2 years later
"Austy! AUSTY! Get up it is time to get dressed!" I yelled pushing open the door to his room as I stormed inside pulling open the long drapes on the floor to ceiling windows, the bright sunshine tickling the closed eyelids of our eight year old—who acted more like an eighteen year old—a low groan leaving his lips as he pulled the covers over his head. I walked over with a smile grabbing onto his Hulk bedspread pulling it down to the end of the bed as he groaned loudly. He was so much like his father it wasn't even funny right down to his long legs, dark hair and light blue eyes.
"Momma it's only eight and it's a weekend why am I getting up now" he mumbled from under his pillow as I laughed while digging through his drawers for a pair of shorts and a shirt that wasn't packed.
"Because little man" I said closing the drawer as I turned to face him. "Pop and Nana will be here soon to get you and your sisters. Daddy and I have to be at the airport in an hour" I said leaving the clothes on the end of his bed before walking towards the door. "I'm going to get Tabi up and get her dressed. You have 15 minutes and I want you dressed and ready to go" I said before walking out of the room and down the hall towards Tabi's room.
"Morning Mommy" our jubilant four year old said as she was jumping on her canopy covered Princess bed, a wide smile spreading on my face as I walked over towards her, her arms wrapping around my neck as I lifted her up before setting her down on her soft princess castle rug in front of her bed.
"Morning my little princess, you ready to get dressed?" I asked as she nodded her head happily. "Okay, why don't you go potty and brush your teeth and I'm going to go see if Daddy has Lily up okay?" I asked as she nodded her head and ran into the bathroom, her Belle nightgown billowing out behind her as I chuckled before walking out the door towards Lily's nursery.
I stopped in the doorway leaning up against it with folded arms as I watched Austin getting her ready. He had changed a lot over the years of us being together, but I found that with each change he made he was only becoming sexier to me. His body now became his own personal easel covered with a variety of things that he enjoyed—including his head, I think my hand is still recovering from those sessions—which led to his decision of shaving it so the world would be able to see the artists work. I didn't know how I felt about it, but it suited him and gave him this sexy edge that made me want him even more. Not to mention I wasn't sure how Lily and Tabi would take his new look but they didn't even seem to notice that their Dad had changed at all, probably because he was the same gentle giant that he was when they were first born.
I watched him for a while longer with a smile on my face as he talked to her in a sweet and comforting voice as he easily changed her diaper with the ease of a practiced veteran before sliding her into a onesie. I loved how down to Earth he was with our kids. They didn't need to be dressed in designer or top of the line clothes like other celebrities kids. He was fine dressing them in Target or Carter's finest and it served as a reminder to me that he was still the same Austin that he was when I left him in Texas when we were just teenagers. I let out a happy sigh pushing myself off of the door frame as I started to slowly walk over to him, Lily's eyes catching mine as she started laughing as I wrapped my arms around his waist pressing a kiss to the middle of his back.
"Is that your Mommy behind me Princess" he cooed to Lily as she started to giggle as I reached up placing my finger on the tip of her nose before pulling away from him as he turned to look at me, his dazzling white smile—which also underwent several trips to the dentist over the years—smiling down at me matching the gleam that rested in his clear blue irises before he leaned down pressing a soft kiss to my lips, the butterflies I felt never seeming to go away no matter how many times he kissed me.
"Morning Char, how's wake up going?" he asked with a smile, his free hand reaching out to wraparound my waist as he protectively held our almost two year old in his other arm.
"Your son is a mirror image of you" I said rolling my eyes as he started to laugh before pressing a kiss to my forehead making my heart flutter even more. "And Tabi is just like me an early riser and always ready for the day" I said as he smirked, the tips of his fingers slowly gliding over my back giving me goosebumps. "Austy is supposedly getting dressed and I need to get back to Tabi to get her dressed. I just wanted to check on my baby and handsome husband" I said making him smile even wider as he pressed his lips back against mine.
