A celebration of love
By Lori Gazdagh						Accueil   Home

Written by Lori Gazdagh as a tribute to the beloved C.C. and Sophia.

The mansion was filled with family, friends and celebration on this Independence Day in 1993. As Sophia was descending the patio stairs to join Kelly by the pool, she couldn't help but think back to 1986 when her and CC spent their first July 4th together after 16 years of separation. They had just spent a wonderful night together and then that next day, he proposed to her. She had so many reservations about remarrying him. Who would have guessed that those doubts of being with the man she has loved almost her whole life would plague her for the next 7 years. Oh how she wished she wouldn't have wasted so much time giving into her doubts instead of following her heart. Just as Sophia was about to sit back down in her chaise lounge, she looked up and caught a glimpse of a tall, handsome man who was getting ready to swing his Crockett mallet. She blinked her eyes and realized that the man she was gazing at was none other than her beloved CC. She watched him for a few seconds more as he swung the mallet and his ball glided across the lawn. In her mind, she spoke his name... CC Capwell... her husband. Even after all these months, she still got a chill of excitement whenever she told someone that she was Mrs. CC Capwell. Even though there were a few that doubted that this fourth time around would last, she had no doubts whatsoever that she was CC's wife for life. She felt the same way after she had married him the 3rd time, but the issues with Eden forced her to separate from him. That decision was so incredibly painful and she still could not forgive herself for divorcing him. She never stopped loving him or wanting to be his wife. 

Sophia was suddenly snapped out of her reverie as Kelly spoke in a loud tone, "Mom are you alright?”" "Um, yes, I'm fine honey,”" said Sophia as she sat down on the chaise. Kelly looked at her mom quizzically and asked, "Are you sure since you had this sad look come over your face?" "No, Kelly, really, I'm okay. I was just thinking about your father and was just sorry that we were separated for the past few years.”" Sophia let out a sigh and continued in a much more upbeat tone, "but all of that is in the past. We have found our way back to each other again and this time we are just enjoying each day being together.”" With a slight chuckle, Sophia looked at Kelly and said, "I know this is hard to believe, but your father has really changed. He is so much calmer. He is very attentive and really listens to me."

"That's great mom. I just knew that you and dad would find each other again. I could see it happening when you were lying in that hospital bed. You just don't know how many hours daddy spent sitting by your bedside. He has always loved you and that will never change."

"You are so right Kelly. We have a special connection that has not and will not ever be broken. We complete each other and I assure you that I do not take that bond for granted. I love that guy with all of my heart and just want to appreciate every day that we have." On that note, both Sophia and Kelly sat back in their chairs and watched the kids as they played in the pool.

As the holiday festivities wore on into the late afternoon, CC and Sophia kept making the rounds to make sure their guests were having fun. Between the barbecue, volleyball, pool games and Crockett, the guests were indeed enjoying the day, but were all preparing for the evening's main attraction, which was the infamous fireworks display that only the Capwells could provide. At around 8:30pm, the sun was starting to sink in the Western sky so Sophia walked into the house to change out of her bathing suit outfit and into something a bit warmer. As she entered into the living room, she saw CC engaged in a conversation with four of his friends and their wives. She walked up to him and slid her arm around his waist. Without breaking one note of his conversation, he involuntarily placed his arm up around Sophia's shoulder. She made a mental note, "we indeed do fit together perfectly.”" 

CC turned towards Sophia and said, "Oh, hi darling, Jack was just talking about us guys going up to the cabin this weekend to go fishing. We haven't done that in such a long time." He couldn't help but notice how beautiful his wife looked at that moment. Her blonde hair was streaked with natural highlights from the summer's warm sun. Her face was glowing from the sun tan she had developed. Her blue eyes were bright with happiness and he just wanted to take a swim in them. Her red bathing suit complimented her tan and her soft hair. She was an exquisite vision to him. For a second, he almost didn't believe that she was his wife again, but that sudden doubt was instantly washed away by this overwhelming gratitude that he felt to finally be able to live each day with the person he has loved more than anyone else. 

