The Eternity that Follows (37 page)

Joey then gave Gabriella a kiss on the lips. “So we can add
into my theory that God loved man and women so much he created
animals to have lovers too.” Gabriella concluded.
“Yes, but didn’t animals come before Eve? I know the birds did.
But weren’t you the one to say when God made man, he already
had woman in mind?”
“Yes. But weren’t you the one to say that he didn’t and God made
Adam so many animals so that he had friends, and then at the end
of making them, realized that Adam needed a companion that was
like him?”
“Yes. I did say that. But maybe God was just playing with Adam
and he wanted him to wait for his bride.” Joey said, then kissing
Gabriella.
“Awe Joey! You’re so romantic at times.”
“I love you.”
“I love you too.”
“All right, lets get off this beach, go shower, and get ready for
dinner. I promise to take you back after for a walk on the beach,
under the moonlight.”
“Awe Joe.” Gabriella said, grabbing her beach bag while Joey
grabbed the sheet. Gabriella then hopped on Joey’s back for a ride
off the sand.

Joey and Gabriella had a wonderful dinner together, as they
usually did. Gabriella took Joey to the her favorite Italian
restaurant in Point Pleasant, and Gabriella was quick to realize
how romantic the restaurant seemed with Joey there with her. Joey
looked so handsome over the candlelight, Gabriella couldn’t help
but feel like the luckiest women on earth. Joey himself also felt
fortunate to have a beautiful partner to share his life with. Joey
and Gabriella stared at each other over the candlelight as their love
caused them both to feel warmth and love all over.

Joey and Gabriella then took a long walk on the beach as
they held each others hand. When they were through with their
walk, Joey sat down and spread his legs apart so Gabriella could
lean her back against him. Gabriella gazed up at the stars as Joey’s
gaze followed.
“Do the stars make you feel small too?” Joey asked.
“No. The stars make me feel special.”
“Oh, are they only for you?”
“Yup.” Gabriella said, as Joey started tickling Gabriella’s sides.
“Hey.” Gabriella protested, as she started tickling him back.

Joey and Gabriella got into a wrestling match, and Joey
went easy on Gabriella, and then finally pinned her down.
“Got you.” Joey said.
“You always win.”
“It’s not my fault God mad man to be more dominant.”
“Oh, is that how you feel?”
“I sure do. Let me show you in the bedroom.”

Gabriella had not protest on leaving the beach. As Joey
made love to Gabriella that night, he had an after feeling of his
body still in the ocean, feeling his body swaying back and forth,
and then using the tide of the ocean to match the way he made love
to Gabriella. When Joey reached his feeling of intense pleasure,
Gabriella’s love carried away him into a whole new world. Joey
felt opposite then Gabriella did, feeling the ocean was a place that
made him feel more important in life.

On Monday, Joey and Gabriella were fifteen minutes late to
her Aunt’s barbeque. Gabriella had gotten lost on the roads in
Point Pleasant, but when they finally arrived, no one seemed to
notice they were late. Gabriella found her family quickly outside,
and introduced all of her family to Joey. He spent the day getting
to know Gabriella’s family, knowing it was important to Gabriella,
he got to know her father’s side of the family, being it was the side
she had grown up closer too.

Joey and Gabriella stayed till after dessert was put out, and
then they had to leave for the ride back home. When Joey and
Gabriella got home, they went out to Mandala diner for a late night
snack, ordering appetizers. Joey was excited to get back to work
after his weekend away, after all this was Joey’s scheduled week to
finish the house. Gabriella was excited to be off to her first class
that was to start at nine in the morning. Joey feared her driving
forty five minutes away, realizing a car accident was something he
couldn’t protect her from.

Joey’s fear brought a new side of him to bed, learning to
savor his passion for Gabriella. He made love while afraid he was
never going to see her again, as if it was his last chance to prove,
he loved her. Joey took all of Gabriella in, making moments last
longer then they usually did. Joey looked into Gabriella’s eyes,
“I promise forever Gabriella.” As he closed his eyes to savor her
kiss, and the love she was offering.

Gabriella had a good week at school. Every night at dinner,
she shared with Joey something that had extremely interested her
from her classes. While Gabriella was working on her homework
on Friday night, Joey decided it was time for him to draw up their
wedding bands. Joey drew roses and vines to be engraved into a
white gold band, to match Gabriella’s ring, and also their tattoo’s.
The rings didn’t take long for Joey to draw up, being it were a
simple design. When Joey was done, he showed Gabriella for
approval and she fell in love, happy Joey didn't want to keep the
design a secret.

