Tides and Tidings

Chapter 7

Charlie

A fter our spontaneous kitchen lovemaking, all Blythe was worried about was finishing dinner. I reassured her that I would take care of it and that she could shower. Was getting her to go shower somewhat of a ploy to be able to pack a suitcase? Sure was.

I’m still surprised that I’ve been able to keep my big mouth shut with my plans for her this weekend. Tomorrow morning, we were heading to Savannah for a day of sightseeing, and then we had a romantic dinner at a Michelin-starred Italian restaurant, capped off with some wine, before staying at the nicest waterfront hotel. I still hadn’t figured out if I would tell Blythe where we were going or just let her guess for the entirety of the hour car ride.

I fried the chicken and finished preparing the sides, but the shower still wasn’t on. Blythe had to find just the right playlist before she went into the shower for her “concert.” Some days she knew what she wanted to listen to when going into the shower. Other days she spent a half hour deciding between two Taylor Swift albums. Tonight was the latter. The water turned on and I waited until the playlist started to make my way to the bedroom. When the music started, I knew I had around twenty-five minutes to pack everything.

I had sneakily grabbed a suitcase from the closet the other day when Blythe took Wren to school so she wouldn’t suspect anything. When I say I thought of everything, I thought of everything . This was going to be the best weekend of Blythe’s life.

I quietly made my way into our bedroom and started packing all of Blythe’s favorite articles of clothing. We would only be away for one night, so I didn’t need to bring much. Her favorite light sweater, jeans, most comfortable pajamas, shorts, and favorite T-shirt were put into the suitcase.

While folding the last of my clothes, I realized one flaw in my plan not to tell her where we were going—her toiletries. I was going to have to fill her in on the fact that we were going to be away for the night so she could pack her shit. Only one small hiccup in the plan—I could deal with that.

“I miss Wren. Maybe we should get her from your parents tomorrow.” Blythe offered up as we ate our late dinner at the counter we had sex on.

“No.” I realized that it came out too quickly and needed to backtrack quickly. “My parents were excited to spend quality time with her this weekend since she’s been in school. You know my mom has been countin’ down the days.”

Blythe nodded slowly, “Yeah, I guess.” She looked around, “The house is just so quiet.”

“Well, aren’t you glad you didn’t know me before I had a kid?” I joked.

She rolled her eyes, “That’s not what I meant, Charles .”

Messing with her was fun. I reached for her hand and kissed it, “I know. So what I’m hearin’ is you want to have babies to fill the silence and give Wren someone to play with other than the dog.”

Her eyes widened like saucers, “That’s not what I said…” She chewed the inside of her cheek while she thought, “But I’m not opposed.”

Oh fuck . Did she mean that, or was the wine still flowing?

“Did you just say you wanted to have kids?”

I meant that as a joke. What she said was not the response I had anticipated. When Blythe moved here a year and a half ago, she was firmly of the “I don’t want to date” and the “I never want children” persuasion. Then Wren and I came barreling into her life and she changed her tune. I’d like to think it’s my charming good looks.

Blythe shrugged, “I think so. You know how terrified of kids I was before I met Wren. If we ever had babies, I imagine they would be like her. Pretty chill, very cute, a good sleeper…”

I couldn’t help but daydream. I would have ten babies with Blythe. I love her with every fiber of my being and having mini versions of her around would be the best thing.

“Charlie?” Blythe waved her hand in front of my face.

“Hm?” I snapped back to reality. “Oh, sorry, I zoned out. Can you say that last bit again?”

“If we were ever to have babies, I hope they would be like Wren.”

“I’m positive they would be.” I stood up from my barstool and went to the sink to clean up. “Do you wanna practice how to make a baby again?” I smirked over my shoulder.

“Well yeah.” Blythe followed me, wrapped her arms around my waist, and rested her head on my back. “Some things need to happen before we have a baby, though.”

I turned to face her, “Such as?”

A crimson rose on her cheeks. “I don’t know.”