"Oh, how nice. That sounds lovely. I know you boys will have a great time during your male bonding weekend,”" commented Sophia and she gave CC a quick squeeze. He smiled at her and then gave her a quick kiss on her head. He then looked at the guys and said, "See that is why I love this woman so much. She supports me and even lets me go away for a bachelor weekend!”" Sophia smiled back, but replied with a bit of an edge in her voice, "Yes, I do support a weekend of fishing with the guys, but you are not and will never be a bachelor so get that thought out of your mind.”" With that, the other wives smiled too and looked at their spouses with the same friendly, but stern look as Sophia was giving to CC. The guys just laughed and then Jack said, "Yeah, yeah, yeah, we know it's just fishing. We just like you girls to think it's more than just a bunch of guys sitting on a boat talking about sports and the latest stock reports." 

"I figured so,”" said Sophia with a slight air of victory lacing her inflection. She flashed a smile to her guests and then looked at CC and said in a hushed tone, "Hey, I'm going to run upstairs and change into something a little warmer than this swimsuit and skirt.”" With that, she broke their embrace and headed for the stairs.

CC looked at his group of friends and said, "Well, the fireworks will begin in about an hour so you might want to fill up your glasses with a nice drink and then grab a blanket and head out into the field to watch the display. We have a spectacular show prepared. We are planning to set the display to music so I hope you will all enjoy it." The gentleman thanked CC for a great party and then took their wives hands and headed out towards the back patio.

CC's thoughts then switched to Sophia. He turned towards the stairs and headed up to his wife. When he reached their bedroom door, he turned the knob slowly and quietly walked in. He could see Sophia standing by the bed unzipping her skirt. He closed the door behind him and locked it. Just then, Sophia heard the noise of the lock clicking into place and spun around. "Oh gosh CC, you scared the heck out of me!" She placed her hand up to her heart and then let out the breath that had caught in her throat. CC instantly felt bad and quickly said, "Oh sweetheart, I'm sorry. I honestly didn't mean to scare you. I just wanted to see if you needed any help."

"Help with getting dressed?”" Sophia asked in a puzzled tone. "No, actually help with getting undressed,”" CC replied. A mischievous smile danced around the corners of his mouth. 

"CC, we can't do that now! We have a house full of guests downstairs!”" Sophia said with amazement at his suggestion. 

"I know we are throwing a party, but where's your sense of adventure?”" spoke CC. He then walked up to Sophia and placed his arms around her waist and finished unzipping her long, flowing skirt and let it fall to the floor. 

Even though Sophia's arms were now comfortably resting on CC's shoulders, her voice conveyed a harder tone, "CC, have you lost your mind? This is crazy. We're the hosts of this party. Don't you think our guests will get just a little suspicious by our absence?" 

CC looked lovingly into Sophia's eyes and said, "No, I haven't lost my mind. No, this is not crazy and frankly, I don't care what our guests think. They're outside enjoying the activities and probably won't even notice that we were gone for a few minutes. Right now, I'm just living in the moment and want to love and be loved by the woman of my dreams.”" He leaned down and kissed Sophia on the forehead. Then he followed that with little kisses down her nose and finally came to rest upon her soft lips. He kissed her lightly at first and when he felt her lean into him, he kissed her more passionately. Sophia's arms wrapped around his neck and their bodies pressed hard against each other. As Sophia's hands ran through CC's hair, he reached down and scooped her up into his arms. 

