Page 33 of Between Two Shores

That a girl. Nick bolted and, of course, arrived at the playground first. He offered her a swing. “I’ll give you a push for a head start.”

She wriggled onto the rubber strap-like seat and gripped the metal chains. He stood behind and held onto the side loops, pulled back as far as he could, then rushed forward, letting go.

“You can do better than that,” Beth called back.

“Right. I’m going to send you to the moon next.” He stepped backward, and when she swung close, he rushed her forward, and repeated the action until the swing went nearly as high as the top beam. Her laughter echoed throughout the Esplanade.

He hopped on the next swing. “Now, you have an advantage.” He hoisted his weight back and forth, swinging his legs to gain momentum.

Beth’s hair covered her face as she went backward, but her wide smile still showed through.

Soon, at equal heights and timing, he pushed one last time, and at the peak, pointed his feet. “I beat you by a shoe!”

“Not fair!” Her laugh was contagious.

They eventually slowed and gently swayed, swirling their shoes in the white sand.

Beth breathed hard. “I’m not as fit as you. That was a good workout.”

“I’m too competitive. I should’ve let you win like a true gentleman.”

“No, I don’t like to win unfairly. I’m sure we’ll find things I can beat you in.”

“We have a lot to learn about each other. And a lifetime to do so.”

“That we do.” She angled her head in his direction, with the sweetest smile. Beth was in love with him. How he gained favor with her so quickly? Simply destiny. He’d learned from his past mistakes and now he could make a fresh start. Still, there were things he should tell Beth about himself before their wedding day. He didn’t need to go into details, but a mention would be better than her finding out later. He would wait for the right timing. So far, their conversations didn’t go in that direction.

“What are you thinking about, Nick?” She gave a small smile, but it didn’t reach her eyes.

“Thinking about perfect timing.” He dug his shoes into the sand and stopped the movement on his swing.

He switched from his serious expression and burst into a grin. “So, while I was organizing tonight’s proposal, I came up with another grand plan.” He stretched the last two words. “How about, the last day before I leave Australia, we get married so your family and friends can be there? Then you can fly over to meet me in Los Angeles a month later.”

Beth’s blue eyes widened. “You want to get married in four weeks?”

“Why not? It makes sense—saves money with all the travel. We can put that toward a honeymoon or our trip to Israel.”

“Um, I suppose it would be hard to have a long-distance relationship.” She swallowed.

“Exactly.” He got out of his swing and quickly scooped her up into his arms like a bride. She flung her head back and laughed as he twirled around.

“I love you, Bethany Michaels.”

She angled her head to meet his eyes. “And I love you, Nicholas DeHann.” Beth touched his cheek, and he responded with a kiss to her lips.

He placed her feet to the ground and rested his arms around her waist.

“I’ve already done my research.” He smiled. “We’ll need to register for a marriage license tomorrow in Perth. Then it will arrive in time to have the ceremony in Australia. The ship’s coming back to Fremantle for two days before leaving for the States, so it will work perfectly.”

“You do have it all planned.” She raised her brows. “What if I said no?”

“I would have to return the dowry money to your dad.”

She feigned a whack to his chest. “Nicholas. You’re terrible.”

He flung his head back and laughed to the sky.

Pulling her into his embrace, he whispered into her ear. “You’re so easy to stir.”

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