Rock the Boat

"Ever since our voyage of love began

Your touch has thrilled me like the rush of the wind
And your arms have held me safe from a rolling sea
There's always been a quiet place to harbor you and me
Our love is like a ship on the ocean
We've been sailing with a cargo full of love and devotion
So I'd like to know where, you got the notion
Said I'd like to know where, you got the notion
To rock the boat, don't rock the boat baby
Rock the boat, don't tip the boat over
Rock the boat, don't rock the boat baby
Rock the boat" Rock the Boat by The Hues Corporation


Trevor and I reluctantly returned the Corvette at the airport in Key West Monday morning. We were flying back to Miami from Key West then home to Dallas. I didn't want to leave. I could tell Trevor felt the same way: he was unusually quiet as I finished up my souvenir shopping at the airport. On our layover in Miami, I thanked him again for our trip.

"I really love getting away with you.We should do this more often." I told him, resting my head on his shoulder.

"We could." He said, simply.

"I mean, not anytime soon. I know this was our last little splurge before we buy a house. In the future, I want us to take regular trips. Even if it's just road trips. There's so many places I haven't been. It would be fun for us to do together."

"Yeah, why not?" Trevor replied, kissing me on the forehead.

When we got back in Dallas, I pulled out my phone and called Amber to make sure she was at home. After getting my car, the second thing I wanted to do was pick up Justine. She told me Rocky had a cookout at her house and she was there with Justine. I told her Trevor and I would be there shortly.

When we arrived at Rocky's house, we put our bags in our cars, except my bag of souvenirs. I tried to let myself in the house, but I realized Rocky changed the key less lock code. I rang the doorbell and waited. Amber let us in, grinning widely at us.

"Hey you two!" She said, cheerfully giving us both a hug.

"Hey Amber. How was Justine?" I asked when Justine ran from the den to me and Trevor. Krista, April and Robbie chased after her. I petted Justine before hugging the kids.

"She was fine." Amber said, as we headed to the living room. "Look who's here." Amber announced us to Rocky, Peyton, Chris, Jackie, Will, Forrest, Sammy and Corey. "Aren't they just glowing?"

"A tan will do that for you." Trevor said quickly, flashing her a smile.

"Nope, it's more than a tan. Y'all look so relaxed and happy and blissful." Amber argued, before sitting next to Will. The more she talked, the drunker she sounded. I could count the number of times she been drunk on one hand.

"Yep, the beach will do that to you. Or alcohol. How much have you had to drink? Don't you have to work?" I asked.

Amber laughed out loud. "No. I worked last night. Got time and a half and I'm off the next 2 days!" She cheered.

"If you don't get called in." Will added.

"Good for you." I said, pulling out gifts for everyone. I figured out who was getting what from my bag. I didn't get everyone at Rocky's house a gift, but I could make it work. Forrest got Key West Fudge. I bought one for myself, but I gave it to Peyton and Chris. Krista and April put on their shell necklaces and Will blew up the beach ball for Robbie. I gave Rocky the stuffed turtle. The hand painted shell I originally got for Serena went to Jackie. Will and Amber got matching scenic mugs, and I got Sammy a Key West cocktail shaker with tropical drink recipes on the side. Corey got a Key lime cookbook and I put away the gifts I got for Ethan and EJ.

"Thanks Lily. I'm gonna use this right away..." Corey said as he flipped through the book.

"You betta. Sammy made it clear she ain't cooking." I joked, referring to her Facebook rant.

Corey laughed and Sammy pursed her lips.

"I felt bad. I didn't get you anything-" Rocky started.

"Don't. Lily's the only person I ever met that has to get presents for everyone." Trevor stopped her.

"Shut up Trevor." I told him.

"I said felt bad. Not so much now." She looked at the turtle with a smirk.

I smiled "It's not really for you anyway." I said, hintingly.

"Oooo, it's for the baby." Amber cooed. I looked at her, then Rocky surprised.

"You told everyone?" I asked.

"Not everyone." Rocky narrowed her eyes at Amber. "But you all know now." She confirmed.

Jackie congratulated her. Forrest looked her over, silently. Peyton's mouth dropped open. Sammy exclaimed, "Please tell me it's not Brandon's!"