Their kiss was broken for a second as Sophia let out a startled gasp. CC grinned at his wife pretending to be caught off guard by him sweeping her off of her feet since he had done this countless times before. He placed her gently onto their bed and Sophia looked up at him with caring eyes. "CC, you are really bad, but I actually love this daring side of you.”" She continued, "I must tell you that I love you more than you will ever know and I need you right now more than words could express." He placed his hand on her face and with graciousness in his voice, he replied, "I know how much you love me since it's as much as I love you. You are my matchless Sophia and I treasure everything about you. I know that I've told you many times in the past several months how much you mean to me, but it's so much more than that. You are my soul mate and the connection that we have is stronger than anything I could have ever imagined and didn't fully appreciate it until recently. Thank you for being you and for loving me. I love you very much.”" Sophia's eyes were moist with tears, but this moment was not about that right now, so she reached up and captured CC's lips with hers and kissed him deeply. 

A half an hour later, Sophia drew in a deep breath as she rested her head on CC's chest. Her bathing suit had been tossed onto the floor at the foot of the bed and CC's clothes were dangling off the side. It was Sophia to first speak. "My, my my Mr. Capwell, this sure was an adventure of a lifetime!”" She then kissed his chest. He chuckled a bit and replied, "Well, Mrs. Capwell, thank you for the compliment and I'm glad you were a willing participant. See, it isn't so bad being naughty, now is it?”"
Sophia tightened her hug across CC's chest and said, "No, it sure isn't, but we really should get back downstairs to our guests.”"

"Yes, I suppose you are right, but we should do this more often,”" commented CC. Sophia looked up at him with a seductive smile and said, "Um, I thought we already did this more often so if you are referring to the spontaneous and riskier part, then I will have to agree with you since this definitely added some spark. This one will go down as the most explosive fourth of July!" In unison, CC and Sophia broke out into laughter. 

They hurriedly got dressed and walked down the stairs hand in hand. As they were just about to reach the bottom, Ted rushed into the living room and with a jolt, he stopped as he caught sight of his parents. "Hey you two, I've been looking all over for you. The fireworks about going to start in a few minutes and we need the hosts of this party to make the official announcement.”"

Searching for the right words to say, both CC and Sophia were at a loss for a moment as to what to tell Ted and then finally it was CC who answered. "We were just checking on the grandkids in the study. You know how they get wrapped up in those video games and forget about the world around them.”" Sophia continued, "And then I quickly changed clothes into something a little warmer.”" Satisfied with the answers, Ted said in an excited tone "Okay, then let's get outside and get this grand fireworks display going! Everyone is already set up on the lawn and is just waiting for the entertainment to begin"

As Ted rushed out ahead, Sophia looked up at CC and said, "You go on with him and I'll make good on your lie and go to the study and tell the kids that the fireworks are starting.”" 

CC replied, "Okay, but first". . . he grabbed Sophia and pulled her to him for a quick kiss and then said, "Thank you.”" She looked up at him with adoration in her eyes and said, "No, thank you!”" Then they parted. 

After CC thanked his guests for coming, he gave the word to begin the display. He walked over to the blanket that Sophia was sitting on and sat down next to her. He gathered her in his arms and as the first firework exploded in the air, he could feel her jump with excitement. As the fireworks began to dance in the sky, the music danced right along with the bursts of colored formations. Sophia snuggled close in CC arms and rested her head on his chest. A red heart-shaped firework exploded across the night sky and Sophia turned her head and whispered into CC's ear, "That's my heart for you.”" CC turned and smiled and then kissed his wife gently. He knew he was the luckiest man alive. 

On Thursday night CC took out his duffle bag and began to pack for his weekend with the guys. He had been really excited at first about the upcoming get away, but those feelings started to turn into uncertainty. Now, as he began to fill the bag with his clothes, he began to have serious reservations. He couldn't figure out why he would be looking forward to a weekend away from Sophia. Yes, he liked to hang out with the guys, but wasn't keen on the idea of being four hours away from home and family. He just knew he would miss Sophia terribly. On the other hand, maybe she was looking forward to having a weekend to herself. After all, they did spend a lot of time together these days. 

Just then, Sophia walked into the bedroom. "Oh, I see that you are finally starting to pack. I was wondering why you hadn't done that yet. You'll be leaving early in the morning so you need to be ready to go." 

