Insistent

by Kaylee Ryan

  When I pull back, her eyes are glassy. “You sure you want to share your bed with me?” she asks.

  My heart stutters in my chest. “Consider it yours, and you can share it with me,” I say.

  “My lease is up next month,” she confesses.

  “What are you saying, Cass?” I pull back and stand to my full height. Placing my finger under her chin, I lift her gaze to mine. “I need to hear you say it.”

  She braces her hands behind her on the counter and hops up to sit there, crossing her legs. “I’m allowed to do this since I live here now, right?” she asks, smiling.

  “Cassidy,” I warn her. She’s fucking with me. “I need to hear you say it, baby.” I stand with my hands at my sides. I want nothing more than to kiss it out of her, but this has to be on her.

  “I have a month to get all my stuff moved in. You sure you’re ready for that?”

  “Cassidy,” I growl.

  She laughs, a smile lighting her face. “I’m moving in, Gav. You and me.” She reaches out, grabs my shirt, and pulls me to her. “We’re starting with this. We can see how it goes and talk about the other stuff later.”

  “Marriage and babies,” I say, kissing her nose.

  “Yeah,” she agrees.

  My lips connect with hers, and I try to show her how much this means to me, how much she means to me. “I love you, Cass,” I murmur against her lips.

  “I love you, too.”

  The timer on the oven dings and I pull away. It’s time to feed my girl. I work on pulling dinner out of the oven and making us plates while Cass pours us a couple of waters. My night was already great because she was here and I knew that I was going to get to fall asleep with her in my arms. It just became a whole hell of a lot better. She’s never leaving.

  My eyes are closed but I’m awake. I’m basking in the feeling of being tucked in close to Gavin’s warm body. But there is a slither of worry still finding its way into my mind. What if he changes his mind? I try to block that one question out, no real idea where it comes from other than having to rely on myself for such a long time. But when I feel his lips kiss my bare shoulder, I can’t fight my grin.

  “Morning,” his deep, sexy voice murmurs.

  “How did you know I was awake?” I ask over my shoulder.

  “I can hear you thinking. Go ahead and ask me.”

  “It’s a big step.”

  “It is,” he agrees. “One that we’re taking together.” He kisses my shoulder one more time before climbing out of bed. “Shower. I’ll make us some breakfast.”

  “You’re not showering with me?”

  “Nope. If I do, we’ll never get to the office. You said you have a 9:00 a.m. conference call with Shattered Heart to finalize their visit. It’s eight now.”

  “Shit!” I jump out of bed and rush to the shower. I hear Gavin’s deep laugh as I start the water. I rush through my shower and quickly towel off. I’m running my fingers through my wet curls, adding mousse when Gavin walks in carrying a plate.

  “It’s not gourmet, but you can eat it while you’re getting ready.” He sets the plate with a bagel and cream cheese on the counter, kisses my shoulder, kicks out of his shorts, and climbs into the shower.

  We make it out of the house with just enough time to get to the office a few minutes before nine as long as we don’t hit traffic.

  “Relax, Cass. They need us, we don’t need them. If you’re a few minutes late, you can blame it on technical difficulties.”

  He’s right, but I hate being late. Sitting back in the seat, I close my eyes and calm myself down. I also hate rushing. I feel like it sets a hectic tone for the rest of the day. When Gavin’s phone rings through the speakers in the truck, he answers it. “Hey, T,” he greets Tristan. “You’re on speaker with Cass,” he informs him.

  “Morning,” Tristan chirps. “I just wanted to tell you that the place next to mine just went on the market.”

  “The white brick?” Gavin asks with excitement in his voice. “The one with the huge-ass pool and the grado in the back?” he asks.

  “That’s the one. I just drove past the sign.”

  “Go back,” Gavin tells him. “Get the number. Better yet, grab the sign, too.” He laughs.

  “I thought you might say that. Already done,” Tristan tells him. “You headed into the office?” he asks.

