CHAPTER 4.7: Cocktails and dreams

 Joshua was such a happy little baby who clearly adored his father and the feeling was mutual. 

Every minute that Cody spent with his son brought the two closer and closer, but when it came time for Cody to leave and head back to Fort Gnome military base in Riverview, little Joshua would scream the house down.

Cody promised to spend every day off he got making the long trip back to Bridgeport even if it was only to spend one night with him.

But watching the heartbreak that Cody clearly felt when he had to leave and seeing the tears stream down her sons face became too much for Iris and she resolved to find a solution to the problem.

That day Ivy had persuaded her to tear herself away from Joshua and take a trip down town to the boutique to look at wedding dresses.

"Iris are you even listening to me?"  Ivy demanded.

"Huh?  What did you say?"  Iris asked suddenly awakening from her deep thoughts.

"You haven't heard a word i said have you?"  Ivy asked crossly.

"Sorry Ivy I'm just trying to figure something out is all."

"Let me guess this has something to do with Cody?"  She asked sighing dramatically, "Why don't you just get back together with him already?"

"It's not that simple."  Iris replied quietly.

"Sure you love him he loves you, you have a baby together, it's so complicated!"

"Ivy he joined the army, he gave up everything he ever dreamed of for me!"  She cried, "It's all my fault, i ruined his life just like Alex said i would."

"Iris you didn't ruin his life."  Ivy soothed, "He made his own choices."

Iris nodded but deep inside she knew that she was right, she had taken away Cody's hopes and dreams and she just couldn't live with that.

Saying goodbye to Ivy, Iris did something that she hadn't done in a while.  She took a walk all by herself.

She walked right across town until she reached the hill overlooking the old port.

Just as she arrived the sun began to dip in the sky.
As it met the water's horizon it spread a beautiful pink hue over the ocean which twinkled like a million stars across the water's surface.

Suddenly it dawned on Iris that the answer to her problems had been under her nose all along and she knew what she had to do to rectify the situation.

Turning, she ran from the hill overlooking the dock as fast as she could hoping to reach City Hall before closing time.

She raced into the buildings office with minutes to spare and persuaded the clerk at the desk to help her.

30 minutes later she walked out of City Hall triumphantly clutching an important document.

Iris Traytor was now the proud owner of a small plot of land.

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That weekend Cody had made the long journey from Riverview to Bridgeport to spend time with Joshua.

Iris watched as he played with their son, the two of them so happy in each others company.

"Hey, it's time for his nap now."  She instructed lightly.

"Sorry, i just find it hard to put him down once I've picked him up."  Cody laughed.

"How about taking a little walk with me?"  Iris asked.

"Sure."  Cody shrugged.

They took they familiar path down towards the beach. "Wow it's been a while since i saw this place." Cody said.


"It's changed a bit since you were here last."  Iris replied, struggling to contain her smile.

"What's going on Iris?"  He asked smiling, "I'm starting to feel like you wanted more than a walk, do you have another reason for bringing me here?"

"Keep walking and you'll see."  She replied, smirking to herself.

Cody did just that and as he approached the sand of Bridgeport's shore he realised what she had meant by the beach had changed.

"Whoa, check this out!"  He called taking in the sight of the beach bar, "How long has this been here?"

"Not long, it's actually pretty new."  Iris replied.

"It's amazing."  Cody enthused.

"The grand opening is tomorrow."  Iris told him, "Look there's cocktails and you can sit on the loungers and sunbathe too."

Cody did not reply, he seemed dumbstruck as he regarded the sign above the bar.

"Do you like it?"  Iris asked noting his interest in the sign.

"Cody's place?"  He said.

"Well i wanted to name it after my inspiration for the bar."  Iris replied smiling.

"Wait!  You own this bar?"  Cody said raising his eyebrows in surprise.

Iris nodded, "I know this was your dream, you and Dalton and Alex but i figured there was no reason that your beach bar couldn't be here, where Josh is."

"And this?"  He asked, gesturing to the wall mural.

