14. Taylor

"When you blush, your stomach lining also turns red." ~ Tim Rhodes

"So, this is it."Kane handed me the keys to my new house as we stood on the porch. He'd picked them up from Jan Jenson, the realtor, when I closed on it a month ago.

This was the first house I'd ever owned, and the magnitude of the moment overwhelmed me. I'd been working for this all my life—to have stability, to have roots, to have a family—and now I had all of it. Tears pricked my eyes as I slid the key into the door and turned the lock. When I walked in, the first thing I saw were balloons and a Welcome Home banner.

"You guys…" I turned around to Kane and Ruby. "You didn't have to do this."

"Of course we did." Ruby threw her arms around me in a warm embrace.

Like Kenna, she'd warned me about the volume of hugs I'd be receiving. So far, I wasn't upset about them.

"Welcome home!" she exclaimed.

"Thank you!" I said, wiping my tears from beneath my eyes.

"Mommy! Come see my room!"

"Okay!" I walked through the home, which I'd only seen in online tours and videos Ruby and Kane shot while they were touring it.

The walls were freshly painted a stark white, with wide plank white oak flooring. It had a very spa-like feel. I wanted my house to be a calm, peaceful, zen-like place for both Harper and me. I'd grown up with chaos and moving around all the time, I was so proud that Kane and I were both able to provide strong home bases for our little girl.

I felt like I was walking through someone else's home as I tried to take it in. Most of the furniture I ordered was delivered last week. Ruby and Kane had made sure someone was at the house when they arrived. I told them not to set anything up, but from what I saw, they had. The only item I'd asked Kane to put together was Harp's room, which he'd gladly agreed to. It looked like a model home.

As I made my way down the hallway, my mind went rogue and wandered to Remi and what he was doing right now. I wondered if he'd like my new home. I wondered if he would try and contact me. Would he get my phone number? Show up at my house? If he did, and Harper was asleep, would I let him in?

No. I shook my head. I absolutely could not let myself go down that rabbit hole. This situation was insane, and I needed to do damage control.

On the drive here from the diner, Ruby mentioned that before he and Misty broke up, Remi had originally planned on heading back to California the day after the wedding. If that was still the case, I just had to get through the next week by doing my best to ignore him, which was easier said than done. When he was near, I was worried that any look, any gesture, any word I spoke, would give away what we'd shared and what, despite my better judgment, I wanted to share again. And when he wasn't near, I couldn't stop thinking about him.

It was driving me crazy.

How could a man I'd barely known for twenty-four hours consume me to this degree?

Harper walked into her room and spun in the center as she shouted, "Ta da!"

"This is amazing!" I enthused.

Ruby and Kane had gone above and beyond. Her bed was a loft, and she had a play area below it. There were pink and purple accents everywhere you looked, and they'd picked out a mermaid nightlight that made it look like she was under the sea.

After Harper showed me where all her clothes, dolls, and books went, Ruby got a call from Harper's best friend Lilah's mom, Destiny, asking if Lilah could talk to Harp.

When she took the call, I followed Kane, who had gone to get my suitcase and was putting it in my bedroom. As I walked in, I saw that he'd set up not only my bed but also my nightstands and dresser and unwrapped the oversized mirror I'd ordered.

"Thanks, for everything." I waved my hand around.

"No worries. You know I've got you."

I did know that. He was the only man I trusted completely. No sooner had that thought occurred to me than Remi's face popped into my head, but I quickly tried to erase the image.

How could I trust the man? I didn't know him—except, I sort of did know him. The first conversation Kane and I ever had was about Remi, who had just joined the Army. He told me that the two of them had been comparing notes about boot camp. Since that day, I couldn't count the number of stories I'd heard about Remi.

I'd ‘known' Remi for almost eighteen years.

"Hey." Kane lifted his chin up slightly. "What's going on with you?"

"I'm just tired. It's been a really long few days."

Those were both true statements. Just not the actual thing that was "going on" with me.

"Do you have a problem with Remi?"

Bullseye. That was what was "going on" with me.

"What? No! Why would you think that?"

"You just seem really—I don't know—not yourself around him. You're standoffish to him."

Shit.I'd overcompensated. I'd been so scared that Kane would pick up on my feelings, no not my feelings, I couldn't have feelings, I'd only known the man one day. Not even a whole day. Anyway, I'd actually gone too far in trying to be totally disinterested in him.

"Really?" I pretended to have no clue what he could possibly be referring to.

I could tell by the look on his face that Kane saw right through my fa?ade.

Thankfully, we were interrupted when Harper ran into the room.

"Can I take a bath in your bath? Please?" she pleaded. "It has bubbles!"

"Absolutely!"

One of the things I'd loved about this house, aside from the fact it was only a block away from Kane's, was the primary ensuite. It had a freestanding whirlpool tub with jets. I had been fantasizing about soaking in it after twenty-hour shifts at the hospital. Now, when I thought about being in it, I had company. I wondered if Remi and I would both fit.

Stop it, I admonished myself.

"We'll get out of you ladies' hair." Ruby pointed at me. "But don't forget tomorrow night."

"Right." I nodded as I tried to flip through my mental calendar to remember what tomorrow night was.

"Barbeque at our house," Kane filled in the blank because he'd obviously seen I had no clue what Ruby was talking about. Which was why I needed to avoid Remi at all costs. Kane would know.

"Got it." I gave him a thumbs up.

"It's the unofficial rehearsal dinner for the wedding party, just to go over the logistics of the week and the big day," Ruby explained. "We have fittings on Wednesday, the bachelor/bachelorette party on Friday, and then the wedding on Sunday. That's it, really."

"What should I bring?" I asked.

"Just yourself. We've got it covered," Kane replied.

"Yeah, it's small and intimate, just you and Remi."

I immediately felt my cheeks warm at the mention of the word intimate and Remi in the same sentence. I had blushed more in the past eighteen hours than I had in my entire life.

As we all said our goodbyes, I was having a little bit of a mental crisis. My emotions were in direct opposition to each other. This situation was really bringing out my inner Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde.

I wanted to see him again so badly, and also never see him again.

Twenty-four hours seemed like so long to wait and also way too soon.

My entire body shivered with anticipation at the thought of him flirting with me without anyone seeing, the way he had today when he whispered in my ear in the parking garage and touched my neck in the truck. And part of me was praying he would ignore me completely.

I wanted him to talk more about the woman he'd met, who was apparently so perfect he thought he'd imagined her, and I equally wanted him to stop talking about her, er, me.

Harper and I were waving goodbye to Kane and Ruby when my phone buzzed. I pulled it out and held my breath, thinking it was Remi. Not that he had my phone number, but at this point, I assumed if he wanted it, he could get it. When I saw it was Kenna, my heart sank in disappointment, which I felt bad about since I had really missed her.

Kenna: Tonight, after my shift, me, you, wine, and I want to know all the Kyle details.

Kenna was a bartender at The Tipsy Cow, so her shift would be over well after Harper was in bed. As much as I'd love to see her and catch up, I'd totally forgotten Kenna knew about Kyle. How had I forgotten that?

Maybe because I hated surprises, Kyle turning out to be Remi was the biggest surprise of my life, and I had no idea how to feel about it.