Two thousand words! Wowee. Feel free to request, guys, and I'll post it in my imagines book.

"Mommy?"

You both stopped your playful banter to turn to the sleepy girl. She looked tired but very happy to see her parents together nonetheless.

You both stared at her for a long time, not sure what to do.

Thomas snapped first, releasing you from his embrace. He walked to her without a second glance at you.

"Hello, sweetheart," he picked her up from the floor effortlessly, making his way to the kitchen island. "What do you want for breakfast, hmm? I'll see what I have here..." he sat her on the counter and looked around the cabinets.

You shook yourself out of ogling your shirtless ex and strode to the fridge, getting the milk, knowing that Thomas would decide on cereal.

You were right.

Kinda.

Once Thomas had a bowl in hand, he hesitated, then his eyes brightened.

"Tell you what, why don't we eat outside by the beach? It's a little cool out," he looked to you for your opinion.

"Eh, it's a little too sandy outside..."

"Ah, I suppose you've seen the hammocks and tables around the house? We should put it to good use," he mused.

You looked at your daughter - Thomas' eyes followed - to see her looking at you both excitedly.

You sighed in mock resignation. "Alright, then. You go let daddy help you get changed. I'll cook something up."

Hope hopped down the counter, pulling Thomas along with her. Before he was dragged completely out of your reach, he leaned in to peck your lips.

"Thank you," he mouthed, giving in to his daughter's pull, chuckling softly.

You grab the bacon and tray of eggs that you recalled seeing earlier and pulled out a pan.

You smiled to yourself. 

You were here, at this beach house, cooking breakfast as your husband - ex-husband - dresses your daughter.

This is the life.

"Y/N?"

You hummed in response.

Thomas wrapped his arms around you from behind. "Hope's already out back," his voice was muffled against your neck.

"Alright," you tilted your head to give his lips access. "I'm almost done here."

"Need any help?"

"Mmm, no. I guess you could bring the orange juice outside?"

"Done." he kissed behind your ear before disappearing.

Before he went to the back porch, you heard him lock the laundry room.

You should confront him about it, you knew that much. It shouldn't be a big deal if he didn't hide from you.

No more hiding. He promised.

Those two sentences haunted your mind as you joined your family out back.

Thomas was lying down on the hammock, Hope sitting down by his shoulders, his arm draped around her waist. She was talking animatedly to him about something and he was smiling and sometimes, responding to her.

She laughed when he did. It was a beautiful sight.

Hope saw you first, and Thomas helped her out of the hammock.

As Hope started devouring breakfast, you sat by Thomas' waist, swaying the hammock a little by your foot.

You took his hand to get his attention, though he was already staring at you. He stroked your knuckles with his thumb.

"You can't hide things from me. You promised," you said quietly, quoting the thoughts in your head from earlier.

He feigned innocence at first, but you gave him a look to which he sighed. "We'll talk later, okay? I promise,"

"Should I be worried?" you asked.

"Well, no, but I know you will be regardless."

"Hmm." you gave him a sarcastic smile before pulling him to a seated position. "Eat."

You handed him a plate. He chuckled. "Yes, ma'am."

"What's the plan for today?" you draped your leg over his, making him smile.

"Well, we just got her back, I was thinking we could go for a swim." he took a bite off his bacon. "My sister bought you a swimsuit."

You glared at him.

"Fine. I bought you a swimsuit, I let her choose it for me." he rolled his eyes, licking the grease off his lips.

You picked a strip of bacon off his plate, saying nothing back.

"Hey, your birthday is in a week from now," he smiled. "I've already gotten into the cruise idea so you can't stop it from happening."

"Must you ruin my morning further?" you sighed teasingly, biting into the strip.

"I owe you six birthdays, love," he smiled boyishly, though his eyes were filled with grief.

"You sent me books and things every year," you shot back softly. "thank you for that, by the way. I really liked them. They were... personal. I could always see you put some thought into it and you didn't just pick something up as if it was for an acquaintance."

He smiled. "Just because we made a certificate void doesn't mean my feelings were void, too." he ran his knuckles along your arm.

You laughed breathlessly, trying to get rid of the awkward air.

"I love you, Y/N."

You held your breath, feeling an inch tall all of a sudden.

"I know it makes you uncomfortable so let me say it again - once - and I'll never say it again until you want me to."

You felt his finger nudge your chin up, a silent command for you to meet his gaze. You did so reluctantly.

What you saw blew you away.

His eyes were intense, and though he hadn't spoken the words yet, his eyes screamed them. You could see the words in his brown orbs.

"I lo-"

The hammock dipped then, and you looked down to see your daughter crawling up Thomas' lap. A hint of jealousy seeped through your nerves, but you shrugged it off. Hope was with you all her life, and she only got her father back.

She sat herself between his long legs and beckoned him to lean towards her with her little fingers. Amused, he obliged his daughter's request with a glance at your way.