"I painted it from some of the photo's i took of you surfing last year."  She replied shyly, "Do you like it?"

"It's amazing Iris, you're so talented."

"And what about the bar?"  She asked.

"It's great."  He said half heartedly before walking away towards the ocean.

"Did i do something wrong?"  She asked following him.

"No."  he replied sadly, "It's just, well it's already hard for me to leave Bridgeport and go back to base i guess seeing this bar reminds me of what i gave up on."

"But don't you see Cody, i did this so that you don't have to give up your dream.  We can run this place together, i thought you could start giving surfing lessons in Summer and once Josh is old enough he can come and hang out here with us, that way he'll grow up loving the things we love, the beach and the ocean."

"Iris i would love that, but i can't."  He stated, slumping onto one of the beach loungers.

"When i enlisted in the army i signed up for a minimum of 5 years, it was the only way they would accept me and agree to pay for all my accommodation and training."  He explained, "I can't just quit now that i have a better offer, i made a commitment Iris."

"But surely they can't force you to stay, i mean there has to be a way around this."  She pleaded.

"There isn't."  He replied, "If i were to leave now they would classify me as A.W.O.L, if they caught me i could get sent to military prison."

"So that's it!  There's nothing i can do to fix the mess I've made?"  She cried in frustration.

"Iris, what mess?"  He asked, concerned at her outburst.

"The mess I've made of your life!"  She yelled, "All the dreams and ambitions you had Cody they're all just gone because of me, because of my father."

Cody shook his head, "This isn't your fault.  I made the decision to join the army and not to go on the road with Dalton and Alex, that was my choice alone.  Not yours and not your fathers either."  He said.

"But if i hadn't been pregnant you would never of made that choice."  She countered.

"Well i think we both played our parts in that."  He smiled, "Look Iris you're not responsible for me or for the choices i have made, but i love you for trying to fix them anyway."

"You still love me after all this."  She exclaimed in genuine surprise.

"Of course i do!"  He laughed, "What amazes me is that after i left you alone to deal with having our baby you would still do all of this for me."  He said gesturing to the bar, "I'm the one who doesn't deserve you Iris."

She reached out and grabbed his hand in hers, "You do deserve me Cody, you always did."  She told him.

Leaping up from the lounger Cody held Iris tightly, stroking her hair he said, "I love you Iris, i know that it won't be easy for us to be apart for the next 5 years but i swear that I'll be here as much as i can, I'll drive to Bridgeport every weekend to be with you."  He promised.

"I love you too Cody."  she replied, "We'll get through this i know we will and when you get out of the army we can run this place together." 

"Does this mean that we're back together again?"  He asked hopefully.


She smiled and nodded her agreement, "Yes, we're Cody and Iris again!"

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Iris once again discovered the joy of being deeply in love, it was as though her and Cody had just met. 

Whenever he was at home they would steal whatever moments they could and just be together.


Iris found herself savouring each touch and each kiss as she knew that all too soon it would be time for Cody to go back to base.

And then she would once again be alone.


Their relationship was like an emotional roller coaster, with the soaring highs she felt when Cody would arrive matched equally by the crushing lows she experienced when he had to say goodbye.

"It's not forever."  Cody would always say to her.


But as he kissed her goodbye for what felt like the hundredth time she began to feel the frustration of it all over again.  She didn't want to have to put their lives on hold until the army had finished with him, she wanted their life as a family to begin now.


But Iris had never been one to wallow in self pity or to allow adversity to best her so she threw herself into her other interests with great fervour.

She spent most evenings, after Josh was tucked up in his crib, down at the beach bar which had become incredibly popular.  She had even hired a full time mixologist who had added to the cocktail list and had attracted some of Bridgeport's trendiest celebs.


Ivy of course was in her element, schmoozing with them. 


She was becoming a household name from her appearances on Bridgeport Nights, a crime drama starring Maxwell Cross who was a hugely popular young actor.

She had originally been given a bit part playing a helpless victim but she had so impressed the director that he had written a part just for her and Ivy was now the second lead on the show.