"Yeah I know darling,”" CC said with a bit of deflation in his voice. Sophia picked up on the somewhat somber note and asked, "Is everything okay?”" CC quickly replied, "Oh, sure, yes everything is just fine. I was just trying to remember all of the things that I need to pack." He didn't want to lead on that he was actually having second thoughts about leaving since he knew he was going to miss her. He didn't want her to think he was being possessive with her or for her to think he was just being foolish. 

"Oh, okay then. I can help you if you want since no one knows you better than I do." She gave him a wink and walked to the bathroom to inspect the counter to see if he took all of his toiletries. 

He bit his lip since at that moment, he realized that he really didn't want to go on this fishing trip, but then again, how could he disappoint the guys and how could he ever explain these irrational feelings to Sophia. After all, he was only going to be away for a few days. He then thought of the phrase that absence makes the heart grow fonder so with that in mind he thought that it wouldn't be that bad. 

Sophia walked back into the room with a few more things in her hands and placed them into a side pocket of CC's bag. "Looks like you are all set now so I suggest that you get ready for bed since you will need to get a good night's sleep since you have a long drive in the morning. So you are picking up Jack, right?"

"Yes and then we'll head on up," CC said rather flatly. He then went into the bathroom and began to change into his pajamas. Sophia was right behind him and also began to get ready for bed. As they climbed under the blankets, Sophia grabbed the book that was on the nightstand and prepared to get lost in the pages while trying not to think about the anxiety she was feeling about CC's trip. She so wanted him to go and have a good time with the guys, but she also didn't know what she was going to do without him being here in the house. She has grown accustomed to the attention he showered on her and really enjoyed the days with him. It was like they were rediscovering each other and so it was great getting to know him all over again. But she didn't dare tell him these silly feelings she was having about him being away for a few days. Rationally, it didn't make any sense since they had been apart for days or even weeks in the past when they would have to go on business trips. This was just a few days. Sophia rolled her eyes at how ridiculous she was feeling and so she reached over and turned on the little nightlight above her bed and opened up her book. 

CC was feeling quite apprehensive by now, but as he saw Sophia calmly open her book, he realized that she was probably looking forward to this mini vacation from him and so he just wanted to get to sleep so he could forget about these unsettling feelings. 

He leaned over to kiss Sophia goodnight. She leaned towards him and said, "Goodnight sweetheart, I love you.”" He pressed his lips to hers, but instead of pulling away, he lingered for a moment and kissed her again with a little more pressure. Sophia responded in kind and kissed him right back. As CC moved away, he looked at his beautiful wife and said, "I love you too and thank you for letting me go with the guys.”" He was hoping that the words coming out of his mouth wouldn't reveal the true emotions that were stirring inside his heart. 

"You're welcome honey. I really hope you have a good time." Sophia then turned to her book and began chapter 10. CC laid his head on the pillow and watched Sophia read as he drifted off to sleep. Both thought that the other one was happy about this trip so neither was going to speak about their uneasiness. 

As the night hours crept by, both CC and Sophia kept waking up. Each was having a restless night and would wake up suddenly just to turn over and feel the other one lying next to them. Normally, it was the most relaxing feeling knowing that the other half was peacefully sleeping within arms length, but tonight was an exception.

The alarm went off at 6:00am, but it didn't beep for very long as CC quickly shut it off. He had already been awake for while since he was watching Sophia sleep. Her face looked so serene. If only he knew that she had just fallen asleep and the look on her face was more from exhaustion then from peace. Sophia stirred awake and turned her head towards CC. "Good morning darling,”" CC exclaimed. Sophia blinked her eyes open. "Is it morning already? It feels like we just went to bed.”"

"Oh, did you have a bad night?" CC quizzically asked. 

"Um, well, it was a little restless,”" Sophia explained, but quickly added, "I guess it was just from the book I was reading.”" 

