Diamonds in Paradise (All About the Diamond #3) Read online

  Rick opens his eyes, “Are you serious?”

  This is crazy, I shouldn’t be, “Yea. I think it’s like when I say sweet things to you in the morning before I wake up, which means whatever I said is the truth. But, I don’t have a clue what I said.” I press my lips together and roll them in, nervous for the response because Rick’s body already responded and it’s not happy. “Please tell me what I said.”

  Rick let me go and rolled to his side, so he could focus and read my eyes, “You said you want to get married here.”

  “And you said to tell you when?” I question him.

  “Yes.”

  “I assumed you’d want to have a wedding in the off season next year, so we’d have time to plan it.” It makes sense to me, it takes time to plan and order and reserve locations.

  “I just want to be married to you, Sherry. I don’t want a big wedding. I want you. This is your favorite place and the scenery is incomparable, we should get married here. If it makes you happy, it makes me happy. I want you to have everything you want. If you want to get married in Hawaii, that’s what we’ll do.” Rick puts his heart on his sleeve for me.

  “So, you’re thinking maybe we should get married while we’re here on vacation? Before we go home two weeks from now? Just us? No family or friends or anything? Is that too quick? We haven’t been engaged very long.” I ask too many questions and need to shut up. I need to control my DOTM.

  Rick smiles at me from his eyes and almost giggles, “Actually, you said we should get married while we’re here. It was your idea. I’m sure we can get the few people who matter here in a short amount of time. Most importantly, there’s been no one else for me since I first held your hand in mine at the Locale and as far as I’m concerned you can’t be Mrs. Rick Seno soon enough. There’s no one else who compares to you, Sherry. It will always only be you.” He leans his forehead against mine and kisses me sweetly.

  I’m completely lost here. Caught off guard. No idea what to do. It seems so fast. And, I did this to myself. Then again, why make another trip to get married when we can do it now? Am I going to be Mrs. Rick Seno? I need a reality check. This can’t be my life. Seven months ago the catcher for the Seals, number 6 Rick Seno was the star of my dreams, clean and dirty. He was my fantasy baseball boyfriend and I couldn’t get his autograph to save my life. I loved to watch him play with an unmatched intensity on the field. I daydreamed about what it would be like to get to meet him, what I would say. I hung around after the game to watch the on field interviews and wait for my chance to get the couple of autographs I was missing. One night after the game I got lucky getting Cross’ autograph and told him I needed Seno’s, but went all starry-eyed when Seno was right there doing his on field interview and Cross worried something was wrong with me. Fast forward a couple hours and I’m meeting Seno at the bar, screwing everything up, being tongue tied, saying the wrong thing, lying and somehow still making out with Seno in the back corner booth. Now, I never want to be apart from him because we did that and it was heartbreaking. He’s already moved in with me and my life has never been better. I turn the crown engagement ring he gave me around my finger, it shines at me as if it’s the shooting star I’m waiting for to wish on. I turn to Rick, “Want to go for a sunset walk with me?”

  He smiles and jumps up to change. We get unpacked and go out for a walk around the resort, hand in hand. I’m sure we’re annoying to everyone around us, with our huge smiles and arms constantly around each other. The view is breathtaking, but not holding my attention that’s centered on the man with his arm around me who wants to marry me and the consideration of getting married while we’re in Hawaii. It’s unexpected, which is out there because I was sure I’d considered everything we’d do on this trip ahead of time and getting married while we’re here is apparently my idea! I’m scared, but the more I think about it, the more I want to do it. Can we do this? It’s a dream come true. First my Rick and now marrying him in my favorite place? It’s so spontaneous. I smile all the way into my cheeks and my face gets warm all over, happiness at the thought of marrying my Rick, my king.