All of this should have made Ivy ecstatically happy, but Iris didn't need to use her twin super senses to know that all was far from well with her sister. 

She had become more and more secretive and although she had accepted Bobby's marriage proposal and planned the wedding of the year, she had not been mentioned it in weeks.


"Ivy?"  Iris asked tentatively.


"Yeah?"  She replied, wiping her face with the back of her hand before turning to meet her sister.

"Talk to me, tell me what's wrong?"  Iris pressed.


"Wrong?  What could possibly be wrong?"  Ivy asked, turning her dazzling smile up a couple of watts, "Did you know that the last episode of Bridgeport Nights got the highest ratings yet?  We even beat The Sims and The Restless!"  She bragged.


"I'm pleased for you, but something is bothering you i know it is.  Is it the wedding?"  Iris continued.


"Iris please!  You couldn't be more wrong."  Ivy countered, "In fact Simstyle magazine has offered to pay 50,000 Simoleans for exclusive coverage."


"So the wedding is going ahead this weekend?"  Iris confirmed.

"Of course it is!"  Ivy laughed, "Why on Earth would i not want to marry Bobby?"  She asked.


"Ivy you're a great actress you truly are but you don't have to pretend with me."  Iris pleaded, "I can see it in your eyes, something is wrong."


Ivy sighed and dropped her facade, "OK you win, you're right I'm not fine but there's nothing you can do to fix it either so there's really no point in me telling you."


Iris raised her eyebrows at her sister.


"OK, OK I'll tell you."  Ivy conceded, she knew that Iris would not let it lie, "I'm having second thoughts about the wedding."  She admitted.


"Why?"

"I love Bobby, Iris i really do, but......... I'm not in love with him anymore."  Ivy confessed.


"How long have you felt like this for?"


"A while now, since before graduation."  She replied, bitting her lip.


"Then why did you accept his proposal?" Iris demanded.


"How could i not?"  Ivy sighed, "It's all I've dreamed about for as long as i can remember, being an actress and marrying Bobby.  That was my plan, i can't change it now."


"Ivy of course you can."  Iris pleaded, "It's not too late."


"Yes Iris it is.  Simstyle have already paid me the money, I've put a deposit down on a penthouse in Bridgeport Heights and they are coming to do a photo shoot with us after the honeymoon.  I can't back out now."

"Ivy that's crazy!"  Iris exclaimed, "You can't marry Bobby because of some photo shoot, just get the money back from the flat and give it back to Simstyle."


"Are you insane?"  Ivy yelled, "You don't pass up the front page of Simstyle Iris, it's career suicide!"


"Ivy listen to yourself."  Iris pleaded, "This is crazy."


"I'm sorry i told you."  Ivy cried, "If you say anything to Mom and Dad I'll never forgive you."  She threatened.


Throwing her hands up in despair Iris retreated to her room.

Laying down on the bed she closed her eyes.

Her head immediately filled with memories of Cody, his arms around her, the smell of his warm skin as he breathed gently next to her.

Although the thoughts she conjured up each night brought her a mixture of pleasure and pain she still could not imagine how Ivy could even contemplate marrying someone she was not in love with.

The thought of settling for anything less than what she had with Cody was like a foreign language to Iris, she could not comprehend it.

She closed her eyes once more and recalled the touch of Cody's gentle hands on her body, even if all she had were her memories of him she knew she would take that over settling for second best any day.

Iris knew she had to get through to Ivy before the wedding that weekend, she couldn't let her sister keep this secret any longer.

Although there was one thing Iris knew, and that's that when a woman has a secret she will do everything she can to hold onto it, until she is ready for it to be revealed.

chapter4.6

Chapter4.8

Although i would love to take credit for the creation of Cody's place i can't because it was made by *n-a-n-u* and you can find it at TSR  Beach_bar

The mural of Cody surfing was made by Janthie78 also at TSR Surf_mural
(PS it's not actually Cody but i figured it looked enough like him to get away with it!)