Chapter 48 Indie

Chapter 48

Indie

Hot sand burns my bare feet, the tiny grains slipping under my toes as I tiptoe down the beach. The sun and sand have nothing on my scorching hot husband. Miles of carved muscles and tanned skin are wrapped in tight spandex the color of the ocean. It only makes me more grateful for our quickie wedding because this man is a catch and he’s without a doubt mine.

Thank god he booked us a house with a private beach because I’ve grown very attached and I’m not interested in sharing him with anyone else this week. After the Bandits got knocked out of the postseason, another round of hormones and a second successful egg retrieval procedure, we deserve this break just the two of us before my surgery later this month.

Even with what’s looming ahead of us, I’ve never been happier, freer, or more at peace. And it has everything to do with the ridiculous man snoozing on a Ronnie print towel next to me. He helped me let go of my past and made me stop running from my fear. It’s the greatest gift anyone has ever given me, a future worth fighting for .

“Wake up, sleepy head,” I whisper, rolling the ice cold bottle of water over his shoulders. “Your wife is ready for an adventure and she’d hate to go without you.”

“Mhmm. I’m supposed to be relaxing. It’s the off season.”

“One little bike ride won’t hurt you,” I say, joining him on his towel when he rolls to the side.

“How about I just take you back to bed and worship this body instead?” His fingers glide under the string of my bikini tracing the curve of my hip.

“Tempting, but we have plenty of time for that and only a short window with bike rentals. Now, let’s go.”

“You’re right. I can’t have you facing off against those flying squirrels yourself. I know all about the trouble you like to get into on your own.”

“I’m never going to live that down, am I?”

“Baby, you parked your bike in a tree and blamed your sprained ankle on one of the forest’s most innocent creatures. What do you think?”

“Innocent my ass,” I huff.

Standing and tossing the towel over his shoulder, pulls me with him, his hands slipping under the white bikini he gifted me, palming my ass right under where “Mrs. Duran” is embroidered. He lifts me and I wrap my legs around him, letting him carry me up the beach..

Somehow we manage to rinse off in the outdoor shower with only a brief interlude, where Dom’s fingers slip between my legs and I detonate for him in record time as he tells me all the ways he’s going to worship me when we get back from the bike ride.

We finish getting ready just as the guide pulls up in the shuttle to take us north to Las Catalinas, where there are some of the best mountain biking trails Costa Rica has to offer. Because I don’t think the new general manager of the Bandits, Miller Murphy, would appreciate me breaking one of his best players, we are sticking to pretty basic trails today. Believe it or not, I’m one-hundred percent okay with that. Gone are the days where I chase an adrenaline high just to feel something.

I glance at my husband, who is holding the shuttle door open for me, much to the annoyance of the driver, and my heart skips a beat. These days, I feel everything as it comes. There’s no running or shutting down what my heart wants.

We don’t waste any time unloading our bike and starting our ride. Dirt splatters cover my legs, sweat coats my body, and my heart drums out a punishing beat in my chest as I follow Dom up the incline. Despite not having a fucking clue what he’s doing on a mountain bike, he insisted on leading the way. He’s actually not half bad, which shouldn’t surprise me. My husband’s never met an obstacle that he can’t leap blindly over.

Ahead of me, Dom leans his bike against the railing at the edge of the overlook, taking my bike from me and doing the same as soon as I dismount. We hang our helmets on the handlebars and stand side by side, catching our breath from the climb.

“Wow!” White waves crash violently over jagged rocks and cliffs below us. Houses and tan beaches dot the rugged coastline.

“This was worth leaving the shower for,” Dom says, his hot breath ghosting over my neck when he pulls me into his arms.

“Sure was,” I agree.

“I want more of this, Indie.” My husband says going still behind me. “Promise me you’ll always fight. No matter what happens, you won’t give up. Because I want a life filled with memories like this one. You’re the love of my life, and I can’t do this without you.”

I turn in his arms, fighting back tears when I see his watery eyes. “You made me want to fight. Before you, I was hiding—barely living. You opened my eyes and made me face it all. How I felt for you, the way I was running from my past and my future at the same time. There’s no going back now. Loving you changed my outlook on everything. I’m still scared, but I know you’ll be there to help every step of the way, and that makes it all okay.” I kiss his lips, letting my eyes fall shut. “So yeah, I’ll fight if it comes to that. I’ll never give up on the future we have together, because this life is worthy of millions of memories, just like this one. ”

With the soundtrack of pounding waves in the background, we stay like that for a few minutes, just soaking it all in before Dom’s lips find the crown of my head, giving me one more kiss before we strap our helmets back on and ride back down to the waiting shuttle.