Rocky glared at her. "Whose else would it be?"

"Anyone else would be better." Sammy muttered.

Corey nudged her.

"Don't touch me!" Sammy snapped, turning on him.

Corey put his hands up and looked away.

"Anyway, it's Brandon's baby. We are not getting back together. We will co-parent if he chooses too. Are y'all hungry?" Rocky asked me and Trevor.

"Starving." I replied, "I'll make you a plate." I told Trevor before following Rocky.

"How much has Amber had to drink?" I asked Rocky when we were safely in the kitchen.

"She was tipsy when she came over. Sammy brought alcohol from the party." Rocky explained.

"Why's Sammy acting bitchy?" I asked.

"You mean bitcher than normal? I don't know, but you better go get her. She got one more time to talk crazy-" Rocky warned.

"And what? You can't do anything while you're pregnant. Speaking of which, when did you tell Brandon?" I asked.

"I haven't told him yet."

"How does everyone know but your baby daddy?" I asked.

"Every time I try to talk to my child's father  he dodges my calls. I got his stuff out of my garage. He'll be here sometime this week to pick it up. I'm telling him then. I have my doctor's appointment too. 10am if you still want to come" Rocky informed me.

"Of course I do!" I wanted to question her telling Brandon without someone else being here, but Forrest joined us. I turned to my grilled corn, squeezing lime juice on it.

"I wanted to apologize. I wouldn't have forced you out in Shreveport if I would have known." He apologized to Rocky, looking at her stomach, then back up to her face.

She gave him a soft smile. "No, I'm fine. I'm glad you did." She assured him.

I looked back and forth between them, wondering why I felt like an intruder in the conversation. I cleared my throat loudly.

Rocky and Forrest finally noticed I was still there. "I'll take Trevor his food." Rocky said, leaving.

"Thanks." I turned to Forrest when she left. "What was that?"

"Nothin'. I talked her into going to a lounge when she said she was tired. I wouldn't have if I woulda known." He clarified.

"Hmmm..." I said, scrutinizing him while slathering mayo on my corn.

"What are you doing to that corn?" Forrest asked me, avoiding my eyes.

"Fixing it up." I said, sprinkling on red crushed pepper. "Have you tried Mexican street corn before? This is kinda like it."

"Never."

I went to the refrigerator and grabbed some Parmesan cheese. I put it on the corn before handed it over to him. He took a bite and toppings and juice went everywhere. I grabbed him a napkin as he chewed.

"Good right?" I asked him, handing him a napkin.

He nodded and swallowed. "Delicious." He agreed, wiping his hands.

"It's all in your beard." I laughed, getting another napkin.

"Did I get it?" He asked, wiping the wrong side.

"No." I wiped his face for him.

"Thank you." He said as I cleaned him up.

"No problem."

We both looked up when Trevor joined us in the kitchen.

"I need a beer." He announced.

"I have your beer. I was coming, but Forrest stole my corn." I smiled at him.

Forrest chuckled. "It's good corn, but not worth stealing."

I laughed and made myself another piece of corn before we went back out to the living room.

As Trevor and I ate, everyone told us about their weekend. Will took the kids to Sandy Lake Park, an amusement park, with Megan, Dave, Ethan and EJ. When I asked about Serena, Amber said she had to work with air quotes. I ignored her drunken antics and looked over Trevor's shoulder as he flipped through pictures on Sammy's phone of the party in Austin.

Sammy told us everything went smoothly except when Ron, her boss, found out the event was being filmed. He was flying down Wednesday for a meeting to discuss it.

"I don't know what he's going to say. All the girls and I signed off on being filmed. I have no idea why he wouldn't want us on TV." She shrugged.

"Probably has to do with the brand. He controls that." Corey offered.

"Aren't you smart? Why don't you tell them how you spent your weekend?" Sammy countered.

Corey ignored her while Sammy continued to glare at him.

"Ok... Florida was amazing. How was Shreveport? Did Lily miss much?" Trevor asked.

"There isn't much to miss besides casinos but I hope y'all had a good time." Forrest replied, looking over at Rocky for a response.

