Strange Love - Chapter 312
“You are simply perfect!” Jamilla cooed as she studied her grandson. “And you’re already sooo big!” The baby let out a giggle as she tugged his toes playfully. “Tell daddy to stop hoovering and go work on making you some brothers and sisters.”
“Mom!” Rin ġrȯȧnėd.
“What?” Her eyes sparkled mischievously up at him. “I’m only saying your son is in good hands. You must want some alone time with your wife, yes? It’s not like you were able to enjoy much of your marriage before this little guy’s entrance into the world.” Her focus moved back to the baby in her arms as she began baby-talking. She tugged his toes again. “We all know these wittle ones make mommy and daddy time impossible.”
Rin let out another ġrȯȧnėd sigh. “You’re not wrong there…” His attention moved to the west wing where their new rooms were. He moved concerned eyes back to his mother and son. “Are you sure you’ll be alright with him for a little while?”
Jamilla’s happy, dancing eyes moved back up to his. “Of course, son! Go have some fun with your wife while I and this little guy get acquainted.” She bent and tickled the tip of his nose with hers.
“Very well. Just call if you need anything.” Rin said but still didn’t leave.
She arched her brow. “If we need anything I’ll simply zap it over, don’t worry. Now go and make me more grandbabies!”
He shook his head. “You’re ridiculous, you know that?!”
She sent him a dubious smile. “Be that as it may be, I’ll still be looking forward to more of these.” She said as she lifted Cam’s little fists and shook them at Rin.
“Call me if you need anything.” Rin reiterated before disappearing.
Rin’s eyes moved appreciatively over Shelly’s bȧrėly covered body. Her new lush mom-curves were evident under the thin nightgown and sheet she was covered in. Her brėȧsts had doubled in size, and though her stomach was now flat it still retained a pleasant softness that hadn’t been there before. He quickly removed his own clothes and crawled under the sheet with her. His hand swept over the curve of her hip as he brushed his lips across the nape of her neck.
Shelly let out a sleepy mȯȧn as she wiggled against him. When his hand slipped under her gown, she ġrȯȧnėd. “Um, there’s no use. The baby will just wake up.” She mumbled sleepily, feeling his bȧrė skin against the back of her thɨġhs.
“The baby’s with mom.” He whispered against her neck as he nudged her thɨġhs apart.
Her eyes bugged as she remembered where they were. She quickly turned and pushed Rin away. “No! Not here! I… I don’t think I can here…”
Rin could read the fear in her eyes and didn’t push any further. He brushed her long bangs away from her face. “Alright, love…” He rolled onto his back tugging her down beside him. “I have a birthday surprise for you… If you feel ok with leaving Cam here with mom for a few hours.” He said softly as he stroked her hair.
Shelly nodded. “O…ok…” She let out a long sigh. “Rin… I… I’m sorry… I know how much your parents mean to you. I love them as well… And I know how much you love this place… but… I just can’t bring myself to forget what happened.” She could feel tears burn her eyes as anxiety clamped down on her ċhėst.
Rin turned to face her. “It’s fine, Shell.” He brushed back her hair away from her face as he studied her powder blue eyes. “What do you say we get ready and have some birthday fun… then we can talk more about this matter afterward.”
A frown curved her lips. “I… guess…”
He smiled warmly down at her before giving her a kiss and sliding back out of the bed. He held his hand out to her. “Do you need a shower or anything before we leave?”
She shook her head. “No, I had one before we left last night. How about you?”
His smile widened. “No love, I took one while you were sleeping.” He watched as she made her way over to the luggage he’d brought from Jos and Arei’s place this morning. “Dress warmly.”
She arched a brow. “Where are we going?”
He walked over and plucked a sweater and jacket from the wardrobe. “Somewhere beautiful.” He chuckled as he watched her curiosity build. “Just don’t expect it to be above the fifties if we’re lucky.” He watched her in amusement as he pulled on his own clothes.
Shelly let out a low groan when her eyes met Rin’s. The long moss green open-front sweater, tight white tee shirt, and even tighter burnt orange pants made him look both distinguished and sėxy all while still being warm and comfortable. “You suck.”
He chuckled. “What have I done?”
She narrowed her eyes and puckered her bottom lip. “You could wear a used trash bag and still be hot… I look like a cow in the few clothes that do still fit me!”
A smile curved his lips as he pushed up off the bed and made his way over to her. He tugged her crossed arm loose and held her hands. “What would you like to wear?”
She shrugged her shoulders, still pouting. “I don’t know… I don’t even know where we’re going.”
He couldn’t help the smile that curved his lips. “Then would you like me to dress you?”
She sent him an awkward smile. “Maybe…”
He chuckled. “Close your eyes.” He tugged out his phone and did a quick search. “Hum… This looks like you…” He snapped his fingers. “Something is still missing… Don’t look yet.” He flipped through the images a few more seconds before finding what he was looking for. With another snap, he said. “Perfect.” He gripped her shoulders and carefully turned her to face the floor-length mirror. “Alright, you can open your eyes.”
Shelly studied her reflection. He selected a burgundy loose-fitting, long sweater with some kind of soft, short cream laced dress underneath. Her eyes moved over the thɨġh-high brown velvet boots. “Is this alright for where we’re going?”
His smile widened as he met her troubled gaze in the mirror. “It will be perfect.” He twirled her back around to face him. He bent and gave her a lingering kiss. He waited until she’d closed her eyes before snapping them to their destination.
Shelly stepped back in surprise as she looked around the strange new surroundings. “Where are we?”
