"Pass him here. I want cuddles from my grandson before he gets too old for them," Helen chuckles after we had eaten our barbecue in the warm sun of the June heat in Costa Rica.
It's golden rays caressing our melanin enriched skin as we sat collectively as a family in the miss-matching deck chairs Owen and I had pulled from a, long forgotten about, cupboard located at the rear of the bungalow.
"Take him. We don't want him," Owen jokes as he gently passes his sleeping son over. Daniel fast asleep after playing all afternoon in the sun with Uncle Barry, Owen and Solo. Helen cooing and smiling down at the small toddler in her arms as he snuggles closer into her gentle embrace.
"Don't lie, Owen," Vivian smirks slightly from her seat beside Helen. Her own eyes watching over her nephew before she turns to address Owen who is sat on my right, as we sit on the picnic bench we both made a few years ago; I remember getting gloss all over myself when we treated the wood in hopes of it lasting longer in the blistering heat and torrential rain:
"You love that kid more than Zoe," Vivian raises a thin eyebrow at him.
Owen gasps dramatically, suddenly pulling me closer to him with a strong arm around my shoulders. I couldn't stop the small squeak escaping my lips and the hot blush from creeping up my neck and onto my cheeks at his antics.
"How could you say that Viv. Break my girls heart that," a wink accompanying his joke as his kisses my temple whilst his thumb soothingly strokes my shoulder as he pulls me into his side. Our small argument earlier forgotten about, for now.
She just chuckles and rolls her eyes. Barry commenting on how dramatic Owen can be.
"Yeah take him, we'll miss him eventually." Owen winks, waving his hand half halfheartedly towards Helen, as if motioning for her to run away with the small boy this instant.
"I think I might do that. Take my little chucky egg and run whilst I can," she teases as she slowly moves up from her seat to take Daniel to bed. His soft breathing matching the tranquillity of the evening as we all collectively follow her into the small bungalow. Each of us tiding up after the food we'd stuffed our faces with earlier as Owen and Barry cooked over the open barbecue.
Earth, Wind and Fire caressing our ears as the melodies of September trickle out from the small speaker, as we make our way back outside to wave good bye to Vivian and Barry as they head off home for the night. Barry driving the pair home in his dusty jeep and disappearing off down the track towards their own homes after the tranquil afternoon we'd all spent socialising.
"I'm off to bed, I'll see you two love birds in the morning," Helen speaks from the hallway as she heads towards the small spare room we had. A pointed look sent my way as she observes myself wrapped up in Owens arms; my back against his sculptured chest as he cheekily nibbles on my ear as he begins swaying us to the first few bars of the recognisable tune Hungry Eyes by Eric Carmen.
Casting my eyes downward in shame, I turn from looking over my shoulder at Helen to kiss Owen on his cheek. It doesn't take him long to begin humming along to the distinctive lyrics as we stand on the porch, overlooking the twilight scenery that surrounds the picturesque setting the bungalow is placed in.
The plains just over the horizon, full of the thriving herds of Apatosaurus and flocks of Gallimimus. The large lake just a few meters away from our small home, accompanied by a jetty that leads out into the sparkling water.
A perfect scene.
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The following morning, Daniel had risen with the burning sun and was winding Solo up before anyone had opened their eyes. Helen was taking him to the mainland for the day to go to a zoo. Apparently living in a dinosaur park isn't entertaining if you live there for a small child.
"Give you grown ups some space," she had also claimed when they were boarding the boat that would take them from the heaving Isla Nublar. The stern look and motivational hug I had received from Helen as she held the small boy's hand before she left told me everything. She wanted me to talk to Owen.
I would find the right time... eventually.
So, Owen and myself spent our rare day off together in the blistering heat. Owen, taking apart his bike and tinkering with the parts I'm most confident he disassembled just last week. Myself, lounging in the hammock we'd strung up between two palm trees near the waters edge of the lake. Solo lying in the shadow the hammock cast as I read my book; my eyes slowly drooping in the warm sun, Owen's music from his small radio casting Everywhere by Fleetwoodmac into the still air, his quiet singing accompanying it, and the gentle swaying of the string hammock rocking my fatigued body to sleep.