CC's heart sank a little since he was so hoping she would have said it was because she didn't want him to go. With that, he sighed and got up out of bed and went to the bathroom to take a shower. When he reentered the bedroom, he noticed that Sophia was already up and probably downstairs. He grabbed his duffle and headed down to breakfast. Rosa had the table set and he saw Sophia reading the morning paper. Neither said much to each other during breakfast. They both didn't want to speak too much for fear that they would slip and blurt out that they didn't want CC to leave. 

After they finished eating, they got up and Sophia walked over to CC and slipped her arm around his waist. She said, "I'll walk you out. Now I want you to have a great time. Just relax and don't worry about anything, including me." She tried to keep her voice light and positive. 

He pulled her close to him as they continued towards the entry way. He opened the door and noticed that his SUV was pulled up and ready to go. At that moment, he wanted to tell her that all he wished for was to spend the day with her, but he just couldn't let her know of these foolish feelings. When Sophia looked at the car, her mind was filled with the same thoughts as CC was having. 
She shook her head as if to shake the thoughts right out of her brain and then turned to CC. "Call me when you get there and know that I love you so very much and just want you to be happy." CC looked lovingly into her eyes and said, "I love you too and yes, I will try to have a good time. I hope that you too will enjoy your weekend.”" Oh no, he thought to himself, I might have given away my true feelings. She'll suspect that I'm not excited about going and may even think I'm trying to interfere with her independence.

"I have a few things that I want to get done. Don't worry about me. You know that I can always find something to do. Now, hurry up or you're going to be late.”" She didn't want him to know that she picked up on him saying the word "try" to have a good time. She just wanted him to enjoy his time with the guys and not worry about her. 

They both embraced each other and as she pulled away, he reached down and took her head in his hands and kissed her. She gratefully kissed him back and then smiled. He broke the embrace and headed towards the car. As he was about to pull away, he looked at Sophia as she was leaning in the doorway and mouthed, "I love you.”" She mouthed back, "I love you.”"

With that, he drove away. He already missed her. 

Sophia shut the door and began to think of how she was going to fill her day. After CC picked up Jack, he got on the highway and prepared for the long four hour trip. He tried to engage Jack in discussions about any subject he could think of just so he could keep his mind off missing Sophia. What seemed like an eternity, they finally reached the cabin. Most of the guys were already there and so they were anxious to get on the yacht and begin their planned day of fishing. CC tried to get wrapped up in their excitement and play along with them. 

Just before boarding, CC pressed the #1 on his cell phone. Sophia's name appeared on the screen as it was making the connection to his wife. "Hello darling,”" is how she answered. "Did you make it on time?" asked Sophia.

"Yes honey, we made it on time and are about to board Tom's yacht to spend the day catching Walleye. Do you have a busy day planned?”"

"Ah, yes I do," lied Sophia. "I'm planning on doing some shopping and maybe seeing Kelly to discuss a few things that are going on at Armonti." Truth be said, she had no desire to shop and everything was running smoothly at Armonti under the watchful eye of Kelly. She truly had made no plans and was just thankful to hear the voice of her husband on the cell phone.

Hearing her sweet voice made CC so want to just jump through the phone and gather his wife into his arms, but all he could do was muster up a fake happy reply. "Great then, please tell Kelly I said hello and I will call you in the morning.”" 

"Okay darling, catch lots of fish and tell the guys I wish them a great time. I love you.”"

"I love you too baby" commented CC. "Bye."

"Goodbye" was Sophia's last word and then CC saw the display screen read disconnecting. He let out a long sigh and with a defeated canter, he boarded the boat. 

As the guys chatted back and forth about their jobs, sports, politics and daily news, CC's mind kept drifting. He would interject a comment here or there, but he kept daydreaming. He just had no desire to be there and just wanted to be with the love of his life. He had been fighting these feelings for five days now and it was just now sinking in that it didn't matter if his feelings were irrational or silly, he just knew that he needed to be with Sophia. He didn't even care if she laughed or got angry with him. He just wanted to be honest with her. He looked down as his watch and it painfully read 2pm. 

