by Parker, Ali
“I am really good at this. I can’t believe I wasted all that time in school. I could have been doing this all along.”
Trent scowled. “No. The school was worth it. You knew how to work those numbers just enough to get the deal done. Thank you. I truly could not have done it without you.”
“You are very welcome. Now, I’ll leave you two alone to celebrate. I’m going to change into something perfectly sexy, and I’m headed out. Do not wait up for me.”
Trent pulled me in for a big hug and slowly turned me around. I barely had time to put my glass on the table before he was hauling me to the couch. He covered me with his body, kissing me as if we were alone. I could feel his excitement. It was contagious.
“I better wait until she’s gone,” he whispered, rolling off of me before moving to sit on the other end of the couch.
I sat up and moved to him, kissing him on the mouth before slowly sliding my way down his neck. He grabbed me and pulled me into his lap, my feet hanging over the opposite edge of the couch. We both knew we were waiting until Khloe left, and then it would be game on.
I looked up at him. He was smiling as he looked down at me. His hand gently caressed my cheek. “I take it the lab didn’t blow up?”
I laughed. “No, but someone is in a lot of trouble. There were all kinds of official-looking people roaming about.”
“It wasn’t a dangerous gas leak?”
I shrugged. “I don’t think so. No one was sick. I’m sure it is just them being overly cautious.”
“Is your job dangerous?” he asked.
“No. I mean, I suppose I could get stabbed with a scalpel, but that could happen anywhere. I don’t deal with toxic chemicals or infectious diseases. It’s safe.”
He nodded. “Good. I don’t like the thought of you going to work in a dangerous place. I never realized that could be a possibility until yesterday.”
“Thank you for worrying about me, but I promise I’m going to be okay,” I assured him.
He leaned down and kissed my forehead. Khloe came out of the bedroom dressed in an outfit that showcased all of her assets. Her makeup was heavy, and she looked like she was ready to have a good time.
“I’m outta here!” she said. “You kids behave yourselves, and don’t have sex on that couch. If that couch is staying here with me, I don’t want to be sitting where you guys have done it.”
I grinned, giving her a sweet angelic smile. “How do you know we haven’t already done it on this couch?”
Trent nearly choked.
She wrinkled up her nose. “Gross.”
“Bye!” I said, waving at her as she walked out the door.
We waited a few minutes, making sure she wasn’t going to come back in. Trent nearly threw me off his lap as he got to his feet. He was hauling me to the bedroom with such haste, I nearly tripped over my own feet.
It was a frantic joining, both of us tearing off our clothes and falling onto the bed. Once we had taken the edge off, we climbed under the covers to lie for a while. We were still in our honeymoon phase, and it had been days since we’d managed to sneak in a little private time.
“When is your first official day at the hotel?” I asked him as we both lay together, lost in our own thoughts.
“Monday, I assume. Khloe was supposed to be scheduling me a meeting with the old owner and the staff to explain all of the changes. I want to get started right away. I know there are a lot of rumors going around, and I want to get some things clear before people start quitting and looking for other work. I’d rather not have to hire an entire new staff. Dispelling rumors and uncertainty should help prevent that. The owner assures me his staff is loyal and some of the best people in town. I don’t want to lose them.”
I smiled, rubbing my hand over his chest. “You’re a good boss. Once they get a chance to know you, they won’t be going anywhere.”
“We’ll see.”
“So, since you’re probably going to be very busy from Monday going forward, what do you think about moving this weekend?”
“Baby, you know what I think!”
I laughed when he rolled out of bed and jumped to his feet, naked as the day he was born. “I’ve been waiting. I didn’t want to push you, but if you’re ready, I’m so ready.”
I grinned. “I am ready. I’m going to be leaving most everything here for Khloe. It will keep her from having to load her stuff from storage right away. Plus, she doesn’t have much. I’ll probably sell the furniture or give it to someone in need.”
