Forever In My LIFE (Book 4) 2nd Alternate

Part 47

The next week is a bit of a blur as Prince makes arrangements for us to travel to Tennessee and I'm not surprised when he informs me that he's reserved the same penthouse we had honeymooned at for our stay. This trip, however, is going to be a lot more involved than our previous jaunts when I start thinking about everything we're going to need to bring for Ramiel.

"Maybe this isn't such a good idea," I say slightly discouraged as the week draws to a close.

"What, Sugar?"

"Our weekend trip, it's not going to be just two bags and us. We're going to have to bring half the house," I sigh in exasperation.

"So, we bring half the house," he laughs, "Who cares? We have the whole plane."

Prince seems unconcerned by the sheer magnitude of stuff we'll need to bring with us, so I spend the next day gathering items and making a list. He's gonna flip, I think, as I add more and more items onto the list. Diapers, bottles, breast pump, clothes, bassinet, activity gym, car seat, at the bottom of the list I jokingly scribble: U-Haul. Thank God we won't need as many heavy, warmer clothes with the milder temperatures in Tennessee.

On the day of the trip, we gather our four bags: two toiletry, one large rolling case and a garment bag. Then we add in a diaper bag, another, but smaller, rolling case which holds a majority of Ramiel's things, as well as the larger items like the car seat, the portable bassinet and the bassinet from our bedroom. I stare at the pile while I sway with Ramiel in my arms, "This is ridiculous," I mutter, "All this for four nights."

I pull the list out of my purse and check it again as a Prince plays peek-a-boo with Ramiel over my shoulder. "U-Haul?" he laughs when he spots the last entry.

"Look at this pile, Prince. You can't tell me we don't need a U-Haul," I give in and smile when I see his nonchalant expression.

Just then, Marcus pulls up in the SUV and parks alongside our mound of baggage. "Here's our U-Haul," Prince winks as he grabs the car seat and disappears into the back of the SUV.

"I'm so sorry, Marcus," I apologize as he approaches the pile and easily gathers half of it in one load.

"It's no problem, I got it," Marcus says before he effortlessly collects the remainder from the driveway.

With Ramiel secured in his car seat, we are on the road and headed to the airport in a matter of minutes. "See? That wasn't so bad, now was it, Sugar?" Prince asks as he takes my hand.

"No," I admit. With smiles, we turn our attention to Ramiel who's watching us with interest because it's odd that we're all together while he's in his car seat.

When we arrive on the tarmac, Ramiel is returned to my arms while Prince removes the car seat from the SUV. As Marcus is carrying the first load onto the plane, Prince pauses at the bottom of the steps with his toiletry bag and the car seat, "Come on, Sugar," he urges me to board before him.

I bounce and talk to Ramiel once we board the plane, he's still awake and alert as he takes in his new surroundings. "You might want to get used to this, kiddo," I say, "your daddy's kinda a big deal."

Prince hears my words and peeks at Ramiel who grins at his father's goofy expression, "Kinda?" He flashes a grin, "I think mommy needs a spanking," he whispers, patting my bottom as he kisses my cheek, then he disappears down the steps one last time. It's warm on the plane, so I remove my jacket and release Ramiel from the heavy blanket sleeper I had put on over his outfit. I don't hide my surprise when he reappears with Marcus in tow, Prince is quick to answer my questioning frown, "Marcus is joining us on our flight, he has some business to attend to." Leave it to Prince to be vague.

When I look at Marcus, he looks away uncomfortably before he finally elaborates, "I'll be looking for a house this weekend."

I slowly ease myself into a chair with a slight feeling of shock as my eyes travel between the two men. "A house? In Tennessee?" I ask barely above a whisper.

Prince glances at Marcus with a sad smile as they both remove their jackets, "We can talk about this in the air, but yes," Prince says as he takes a seat by me, "Marcus has turned in his notice."

My excitement of the trip instantly drops a couple of notches with this new information, Ramiel begins to fuss my arms. Prince eyes the baby's reaction then whispers, "We all have to move forward, Sugar."

The planes hatch gets sealed and we are soon on our way to Tennessee. Once it's safe to remove our seatbelts, Prince vacates the seat next to mine and offers it to Marcus. Marcus sits down beside me while Prince eases Ramiel from my arms, "I'll give you guys a minute."

"Things must be pretty serious with Angel, huh?" I ask, forcing the conversation.

Marcus nods, "Yes, Ma'am." He falls back into addressing me 'properly' when Prince is near. "Plus, I love the area, and the weather," he adds.

I knew he hadn't been around Paisley as much. Honestly, we haven't been needing his services as much as we had when I first moved here, and even less now that the baby has arrived. "I'm going to miss you, Marcus," I fight back tears and hear Prince doing his best to calm an agitated Ramiel behind me. I cast a quick glance over my shoulder, knowing my emotions are causing Ramiel to be upset.

Marcus laughs, "You guys aren't rid of me, I'm just going to be further away. I'll be up to visit, and I expect to see you guys when you come down."

To lighten the mood, I extend my curled pinky finger out to him, "Pinky promise?"

"I can do better than that," Marcus says as he stands and pulls me to my feet, quickly wrapping me a bear hug.

"Hey, hey, now! That's my wife!" Prince jests in mock anger.

"I already hugged you," Marcus laughs, as he slowly releases me, "Would you like another?"

Prince puts on a terrified face then laughs. "One of your hugs is enough, Marcus. But we are going to miss having you around," he adds softly. With all the cutting up, even Ramiel is grinning. I pull a blanket from Ramiel's bag and drape it over Prince's shoulder, with all this grinning, he's drooling up a storm. This is all for naught, because Ramiel soon starts to fuss and reaches for my top. "Looks like someone is hungry," Prince says as he hands him over to me.

I excuse myself, heading into the private cabin area to nurse. It's not so much for privacy since I no longer feel the need to hide away when I feed him. I have always found ways to be discrete in front of Prince's employees/friends, but since Ramiel has grown so inquisitive, he feeds better if he's not distracted. As is the norm, Prince soon joins me while I nurse. Sometimes we use this time to talk, and sometimes just for quiet reflection, which happens to be the case today.

As I watch our baby at my breast, I think about our Anniversary and how everything has changed so much this past year.

"Penny for your thoughts, Sugar?" Prince whispers.

I smile softly when I look at him, "I'm just thinking about how blessed we are."

"That we are, Sugar," he smiles back. Putting his arm around my shoulders, he pulls me close and kisses my cheek before resting his head against mine. "That we are," he repeats in a whisper.