Chapter Text
Richard blew out a long sigh. “It is good to be home.”
“Even without your luggage?” Camille teased as she snuggled closer.
“Don’t spoil the moment. I’m liming. No We’re liming.” They lay contentedly silent for a while, the he said, “Wow, I’m part of a we, an us, a couple. I used to think it would never happen. I’ve never felt so close to anyone or so much a part of any place I’ve lived. Saint Marie is my home. And I’m not making a sacrifice to be with you. I would hate to leave here.”
“Even with the sand, and the food with eyes, and the heat?”
“Even with all of that. As long as I have you, I’m home.” Richard kissed her, and then he frowned slightly.
“Even in the dim moonlight, I can recognize that expression,” said Camille. “You’re thinking.”
“Yeah. About home. Where should we live? I know I’ve complained about the sand, but I do like being by the sea. And the privacy is lovely. But it’s a small space with a very small bathroom and an even smaller closet.”
“Let’s try it for a while. I still have the lease on my house in town, so that can be our backup plan. Or we can sort of live in both.”
“Separately? I thought—”
“Of course not separately! After work, we go to either house to make supper, depending on what we want and how complicated the cooking is.”
“Ah, kitchen. The kitchen here isn’t great, either.”
“Right. So we eat dinner in one of the houses, then spend the night here. Then an early run on the beach—you did say you wanted to run again—and I continue home to shower and change there while you shower and change here.”
“It’s rather complicated, but it could work, at least until we’re married. Then we will need to settle into one place.”
“Of course it’s complicated,” said Camille. “It’s us, after all.”
“I suppose improvements could be made here. But this house doesn’t belong to me and I don’t want to sink money—wait a minute. I was forgetting that I sold the house in Croyden. We can buy a house here. Not right away, but we should start checking the listings in case something we like becomes available.”
“Beach houses are expensive.”
“I don’t want to buy a house at the beach. I know we’d be careful parents, but I don’t want to raise kids right by the water. They can be out of your sight for a few seconds and next thing you know, they’re underwater. It’s too risky out here.”
“You want kids?”
“Yes, I suppose I do. I hadn’t thought about it, but it just seemed to follow on getting married and buying a house. That’s my suburban upbringing showing. But what do you want? Ultimately, the decision should be yours. I mean, you’re the one who’ll have to be pregnant and all that. I want to be a much more hands-on father than my dad was. But so much of the care seems to go to the mother, so if you don’t want kids, I’ll accept that decision.”
“But you want them?”
“Yes. But I’ve already got more than I ever expected to have. Just us is okay, too. One thing we have to consider is age. I’m not getting any younger, and I would like to be able to play with my kids. You know, actually run after them, not toddle along with a cane.”
“Oh, you aren’t that old, Richard. And I do want kids, but not right away. I’d like to wait at least a year. Give us that time to be us, and settle in with our own little routines first.”
“That makes sense, although I suspect a baby will blow our little routines to hell.”
Camille chuckled, “Probably. I’ve heard some of Juliet’s stories. I wonder what our kids will look like?”
“Impossible to guess, given our backgrounds. Your mother is much lighter than you are, so there are recessive pale genes lurking in you. It’s always the luck of the genetic lottery, but in our case, the lottery has a lot of numbers. We’ll be like a human genetics problem. I could write a paper on us for the Royal Society!”
“Who?”
“The Royal Society, an organization made up of distinguished scientists. Although, now that I think about it, one child wouldn’t really be enough. We’d need four to fill in the blocks of the Punnett square.”
“Four? You want four?” Camille squeaked.
“No, not really. It was a genetics joke. You solve genetics problems with a grid called a Punnett square, and you fill in the genes in the four blocks…never mind, not worth the time to explain right now.”
“So, not four?”
“No, not four. But I don’t want an only child. I always wished I’d had a sibling. Well, a brother, of course, when I was little. But when I was older, either brother or sister would have been welcome. I know sibs don’t always get along, but in my house, I think we would have been partners in emotional survival. God, that sounds bleak. It wasn’t as bad as that. But I did often wish I’d had a brother. You’re an ‘only.’ How do you feel about it?”
“Growing up, it didn’t matter. Because my father was gone, it was just the two of us, so I was close to Maman. And there always were other kids around to play with. But when I hit my teens, it would have been nice to have a sister. Someone to gang up with against Maman’s rules. I suppose that’s why I was so close to Aimee. She was the sister I never had.”
“So, God willing, more than one, fewer than four?”
“Yes, maybe fewer than three, although that will mess up your whatsit square…”
“Never mind the Punnett square, I’m thinking about how big a house we’re going to need!”