  We stop at the edge of the ocean facing the sunset and I’m leaning back against Rick’s chest, his arms around me, holding me. There’s a musician playing at the pool bar, just him with his guitar and microphone. He’s a local and he’s been playing mostly Hawaiian, folk, or Hawaiianized music. I feel Rick’s smile at my ear while we watch the sunset’s colors change to pinks and shadowed purples with the line of sunlight peaking out around the edge of the clouds. The wind is moving the clouds along, breaking them up into smaller puffs and they look like baseballs rolling across the sky. The guitarist finishes Somewhere Over the Rainbow by Iz and starts in on something that sounds familiar. That’s it! Every sign that could possibly be thrown at me has appeared. Rick turns me to him and we dance right there on the grass at the edge of the water with the waves crashing. His eyes are locked with mine and he smiles, inspired to dance by the guitarists rendition of “Thinking Out Loud” by Ed Sheehan, our song.

  I gaze into his eyes, “When,” and his smile actually grows.

  He picks me up and swings me around, “Let’s do it, my queen. I love you. Let’s get married.” Rick calls the cocktail server over and asks for champagne to celebrate.

  “Hawaiian style?” She asks and he nods at her with no doubt.

  He kisses me and swings me around again. I’m not sure I’ve ever seen him this happy, and my face hurts because I can’t stop smiling. This is the right thing to do, more importantly it’s what we want to do. I lean my face against his chest, “I love you with all of my heart.”

  The cocktail server brings us two Blooming Champagne Cocktails that look fancy and exotic. It’s a preserved hibiscus flower in the bottom of a champagne flute with champagne poured over it. The flower appears to be blooming and the red tone makes the petals look like flames. Perfect. Rick clinks his glass to mine, “To our forever.” I love the effervescence of the champagne, it tickles my nose. We both take a drink. He takes my glass away and sets them both down, freeing our hands. He takes my face in his hands, brushing my hair back and puts his lips on mine, kissing me sweetly. He moves his hands to the back of my head and the small of my back as his kiss becomes claiming, he dips me as he kisses me. The kiss is long and flutters in my gut more than any of Rick’s don’t-forget-me kisses. When he breaks the kiss and brings me back upright, the crowd of people watching the sunset around the pool bar cheer and clap. Rick all smiles responds to them, “We just decided to get married while we’re here. I can’t wait for this beautiful woman to be my wife.” I blush uncontrollably, my whole body buzzing. We stand together watching the sunset and finish our champagne in silent happiness.

  Chapter Four

  We walk back to our cottage and Rick orders room service for a light dinner on our lanai overlooking the ocean. The shine from the stars, moon, and resort dancing off the water’s surface. The occasional sea turtle pulling itself out of the ocean onto the sand or poking it’s head up out of the water like a periscope. The resort pool glowing in the distance. The time difference and long, eventful day has made us ready for an early night in. We spend the evening talking and making out like teenagers, until we go inside and close up the cottage for the night. We make love for hours with the sound of the ocean roaring in the background and fall asleep in each others arms.

  I wake up the next morning confused and I don’t know where I am. Something is different, similar to the feeling I had several months ago when I found I had my fantasy baseball boyfriend in bed with me. I hear the sound of the ocean and Rick’s arms are wrapped around me, I remember we’re on vacation. Then it hits me… We’re getting married! I roll over to snuggle my face into Rick’s chest to find he’s already awake. “Good morning, my queen. You make me happier than I’ve ever been. How do you feel about ordering breakfast in?” Rick talks into my hair.

  I breathe deeply, relaxed and happy to be in my favorite place with my man, my protector, my true love. “Order macadamia nut French toast please, and coffee, and maybe some tropical juice. Ask how long until it will be here. Maybe we can get wedding stuff planned over breakfast. I want to have our vacation time, too.” I read his expression, not wanting to be too pushy.

  He gives me a cheeky smile, “Sounds good.” He goes to order room service and I turn on the shower. “Room service will be here in thirty minutes,” Rick calls out.

