After Rowan woke up from his nap, we took him out for a late lunch/early dinner. We walked to the pier and the food there was divine.

Ryder insisted on paying for it and wouldn't allow me to put a cent towards it.

After we finished, we walked to the ice cream parlour and only then Ryder allowed me to buy the food.

I walked out with Rowan, him licking at a chocolate ice cream cone and handed Ryder his.

Ryder arched me an eye brow as he accepted his ice cream.

"Mint Chocolate chip?"

I froze, worried. "Don't you like that flavour any more?"

"I do. I'm surprised you remembered. You reckon I haven't forgotten anything."

"Excuse me?" I smiled as we left the pier and headed for the sand.

"First the bread with my dinner, now the ice cream." I saw his huge smile. I bent over and took my shoes off, letting my toes get buried in the sand.

"So what?" I shrugged as I kept walking, watching Rowan.

"Nothing. How's your English Toffee?"

I was just about to lick some of it when I put my tongue back in my mouth and frowned. I did have English Toffee. I always get English Toffee. "Am I that predictable?"

"No." Ryder laughed. "Wait for us, Rowan." He called out before walking faster to him.

I stayed behind and watched them as Ryder took off Rowan's shoes and carried them.

Rowan jumped in the foam of the waves, laughing, getting his clothes wet, but I didn't mind. The sun was just starting to set and I saw the dark clouds roll in from behind us.

Hopefully we can make it back to the beach house before it starts raining. We finished our ice cream cones and continued walking. It was nearly a three kilometre walk, but I didn't mind.

I smiled as Rowan jumped again, making the water splash around him. I went up to him and took his hands, hitching my skirt up so the hem wouldn't get wet.

Rowan and I walked in the water and every now and then, a dry part of my legs got wet, making me give out small hissing sounds.

"This water is cold!" I mumbled. Ryder had Rowan's other hand and we swung him as we walked.

"Look, Momma!" Rowan said as his hands slipped out of ours, running a few steps ahead.

"That's a shell, baby." I told him as I kneeled down to him. Rowan picked it up and looked at it. "Some little crab might need that, for his home."

I saw Rowan frown and I saw Ryder in him then. I had to blink to see if I really saw it.

"Put it back in water?" Rowan asked me holding it out.

Ryder came up to us and kneeled down next to us. "Can I have a look?" He asked with his hand out. Rowan handed the shell to his father and Ryder inspected it.

It was a decent sized shell.

"It's a Titan's Trumpet." I told Ryder. He looked at me in wonder before giving it back to Rowan.

"It's empty. I don't think there would be any harm, to keep it, as a souvenir." Ryder grinned.

"A souvenir to what?" I went to ask as I stood up. But before Ryder could answer, a bit bigger and stronger wave came in and knocked him off the balls of his feet.

I jumped back, taking Rowan with me as I saw Ryder sitting on his bottom in ankle deep water.

I couldn't help it. I had to laugh. I was laughing so hard that I had tears rolling down my cheeks, my sides were hurting.

"Daddy fell in the water!" Rowan pointed out, making me laugh more. I couldn't calm myself down as I saw Ryder's face. It was dark but he looked amused as he threw Rowan's wet shoes up on the shore and jumped up, looking straight at me.

"No!" I laughed, running away, but I couldn't get far as I felt Ryder pick me up and threw me over his shoulder. I dropped my shoes, still giggling.

"Don't you dare! Ryder!" I screeched as I heard Rowan laugh. "Traitor!" I hissed at him.

"Should I throw Momma in the water?" Ryder asked Rowan.

"No!" I cried out.

"Yes!" Rowan squealed.

"No!" I repeated. "It's too cold!"

Ryder started walking to the water, his arms wrapped around my legs as I looked up. "Don't you dare!"

"You heard the boy." Ryder laughed as I saw the tips of my hair floating in the water. I flopped my head down, looking in to Ryder's back.

"Please don't!" I cried out as I tensed up. My tone was still playful, but I hope he wouldn't. "I'm sorry, okay! I'm sorry for laughing at you!"

Ryder stopped walking, half of my hair now wet. "Well, since you said sorry." He sighed out and turned around.

"Quickly, before another wave comes!" I demanded.

Ryder turned around again. "Oh look at that one! It's going to be a big one!"

I tried twisting my body so I could see. "Then what are you waiting for! Put me back on the shore with Rowan."

Ryder turned to the shore. "He is fine. I can see him." He told me as he slowly went back to the shore.

"Momma not wet." I heard Rowan pout.

"My hair is!" I growled, still slung over Ryder's shoulder. "You can put me down now."

Ryder gave me a slap and I gasped as Rowan laughed again.

"Another?" Ryder asked Rowan.

"Yeah!"

I groaned. I'm raising a little sadistic boy, I joked with myself.

I felt Ryder pull me off his shoulder as he placed me on the sand. I glared at him and Rowan, both wearing matching grins. So much for him looking like me. I flicked my hair, spraying water as I tied it up in a high bun.

"I'm cold. I want a hot shower." I grumbled as I picked up mine and Rowan's shoes.

"Your cold?" Ryder laughed as I glared at him. Rowan giggled as he ran off again, making Ryder and me look away and to continue walking.

"Wasn't your phone in your pocket?" I suddenly asked Ryder and he patted down his front pocket before taking it out.