  “Yeah, Cass has a call to make or I’d turn around.”

  “I’ll be there soon. You can then call the realtor.”

  “Thanks, man.” He ends the call and reaches over for my hand. “Do you know which house he’s talking about?” he asks me.

  “Not really. I know that all the homes there are gorgeous.”

  “They are. We all spent a lot of time at Kacen’s, and then Cole and Stacy bought their place next to his. You know Tristan and Lauren are across the street, and this house, it’s the one I’ve always admired. Not only would that put us with our closest friends, but this place is… you just need to see it. While you’re on your call, I’m going to call the realtor and set up a time. What else is on your schedule for today?”

  “Nothing pressing but, Gavin, I can’t just leave work to look at a house. I was off all last week,” I tell him.

  “Sure, you can. It won’t take us long.” He squeezes my hand. “This could be our forever home, Cass. It’s all coming together, baby. What would be even better if we can move in right away. Together.” He smiles over at me as we pull into the underground parking garage of the label.

  “Gavin,” I sigh.

  “I’ll help you do whatever you need to get caught up on. I’ll make dinner, so you can work tonight, whatever it takes. I need you to go with me, and we have to go today. No way am I letting this house sell out from under us before we have our shot.”

  “What if we hate it?”

  “If you hate it, we keep looking.”

  “You can’t not buy a house because I don’t like it. It’s your money, Gavin.”

  “And you’re my future.” With that, he climbs out of the truck.

  His words have rendered me speechless. This is all really happening. It’s fast, but damn if I can keep the smile from pulling at my lips. I also can’t control the way my heart races when he says things like that. I want this with him even though I’m scared, but how can I not fall under the spell of what the future holds when he’s so excited about it?

  “Cass.” His voice brings me out of my thoughts.

  Looking up, I see him standing with the truck door open, waiting to help me down. “You okay?” he asks.

  “Come here.” I motion with my finger, and he steps into me. “I love you.” I kiss him quickly before pushing him back so I can climb out of his truck. “I’ll go with you,” I say when we’re in the elevator. His reply is to lift our joined hands and kiss my knuckles.

  Rushing off the elevator to my office, I set up my laptop and prepare for the conference call. I have three minutes to spare and sigh with relief. Gavin goes to their offices. I’m assuming to call the realtor. Excitement bubbles up inside of me. I can’t believe that I agreed to move in with him last night and now, today, we’re going to look at a house. A house in a private, gated community no less. How is this my life?

  The call with Shattered Heart is what it was meant to be, which is productive. The guys have this weekend open, but gigs after that for the next six weeks. They all have day jobs but agreed they could get Friday off. We planned for them to fly in Friday and out on Sunday. I end the call, letting them know I would e-mail them the flight and room information later today. Normally it would be right after, but Gavin is standing in the doorway of my office listening in, waiting for me to end the call.

  “I’ll be in touch later today,” I inform them one more time.

  “Thanks, doll,” one of them says.

  I don’t reply to that comment, but Gavin’s eyes go wide. That’s what I get for using the speakerphone. It’s hard to remember my super hot boyfriend is a little overprotective.
r />   “Doll?” he asks.

  “Oh, hush, it’s nothing. Did you get a hold of the realtor?”

  “I did. He’s there waiting for us. I told him we’d be there in half an hour. You ready?”

  “Yes.” I smile and stand from my desk. Grabbing my purse and phone, I leave everything else, knowing we’ll be back later.

  When we pull up to the house, I feel it. This is it. I know she’s going to love it as much as I do. I’ve never stepped foot on the inside, never even seen a picture. The images were not up online yet. The realtor said he just placed the sign this morning. Even with never having seen it, I know this is the house we’re going to raise our family in.

  The community is private and gated. The street houses only four homes. This one and those of my bandmates, my brothers, and their families. We would have this entire road for us, for our kids to run and play. I can see it all now. I’ve changed over the last couple of years, even more so when Zach was born.

