Fantasy Caught in the Waves (Closed)

[SheLuvsMusic]

Josie, feeling a little better now that whatever had just happened seemed to be resolving, leaned into him and rested her head on his shoulder. She didn't really know what she was thinking, but after so long without really seeing him, she was bound to be a little crazy. They both were. And with this new development in their relationship, it was going to take some time to adjust. She had to giggle when he said he would be the envy of every man in town, though. "If any of them were half as amazing as you, they wouldn't need to be envious," she said. "I have to admit I do worry about it, though. Just a little bit. They already think I'm a bitch, but what about you?" She would hate to see their relationship have negative effects on his business, for example.

"Okay," she said softly. She wouldn't force him to do anything with her he wasn't ready for yet, even if she was excited to explore the town with him and do normal couple things for a change. "We can go more slowly... Just as long as I get to see you at all, I'll be happy." It had been enough before when all they had was the loft in the stables, so it could be enough now. They just had more options. It did good to exchange apologies, and hopefully they could avoid any more of these hiccups. They didn't really happen very often with them, and this one might have been the worst of it, but she would hate to return home in a state like the one Ella had been in the other night.

Back at home, she guided Chestnut back to his stall and got him an apple for his troubles before speaking with Ella about everything. It did feel better now, but of course she was still in an odd mood. John had still told her he couldn't be friends, and even if they had made up and made plans, things with Alec didn't feel as happy as she thought they would be when she woke up in the morning. "Well... I told John everything. He took it better than I thought he might, and while I completely understand why not, I still wish he would have wanted to stay friends," she said.

"And then I went to Alec's thinking he might cheer me up now that we can actually be together openly, and we ended up arguing instead. I think we're okay now, I just... Feel weird about it," she explained. "I tried to make a joke he didn't think was funny, and then when I thought he might ask me out, he didn't... And it was this whole thing. But I think we're doing something Saturday, I just don't know what yet. He wants me to plan it, but I'm afraid he's going to think it's too much." She wasn't used to making plans with him. They always just hung out in the stables, and with other men, she had never had to do the planning.

 

[AvianJen]

Alec didn't know if that was true, but he appreciated it anyways. It didn't seem like he was quite as amazing as she'd hoped for him to be, at least regarding this date thing, but he was hoping to be able to make amends. He loved her, and he wanted to make sure that she felt loved. It couldn't just be words, it also had to be actions. Alec was normally pretty good at that, but he also showed his love in very different ways than most other people.

He had to chuckle at her comment and shook his head, pulling her closer. "Josie, nobody thinks that," he said. It might not be true, but he didn't see how anyone could think that of her. "And me...I mean, realistically, they're going to think that you're selling yourself short and could do much better." It didn't make him proud, exactly; he wanted to be a man who was truly worthy of her. But Josie was beginning to teach him how being worthy of her meant something other than having money and stature...at least, according to her. Alec knew what other people would think of him. "But don't you worry about it," he said to her. "It doesn't bother me, and they'll get over it." Maybe it bothered him more than he could admit, but he would get over it, too. His and Josephine's relationship had survived much worse things.

Ella knew that it must have been hard for Josephine to tell John the truth about how she really felt, but it was a step that had to be taken. She tilted her head when she said she wished he'd wanted to be friends, understanding what that meant. Neither of the girls had many friends, not apart from each other and their respective boyfriends. "I'm sorry," she said. "I know it was hard for you, but it was probably hard for him too. It might be a little early to be asking to be friends. But you've still got me, silly." She gave her sister an affectionate nudge. "I'm a better friend than him, anyways."

When Josie said that she and Alec had argued, though, that was certainly a surprise. They never argued. They were the perfect couple who had it all together, right? "You argued?" She leaned up against a post, looking at Josephine curiously. She didn't seem distraught like Ella had been that night, but she also seemed...not quite herself. Ella had never seen her like this after a conversation with Alec, of all people. So, she plopped down on a bale of hay and patted the empty space next to her, inviting Josie to sit. "Tell me what happened," she said. "You made a bad joke and he didn't ask you out? Why will he think it's too much?"

 

[SheLuvsMusic]

Josephine knew better than to think that any gossip surrounding her outside of the ransom situation was favorable gossip. She already had little friends, and with the number of men who she had rejected over the years, they thought her high maintenance, maybe even cruel, and the women hated her because they either thought her strange or because she got attention from men. "Yes, they do," she insisted, not that she cared as much what they thought. "And mostly I think they'll just be... Surprised. But I think anyone would be." They could think what they wanted, but she did hope it wouldn't bother Alec. Either way, as long as thoughts were kept quiet, it would okay. But god help anyone who came after the man she loved.

As far as John was concerned, he might be the only person Josephine wished would be accepting of her relationship with Alec. He was a good man who had shown her a good deal of compassion in a difficult time in her life when she couldn't get it from Alec, even if there had been no romantic chemistry between them. That meant something to her, which made her feel all the more guilty about what she had done. "I know," she said. "I feel bad about it. And I get he needs time and space, I just... I feel like we could be friends if given the chance." He was the type of person she would want to be friends with anyway. Just not someone she saw herself marrying. "And you're my sister. We have to be friends, otherwise it's be torture living with you," she teased, rolling her eyes playfully.

She sighed, mentally preparing for the explanation before sitting next to Ella. "It's a little complicated," she started, not even sure if she entirely understood what had happened herself. It was almost like she and Alec had been having two separate conversations with each other at the same time. She reiterated what she remembered of their argument to the best of her ability, but she was still a little confused about it. "I just thought that now we have permission from father, that maybe we would be more like a normal couple, but we're not. I thought maybe he would want to go out and celebrate, but he doesn't... And I guess maybe he thought I only wanted to because I wanted people to see us, but that isn't really it either. At the same time it's not like I have any issue with people seeing us together, but then I thought maybe he did... And it was this huge mess. I guess neither one of us really knows how this is supposed to work now. We've never really 'dated' each other before... We've only ever hung out in the loft and we kiss sometimes. That's it. This is new." She wasn't sure she was making sense, but she wasn't sure how else to explain it. It was like they had different expectations - Alec wanted more of mostly the same, and Josie was ready to try the new things they could never do before. The kind of things she dreamed about as a girl, that, despite her dating experience, she had never had the opportunity to truly enjoy. It had hurt to hear him explain how he had different expectations, especially when she assumed his reasons were to do with her.

