Summary: The day after Taylor and Jake’s first anniversary, their celebration continues.
Author’s note: This was written for meeraaverywalker’s March Challenge and was requested by brightpinkpeppercorn. It takes place in an alternate universe where everyone, including Taylor, gets off La Huerta together.
After a long day, Jake headed out of Shreveport Regional Airport and began driving to nearby Benton, Louisiana, where he and Taylor had purchased a small house. He smiled as he thought back to the previous night. He had brought Taylor a dozen roses for their first anniversary, they had gone out for a romantic dinner, and then enjoyed a passionate night together. But they still had more to celebrate: as of today, they had been handfasted for a year and a day, and they were still very much in love.
As he approached their home, he could see that the lights were on. Taylor must still be awake. He pulled into the driveway, got out of the car, and reached for the doorknob. As he opened the door, he heard a howl.
He stepped inside and was immediately pounced on by their energetic Siberian Husky puppy. “Hey, Lupita! You missed me, huh?” He stroked her fur as she nuzzled him.
“She’s not the only one who missed you.” Taylor walked over to them, leaned in, and gave him a kiss.
“I missed you too, Princess.” He looked to her and noticed that she had tucked a purple flower in her long blonde hair. “That looks like the flower you wore at our handfasting. That can’t be the same kind, can it?”
“No, it’s a purple aster. But it’s pretty close, isn’t it? I tried to find something similar.”
As Jake sat down on the couch, Taylor placed two glasses on the coffee table, then took a bottle of whiskey out of the liquor cabinet. She poured their drinks, and she and Jake relaxed together.
“How were your flights?”
“Not too bad. There was some turbulence, but it could have been worse.” Jake took a sip of his whiskey. “”How was your day?”
“Good. I got some things for us today. Sort of a continuation of our anniversary celebration.”
“Oh? Some new toys for us?” Jake grinned.
“No, but that sounds like fun. Maybe we should go shopping.” Taylor stood up and walked to the back door. “Want to go out, Lupita?” Lupita ran out, and Taylor motioned to Jake. “Come here, I’ll show you.”
Jake walked out and onto the patio, and Taylor turned on the outside light. Lupita ran around their fenced-in backyard. Taylor pointed to the purple flowers surrounding the patio.
“I planted a bunch of purple asters. That’s where I got the one I put in my hair. I thought it would be nice to have some in the backyard. Whenever we sit out here, we’ll be reminded of our wedding day.” Taylor put her arm around Jake’s waist. “Besides, we need to have a lot of these flowers. After all, I promised you 2,139 lifetimes of devotion.”
“That’s beautiful. You’re beautiful.” Jake wrapped his arms around Taylor and kissed her deeply. When they finally broke apart, Jake looked into her eyes. “Let’s continue this upstairs.”
“Good idea.” Taylor opened the door. “Come on, Lupita! Time to go in!” Once their puppy was inside, Taylor and Jake followed. As they walked into their bedroom, Taylor pointed to the digital clock. “It’s after midnight. We’ve been handfasted for more than a year and a day. Now we’re committed to each other forever.”
“You and me, forever. I love you so much, Princess.”
“I love you too, Jake.”