Imperfect

Family Life

"Happy Anniversary!" Everyone cheered around us. I smiled and gently tapped my champagne flute of orange juice against Finley's glass of water. We had arranged a huge garden party for our Fifth wedding anniversary at our new home. It was the first time anyone other than Fin and I had seen it. The sun was shining down and there was a warm breeze in the May air. I sipped my champagne and absorbed everything. The beautiful white Roses that wound through the trellises around the deck. The bees gathering nectar from the flowers that had bloomed around the garden. I looked around at our families and friends and I was so happy to see them all, then my eyes found their way back to Finley's face, and his eyes. Those beautiful emerald eyes I had fallen in love with a decade before.

"You need to get rid of the silly beard Fin. You've never been able to grow one." I said with a smirk. I gently tickled his chin and he pushed my hand away.

"I'll shave mine, when you shave yours." He winked at me and I gasped. Pretending to be shocked at the insult.

"At least mine is a full beard. It puts yours to shame." I stroked my chin mockingly and Finley shook his head at me.

"Mommy doesn't have a beard!" Lily protested from next to me. "And you smell like poop Daddy."

"Yeah Daddy. You smell like poop." I agreed. Lily giggled and carried on with her colouring book. I leaned down and kissed her head. Her beautiful long blonde hair smelled like strawberries and she tucked it behind her ears. She needed a haircut but I didn't want to do it. I kept telling myself I would do it when she started school. We still had a few months to go.

"Well, that's me cussed out. You win girls, as usual." I winked at him and adjusted the giant pretty bow in our daughters straight hair.

"What do you think of the new house Lily?" I asked. She stopped colouring and looked up at me. She swung her legs slightly and then burst into her gorgeous smile. She had definitely gotten that from Fin.

"I love it Mommy! Nanny and Grampy are closer now, and Uncle Jamie can come and see us more and he can bring Uncle Kyler with him and we can all play." She continued colouring and I beamed at her. I loved her more than I ever knew it was physically possible to love anyone. We had moved to protect her. Too many people knew where our house was in LA, and when I found her outside, at the gate talking to a reporter I knew it was time to move. The beautiful country cottage we had chosen was even better than the mansion in LA. Vines grew up the walls and gave the outside of the rural house a beautiful natural look. The downsize was difficult at first and we had to throw a lot of clutter away, but that didn't matter. They were just things, and we had our memories which were more than enough for us. The inside of the cottage had a modern feel to it, as it had been converted a few years before, but it still retained some original beams and some interesting nooks and crannies. It definitely made for fun games of hide and seek with Lily.

"You know Daddy is going away to film tomorrow Lily, aren't you going to be nice to me today?" Finley goaded her. She looked at him. Her green eyes sparkling, just like Finley's did. She placed a crayon to her chin gently. Pondering what he had just asked her.

"Hmmm. No. I'll be nice tomorrow Daddy, I promise." I looked at Fin and we laughed.

"Oh God help me when she grows up. She's got her Mother's attitude." Finley said. Jamie approached our table and began tickling Lily. She erupted into giggle screams and began wriggling, trying to get away from him. He picked her up and held her against his hip.

"Uncle Jay Jay!" She shouted. She wrapped her cute, slightly chubby arms around his neck and put her head on his shoulder. "Is Uncle Ky here too?" She asked looking excited. Jamie and Kyler had gotten married just over a year after Fin and I and they were both huge parts of our lives. Lily fiddled with Jamie's afro as she often did and Jamie bounced her slightly up and down.