 

[AvianJen]

Alec highly doubted that Josephine was right about people disliking her that much, but then again, he had never interacted with the other wealthy men in town apart from taking care of their horses while they were inside during Mr. Sinclair's parties. He didn't know too much about it. She was right about the surprise, though, and he nodded reluctantly. "Well, yes," he agreed. "I guess it will be a surprise." He hoped that nobody gave her a hard time about it, though. If they had opinions, they could keep them to themselves. Alec wasn't interested in hearing them, and he didn't want this to be any harder for Josephine than it needed to be.

Ella shrugged, not really understanding in what kind of context Josie and John would actually hang out as just friends. That seemed like it would just be awkward for everybody, but she didn't want to say that to Josie, who was clearly upset about it. "Well, did he say never?" Ella asked, raising her eyebrows. She would be surprised if he did. "Because if not, I wouldn't give up hope. But honestly, he seemed a little bit boring anyways. I mean, I guess I never knew him that well, but..." He was a nice guy- he volunteered with kids, for crying out loud, but Ella wasn't sure how much fun it would be to hang out with him. Then again, Peter was the only man she'd met so far who was able to keep her entertained, and he was an ex-pirate. That was probably saying something.

Josie's explanation of the argument was pretty much gibberish to Ella. She didn't understand hardly anything that was said, but there was one thing that she picked up on- it was new. Suddenly all the gibberish started to make sense. "Oh," she said thoughtfully. "I get it. Your relationship just has a different dynamic now that you don't have to keep it a secret." That was probably hard to adjust to. "It sounds like you both had different expectations for what was going to happen when you got Father's approval, right? Did you ever talk about it before?" Ella hoped that it wasn't going to turn into a big issue, but she could see where a natural conflict would arise if they both had different ideas about how things were going to go and hadn't communicated about it beforehand. "I mean, that's only natural, Josie. Maybe this is a much bigger change than you thought it was going to be. And especially Alec, I mean, he's got a lot of change going on. He's getting used to a new property, a new job, and now a different kind of relationship. And he's not...I mean, the guy seems like he could only take so much." Ella could do new things every day and relish in it, but Alec seemed like a more quiet, homebody type of personality who didn't like change. That kind of person drove Ella crazy, personally, but she could only speak for herself. "I'm sure he's happy to be able to be with you," she said, trying to comfort Josie, "but it is a pretty big change, you know?"

 

[SheLuvsMusic]

It was an unconventional relationship, and people tended to notice and talk about the unconventional. Josephine just hoped it wouldn't be so much of a reaction that other people became a distraction for them. They could say what they wanted about her, but she would have a hard time ignoring it if they came after Alec. They worked so hard to finally get here, and he needed no reason to doubt himself any more.

"No," she said, answering Ella's question. Josephine wasn't the most patient person, though. And she wasn't used to being rejected or anyone saying no to her. John's reaction was perfectly understandable, but that didn't mean she found it disappointing and upsetting, especially when he was probably the only person her father made her see that she could stand. "He's not boring," she protested, although he was certainly more shy and less adventurous than most. Then again, Alec was quiet and more reserved himself. "Not completely, anyway. And he's kind... He... I know this is probably stupid, but when we were having problems and I couldn't see Alec, he was really the only person I could vent to. Even if I couldn't tell him everything, obviously." She also thought maybe she would feel less guilty if she could salvage a friendship with him. Maybe it would be awkward at first, but would it really be any more awkward than to see him around town and at father's parties all the time anyway?

It was pretty obvious she and Alec were not exactly on the same page, and she nodded solemnly at that in agreement. "We talked about what it might be like if we got married, but not so much the in between. I guess we just never really thought about it." She supposed it made sense it was a lot of change for him, and maybe she did get a little carried away. She had all of these big, romantic ideas about what it would be like to date someone you actually loved. They were typical school girl fantasies she never got to live out, so she was a bit let down now that it seemed like Alec didn't share in them. "I know, I just... Alec has never been the most romantic person. Before that was okay, because there's only so much you can do in a stable loft. He has his moments, but I guess I just thought with all of our new freedom he would want to do something more than just the same old thing. Or that he might at least do something sweet and traditional, like ask me to spend time with him or surprise me with flowers."

 

[AvianJen]

Ella wasn't so sure that John wasn't boring, but then again she thought that Alec was pretty boring too. She didn't think that Josie was boring, mostly because she knew her so well and knew how crazy she could be, but the thought of wanting nothing more out of life than to own a house and raise a family was painful to Ella. She wanted something more, but thankfully Peter did as well. And that was why Josie was with Alec, not Ella. "Alright, he's kind," she relented. "But what do you mean? You couldn't vent to me?" That hurt just a little bit, but Ella didn't want to jump to conclusions. She didn't know what Josie would have needed to vent about if it wasn't Alec and everything like that, but Ella still thought that she could have come to her. "Besides, I mean...you can't really build a friendship off of venting to someone. Do you actually have anything in common?" He was nice, but apart from that Ella didn't think so. She was trying not to judge, but from her point of view it seemed like Josie wanted a new friend more than she wanted John, specifically.

"Look, I need to make some friends, too," she admitted, looking up at her sister. Neither of them were very good at actually getting off of their property with the intention of socializing. "Why don't we go...find a party or something and try to socialize a little more? I'm sure there are lots of friends out there, and not just ones you had to specifically friend zone. You know?"

She nodded, trying to understand. She thought that she understood what Josie was getting at, and could definitely see how it would be hard. Ella knew that Alec wasn't the most romantically minded man, but he still found ways to show that he cared. It was just in a different kind of way. "So...that's not okay anymore?" she asked Josephine cautiously. "He's not changing, Josie, your relationship is. And you can't change him to be the kind of boyfriend you want if that's not who he is. That's not fair to him, anyways. And he should try to go above and beyond for you to make you feel loved, but I mean, he risked his life on a pirate ship for you. If he never does anything that's super romantic by your definition...is that going to be okay?" Alec had given Josie flowers before, in secret, but in all honestly that was about as creative as it got. Ella thought that Alec and Josie were a good couple, but she hoped that Josie had really thought this through. She didn't want her sister getting hurt any more than she already had.

