Dinner was much better than last time. They found common ground. Music. Ricky was a lot more knowledgeable than she had thought.
"Well, I'll see you tomorrow," Ricky said, bringing the last of her bags to her door. She didn't want him to come inside because she knew he would be harassed by hurricane Kourtney.
"Tomorrow?" She asked. "What's tomorrow?"
He smiled.
"Pack up your kids, we're going to the beach." He waved. "I'll be here at 10."
"Bye." Nini said.
She was just about to open her door when a hand on her arm stopped her.
"You are beautiful." He said to her, his brown eyes full of sincerity. "You do know that, right?"
He was gone before she had enough of her senses back to answer.
After delivering the full play-by-play of today and a mini fashion show to Kourtney, Nini settled into her bed and opened her journal.
I hate to say it, but I had the most AMAZING day. Never in my life has shopping been so much fun. Granted, I didn't have to worry about the price tags, but still. Ricky wasn't so bad, either. Let's be honest, he can still work on his ego, though. He almost kissed me. I think. Maybe it was just wishful thinking. I haven't been on a date since EJ. God, I was so blinded by love. Captain of the water polo team AND a theater kid? I genuinely thought he was my dream come true. My soulmate, and when he asked me to marry him after a year of dating, it just seemed right. Even if we were only nineteen. I thought I was lucky to have found love so fast. I'll never regret having Charlotte and Connor, ever. But I'll always regret falling for his game. I've decided that I'm going to live in the moment. Even if this is all a sham. Ricky can't break my heart if he doesn't have it.
Nini closed her book with a smile and set her alarm for 8am. Getting two five-year-olds ready for the beach took some time. She was lulled to sleep by the sound of Ricky telling her she was beautiful.
Next morning:
"Is he here yet mommy?" Connor asked for the seventh time.
"No Con." Nini said tiredly. "If you ask again, you're going to stay here and help Aunt Ashlyn at the bakery instead of playing at the beach."
Connor quickly made the motion of zipping his lips. Charlotte giggled and Nini smiled. They were so excited. She had taken them to the beach before, it wasn't far. She didn't have a whole lot of time to take them often and it had been a while. The twins were practically vibrating with excitement. A couple of minutes later she was looking out the window and was shocked to see Ricky pull up in a red sports car, top down, two poster seats in the back. She was touched by his thoughtfulness. If she was honest, she wasn't looking forward to dragging hers out of her old Malibu.
"Alright, guys. He's here."
"Yay!" They both shouted, pushing past her when she opened the door.
"Stay!" She yelled as they bounded the stairs, not wanting them to run into the street.
"Mom!" Connor whined as she locked the door.
"Connor!" Nini mimicked. "Wait."
Connor and Charlotte waited impatiently at the bottom of the stairs. Ricky got out of the car, looking annoyingly incredible in his white muscle tee and blue swim trunks.
"You guys ready?" He asked, walking up to them.
"Yes!" Connor shouted.
"Alright man."
Nini rolled her eyes as the two fist-bumped.
"Boys" Charlotte said, shaking her head and standing next to Nini.
Nini laughed and helped her little girl into the car.
"Cool car!" Connor said excitedly, buckling himself in.
"Thanks, little man." Ricky said, shutting the door.
Connor beamed at the nickname. Nini could tell he thought he had just found a new best friend. She finished helping Charlotte buckle in and then got in the front, next to Ricky. Once the adults were bucked, Ricky turned back to face the twins.
"Ready to have some fun?" He asked.
"Yes!" Connor shouted again.
Charlotte nodded; a big smile plastered on her face.
Ricky grinned at Nini then put the car in drive. He also put his arm behind her.
"You ready?" He asked her softly.
She nodded.
"Yes. Yes I am."
-Line Break-
They had been at the beach for about an hour and Nini felt like she was in a dream. Ricky hadn't paid much attention to her and that was okay. He was playing with her kids, who were laughing and smiling like crazy. She chuckled when Charlotte squealed as she was thrown onto his shoulders. Connor was begging to be next. Ricky ran into the light waves laughing, Connor running after them. She was happy that her children were happy. She pulled her journal out of her tote bag, keeping one eye on the trio.
I think I'm starting to feel happiness again. My children are happy, so I'm happy. Even if it's just for a moment in a fairytale land.
"What's that?"
She looked up to see Ricky standing over her lounging spot.
"Where-"
"They're right there, building sandcastles." He pointed a few feet ahead of them. "They're good kids."
"Yeah. They are." She smiled.
Ricky sat beside her on the blanket and reached over to grab her book.
She slammed it shut. "Nope. This is for my eyes only."
"Geeze. Okay!" He laughed defensively, holding his hands up in surrender.
"Sorry." She muttered. "It's just-private."
"Ooohhh, bet you just wrote about how much you love me." He teased.
"You wish" she laughed, in a good mood.
"What do you write?" He asked.
"Whatever I want," she found herself sharing. "My thoughts, stories, songs-"
"Songs?" He interrupted. "Like what?"
She shook her head and gave him a small smirk. "Sorry. Private."
Ricky opened his mouth to say something but was interrupted by Charlotte's cry.
"Con! You broke my castle!"
Nini rushed to her kids, wanting to avoid a fight.
"Connor, say you're sorry." Nini scolded.
"It was an accident." He pouted.
"It's still cool to say sorry." Ricky said.
Connor nodded at his newfound idol.
"I'm sorry, Char." The little brown-haired boy hugged his sister.
"How about we build one together?" Ricky suggested. "Is that okay, Charlotte?"
Charlotte sniffled and nodded. "Okay."
And they did. All four of them. They didn't even notice the photographer standing not too far away.
"This'll be front page." The man whispered.
And it was. Nini didn't mind the picture being on the front page of the Entertainment Weekly magazine. In fact, she cut it out and taped it in her journal. They were all smiling, and the ocean background was beautiful. She wrote a few words below it.
Happiness. Just for a moment.
She entered the Melody Mart that morning with her happiness still intact. Until she ran into the new employee Mr. David just hired.
"Well, well, well" Taylor Hathaway said. "If it isn't the gold digger."
"Excuse me?" Nini said.
The snobby blonde laughed cruelly.
"It's sad, really. Hanging all over someone famous just so you can get a new wardrobe and your five minutes of fame."
Nini just stared at the girl. She had to be seventeen, at the very least.
"You don't know anything about mine and Ricky's relationship." She retorted.
Taylor snorted and popped her gum.
"Why he'd go for someone like you is beyond anybody's guess."
Nini didn't respond. She was shocked when she turned around and saw David at the top of the stairs. Why didn't he say something?
"Dave, are you going to let her-"
David just turned and walked into his office, ignoring her.
"And what a moment it was" she said to herself, a tear escaping.
She wiped it away angrily. She knew what she was doing. She was fighting for her children. Maybe Mr. David would never understand, but she was going to continue this charade. When she entered the practice room to set up for her lesson, she got the shock of her life.
"Ricky? What are you doing here?"
_______________________________
**Stupid Taylor. We had some cute Rini fluff. Where getting closer to the good stuff.
The Christmas Bride will be up soon!