Forever and Always by Beverley Hollowed

would take care of you. It would be perfect”.
    “Sam as lovely as that sounds, I just can’t” Melanie replied sitting up and buttoning up her top. “I have to finished school. And there is my parents too. And I want to go to college. I want to be a teacher”.
    “You could go to college here” he said sitting up next to her.
    “Sam how could I” Melanie asked. “My Dad would never agree to pay for me to stay here. He probably couldn’t afford it anyway”.
    “I told you I would take care of you” Sam exclaimed. “When I turned twenty one. I was given a very large trust fund. Money would not be an issue.”
    “It would be to me” Melanie sighed. “Sam I am very grateful, I honestly am but this is something I want to do for myself. I don’t want someone to take care of me. I would never be happy knowing I had to depend on someone for hand outs . And I know that’s not how you would see it but I would. You are very sweet to even offer and there is nothing I would love more then to stay here forever with you. But I need to do it in my own way. I am sorry”.
    “You have nothing to be sorry for” Sam said and smiled. “In fact if it’s possible I think I love you more. Most girls I know look at me and see dollar signs. They go through life just waiting to land a rich husband and to them that would mean they were successful. But you are different. You have hopes and dreams that go way beyond the flashy and sparkly things in life. You know who you are and what you want. You are so strong and determined. You are perfect”.
    “Sometimes I don’t feel so strong” Melanie replied and looked down at her hands.
    “You are probably the strongest person I know” he replied and took her hand. “We will figure this out Melanie. Whatever it takes. I don’t ever want to let you go. I love you”.
    He kissed her and they sunk back down on to the sand.
    Later that evening when they headed home, Sam said he wanted to cook her his world famous Lasagne. Melanie asked what made it world famous to which Sam replied “Because it is baby”. Melanie tried her hardest not to laugh but his face was so serious she couldn’t help it. Then Sam pretended to be deeply wounded and Melanie laughed even harder.
    She watched him as he moved comfortably around the kitchen.
    “So where did you learn to cook” Melanie asked as he placed the minced beef into a pan and placed it on the hob on the cooker. “I would burn boiling water”.
    “Well when I was a kid” he explained as turned to the counter and began to finely chop some garlic. “Alice, our house keeper was an amazing cook. Mom used to work long hours at the hospital and Dad would be away on business more than he was home.
    Andrew was a typical teenager out all the time with his friends or a girl, so I used to be left at home with Alice quite a bit. I would sit on the counter and watch her for hours preparing meal.
    When Mom was home she would always tell me to go to my room and not to be getting under Alice’s feet but when it was just the two of us I would sit there and watch everything she did. Then one day she asked if I would like to try myself. She taught me everything.  And I loved every minute of it. Then one day, when I was about eleven I was cooking and I stretched over to get something, I don’t even remember what. My sleeve caught the handle of a pot of boiling water and I knocked it down on myself and scaled my leg”.
    “Oh My God” Melanie exclaimed.
    “Oh it wasn’t a bad burn” he shrugged. “Just a minor thing really. But my Mom freaked out. She sacked Alice. I tried to lie and said I had waited till Alice was gone and climbed up to get something even though she had told me not to go near the stove. But my Mom didn’t care. I was devastated the day Alice packed her belongings and left. She had been more of a parent to me the either of mine had ever been”.
    “That is so sad” Melanie replied.
    “Don’t get me wrong Melanie” he said