Christian and I said goodbye to his parents in Atlanta, where they decided to return their rental car and fly home. We continued in the borrowed truck and almost six hours later we stopped in Jacksonville to get Christian’s truck and cell phone. We hit Fort Lauderdale about five and a half hours after that, and since it was almost midnight, we checked into a hotel instead of going to Christian’s parents’ house.

“You said you were staying in Slade’s spare room,” I’d reminded him as I stretched during our last stop for gas. “Why don’t we stay there?”

He stood by the pump and shook his head. “Nah,” he smiled, “I can promise there won’t be enough privacy for what I plan on doing to you tonight.”

He made good on his promise, and we slept in late the following morning. I woke up before he did and watched him sleep. I thought about the fourteen-hour drive including breaks, and how we’d arrived thoroughly exhausted, but filled with excitement at the plans we’d made. We’d called his parents from the road only to find out that Autumn had made a rare appearance and picked Abby up. She told Aunt Christy that she’d be returning her sometime this afternoon.

“What are you thinking about?” came a sleepy voice from beside me.

“How long have you been awake?”

His eyes popped open and he said, “I dunno. Ever since you started moving around?”

“I was wondering how Autumn is going to react to our news,” I answered, leaning up on my elbow.

He scoffed.

“And I’m not quite sure what her role is. I mean, your parents have legal custody of Abby, right?” I asked.

“Yeah,” was all he said. “But she gets Abby every other weekend from Friday night to Sunday night. The last time she saw her was two months ago. Right before I got out of the joint.”

“What's her story? Is she on drugs?” I didn’t know why that last question came to mind. I guess I couldn’t fathom another reason for her staying away from her daughter for so long. “Does she work? Does she have a boyfriend?” I paused before asking, “Does she still want you?”

He pulled himself into a sitting position. "Since Autumn is my least-favorite subject in the world, I’ll be brief. I’ve never been interested enough to know her story, but I do know a little. Her family made the move to Florida after her parents were in a factory accident that killed her father and put her mother in a wheelchair. I think she loves Abby, but has no interest in motherhood. I don’t know why she bothers to see her at all. I’ve never known her to do drugs, but that doesn’t mean she doesn’t. I don’t know. She got a job right out of high school and makes decent money at a fancy store in the mall—don’t ask me to remember which one ’cause I don’t know and don’t care.”

He laced his fingers behind his head and leaned back against the headboard. “I don’t know if she has a boyfriend—another don’t care topic. And as for still wanting me? Couldn’t tell you. Maybe. Probably.” He shrugged his shoulders and added, “Autumn is the least of our concerns. She won’t warm to you, but she also won’t make a scene. She’s afraid of me, but more afraid of my parents.”

“How is that possible?” I asked incredulously, while scooching up to sit next to him. “Your parents are awesome people.”

“My parents let Autumn know how things were going to be after we determined Abby was definitely my child. I never asked them what they told her, but I can promise you, it was enough to keep her from causing drama.”

“Maybe it scared her enough into only seeing Abby once in a while,” I offered, almost feeling sorry for the girl.

“Don’t go there. My parents were fair, and the only reason they got custody of Abby was because Autumn’s mother asked them for help. She’s a good lady; she’s wheelchair bound. Autumn lived at home and tried to push Abby off on her. The poor woman couldn’t handle an infant, and my parents stepped in.”

I was relieved. I didn’t want to think that Christian’s parents were keeping Autumn away from her daughter. Apparently, that had been Autumn’s doing. Still, I wasn’t going to naively believe that the girl who’d manipulated a pregnancy was going to see me as anything other than public enemy number one.

“She’s going to pay for writing that letter to you, Mimi. And don’t say it might not have been her. I’ll get the truth out of her.”

“No!” I shot back. “I can understand if you want to hear the truth from her mouth, but as far as making her pay? It won’t be necessary, especially after she finds out we’re together. Believe me, that’s enough payback for someone like her.”

He sighed but didn’t respond. Instead, he slowly lowered his eyes to where the duvet had fallen away, exposing my left breast. He reached for me and all talk and thoughts of Autumn evaporated.

We spent what was left of the morning making love. First in the bed, and again in the shower. Afterward, Christian told me he’d booked the room for the duration of my stay.

He took me to brunch at a small restaurant within walking distance to the beach. And it was over our meal that we talked more about the plans we’d discussed on the drive down to Florida. We decided that I would fly down every other weekend until graduation when it didn’t interfere with school. We would use the time to visit with his family, especially Abby, although I watched Christian cringe at the prospect. I knew he wasn’t looking forward to having me see Abby’s reaction to him.

“In our free time, we’ll look for a place to live for when you move down permanently,” he announced directly.

I raised my coffee cup to my lips and sipped. “Are you sure you want to rent? We can afford to buy something.”

