The next morning rolled around quicker than either of them had anticipated and when her alarm was going off just shortly after six, an instant feeling of dread washed over the room.
Neither of them wanted that night to end and the rising sun was a reminder that it had.
"I will see you again, right?" She was combing her fingers through her blonde curls as she lingered in the doorway that separated her bedroom from the living area.
He was sitting on the accent chair, having already helped her pack all of the gifts that she'd wrapped into a box and cleaned up the wine glasses they had forgotten about the night before. "I'll be here when you get back." Lindsey chuckled softly as he pushed himself forward to see her a little better.
She had already done her hair, put her makeup on and slipped into a flowing silk top, a long skirt and a tall pair of boots... She was a vision.
"I'll be home in three days..." she told him with a soft smirk as she playfully pointed her index finger towards him. "Don't check out before then." Stevie added, jokingly as she began to trail through the room.
Lindsey stood up, instantly pulling her into his arms the second she was in reach. "Have a safe trip, pretty woman." He didn't know how it was possible to miss someone that he had just met a week earlier, but there he was... already missing her and she hadn't even left yet.
But then again, falling in love shouldn't ever really be overly complicated, not if you're doing it right, at least.
She paused for a second, leaning her head back only far enough to look into those eyes. "Bye..." she whispered before his lips met hers.
"You're beautiful." He reminded her in a soft tone of voice, almost certain that she wouldn't be hearing that for a couple of days... "So beautiful," he repeated, which caused her heart to flutter.
~~~
The first ten minutes of their drive was spent in silence and just as they were getting ready to get off the island, Stevie kicked the seat back, threw her blanket over her legs and closed her eyes, which Tom was incredibly thankful for... It was going to be a long ride with her- he could already tell.
It had started when she met him in the lobby and to say that she was in a rough mood might have been an understatement. She was grumpy- asking him why he was late, rolling her eyes at his excuses and even trying to start an argument before they even left the building, all because he jokingly asked her if she had woken up on the wrong side of the bed....It was clear that she had and in all reality, she did.
So, to keep from arguing any further, he decided to just listen to music loud enough to drown out her soft snores, but quiet enough to keep her asleep. And within a couple of hours, after being stuck in very typical traffic that comes with traveling just two days before Christmas, they were pulling down the driveway of their sons home that sat right outside the city.
"Mom!" Her soft voice rang through the brisk morning air as soon as Stevie had pushed open the car door.
She was standing out on the front porch, still in her pajamas with her fuzzy slippers buried into the snow... She had been out there for a couple of minutes by then, patiently waiting for her parents to arrive.
With a soft smile on her face, the blondes eyes moved up and melted right into her daughters green ones. "There's my sweet girl." She held out both of her hands, wiggling her fingers with excitement as she immediately began to head down the sidewalk.
Brooklynn held open her arms, hurrying down the steps to meet her mom half way. "I've missed you." She admitted, wrapping the older woman in a warm hug the second she was close enough to do so.
"I've missed you way more, sunshine." Stevie was certain of it that, patting her daughters shoulder as she slowly pulled back to look at her face for a moment.
"What about your old dad?" Tom teased, one hand meeting the small of Stevie's back as the other held onto the handle of her suitcase... They were going to be gone for three nights, yet she packed like it was a month trip out the states.
With a little laugh, Brook shook her head. "I've missed you so much." She told him.
Rolling her eyes softly, Stevie casually reached back to push his hand off of her as she moved to the side. "Is everyone inside?" She wondered, another soft smile dancing across her face as she watched them give one another a quick hug.
"Sam is on his way out to help with your bags." Brook assured as she lightly patted her dads shoulder. "So you don't have to carry it all at once." She added in a playful manner as she jokingly nudged her father, knowing full and well that he was on luggage duty.
Tom let out a dry laugh as he grabbed the box off the hood of their SUV. "We stopped for cinnamon rolls on our way through the city..." he held out the bakery to go container, watching Brook's sweet face light up instantly.
Stevie and Tom didn't really have much in common anymore, not on a personal level, but they did and they always would have their children that they both loved more than anything in the world. So even if their marriage was crumbling and it was- it had been for quite awhile, one thing that would always remain the same would be how they made Sam and Brook feel. And when they were all together, the perfect family was the part that they still played.
"You know us too well." She carefully took in it one hand and then slipped her other arm through Stevie's to head back up the sidewalk. "Thank you, mom." She whispered, very aware of the parent that always remembered little things like that.
Stevie let out a soft sigh, kind of relieved to be back with her kids but also feeling a little sad as well... Somehow, she was already beginning to miss the man she'd left at the Inn. "Anything for you." She whispered, biting down on her lower lip.
And then as they headed up to the front door, she realized that maybe it was actually just guilt that she was finally starting to feel...
