Chapter 28

I began to fidget as the plane touched down in Halifax. It felt like it took forever for the plane to taxi to the gate and another eternity before we were able to get off. The three weeks apart were over and I couldn’t wait to see Sidney. I followed the signs to baggage claim. When I finally got there I saw Sid standing against a wall in a corner and couldn’t contain my excitement any longer. I ran over to him unable to keep a smile off of my face and jumped into his arms. He lifted me off the ground when he put his arms around me. When he put me down I kissed him long and hard, not really caring what anyone might be thinking about the scene.

“Well, hello,” he said when we finally pulled apart.

“Hi,” I responded, beaming at him.

“How was your trip?” he asked as we walked over to the carousel where my luggage would be coming out.

“It took too long. I wanted to be here three weeks ago.” His smile grew, if that was possible and he pulled me closer to him and kissed me again. We collected my luggage and walked out to his car.

“So I know you just got here, but I thought you could cook some dinner for us tonight,” he said to me as we began to drive to his house. I laughed. “What? I missed your cooking.”

“What do you have in mind?” I asked. I could see by the look on his face that he had a request.

“Something with seafood,” he responded.

“Make a stop at the store,” I told him. I started sorting through ideas in my head as we drove there. I knew seeing fresh produce and the seafood section would ultimately make my decision for me.

I refused to tell him what I was making, which frustrated him. I ended up making some balsamic glazed salmon fillets with potatoes and broccoli on the side. Then I made some dessert that I popped in the oven to cook while we ate. The dinner turned out well and the berry crumble I made got me a mock proposal from Sid.

“Can I see?” Sidney asked glancing down to my side after we cleaned up the table. I knew he was referring to my scars from the gunshot and the surgery.

“It looks the same as the last time you saw it,” I told him shaking my head.

“There’s no way it looks the same,” he argued. I sighed and lifted my shirt so he could see them. He grinned, took the bottom of my shirt and lifted it completely off of me.

“Tricky,” I told him, giggling. He just grinned and carried me upstairs to his bedroom. He put me down on the bed and trailed kisses along my scars.

“They give you character,” he joked moving his lips up to mine.

“I didn’t have character before?” I asked pouting.

“Nah, you were pretty boring,” he replied sarcastically. I swatted him and then bit his lower lip.

“The scars brought a new attitude. I like it.”

“Shut up,” I said. I flipped him over and jumped on top, straddling him. I pulled his shirt off and kissed my way down his chest to his abs. “You’ve been slacking on the workouts, eh?” He narrowed his eyes at me.

“You’re not serious.” I sat straight up and shrugged.

“It didn’t take much to flip you over, and you are getting a little soft,” I said squeezing a section of his abdomen between two fingers. In a swift move he flipped me back over underneath him and pinned me down.

“We’ll see who’s soft,” he growled into my ear. I was almost sorry I taunted him. Almost.

We spent the rest of the night laying curled up on a blanket outside looking up at the stars and talking. There was also a lot of kissing. We had a lot of time to make up for. We slept late the next day and stayed in until we headed out to his parents’ house for dinner.

“Loralei!” Trina called to me as she walked out the front door as we pulled up. Troy followed her outside and I gave them both a hug. They explained that Taylor was finishing up a camp session and would be home by the time dinner was ready. After talking for a bit Trina excused herself to get dinner going.

“Please let me help,” I said to her.

She accepted and I followed her into the kitchen while Sid and Troy grabbed a couple of beers and walked out onto the back porch. Trina poured us each a glass of wine and we chatted while we started dinner. She got to work on seasoning a roasted chicken while I began to cut up lettuce and vegetables for a salad.

“Hey, how long until dinner?” Sidney asked poking his head into the kitchen. Trina and I both glared at him without responding. He put his hands up in surrender. “Okay, I should know better than to question the cooks.” We laughed as he turned and walked back outside.

“Do they think we’re a factory in here pushing out food on demand?” Trina joked. I laughed along with her until we heard the front door open. Taylor came bounding into the kitchen.

“Hey, Loralei!” she said coming over and giving me a hug. I saw Sid and Troy make their way inside.

“Hi, Tay. Did you stone the boys today?” I asked.

“Of course,” she scoffed with a smile.

“That’s my girl.”

“How long until dinner?” she asked us.

“Probably about another 25 minutes,” Trina told her.

“Hey, how come you’ll tell her and not me?” Sidney asked.

His question was met by identical glares from Trina and I and he left the kitchen in defeat again. We had a good laugh at his expense as I refilled our wine glasses. When dinner was ready we brought it out to the table and enjoyed a good meal with good conversation.

The next day was my birthday and Sidney woke me up early that morning. Despite my protests he forced me out of bed to watch the sun rise and I was glad he had. It was beautiful and something everyone should see at least once in their lives. Once the sun was up we got dressed and went out for breakfast before taking a walk through downtown perusing the local shops.

He told me to pick out anything I wanted for my birthday and I did just that. I got a few books I’d been wanting to read and a painting I knew would look beautiful in our living room. After we were done we went back to his house and took a two hour nap thanks to the early wake up. When we woke up we went out on a friend’s boat and enjoyed the afternoon sun. Later that night he took me to dinner and again we spent the night cuddled up on a blanket in his backyard, Shooter lying near us.

“This was the best birthday ever,” I told him as I snuggled into his chest.

“Ever? Really?” I nodded and looked up at him.

“It was perfect. Thank you.” He kissed me. “I love you.”

“I love you too,” he whispered as his lips crashed down on mine.

Sidney and I spent the rest of my week in Cole Harbour visiting with his friends and family. I enjoyed every second of my trip and was sad when the time came for me to fly back to Pittsburgh. I was flying up again in July, and then again in August for his birthday. Thankfully not long after that he was coming back to Pittsburgh for the season.

“Call me when you land,” Sidney said to me as he wrapped his arms around me. I held on to him like the world would end if I let go.

“I will,” I choked out not even bothering to try to stop the tears. When it came to him, I was a mess.

“Hey, enough with the crying. I’ll see you soon. The next few weeks will go by before you know it.” I nodded and looked up at him as he wiped the tears from my cheeks only to have them replaced with new ones.

“I’ll miss you,” I told him when I finally pulled away.

“I’ll miss you too,” he repeated and I turned and walked to security without looking back. I knew if I turned around I would never leave.