My Boyfriend's Girlfriend

epilogue: tessa

I woke up in Malibu, in the back of a renovated van, next to my sleeping wife. In all of my wildest dreams, I never imagined myself here.

Abby slept peacefully beside me, blissfully unaware of my staring at her gentle figure under the white duvet. We'd taken our honeymoon late, as most people seemed to be doing nowadays, and were enjoying the cooler, February air on the beach. As cool as sixty degrees could get, anyway.

October felt like a lifetime away, but I replayed our wedding in my head like it was last week. We'd been married now for five months, and I still managed to fall in love with her and learn more about her everyday.

I knew how foolish we sounded getting married at twenty three, but with Abby's mom getting sick, we'd rushed our plans a little to let her be apart of our wedding. We didn't know how long we had with her, so we'd held off on our honeymoon for a few months until Abby felt safe leaving her for a week. Her dad was a great bedside nurse, but Abby always worried about her.

I watched the sleeping woman next to me as she stirred, noticing the change in her breathing as she woke up. Her eyes opened abruptly; there was nothing peaceful about the way she woke up. Once Abby was up, there was no stopping her. You'd think someone slipped her caffeine in an IV as quick as she was to get out of bed. I preferred a more laidback approach, especially since I typically woke up before her. I liked having a little bit of time to myself to slowly come to.

"Good morning, Mrs. Reynolds Oliver." Abby grinned widely, catching me watching her.

"Good morning, Mrs. Reynolds Oliver." We'd chosen to merge our last names, seeing as we were both only children from our families. When we had kids, we wanted them to have both of our surnames. "What's on your agenda for today?" I asked her, knowing her mind was already on the day's plans.

"Well," she shifted in bed, tossing the duvet off her chest as she sat up. Her white pajamas clung to her soft skin, and I felt my cheeks heat up. I tore my gaze from her and sat back in the bed next to her. "I was thinking we could grab coffee and then head towards this art museum I found online."

"Sounds perfect," I beamed.

"It's like a music museum, I thought it sounded so cool." She gushed. I could sense her mood shift as she turned to me, and when I caught her hazy gaze, I knew where she was going next. "Also, I was thinking about something else we could do before coffee, but I know you've probably been up for ages and are in need caffeine."

"Oh, I could do with some coffee." I shrugged my shoulders, egging her on. I loved playing with her, knowing how embarrassed she'd get whenever she wanted something. Or, more specifically, me. "I am parched." I watched her cheeks quickly turn pink as I emphasized the last word, and bit back a grin.

"You're parched, are you?" She asked, her voice soft. 

"Absolutely parched." I nodded my head, drawing it out.

I could see her trying to piece together a response that was both witty and sexy, but knew she'd chicken out and stop herself from saying much more. Five years together, and she was just as nervous as she was on our first real date.

"Come here," I gave into her, and watched the grin spread across her face. God, I loved her more than anything. My wife kissed me, and I was putty in her hands. I was so grateful this was my forever.