"I did. Josh lounge was great. Old school music, jazz and no teenagers running around." Rocky added.

Forrest smiled. "I told you would like it. It's only for the-

"Grown and sexy." Rocky finished with Forrest before they both laughed.

I looked at Rocky, expectantly. When she stopped laughing, she explained. "Every time the DJ would get on the mic, he kept saying this next song is for the grown and sexy only in a fake, Barry White voice."

"I can't believe y'all left me at the casino." Jackie pouted.

"You left me first in the room to go to the casino." Rocky pointed out.

"Because you didn't wanna go. I would have went to the club!" Jackie declared.

"You wouldn't have liked it." Rocky waved her off.

"You still could have asked." Jackie argued.

"We tried." Rocky said.

"I'm sure you tried really hard." She snapped.

"We really did. Peyton found a Wizard of Oz game and wouldn't leave. We couldn't even find you and you weren't answering your phone." Forrest defended Rocky.

"Well, maybe next time." Jackie said, all sugary sweet."Everything was fabulous. Forrest showed us a great time." She said, turning and resting her hand on Forrest's leg Her demeanor changed so fast it made me wonder if she should be on medication. Or in a padded room. Maybe both.

"I loved Cajun Daiquiris. Drive through daiquiris shops. It looked like ICEE machines, but with alcohol. It was amazing!" Peyton raved.

"How many times did y'all drive thru? I was close to turning my phone off after all your drunk texts." Chris admitted while we laughed.

"That was at the casino. Free drinks!" Peyton laughed.

"Lily... tell us about Florida." Amber asked.

"It was amazing like Trevor said." I said, smiling.

"What part did you go to?" Forrest asked.

"The Keys. We drove from Miami to Key West." Trevor said, wrapping his arm around me.

"That sounds so beautiful." Amber gushed. "Pictures! You hadn't posted anything!"

"I literally didn't look at my phone unless it was to take pictures, it was that much fun." I handed Amber my phone. The girls minus Jackie, all huddled around her to see. "Trevor planned a wonderful weekend for us. We were discussing making this a regular thing- weekend trips."

"All these food pictures." Sammy commented about the pictures with a smirk.

"That was the highlight of my trip." I replied.

"Really? We went parasailing and on a sunset cruise, but that was your highlight?" Trevor asked me with a grin.

"Yeah. Hi, I'm Lily. I love food." I said, holding at my hand to him. "Nice to meet you."

He grabbed my hand and pulled me back in his arms in a hug. I laughed and hugged him back.

"Ohmygod, how romantic! Look at the sunset and you and Trevor. And the white dress. You look so bridal!" Amber gasped dramatically.

"I don't know about the dress, but getting married on the water crossed my mind." I laughed.

"Why didn't you ask her to marry you?" Amber asked Trevor, demandingly.

Trevor stiffened, holding me tightly in his arms. He was speechless. Drunk Amber was confrontational, nosey and kinda rude. I didn't know if I should be impressed or offended.

"Amber, come sit down. You can't tell a man when to propose. He'll propose when he's ready." Will asked her.

"He's ready! What happened?" She turned back to stare at Trevor.

"My dad promised his blessing after a year of dating. Don't expect an engagement until after then." I answered for Trevor, sending him an apologetic look. I felt so bad about Amber putting him on the spot like this. I had no idea what got into her... oh, yeah, tequila. Never mind.

"And you're going along with that?" Amber interrogated me.

"Yes." I said simply, trying to end the conversation.

"When did y'all start dating again?" Amber questioned, sitting down looking confused.

"Officially, New Year's. Well, a couple days after New Year's." I corrected myself, looking at Trevor for confirmation. He just nodded, still holding me rigidly.

"You should propose on New Year's Eve then." She told Trevor. Her eyes then brightened. "Oh! Then get married New Year's Day! It can be like a secret wedding!"

"How can it be a secret if you told everyone?" Rocky smiled at Amber, good humored.

"Yeah, stop talking, you sound stupid. You're cut off." Sammy added, grabbing the tequila bottle and moving it from her. Amber frowned up.

I looked up at Trevor and smiled. "Well, my dad wouldn't know..."