He was brought back to the present when he heard a voice ask him, "Hey, that's the about the tenth time you've looked at your watch. What's wrong? Don't you want to be here?”" Jack asked. 

"Oh, sorry Jack, um, yeah I want to be here.”" CC's comment held no conviction that he wanted to be on the very yacht that he felt was holding him captive. 

"CC, why don't you just take the small boat back to the cabin and go home to your wife?”" His smile let CC know that he could let down this façade and tell Jack his true feelings.
"Am I that transparent?" Jack nodded yes. "Gosh, I feel like a teenager who has fallen in love for the first time. I just can't explain it, but all I want is to be at home right now. I know it's only been six hours since I left her, but I miss her so much.”"

Jack sympathetically replied, "Yeah, I can tell. You've been trying to engage in small talk all day, but I could tell that something was bothering you. All I can say is that I envy you. I wish I could feel that way right now. Don't get me wrong, I love Sara, but we don't share the romance like you and Sophia. I could see your connection with her at the July 4th party. During the fireworks, I could see how much you are in love with her. If I were you, I wouldn't want to trade that with sitting around on some yacht catching smelly fish. Go home and be happy. I can catch a ride home with Bob." 

With Jack's words confirming his so-called irrational thoughts, CC explained to the guys that he needed to get home and he wished them a good time. As he climbed in the smaller boat and headed back to shore, Jack made up some dumb excuse about why CC left suddenly. He just didn't want to rat out his best friend. 

CC quickly gathered his belongings from the cabin and jumped in his car and headed home. Home to Sophia. He just hoped that she wouldn't be too upset with him for ruining her weekend. Heck, he would even stay out of her way. All he cared about was just being in the same vicinity as her. 

The trip up to the cabin seemed to take forever, but the ride home was going by much faster. He put in Michael Feinstein's CD and as My Favorite Year played, he just kept thinking about all of the wonderful memories he has shared with Sophia. With each new memory, the smile on his face grew wider. Finally, he saw the sign welcoming him into Santa Barbara. He just wanted to beep his horn in excitement to let the whole city know he was coming home to be with his wife. He quickly headed to the florist shop. As he approached the gated community he resided in, his mind was flooded with doubts about his decision to return home. What if Sophia was truly angry with him? What if she thought he didn't trust her? What would he tell her about why he came home so early? 

Well, at this point he would just have to see how it all played out since he was now parked at the door of the Capwell mansion. As he slowly opened the door, he noticed that the house was quiet. He tiptoed into the atrium as he held the large arrangement of flowers behind his back. He didn't see Sophia in the living room. He made his way up the stairs and checked the bedroom, but didn't find Sophia upstairs. He was a little discouraged and thought maybe she had gone out shopping as she had mentioned. He couldn't really blame her, but so wished she was somewhere in the house right now so he could surprise her. Hopefully it was going to be a good surprise. He didn't lose faith in finding her so he headed towards the kitchen. He saw Rosa sitting at the table preparing the grocery list. She jumped a little and looked at him in shock, "What are you doing here? Are you alright?”"

"Yes, yes, I'm fine. Where's Sophia?" he asked sheepishly. 

"She's out back on the patio reading a book," Rosa remarked. As CC walked past her, he gave her a quick smile. Rosa smiled back and just shook her head at his antics and then said, "She's going to love the surprise of the flowers and the surprise of you.”" CC quickly looked back and said, "I hope so... on both accounts.”" 

Rosa then said, "I'll prepare a special dinner for you two.”" 

A childlike grin spread across CC's face and he replied, "Thank you Rosa, you always know the right thing to do."

As CC stepped out onto the patio, he looked to his left but didn't see Sophia and then looked to the right and sitting on a white couch was his one and only Sophia basking in the sun's rays. With a slight movement of her hand, her wedding ring caught the light and for a brief moment, the brilliance of the diamonds glittered so brightly that CC had to squint his eyes. He looked down at his own ring just to confirm that it was he who was married to her. With a tenuous stride, he walked towards her and just as he was close enough for her to notice his presence, he cleared his throat. Sophia looked up from the pages of her novel and with utter surprise; she pulled her sunglasses off her face and looked at her husband standing in front of her. 

