23. Cassidy

cassidy

. . .

A week of shadowing Dani isn’t enough, but I have the bookkeeping and day-to-day worked out. Her business is significantly more profitable than nursing, but I’m hesitant to walk away from a job I love, even if the hours are killing me.

The bell to the shop door chimes, and a moment later, Inferno comes barreling in. I set down my sheers and greet him with outstretched arms. “Hey, pup!” He licks the side of my face, making me laugh. “Down, boy. I’m excited to see you too.” I glance up to find a sharply-dressed Travis. I don’t remember the last time I saw him in a button-up shirt and slacks. “Well, don’t you look fancy. What’s the occasion?”

“Lunch with my girl.” He shrugs with a sheepish grin, hands in his pockets. His girl. I like the sound of that a lot more than I thought I would. It’s one thing for him to be growling, “You’re mine,” while he’s buried inside me, but claiming me as his out in the real world gives me butterflies.

I haven’t seen much of Travis since he offered to buy the shop—our schedules are ridiculously out of sync. While I am beyond excited that he’s taking me out today, I’m severely underdressed for whatever he has planned.

“Are you ready to go?” he asks, tucking a stray tendril that escaped my braid behind my ear.

I glance down at my skinny jeans and faded band tee. “Uh…”

Travis tilts my chin until our eyes meet. “You look beautiful, Cass. Don’t worry, we’re not going anywhere that requires a ball gown.” He leans in, kissing me softly. Fuck, I’ve missed kissing him. I sigh against his lips, feeling more grounded than I have in days. Everything is still so new between us, but at the same time it feels so natural and routine. Inferno paws at us, making Travis chuckle as we break apart. “Hey, pup, you got to kiss her. It’s my turn.”

I grab my keys and purse, flipping the open sign before locking up. Travis takes my hand, waffling our fingers together, as we walk to his dad’s truck. For a moment I almost question it, then remember he accidentally double booked our lunch with his oil change. The fact that he made it work means the world to me.

Inferno trots beside us and hops into the cab first. Most restaurants and bars in town aren’t dog friendly, I can’t help asking, “Where are we headed?”

Once we’re both in the truck, he answers, “It’s a surprise.” Inferno woofs. “Hey, that’s the last time I tell you a secret.”

The hum of the diesel engine fills the otherwise quiet cab, and it isn’t until we turn on Ranchwood, which leads to the lake, that I break the silence. “We can’t go on the water; I have to be back in the shop in an hour.”

“I know,” he replies simply, keeping his eyes on the road. We pull up to a small home on the lake that has a for sale sign with a diagonal off-market sticker across it. “Welcome home. ”

“What?” I shriek. “Did you buy a house?”

“Yes and no. I got the keys and did the final walk through with a contractor this morning for renovations.” Travis lifts and jingles them. My mouth is agape in shock. “Don’t worry, wildcat, I’m not asking you to move in. Yet.” He winks and hops out of the truck. “Come on, I’ll show you around.” After rounding the truck, he opens my door, and my hand is back in his as he leads me to the front door. “I won’t be moving in for another two months, or until the reno is done.”

Travis unlocks the door and we walk inside. The original hardwood floors are creaky, and there is teak wood paneling on the walls—definitely something out of the seventies. Inferno does a little dance, the clacking of his paws echoing in the space. Travis explains that he’ll be taking down a few walls to make it open-concept and refinish the floors. As we move into the kitchen, I can’t help snickering—the cabinets are avocado green. He plans to gut the whole thing and start from scratch, adding quartz countertops and this project is sounding more expensive by the minute. While Travis makes good money, it’s not enough to throw down hundreds of thousands of dollars for this house and the renovations. He just secured the loan for the floral shop, with his salary, a bank isn’t going to hand him over a second one for a house this soon.

“Not to be a Debbie Downer, but how are you able to afford this?”

He pulls me to him, wrapping his arms around me. “My family. This was my grandparents’ home. My dad put it on the market, but when I offered to buy it, he gifted it to me instead. I have a lot of contacts in construction who owe me favors, so most of the labor is free or incredibly discounted. I’ll be doing some of the work myself when I’m not at the station. ”

“That’s amazing! If I can help with anything, let me know.”

Kissing my forehead, he speaks against my skin, “No, Cass. Between picking up shifts at the bar, your nursing job, and now the floral shop… you already spread yourself too thin. This is my side project. The most I’ll let you do is furniture shopping with me when the house is ready.”

I let out a deep sigh; he’s right. Releasing me from his embrace, he takes my hand and snatches a large grocery bag off the counter, then leads me outside to a porch swing. We take a seat, and he pulls out two pre-made salads. “Caesar or cobb?”

“Caesar, please.” He hands it to me with a fork and a bottle of water.

“Sorry, I promised to take you out to lunch.”

“What? No! I’d much rather sit out here with you, looking out at the water, eating a store-bought salad, than go to a busy café or restaurant.” I lean in to kiss his cheek but he turns his head to capture my lips with his. Sneaky bastard. “Which reminds me, it’s very sweet, but you don’t need to order me dinner every night.”

“You’re right, I can drop it off myself.” I smack his shoulder, huffing a laugh. “It’s hard with our work schedules for me to dote on you. I know it’s not much, but like being able to do things for you, Cass.”

I don’t have a witty comeback, and it isn’t as if he would listen if I insisted he stop. Instead, I simply tell him, “Thank you.”

We sit in comfortable silence as the crisp lake air dances around us in sporadic gusts. Inferno lays at my feet, praying I’ll drop a piece of chicken from my salad. It’s quiet, peaceful. Growing up here, I spent so many summers on this lake, but I rarely go out on the water anymore unless it’s on Cay’s pontoon boat. Maybe I should get one? Travis might even let me dock it here. I can envision Inferno all too eagerly leaping in, like he did for Caleb’s surprise wedding.

Once we’re done eating, I rest my head on Travis’ shoulder. He keeps his hand in mine, slowly rocking the swing. I’m entirely too comfortable. If I’m not careful, I’ll fall asleep right here. The alarm beeps on my phone; my hour is up. I yawn, making Travis chuckle. “If you’re tired, we can go back to my place for a nap?”

“We both know a nap wouldn’t consist of actual sleep, and I have to get back to the shop.”

“Not true; I’d let you sleep… and then wake you up with my face between your legs. I just,” he sighs, “I miss you, Cass. The minute after I have to leave you at the shop, I’ll miss you. Dropping dinner off to you in person every night is sounding more and more appealing.”

“I miss you too,” I admit, when what I really want to tell him is I love him so much it scares me. It crept up on me as he burrowed himself into my life and heart. Is this what our life would look like if this little relationship of ours works out? Is this a relationship? We’ve dated… I think? No, we haven’t. I’m falling hard for a man who owns a piece of me and I don’t even know what we are.

“You’re in your head, aren’t you?”

I clear my throat and lie, “I was just thinking it would be fun if we could take a weekend off and go up to Linton? Maybe stay at a bed and breakfast?”

“If you want to go antique shopping, just say so.”

I let out a full laugh, grateful he didn’t see through my fib. It’s not exactly a lie, I’d love to go antiquing and stay at a B&B. As I begin to stand, Travis pulls me sideways into his lap. “Hey! I need to get back to work.”

“Pick the weekend and I’ll request it off.” There isn’t an ounce of sarcasm or teasing. “You work so hard, the least I can do is steal you away for a few days.”

My heart twists. To take off a few days would be hard on both of us, but if I’m going to make this work with Travis, I need to find a way. “Okay, let’s do it.”