When Gabriella announced she had at least another hour of
school work she wanted to get through, Joey decided to start on the
next ring design he had in his head for Gabriella. Joey wanted the
ring to signify eternity. He figured, the gesture of giving it to
Gabriella as their wedding gift would speak louder then any words,
he could come up with to prove his love. Joey used the symbol of
infinity to draw up the design, he then placed three tiny diamonds
on the outskirts on opposite sides of the infinity symbol. He then
erased the lines that connected the symbol, sketching in a stone,
but he didn’t want the stone to be a diamond, he had a purple stone
in mind. He figured he would pick out the stone when he brought
the design to the jeweler. Joey then placed the connection of the
symbol over the stone, holding to hold the stone in place. Joey
was just about done when Gabriella announced she were done with
her homework. Joey asked for one more minute, and so Gabriella
questioned what he as doing, but he said it was a surprise.
Gabriella was actually happy to hear another surprise. If he wasn’t
taking her to the house tomorrow for the first time, she would have
made a stink to see what he was up to. Since that wasn’t the case,
Gabriella got ready for bed, washing up for bed, and letting Joey
finish.

Joey was slowly moving in and out of Gabriella, saying
infinity over and over again as they made love that night.
Gabriella wondered where Joey had came up with the term infinity
for the first time in the bedroom. Joey slowed down his love
making, in between his kisses of saying infinity. Joey stopped his
whole body for a moment, looking into Gabriella’s eyes.
“Why aren’t you saying infinity back?” Joey asked, using his sad
puppy dog face.

Gabriella kissed his lips right away.
“Infinity.” She said, after her kiss, but Joey hadn’t brought it.
“Why weren’t you saying it before?” Joey asked, and Gabriella
motioned her hips for him to start up again, Joey didn’t move.
“Joe, you didn’t give me the chance! You would say it and then
kiss. I only had the opportunity to kiss back.” Gabriella informed,

Joey then changed his rhythm in bed. The new rhythm
was, Joey saying infinity followed by a kiss, then Gabriella said
infinty, followed by another kiss, and then it was Joey’s turn again.
Though Joey was cute, and romantic while they made love, when
they were done Gabriella finally let her laughter out.
“What’s so funny?” Joey asked.
“How cute you are.” Gabriella said, giving him a kiss on the nose.

Joey made a face. “No really. I promise that’s what I’m
laughing about. You’re so damn cute.” Gabriella said, turning on
her side to fall asleep. She was overly excited to be going to the
house for the first time tomorrow, knowing so, Joey let her laugh at
him go, sure she was telling the truth in regards to her laughter.

