Throwback Thursday #15

The characters in this story, Cara and Michael, are the characters in the romance novel I started writing four years ago. I am not sure what I will do with this story yet, but it has been placed on the back burner for now as I am not as invested in it anymore.

I used to write my characters into prompts that would likely never make it in the book, but it was a great way to promote my characters and get to know them.

I would like to get back to that, but I am currently hung up on a conflict between my new characters. I will figure it out, I am sure, but in the meantime, I hope you enjoy this story. It is one of my favorites and reveals the hopeful romantic in me!

Love & life lessons,

Kristian

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Celebration Party

New Year’s Day is a time for celebration, a time to reflect on past blessings, lessons and celebrate the coming of a brand new year and the new adventures and memories that come with it.

For the William’s, New Year’s Day was also a celebration of birth. Michael turned 40 and his lovely wife, Cara, did everything in her power to make the day memorable for her loving husband.

She had brainstormed for months, thinking of all of the things her husband loves. She contemplated a trip to Seattle, but living in the Appalachian Mountains, the weather was always a factor, and she hated the thought of losing out on the cost of airfare if the weather was too bad for them to even travel to the airport.

Knowing Michael’s love of seafood, she decided she would make a few of his favorites: shrimp gumbo, mini crab cakes, and bacon-wrapped scallops. So there she was, standing in line at the only grocery store in Garrett County that sold fresh, semi-local seafood from the Chesapeake Bay.

“Cara?” She heard a voice call out to her from behind.

 Cara turned to look and saw her sister-in-law, Cecilia. She immediately opened her arms to welcome Cecilia with a hug. “Long time no see.” She joked as she had literally just seen her the night before.

The ladies stayed in line, talking for hours before Cara’s number was finally called; she grabbed the shrimp, crab, and scallops and headed home.

Not being the most graceful person, Cara failed to see the dog leash lying on the porch. The toe of her boot went right through the handle, and when she went to step inside her house, she fell face forward, dropping all of the groceries on the floor. Fortunately, the seafood was wrapped.

Michael came running out of the shower to see what all the commotion was, and in his haste, he failed to see the plastic grocery bags. Still wet, he stepped right on the one with the seafood and slid right into Cara, knocking her backward just as soon as she managed to get her bearings from the first fall.

The pitter-patter of claws hitting the hardwood floors was heard as their dog, Linus, came around the corner, snatching the towel wrapped around Michael, leaving him completely naked, on top of Cara. As if all of that wasn’t bad enough, just as Linus ran off with Michael’s towel, Cecilia, who had a habit of knocking once and then letting herself in, walked into more than she had bargained for.

“Lord, guys, if you’re going to do it in the middle of the living room, can’t you lock the door?!” She walked right back out, slamming the door behind her.

Michael burst into a fit of laughter, still lying on top of Cara, who was embarrassed beyond belief.

“Well, I bet she starts knocking from now on,” Michael stated, still laughing hysterically.

Cara couldn’t help but join him in laughter. “You. Are. Laying. On. My. Duodenum.” She said between breaths.

“Oh, sorry,” he replied as he pushed himself off her, leaning down to kiss her chastely before standing up and witnessing the mess before him. Scallops and shrimp were scattered all over the floor. Of course, the dog had gotten to some of them. The only thing that was salvageable was the crab. He had no idea how it stayed perfectly in its container, but he knew his wife would be devastated that she couldn’t make all of his favorite things for his birthday. He looked down at her with empathy in his eyes.

Cara sat on the floor, eyes wide and mouth agape. “That could have only happened to us.”

Michael chuckled. “You’ve got that right.”

Cara started crying.

“Oh love, please don’t cry,” he started to kneel so that he could console her, but the sound of the dog vomiting stopped him. He sighed, “I’ll get it.”

Cara just nodded as she continued to cry.

After Michael helped Cara clean up the mess and put the rest of the groceries away, he spent the rest of the evening trying to convince his sister that she didn’t walk in on them having sex, and he explained the entire fiasco. Cecilia fell off her chair laughing.

