The Ultimate Gift

The Honeymoon 👰🤵🫶

As they pulled into the driveway of the beach house, Stella was filled with emotions. The overwhelming feeling hit her hard the last time she was there. Her eyes glaze over as she remembers that day, and she slowly gets out of the car. And she is hit with tons of memories. 

"This is beautiful." Gabby's awe-struck tone. Knocks Stella from her thoughts. 

"It is; there's no other place in the world where I feel the most at home than here. Where you can smell the fresh, salty air of the ocean as the warm breeze brushes across your face." She closes her eyes, enjoying the breeze and the warmth of the sunlight. "I used to love spending my summers here."

"I bet so, it's so gorgeous here." Gabby looks out at the ocean. "Thank you, guys, for inviting Matt and me. I wish we could stay the whole week. But Matt's biggest case of his career is coming up, and he has to get prepared. Which sucks." She glared at her husband. Matt just shrugged.

"At least you get a couple days at the beach before you head back to New York." 

"Without my best friend." Gabby replied sadly. 

Stella gave her a sorrowful expression. "I promise." She walks to her and wraps her in a hug. "The distance won't affect our friendship; we will keep in touch. Talk every day and visit each other a lot." She wanted to tell her she only had to live in New York without her for a year, but that would raise questions she wasn't able to answer yet. 

"You better." 

"Come on, I'll show you guys where to put your bags." She tells them as she leads them inside the coastal-style two-story house. She unlocks the door and slowly walks inside. She fights back tears as the smell of cinnamon and vanilla hits her. Her grandma constantly burned candles and sage. Making the beach house smell incredible, and the smell was reminding her of grandma. 

"Wow!" Escapes Matt's mouth as he takes in the spacious living room bathed in natural light from floor-to-ceiling windows. 

"This is the living room, and this room right next to it is the sunroom, with tanning beds and exercise equipment." She slowly walks to the room as the three of them follow behind. "Straight down this hall are the downstairs bathroom and laundry room. "This is the dining room." She says as she walks through the double doors. The golden-colored room has a crystal--diamond chandelier hanging over the rosewood dining table, and the black high arbour walls are filled with photographs. "And through this door is my grandma's favorite room, with a luxury open-width kitchen."

"Oh my God, this is gorgeous." Gabby exclaimed. 

"And bright." Matt added. "Very bright."

Stella smiled. "Yep, this is the brightest room in the house. I can never understand why she thought yellow was the perfect kitchen color—way too bright for me. She loved this room; she spent more time in it than she did on the beach." Her eyes tear up. "She remolded it about ten years ago, making it fully equipped with everything a kitchen needs."

Kelly, who has been closely watching her since they got here, notices the emotions reflecting off her face. He walked over to her and wrapped his arms around her waist from behind. At first, she tensed up but easily gave into his embrace. "You, okay?" He whispered in her ear. She nods her head slowly. He kisses her cheek.

"Well, you guys are going to want to hit the grocery store; this place is empty." Gabby spoke up.

"Yeah, umm. A few weeks after she died, Jackson's wife came here for me and boxed up all the food and donated it to a local shelter. I wasn't sure when or if I was coming back here." 

"Wow!" Matt said as he walked towards the glass sliding doors. "Look at the view." 

Gabby walked up behind him. "Oh, my goodness, that is one epic view." They both walked out on the deck, staring at the ocean view.