Joey then held Gabriella from behind, while never wanted a
night to go by without holding her.
When Joey and Gabriella woke up, Gabriella turned up the
stereo in her room, and began singing and dancing around. Joey
could see how excited she was to be going to the house for the first
time. What Joey failed to inform her was that they would be
moving in tonight. Joey didn’t dare buy a bedspread for their
bedroom. Instead, Joey had Gabriella pick out the comforter seat
she wanted on-line. Joey went to the store the next day and since
they had it in stock, picked it up. Joey also failed to mention, he
had moved his furniture from the living room of his apartment into
the family room of their new house, that he moved his bedroom
furniture into one of the spare bedrooms, and also failed to report,
all the furniture they had picked out had already been delivered.
What Gabriella did know is her china set was on the
dinning room floor of her new home, awaiting her. Gabriella was
pleased this past week, when Joey had come home on his lunch
hour to grab the packages while Gabriella was at school. When
Gabriella got home from school, she called Joey right away to tell
him that their china had been stolen. Joey laughed, telling her with
a smirk on his face, he picked it up on his lunch hour. He told her,
the china couldn’t wait for her to get her hands on it and be
displayed in her china cabinet. Gabriella had been beaming to see
the house ever since.
Gabriella had Joey and her out of the house early. Joey
drove onto the street going around the side of Lake Romantica
with houses set on it, a half mile back from the edge of the lake.
Joey pulled onto a gravel driveway and drove Gabriella up to the
house.
“We’re living in a castle?” Gabriella asked, when they were close
enough to see the house.
“It’s not a castle.” Joey said, and then he started to laugh. He
could tell Gabriella already loved the house.
“It’s gorgeous Joey.” Gabriella said, getting out of the car.
Joey followed and held her from behind.
“You like it so far?”
“Love it.”
The exterior of the house was made of dark stone. The
house was oversized as Gabriella soon realized it was a small
mansion. There was a path from the driveway of flattening stone,
leading to the door way. At the doorway, was a step up to an
oversized half circle. Joey assured Gabriella, come spring, he
would make sure there were flowers outlining the pathway in the
flower beds that laid in front of the house.
The house had a huge bay window on the left down stairs
side. Above the window was a glass door with an outside balcony.
The balcony had an iron white railing that mirrored on the other
side. Below the balcony, on the other side, was two large
windows. The roof of the house was straight in edge and their
was a tower on the right side of the house, giving the house it’s
unique design. The tower was beautiful, rather then gaudy, as
Gabriella would have thought, if Joey was to tell her there was a
tower beforehand. The attic of the house ranged the length of the
whole house till it hit its end,dropping down in a slant, where it hit
the tower on the second floor, and the tower started above the
ceiling of the first floor, ranging up to a fifth story.
Gabriella was so stunned by the outside, she was scared to
walk inside. Joey led her inside anways, though he knew she were
scared, and Gabriella was standing in a foyer. In the foyer, was a
set of stairs at the dead center of the house. To the left of the stairs
was an entrance to the oversized kitchen. Joey led Gabriella into
the kitchen first, while his heart beat fast waiting the entire houses’
approval. Gabriella gasped, seeing the kitchen was a light green
color, with black appliances, the same as the mini appliances Joey
picked when registering. Gabriella had already seen the dark green
marble tiling of the floor, Joey had already shown her, when he
showed her the samples of the home. The walls of the kitchen
were lined with light-green wall paper, with a pink flower print.
Gabriella had seen the sampling of the wall paper as well.
Gabriella noticed the bay window, and the bench sitting in front of
it. The bench was aliened to a big kitchen table that also had four
chairs surrounding it. Gabriella was speechless over Joey’s design,
creating a bay window in the kitchen to accompany the kitchen
table. Gabriella noted how nicely the kitchen matched her plate
set.
Joey then lead Gabriella out of the kitchen, the same way
they came in, Gabriella seen there was another exit out of the
kitchen, but didn’t know yet where it lead to. Joey, lead Gabriella
to the right of the foyer, and Gabriella was in a room she knew
wasn’t a living room, not a family room but rather a huge hallway
she gathered was designed to be a sitting room. Gabriella could
still see the staircase from the room, and realized the window in
the sitting room was the first window she had seen from the
outside on the right side of the house. She pictured two chairs and
a table with fresh flowers’ in-between in front of the window.
Gabriella imagined her daughters grown, getting ready for a date.
She imagined bringing their dates into the sitting room as they
awaited her daughters to come down the elaborate stair case to
greet them. Gabriella was day dreaming when Joey took her hand,
walking her to the rest of the right side of the house.
Once passed the sitting room, Joey lead Gabriella down a
one step stair, and Gabriella guessed right away the room to be the
family room. Gabriella noticed Joey’s blue couches, his end tables
and coffee table, and his huge plasma television. The family room
was so big, it covered the rest of the first floor to right of the
house, going all the way to the back of the house. The room was
longer then it was wide, holding the second window on the right
side, Gabriella had seen outside. The right wall of the house had
two windows on the sides of the television. On the back wall was
an entrance leading outside to a patio, but Gabriella wasn’t allowed
to check out the backside of the room. There was another entrance
Gabriella noticed, but Joey wouldn’t let her look through it, yet.
Gabriella then noticed a second white, shinny spiral staircase on
the back wall of the family room, and her curious intrigued her.
Joey then led Gabriella out of the family room, through the
sitting room, and back to the left side of the stair cases. Gabriella
was in the hallway that led to the rest of the house, catching a
glimpse of the second entrance to the kitchen.
Joey showed Gabriella a big closet under the staircase on
the left. Joey then led her back to the other side of the staircase
that had no hall. The left side of the staircase died out and had a
wall opposite the sitting area. Joey opened the door to the down
stairs bath room that was under the staircase. The bathroom was
designed similar to the one Joey had constructed in his apartment.
Only this bathroom didn’t have a shower in it. The sink was made
of white porcelain as was the toilet bowl.
Joey then lead Gabriella back to the other side of the
staircase, and through the hallway. When Gabriella reached the
end of the hallway, she saw the exit to the kitchen, leading into the
