Natalie opened her eyes. Although the curtains were closed, they weren't heavy enough to completely block out the sun, and the let enough light into the room to brighten it up without blinding anyone. She turned her head to one side, and smiled at Taylor's sleeping form. Then she turned her head to the other side, towards the floor-to-ceiling windows and glass sliding door.
She twisted around under the covers and slid out of the bed. She put on her robe and opened the curtians enough to open up the door and stepped onto the balcony.
Natalie took a deep breath of the crisp, early morning air. She put her hands on the railing, and the sunlight glittered on her ring.
Rings, actually.
Natalie smiled as she looked down at both engagement and wedding ring on her finger. It had all happened faster than she thought, but she was now married to a man she loved dearly. And while she would have prefered that the marriage came before the pregnancy, well, she was still happy about it.
"Mrs Natalie Hanson," she said to herself.
She was sure she was never going to get used to being either 'Mrs' or 'Hanson'.
Taylor
Taylor slowly opened his eyes as the cool morning air sifted into the room and onto his face. He sat up slowly when he realised he was alone in the bed, before realising that the balcony door was open a crack and the curtains were moving.
Smiling to himself as it all came back to him, he yawned and stretched, reaching for the ceiling. When he heard a crack he cracked his knuckles and collapsed back down onto the bed and closed his eyes.
He opened them again as he began fiddling with the ring on his finger, then looked up toward the door again. Sighing a little to himself, he finally threw the covers aside and got out of bed. He reached over to a nearby chair and grabbed some shorts to put on before making his way outside.
The smile returned to his face when he saw Natalie on the other side of the curtain.
"Hey," he greeted softly, making his way up behind her and slipping his arms around her waist.
"Good morning."
Natalie
"Mmm, good morning," Natalie replied.
She twisted her head around to kiss his cheek.
"Sleep well?"
Taylor
"I sure did," Taylor grinned, nudging her a little before kissing the side of her neck and swaying her slightly.
He sighed as he rested his chin on her shoulder and looked out at the view.
"Does it feel different?" he whispered.
Natalie
"I don't know," Natalie replied. "I guess it feels like it hasn't really sunk in yet."
She wrapped her arms over his.
"It probably'll sink in when I least expect it. What about you?"
Taylor
"I don't know," Taylor breathed evenly, intertwining his fingers around her stomach gently.
"It does feel different. It feels... perfect. Like it's really meant to be."
He grinned to himself.
Natalie
Natalie smiled.
"I'm glad you feel that way," she said. "I feel the same."
She turned to face him then, cupped his face in her hands and kissed him.
Taylor
Taylor kissed her back passionately, one hand still on her waist.
When they parted he rested his forehead on hers and grinned.
"So... we have the whole week to ourselves..." he began teasingly.
Natalie
Natalie smiled back.
"Yes, yes we do," she confirmed. "What did you want to do today?"
Taylor
"Oh... anything that you want to do," Taylor grinned, squeezing her a little.
"We could start with a walk on the beach?"
Natalie
"Sure," Natalie replied. "That sounds nice."
She kissed him sweetly, then headed back inside to change.
Taylor
Taylor grinned as he watched her go back in, the sighed and folded his arms as he looked out over the view.
He looked down at his wedding ring and fiddled with it again, waiting as long as he thought it would take her to get ready. Then he turned and headed inside to get some clothes on as well.
Natalie
Natalie was just pulling down her shirt when Taylor walked in.
"So, umm," she said. "Uhh, y'know it's typical. The minute I get dressed, I need to go to the washroom."
She smiled at him, and left the room to go do her business, wondering why dressing in front of each other seemed so awkward when they were married, and were expecting their first child.
Taylor
Taylor chuckled to himself as he went to get some clothes from the suitcase he still hadn't unpacked.
He sifted through a ton of shirts before selecting a blue Hawaiian one and a pair of three quarter length shorts. He quickly got changed and slipped on a pair of flip flops before grabbing his digital camera and going to wait by the door as he looked through the photos they'd already taken.
Natalie
After flushing the loo and washing her hands, Natalie took her brush to her hair. She brushed her hair back, and tied it up, then headed back out.
"Hey," she said. "Ready to go?"
Taylor
Taylor looked up at the sound of her voice.
"Ready and waiting," he smiled, holding the camera up.
"Maybe we could check out the breakfast buffet when we get back. Sound good?" he asked as he held the door open for her.
Natalie
"Sounds great," Natalie replied.
She stepped out of their room.
"You have the room key?" she double checked before he closed the door.
Taylor
"Oh..." Taylor cringed, before ducking back inside the room.
He grabbed it from the bedside table and slipped it into his pocket.
"Got it," he grinned cheekily as he rejoined her, "good call."
He closed the door and began down the hallway.
Natalie
"Cool," Natalie replied.
She stepped up to walk beside him and matched her pace. Natalie hit the down button when they reached the elevator, and a few minutes later the elevator door opened.
Taylor
Taylor pressed the button to go down once they were in, then put his arms around her as the door closed and kissed her on the cheek.
"Anything in particular you want to do later, or are we just going to have a lazy day?" he asked.
Natalie
"Hmm, I don't know," Natalie replied. "I'm happy for a lazy day."
She wrapped her arms around his waist.
"I think I just want to enjoy our first day of being married."
Taylor
"And what's your idea of enjoyment apart from spending it with your awesome new husband?" Taylor joked with a grin.
Natalie
The elevator door opened then and Natalie stepped out.
"Nice long walks? Movies? Picnics? Casual, little things that take so little effort for so much?"
Taylor
"Sounds great," Taylor agreed, walking out behind her.
"We could grab some movies on the way back."
Natalie
"Cool," Natalie replied.
She paused as they walk out the front door.
"So, which way?"
Taylor
Taylor pointed off to the right where the road led down to a small cove.
"Want to check it out?" he offered.
Natalie
"Okay," Natalie agreed.
She reached out to take his hand and they began walking down.
"Mmm... I love this fresh, crisp air," she said, breathing deeply.
Taylor
"Yeah," Taylor sighed, swinging their hands a little.
"It's nothing like anywhere else really."
Natalie
Natalie smiled.
"No, it's not."
They walked in silence for a time, then Natalie's face lit up.
"Ohh, look, a park! I love swings!"
Taylor
Taylor grinned as he spotted it.
"And it's deserted so you'd have them all to yourself," he pointed out as they changed direction slightly.
Natalie
"He he, yay," Natalie said childishly.
She let go of Taylor's hand and closed the distance to the swings at a quick trot. Once there, she sat down on the swings, walked backwards as far as she could go, lifted her legs and off she went.