 

[SheLuvsMusic]

Josephine bit her lip, obviously not trying to hurt Ella's feelings. It wasn't as though she couldn't vent to Ella - she trusted her sister and loved her. But it was a little hard to voice certain frustrations to her without it negatively affecting their relationship, as they had already seen. "Of course I can, but... For a while you were angry with me, and... No offense, Ella, but sometimes the things I need to vent about sort of involve you." It wasn't like Ella didn't talk about her to Peter. John wasn't exactly her Peter, but it was the closest thing she had had to Alec at the time. She didn't really know that she agreed with Ella about not being able to build relationships from venting. John, although she didn't know him well, knew some more intimate things about her than most people. She was a bit of a closed book most if the time, but she supposed she clung to John's company seeing as he was some of the only company she had in her time of struggle. "I don't know, but why would it be so wrong to find out? I think he's lonely, too, and I just.. feel bad for him. For what I did, too."

She had to raise her eyebrow at Ella's suggestion. She loved parties, but there was one flaw with the idea. "That's fine, Ella, but... What party would we go to that we don't already know everyone?" The social pool was somewhat limited by this point in their lives with the number of social events their father liked to host.

"That's not what I'm saying," Josephine said, quick to protest. She loved Alec for who he was, and that would never change. And Ella was right - he had risked his life for her. That was the most romantic thing he had ever done, and not many girls were as lucky. It was hard to put into words exactly what she had hoped for, but the argument today wasn't it. "I just mean..." she struggled to find a way to explain it, much like she had earlier to Alec. She found it frustrating how something she thought was a fairly basic concept was being so difficult to convey. "Look at it this way. If Peter goes away on that trip with Mr. Lawrence, you haven't seen or hardly spoken to him in days, and he comes back and tells you he doesn't have the energy for you, wouldn't you be at least a little bit hurt? That's what I felt like today. I know it wasn't what he meant, but... I miss him. It's a hard blow when you're expecting someone to be excited to see you, and all you get is a pat on the back and a 'sorry, love, not right now'. Especially after I was already having a less than ideal morning, and all of the trouble we went through. It's the gesture I was hoping for... If nothing else. Going public is a big deal to me, but I don't think he thinks of it the same way I do."

 

[AvianJen]

Ella raised her eyebrows at Josie's comment, leaning against the post and crossing her arms. "Oh?" she asked with a smirk. "Vent about me?" Her and Peter, probably. That was all that Ella could think of. She talked about Josie sometimes, but not a whole lot to be honest. She wasn't sure that she liked the idea of Josephine "venting" to John about her, but if that was what she needed...well, Ella didn't quite know what to say. But she didn't think it was fair to use John as a vent, though. "Well...Josie, maybe you should approach him again after he's found who he's going to marry. If he is lonely, I don't know that he'll like hanging out with a girl who dumped him, you know? You'd just be reminding him of it. But when you're both married I'm sure he'd like hanging out, with you and Alec and his wife. You could go on nice double dates. Don't you think? I mean, I'm sure he'd be more open to it then." Ella thought that it would be awkward otherwise, but she didn't know what she could say to Josephine to make it better. The bottom line was that Josie had hurt John, and he didn't want to hang out right now. It sucked, but Ella thought that John's reasoning made sense.

"I know I'm not being very comforting," she sighed apologetically. "I'm sorry, I just don't know what to say. I understand how John probably feels, and if I were in his shoes I don't know that I'd want to hang out right away either. Don't take it personally, but don't...don't worry too much about him, either. No offense, but I don't think that he was falling in love with you or anything, so it's not like you broke his heart too bad. He'll find someone who's better for him, I'm sure."

She giggled when Josie pointed out how small their social pool was, and she shook her head. "Not one of those parties, silly," she said. "Why don't we crash a more normal party? I'm sure Alec could help us find one. Just don't wear the red ballgown."

Ella sighed, wondering what she was getting wrong. Josie's tried to explain it with her Peter analogy, but Ella didn't respond the way she was probably hoping for. "No. I mean...I might be a little bit disappointed, but not hurt. I'd let him go take a long nap and recover, and to be honest I'd probably just...get in bed with him. For sleeping," she added, knowing that Josie would read into that. Peter was great about making time for her, but she knew that when he was tired she needed to give him his space or do something more relaxed. She didn't mind that at all, though. "I mean, Peter doesn't really take me out," she said. "He doesn't have time except for on the weekends, but then he's been working all week and he maybe just wants to stay home. We've gone to town like...once, for my university application? Maybe twice so that I could give him a tour?"

She was quiet for a minute, then let out a sigh. "I'm sorry, Josie...I'm sorry you felt let down. Feeling rejected is...it's not a good feeling, I know that. I guess I just...can't really relate. It's nice when Peter does things for me, but I don't really expect him to and I don't feel rejected when he doesn't have the time or energy because I know that he still loves me. I actually wish he would tell me more often when he gets too tired because...I mean, that gives me an opportunity to love him better. You know?" The two sisters always had very different views on things, and this was apparently no exception. Quite honestly it sounded to Ella like Josie was being a little silly about and overreacting, but then again she hadn't been there. Maybe Alec had been a jerk about it, who knew?

 

[SheLuvsMusic]

Josephine resisted the urge to roll her eyes. "Like you don't complain about me when I annoy you," she said. It had only really been once or twice, anyway. There was only so much she could really say about Peter and Ella to someone like John. But Ella had a point about John, and she knew it. She just couldn't shake how bad she felt about it for doing that to him. "I know, I know... Maybe. And I don't think he loved me, at all, thank God, but at the very least I prevented him from finding that person for him for a little while. I can't help but feel bad about that. I guess I just feel like maybe if we could be friends I'd feel less guilty, I don't know." She didn't really expect Ella to understand, seeing as Ella hadnt faced the same situation. Father never pressured her to start seeing anyone, and when she met Peter, father had given them permission practically right away. Sometimes Josie was jealous of how easy it all seemed to come to Ella compared to the complications she and Alec were used to.

She had to raise a brow when Ella clarified a more normal party. Josephine was used to formal parties, so when Ella said normal parties she pictured fiddles, dancing, and lots and lots of alcohol. The kind of thing that was entirely foreign to her. "But... What would I even wear?" she asked, already filled with anxiety about it. A normal party meant the kind of people she would be around once she married Alec, but Alec wasn't a party type. Was he? He at least wasn't the kind to wear formal suits and ballroom dance. She was a little curious, but also incredibly nervous at the thought of Ella's suggestion. "Wouldn't we stick out?"

She pouted when Ella still didn't seem to get it, but then again, Ella had never been away from Peter. "Okay, but... That's part of my point. You see him every day, even if you're doing nothing. Alec doesn't live here anymore, and I haven't really seen him apart from an hour here and there at dinner. Even then, we're not alone. And you at least have been out with Peter. Twice is two times more than I've ever been out Alec, and you've only been with Peter for what...? A couple months? I've been with Alec for two years, and I can't even get him to plan to spend any time with me. I had to coerce it from him, and even then he's leaving it all up to me and put restrictions on what we can and can't do." The bottom line was she was just eager to see him. She didn't really mind as much what they did, but when he had offered nothing when she hinted at it, then yeah, that hurt. "Just... Nevermind. It's fine now, I guess."

