Chapter Twenty – Two - The Span Of Forever

After coming back from the lake, Nick and Caraline went back to the cabin, and could barely get back in the door before they were all over each other again. They couldn’t even make it to the shower before they were making love to one another again. That’s all they did all day long. They would make love to one another, and then talk to one another. They only stopped once for Caraline to cook dinner but it didn’t last too long because they made use of the kitchen counter also.

After dinner, it started to get chilly outside and Nick made a fire in the living room and spreaded a few blankets around. Caraline lit a few candles and they layed there talking to one another for a little while until they made love again. It was different this time. It’s almost like they didn’t want to stop, so they kept going. Some would say it was almost like the Energizer Bunny; Others would say it was because they didn’t have anything else to do.

It was neither of those things. They just couldn’t get enough of one another.

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”Nick,” Caraline whispered as she layed there on top of him, in front of the fireplace with her head on his chest. She smiled, running her fingertip around his left nipple, tracing it.

”Yeah?” Nick asked as he liked his lips, smiling as he moved his right hand behind his head.

”We’re dating now right?” Caraline asked as Nick started to laugh. She lifted her head up, looking him in the eyes as he smiled, pushing her over on her back. She started to laugh as he rolled over, laying on his side and pushed a blanket up over them, “Well?”

”Do you even have to ask that?” Nick asked as Caraline smiled, pushing his hair out of his eyes, “Yes we’re dating. You’re my girlfriend now and I’m damn happy,”

”I’m happy too,” Caraline whispered as Nick smiled as Caraline looked over at him, “Why are you so happy?”

”Why?” Nick asked as he smiled, looking over at the fire in the fireplace and back at her, “Because I have someone that I get along with, and that I trust. I have someone that doesn’t want me because of who I am, or what I have. Oh and not to mention that she’s beautiful and a damn tiger in bed,”

”A tiger?” Caraline asked as she started to laugh, “If I’m a tiger, than what are you?”

”I’m a lion,” Nick whispered as he leaned over, moving his lips closer to hers, “Rawwwwr,”

”Dumbass,” Caraline whispered as she kissed him back slowly and then pinched his cheek, “I said I didn’t wanna come here and do it all weekend and it’s all we did today,”

”It’s not all we did,” Nick said as he moved back on his side, smiling at her, “We did go to the lake –“

”And did it –“

”And we talked and you cooked,” Nick said as he smiled again, “You are a damn good cook woman,”

”Thank you,” Caraline whispered as she moved her arms, wrapping the blanket around her more, “You know what though? I really like cooking for you. I don’t know why. Maybe it’s because I have never really cooked for a guy but I always want to,” she said as she looked over at him, “Like when I’m older and I have a husband and like two kids and I can make them breakfast and dinner. I wanna do that kind of stuff like my mom did,”

”You don’t want to travel the rest of your life doing what you’re doing now?” Nick asked as Caraline nodded her head no, “Why not?”

”Doing it is fine, you know? But just, I don’t want to do this forever. I want to be a designer and stylist and all, but I don’t want to travel forever. I want to settle down one day and have a real family. It’s great now. I get to travel and meet different people, but one day I just wanna be able to wake up every morning and cook my kids breakfast,” Caraline said as Nick smiled at her, “What are you smiling at?”

”It sounds nice,” Nick said as Caraline rolled over on her side, propping her head up in her hand with her elbow on the ground, looking at him, “I wouldn’t mind having that one day too,”

”I love what I’m doing right now and I wanna do that,”

”You like being with me?”

”Here?”

”Yeah,” Nick said as Caraline looked down at the blanket and then back up at him.

”Yeah, I do, but I won’t lie when I say I don’t miss Faith and Tim and the kids. I’ve grown so attached to them you know? Gracie was upset when I left and I don’t want her to get mad and think that I’m deserting them,” Caraline said as Nick smiled at her, “That’s why I’m not going to quit that job, so if we’re going to try and make this work, we’re gonna have to work around each other’s schedules. I can’t give this job up for anything,”

”I know and I don’t want you to,” Nick said as he smiled, “Doesn’t mean that I can’t hire you,”

”No mixing business with pleasure,” Caraline said as she smiled, leaning over to kiss him on the lips.

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”Mama,” Gracie said as she walked into the living room of the suite that night in Atlanta as Faith sat there in a chair, looking over a contract that she needed to sign.

”Yeah baby?” Faith asked as she leaned over, picking Gracie up and putting her in her lap, “You look sad, what’s wrong?”

”When is Caraline coming back?” Gracie asked as Faith pushed her hair behind her ears, “Is she coming back tomorrow?”

”No, not tomorrow,” Faith said as she smiled, “But the day after tomorrow I think,”

”I want her to come back,” Gracie whispered as she looked down, “I don’t like her being with Aaron’s brother,”

”You don’t like Nick?” Faith asked as Gracie nodded her head no, “Why don’t you like Nick?”