"We are doing okay Char. I'll go feed her and then I'll come help you okay" he said giving my waist a small squeeze before pressing another kiss against my lips. "I love you Char" he said before letting his bare feet easily carry him out of the room, my eyes hanging on him heavily as I let them gaze over the light colored jeans that hung perfectly on his hips and the perfect fit of his white t-shirt that hung on him perfectly. Even after all of these years I was still just as attracted to him now as I was eight years ago.
I walked back down to Tabi's room, sliding her into a pleated white skirt and pink scoop neck t-shirt before pulling her curly brown hair back into a ponytail and sliding her into a pair of sandals before letting her run out of the room to join her Dad, sister and hopefully her brother in the kitchen. I smiled as I straightened up her room loving the immense Mom feeling it always gave me. We had decided to that we weren't going to ask Doris to join us when we moved out to Utah since Jodie and Rich had decided that they were going to move out to be close to us. It pained me, but it also gave me a sense of independence. Austin was nervous about it at first, but once he realized how different and laid back Utah was compared to the hustle and bustle of LA he realized we were going to be fine and we both ended up getting that normal family feeling we craved.
I grabbed Tabi's bag after making her bed as I walked out of the room towards Austy's bedroom, my breath catching in my chest as I slowly pushed open the door to see that the room was vacant and not only that but his room was cleaned and his bag was gone. I shook my head with a smile as I walked out towards the kitchen to see Austin sitting between Tabi and Austy, the three of them eating a bowl of Fruit Loops while Lily was sitting in her high chair indulging in half of an avocado, banana and Gerber puffs. I couldn't help but smile, Lily was a little picky eater and Austin had picked up quickly on the things that she did and didn't like. He had grown so much as a Dad since Tabi was a baby, a smile crossing my lips as I remembered the first time he changed Tabi's diaper in his parents living room in Dallas.
"My favorite sight in the whole world" I said as Austin picked his head up giving me a close lipped smile and a wink before continuing to chew his fruit loops, his eyes glancing over at both Austy and Tabi as I leaned against the counter wrapping my hands around the hot cup of coffee he had made me. "Are Nana and Pop almost here?" I asked as Austin nodded his head before pushing himself back from the island, his right hand coming up to mess up Austy's curly hair before pressing a kiss to the top of Tabi's head making her giggle. He made his way over towards the sink rinsing out his bowl and putting it in the dishwasher while I grabbed a fussing Lily from her high chair quickly wiping off her hands before she became an avocado and banana covered mess. All of our children inherited Austin's blue eyes and brown curly hair and I wasn't upset in the slightest that very few attributes were from me.
"They are actually right down the road" he said resting his hand on my waist before pressing a kiss to my neck. "You look so beautiful today Char have I told you that?" he said in that thick raspy voice that I loved more than anything before pressing a kiss right behind my ear.
"I think that was the first time" I said as he smiled before giving my ass a small pat as he made his way from the kitchen with a chuckle as he headed down the hall to our room grabbing our bags and our passports. We never had the time for a honeymoon because we got married on a break in his Runaway Tour and even though I was more than okay with it, I knew it bothered him and he promised me the first two weeks he was done with tour he was going to take me on a proper honeymoon. The destination was still a mystery to me, all I knew was it required a passport, light clothing and dressy clothing which he had sent me shopping for saying I deserved a new wardrobe for this trip which I was hesitant to but he insisted.
"Nana! Pop!" Tabi said as she hopped from the stool and ran over to a smiling Rich and Jodie who took their turn giving her sweet kisses before Rich walked up to Austy messing up his hair in the same manner as Austin before giving him a tap in the back.
"Morning kiddo" Rich said as Austy muttered a hello making me laugh.
"Good luck Rich, as he gets older he just becomes more and more like his Dad" I said as Rich started to laugh while Jodie came to give me a hug before scooping Lily into her arms.
"Hey I heard that" Austin said as he came walking down the hallway, his OSS hat on his head and a pair of black crocs in his feet as he rolled our suitcases behind him.
"Wasn't trying to hide it" I said shrugging my shoulders as he stopped in his tracks looking at me with an opened mouth and faked shock making both of his parents laugh as I walked over to him with a smirk giving him a hug and a quick peck on the cheek before picking up our four year old.