 

[AvianJen]

Ella shrugged. "I mean, not really about you," she said. "If I complain it's because you're giving me a hard time about something." Ella didn't think that should count; Josie gave her a hard time on almost everything, especially when it came to her relationship with Peter. And Peter...well, he knew that Josie didn't like him. Whether she knew it or not, Josie was an obstacle in their relationship. Not a bad one, especially now that she was getting more used to him and opening her mind up a little bit, but still. But that wasn't the important issue right now. "Well, try not to think that way," she said. "Don't ask for more of him to make yourself feel less guilty. That's selfish, you know?" She didn't mean that in a hurtful way- Ella might even think the same thing if their positions were switched. "You can be kinder to him by giving him his space," she said, trying to be encouraging. "He'll appreciate that more, I think, and then you'll have a better chance of having a real friendship later."

It was funny how anxious Josie already was about Ella's party suggestion. Ella loved the idea of a rowdy party where everyone was drinking and dancing and just having a good time, but she knew that was a little farther outside of Josephine's comfort zone. "I don't know, a plain one?" Ella asked. "Surely you have a plain dress somewhere in your closet." Ella had quite a few, but they were usually softer and more comfortable so she generally preferred to wear those. "Or borrow one of mine. I don't know if I'd stick out very much," she said teasingly, nudging her sister. "You would just have to loosen up a little bit, and you'd fit right in."

"But you just said..." Ella shook her head, definitely not understanding. She wasn't even sure that Josephine knew what she wanted, or maybe this was just an impossible concept for Ella to understand. "I think the problem is that you wanted him to ask you out," Ella said. "Alec's a nice guy, but he's too literal sometimes. He probably took you literally and didn't realize that you just wanted to spend time with him, even if it wasn't 'out.' Is that it?" She sighed, combing her fingers through her long curls. "Maybe he doesn't like it to be planned?" she suggested. "Maybe he wanted to surprise you, even. I don't know. I'm sorry...but at least it's okay now."

 

[SheLuvsMusic]

Josephine knew she was hard on Ella, but it was only because she loved her and wanted to look out for her. They didn't have their mother anymore, and father couldn't really understand things from a woman's perspective, so they had to rely on each other. The problem was usually that Josie tended to be the one who got into less trouble. She always tried to discourage Ella from doing crazy things, while Ella was always trying to convince her to try them. It almost never worked in either direction. "Well you give me plenty of reasons to be hard on you, hence the need to let out my frustrations sometimes," she teased. "But you're probably right. There's nothing I can do about it now, anyway. What's done is done. I just have to let it go."

Josephine knew that it would have to be something she would need to get used to once she started a life with Alec, but the thought of wearing a plain dress to a party just felt wrong. Half the fun of parties was dressing up and feeling beautiful in your best clothes. She looked anxiously down at the gown she currently wore, a soft pink one she kept for everyday wear. "This isn't plain?" She asked. Sure, the skirt was big, and the stitching was still intricate, but as far as her wardrobe went, it was one of the simplest she owned. She had an admiration for the hard work that went into creating wearable art, while Ella was most definitely the more practical of the two. It was funny that Josephine was the one who had fallen in love with a stable boy, because Ella would probably more easily adapt to most things about that kind of life than Josephine would. She probably would fit in, where as Josie felt like she'd stick out like a sore thumb. She furrowed her eyebrows, though, not sure if she should take offence. "I can be loose..." she protested.

Maybe she was just awful at explaining herself, but she could see that Ella was just as confused as Alec had been when she got upset. It was a possibility she was overanalyzing, too, but her stubbornness made that hard to admit. She had to nod when Ella attempted to understand, and it sounded more like what had actually happened. Josie had her preferences about what they should do, but she was mostly content just to be with him. It had just felt like he wasn't as excited about it as she was, or how she felt he should be, anyway. Possibly he was just stressed and not thinking about it as much. "Yes, I think so," she said, then sighed. She just wished they hadn't had the argument at all. "I don't know. I guess I just have to figure out what we're doing and I'm going to be all stressed about that now." But at least she had a couple of days.

"Anyway, I hope you at least had a better morning?" she asked.

 

[AvianJen]

Ella knew that Josie always meant well. She was the baby sister, and it was basically Josie's job to make sure that she didn't get into trouble. But the problem was that the sisters were so close in age and Ella really wasn't that far behind Josephine when it came to maturity levels. At this point, most of it boiled down to their drastic personality differences. "I do not," Ella pouted when Josie said she gave her lots of reasons to be hard on her. Maybe she had recently, but Ella didn't think those were very good reasons, personally. Most of the time. Sometimes Ella did stupid, impulsive things, but she always meant well. She didn't think that she deserved a lot of what Josie gave her, but it was okay. They were sisters, and Ella would much rather have a slightly overprotective one than none at all. She was at least satisfied when Josephine agreed to let it go, and nodded. The way Ella saw it, that was really all that she could do at this point.

She pretended to carefully examine Josephine's dress, sizing her up. "Well, maybe if you lost the petticoat," she teased. "And take your hair down." Big, poofy skirts really had no place at common parties, at least from what Ella had heard. There wasn't room for that. Ella's dress that she was wearing currently was nice, but it was also one of her plainer ones. There was a lot of fabric in the skirt to make it loose and more comfortable, but she wasn't wearing anything underneath that gave it a lot of shape. The skirt spun out dramatically when she twirled, but otherwise it hung down fairly straight. And Ella rarely did her hair- it was loose and wavy, occasionally tied back by a small ribbon. Hardly ever curled like Josie's. She tried not to laugh when Josie claimed that she could be loose, but it came out anyways. "Josie, you're the most uptight person I know," she said endearingly. "And that's okay. But I don't think I've ever seen you let loose." It took a special kind of person to continuously wear a corset for an entire month on a pirate ship, but Josie was that kind of person. Ella wasn't faulting her for it at all- between the two of them, one certainly needed to be more structured. But it was just a fact.

As far as Josie planning the date went, Ella didn't think that was so bad. She would love to plan a date for herself and Peter, if she ever got the chance to. "Well, we have no life," she said in amusement. They really didn't do much, apart from reading and in Ella's case, studying. "So if it's going to stress you out, imagine how much it would have stressed him out with everything else he's got going on. Think of it as...an opportunity. And he'll do whatever you plan, so plan your dream date."