Awoken with a start, I sit up quickly when Solo lurches from his position underneath my swinging cocoon to bark after a new arrival on our small plot of land. My head spinning at the sudden action whilst I grab blindly on top of my head for my glasses, pulling them down onto the bridge of my nose so that I could somewhat make out the previous blurs of the large, pearl white, car that had pulled up.
The unmistakable, fiery red hair that appeared from the drivers side had both Owen and I dropping our shoulders in annoyance. If Claire Dearing ever shows up, it's usually disastrous news; she just had to chose our one free day together to deliver it.
Stepping out of the high car, her pale heels almost sinking into the soft earth beneath them, as she appears in her immaculate white blouse and skirt had my frame hesitating from leaving the security of the hammock. Dressed in a pair of jean cropped pants and one of Owens red and black flannel's tired around my waist with a vest top keeping my shoulders exposed to the sun, made Clair appear all that more authoritative. Even as she flinches away from the charging Great Dane that had scuttled to a halt in front of Owen, the animals body ready to launch at the woman at Owens command.
I watch as Owen continues to work on the last piece of his bike as she begins talking to him, the smart woman strutting a little closer after Owen had given the command for Solo to stand down so the dog could wander off, sniffing the ground around the large car having taking his interest.
I flinch slightly as my hearing aid gives a high pitched screech. My hand instantly going up to adjust it from where it had slipped during my nap and silence the incessant thing. Straining my ears, I could just make out a Seahawks game playing on the radio.
Giving a sigh and taking a deep breath to push away my shy nature that was screaming at me to hide in the safety of the hammock, I slide my flip-flops on and hesitantly make my way over to the pair of discussing teenagers. Insults and snarky comments flying between the two.
Having cast a glance over his shoulder because Claire had moved her attention onto myself, Owen gives me a sympathetic smile as he reaches out with one arm to hold me into his side. Solo growing and trotting over to push his way between our legs in hopes of pushing us apart.
"Solo! Pack that in, now!" Owen grunts as he pulls me closer to his side, "I ain't standing for any of you're cráp,"
Smiling softly, I reach out with my hand that isn't around Owens waist to stroke the grumpy dogs head. His grumble of contentment audible to us all as I begin massaging his floppy ears.
"Good boy," I whisper, purposefully looking down at the large dog instead of Claire.
"We have an attraction," Claire attempts to re-calibrate the conversation back to her subject.
"That's not what you said last time I saw you," Owen cheekily replies. My eyes widening and glancing up at him in shock as he flirts with this woman right in front of me; the wink he gives me only ignites my anger. I'm aware he is doing it for a reaction and he is a sweet talker, but I wasn't in the mood for his jabber today,
"I'm talking about the dinosaurs," Claire deadpans, "Mr.Grady,"
An annoying fly began buzzing around my head as I try to listen to the conversation, a small wave of my hand futile against it's determination to annoy the hell out of me. Owen noticing out of the corner of his eye with a small smirk at my agitation.
"Owen," he reinforces. Hating the formalities.
"A new species we've made," she continues.
I continue to shrink into Owens side now to avoid the incessant fly. Having eventually had enough of my fussing, Owen grabs the fly effortlessly in his fist. A coy smirk and eyebrow raise sent my way as I dig my hand into his side to keep quiet- a hot blush ripening my face as I realise how much of a fool I must look like to Claire. So I cast my gaze and head down to Solo once again. Owen noticing my discomfort and giving me a squeeze as his arm rests over my dainty shoulders reassuringly.
"You just went and made a new dinosaur?"
"Yeah, it's kind of what we do here. The exhibit opens in three weeks. Mr.Masrani wanted me to consult with you," I knew what comment was going to come out of Owens mouth before he even though of it. I'm sure that man sometimes has the brain the size of a pea.
"Zoe and I do enough consulting on our own. Would you want to consult with us here, or in our bungalow? You'd have to arrange it around our busy schedule of course," I had to close my eyes and bite my tongue; my flaring frustration growing ever stronger as this man continues to dig his early grave.
"That's not funny," I reply quietly for the both of us.
Chuckling to himself, Owen unwraps his arm from around my shoulder, after giving my temple a kiss and bounding up the porch steps to grab a clean rag to wipe his hands on: "It's a little funny,"
Solo instantly placing himself between Claire and I so that he can protect me if the strict business woman upset me in anyway.