"Yeah." He frowned. "It's waterproof, but I've got a special case on it." He said as he flicked his phone and water droplets came off.

I heard thunder in the distance and we both turned to behind us. The clouds were now above us.

"We better get moving." I said, walking faster. "Rowan, wait for us!"

Rowan stopped and waited and just as we got to him, I felt a rain drop run down my neck. I gave out an involuntary shiver.

I could see the beach house nearly fifty metres away.

More thunder rolled and then a flash of lightning followed by rain. Ryder swept Rowan up and took my empty hand as we ran the rest of the way.

Running up sand dunes was a bit of a challenge and I couldn't help but smile as we tried getting out off the rain.

I saw Ryder grip Rowan tighter as we jogged, looking back at me for a second before looking where he was going.

We were nearly there and I felt my hand slip from Ryder's as he went in front and placed Rowan on the covered front patio before turning to me.

My legs were constricted by my now soaking wet skirt sticking to me like a second skin as I made my way up the grassy sand dune.

Ryder's hand appeared and without thinking, I took it and he gave a great pull, making me go straight in to his chest.

But I didn't have time to think about it as we ran the last couple metres to Rowan.

I felt Ryder's arm around my waist as he slightly pushed me forward.

We got to the front door and Ryder opened it, all three of us soaking wet.

I was breathless as Rowan ran inside.

I went to tell him to go to the bathroom, but Ryder stopped me. "Let him be." He smiled, panting himself. "I'll fix him up."

I looked at him. Ryder's face was soft as I heard Rowan inside.

"This reminds me when we went for a picnic." I suddenly said.

"The one where we had to run to an open shelter?" Ryder smiled.

"The picnic out in the middle of nowhere." I added as I smiled back. Then my face reddened as I looked away. We did find a small shelter, and we were both soaked to the bone, just like now, but it was what we did to pass the time that had me looking away.

"I better put Rowan in for a hot bath." I said quietly, quickly slipping inside. I had to break away, before something happened.

After we all had warm showers and hot drinks, I placed Rowan to bed on his bedtime. Just because we were on a small holiday didn't mean his bedtime would change. It was still raining, heavily, and after reading his book and tucking him in, I left the room, finding Ryder.

"Thanks for doing up a room for him." I said quietly as I sat on the other couch. "But we need to talk."

Ryder looked up at me, a frown on his face as he placed his tablet down. "About what?" He asked. "If it's about me pretending to throw you in the water, I wouldn't have done that."

I felt a small smile play on my lips. "No. It's something your mother said earlier."

"What did she say?" Ryder asked as he placed the tablet away from him completely and crossed one leg over the other.

He looked so relaxed in his grey sweat pants and his dark blue T shirt. Like we did when we were married years ago.

"Did you get a DNA test done?" I asked him in a blunt matter. "Because not once did I ask you for any support to help me raise Rowan. I'm in the process of what you're asking, getting you put on his birth certificate."

"I didn't." He said after my small rant. "I told my mother I did. But I didn't get a DNA test done."

His answer surprised me. "You didn't?" I repeated him.

Ryder shook his head. "No. I know you Rhea. You wouldn't mislead me on something like that."

I frowned as I sat back.

"If you were after money, you would have accepted that check with our settled amount on it instead of mailing it back to me in pieces." Ryder grinned. "And if it was for the money, you would have told me long ago, asking for child support."

I gave out a small nervous laugh. "You've really thought about all this?"

"From the minute I found out you're a mother, yes." Ryder shifted his position on the couch. "But I don't know how you had managed to hide him so well."

I tilted my head to the side. "Hide him?" Then I smiled. "Because you didn't know his name?"

Ryder just smiled at me for my answer.

"Honestly, I was surprised just as much as you." I told him as I got up and took the empty mugs to the sink. Another flash of lightning and thunder came through, real close together. It made me jump a bit and Ryder came up to me.

"If I remember correctly, you weren't the biggest fan on thunderstorms."

"I'll be fine." I threw over my shoulder as I rinsed out the mugs. "There is other stuff, real stuff that I'm afraid of more."

"Sometimes, you just have to go in, head first, tackling phobias."

I rolled my eyes. "And I'm the one with the degrees in psychology." I muttered. "Sometimes, people are happy to not conquer their phobias. Besides, I'm not astraphobic. I'll get over it."

"I'm not talking about the storm." Ryder said gently, right behind me.

I turned around to find him barely centimetres away as another thunder clapped loudly, making the beach house feel like it shook, making me jump and scream. I didn't realise I went straight in to Ryder's chest and recovered just as quick as I lost it.

I pushed away, stepping around him. "I'm fine!" I gasped as I went out of the kitchen. "Goodnight."

"You can sleep in our old room." Ryder called out. It made me pause.

"Where will you be sleeping?" I asked in a slow manner.

"On the couch."

I saw his small grin as another thunder clapped, making me squirm. The storm was right above us.

"Will Rowan be fine with all this thunder and screaming?" Ryder joked as he started taking small steps to me.

"He'll be fine. He can sleep through a foghorn." I quickly turned to the room and stepped towards it, before turning again and pointing to the other door. "This way, hey?"

Ryder laughed as I opened the door and quickly closed it behind me, leaning on it.

More thunder and lightning boomed, making me jump. "Damn him." I whispered as I ran to the bed.