She shrugged at the question about her morning. "Well, yes," she said. "I woke Peter up, and told him I thought that he should go on this trip. So now I'm just waiting for him to come back with his answer." The day was going by so slowly. It was all Ella could think about.

 

[SheLuvsMusic]

Sometimes it was hard to believe the two of them were even related because of how different they were. A year really shouldn't make much difference, but Josie acted like a mother half the time already, and Ella was like the troublesome teenage daughter personality wise. She had to raise her brow at Ella's insistence that she did not give her reasons to be hard on her, and shook her head. "You're the one with a taste for wine and kissing pirates," she teased. This last year had been a challenge with Ella, most definitely. But even before all of that, she had her moments. Still, there was something to be said about Ella and her studies. "I'm proud of you, though, you know. You drive me crazy, but not everyone can have a sister as smart as you."

She frowned at the criticism of her dress. Josephine didn't get much simpler than what she was wearing, and she never wore her hair down. If she did, it was at least curled. "Don't you trip all over your dress, though? And I can't stand to have my hair in my face..." She knew she was a bit spoiled and took tpride in her appearance, but she didn't think it was vain. It was a matter of needing to have everything meticulously in it's place. She had always been that way, even as a child. Ella had been the sticky, muddy one. Josie used to cry if she got rained on. "I am not uptight," she said, even knowing all of that was true. She at least wasn't as uptight as most people they knew. "And I do too let loose... I'll prove it to you," she added, a bit haughtily. If there was one thing Josie could never turn down, it was a challenge, even if the thought of Ella's kind of fun made her nervous.

She could hardly argue that life around here could be a bit boring sometimes. There really wasn't much they could do to keep them occupied outside of each other, their respective boyfriends, and the few leisurely activities they enjoyed. "I know. He's been working so hard... I didn't mean it wouldn't be stressful for him, too, I just... I'm not used to planning anything with him. I want it to be perfect." And it had to be something they both would enjoy, not just her. And it couldn't be public... Which admittedly annoyed her some, but she would figure it out.

It was a relief to get off the subject of her relationship for a while, and she watched Ella's face for any signs of anxiety about Peter. "Oh, well I'm glad you're giving him your blessing," she said. It was for the best, really, and she didn't think that just because a break from Peter being around the house was a welcome thing for her. "Do you think you'll be alright if the answer is yes?"

 

[AvianJen]

Well, Ella couldn't really refute that. She loved her wine, and she loved her pirate, too. "Pirate," she corrected playfully, changing the word to a singular. Ella didn't think she would have ended up kissing any other pirates, but Peter was special. He was different from the rest of them, and he wasn't a pirate anymore. He was her boyfriend, and Ella knew that they were going to be together forever. She beamed at Josephine's compliment, though, glancing at her feet. "Well. Not everyone can have a sister as supportive and loving as you," she returned. Josie wasn't always supportive of Ella's choices, but as far as her schoolwork she'd been overwhelmed with the amount of support she'd received from her family. And even when Josie did give her a hard time, Ella understood that she did it from a place of love.

"No," she laughed in reference to her dress. "I just pick it up a little higher when I climb the stairs. And just because your hair is down doesn't mean it has to be in your face." Ella's hair was just hanging down right now, but it took all of two seconds to sweep her hair back into a half-ponytail and tie it with the ribbon around her wrist. "See?" They had always had very different ideas of fun- Josie liked to dress up and keep everything neat and pretty. There was a part of Ella that liked to look beautiful as well, but then she didn't actually care enough to put in the effort. She'd rather be outside, running about and having adventures. When Josephine promised to prove it, Ella raised her eyebrows. "Oh, alright," she said with a grin. "I'll look forward to that."

But Josie also had an obsession with perfection that Ella didn't have. Ella tended to go with the flow and adapt accordingly, but Josie would freak out if something went wrong. That wasn't a bad thing either, but it could be if she let it ruin things like her first real date with Alec. "It will be perfect," she tried to assure her sister. "And not because of the way you plan it, but because you'll get to spend time together. You need to stop being so hard on yourself, and hard on him. Don't force anything, just let it happen." That was what she and Peter had done, and it had worked out beautiful. And while generally speaking Josephine knew more about relationships than Ella did, Ella did understand a few things. Being anal about having a perfect date was not going to make for a fun time.

Ella would probably rather continue talking about Josie's relationship than her own, though, and she shrugged at her question. "I think so," she said. "I mean, I'll be sad. And I'll miss him. But I know that this is going to be a fact of life if he continues on this career path...I'm going to have to be okay with it at some point or another, so might as well start now."

 

[SheLuvsMusic]

Josie playfully rolled her eyes. Peter was not the ideal person she would have wanted Ella to end up with, but she had to admit he could be worse. It wasn't like Alec was the person Ella or her father anticipated her being with either. This family probably made the strangest choices, but at least they were happy. Most of the time. She did try to support Ella when she could, and her sister had to know that even if she didn't always approve of her choices, she would never abandon her over them. Ella was impulsive, but she was also ambitious and bright. "Well, you deserve it. And now I can brag about my smart sister to everyone I know, so really it's a win win," she teased.

Josephine was definitely a very different type of person than Ella was, with different passions and ideas. It was amazing how striking that difference was in something as simple as appearances. The girls looked a lot alike physically, but Josie had a hard time picturing herself the way Ella stood before her now. "I don't know... You might have to help me with that bit," she said. Even once she married Alec, she was pretty sure she could learn to sacrifice some of her wardrobe, but she wasn't all that willing to let her hair loose all the time. She was eager to try it, though, if only to prove to herself that she could fit in among the more common people. She would have to, eventually, and even if she and Alec never attended another party, at least she would have a better understanding of how other people lived.

That was somewhat of a problem Josephine tended to struggle with. She liked things to be orderly, she liked control, and she liked to have a plan. It wasn't always a bad thing, but sometimes she got caught up in the details too much. Like today, when her expectations weren't met, and she'd gotten upset. It was possible her standards were set too high. She had to be careful she didn't do that with their date, either. "Honestly, I don't know how he deals with me sometimes," she admitted. She was really lucky to have him. Maybe Ella was right and part of the problem was she was trying to hard to force the idea of a relationship instead of just letting the one that already existed return with the added bonus of her father's approval. "It'll be good, though. I hope. I guess I'm just excited we don't have to be confined to the stables anymore." Although she did miss the loft. It was their little spot and always would be.

