“What did you just say?” Rayanne asked, incredulous.

“I said I could quit the group.” Nick answered her, swimming back toward the boat.

Rayanne let it sink in before she followed him. Her heart sank, this was not what she wanted.

“Nick,” she started for the boat, “that is not an option.”

He climbed up the ladder, not turning to her. “It is too an option. An option for me, I can make that decision myself.”

“No you can’t.” She reached the boat and climbed in. She touched his arm, tried to turn him toward her. “You don’t WANT to leave the group, so you’re not going to.”

“Haven’t you ever heard of making sacrifices for your kids”?

“Look at me.”

He turned to her and sat down. She sat on his lap, making sure he was doing what she asked.

“Sacrifices are going to be made. We give up some free time, we give up the Jetta if it’s too small, we give up sleeping through the night. You do not give up your career.”

“How am I supposed to see my child if I don’t?” he asked quietly.

“Nick, there are a lot of dads that have to travel for their job. It will be hard, but we will do it.”

“I’ve just been thinking about it a lot, and I can’t convince myself that we can.”

“That was one of the things that I thought was so special about us Nicky. We can and we will. Look at all the stuff we’ve already been through.” She put her hand on his cheek and kissed him softly.

“Yeah.”

“We met in a way probably not a lot of people think works, we made it through Lyndsey, a whole tour, you being sick, my accident, my mom and Ty.” she paused. “If we can make it through all that we can make our family work.”

“But we could just spend so much more time together if I wasn’t part of-”

Rayanne put a finger to his mouth. “We will get to spend all the time together we want. You love what you do. I know you do, you know you do and our baby will know you do. If you give that up, I will never forgive myself.”

“Why you?” he asked, his voice muffled through her finger.

“Because if I wasn’t having this baby, you wouldn’t want to quit. And besides, you have 4 other very important people to think about.”

“OK, if I promise to reconsider will you move your finger?”

“Oh, sorry.” she giggled. “Guess I forgot it was still there.” She slid her finger from his lips down to his neck, resting her hand there.

“Getting hungry?”

“I’m always hungry lately.”

“There’s some fruit in the cooler.”

“Bananas?”

“Yes, I brought your bananas.” he said, tickling her side.

“Thank you love.” She made her way to the back of the boat and grabbed a banana for her and a peach for Nick.

*Two Hours Later*
“Yay! My first time in the Keys. Key West was definitely a good choice baby.”

“I want to take you to Sunset Festival tonight.”

“What’s that?”

“You’ll see. You’ll like it, I promise.”

“I’m sure I will. Right now I need to pee, and I would love to eat.”

“Get a move on! Get down there and change and we’ll go eat.”

Rayanne steadied her way down the stairs as Nick docked them. After using the bathroom, she changed into a simple red dress and slipped her feet into her most comfortable black sandals. She pulled her fast growing hair into a neat ponytail just as Nick was coming down the stairs, his head bent to the side so he wouldn’t hit it on the top of the stairway.

“You look beautiful.” he said, pulling her close to him. He planted a long kiss on her lips before hugging her body tight to his. He let her go, getting down on his knees. “Doesn’t mommy look beautiful?” he asked her abdomen.

Rayanne was surprised at the sudden and forceful kick coming from inside her. ”Holy shit!”

“I know it!” Nick said, sharing her surprise. “I saw that. But he must think you look beautiful.”

“Or he’s hungry.” she smiled. The baby jabbed his elbow out at Nick. “I think that’s the one.”

“Let me change quick and we’ll go take care of that.”

Rayanne lay on the bed they would share that night watching him dress into khaki pants and a long sleeve grayish blue shirt.

“Should I get a sweater?”

“Yes. Man, your perception of Florida in November is way off.” he laughed.

“When you grow up in Buffalo, you grow up thinking its 90 degrees in Florida every day of the year.”

“Ecuador maybe ... Florida, not quite.” He grabbed a black sweater off a hook in the bathroom and put it on her.

“Thank you handsome.”

“You’re welcome. Now let’s go have a wonderful Key West dinner. Key Lime Pie to follow of course.”

“I’m not sure if I’ll like that.” She took his hand and let him lead her up the stairs.