Hope lifted her lips to his ear, whispering something presumably mischievous, because Thomas had that glint in his eyes at she finished speaking.

Your heart stopped as two pairs of brown orbs stared at you. You felt the urge to run away as Thomas' arms reached for you, lifting you effortlessly over his shoulder.

These two...

"Put me down, you sadist!"

"What's that?" Hope ran after her father, who made his way across the kitchen and out of the house, towards the beach.

They wouldn't dare.

"I'll tell you later, sweetheart," was Thomas' smart reply.

As you inched closer towards the water, still at Thomas' mercy, you began flailing her limbs uselessly. You lifted her lips to his ear, much like Hope did.

"If you so much as let my toes touch the water I will push you into the ocean when we get into that cruise you speak of," 

Thomas laughed loudly. "I'd like to see you try, love,"

He stopped all of a sudden, and Y felt him move - presumably to remove his shoes.

You heard the water swoosh around his legs as he walked into it. He sent your daughter a glance before continuing down the sea.

He shifted so you were in his arms - one hand under your knees and the other on your back. Instinctively you wrapped your arms around his neck, but not without glaring at him.

You winced when you felt water touch your bottom. Thomas probably felt it, because he pressed his lips to your temple.

"I'm hardly wearing anything water appropriate, Thomas."

He shushed you. "Just enjoy it." Slowly, he lowered your legs and wrapped them around his hips. The water was up to your chests now.

"This is bound to be very awkward," you muttered, not being able to keep your eyes off his lips.

"Lay back," he commanded softly, a small smile on his face.

You widened your eyes. "What?"

"Lay back," he repeated. "just your arms. I'll keep holding you. Trust me. It'll be fun."

Hesitantly, you released your grip on Thomas' neck and leaned back, letting your back touch the water. You kept your legs wrapped around his waist.

"Spread your arms, like this." he released one hand from your hip and put your hands over your head before placing his hand back on your hip.

You closed your eyes and felt the cold water sway your body. Any anxiety vanished, having felt Thomas' large hands on your waist.

After what felt like forever, you shifted to let Thomas know you want to sit up. He understood, guiding your torso back against his.

It felt intense, facing him chest to chest. Trying to shake yourself out of this trance, you cleared your throat and looked at Hope, who was trying to build a sandcastle, then back to Thomas pointedly.

"She's doing fine, love. Stop using our daughter." he chuckled.

You sighed, turning your pout to a full on glare.

It began vanishing slowly, though, when you took him in inch by inch.

He rested your hands on his toned shoulders, still aware of your inability to swim. Droplets of water were running down his equally muscled arm, others staying on his skin. His jawline was just as pronounced as it was when you met him, if not more. His cheeks and nose were dotted with freckles, bringing light to his eyes somehow.

His eyes.

They were switching their gaze from your lips to your mouth.

You willed yourself to continue your perusal of his face.

His hair was nearly damp from the saltwater, some of his locks draping over his forehead, some reached his eyes.

Instinctively, you brought your hand up to his face, brushing the stray locks away from it.

Thomas seemed to take it as an encouragement, because he pressed his lips to yours for a good couple seconds before pulling away.

"Isn't this worth staying for?" he smiled softly.

"I already agreed to move in with you, Tommy, no need to convince me."

He began to carry you both to shore slowly as he spoke. "Ah, that was what I thought when I married you. But I realized I have to convince you every day that I'm worth staying for."

"You make it sound like it's a hard task." you frowned.

"Exactly. It's not hard. I just had to be there at home, and yet I failed at doing so." he smiled at the shore - at your daughter - once she caught sight of you both. His smile disappeared when Hope turned to her sandcastle. "But I'll do right by you this time."

You nodded, not knowing how to respond. You pulled yourself away from Thomas' grip once you reached the shore. 

"I'll go back to the house," you told Thomas, "I need to get changed."

"Want us to come with you?" he picked Hope up in his arms and laughed lightly when she spread some wet sand on his chest.

You shrugged, not caring.

You heard footsteps and laughter following you into the house.

"Stay here, love," he told you. "I'll get you a towel so no one will slip on a wet floor."

He brought his daughter with him. He probably changed her clothes because he took longer than usual. But as promised, he reappeared with a towel in one hand.

"I drew you a bath," he smiled, wrapping the towel around your shoulders.

"Thank you," you whispered.

"You want anything for lunch?" he called as you stepped up the stairs.

"Ask your daughter," you answered back.

"Fast asleep in her room. From the looks of it, it's just the two of us."

"Anything you can make."

You didn't hear a response after that, so you went straight to the bathroom and into the tub where sleep found you.

Thank you for your support.

My heart skips a beat whenever someone tells me what they think, so please, be my guest - comment below what you thought of this chapter!

See y'all in a few weeks.