  “Ready?” I ask Cassidy. She’s staring out the front window of my truck, her eyes wide.

  “Wow,” she breathes. “I guess I never really paid too much attention to this place. I’ve been to each of the other’s houses more times than I can count, but never paid this one a bit of attention.”

  “It’s the best one.” I wink and climb out of the truck. She meets me in the front, and we head up the bricked walkway. The realtor, Tom, is waiting for us on the front porch.

  “Mr. McIntosh, I presume.” He holds his hand out for me, and I shake it.

  “Yes, this is my Cassidy,” I introduce her. She shakes his hand as well, exchanging pleasantries. I expect nothing less from her. She’s always polite.

  “This place is beautiful,” she gushes as we walk into the foyer.

  Tom rattles off the square footage, details about granite and tile, and a host of other things that I block out. “Feel free to have a look around. It’s available for immediate occupancy. As you can see, the owners have moved out.”

  “Let’s start upstairs,” I say to Cass, guiding us toward the grand circular staircase.

  “Wow,” she says again when we reach the top of the stairs. There are six doors and an open living area. “How many bedrooms is this?”

  “Seven,” I tell her. We make our way through each room that just so happens to have its own bathroom.

  “This is unreal,” she breathes as we make our way through the rooms, then back down the staircase.

  “Let’s go find the master.” Her hand still in mine, we make our way to the bottom level. There is a huge living room, dining room, and an additional family room. Off the family area, there’s a hall that leads us to the master bedroom. When I push open the double doors, her breath hitches and I smile. Yeah, this is our place.

  “Gavin, this is….” Her voice trails off as she spins in a circle, head tilted to the ceiling as she looks at the molding and lighting.

  “Let’s go check out the bathroom.” We open a door that turns out to be a huge walk-in closet. “Think this is big enough for all of our stuff?” I ask her.

  “Most definitely,” she agrees.

  The next door we open is another closet the same size as the one before. “Looks like we won’t have to share,” I say, stepping back so she can get a better look. She peeks her head in and laughs.

  The third door opens to a smaller room. “This must be the private sitting room.”

  “With a house this size, do you really need a sitting room?” she asks.

  “Maybe they liked to watch TV naked and didn’t want the kids to see,” I suggest, making her laugh again.

  The next door opens to a huge bathroom. The walk-in shower has to be at least seven feet long and just as wide. There’s a huge claw foot tub, bigger than any I’ve ever seen, that sits in the corner of the shower, all encased in clear glass. “I guess you don’t have to worry about sloshing water everywhere.”

  “They’ve thought of everything,” she agrees.

  Double vanities, with a separate seating area for her to do her hair and makeup sit on the adjacent wall. “Come on.” I wrap my arm around her waist and lead her back into the hallway. We still need to see the kitchen and the laundry room. Then the basement and the backyard. The pool looks like an oasis from what I’ve seen from Tristan’s place. “You can only see it in the wintertime,” I explain, letting her know we will have privacy in the summer. Not that we need it from our friends.

  The kitchen is huge and carries on with the white stone that covers the outside complete with black cabinets and white stone backsplash. The black stainless steel appliances, that are really gray in color but called black—at least that’s what it said online—look high-tech. A huge island with white and black marble granite on every surface is in the center of the room.

  “Can you see us making dinner here?” I ask her.

  She laughs. “I’m not sure. This house is… breathtaking.”

  “Come on, let’s go to the basement.” Downstairs, we find a finished basement with a theater room, a built-in bar, and kitchen with a living area. Cass is quiet, just taking it all in, and frankly, so am I. I’m picturing us curled up with our kids watching Disney movies and enjoying family get-togethers in the huge living area upstairs. Making our way back upstairs, we head out back, and Cassidy gasps. There’s a huge covered patio that leads to another that is not. Under the covered patio, there’s an outdoor kitchen. There is stamped concrete that leads to the pool with the grado and the hot tub.