"You two will never change will you?" Jodie laughed as I looked up into those perfect blue eyes I have called home and smiled.
"Nope and I hope we never will" I said before giving him another kiss letting Austin walk out the door towards the Suburban and Ben as Rich grabbed the kids bags and carried them to a car, Jodie and I following close behind.
***
"Aus do you think the kids are okay?" I asked looking up at him from my position curled into his arm as he looked down at me with a smile before placing a kiss on my lips.
"Yes Char, the kids are okay baby. You can relax" he said giving me a tight squeeze before looking out the window as I tried to sneak a peek around his shoulder. We had started our descent about a ten minutes ago and he had refused to let me look out the window too afraid that I was going to figure out where we were. "And stop trying to spoil the surprise" he smiled before sitting back as I glanced over at him.
"I'm sorry Aus it's just this is the longest I'll be away from them. The last time I was overseas it was only for a weekend because Lily was just born and I didn't want to bring her over so young. I've never been away from them for two weeks" I said as he smiled down at me cupping my chin in his palm as I looked at him confused. "What?" I asked with a chuckle.
"You are such an amazing Mom Char. You have been since day one with Austy. Our kids are so lucky to have you as their Mom and I am so lucky to have you as my wife" he said as I smiled before reaching up to cup his cheek.
"And you are such an amazing Dad and husband Aus. I could never imagine my life without you" I said as he leaned in pressing a kiss to my lips just as the tires of the plane touched down, my lips starting to break away from his as he started to laugh, his hand reaching out to pull down the shade as I started to laugh. "But it isn't a surprise anymore we're here" I said as he wagged his finger at me as I stood stretching my arms over my head.
"If you look now you will surely figure it out and I want you to take it all in at once, so you're gonna have to wait a few more minutes" he laughed reaching out to tickle my stomach as I started to laugh before rolling my eyes.
"Fine" I said rolling my eyes as he started to laugh as he grabbed my bag from my hand before walking in front of me as I followed him off of the plane, the friendly stewardess bidding me farewell as I started to walk down the steps, the bright sun instantly blinding me as I reached into my purse pulling out my sunglasses, my head finally looking up when my feet hit the tarmac to see the crystal clear blue ocean with beautiful white washed houses lining steep hillsides, my mouth falling open in shock as I felt Austin's arms wrap around me from behind, his lips pressing soft kisses into my neck before he slowly pulled away.
"Welcome to Santorini Char" he said quietly, his lips pressing against my temple as I turned to look at him in awe, a wide smile breaking out on his face as he reached out placing my sunglasses on the top of my head.
"Aus I don't even" I started with a laugh as he gently pushed some wind blown hair from my eyes. "This is beautiful" I said as I shook my head before reaching out to cup his cheeks in my hands.
"I knew you always wanted to go to Greece Char. You talked about it ever since high school and now that I can afford to I wanted nothing more than to make your wish come true for our honeymoon" he said as I stood up on my tiptoes pressing a kiss to his lips.
"I love you Aus" I said as he smiled pressing his lips back against mine.
"I love you too Char. Come on it's not over yet" he said grabbing my hand as he pulled me into the car that was waiting to carry us off to our next surprise even though I didn't know how it could get any better than this.
***
"You ready Char?" he asked walking towards me in a mouthwatering navy-blue suit, a light pink dress shirt underneath. He opted out of the tie and settled on leaving the top few buttons of his shirt left undone and he was barefoot, something he enjoyed being more and more lately.
"I'm ready to go anywhere with you" I said as I placed my hand in his letting him lead me out the door of the suite on the yacht we were to call home for the next two weeks as we made our way down the narrow hallway and up the spiral staircase that led to the main salon, my bare feet pressing into the soft plush beige carpet as we walked towards the sliding doors that led to the sun deck where a small square table was set up for us for dinner with a small nautical themed table scape in the center.
"After you Char" he said pulling out my chair for me as I sank into the surprising plushness of it as he sat next to me, his hand reaching out for mine as he brought it to his lips pressing a soft kiss against the back of it making me smile before turning his attention to the stewardess who was making her way over to us.