  I walk up to Rick and take his hand, pulling him to the shower with me. We’re both still naked from last night and I put my arms around him, pulling him under the shower spray with me. Water dripping over both of us, I watch the droplets build up and run over the tip of his nose once his hair is soaked. I open the small tropical shampoo the resort has supplied and squeeze some into the palm of my hand. I run my hands and fingers through Rick’s hair, massaging his scalp and washing his hair. He takes the shampoo and repeats the same thing on me, his hands are magic even when they’re simply rubbing my head. We stand under the shower and rinse. He shampoos his beard and I soap up his body from his neck down to his toes, it’s an enjoyable journey of touching his body all over, feeling his muscles and admiring my favorite parts. I soap up from my breasts down to my thighs and rub against him, spending some extra time soaping up his now hard cock and drawing a low guttural groan from my man. Rick kisses me roughly and holds my head to his, taking control. I stroke his soapy hard length and enjoy his possessive handling. When he breaks the kiss, I whisper in his ear, “You know the problem with staying in the cottage is there’s no elevator. What would you do if we were on an elevator?” His eyes flare and I turn away from him quickly, bending over in front of him. He grabs my hips without hesitation and pulls me to him. His tip is at my entrance and he stops. “That’s no
t what you’d do if we were on an elevator. You can’t keep your hands off me and you wouldn’t. You’d slide your dick into me and fuck me hard. I’m so wet for you. Don’t you want to fuck me?” He doesn’t say a word. He slams his hard length into me all the way and pounds into me over and over, as he digs his fingers into my hips and slides me over his dick, using me to stroke himself. I love it and he's amazing. I scream out, “You’re my king, baby. Take me. Take me.” He continues to slam into me, in and out, in and out. I’m blindsided by my orgasm and he grabs me before I fall over from the force of it. He immediately follows me over the edge, both of us moaning in ecstasy as he slows and rides us through.

  He pulls me up to him and holds me against his solid body, “You drive me crazy sometimes, fucking out of control.” He turns me and kisses me, “I love you and everything about you.” The water sprays over us while we have our moment, making it our own private space. There’s knocking at our door and Rick quickly rinses off, grabs the hotel robe and puts it on as he makes his way to the door. I finish showering and pull on a pair of denim short shorts with a lime green camisole style tank top.

  I find Rick on the lanai with breakfast and changed from the robe to a pair of board shorts with no shirt. Fuck me! He’s so hot shirtless! I won’t manage to get anything done today, well, other than him. His board shorts riding low on his hips. No shirt covering his eight pack of abs and his strong chest. Seeing the muscles in his chest and shoulders move distracts me, he’s fucking sexy! I walk up to him on the lanai and put my hands on his chest. He smiles at me and I reach around his neck, pulling his mouth down to me so I can taste him. What is it that makes him undeniable in shorts and no shirt? Who am I kidding? He shows a bare arm and I’m ready to jump him.

  Alika walks up to our lanai, “Aloha! Ho'omaika'i ‘ana! That’s congratulations in Hawaiian. I heard you decided to get married while you’re here and thought you might want some assistance.”

  Rick turns to me and I wonder if Alika’s a mind reader. “Yes, please! Does the resort have a minister? How do we reserve him? When is he available?” I stop before I ramble out another dozen questions.

  He smiles, “We need to reserve the space at the resort and the minister. How many people will be there and do you need rooms for them?”

  Rick answers, “About a dozen people. We will needs rooms. It would be great if we could book a time maybe a couple days before we are scheduled to check out.” He looks to me for affirmation and I nod.

  “Let me go check the schedule and availability,” and he was off to the main hotel to do research for us.

  I’m making a list, “We’ll need to drive over to Honolulu to get a marriage license, but that’s fine. I wanted to take you over to that side of the island exploring one day anyway. I need to visit my friend at the gift shop today, she’ll know where to get a dress and things like that I need. Do you think Sam will be my Maid of Honor?”

  “She’ll love that. I’ll call Cross to be my Best Man. We should book the spa and salon for you ladies, too.” He tenderly runs his hands up and down my arms. “I want this to be perfect for you, for us. I don’t want you worrying about spending money. I want you to have everything.” His tone said it all. He wants me to have everything and he means it. I’m giddy and can’t help, but to laugh like a schoolgirl. We sit together on the same lounge chair and enjoy some breakfast together. I love everything with macadamia nuts, even the coffee tastes better here.