He was bobbing his head up and down. “I’ll get boxes. We can pack tonight and move first thing in the morning.”
I loved how excited he was. “I’ll get dressed,” I said and got out of bed.
Trent was already pulling on clothes. He walked out of the bedroom and returned a few seconds later with his phone in hand. “There’s a Home Depot less than a mile away. I’ll head over there and get packing supplies. You stay here and start tossing your clothes onto the bed.”
He had jumped into drill sergeant mode. “Yes, sir,” I teased.
“Keys?” he asked.
“Do you even have a license?” I asked him.
He laughed. “I do. I just never use it. If I break your car, I’ll fix it.”
“You better, mister. My husband bought that for me, and I would hate to have it ruined before it was even a month old.”
He grinned. “Your husband must be a hell of a guy to buy you a car like that.”
“He is. He is absolutely the best husband ever.”
He gave me a quick kiss and rushed out the door. I couldn’t stop laughing. The man got a little crazy when he was eager about getting something done.
Leia meandered into the bedroom and hopped on the bed.
“Are you excited to move into your new house?” I asked her.
She yawned and fell over on the bed. I laughed at her complete and total opposite reaction. My reluctance to move into the house had been born of my need to hold onto my independence. It wasn’t fair to Trent or Leia. The issue with the money was mine, and I was going to deal with it. I could still be independent, but independent with a partner. We were a team.
I knew he would always support me. I also knew there were likely to be more occasions when I felt a little out of sorts with the huge income difference, but I wasn’t going to take it out on him. They were my own insecurities, and I could deal with them.
I sent Khloe a text, letting her know we were going to be moving tomorrow and she was going to be helping and not to get too wasted. I didn’t want her hungover. Her response was a thumbs-up emoji, followed by a few party hats and cocktails. I was happy she was making a life for herself and settling in.
I liked having her close. Even if it hadn’t been her dream city or her dream job, she’d landed on her feet. Life was definitely looking good for the both of us.
Chapter 67
Trent
I was humming with energy. I had never been so damn excited in all my life. In my eyes, it was the first day of the rest of my life. Sure, I had plenty of those first days, but now it was really the first day. It was going to be the first day in our new house with all of our new things and our new marriage. It was like I had been waiting my entire life for this one day to happen.
Now that it was finally here, I could hardly contain my excitement. I had kept poor Sade up until two o’clock packing. We’d called in reinforcements. Holly and Khloe were both carrying boxes to load into the three waiting cars.
“Are you sure I can’t hire a rental truck?” I complained.
“No, I don’t have anything that big,” Sade said again. “It’s just boxes. It will be faster to load everything in the cars and make one trip.”
I wanted to whine and complain that it wasn’t going fast enough. Unfortunately, my leg had been acting up, and walking up and down the stairs proved to be too much.
“I can hire movers,” I offered for the third time.
Sade took my hand and led me i
nto the bedroom, closing the door behind her. “Baby, I know you want this to go faster. It is going very fast. We’ll be at the house in a couple of hours. Will you please sit and rest your knee?”
I scowled. “My knee is fine.”
“It isn’t fine,” she said gently, pushing me backward until I sat on the bed.
“Sade,” I warned when she dropped to her knees in front of me.
The shorts I was wearing left my knee exposed. She kissed the destroyed knee. My automatic reaction was to flinch and jerk away. I hated to have my knee touched. It was a sign of weakness as far as I was concerned.
“Trent, I have plans for you later, and I need you in one piece. You’re not a weak man. You are far from weak, but I need you to just take a minute, okay?”
Her hand caressed over my throbbing knee. I knew she meant well. “I feel like an asshole sitting on the couch while the three women haul boxes.”
“You’re not an asshole,” she said. “You are a man who suffered a serious injury and is fortunate to be able to walk at all. Don’t push it. You don’t have to be the macho man. I’m learning to curb my independence, and you need to learn to curb your insecurity about the knee.”