"I'm so sorry that we are early ma'am. I was just looking to have a few drinks before dinner is that okay?" he asked, his arm coming around me as his fingertips gently roamed over the skin of my back that the low back of my dress left exposed.
"Of course Mr. Post. What can we get you to drink?" she asked with a kind smile that I swear is part of their uniform since it is always on everyone's face as Austin looked over at me with a smile.
"Can we have two Ouzo Martini's please?" he asked with a smile as she nodded her head before walking away. He looked back at me with a smile, his hand leaving my back as he brought it up to move my hair out of my face, his fingertips lightly tracing my jawline before resting the knuckle of his index finger under my chin as he leaned in and pressed a soft kiss to my lips.
"I'm so sorry that I had to postpone our honeymoon Char" he said quietly, his eyes doing a heavy dance with mine in the dim light that surrounded us as I shrugged my shoulders and smiled. Over the years I had become accustomed to pushing things off until he was able to do them and for most people it would be a burden or be something that they didn't want to live with but honestly it was a miniscule problem for me. I loved Austin and I was willing to do whatever I had to do to make our relationship work.
"It's not a big deal Aus, I knew that you would eventually give us one. Not to mention you planned it perfectly with your birthday the big two six tomorrow, finally I was starting to feel weird dating someone so much younger than me" I said rolling my eyes as he started to laugh shaking his head before looking back at me with a sparkle in his eye as he bit on his bottom lip.
"You think you're funny don't you" he said grabbing for his pack of smokes as he pulled one out and placed it between his lips, his lighter coming up to ignite the tip as he took in a deep drag and blew out the smoke my eyes following his every move as he rolled his own before holding out his cigarette for me. "You know I have a whole pack right there" he said with a smile as I grabbed it from his fingers and took a long drag letting the smoke drift from the corner of my mouth as I passed it back to him with a smile.
"Yeah but taking yours is so much fun" I said as he shook his head with a laugh before looking over at me with a cute smile, a mischievous yet cute look in his eyes making me blush as I started to shake my head. "Yes?" I asked as he stood up from his chair and walked next to me as I took him standing up as a hint that he wanted me to do the same.
He didn't say a word to me as he took my hand and walked me towards the front of the yacht helping me as I walked up a small step that led to a small white couch that overlooked the water, the sun just starting to set over the mountains creating a picture-perfect sight that immediately took my breath away. He sat down on the cushion next to me, his hands sliding under my arms as he pulled me back against him, my head immediately resting on his chest as he slid his hands down my sides to grab my hands lacing our fingers together loosely. He smiled and let my eyes flutter closed as he pressed a soft kiss to the top of my head before resting his own on mine as his thumbs slowly started to wander over my knuckles.
"Charlotte" he said, the fact that he was using my real name giving me butterflies as I squeezed his hands tighter letting a small hmm float from my lips. "I know that I haven't always been the best to you and I am so sorry for everything that I have ever done to you" he said quietly, my mind starting to race as to why he was bringing all of this up again.
"Aus it's okay baby. We were so young, so lost, so confused. It just took us a while to figure out what we wanted" I said, his lips pressing against my head again as he let out a sigh.
"No Char that's just it. I knew who I wanted, and I fucking knew from the moment I watched you walk on the plane to go back to New York. My entire life it has always been you Charlotte but I never thought I was good enough for you, I mean fuck I still don't think I am good enough for you" he said with a laugh as I turned my head up and pressed a kiss to his neck.
"That isn't true Aus" I said as I felt him shaking his head behind me.
"No Charlotte it is. I was making nothing of myself when I was in Dallas, I tried college and left because school wasn't for me and came into this career. I was nothing but a fucking drunk and a druggie living my best life with people who didn't give two fucking shits about me and acting like I was God's fucking gift to women" he said with a sad laugh as I squeezed his hands tighter. "You didn't deserve that life Char you deserved so much more than that. You were and still are an amazing woman and when I found out that we had Austy I wanted to come to you Char I wanted to come so bad, but then I thought I'm not good enough for him either. I'm not a good role model for my son I don't want him to be this kind of guy, I want him to be better" he said, his word starting to make me cry as I sat up in his arms and looked at him.
