Beyond the Sun

“That was the best damn pasta I’ve ever had,” he said as he pulled me closer, both arms wrapping around me, his lips meeting my cheek. “Even I could learn a few things from these Italians.” He grinned as I looked up at him, and I smiled back at him, taking note of the shimmer in his eyes. “Not that I’m a better cook than you.”

I batted my lashes. “You think I’m a better cook than you?”

He smiled. “Yeah. There’s a difference to my lobster with pepper and your lobster with…well...I still can’t figure out what it is you put on it.” His hand touched my face, and I shifted so that I was in his lap, kneeling in front of him on the bed, my toes resting on his calves. “I just can’t believe I’ve had you all to myself for over a year and a half now.”

“Speak for yourself, mister Haner. You didn’t have the thrill of being with a rock star to control.”

He smiled again. “Well honey, now you’re a rock star, too.” I let him claim a kiss for that, and his lips were gentle against mine, only lingering for a couple of seconds. “You have a fan base of your own, one that you worked for, and…”

“But I’ll never be as amazing at guitar as you, love,” I reminded him, and this earned me a soft smile. I let my arms slip around his neck, and his found their way to my waist, his hands resting on my hips. “It’s like I’m…Nick Jonas or something.” I smiled coyly, and he made a face. “But at least I have Synyster Gates on hand.” I hoped that I’d placated him, and even though his nose remained wrinkled for a second more, after that, he was smiling and resting his forehead on mine. “I love you.”

I stared into his eyes, and I considered all we’d been through that had led up to this point. I couldn’t help but remember how he’d let me introduce him to my mother as my fiancé in a coffee shop, nor could I forget how he’d proposed to me on a beach the night after returning home from his tour. He’d been through so much for me, and I owed him everything for that. I gave him another kiss, and he smiled, pulling me tighter. “Baby.” His smile grew. “Baby, I…” I raised an eyebrow, and he sighed. “I love you too.”

“You’re kinda cute when you get all flustered like that,” I teased, wiggling my eyebrows, nuzzling my forehead against his and snickering a little. “Think we could take a break before going on to the next adventure?” And I put on my best puppy dog face, batting my eyes and watching his become a little shifty.

“No can do, sweetheart. Big bad rock star man has tons of things planned for his wife.” The lopsided grin returned…Brian always smiled now. “Go get dressed. Something red. Something pretty. I’m gonna show you the world tonight.” He kissed me again, and then he shifted me out of his lap, rising from the bed and walking to his suitcase, glancing back at me with a grin on his face before shuffling into the bathroom to shave and get dressed.

Deciding not to put up much of a fuss against being shown off, I obediently walked over to my suitcase, picked it up, and opened it on the bed, sifting through the piles of clothes I’d brought. Numerous blues and yellows got shifted down to the bottom, but I kept digging, searching for my favorite red top, and when I found it, I immediately snatched up a bra and the top, putting them both on before continuing to dig for a pair of shorts.

I heard Brian humming to himself as he shaved, and I smiled a little as I slipped the shorts on, glancing around for my black sandals, purposely venturing closer to the bathroom in the midst of my search. He just sounded so…jovial…and I couldn’t help but feel a bit of pride as I thought about how I was the source of his happiness nowadays, since he and his band had taken some time off from touring so that the guys could build their own relationships.

I finally discovered where my sandals had been hiding, and I slipped them on before sneaking into the bathroom with my makeup bag in hand, smiling over at Brian as he smiled over at me, occupying half of the ridiculously long space to apply my makeup for the day out he’d planned.

When we both had finished, there was a moment that I felt like kissing him and he looked like he would much rather pick me up and throw me onto the bed than take me out into public, but we both contained ourselves, and I let him take my hand as he left the bathroom, tugging me along with him, a sly smile playing about his lips as he pocketed his wallet and his key, his eyes watching me amusedly as I slid my bag onto my shoulder, slipping my sunglasses on over my eyes.

“How do you feel about traveling via water?” he asked me, and he quirked a smile that totally gave it away. “Do you hate it…love it…what?”

I grinned up at him. “Baby. I love the water.”

He rolled his eyes after he kissed me. “It’s a good thing I’ve gotten used to hearing you call me that.” He smiled.

“Not that you don’t call me it, too.”

“Yeah, well…it sounds less adoring when it’s said to a guy.”

I sniggered. “I guess you’re right. Lead the way, hubby man.” He flashed another smile, and then he lead me out of the room, closed the door behind me, and then lead me down the hall, to the elevator, out the doors, and down the street.

Little did I know that we would spend the entire day traveling via gondola.

He led me to shop after shop, buying me a top here, a necklace there, a bracelet here, another pair of shoes there, all with his shiny credit card that seemed to have no limits. Even though I knew it had limits that we were nowhere near breaking.

For hours we were carrying bags with designer names on the sides, loaded with designer clothes, ready with tons of designer accessories. I almost felt guilty splurging and indulging like this, but I knew that I wouldn’t want to ask him to buy me more clothes for a while. I just wouldn’t. We could spend the next two weeks holed up in our hotel room, going at it until we both passed out, and I wouldn’t care.

He was treating me to whatever I wanted, and I knew what I would give him when we got back home.

I knew that a man like him deserved something monumental, so I spent a few minutes texting Gina about a surprise for Brian whenever we paused for a rest or for something to drink, slowly but surely revealing my plans for him, being as discreet as possible. I had a feeling that Brian wanted to peer over my shoulder to see what I was so intently concentrating on, but he knew to keep his curiosity to himself. He knew by now that I would spill if he needed to know.

But other than that, we spent our day conversing quietly as we rode in the gondola or strolled down the street to the nearest shop or ducked into a small restaurant for a bite to eat.

And it was perfect.