  Alika comes back and catches us making out on the lounge chair, “How about ten days from now at sunset and I can have you set up at the edge of the ocean with the sunset behind the minister?”

  Rick and I lock eyes anxiously, then turn to Alika, “Yes!” at the same time. It’s the perfect option.

  “I’ll reserve the time for you. Please get me details on how many rooms as soon as you can. We have availability then, so it shouldn't be a problem.”

  “Thank you, can you book the spa for my bride that day please. Everything she’ll want. Also, book a second spot for her Maid of Honor to go with her.” Rick looks to Alika waiting for confirmation.

  “I’ll do that right now, please let me know if I can help with anything else. I’ll check in with you tomorrow.” He walks off toward the spa.

  Rick gazes at me with a happy grin and dials out on his cell phone, “Hi. Here’s Sherry, she wants to talk to you.” He hands me his phone.

  “Hello?”

  “Hey! What do you want to talk to me about?” It’s Sam.

  I squeal like a child, “I’m getting married in Hawaii, in ten days and I want you to be my Maid of Honor. Will you please?”

  You could hear Sam scream without the phone all the way from her home in Colorado, “Yes! I’m honored and I wouldn’t miss it!”

  “Yay! I’ll be sending you flight information later today and a boarding pass the day before the flight. I'll text you the details. Oh, don’t tell your parents because he didn’t call them yet.”

  “You two are crazy and I love it! Talk soon!” and she was gone.

  Rick calls his parents, while I call my Mom. His father was happy and anxious to get to Hawaii, while his mom hemmed and hawed about us getting married so fast and not having the ceremony in a church.

  “Hello? Is everything okay? Why are you calling me while you’re on vacation?”

  I laugh, “Everything is fine, Mom. Better than fine. I want you to come to Hawaii.”

  “You know I don’t like to travel alone.”

  “Bring someone with you because I’m marrying Rick!”

  “I saw the way he looked at you. I know he’ll take care of you. Are you sure about this?”

  “I don’t need anyone to take care of me.” I stop myself, “Mom, I love him and I can be me with him.”

  “Do it. I’ll be there. I wouldn’t miss it for the world.”

  “Thanks, Mom.”

  “I want you both to be happy. Now, get off the phone and go enjoy your vacation with your husband to be,” she laughs.

  “Aloha.” My mom is ecstatic, with some trepidation about traveling by herself and she’s going to find a friend who wants to join her on the trip.

  Chapter Five

  Rick needs to work out and call Cross, so I take the Jeep keys and drive to the North Shore Gift Shop in Haleiwa to visit my friend Malia. I love the drive from Kahuku to Haleiwa. It’s green and lush, with the ocean at your side. The trees hang over parts of the two-lane highway and there’s a bike path on the beach side for sections of it. Some of the beaches have parking lots, while others find people pulling onto the dirt at the side of the road and hoping they don’t get stuck there. It’s almost all residential and beach, with a few businesses spattered in between. No chain fast food or anything franchised, the one grocery store with a coffee place inside, the local bakery, a couple of cafes, and food trucks parked wherever they find a spot. There are a couple of places where fresh fruit stands pop up occasionally and surf, swim, snorkel equipment rentals are available in the more popular beach areas. I pass Sharks Cove and the grocery store, then Saints Peter and Paul Mission as I approach Waimea Bay. I take the curve slowly and drive the cliffside road with the panoramic view of Waimea Bay. The highway quickly turns back inland through a residential stretch until I see the Haleiwa surf sign and turn right, passing Haleiwa Beach Park as I head toward the Rainbow Bridge and the souvenir shop my friend Malia runs with her family. I’ve known her for years and she’s part of Hawaii to me. I turn onto the side street, park and hop out of the Jeep.

  I stop and look around at all the green, the overgrown grassy areas, the ocean birds, the wild chickens, the canoes, the surfers and the wannabe surfers. Hawaii is all about taking time to enjoy—the view, the ocean air, food, friends, and love. I guess Hawaii is love for me, it’s the Aloha State and aloha means love, affection, compassion, mercy in Hawaiian.