December 13, 2017
Joe's POV
I carefully lit all twenty eight candles on top of the tiered chocolate cake. Though it wasn't my birthday, I closed my eyes and took a deep breath in. I reflected on all that had happened in the past several months. Taylor and I got engaged. We were finally free of our government agency jobs. Taylor released her first new album in 2 years. I'd gotten to spend time getting to know my daughter. Things were turning around for us. When I opened my eyes, I smiled remembering that today is a day of celebration.
"You ready?" Karlie asked eagerly. She came into the kitchen with her phone at the ready.
I picked up the cake and nodded. All of the lights were turned off, so the cake gave off a bright orange glow. As I stepped into the dinning room, carefully balancing the cake, everyone burst into song. The happy birthday song of course. Karlie followed me in to take videos on her phone. When I finally set it on the table, we all turned to look at my beautiful fiancée.
"Make a wish," I whispered just loud enough for Taylor to hear.
Taylor leaned forward, closed her eyes, paused, and then with a big exhale blew out the candles. "Let's eat!" she announced. I helped her cut the cake and pass out slices to our guests. Tonight, we had a few close friends and family over to celebrate Taylor's birthday. Nothing big.
Once everyone received their piece of cake, I raised my glass of champagne high above my head. "To Taylor!" I said.
Everyone mirrored me and raised their glasses. "To Taylor!" they repeated.
I turned back to Taylor. "Happy birthday my love," I said, kissing the top of her head.
"Thanks. Wouldn't have made it to 28 without you," she smiled back at me.
"What did you wish for?" I asked even though I knew she wouldn't tell.
She nudged me in the side. "You know I can't tell you! It won't come true."
"Okay, okay." I held my hands up defensively.
Karlie, who was making her rounds, stopped in front of us. "Get together and I'll take your photo!"
Taylor and I moved closer together. "I better not see that photo circulating on the internet," Taylor cautioned Karlie only half joking. Although we had been engaged for a few months, we were still trying to keep our relationship extremely private. Our close friends and family have been respectful of our decision. However, only a select few truly know the reason behind why Taylor and I met.
"So, have you guys set a date for your wedding?" Karlie asked.
"Not yet," Taylor replied, taking a bite of cake. We both had so much going on recently that we hadn't given much though to selecting a wedding date.
"I'll be invited right?" Karlie winked.
"Of course!" Taylor exclaimed.
"I'm coming too!" Taylor's mom chimed in.
Trying to prevent everyone from making their reservations to our unplanned wedding, I announced to the whole room, "okay, everyone here is invited to our wedding. Alright?" This was supposed to be Taylor's birthday, not an engagement party.
Taylor just laughed and shook her head. Her smile gets me every time. It just lights up the whole room. Unable to resist, I wrapped my arms around her waist and pulled her into me. "What do you say we get out of here?" I asked.
"You mean ditch the party that you are hosting for me?" Taylor questioned.
"Exactly," I replied. Brushing her hair behind her ear, I leaned in and said, "I've got a little birthday surprise for you upstairs."
Taylor quickly scanned the room to see if anyone would notice our absence. Then she grabbed my hand, and we snuck out of the kitchen. We ran upstairs together trying to be as quite as possible. As soon as we made it to our bedroom, I closed the door behind us.
"What's all this?" Taylor said stepping into the candlelit room. I just stood aside to watch her take it all in. Earlier, with the help of a few friends, I set up all the candles, sprinkled red rose petals on the bed, set out a bottle of champagne, and put out a few framed pictures of me and Taylor on our dresser. On the edge of the bed lay two plane tickets.
"Happy 28th, love," I smiled at her.
"What are these?" She asked, picking up the tickets.
"Plane tickets," I answered simply.
"Okay, smart guy. To where?" She pressed.
"Taylor, I cannot wait to marry you and spend the rest of my life with you. But, I also know what all of that will entail. The paparazzi and lack of privacy. All the fans. The constant travelling. I thought it might be nice to have a little getaway. Just you and me. A peaceful and relaxing vacation. So, these tickets will take us on a plane to a private island for a week. How does that sound?"
All I got was a shocked look on her face. Unsure of if her shocked face was good or bad I added, "I can cancel the trip if this was a bad idea."
"No, I love it!" she exclaimed.
"You sure?"
Taylor threw her arms around my neck and kissed me. "Yes. Absolutely. Thank you so much. This is quite the birthday surprise."
"Good. I'm glad you like it." Kissing her back, I pulled her onto the bed with me. I could feel the warmth radiating from Taylor's body as I lay next to her. Sitting up, I pulled off my shirt and with a wink said, "well, I've got a few more surprises for the birthday girl."