Rin studied her as her eyes moved around the inside of the home. “Do you like it?”
“It’s beautiful… Are we spending the night here or something?” She asked taking in the breathtaking landscape just past the two-story windows.
“We can… if you’d like… and every night after…”
Her shocked eyes snapped back to him. “What do you mean?”
“It’s ours, or rather it can be. The closing was completed a few days ago. There’s a two-week period to back out if you don’t like it-”
“I love it!” Her brows furrowed. “But… where are we?”
“Seedorf, Uri in Switzerland. I remembered how much you loved the place we visited during our honeymoon but figured you’d want a place a bit closer to Jos and Russ. Arei was the one who actually recommended this area. He and his brothers have a cabin not far from here.”
She pulled away from him as her excitement built. “Can I look around?”
He chuckled. “Of course, it’s yours after all.” He watched her as she spun in the center of the large main floor living room. “Would you like me to give you a tour?”
“Yes! Please!” Shelly’s eyes sparkled with child-like excitement.
He took her hand. “This way, then.” He led her out onto the front porch overlooking the driveway. He followed her eyes over the whitewashed exterior finish, up to the rustic rafters of the vaulted ceiling, along the crocus-lined driveway, and past to the snow-tipped mountains in the distance. “Beautiful, isn’t it? And this isn’t even the best view.”
“It’s not?” Her wide, sparkling eyes met his.
“Haha, no, not at all. Come with me.” He led her back into the house. “It was already furnished, but if it’s not to your liking we can change that out later.” He said as he released her hand and let her wander around the room. “The fireplace is a double, running down on the bottom level as well.” He followed her through the dining area into the open kitchen. The only thing separating the three rooms was a long kitchen island large enough to seat six.
Shelly was surprised to see that most of the necessities were already in place. She pulled open the refrigerator, surprised to find only water inside. “I almost expected to see it fully stocked as well.”
Rin laughed. “This place was an air bnb before I bought it. As part of the selling negotiations, I had them leave everything.” He shrugged. “Like I said, anything you don’t like we can replace.”
“No… It’s perfect just as it is…” She turned her attention to the narrow hall right past the kitchen and began opening the closed doors. The first one led to a full-sized bathroom. “Nice…” The next was a set of stairs.
Rin caught her hand. “We’ll go up there in a minute. Why don’t you check out those back rooms first?” He followed her forward, patiently waiting as she opened the storage closet and the double doors hiding the washer and dryer before finally making her way into the first bedroom. “I thought this one could be Cam’s room. It has a nice walk-in closet.” He watched as she made her way around the room then out to the next. “This one has double closets.” His smile widened as her curious, questioning eyes met his. He walked over and wrapped his arms around her gently stroking her stomach. “You know twins run in families, right?” He gave her a wink. “Just in case.”
She giggled and pushed up onto her tiptoes to kiss his smirking lips. “I love you… I love this place!”
“There’s still more.” He said as he guided her from the room and back toward the stairs. “The entire top floor is the master suite.”
Shelly’s eyes widened as she looked over the railings to the living room below. It was like a picture from a design magazine or website. “This is amazing.”
“Come on.” He nodded toward the door.
Her hands covered her mouth as they stepped inside the bedroom. “Oh wow… this… this is ours?”
“It is…” He stepped past her and opened the balcony doors that overlooking the front drive and tall mountains. “I remembered how much you enjoyed the balcony of my old room and the one in Jos and Arei’s room…” Her amazement filled his heart with joy. “There’s a garden tub in the bathroom and a huge walk-in closet, but I believe the features you’ll enjoy the absolute most are on the basement floor.” He took her hand and lead her down into the cozy bottom floor. “There is another bedroom with private bathroom access through here.” He said leading her through french doors. “A guest room perhaps?” He sent her a knowing smile as she nodded, tears burning her eyes. He leads her through the bathroom and out of the hall door. “There are two other rooms back there. But, honestly, the layout isn’t the best.” He led her into the rooms currently set up as extra bedrooms. “I figured we could turn this one into a playroom for the kids and the other into an office.” He pointed to the wall. “We could put couches with pull-out beds in here for extra guests and maybe a murphy bed in there.”
Shelly smiled as she rested her head against his ċhėst. “You really put a lot of thought into this place… It’s amazing.”
“There’s still more.”
“More?!” She asked in shock.
“Yes, outside.”
He pushed open the heavy double doors leading out onto the back deck where a cozy seating area surrounded a gas firepit. He chuckled as Shelly’s head tilted at the sight of a massive, covered barrel-looking thing. He released her hand and went over and pulled the cover off. “This is a hot tub.” He pointed out over the breathtaking view of the shimmering blue-green lake. “The only sight more magnificent is you, my love.”
Her eyes surveyed the landscape, her mouth dropping with ah. “You give me way too much credit. There’s no way I could ever compare… would ever want to try to compare.”
He walked over and wrapped his arms around her waist. “In my eyes, there is no comparison. You’ll always be the most beautiful, most precious thing in this world to me. What you said earlier at Mom and Dad’s… You’re right, they do mean a lot to me and their home is nice… but it’s never felt like home to me.” He cupped her face with both hands. “My home will always be wherever you are. With you and Cam and the other children we may have in the future, that is where my home is. I love you, Shelly.”
Her eyes filled with tears of joy as she eagerly met his lips for a long, passionate kiss. “I love you too, Rin. Forever and always.”
He pressed his forehead to hers.. “Forever and always, my love.”