She was right. Of course, she was right. “I’m sorry. I know you hate the macho thing.”
She grinned. “I don’t mind it with you too much, but this is not something I want you to do. I don’t like to see you in pain, and I know you’re in pain. Please, pack some more of the boxes, and we’ll finish loading the others into the car.”
I let out a deep breath, swallowing my pride and my ego and nodded. “Okay. But I’m buying lunch for everyone.”
She winked. “Damn straight you are.”
She left the room. The empty boxes called to me, needing to be packed. I did what she asked, staying out of their way. Part of me was glad I could hide out in the room. I hated them looking at me with pity. It was probably all in my own head, but it was still there. I supposed Sade and I both had some issues we needed to work through.
We would. Together.
Leia raced into the bedroom and hopped onto the bed. The poor dog was absolutely confused. She’d watched as her new bed had been hauled off along with her toys. She didn’t understand what was happening. She’d just started to get into a routine in the condo, and now she was being dragged away once again.
“I promise you, it’s going to be better,” I said to the dog. “You’re going to love your new backyard. You’ll get to run and go potty whenever you feel like it.”
She wagged the little nub that passed for a tail. I hoped she understood. I finished filling the boxes with the last of her things from her room and carried them to the doorway.
“I think we’re ready to go,” Sade said, coming back into the condo.
Her hair was a bit of a mess, and her face was red with exertion.
“You look hot,” I said.
She shrugged. “It’s all good. Are you two ready?”
“Hell yeah, we’re ready!”
Our little convoy drove through the city and out to the new house. Holly was amazed and envious of Sade, which oddly enough made me very happy. I wanted her friends to envy her. She was going to be a wife that was well taken care of.
“Let’s do this!” Sade shouted, unlocking the front door and pushing it open.
I immediately took Leia out to the back, knowing she had a lot of sniffing to do in the backyard. I expected her to be occupied for the next hour at least.
“I’m carrying boxes in,” I told her when I grabbed a couple from her backseat.
“Trent,” she scolded.
“I can do flat ground. It’s those stairs that kill me. I’ve got this.”
She smiled. “Okay, but if it gets sore, promise me you’ll take a break.”
“Absolutely.”
We spent the next hour or so moving in boxes and taking them into the designated rooms. Holly and Khloe were nice enough to stick around and help unpack not only the stuff we had just hauled in, but the other stuff I had delivered over the last couple of days, which had been a bit of a shock for Sade.
“I’ll order pizza,” I said, walking into the bedroom where Sade and the girls were unpacking boxes and loading up the massive walk-in closet. “Any requests?”
“Supreme,” Khloe called.
“Pepperoni,” Holly said.
Sade grinned. “All of it. All the pizza for me.”
I laughed, knowing the poor woman had to be starving. We’d been going hard all day, not even stopping to eat. We were all famished.
Sade insisted we sit at the massive dining table. “I know Khloe. Hell, I know myself. We’ll end up dropping pizza on the new furniture or that gorgeous rug you picked out.”
“You should have seen the bear rug he tried to buy,” Khloe said with disgust.
I burst into laughter. “No!”
She nodded. “Yes. Me and the saleswoman had to talk him out of it.”
“It wasn’t a real bear,” I protested.
“All the same, it was ugly and just looked scary,” Khloe said.
“I’m glad you opted for the other one,” Sade said.
“Me too,” I agreed.
Leia came bounding in through the doggy door I had put in for her. Her tongue lolled out of her mouth, and she had a huge smile on her face. She loved the backyard. I gave her a piece of pizza crust, which she eagerly chomped down and waited for more. After we had stuffed our faces with as much pizza as we could take, I went outside with Leia to check out the new deck furniture.
The ladies joined me, marveling at the view and the massive backyard.
“When did this get here?” Sade asked, looking at the furniture and the table set.
I grimaced. “Yesterday.”
