All I Ever Wanted

Chapter 5

Believe it or not, the San Francisco Pier is very quiet at seven in the morning, save for the fishermen getting a start on catching their fresh seafood for the day and the occassional jogger.

Slowly, I turn to look at Ava, who is giving me a worried look as I unbuckle my seatbelt just as we pull up to Pier 47.

"Are you sure you're going to be okay talking to him?"

No, not at all. In fact, I have a feeling that I am going to be shedding tears and yelling, but I don't want her to worry.

With a small smile, I shake my head. "I'll be fine, thank you though, for dropping me off. And watching Hope today."

"Anything for you. Now, go! Good luck!"

As soon as I step out of the car, the cold bay area air hits me and I shiver as I wrap my coat tighter around my body and shut the door. Watching Ava drive off is like watching the last train depart from the station: No turning back now.

With a sigh, I look down at my outfit, which consists of thick black leggings, a black turtleneck sweater, my gray peacoat and gray ankle high boots. Since Klay had put so much effort into making today happen, I figured I could put in more effort to look nice, so I even went as far as putting on eyeliner, mascara and a dark brown lipstick, as well as flat ironing my hair and adding soft curls to it. Although, how long they will last in this weather, I have no idea.

As I make my way up to the entrance of the pier, my heart beats in my chest as I see a man standing outside, dressed very nicely in a suit and with a black hat on.

"Miss Rhodes?" He asks, and I nod my head. He motions for me to follow him inside, and I do. As we make our way through the old building, I can't help but look around at the high ceiling and the walls. I've never been this far in the Pier, only ever having walked past it.

When we reach the end, my eyes widen and my mouth drops open as I am met with a large yacht. This thing is pretty impressive. It's like a mini cruise ship! It's large, a crisp white color with gold and silver detailing, and it has the name the S.S. Adventure scrawled on it in gold. It's beautiful.

"What do you think?" A familiar voice asks quietly from behind me, and I jump at the unexpected nearness of it.

When I turn around, Klay is standing there with his hands in the pockets of his black peacoat, and he is wearing dark jeans, Nike sneakers, and a blue scarf around his neck. He looks absolutely gorgeous.

"It's beautiful," I say honestly, and he smiles at me before making his way to the dock.

"Where are you going?"

He turns to look at me with a small grin. "On the boat. Did you think we were just going to stand in the pier all day?"

Well, no. But I didn't think we would be going on a ship either!

Without a word, I follow behind him up the ramp to the boat, and I am surprised when I am greeted by two very well dressed men.

"Mr. Thompson, Miss Rhodes, welcome aboard. Would either of you care for a glass of champagne?" The man offers kindly, and I can't help but stare in awe at the crystal glass flutes of champagne he holds out on the tray. "Also, if you two would kindly give us your cellphones, per the request of Mr. Thompson."

Klay sets his iPhone on the tray, and I follow suit with my galaxy as he takes two glasses before thanking the man and handing me one, which I take thankfully. I don't even ask why he wanted us to give up our cellphones, knowing that it is probably for a good reason.

I can feel his intense gaze staring down at me, and I'm thankful that I have something in my hand that I can focus on instead of looking at him.

"To new beginnings?" He asks as he holds up his glass.