"Surprise darling!”" CC said while simultaneously holding the bouquet of flowers in front of him. He wanted to shield his face with the flowers so she would see the beauty of the flowers before possibly turning angry towards him. 

"Surprise, why yes this is a surprise," replied Sophia. CC quickly asked, "I hope a good one?"

Sophia didn't reply to that question, but instead asked a few of her own. "Are you okay? Did something happen to you or to one of the guys?”" Her voice was worrisome, but also contained an edge that made CC feel like he just disappointed his wife. 

"No, no nothing happened. I'm fine and the guys are fine."

"Then why are you home so early? You just got there no more than a few hours ago.”" Now that Sophia knew he and the guys were okay, she needed to find out the real reason for him standing in front of her with flowers in hand. 

"I just... I just wanted.... um." CC couldn't finish his sentence and so he walked up to her and handed her the flowers. "Here I got these for you since they reminded me of everything beautiful about you.”" 

Sophia reached out and took the flowers. "They are indeed beautiful, but why did you feel the need to drive all the way back here and then stop at a florist shop? Did something happen up there that you feel was inappropriate and now these are "I'm sorry for what I did flowers?”" 

"No, no not at all," CC said in defense. "We didn't do anything up at the cabin except the boring hobby of fishing.”" CC held up three fingers on his right hand as in giving a Scout's honor to confirm his innocence. 

He couldn't stand the suspense any longer and sat down so that he was facing her. Without further words, he grabbed her and hugged her tightly. She let the flowers fall out of her hand so they would land on her legs. She wanted to put both of her arms around the man she loved more than anything else in this world. The two embraced for about thirty seconds before CC finally pulled away. He took Sophia's left hand and began to explain; "Now sweetheart, I hope you don't get mad at me." Instantly Sophia's eyes narrowed and she thought he was about to tell her he had done something foolish at the cabin. 

"I know this is going to sound like a ridiculous, childish thing.”" Oh no Sophia thought, I was right, he did do something stupid. "But, I never really wanted to go on this trip since I knew that all I would do is... well... um ... ."

"Oh, come on now CC, just spit it out. Tell me what's going on, please.”" 

CC just then blurted it out. "All I would do is miss you. Okay, there I said it. I didn't want to go since I knew I would miss you. I just wanted to spend the weekend with you. But I knew I couldn't tell you since I thought you would think I was being a silly kid in love and then I thought that you would think I was hindering your independence and I didn't want you to be mad at me for that and..." 

Just then, Sophia put her finger over CC's lips to silence his rambling. She looked into his eyes, which were now filled with worry. Her face softened and her words came straight from the heart. "CC, you don't need to explain another thing because everything that you were feeling I was feeling too. I just didn't want to tell you for fear that you would think I was being a possessive wife that didn't want her husband to hang out with his friends.”"

CC's worry quickly dissolved into relief and he looked at Sophia with pure admiration and love. As they looked at each other, they both realized that they were truly connected on the deepest level since both had been feeling the exact same angst. If only they had been honest from the beginning then they could have saved each other from all of those troublesome feelings. With that realization, they both just laughed at their symmetry and fell into another long embrace.

"Boy I love you,”" Sophia whispered into CC's ear. "And I love you,”" CC replied. He planted a quick kiss on her cheek before his eyes locked onto hers and then they began to sensually kiss for several minutes. Their hands and arms were entangled in each others and then CC's hand began to slide down from Sophia's neck to the top of her bra. Before things progressed any further, Sophia breathlessly spoke, "CC let's go upstairs and let me show you how grateful I am for the surprise of the flowers and for the surprise of you.”" CC's heart melted as Rosa's words came to fruition. 

He and Sophia walked arm and arm up to their room and gave into their most intimate desires.