"It sounds like it's almost in the middle of nowhere." She could see David perfectly at home in the middle of the wilderness, looking as rugged as any country boy should, and as tempting as he always appeared whenever he took his bike out.
David had to smirk. "Well, it kinda is. No silly city noises to corrupt the beauty of nature out there. Not like California, where it's all hustle and bustle, and not a moment to pause to take life in."
She let a brow rise above one sapphire eye. "So you're telling me we have to get all our supplies on the way there, and whatever we don't get or run out of, we'll have to do without?"
He chuckled. "It's not as drastic as that, but close."
"And almost no contact with other people?"
"I wouldn't go that far... but if we stay on the ranch for the most part, it's quite probable."
Kaly's lips softened into a smile, the pads of her fingers running along the curve of his jaw. The very idea that they'd be there for a vacation, with little to no contact outside of their family for the duration, could only seem like a dream to her until it happened.
"Sounds incredible." Snuggled her head closer to David's neck, she asked, "Do you really think it'll be okay to fly with both Joshua and the dog?"
His hand had gone to stroke through her long hair, smoothing the locks over the smokey-gray tube top covering her torso. "I don't see it being much of a problem. Not with both of us there to take care of everything. The layover might be annoying, of course, especially with Titan."
"But Joshua's not even five months old yet."
"I promise, he'll be fine." He laid a kiss at the top of her head. "Especially with his overprotective mommy fussing over him constantly."
Kaly had to agree; she'd likely overreact to almost everything if Joshua would get upset during the entire trip. There, at least. This would be the first time they'd be on a plane with the baby, and she had no idea what to expect. On the way back, she'd know everything she couldn't figure out that very moment. She also knew that it was likely she was panicking for no reason. Babies were taken on flights every day, some even younger than her son. He would be absolutely fine.
After all, he did have two parents to take care of him.
"Not just his mommy, but his daddy as well. I'm sure Daddy would love to take his baby boy out to go look at the green stuff he hasn't really gotten to see here."
David smiled. "Yeah, I guess I could do that. Hell, the boy needs to learn what trees really look like. Palms are nice and all, but they never seemed like real trees to me."
She laughed softly, then she began to grin excitedly as she rose from her resting spot on David's shoulder, pushing herself up onto an elbow to look down at her Texan, her face aglow at the new thought whipping through her mind. "And without all those distractions of people and work and so on, it'll give us plenty of time to work through some wedding details while we're there, too."
"Maybe for an hour or two," he replied with a laugh. "I plan to keep you plenty busy trying to distract you in every way I can."
"I bet you are." Her sugary-sweet, angelic voice was accompanied by her own giggle adding to his laughter.
He reached up to tuck a few strands of golden locks behind her ear. "Besides, aren't those the kinda things girls are supposed to go over together?"
Kaly only smiled. Sure, that was usually the way of it. That was how it had been for the majority of the planning for her last one. But this was something entirely different. Her closest female friend still held a grudge against David for training that had gone beyond what had been expected. She didn't want to bother her best friends about this just yet, not when there was some madman going around, claiming to be their other best friend. That could get sticky real quick, and not in the ecstasy-induced sense.
"I'm afraid you're stuck in the role of girlfriend as well as groom, honey," she answered at last. "Maria's not too fond of you, and I'm honestly not sure how Rune and Avery would react right now, what with the so-called 'Conner Hawk' running around."
His good mood dampened slightly at hearing this. "Kaly, I'm-"
"Don't you dare think of apologizing, David Constant," she cut him off, her forefinger lifting from the tracings she was doing on his throat to poke at his chest forcefully. "You have nothing to apologize for about this. My friends might have their issues, but it damn sure isn't gonna keep me from loving you. Whether or not they're there to help us celebrate, I'm gonna marry you, no matter what." Noticing the wince painting his face every time she poked his chest, she softly rubbed at the affected area, a look of apology in her sapphire eyes. "Besides, I think I'd like your input in all this planning nonsense more than anyone else's. This is your wedding, too."
He was silent for a few moments. "Well, I suppose we can put a little more effort into planning time, then," he relented with a theatrical sigh that almost rivaled his upset performance just moments before. "Especially if it'll mean so much to you."
The blonde woman smiled. "It will. More than you know. I do have another question, though."
"You're full of questions today, woman," he remarked with a wry smirk. "Does your curiosity ever disappear?"
She merely rolled her eyes, and returned, "Have you ever known me to not be curious about something, no matter how minuscule it seems?" He shook his head, amusement dancing upon his lips as the smirk widened. "Anyway, since we'll be in the middle of practically nowhere, and you said the nights can get kinda cold there, does that mean you're gonna be chopping wood to keep a fire going for us at night?"
Her tone had changed from its inquisitive note, and a smile softly peeked through the corners of her mouth. Kaly knew she was caught when his eyes narrowed at her, taking her in with caution. "Why?" he asked warily.
"Well..." That smile finally crossing her pouty lips, she slowly pushed herself upward just enough to straddle David, flipping her blonde hair over one shoulder, his hands instinctively moving to anchor her by her waist. Both his eyebrows had shot toward the top of his head by then, nearly disappearing in his light brown tresses, as she leaned down toward him, one forearm propping beside his head while the other hand glided lightly along his neck. Her voice had taken on a seductive and breathy purr when she next spoke, her grinning lips just barely brushing his. "I've always had," She let the tip of her tongue dart out to lap lightly at his bottom lip, "this little fantasy," Lightly, she nibbled at the bottom lip she'd just licked, "of being nailed by a rugged, sexy lumberjack."
What he thought of that confession was quickly postponed as a big, wet tongue slid across both their faces, hot breath beating against them while a heavy mound of fur tried scooting as close as possible to them. David and Kaly shared the same reaction, one of annoyance and humor at the interruption.
