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Diego woke up to paradise, senses delighted as they awoke with him.
He could hear the gentle lapping of waves on the beach’s sand, aquatic birds squawking relentlessly. His mouth, while maintaining its ever-present bitter stain of coffee, tasted of something fruity and peculiar. Kiwi margaritas, he recalled, from the celebration the day prior.
He could smell the familiar acrid drink wafting around the condo, the time sensitive coffee-maker automatically starting to brew for when he’d start his day.
He felt the silky satin sheets cling coldly to his legs, arms behind his head atop a plush pillow. It was comfortably warm, but without the dreaded humidity to ruin it. There was a heaviness upon his chest, resembling a weighted blanket. It was a comforting presence.
Finally, he blinked the bleariness out of his eyes, adjusting to the unforgiving light of morning.
The hotel was quite beautiful, he remembered. The walls were a subtle cream color, gorgeously framed French paintings adjourning them. Other than the wall in direct view of the master bed, which was made entirely of glass.
The glass exposed an idyllic landscape, giving perfect perspective to where the balmy sand met water. Diego found himself basking in the horizon, cerulean blue ocean melting like watercolor into a dawning sky.
And then he turned his attention to something far more important.
“..Diego,” Mia murmured sleepily, lifting her head from his chest. She lifted herself onto her arms for a minute to look down at him, eventually deciding to return to the previous embrace.
She snuggled against his torso, slender legs tangling between his own. “What time is it?”
“Early,” Diego kissed her forehead. “Go back to sleep, kitten.”
“Checkout is at eleven,” she whispered, eyes fluttering shut as if she intended to take his advice.
He found his heart yearning to stay.
They’d arrived at the luxury hotel the night before, indulging in such celebration due to Diego’s spike in courtroom success. Despite Mia’s reluctance to take another case of her own, she continually supported Diego’s- whether it be beside him, in the stands, or even waiting outside the doors for dismissal.
He was so unfathomably in love.
He found himself anticipating the next moment he could hear her voice, see her grin at him in a way she grinned at nobody else. She was so real, she was so intelligent, she was so beautiful. Just like the delicate, desirable drip of molten java, she was something he craved with every fiber of his being.
He had picked out a wedding ring.
Obviously it was too early, as they’d been dating for less than a year, but Diego had never been so sure of something before in his life. He’d put the ring on hold and cut his unnecessary expenses to afford it, prepared to buy it before it was taken and hopefully propose in the next few months. Tomorrow all he had to do was meet up with the Hawthorne girl, and then his afternoon would be clear to purchase it.
He wouldn’t admit that he was terrified of rejection. Mia Fey meant everything to him, and if she didn’t want him he’d have nothing.
“Stop thinking so loud,” Mia groaned, muffled into his shoulder.
“I thought you were going back to sleep.”
“I’m trying. The success is debatable.”
Diego chuckled under his breath, absently running a hand through Mia’s hair. She hummed her approval, cuddling into him a bit more.
“I love the sound of the ocean,” she whispered after a few more minutes of silence, eyes half lidded as she shifted to stare out the window. “I used to bring my sister to see the ocean. We got noodles, I gave her a shell.”
“Thrilling,” Diego teased, as if he weren’t invested in every story she told.
She giggled, flicking his chin.
“Ow!” He yelped, grabbing her hand to stop her from doing it again. She just smirked up at him, curling her fingers between his.
She exhaled softly, gazing dreamily back out at the water. “The Kurain Village is up in the mountains, and a lot of young girls have never even heard of the ocean. I remember the first time I saw it. I never wanted to leave.”
Diego’s heart swelled with endearment. He would give her the ocean if he could. He would give her everything.
He pressed a tender kiss to the top of her head, wishing it could convey to her all the feelings he couldn’t express.
Mia smiled contentedly, expression sentimental and enamored as she observed the echoing waves.
“It feels like so long since that day. Now I’m free. I’m free and I’ve got a perfect view of the most beautiful thing in the world.”
Diego sighed in exhilarated bliss, eyes locked on the love of his life.
“Me too.”