Stephanie came out of the lower deck of the yacht Ashton had rented. They had just come from Paris and went straight to Nice to have a holiday under the sun in the Cote d'Azur, or the French Riviera. They planned on spending some time on the yacht, then Monaco, Nice, then back to Paris because Stephanie had enrolled in a two year long course in the Culinary Arts at a prestigious culinary school in the city. She found that she loved cooking so much and wanted to start up a restaurant inside the very first Asuncion Hotel in Makati and see if it takes off before putting restaurants inside the other branches. They had been married for a year and still very much in their honeymoon phase. With the help of Ashton and his brilliant business mind, Stephanie had managed their boutique hotels successfully and slowly brought back the prestige and popularity their hotels had lost over the years. She brought in fresh ideas to better advertise and market their hotels, and soon it was popular with the 21-35 crowd.
Because they had been so busy the past year, Ashton decided they needed this much needed vacation before temporarily living in Paris while Stephanie chased her dreams. Like he told her, as long as he had his laptop, he can work from anywhere, and he intended to stay with her and support her while she figured out her life plan. She had been so happy when he agreed to let her go to culinary school; it was as if she made the best decision of her life without anyone thinking it was stupid or worthless. She loved her husband for always being behind her every decision, keeping true to his vows. Ashton said he would just go home every few months to check on their businesses personally.
She found her husband leaning over the railing of the yacht, enjoying the sunset and drinking the best chardonnay the south of France had to offer. She walked up behind him and hugged him from behind, her arms wrapping around his waist and her cheek leaning on his back.
"Why are you drinking without me?"
He twisted his torso around so she could be at his side instead of behind him. "This is for you, Love."
He handed her the goblet and she took a small sip. "Look at that beautiful sunset," she noted as the orange sun sank below the horizon. "Thank you for this holiday, Love. I feel so relaxed."
"I know you need this. You know culinary school is no joke, right? You won't have assistants and you have to clean up after yourself, carry heavy pots and machinery, give up your manicures forever..." he ticked off one after the other.
"I know. Pero, Love naman, hindi na ko as maarte as I used to be, di ba?"
"Hindi na nga. Ibang iba na ang baby ko."
"Pero pray for me pa rin, Love, ha," she said softly. "Alam mo naman, baka minsan di ko na kayanin ang hirap and I'll just give up, and I don't want that to happen."
"I'll always be around to give you a pep talk."
"I love you, hubby."
"I love you, wifey."
"Pero, hubby, okay pa rin ba sa yo na madedelay nanaman ang ating plans to have kids? Syempre, I have school, tapos after that pagbalik natin ng Manila, I'll be busy with the restaurant planning..."
"Love, don't think about it too much. It's okay, we can start a family when we're both ready. We don't need to rush," he kissed her on the forehead.
"Okay. Ayoko lang kasi na mainip ka na at maghanap ka ng iba para lang magka Abo Jr.," she pinched his side.
"Pwede ba naman yun?" he chuckled. "Di ba ikaw na rin ang nagsabi na puputulin mo ang kaligayahan ko if I ever do that?" he kissed her on the lips. "Besides, I have the only woman I want right here," he kissed her deeply, leaning her back on teh railing carefully as their kiss became more urgent. "Tignan mo, ikaw lang ang nagpapagising nyan," he winked at her.
"Hmmmm," she kissed Ashton again. "Loyal lang talaga yan kay Commander Gigi."
"Hmmm, you're right."
Ashton lifted her up and she giggled loudly as her husband carried her, her legs wrapped around his hips, her wine sloshing out of the goblet by his sudden movements. She kept kissing his neck as he carefully made his way down the deck towards the bedroom inside the yacht. He took the goblet from her hand and placed it on the dining table they passed on the way to the bedroom. He laid her down on the mattress and slid his hands up her chiffon blouse, caressing her smooth skin there.
"Mon cher..." she called out to him in French.
"Oui?"
"Je t'aime."
"Moi aussi. Je t'aime trop, mon amour."
He pulled her underwear down and kissed her inner thighs while she still had her blouse and matching skirt on. Her breathing quickened and became more labored the more he nuzzled her, and he knew he was doing something right. She pulled him up to her and kissed him, flipping him so that she was on top and she made quick work of getting rid of his cotton polo shirt and khaki shorts.
"Love," he whispered.
"Hmm?"
"Let's get married again. Here, in Monaco, just the two of us. I never got to asking this before, but...will you marry me?" he looked at her with hopeful eyes even though he already knew the answer.
"Okay."
"Really?" she stopped kissing him and looked into his eyes, her smile contagious, his lips quirking up into a smile as well. "I would marry you anywhere, anytime, wherever, whenever. I love you, Steph."
"I love you so much! Let's do it. Let's get married again!" she squealed excitedly.
"Okay, but first..." he easily switched places with her and now he was back on top.
"Oh," she giggled, but that soon turned into a moan as her husband moved over her.
***
Exactly on the day of their first anniversary as a married couple, Stephanie and Ashton walked hand in hand with their fingers intertwined on a private beach in one of the five star resorts in Monaco. Stephanie wore a bohemian style caftan made of sheer organza, the bell sleeves trimmed with a satin ribbon, the v-neckline elaborately hand beaded with tiny silver and white gems and crystals. Under her caftan she wore a crocheted white bandeau bikini top with a matching bikini bottom. Over her shoulders was a boa made of fresh lavender, white carnations, and pink pansies, the latter two blooms significant because they were flowers associated with first year anniversaries. Around her head and over her shoulder length hair was a halo of the same lavender, carnation, and pansies used on the boa. Ashton wore a crsip white crisp white oxford shirt underneath a taupe linen suit. They were both barefoot as they walked to the makeshift altar of two brass rods with fresh lavender woven around them.
Although technically they were not having a legal wedding ceremony because they did not meet the requirements to marry abroad, they still were excited to have this vow renewal. The hotel had an officiant who was able to perform the ceremony. The vow renewal took place before sunset, completely done in French, and it was the most romantic experience they have had in France so far. Kahit na very basic lang ang alam nilang French words, they repeated after the officiant with much sincerity, dahil alam nila na no matter what language, they meant every word and every promise sa mga vows na inulit nila. They had a hotel staff member take their photos on Stephanie's phone; she knew that if she didn't take pictures, Rachel would throw a hissy fit dahil hindi sya invited sa super surprise impromptu ceremony na ito.
They celebrated their reception sa kanilang yacht, happier than ever, more in love with each other than ever. It was good to renew their vows, felt amazing, especially now that their life together involved many changes. Parang ni-reaffirm lang nila sa isa't isa how in love and how committed they were to each other.
"So we're supposed to give each other paper as presents for our first year anniversary," Stephanie said as she ran her fingernails on her husband's naked torso.
"Yup, and that nicely framed marriage certificate is a nice gift, don't you think?" he caressed her back as they cuddled after making love.
"It is. Iba ka talaga, Ash. Wala kang kupas. Ang galing mo pa rin magpakilig one year later."
"Of course, Love. Mahirap na...ayokong magalit sa akin ang fire breathing dragona," he kissed the tip of her nose.
"Grabe ka naman! Dragona ka dyan. Matagal tagal ng in hibernation ang dragona. The prince charming has slayed the dragon," Stephanie laughed. "Mahal na mahal kita, Abo."
"Mahal na mahal din kita, Gigi."
***
On their fifth year anniversary, Ashton surprised Stephanie with a trip to Venice, Italy.
Stephanie surprised Ashton in return.
During a gondola ride under the stars, she whispered lovingly in his ears and looked at him with twinkling eyes.
"Happy anniversary, Daddy. We love you."