"Aus" I said shaking my head as he gently squeezed my hands.
"No Char, I've never told you this and you have to hear it" he said before leaning in pressing a kiss to my lips. "I was afraid that I was going to ruin your life, I wanted better for you and our son. But the problem was I couldn't stop thinking about you. Even when I fucking screwed up with Ash and Kano to try to make you hate me, I still thought of you every day and you still fucking loved me and I thought maybe I need to stop being so hard on myself and give this a try. And it worked so fucking good Char. I loved my son and I loved you even more for such an amazing fucking Mom you are to him" he said as I looked up at him, tears starting to form in his eyes as I gently wiped at the wetness that was forming under his eyes.
"Then I got you pregnant again Char and fuck I was so happy but I kept thinking I'm only burdening her more with my kids. I can't be there for her like a normal person can be. I can't give her all of the attention I want to give her. I can't be the guy she needs or the father that my kids need and I fucking ran away scared again Char. But what made it worse that time was I wasn't just running from one person I loved, I was running away from three people that I loved" he said turning his head as he started to shake it.
I knew that this was bothering him for a while. Here was eight years' worth of anguish that he has been bottling up inside of him finally coming out. All of his guilt, all of his sadness, all of his emotion pouring out of him in one of the most beautiful ways that I have ever seen but yet it was breaking my heart that he thought he wasn't good enough for me.
"Aus I love you. I've always loved you from the moment I thought boys were cute" I said with a laugh as he turned his head to look at me with a small smile tugging on his lips. "You have always been the only guy that I've felt comfortable around and yeah did you make some shitty life choices? Sure. But you were young Austin, you were living a life that everyone dreamed of living and you had no idea how to handle it and no one to help you with it. Dre was newer to it all too and he was going through everything with you enjoying the perks you gave him as his most successful artist and he didn't know how to handle it either" I said as he nodded his head before dropping his gaze back down to the floor.
"I was afraid to tell you about Austy because I didn't want to ruin your dreams, not because I thought you weren't going to be a good Dad or that you weren't going to be a good boyfriend for me. And I knew you were trying to make me leave you with the whole Ash and Kano thing, but you didn't know the love that I had for you Aus, my world revolved around you and nothing was going to change that" I said reaching out and turning his face towards me as I wiped my thumbs under his eyes again.
"Those kids. Those amazing, beautiful, smart, sweet, loving and caring kids that you gave me Austin, they are the best thing that has ever happened to us. They brought us together, to the person that we were meant to be with. I wasn't meant to have kids with anyone but you and they weren't meant to be raised by anyone but us. You are and always have been an amazing Dad and an amazing boyfriend, fiancé and husband. Don't ever doubt your existence in my life Austin. Don't ever doubt that you weren't good enough for me or for our kids because you were and you still are. I love you Austin, I love you so much" I said, his hands coming up to each side of my face as he pressed his lips tightly against mine as I climbed onto his lap, my hands roaming up the back of his neck as I kissed him deeply, the soft Greek breeze floating around us cooling off the heat that was between us before he pulled away.
"I love you too Charlotte I always have despite every shitty fucking thing that I have done and I love our kids more than fucking anything. I am so sorry Charlotte for jumping to conclusions that I wasn't good enough, for being selfish and only thinking of myself and for keeping myself away from you and our kids when you guys needed me the most. I promise you that I will continue to be the best Dad and best husband that I can be for my family. You guys are my priority and my life now and I love you all so much" he said as I pressed my lips back against his. "I couldn't think of a better place for our honeymoon Char, Santorini the most romantic place in Greece and I intend to make it that and more. Now that we are on our honeymoon I can say this" he said with a laugh. "This is just the start of all the amazing things I'm going to give to you and our kids baby. I intend to give all of you the life you deserve and more. I'm so glad I've forever been a part of your life Charlotte we were destined to be from the moment we met. I love you"
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Surprise! I don't know why but I thought that these two needed an update, plus I think I needed a shift in thinking from You Want Me and I Want You I was feeling like I was getting stuck and thought a shift in plot would help. Hope you enjoyed!