"We'd like you to evaluate the paddock for vulnerabilities," Claire continues, as if she wanted to be here just as much as we wanted her here.
"Why me?" Owen calls as he disappears around the side of the bungalow. Claire moving away to go up the porch steps after him.
"I guess that Mr. Masrani thinks, since you are able to control the raptors..."
"See, it's all about control with you. I don't control the raptors, it's a relationship. It's based on mutual respect. Like Solo and Zoe," Owen defends, a little irritated that everyone assumes he has the Raptors on a tight leash: "We all respect each other and Solo protects us because he wants to, not because I force him too. Hell, that dog doesn't let me anywhere near Zoe or Daniel sometimes. That dog is more protective over those two than a lioness is over her cubs,"
"It's a dog, you just tell it to move and it will,"
"It? Did you really just refer to my dog as 'it'? He's part of the family, part of the little pack we're growing over here if you hadn't noticed. That's why he's so loyal. Not because I'm gonna starve him or volt him if he doesn't, but because he's one of us," Owen defends the grumbling dog, his hand making a sweeping motion over us.
The large beast sensing the hostility towards the pristine woman as I crouch down to give Solo a better back scratch as a distraction from the slightly hostile environment.
"Okay, okay. Can we just focus on the asset, please?" This woman is never going to get a straight answer from Owen if she continues to talk in such a high mannerism to the oaf.
"The asset?" Owen moves down of the porch, past the frustrated looking woman to stand beside me. Owen sensing that I was growing uncomfortable with this woman being around us and his useless natter making the interaction between he two of us go on longer than necessary. It's moments like these that I wish Daniel was around so he could drag me off to play, instead of having to deal with adult responsibilities:
"Look I get it. You're in charge out here, you gotta make a lot of tough decisions, it's probably easier to pretend these animals are just numbers on a spreadsheet. but they are not. They are alive."
"I am fully aware they're alive." Claire defends.
"You might have made them in a test tube, but they don't know that. They're thinking; I gotta eat, I gotta hunt, I gotta..." his fist motion more exponential than any word could be: "You can relate to at least one of those things, right?"
Having had enough of his jabs, Claire eventually closes the conversation: "I'll be in the car. You might want to change your shirt, there very sensitive to smell." she almost sneers at Owen as she turns on her fancy heels to get back into the controlled environment of the car.
Smirking, Owen turns to look at me, "Get dressed beautiful, I'll treat you to lunch after we're done with the asset," he chuckles as he takes my hand and leads me inside to slip on a pair of black boots.
Running a tired hand through my tangled hair, I quickly dutch plait it over my shoulder before I turn to Owen with a tired smile.
"I'm too tired," I whisper as I sit on the bed. A small groan escaping the worn bed as I hang my head in my hands- a headache starting to work it's way across the peripheral part of my head.
Having changed his shirt as Claire asked, Owen takes a seat on the bed beside me and pulls me into his chest. Kissing the top of my tatty hair as I huddle into him, content with the warmth and comfort his body brings.
"I know it's our only day off together in a long time, but I don't think we're getting out of this one. If you're too tired when we're done, I'll grab us some food and we'll come back here to lounge on the sofa till we're old and fat," he chuckles, trying his hardest to cheer me up.
Solo giving an unnamed grumble as he, too, jumps up onto the bed to settle for the afternoon- having already sensed that we would be leaving.
"Okay, but you're one sandwich away from fat Mr." I whisper as I lift my head from his strong chest to place a gentle kiss on his plump lips.
"I'm going to ignore that, Princess," he mumbles, as he places a softer kiss against my lips. His facial hair tickling slightly,
Growling from Solo has his laughing and breaking apart, before we leave the house and jump into the Jeep with Claire.
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So FINIALLY we have made it! 30 chapters later we are starting to get to the good stuff.
Is anyone else as excited as I am?
Between immanently returning back to uni and having just been released from hospital, I apologise for the poor updates recently. I know my writing style is more rushed that what the start of this book was, and I'm ashamed I have let it slip so dramatically.
So this double update will have to do.
Updates will be slow but I'll try to get you some juicy content as often as I can.
Big hugs,
S.A.Charlton