  “We’d never have to leave. Who needs a vacation when you have an oasis right in your backyard? Gavin, this place is… like a resort,” she says in awe.

  I walk up behind her and place my arms around her waist, holding her close. “Over there, there’s plenty of yard for our dog and the kids to play. The property is already fenced in,” I say, kissing her neck. “Can you see us living here, Cass? Can you see us raising a family here?” I close my eyes and say a silent prayer that she says yes. This is the home I want for us. It’s everything I would build if I was designing from scratch, but the bonus is that the guys are our neighbors, and this is our street. Maybe we can get them to rename it Soul Street or Serenade Drive?

  She turns in my arms and looks up at me. “What do you think? Can you see… us here?” she asks hesitantly.

  “Before I answer you, let me make one thing clear. It’s us. No matter what decision is made, we make it together. It’s us from now until I take my last breath, so don’t ever hesitate with that again, okay?” I ask, softening a little.

  “Can you see us here?” she asks again, this time with more confidence.

  “Yes. I can see it.”

  “Do you want it?”

  “Do you?” I counter.

  She closes her eyes and buries her face in my chest. I can feel her body shake, and I’m just about to ask her what’s wrong when she looks up with a smile so bright, it rivals the sun. “I do, Gavin. I want it. I want us. I want this house. I want everything I know you’re thinking and I’m too scared to say. I want that with you,” she confesses.

  My arms tighten around her, as everything I’ve imagined in the last hour going from room to room in this house flashes through my mind. “Okay, baby,” I say, kissing the top of her head. “Let’s go buy our house.” Hand-in-hand we walk back inside and find the realtor in the foyer on his phone. “Tom,” I greet him. “We’ll take it. Full asking price, cash. We want this deal closed so we can move in within the month.”

  Tom fumbles his phone but catches it and gets himself together. “Yes, sir, Mr. McIntosh. The sellers are motivated. I’m sure even if the deal is not complete, you could move in.”

  “Make it happen, Tom,” I say again, and he nods. “You have my number.” With that, Cass and I head back to my truck and toward the office. When we get to the parking garage, I see all the guys are here, which is perfect; I can tell them about the house. Cass tries to let go, to go to her office, but I keep a tight hold on her hand, and we go in search of the guys.
We follow the voices upstairs, which tells me either they have the kids or their entire families are with them. As we hit the top of the stairs, all eyes land on us. The guys, their wives, and kids are sitting in the common area.

  “Perfect. Everyone’s here,” I say, taking a seat on the sectional that’s open—the one for me and my family. The family I wasn’t sure would happen because the girl I loved was fighting it. The same family that’s now within reach and we’re buying a house to start making the dream a reality. “We bought a house,” I blurt. I look over at Tristan. “Hey, neighbor.” I wave and he laughs.

  “Wait, that place is for sale?” Stacy asks. Cole is beside her with Riley fast asleep on his chest.

  “Now that entire street is ours,” Lauren chimes in as she rocks Zach in her arms. Tristan has his arm around her, staring down at them in wonder.

  “We need to rename the street.” Logan laughs. Drew laughs, too, because if his mommy is laughing, he knows it must be funny.

  “What are you laughing at?” Kacen picks him up from where he’s been playing with trucks on the floor and tickles his side.

  “Daddy stop,” rings out through the room, along with his giggles, and I can’t help but smile.

  “I said the same thing. Serenade Drive sounds nice,” I add.

  “So, when are you moving in?” Lauren asks.

  “We told the realtor that we wanted it this month. Cass’s lease is up on her condo in a month, and she was moving in with me anyway.” I feel her stiffen beside me, no doubt worried about their reaction. She doesn’t need to be. “So we thought it would be best to move just the once, both of us into the new place.”

  “Congratulations!” Logan is up and enveloping Cass into a hug, followed by Lauren, and then Stacy who is moving a little slower than the others having just given birth a few weeks ago.

  “It’s soon,” Cass admits.