hallway, and then into the dinning room.
Gabriella stepped into
the dinning room, and Joey assured she there would be a crystal
chandler as soon as he could afford it. For now, there was just a
light bulb in a fixture. The dinning room had three closed walls,
and an open wall for where they entered. Gabriella would have
thought they were at the other family room entrance by now, and
was shocked they weren’t. Gabriella commented on how lovely
her rug and furniture furnished the room, and begged Joey to take
her to the next room which she knew would be the living room.
Joey wouldn’t let Gabriella leave though, wanting to
christen this whole house with her. Joey pulled off his shirt, asking
Gabriella to get naked, and lie on the table for him. Gabriella
wasn’t in the mood for sex, she was fantasized by the house.
Gabriella tired to leave the room, but Joey wouldn’t let her. Joey
stood in front of her, holding her back from exploring the rest of
the house. Joey then got down on one knee and said,
“It would be my pleasure to have you right here and right now.”
Gabriella was so taken back by Joey’s affectionate words,
she caved into Joey’s demand. When Joey and Gabriella were
done, Gabriella immediately started to get dressed. Joey
reluctantly got dressed as well and then lead Gabriella out of the
dinning room, through the hallway where the second entrance to
the kitchen was, and a bit more down the opened hallway and into
their open living room.
Gabriella had to take a step down, realizing the living room
took a step down, the same the family room had. Gabriella
realized the living room took up the whole back half of the left side
of the house. The Living room ranged from the back left side of
the house passed the back wall of the dinning room, and then on
the far right had an entrance back to the family room. The
windowing of the living room had an entrance to a stone patio
outside. Gabriella guessed the doors leading outside from the
family room led to the same patio. The whole back wall of the
living room was made of glass. There was the glass double door
leading outside, a window on the left side, and two windows on the
right side. Gabriella gasped at her furniture, noting Joey had
placed everything right where she would have requested. Gabriella
started to tell Joey where she was going to place all of her
knickknacks. Joey silenced Gabriella by putting his finger over his
lips and quieting her. Joey then lead Gabrielle through the
entrance that led from the living room, and into the family room.
There was no step to go down this time, as she had already stepped
down when she walked into the living room. The doorway
between the living room and family room had an oval shape top as
all the entrances had before.
Joey lead Gabriella into the family room, back through the
sitting room and up the stairs. When Gabriella reached the top of
the stairs, there were two doors to the back of her and four to the
front. Joey showed her the bedrooms on the left side of the house
first. Joey lead Gabriella into an oversized bedroom toward the
front, that had a glass door to the balcony she had seen outside.
Joey then showed her the bathroom that accompanied the bedroom.
The next bedroom’s door, was across and to the left.
Gabriella walked in, and saw a smaller bedroom, about the size of
her bedroom at home. The next bedroom on that side had its door
just to the left of the steps so it couldn’t be seen at the bottom of
the stairs. The bedroom went off to the right when you walked in,
and was in equal sized to the last bedroom. The next door that
came was to the right of the stairs, was the bathroom, for the three
bedrooms of the backside of the house to share. Gabriella noticed
the bathroom had a hot tub in it, and also a shower. The bathroom
was gorgeous, and Gabriella paid detail to the work Joey had put
into designing it. The last bedroom, on the backside of the house
was the bedroom that held furniture for the nursery. The room was
the same size as the rest of the other three bedrooms. Joey noted
they would move their children down one room and then to the
opposite side as they had more children. Gabriella didn’t fuss too
much over the nursery, considering she wasn’t pregnant and didn’t
see the need for baby furniture just yet.
The bedroom on the other side off the hall, also had a
balcony had a similar bathroom as the other on that side, but in a
different color, and the bathrooms shared a wall.
When Gabriella came out of the last bedroom on that floor,
she noticed the top of the spiral staircase leading upstairs from the
family room, at the end right wall in the huge hallway, holding all
the bedroom doors. Gabriella saw the steps leading up to the
master bedroom on the backside of the hallway. Gabriella had
gathered that this was going to be the master bedroom as the two
bedrooms with bathrooms mirrored each other.
Joey lead Gabriella up stone steps, same in color stone as
the outsdie tower itself, the stairs grew wider with each step as
they led up,twisting right, and conforming with the tower. The top
of the steps let off to the right, and Gabriella was now in her and
Joey’s bedroom.
The bedroom was huge. There was a sitting area in the
front of the house, overlooking the front lawn. Gabriella had
noticed a window placed in the middle of the tower from the
outside. Gabriella looked out the window as Joey confirmed she
was standing in a sitting area.
Their bedroom furniture was already in the room and
Gabriella noticed that the bedspread she picked out was there also.
Joey then lead Gabriella to the far back wall that ran parallel to the
backside of the house, there was a window on the left side, and
another staircase behind the back wall. The bottom step coming
down was bigger then the rest, leading off left into the master
bedroom on the way down. Going up the staircase, the stairs got
smaller as they circled toward the right again. Midway up the
steps was a platform with a door. Joey lead Gabriella through the
open doorway, and she was in a big empty room with two doors.
Joey informed Gabriella, over where the lights were would be
placed her vanity set. One wall was lined completelty with mirrors,
and there were two doors in the room.
Joey opened the first door for Gabriella and she walked into
an eight by four foot closet. Joey then opened the second door to
the master bathroom, and Gabriella was stunned as the master
bathroom was huge.
Joey led Gabriella out of the bathroom, out of the room
before the bathroom, and walked her up to the stairs to the top of
the tower. The stairs continued on to the right as Gabriella had
done a complete three sixty, from where she was at the begging of
the stairs leading up to the master bedroom. At the top of the
second set of stairs was the loft. Joey had already designed the loft
with an oversized comfortable futon and a stereo system. Joey
thought this would be the place to go when they were hiding from
their children, and wanted time to themselves. Joey went a step
further and placed candles around the room in long standing
holdings. Joey then led Gabriella outside onto the terrace.