Cara busied herself with making cookies and cream cupcakes. It was the one thing Michael requested for his birthday.

The next morning Cara woke before Michael. She wrapped the cashmere robe he had bought her for Christmas around her body and headed to the kitchen to make coffee. She checked her phone and saw that she had 10 text messages. They were from a few of Michael’s friends, saying they wouldn’t be able to make it. The one she was most disappointed over was Michael’s best friend, Brandon, who was supposed to be coming with the Pac-Man arcade for Michael’s man cave. This really was not shaping up to be a good party at all.

As the day went on, Cara pulled different recipes together to make a bunch of different appetizers for the party. Dips, cheeses, and the mini crab cakes she had planned originally. It wasn’t what she had planned, but it would have to do.

Day turned into evening, and guests started arriving. Cara found herself letting loose as she watched Michael interact with his parents, the few friends that did show, and others he cared for. She couldn’t help the smile that crossed her face every time he laughed that gut-wrenching laugh she loved so much, but as the evening faded into night and their guests started to leave, Cara’s disappointment seeped back in.

She walked outside on the back deck and looked up to a sky full of stars. It was so clear, she couldn’t remember the last time she saw the sky blanketed with so many stars, She took a deep breath and let the tears flow…

She felt a pair of arms wrap around her waist, and before she had the chance to wipe her tears away, Michael kissed her cheek, feeling her wet tears touch his lips.

“Hey,” he whispered, “there’s no crying on my birthday.”

She halfheartedly chuckled. “I’m sorry. I wanted to give you the perfect birthday, and I didn’t because of my clumsiness. I ruined everything. I’m so sorry.” She turned to walk away from him, but he gently grabbed her wrist and pulled her back to him.

She started blubbering about Brandon and the Pac-Man machine, and she looked back up at the sky as she sobbed and continued to blame herself for ruining his party.

Michael couldn’t make out every word his lovely wife was saying, but he got the gist.

“Oh, sweetheart, “ he pulled her into his arms and placed a long-lasting kiss on her temple. He sat down, pulling her onto his lap. “You are the sweetest woman I have ever had the pleasure of knowing, and what’s even greater is that I get to call you mine.”

Cara sniffed and started to calm down at Michael’s words. She placed her head on his shoulder. “Continue.”

He chuckled, brushing a strand of hair behind her ear. “I absolutely love that you put so much time and effort into making this the best birthday ever. You’re so thoughtful, and you know me so well, and for that, I am very lucky, but today was perfect. I had seafood that you cooked for me, your cupcakes are to die for, and I got to spend time with the people I love. Yeah, it would have been cool if Brandon could have made it, but I’ll see him again, and I don’t need a Pac-Man machine to make me happy” He picked her up and sat her down next to him before crossing the deck to grab the Bluetooth speaker. He pulled out his phone and played Ben E. King’s “Stand by Me.” He grabbed her hand and pulled her into his arms once again as he swayed with her. “All I need to make me happy are these arms wrapped around me.”

She clasped her hands behind his neck, gazing into his beautiful brown eyes that still managed to take her breath away. “

“Do you know what the best part of this day has been?” He asked her.

“What’s that?”

“It hasn’t even happened yet.”

She flashed him a confused look as he slid his hand down her back to her ass, squeezing her cheek as he whispered in her ear. “Out of all the gifts I’ve been blessed enough to receive, the best, by far, is getting to make love to you.”

They danced together as their eyes traveled between each other and the stars above. They stole kisses, and Michael would dip her and tease her. Cara was elated that her husband knew exactly what to say to lift her spirits. He was still just as playful and flirty with her as he was when they had first met. She pulled him into the bedroom, where they spent the remainder of Michael’s birthday making love, and even though it was his birthday, he brought the woman out of Cara so many times that night.

Cara fell asleep with a smile on her face. It wasn’t such a bad day after all.

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