Josephine wasn't sure what she would do if Alec ever left like Peter might. He had, in a sense, but he still lived near and she still got to see him around even when they were forced to separate. But Peter wouldn't even be on land, so she could only imagine the kind if anxiety Ella mist have about it. Especially since the two of them had never really been apart. "That's a good way to think about it," she said. "And maybe you'll benefit from some alone time? You can focus on getting ready for school. And it's only a couple of weeks, anyway. It'll pass before you know it."

 

[AvianJen]

Ella beamed. She didn't know if she really deserved it, but she appreciated the sentiment nonetheless. Now more than ever, Ella was excited to see where her life was going to go. Before the pirate ship and Peter, Ella had resigned herself to a boring life as a housewife and mother. She had accepted it, but it wasn't what she wanted and the notion had never made her happy. Her life seemed like it only had one option, but now...the world was full of wonderful possibilities. Ella didn't know what was going to happen, and that was exciting. She didn't want a predictable life, she wanted every day to be a new adventure. With Peter, with university...that was exactly what she would be getting. "Well, don't brag about me too much just yet," Ella said with a laugh. "I may end up failing."

The girls really did look very similar, but it was amazing how their individual fashion choices reflected their personalities. When Josie said that Ella might need to help her, she was more than happy to oblige. "Of course," she said happily. "Just start with this..." Reaching forward, Ella pulled a couple of pins out of Josie's hair, letting it tumble to her shoulders. "See? Pretty." Ella liked the look of her hair down- she hated wearing it up, actually. And whenever she tied it back Peter ended up inevitably pulling out her ribbon, so it wasn't worth the effort anymore. It hadn't even been worth it in the first place.

It was understandable to be excited about not being confined anymore, and she supposed that she understood why Josie might want to get out of the house and celebrate their freedom for the first time. But she could also understand why Alec maybe wouldn't want to. Overall, though, Ella thought that it was a little issue that definitely wasn't worth fighting over. "Well, yes," she agreed. "But think of it this way, you haven't even spent any time with him at his house yet, really. That's something new all on it's own, even if it isn't going out." Maybe that would help cheer her up a bit.

She had to give her an incredulous look when Josie suggested that she might actually benefit from some alone time. Ella was a more extroverted personality type, and alone time really wasn't her thing. "I don't think so," she said sourly. "But I don't know...I hope you're right." Ella thought it was more likely she would spend every passing day missing him, worrying about his safety. Peter had lived on the water forever and he knew how to handle himself, but still. What if there was some sort of freak accident?

 

[SheLuvsMusic]

The thought of Ella failing was laughable. She was the definition of a stubborn, driven person, and Josephine had watched her stick her nose in a book everyday since they first learned to read as girls. "Oh, please," she said. "You're going to outsmart every single man in your class." Or at least match them, but she was more amused at the thought of Ella being at the top. Women really didn't get enough credit, and although Josephine wanted the simple life of a wife and mother as expected of her, she was glad that Ella had the drive to try something different.

Josephine had a hard enough time accepting a different hairstyle. She barely ever wore it down, except to go to sleep, but she let Ella reach over and do what she wanted with it. Her hair had always been long, so it felt rather heavy to have it just hanging. Maybe if she could convince Alec to find them a party somewhere, just so she could get a taste of what her knew life would entail, she would wear it down for a day. "Thanks," she said, although she felt "messy" might be a better word than "pretty". Ella's hair always seemed to work though, so maybe she was overly critical of herself. "Don't expect to see this often, though," she smiled.

Josie supposed that was true, and she was eager to spend some time in the house alone with Alec without the critical eye of her father observing every detail. Or them. She blushed at the thought of getting to do more normal couple things with Alec again, like cuddling and kissing, or if things felt right, maybe go that extra step forward with him finally. But she was getting ahead of herself already, and they'd barely been "official" for a whole day yet. "I suppose so," she said. "I guess things haven't really been normal with us since the ship... Maybe it is better we just... Keep it simple at first." They hadnt even considered a serious future before the ship, which might be some of the issue as well. Neither of them really understood what a relationship outside the loft might look like for them.

Josie just shrugged. Extroverted as Ella was, she thought everyone could use some time alone once in a while. "At least try to distract yourself. It helped me," she offered. "But you don't even know if he's going yet, and you have... What? A week still? I'm sure you two will make the most of that." She tried hard not to think about how in particular they would. The intimate details of their relationship were something she almost wished she didn't know so much about. "And I'll still be here when he's gone, too. So we can do sisterly things if you get bored or lonely," she added, although she hoped she would be a bit busier with Alec now.

 

[AvianJen]

Ella hoped that Josie was right about that, but there was a very good chance that she might not be. Ella wasn't used to doing schoolwork, and she would have to adjust quite a bit. She didn't know how hard it would be. "I don't know," she sighed. "I mean, I hope so. But I can't help but feel like I'm going to be held to a higher standard. I'm going to have to do better because I'm a girl, or they won't take me seriously." Ella couldn't just achieve; she had to go above and beyond. And that was fine, because that's what she wanted to do anyways, but it was a little nerve-wracking.

She flipped her hair dramatically, smiling in Josie's direction. She thought that her hair looked fine, but after being up maybe it was a little bit fluffier than usual. "Why?" Ella asked playfully. "It saves you a lot of time in the morning, and you don't have to worry about it falling out, and it's pretty. It looks more natural." She couldn't really see Josie wearing her hair like this all the time, though, and that was okay. They each had their things, and one of Josie's was keeping her hair up. When Josie finally started to come around, though, Ella relaxed a little bit. "Right," she agreed. "Keep it simple. You have your whole lives to do crazy things, so just do yourself a favor and take it easy for now. Give Alec some time to adjust, and I'm sure he'll be very romantic when he comes up with an idea." Ella wasn't really sure of that, but she didn't think that Alec was the type who could just whip up a romantic plan out of nowhere. It took a little bit of time.

Distract herself? Ella raised her eyebrows when Josephine claimed that it had helped her, looking rather skeptical. "I don't think much of anything helped you," she pointed out. Josephine had been an absolute mess. Ella wasn't going to go quite that crazy when Peter left, she would probably just be a little bit...sad. And that was completely understandable, she thought. Josie was right about one thing though- he wasn't leaving today, or even tomorrow. They still had some time to spend together and she knew that they really would make the best of it. "That's true," she agreed. "I hope you're right. He'll be back before we know it."

