Prevailing Love

Chapter 25

I am up before the sun rises. The sky is pink and the air is cool and crisp. The sun is barely starting to come up over the horizon. It was another sleepless night. I was up every hour with worry about Steffy. She was so upset over the realization that her grandmother passed away and she can't even remember it. She was even in more turmoil when she realized that her Mom wasn't living in L.A. anymore. She just feels like everything she's ever known has been taken from her in a blink of an eye. I heard her crying with Ridge out on the deck last night, and it broke my heart. I wanted to go out there and take her into my arms and comfort her. Her pain is too much to bear. I know that even if I needed her and wanted to be with her, that she needed Ridge in that those moments last night. He was the only one who could understand the way she needed someone to understand.

I walk quietly down the stairs in order not to wake the house up. I peek in at the kids and realize they are all out cold.

I turn the coffee pot on before realizing that the door to our bedroom is open. I walk over to the door knocking lightly before peeking my head into the room. "Steffy?"

I realize quickly that she's not in here or in the master bathroom. I ponder for a minute where she could be. I look out the window and see that her car is still in the driveway. I sigh in relief knowing that she more than likely is on the property somewhere. I make my way to the sliding glass doors, looking out quickly. I look at the patio before seeing Steffy sitting on one of the patio chairs with a cup in her hand. I open the door quietly as to not wake the kids up and proceed to walk over to Steffy.

"Hey," I quietly say for behind Steffy. "What are you doing out here?"

Steffy sighs contently, "It's so beautiful out here, peaceful just being able to sit here, breathe in the air and listen to the ocean waves crashing. This truly is one of the most beautiful places I've ever seen. It has nothing on all the tropical places that I have been to through the years."

"I know this place is so special to us. We've made a lot of memories and history here. It's our special place." I smile at one of the memories that we've experience right out here together. "

"What are you smiling about?" Steffy smirks at me.

"I'm just thinking about all the special moments we have had out here."

She looks down before looking back up at me. "Can you tell me about one of them?"

"Okay, it was right after you moved back in after another reuniting again."

"I am pretty excited," I say as I clap my hands together "because you are home."

Steffy smiles, "I am,"

"You hear that house? Do you hear that?"

"Yeah house," Steffy smiles

"Steffy's home," I smile. I am inwardly so overjoyed that she's home. I truly can't contain my excitement and happiness."

"Yeah did you miss me? Miss me?" she smiles looking around.

I look at her, "Did it miss you? Every room in this house missed you. Hey, living room, we had a lot of conversations about this, did we not?" I point to the couch, "You were begging for her to come back and now she's back." I pull her towards the kitchen. "Hey Kitchen, look who it is, huh?"

"I'm home,"

"Hey patio," I continue pulling Steffy. "Hey patio, I have something to show you. Hey neighbors," I say pulling Steffy onto the sand outside the house. "Hey, hold on a second, hey neighbors? Wait what am I doing?" I smile swatting the air. "Hey sky, and oh oh, ocean." I skip over to the deck area that looks directly out into the ocean and umm—what's in the ocean?" I ask. "Dolphins, Whales, seagulls, sea horses...I'm not sure if they are in California."