
He shook his head, but smiled. And then shrugged. “Guess I just needed the right muse.”
She snorted and followed him out of the house and down the hill to the boat.
“They probably won’t even be that tired when they get here,” she reflected, about their impending guests. “It was kind of you to arrange hotels so they could travel in stages, instead of having a twelve-hour flight.”
“It wasn’t at all because I wanted to delay their arrival.”
She swatted at his butt, but he’d known it was coming, and he dodged away.
“You invited them! I was the one who was like—”
He turned abruptly and caught her before she bumped into him. “Remember Pastor Matt’s advice. Don’t ruin the start of a beautiful marriage with you-saids and I-saids.”
Her lips twitched, but as her eyes roamed over his face, she just said, “You’re lucky you’re so handsome.”
Always receptive to compliments from his adorable Dana, he kissed her. Just a short, sweet kiss, but when he pulled back, her beautiful eyes shone with so much love that he said, “No, querida. Stop trying to distract me.”
“Sorry,” she said, meekly.
They carried up boxes, parcels, and crates, and not for the first time, he considered acquiring an off-roading vehicle for the island. Standing on the deck of Yiorgos’s boat in the hot August sunshine, they were both sweating as they searched for any last lingering purchases.
She fanned herself. “I guess that’s everything. It’s so hot.”
He stepped up behind her and played with the strap of her tank top. “You know what else is hot?”
She turned around and tried to look exasperated. “I can guess.”
“Do you think anyone will notice that you don’t have any tan lines?”
She blushed, and he laughed.
“You’re a terrible influence.”
He pressed a kiss to her golden shoulder. “But I’ve been very helpful with the sunscreen.”
She blushed harder and shielded her face from the sun. “True.”
He looked at the hot, crusty hill that led up to the house, and said, “How about a quick dip?”
“Yeah, okay,” she said. “I guess we have a little time—hey!”
As soon as she started to agree, he chucked his shirt at her and leaped off the side. His body temperature instantly cooled as he plunged into the calm, turquoise waters of the Ionian Sea. When he surfaced, she was still in the boat, leaning over the edge.
She called down, “I had a dream just like this.”
“Come tell me about it.” Why couldn’t he stop smiling?
He could see her brain going a hundred miles an hour as she considered the best way to jump.
“Don’t worry, querida. If you need me to, I’ll catch you.”
Her smile was especially beautiful right before she dove over the side.
Thank you for reading Joaquin and Dana’s story! We hope you will stick around for Carmen Ortiz’s book, The Family Friend. More details to come!
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