 

[SheLuvsMusic]

"yeah, that's probably true," Josephine agreed with a frown. It was messed up, but anything less than perfect was bound to be an excuse to dismiss Ella's, and by association, any other woman's, capabilities. "But I know you can do it. I've never seen you fail anything you've set your mind to." Stubbornness ran in the family. Determination too, otherwise father wouldn't be a business man, Ella wouldn't have gotten into college, and Josephine would have been engaged to someone she didn't love by now. Not to mention either of the girls would never have survived the pirates had they given up.

At Ella's question, she just shrugged. Who knew why she was the way she was, but Josie enjoyed being girly and dolled up. "I don't know," she said. "I don't really mind spending the time. I think it's sort of fun." It went hand in hand with her desire to have things orderly. That was partly why if they did this party idea, it was going to be a bit of a challenge to her. She didn't find much pleasure in chaotic energy. But she also knew it was important she learn to adapt to something different than the pampered life she lived now, and learn a little bit more about the sort of place Alec came from. She wanted to fit in, and as difficult as the transition might be, she was willing to try. For him. For both of them. "But yeah... I hope so."

She chuckled a little bit at Ella's response. "Well, yeah... But that's because I was awful at actually distracting myself. But when I did, it helped." And Ella would probably have an easier time than her anyway. She knew Peter would be back, whereas Josephine had been facing the potential end of her relationship. It was heartbreak. Ella was slightly more fortunate in that regard, and as if summoned by their words, it was only seconds before Peter did actually make it back to the house.

"Speak of the devil," Josie murmured. "I'll take that as my cue to leave." She started walking back towards the house as Peter came and swept Ella up into a kiss.

"Hello, my darling," he said, grinning from ear to ear. As expected, he came with good news, and he was excited to tell Ella about it. He only paused to say hi to Josie, who just gave him a careless wave as she disappeared inside. He shrugged it off and turned back to Ella. "I hope your day went as well as mine?"

 

[AvianJen]

Ella hoped that Josie was right, and it was nice to have someone believe in her. It would be a lot of very hard work to accomplish what she wanted to, but Ella was confident that she could get it right as long as she stayed dedicated and didn't let herself get burnt out. Stubbornness did run in the family, though, and Ella knew that if the men gave her a hard time it would just make her want to work even harder rather than discourage her. "Well, hopefully I don't start now," she replied with a smile.

When Josie said that she liked taking the time, Ella wrinkled her nose. She would much rather spend time with Peter in the morning or take an early walk than spend it on her hair, but Ella also wasn't very good at doing her hair. Maybe she would enjoy it more if she actually had any potential. "I think it's fun when you do my hair," Ella offered with a smile. "It always looks nice then. It always looks like a bird's nest when I try to do it." The most Ella could manage was braiding her hair every night, ensuring it would have pretty, loose waves when she let it loose in the morning. Occasionally the maids would curl it for her, but that was mostly for special occasions.

Josie really had been horrible at distracting herself, and Ella nodded knowingly. "Well, I'll try," she relented. She would have to come up with something to do while Peter was gone and Josie was off with Alec. Maybe Peter would give her all that homework he promised and she could look forward to a thousand kisses when he got back home. When she saw him suddenly approach the house, though, her face lit up with joy. The best part of her day was always when Peter got home. She glanced back to smile at Josie before he left, but her attention was fully on Peter as he came up and kissed her.

"You seem happy," she commented, wrapping her arms around him and hugging him tight. Ella was all too afraid that she knew what that meant. She wanted to be as happy as he was and she wanted him to do this, but she was still sad at the thought of him leaving. "It's better now," she murmured, blinking back a couple tears and hoping that he wouldn't notice. "I mean, I didn't have a bad day, I'm just...I'm glad you're back," she smiled.

 

[SheLuvsMusic]

"You won't," Josephine said. "I won't let you." She would be there to support Ella however she could. She couldn't claim that she was any good at the kind of academics they taught in university, but if ever her sister needed someone to help her study, she could at least quiz her or something. She had all the faith that it would be fine, though.

Josephine had to smile at Ella's compliment. "I like helping you with your hair, too," she said. "And it wouldn't if you actually practiced." Ella didn't usually keep her hair up very long anyway, even when Josie helped out, typically for a party or an evening away somewhere. At least all that time she saved was put to good use by reading or studying. Even when Ella dabbled in trouble, there were far worse ways to spend her time than she did. "You'll be fine when he's gone. You'll see," she added, throwing a short glance toward Peter as he strolled up before she took her leave.

Peter knew that leaving would be a little sad for the both of them, but he was excited to be given this opportunity at all. He had been as upfront with Ella as he could about it, and he knew she understood. He was lucky to have her blessing on this, but he could also see that maybe she wasn't as excited for him as he was for himself. He could hardly blame her. At least he was gaining something by going away. The short end of the stick definitely fell to her.

"I am," he said. "I asked Mr. Lawrence this morning, and he thinks I'm ready. He said there will be even more to learn about the business once we go abroad... Stuff like knowing how to sell your products to the local culture and picking out the most worthwhile trades." He could hardly wait, as nervous as he was. As a pirate, he'd been a con man, but now he could use his skills more honestly and honorably. He just wanted to make Ella proud, and he knew she was, even if she appeared solemn now.

Placing his hands on either side of her face, he tilted her head up towards him. "It won't be for very long, Ella," he reassured her. "And I'll be thinking of you everyday, you know. You're sure you're really alright with this?" If she missed him this badly after one day, he did worry how she might do for two weeks. They had to try eventually, but he needed to be sure she was ready for it, too.

 

[AvianJen]

Ella laughed, shrugging. "Well, I'll hold you to that," she said playfully. "If I start failing it'll be all your fault." She knew that Josie wasn't very academically minded, but Ella knew that she would be able to help. She'd been a big help in reading over Ella's admission essays, and she could definitely help quiz her and everything like that. Ella would have a lot of time to devote to studying if Peter was going to be gone often, but she definitely might need Josie's help.

She had her doubts that her hair would get easier to do if she practiced, but she smiled at her sister anyways. "No, I don't have the natural talent like you do," she said. "I'd rather you do it. I'll practice at other things." She nudged Josephine affectionately and let out a sigh. "I know I'll be fine," she relented. "It'll be difficult, but it'll all turn out okay in the end. I know that."