He blinked a few times before answering me. "Are you serious?"

I shrugged. "It's something to consider. I mean, we would be following his rule and reminding him he can't control my life at the same time. It's a win win."

"I don't think that's what Covey meant..." Forrest commented. I laughed at him.

"Wow... you wanna get married to spite him." Trevor shook his head. I turned back to him.

"No, I wanna get married because I love you and I want to start of lives and our family together. Spiting him with be the icing on the cake. And don't act like you never thought the same way. Remember your first proposal?" I teased him.

"First proposal?" Chris asked, confused.

"Oh yeah, when he proposes, it will be the 3rd time." I responded.

"If." Trevor corrected me and everyone laughed.

"When!" I said, confidently before giving him a kiss.



We spent the rest of Labor Day outside with the kids and Justine as they played in the sprinklers. Rocky and Forrest played some old-school r&b and hip-hop while Jackie complained about it. I normally would too, but I couldn't agree with Jackie, so I shut up and enjoyed it. While Corey and Trevor where talking among themselves, I took the opportunity to pull Sammy aside.

"Why are you mad at Corey?" I asked her.

"He went to a bar this weekend with high school friends, including Tori." Sammy said bitterly.

"Did something happen?"

"Yeah, he hung out with her!" Sammy said, matter of factly.

"Other than that?"

"That's enough. He has no business hanging out with his ex."

"Not everyone thinks like you about that. You have to trust him. Do you really think something else happened?"

"Hell no. He wouldn't cheat on me."

"Then let it go." I lectured her.

She rolled her eyes. "We'll see."

"You need to come to my boxing class with me. Let out some anger." I suggested to her.

"I don't play fight."



Will took the kids home as soon as the sun set. Amber stayed to help clean. I told Trevor I would see him at home as he left along with Forrest, Corey, Peyton, and Chris.  As we finished up, Rocky pulled me into her room, saying she had something for me. I followed Rocky into her room.  She returned the present I got her for her birthday: a wedding planner and bridal magazines.

"While I was cleaning out my closet, I found these. When Trevor asks you, you'll be ready." Rocky handed them to me.

"I'm not even going to be mad at you for  re-gifting my own gift. I got you some Apple Crown too..." I remembered.

"That Crown has been gone. How do you think I got in this situation?" She asked dryly, waving over her stomach. We both laughed and rejoined Sammy and Amber in the kitchen.

"C'mon Sammy. You don't have to be anywhere tomorrow..." Amber was pleading to Sammy.

"That don't mean I wanna babysit you. I'm taking you home and you owe we $20." Sammy shut her down.

"You're charging to take her home?" I asked, puzzled.

"No, she lost a bet." Sammy answered.

"What bet?" Rocky asked.

"She said Lily was getting engaged last weekend. I told her Trevor was just trying to keep Lily's ass away from Forrest. I won" Sammy grinned.

"You both are wrong. He just wanted to surprise like he always does. I already told you Trevor is not worried about Forrest. It's obvious Forrest is interested in someone else..." I said, looking at Rocky.

Rocky shook her head. "I'm focused on me and my child. I don't want or need a relationship anytime soon and nether does he. We both had engagements end: it's just nice having someone to talk to."

"Good, because I'm all over it." Jackie said, with a smile.

Eww. I made a mental note to myself to shut that down before I went home to Trevor.

When I got home, I assumed Trevor would be in bed because he had to work the next day. He was up on his laptop. I put my bags away after grabbing the souvenir I picked out for him. When I sat on the couch with him, he closed his laptop. I grinned and put the sailor hat on his head before moving to his lap.

"You got me a souvenir too?" He asked.

"It's really for us. I wanna role play." I smiled.

"Role play huh?"

"Yes. Like we're back in the ocean, on a boat alone. You're the captain and I'm the first mate."

"Ahoy Matey." He said, in pirate accent.

"Not a pirate." I giggled.

"Are you questioning your captain, scallywag?" He continued in the same voice.

"Nay." I smiled.

"Nay who?"

"Nay captain." I corrected.

"C’mere, me beauty." He said, swatting my ass. "To the back of me ship so we can rock the boat."

"Aye aye captain!"