”He took Caraline away,” Gracie said as she climbed out of Faith’s lap and started to walk back to the bedroom that she was sleeping in. Faith sighed, standing up from the chair and started to walk towards the kid’s bedroom and saw Gracie laying there in her bed, getting back under her cover.

”He’s not trying to take Caraline away,” Faith whispered as she sat down on the side of Gracie’s bed, “They like each other and he’s her new boyfriend. She still loves you and she’s coming back,”

”Okay,” Gracie said as she smiled. Faith leaned over, giving her a kiss on the cheek and tucked her under the covers more, tickling her as she started to laugh.

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”You know what I thought the first time I saw you, well in Los Angeles you know at the production company,” Nick said as Caraline looked at him, nodding her head no, “I thought that Tim and Faith’s kid was yours and that you would never give me the time of day,”

”Why did you think that I would give you the time of day?” Caraline asked as she smiled, twirling a strand of hair around her finger.

”I don’t know,” Nick said as he sighed, “Just, you know? I didn’t think you would give me the time of day. You looked so serious and elegant and all,”

”Elegant?”

”I’m talking out of my ass,” Nick whispered as Caraline smiled at him, “You just make me happy. Your smile makes me happy. When you touch me, it makes me happy. When I hear you laugh, it makes me happy. Everything you do makes me happy,”

”You make me happy too,” Caraline whispered back to him as Nick smiled at her, “Maybe the next time that we go somewhere alone, we can go to Star and you can meet my family?”

”I’d like that,” Nick said as he continued to smile, “I would introduce you to mine except right now, mine are fucked up,”

”It won’t be like that forever,” Caraline said as Nick looked at her, “One day everything will calm down and your family will be okay. It was like that when my dad died. Everything was weird and messed up but now it’s okay,”

”You miss him?”

”Yeah, I don’t remember a lot about him,”

”Can I ask you a question?” Nick asked as Caraline nodded her head yes, “That night on the roof of the hotel, in the rain –“

”Yeah?”

”You said you wanted to kill yourself once. When was that?”

”Just one time. I don’t wanna talk about it really, “ Caraline said as she reached over, putting her hand on top of his, “It’s in the past and I don’t wanna talk about it,”

”It was about me right? After that night? You felt cheap and like a whore? You wanted to kill yourself the next day?” Nick asked as Caraline moved over, on top of him and straddled him, “Is that it?”

”No,” Caraline whispered as she put her hands on the side of his face, looking down at him, “It wasn’t about that, I promise. It wasn’t even the day after so it wasn’t about that,”

”You promise it wasn’t because of what happened?”

”I promise I didn’t wanna kill myself because of a one night stand,” Caraline whispered as Nick smiled at her, “I promise,”

”Okay,” Nick whispered as he leaned up, kissing her slowly. He turned the kiss into a deeper kiss and Caraline started to smile against his lips, “Don’t ever, ever think about doing that again, you hear me?”

”I promise,” Caraline whispered as Nick smiled, pushing her over to the side, and rolled over, hovering over her, “Don’t you ever get tired of it?”

”Tired of what?” Nick asked as he leaned over, kissing her on her neck gently, “Tired of making love to you?”

”No,” Caraline said as Nick moved his face back up, looking her in the eyes, “Don’t you ever get tired of the traveling and the whole music thing, you know? Being famous? Don’t you wish you could be normal?”

”Sometimes, yeah,” Nick said as Caraline smiled, “I wouldn’t have to worry about people following my ever move or watching me 24/7, but then I love music and I wouldn’t feel right if I wasn’t performing, but ya know what?”

”What?”

”I don’t really care what I’m doing, as long as I’m with you,” Nick whispered as Caraline smiled, moving her face up so that their lips could meet. They started to kiss each other slowly as Caraline wrapped her arms around his neck. She smiled, biting down on her bottom lip as he started to kiss down her neck, sucking on it lightly.

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[ Caraline Narrating ]

If you get out in the drivin’ rain, stand in the eye of the hurricane and never think twice. If you turn your back of selfishness and your thoughts are for someone else, ‘cause they’ve changed your life. That’s how you know it’s love. That’s how you know it’s meant to be. When the span of forever just never seems long enough, that’s how you know it’s love.

When your heart insists that you give it all. When you no longer fear the fall and you just let go. When your past is finally dead and gone and fate leads you somewhere to the one that has your soul. That’s how you know it’s love, that’s how you know it’s meant to be, when the span of forever just never seems long enough. That’s how you know it’s love.

No part of you questions; No part of you doubts. You’re only sure this is what love’s about and nothing and no one can stand in your way or keep you from sayin’ what your heart is dying to say. That’s how you know it’s love. That’s how you know it’s meant to be, when the span of forever just never seems long enough. That’s how you know it’s love.

I sort of just wrote that in my head while laying here. I was asking myself a question fifteen minutes ago and that’s what I came up with. It’s sort of my answer to my question. I was just laying here and watching him sleep and I asked myself: Why was I so happy? Why am I so content with my life right now? Why am I lying here watching someone sleep? Why do I feel as if I never want to leave his side?

Do you know what I came up with?

I think it’s because I’m falling in love with him.