He shook his head. “Let’s rent for a year, Mimi. It’ll give us more than enough time to decide what kind of house we want.”

It was a logical suggestion, and I nodded my head as I signaled the waitress for a refill.

“And I still think you can ask my mom to help you find a therapist,” he added.

I stiffened at the suggestion. During our long drive we’d only briefly talked about my decision to get help for my eating disorder. If I was going to be honest, I was so happy with our plans, I didn’t want to think about it, and tried to convince him that I had it under control. He didn’t buy it, and was adamant about me seeing a counselor or at the very least joining a support group.

“I’ll find someone. I promise. I’m just not ready to bring your mother into it. Okay?” I pleaded.

He seemed satisfied with my answer. We spent some time driving around and I refamiliarized myself with the layout of the city I hadn’t visited in a while. Five years didn’t seem like a very long time, but it was long enough for me to notice the changes. There were more people, there was more concrete, and less space. After living in a tiny college town for the past few years, it felt almost claustrophobic.

“We can live further west,” he assured me. “It’s not as crowded. At least, not yet.”

I gave him a smile and turned up the radio. “I love .38 Special,” I announced while swaying to the rhythm of “Back Where You Belong.”

“It’s our song.” He pulled into the parking lot of a strip mall.

“The lyrics aren’t exactly our story.” I laughed.

“Screw the lyrics. I'm only hearing the words ‘back where you belong.’” He paused. “You’re back with me, so it’s definitely our song.” He parked the truck and we got out.

“What are we here for?” I asked, looking up and down the cement walkway.

He placed his hand at the small of my back and steered me toward a door. It was a jewelry store. “You'll see.”

Once inside, he gestured toward the glass cases and told me, “Pick a ring, Mimi. Any ring you want.”

There would obviously be no surprise proposal. We’d already moved past that romantic formality. But Christian was still full of surprises. He patiently waited while I perused every jewelry case. The smartly dressed woman that offered her assistance after we came in the door stayed busy a few counters over, but kept an eye out if I needed her. I found myself wandering back to one display in particular. I hadn’t realized she’d walked over. Breaking my focus on the case, she asked, “Is there something specific I can show you?”

I looked back at Christian who was strolling toward me. I pointed to a blue topaz ring set in white gold. The stone was small and simple, but the color reminded me of another ring.

“Ah…” the sales clerk said as her keys jangled against the case. “A beautiful selection. Blue is the rarest topaz, and this particular ring is reasonably priced at just under four thousand dollars.”

I was stunned at the cost and couldn’t imagine walking around with four thousand dollars on my finger. I felt Christian’s breath on my neck.

“Is that the one, Mimi?” His words washed over me like warm honey.

“Yes, it’s perfect. But it’s too expensive, Christian.”

Ignoring me, he told the lady, “You should have something in the back under the name Bear. I was in first thing this morning, and left a deposit with someone named Daphne.”

She gave him a wide smile and said, “I was wondering who was going to end up getting that ring. I’ll be right back.” She locked the case and briskly walked to the back room.

I looked at him, my jaw slack. I had no words. Minutes later I heard the familiar clinking of her keys and turned my head to see her making her way back over to us.

Christian’s lips found my right temple as I watched her delicately open a black velvet box. “I love you, Dreamy Mimi,” he whispered, his breath wafting over my ear. It was then that I felt the air leave my lungs as I gazed at the most vivid blue stone I’d ever seen. It was similar to the one that had first caught my eye, slightly larger, but not too big for my finger. But that wasn’t what caused me to lose my breath. The stone was surrounded in diamonds that sparkled like twinkling stars against a pitch-black sky.

“Try it on,” Christian prodded.

I held out my left hand, and tried not to shake. It slid on easily.

“It’s a tad loose, but we can have it properly sized and you can come back for it later today,” the woman explained.

“Do you like this one, Mimi? If you prefer diamonds, you can try on some of those. I think they might even have some blue ones."

“We do,” the sales clerk chimed in.

“N-no,” I stammered. “This ring is perfect.”

I stifled a gasp when she told him the balance due on his deposit. Without blinking an eye, Christian reached into his back pocket and took out a wad of cash. He fanned the amount due on the counter and told the woman, “It’s all here.”

She picked up the money and smiled. “I’ll be right back to get your proper ring size.”

I watched the slight sway of her hips as she approached a man who sat behind a high counter in the back. He stood when she passed him the cash.

“You snuck out this morning when I was asleep.” I glanced down at my finger. "And climbed back in bed with me when I didn’t even know you'd left. I really do sleep like the dead, don’t I?"

His answer was a smile.

"How did you know what ring to have them hold?” I took a deep breath and added, “And how did you know I would love the blue stone?”

He reached for and held my face in both hands, touching his forehead to mine.

“I told you before, Mimi. We’re tethered souls, and you’re back where you belong. Where you’ve always belonged.”