She burst into laughter. “You’re dangerous with a credit card and a computer.”
I held up a hand. “Technically, this was on Khloe.”
Sade spun around. “What? You did this?”
“He told me to!” she shrieked, pointing at Trent.
“I told you to get me a grill and a table set. I said nothing about all that.” I gestured toward the two chairs and loveseat positioned around a gorgeous gas firepit.
She rolled her eyes. “Look at this house and this view. You can sit at your table and relax. Imagine drinking a glass of wine after a long day at work with the firepit going. It will be perfectly romantic and relaxing. Did I mention I ordered a hot tub as well?”
“Khloe!” Sade and I exclaimed at the same time.
She burst into laughter. “I’m kidding, but you should consider it. It would be perfect for your backyard.”
“It would be nice for you to sit in after you’ve been on your leg,” Sade said.
I grinned. “Done. I’ll have it in within the week.”
“Oh my god!” Holly exclaimed. “You are seriously too good to be true. I want one.”
“Sorry, this one is taken, and he’s a one of a kind,” Sade said, wrapping her arm around my waist.
I hugged her close to me. “I’m not going anywhere.”
“Damn straight you’re not because I will cut a bitch that tries to steal my man.”
Khloe grinned. “That’s my girl. I knew you had that inner fighter within.”
It made me feel good to be appreciated and loved. “She’s scrappy.”
“You should have a housewarming party,” Holly suggested.
Sade looked at me and then back at Holly. “We’ve talked about it, but honestly, we only know a handful of people and we’re planning the wedding—”
“What?” Khloe shrieked. “You didn’t tell me that!”
I looked at Khloe and smiled. “Did I forget to tell you that was next on the list now that the house was squared away?”
She slapped my arm. “Oh my god. Really? When?”
“Soon, which means we’re going to be very busy,” Sade announced. “We can have the rehearsal dinner here and make it double as a housewarming party.”
/> “Two birds with one stone,” I agreed.
Khloe shook her head. “I’m going to plan the best wedding and reception ever.”
“Wait a minute,” Sade said, putting a hand on her hip. “You are not going to get carried away.”
“We’ll see. I already know Trent will back me.”
“Don’t drag me into this,” I said, holding up my hand.
“We’ll talk later,” Sade said, staring down her friend. “For now, let’s go finish putting away those last few boxes.”
I watched as the women headed back inside. I couldn’t stop smiling. I thought back to that first couple of weeks when Sade had first moved into the condo. She’d been so lonely back then. Part of my reason for up and moving so quickly was because I was worried about her. I hated her being alone.
Now, she had two good friends to keep her company, and her family would be nearby. I looked forward to hosting more parties at our house. I would send my helicopter to pick up Richie. I wanted to share this part of my life with him. It sucked that he was so far away, but it was a necessary evil. If he wasn’t there, I wouldn’t be able to be where I was.
I took a seat in one of the chairs and was surprised by how comfortable it was. It was completely silent. That was one thing I didn’t have back in the Tahoe house. The lake was always busy, and there was always the sound of music drifting on the air from one of the many beach parties that happened nearly every night.
I could hear the gurgling and vibrating of the pool filtering system. I could hear crickets and birds and other nature sounds I didn’t recognize. It was so peaceful. Living in Fresno was going to be very good for my soul. I heard laughter drift out of the bedroom and smiled. She was having a great time with her friends.
Leia came to sit beside me, her body leaning against my legs as she panted hard. “Did you have a nice run?” I asked, patting her head.
She barked once, which I took to mean she had. I got up and moved into the bright kitchen and grabbed a bottle of beer from the nearly empty fridge. I carried it back outside and took my seat again. That was something we were doing tomorrow—grocery shopping.
It was such a mundane task, but I was looking forward to it. I wanted to fill our pantry with snacks and our fridge with food. A full fridge was a true sign of being home—really home. I took a drink of the cold beer and found myself smiling at nothing in particular.