I lifted her chin to look at me, “No. What has to happen first?”

“Forget I said anything,” she turned away.

“Babe, what’s up? We communicate, remember?”

“I was just going to say I’d like to be married first.” Her green eyes wouldn’t meet mine. Blythe’s dad had abandoned her and her mom when she was only six months old. I get it; she wants more commitment before she makes a life-altering decision.

I hugged her tightly, squashing any fear she had of me ever leaving her. I hoped she wouldn’t feel my racing heart. Death will have to take me away from this beautiful human. “I couldn’t agree more.”

I felt her frame relax in my embrace. “Are you not going to tell me what we’re doing for the rest of the weekend?” She pressed on.

“Nope.” I popped the p .

“Not even what we’re doing tomorrow?” Blythe jutted her bottom lip out.

I narrowed my eyes as I placed a cup in the dishwasher. “What do you want to know?”

“Anything. You know I don’t like not knowing things.”

A laugh escaped. She wasn’t lying. The woman hated not knowing the details of every little thing. I wiped my hands on the dish towel and turned towards her. “I’ll level set with you and give you one nugget of information only because I have to.”

She couldn’t help but smile, “I’m all ears.”

“We’re spendin’ the night at a hotel tomorrow.”

Her mouth hung open out of pure shock. I could see her mind was going a mile per minute. “I have to pack!”

Blythe started for the stairs before I grabbed her arm, “No need.”

She cocked her head, “Why?”

“Already done.”

“When…?”

“You take long showers. The only thing you need to pack in the morning is whatever dress you plan on wearing and your toiletries.”

Blythe flung herself into my arms, burying her head into my chest, “Oh, this is going to be so nice!”

I squeezed her tight and gave her a soft peck on her head, “You’ve been working so hard; you deserve a little time away.”

“Where are we going?”

I shook my head, “You already know everything you need to. The rest is a surprise. Find us a good movie to watch. I’ll be there once I finish the dishes.”

“I’ll help; it’ll go quicker.” She offered. Blythe wasn’t good at sitting down and relaxing; she always needed to do something to be ‘productive.’

“There’s not much left. Go get comfy.”

Blythe made her way to the sofa and flipped on the television. She scrolled through the movies while I finished cleaning up.

I put the final dish in the dishwasher and went to the couch. Blythe was scrolling on her phone, waiting for me. I couldn’t help but think about what Blythe had said during dinner. I have always wanted more kids—especially for Wren to have someone to play with—but I would never pressure Blythe into it. Ever since Wren’s mom left us, I thought it would be Wren and me, but now we have Blythe, and our world feels complete.

I plopped down on the couch and Blythe crawled over and snuggled into my side. When she was tucked against my body, everything felt right. “What are we watching?”

“I have two options for you. The first is a Western movie that looks half-decent. The other is a movie about a chef who finally makes it big. Your thoughts?”

I preferred the Western, but I knew Blythe would choose anything else. “Let’s go with the chef movie.”

As the ending credits rolled, I saw Blythe’s eyelids closed. I don’t know how long she had been asleep, but she missed out on a damn good movie.

“Bee, let’s head to bed.”

No movement.

“Bee, bedtime.” I shook her arm slightly.

Nothing.

“All right, we’ll just do this.” I reached for the remote and turned off the television. I shimmied over to give myself some space and scooped her up. She mumbled against my chest but was out cold. I placed her down in our bed and tucked her in before taking a shower.

Unlike my beautiful girlfriend, I take ten-minute showers. I checked my phone, and it was a little after two A.M. I set an alarm and let my body sink into the mattress. Blythe felt the bed dip and rolled over, laying her arm across my bare chest.

“I love you,” she murmured. I couldn’t tell if she was awake or not.

I laid my head back on the pillow, “I love you, too.”

Excitement bubbled in me like a kid the night before vacation. I was going to have a hell of a time falling asleep, but tomorrow had surprises in store.