Chapter 26 - And That's Alot For Love

There was nothing that she loved more than watching her husband, her children and her friend Pete, relaxing and having fun.  

Jon is running around, playing like a mad man that's just been released from prison.  He can see happiness and innocence in his children's eyes and when he looks up the beach and sees his wife, his heart runs over.  He pauses and looks at her, she's laying on her back, propped up on her elbows and he silently thanks God that he has her and all that they have together, even the bad, that has to count for something.  "Where are you?"  Beth asks her husband, who's lost in a daydream.

Jon snaps out of his daze and smiles at her, "I'm right here, baby. The only place I want to be."  He uses his imaginary camera and takes her picture.  That makes her laugh.  "Have you seen you in a bikini lately?"

"I haven't changed all that much." she jokes with him, getting to her feet.  As she brushes the sand off her butt and thighs, "How's the water?"  she inquires, walking in his direction, sweeping Jon Spencer off the beach.  "Is he going to have a fit?"

Jon walks with her into the water, Brianna's hand in his.  "It's perfect." he states.

"We should have done this weeks ago."  Beth adds, as the water crashes up and wets her knees, Jon Spencer squealing in delight.  "We could have been out here living the life instead of home dealing with nonsense."

"Agreed."

"How long can we stay?" she asks him, in her playful whiny voice.  

He leans into her, kisses her and then kisses the son that she's holding.  "Honestly, we can stay as long as we like.  But if we stay longer than a couple of days, we need different accommodations." 

"Why?" she eases Jon Spencer into the water, letting him go to swim in water that is as deep as her knees.  Brianna and Jon Spencer play, not going far from mom and dad.  "What's wrong with this place?  We always come here."

"If we stay longer than normal, we'll need something not so vacationy, don't you think?"  he sits down in the water to be with the little ones, on their level, "There has to be a house or a condo for rent on the island."

"On this island, it'll cost an arm and a leg, Jon." she splashes him with the warm salty water that seems to be washing all of their cares away.

"We have an arm and a leg, Beth.  Do you want me to look into it?"  With a gulp of air, he swims away under the water to chase his little ones.  

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They decided to stay in St. Barth's for two weeks, with minimal contact to the mainland.  Matt would scan articles to email Jon, if there wasn't a link to send.  Jon wanted to know what was going on up in the tri state area, checking to see how bad the shit storm was while they're gone ; so he can gauge how bad it will be when they get home.  It's the last night on the island and Pete insists that the two of them walk into town and have a nice romantic dinner together, something they haven't done since they ran away, to vacation.  

Hand in hand, they walk the brick streets that are lit with candle lanterns, casting a romantic glow upon the most beautiful place in their life, at the moment.  She's wearing a simple white cotton sundress, flip flops and in her hand she has her designer clutch.  He's wearing blue and red board shorts with an orange shirt and his only pair of flip flops. 

"Are you ready to go home?" he asks her, out of the side of his mouth, their hands swinging in perfect rhythm to their pace,  "I'm not."

Beth looks up at him, "I think I am.  I've been thinking about it all day and I'm ready to finally put that period where it belongs."

"I like that you're optimistic about it."

"Is there any other way to be?  I tried to be terrified, but then I decided that's a wasted emotion.  I mean, there is nothing else that he can do to us at this point."

"True." he admits.  "Have you given thought to the press and all of that once we're spotted back home?"

"I have." she smiles her naughty smile and that makes hi smile.

He pulls her into him, kissing the side of her head, "Well, what are you going to do about them?"

Beth stops their stroll and looks him in the eye, "I think I'll give one interview to a reputable reporter and leave it at that."

"Seriously?"  he's shocked by that, as she was adamant when all of this started that she'd never speak to the press about it.

With her hand in his, she starts to walk again and tells him, "I've obviously given it a lot of thought, and while I'm embarrassed, hell, even humiliated - I think that women of the world need to know that even though the attack was brutal and life changing, life does go on and it can be beautiful again."

Jon looks at her and for that moment, he can see the woman that he fell in love with.  The spark is there, even if it's small, it's there and he's been waiting for forever to see it again, "So, you wan't something good to come of all of this.  I like that."

Beth squeezes his hand and laughs, "I think you said it best, and even though it's easier to run and hide, I kept the faith and knew one day I would be able to put it all behind me and this is the best way to do that.  If my story helps even just one woman, than THAT is worth the humiliation I'm about to face."

He lets go of her hand and puts his arm around her shoulder, "I don't think I could ever or have ever loved you more than I do right now."  

She smiles and rests her head on his shoulder, "I want to do the right thing and I want all of us to heal from this, and I think the only way to do that is to state out loud what happened to me and learn to deal with it in the best way possible."  She slides her hand up his arm and clutches it, holding him close to her.  "Olivia Benson said that in order for healing to start, someone needs to bear witness to what happened to me."  She pauses for a moment, "You'd think that the trial would have helped but since I didn't need to testify, that didn't happen."  She buries her face in his arm, kissing it quick, "I called the doc the other day and ran this by him and he thinks that talking about it openly, showing the world that I am a victim, maybe the momentum the video has caused can be stopped."

He stops her in the street, paying no attention to others walking by, passing by on bikes and the one that notice who they are.  He's feeling a slight flutter in his heart and he can't fathom how she must be feeling.  "Maybe he's right?  Maybe Olivia is right, are we getting psych advice from a tv show now?"  He laughs and plants his lips on her right eye, "Seriously babe, I'm behind you whatever you decide.  Do you want me to get the best anchor in the country?"

"I think Savannah would be perfect for this.  Can you call her?"

"As soon as we get home and get settled, I'll set it up.  Where do you want to do it?  At the house or at the NBC studio?"

Beth pulls away from her husband and sits on the sidewalk bench, patting the place next to her, she tells him, "I gave that a lot of thought and I think I would like to do it at the cemetery."