Same script, different cast

Merry beautiful christmas

Walking in I notice the fire alight giving the room a soft glow along with some candles dotted about the room, a new furry rug in front of the fire with all of the cushions and pillows from our bed spread out on it, there’s some bottles of water and cans of diet coke in a wine bucket next to the rug and two more boxes. I'm appreciating the effort he's made for wherever this night is going.
He takes my hand smiling at me and leads me over to his rug and sits down encouraging me to sit next to him

“you look out of this fucking world Annie, even better than I imagined you'd look"

I blush furiously under his gaze, is only then as I'm looking down at his toned legs stretched out before us that I notice he has matching silk navy boxers on, my hand reaches out of its own accord wondering how they feel against his skin. Soft,  hot and hard.

He checks his watch and I can see that it's midnight, Christmas day.

“Merry Christmas Annie, I love you"

he leans over and kisses my lips lightly, I whisper that I love him too

“Merry Christmas Mars"

Ever since the kids started coming to us for Christmas day we'd always given each one gift in private, it was a tradition I loved but this was different this year, we didn't usually do it like this.

“Here baby, these are for you!”

He hands me the two boxes, I take them from him gratefully

“Denaun helped me buy these on the web, I can't be with you for these adventures coming up but I can make sure I play a part in some of them!”

My smile stretches across my whole face as I lean over this time and kiss him. I take the lid off the first box and pull out a piece of paper, it's a receipt from an Egyptian tour company.
A champagne sunrise balloon flight for Violet and I over Luxor,  flights and entry tickets for us both to Abu Simbel and lastly a boat trip in Luxor to the temple Island of Philae.

My heart swelled in my chest as I held the paper to my lips and kissed it, turning to Marshall I hugged him tightly

“Thank you, this means the absolute world to me"

He blushes and coughs clearing his throat he gestures towards the other box, opening it there's another receipt inside A guided trip around the Coliseum in Rome and tickets for the Vatican both for me and Violet.

I'm overwhelmed he even thought about this let alone set it all up since I'd sprung it on him and bought it online

“I'm going to make all of your dreams come true baby, one at a time"

He sounded so sincere. The fact that he accepted my going away and rather then trying to stop me had aided my travels and knew the things I'd wanted to do the most in these places made me love him even more, he clutched my hand and held it to his bare chest, he was trying to hide his apprehensions from me and I was grateful for that.

If people knew what he'd put me through recently they'd think I’d been stupid and naive in forgiving him so soon or so easily but a new year was looming and I didn't want to take any of this shit into it with us.
He was mine to forgive and I did easily because I loved him and ultimately I believed he wouldn't do it again and I wasn’t going to be one of those women who forgave their man and then threw their mistakes in their faces every two minutes.

It was done! Over and done.

“Annie can you think about two things for me while your away?” he asks me, sounding nervous, I lean over and kiss him gently and pulling back ask him what he wants me to think about, he plays with the bottom of my nightie, rubbing it between his fingers as he looks at me

“Can we think about selling this house and buying another together, every time I walk in here I'm hit with reminders!”

I feel for him and although I loved this house it was just a house we could set up home somewhere else just as easily.

“Ok I'll think about it" I whisper and smiling at him, he smiles back at me and I move and straddle his hips

“And the other?”

I ask him impatiently, his hands slip up under my night and rest of the tops of my thighs, his thumbs rubbing my skin making me feel hot!

“Come on Marshall, out with it!”

I giggle at his nervousness, he lets out a deep sigh and looks at me

“What would you think about us adopting a baby or a kid that needed a home?”

My head snaps up looking him square in the eyes, did he actually mean that! My heart starts pounding as I realise he's offering me a lifeline I didn't even know I needed, if we can't have our own baby we could help another child, but a conversation we had when I told him I couldn't get pregnant plays on my mind, he'd said he already had his children and wasn't remotely interested in having any more.

Marshall pulls me out of my flashback by removing one of his hands from under my nightie and reaching up tugging my hair gently

“I know what your thinking Annie , I remember telling you I didn't want anymore but when it was suddenly a possibility, I realised I'd been wrong, I wanted it more than anything and I think we'd be fucking awesome together as parents!”

I laugh at his proclamation although I do happen to think he'd be right about that

“What ya thinking Annie?”

I snuggle my body closer to his wrapping my arms around him tightly

“I think I’d like that very much!”

His response is to squeeze my body tighter to his and I revel in the warmth coming from him and the fire.