Ella was getting the feeling that she was a lot sadder about him leaving than he was about leaving her, but she supposed that made sense. If she was being given the opportunity to go to somewhere exotic for two weeks, leaving him would be a small sacrifice knowing that she'd be back soon and he'd be there waiting for her. She would rather he come with, of course, but even if it wasn't possible she would still want to go. And Peter had to be getting tired of being landlocked. It wasn't him, and Ella knew that. She knew what she'd signed up for with him, just like Josie knew that she was signing up to a common life with Alec. But that didn't make it easy.

Finally, he said the words. He was going. Ella hugged him tighter, hiding her face in his shirt as a couple of tears slipped through. She wasn't sobbing, but...it scared her. For more reasons than one. It was storm season, for one thing. And another, it would be the first time they'd been apart since they day they met. And not all of those days had been good days, but...still. "I'm happy for you," she managed after a moment. And she was, genuinely. He was happy, and Ella loved to see him like that. She was happy for him, just a little bit sad for herself. "You're going to do amazingly, I know it."

She gazed up into his eyes adoringly, blinking back a couple more tears. "I know," she said. "I guess I'm just...afraid that if you go you won't come back. For one reason or another. And I know that you will, I...it's irrational, really. I'm really alright with it," she assured him. "The first time is going to be hard, whether it's next week or a year from now. I just...I just love you a lot." She ran her fingers through the ends of his hair, letting out a sign. "I'm happy for you, really," she repeated. "I've just gotten too used to my goodnight kisses, I guess."

 

[SheLuvsMusic]

Josephine grinned, but she wasn't worried at all about Ella and her schooling. "Fine. But don't use me as an excuse to slack off," she teased. "Or Peter, for that matter." If Ella was anything like her, it would be hard to not let the man she loved become a distraction. Josie didn't have to worry about school work or anything, but she would love if Ella could find a balance for herself. She was sure throwing her focus into some other area of her life would also make his absence easier, although Josie could understand from experience it was much easier said than done. "It will be fine. Try not to worry so much."

Peter knew that telling her Mr. Lawrence approved of him going on this trip would be a bittersweet moment, but he still loathed to see Ella cry. He didn't exactly want to say goodbye to her either, and seeing her upset about it caused him to feel saddened for being the cause of it. At the same time though, if he were to make himself worthy of her and start a valid life, this was how he wanted to do it. He was a simple man with a taste for simple things, but he also longed for adventure, hard work, and the ocean again.

Wiping away her tears with his thumb, he pulled her close to him for comfort. "Thank you for your vote of confidence. It means a lot, especially since I know this won't be easy for you. For either of us." He kissed the top of her head affectionately, wanting her to be nothing but happy for him. Not worried, or frightened, but excited about what this could mean for their future. Like Alec and Josephine, they couldn't just sit and hope that things would magically work out. He was not a rich man, and he was one with a difficult past at that. Her father may be overall more accepting of him than he was with Alec initially, but her father also knew very little about the man he had been. He was helpful in giving Peter the chance at a fresh start, but that didn't mean that his past would never catch up with him. He had to work hard to make up for it, and this was how he chose to do it.

"You don't need to be afraid. I love you, too, and I would never leave you... Not permanently, and certainly not without your permission. I've lived half my life on the open water, surviving storms and whales and... Mermaids. I've also already tried to leave you before, and look how well that turned out?" He gave her the smallest of smiles, knowing he had hurt her before, but wanting to demonstrate that he learned from that mistake. He'd been just as miserable, and also inevitably hopeless against her. "I would have a harder time giving you up than I would my wine, and that's saying a lot."

He leaned down to kiss her softly. These moments were not supposed to be sad, and he would much rather see her smiling than tears pooling in her eyes. "Besides, I have plenty more goodnight kisses for you in store," he said. "And I fully intend to make up for any lost ones between now and then and when I return."

 

[AvianJen]

Ella pouted. She wasn't going to slack off, not even for Peter. He wouldn't give her a great excuse, though, seeing how he was gone almost all day every day. "I won't," she replied with a smirk, rolling her eyes at her sister. "And I'll try not to worry." That was much easier said than done, though.

She couldn't hug Peter tight enough. It was almost as though if she kept holding on, he wouldn't be able to leave her. But she knew that this was important. This was how they were going to be able to build a life together. Some sacrifices would have to be made. Peter had already made his; he'd abandoned his entire lifestyle and the men he thought of as his family to be with her. Now it was Ella's turn, and her sacrifice wasn't nearly so great. Still, she was a spoiled rich girl, and she wasn't very used to having to give up anything at all.

"Mmm, yeah, you'd better not try that again," Ella murmured. She didn't know what she would do if Peter left. She knew that he loved her and that was hardly even an option, but Ella still didn't know. It was scary to think about. He finally managed to get a giggle out of her at the wine comment, though, and Ella looked up at him, wiping a couple more stray tears away with the back of her hand. He loved her, and she loved him. So, so much. Two weeks apart wasn't going to change that. She kissed him back, feeling a warm fluttery feeling in her chest. She would miss him terribly, but it really would be okay. He knew how to handle himself on the water, and he wasn't going to leave her on purpose.

In all seriousness though, she really was going to miss her goodnight kisses. When he promised to make up for any lost ones Ella smiled, a mischievous twinkle in her eye. "Oh yeah? How are you going to do that, exactly?"

 

[SheLuvsMusic]

Peter didn't see leaving his old life behind as much of a sacrifice. Not anymore. At first, of course it had been difficult to adjust. There were still times he was uncomfortable with the luxury of the life Ella had always known. Silk sheets and fine clothes felt nice only if you felt like you were fit for them, but he had been used to coarse cotton and dirty mattresses his whole life. The stillness of being on land was also at times unsettling when he longed for the waves to rock him to sleep at night. But as far as the other facets of his old life he'd left behind, there wasn't any of it Ella couldn't replace. Tom. The crew mates. None of them were really his family. Not like she was. They were a poor substitute for companionship during a long and lonely period of his youth. Ella was the one and only person to come along since the death of his true family that felt like he had something real with.

"There's not a chance I would," Peter said. If he'd tried and failed to leave her before they had even really gotten together, there was no way he could succeed now. They were in too deep for that. He had no desire to anyway. At least not for a time longer than what was necessary for them to build a better future.

He had to crack a smile when he managed to get one out of her. It looked better on her than her tears did, and much more like the image he had in his head when he imagined her reaction to the news. It seemed like for all the sadness she felt just a moment ago, he had done a fair job of getting her mind off of it and onto more pleasant things. He actually to chuckle at her question too, and leaned down to whisper in her ear. "So long as your father's not home, why don't we go up to your room and find out?"