“But you have to have a bite. You’re in Key West. It’s a rule.” They stepped off the boat onto the dock, still holding hands.

“How big is this island?”

“About two by four miles.”

“Wow, that’s small. We could probably see the whole thing today, huh?”

“Probably. I don’t want your feet to get sore though, and sunset will be pretty early. That means Sunset Festival will start early.”

“I can’t wait to see this Festival you keep talking about.”

“It’s not really a lot of organized stuff, but it’s a lot of fun.”

They walked in silence for a while, Rayanne taking in everything. The trees were so beautiful, the old streets seemed to breathe culture. They passed the Southern most point in the United States first, and circled around to the Botanical Gardens, walking along the beach to get there. They went inside the Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial Community Center. While they were walking along the old sidewalk at the Town Clerks Office, Rayanne broke the long silence with a laugh so big she had to stop walking.

“What?” Nick focused his attention on what she was pointing at.

“There’s a rooster walking down the sidewalk!”

Nick’s face broke into a smile. “There are lots of cocks here. They just walk around like that everywhere. They use them in cockfights.”

“Is that bad?”

“It’s a very longstanding Key West tradition.”

“Any other longstanding Key West traditions involving roosters I should know about?”

“Not roosters, but there are the cats ... “ he trailed off.

“What cats?”

“The Hemingway cats.”

“Hemingway?”

“Ernest Hemingway. He has a house on the island and there are tons of cats here. They’re the Hemingway cats. They’re no one’s pets, they’re just kind of wild.”

“Are they mean?”

“Not really. I probably wouldn’t try to pet one, but they won’t come after you or anything.”

“Good.” She looked a little worried.

“Now, what they do to each other is a different story.”

Rayanne’s eyes grew wide. “I want to see one of these crazy cats.”

“I’m sure you’ll see more than one.”

They kept walking, soon coming to a Martha‘s Steak & Seafood, right across the street from the ocean. They asked for a table in the corner, near a window. They sat close together, watching the wind create waves of all different sizes in the crystal blue water.

“The water is more beautiful than I thought it could be.”

“I know. This is one of my favorite places in the world. You’ll never see anything like it.”

“And we’re so close.”

“Lucky us, think about all the people in the world that will never get the chance to sit where we’re sitting and see the color of the water.”

“I wish I could capture that color forever. Never forget it.”

“You won’t. It will be engraved into your very being. No one that sees that water can forget it.”

She smiled and closed her eyes to make a mental picture, hoping Nick was right. After they ordered, they found the door in the back their waiter had told them about and stepped outside to enjoy the smell of the ocean air while they waited.

“My life is perfect right now.”

Nick wrapped his arms around Rayanne’s waist, gently feeling around for the baby. “My life will be perfect as long as I have both of you.”

“This place makes me want to cry. I didn’t know it was possible for the water and earth to look this untouched by humans. The people here must truly apprec - Jesus!!!” Rayanne scuttled behind Nick, holding on to him tightly.

“Told you you’d get to see one.” He laughed lightly and pulled Rayanne back out in front of him. “They’re too interested in each other, they won’t get any closer.

They watched as one of the Hemingway cats Nick had told her so much about fought with a raccoon over a scrap of food a few feet away.

“Look at the poor things ear!” Rayanne leaned in closer. “There’s like, two chunks missing out of it.”

“They’re feisty cats.”

“I guess so. Let’s go back inside. I’m thirsty.”

They ate dinner and shared a raspberry sundae for dessert. Twenty minutes after they finished, Nick suggested they head to Mallory Square for the Sunset Festival. They paid the bill and set off again, this time their arms linked.

“Just when I thought nothing here could be more beautiful!” Rayanne squealed with delight as they made their way through the small crowd shopping at a stand on the side of the street.

Cobblestone beneath their feet, they mingled with the people casually walking around enjoying all the sights and sounds of the Festival.

“There are artists and performers over here.” Nick said, gently pulling her along with him.

They stood and took in the beauty of a woman dressed all in white, her exposed skin painted white. She wore the wings of an angel. They watched a very tan man with long hair eat fire and escape shackles the audience had put him in.

“I want to be that tan.” Rayanne whined.

“Live here all your life and you will be.” Nick said simply.

“I wonder if the people who live here their whole lives appreciate it as much as I do? Not that it’s any fault of their own really, but can you appreciate what you come to accept as normal? Or do they take it for granted?”

“Couldn’t tell ya. But I’m guessing that means you’d never consider raising little Nick Jr. here?”

“Why, do you want to move?” she asked excitedly.

“How quickly your mind changes!” he laughed.

“No, it sounds fun and it is the most beautiful place, but I wouldn’t do it.”

“This can be his favorite vacation spot though.”

“He again. Why do we keep doing that?”

“I don’t know ... let’s go inside this little bar over here and get something to drink.”

Rayanne followed him through the crowd, by a man playing bongos into a restaurant/bar. They took their seats on the barstools waiting for someone to take their order.

“Hi, what can I get for you two tonight?”

Nick thought a minute before responding with “Captain and Coke.”

“And for you?” the bartender turned his attention to Rayanne.

She leaned back, pointing at her larger than normal midsection. “How about a non-alcoholic banana daiquiri.”

“Virgin BD for the pretty lady, coming right up.”

“Sorry hon., I’m still not used to having to think about things like this.” Nick apologized.

“It’s OK, they taste the same. I don’t have to worry about being sick tonight, you do.” She tossed him her most innocent smile.

“OK Ray, I’m having one. Have a little more confidence in my tolerance than that.”

“Give me a kiss.”

Nick obliged, leaning over to give her a kiss as his drink was placed on a small napkin in front of him.

*The Next Evening*
“Home!” Rayanne yelled as soon as she could see their house from her spot on the front of the boat.

“Throw Rocky in, he’ll swim the rest of the way home.”

“Throw him in?”

“Toss, throw, place, whatever.”

Rayanne did as Nick instructed and tossed Rocky off the side. She watched him sink under and resurface, all four of his small legs paddling to keep his head above the water.

“How cute.” she giggled to herself.

*Splash*

“There goes someone. Who was that?” Nick looked around.

“Sunny! Does she know how to swim?!” Rayanne asked worriedly.

“Of course she knows how to swim.”

“Can she swim that far?”

“Apparently, or she wouldn’t have jumped in. She’s a smart dog.”

“Of course she is, she’s my dog.”

“I’m gonna jump in and swim with them, can you bring this in?”

“Yup.” She watched Nick take off his shirt and jump in, swimming after the dogs.

Fifteen minutes later the boat was tied up, all their stuff sitting inside the garage doorway.

“Come sit with me.”

Rayanne walked across the living room and snuggled on the couch next to her future husband.

“God you’re comfortable.” she smiled.

“We should cherish these moments while we have them.”

“How much longer till you have to go back to work?”

“We go in the studio and start writing sessions Monday, but that’s just for a few hours a day.”

“You do that till Christmas?”

“Yup, then we have two weeks off for that.”

“Two whole weeks, jackpot.” she laughed.

“I know. It’s the only time of the year that happens. Speaking of ... we have to decide what we’re doing for Christmas, it’s less than a month away.”

“We should go see your parents and everyone. I’d like to go to Buffalo for a couple days too.”

“Do you want to be anywhere specific for Christmas Day?”

“Nah. Well, actually I guess I’d prefer to not be in Buffalo. I’m not sure I could do it.”

“Alright.” he said, pulling her closer to him.

She sighed contentedly, closing her eyes. “I haven’t even thought about what to get you for Christmas yet! Maybe you’ll have to go without.”

“Uh uh!! I love presents. I better get a lot.”

“Tell me what you want.”

“I want to lay with you for the rest of my life, I want to wake up and see your smile everyday. I want to have the most beautiful, healthy baby and do everything as a family. I want to swim in the ocean, have a big house and a great backyard with its own little playground. I want to have all of our dogs live forever and to always be loved by my friends. I want to grow old gracefully with you and only you. I want to watch my children make the right decisions and turn into these wonderful people ...”

Rayanne listened, loving him for what he wanted. She listened, wanting the same things. She listened to him until his soft voice led her to a long, dreamless sleep.