Chapter 34
“Thanks for welcoming me to my own home.” ~ Maya
Maya
I frown as I walk toward my house. Caleb’s truck is parked in the driveway. What is he doing here?
I haven’t heard from him since the other night when he got drunk and mean. I’ve reached for my phone at least a million times to message him to ask if he’s okay. But I managed to stop myself.
I am not going to be the lame heroine who lets the hero walk all over her. I hate those heroines. They drive me batty. I refuse to be her.
I realize I’m standing frozen in front of my house and force my legs to move forward. Despite my desire to be the strong heroine in my own story, I want to hear what Caleb has to say. Will he apologize or will he break my heart?
My heart spasms and I rub a hand over it. I’ll be okay. Either way, I’ll survive. I survived parents who don’t love me. I can survive this .
I twist the knob but the door won’t open. It must be bolted from the inside.
“Caleb!”
“Hold on. We’re not ready.”
“We? Who’s we?”
If my girlfriends know what’s happening and didn’t tell me, I’ll put yeast in their beers. Women should stick together.
I place my ear against the door but I don’t hear any giggling or female voices. I do hear some grunting. What’s going on?
I knock on the door. “Caleb, open this door this minute!”
Footsteps rush around the room before the backdoor opens and closes. The front door flies open and I nearly tip over. Caleb steadies me with a hand on my shoulder but I shrug him away. He has some apologizing to do before he’s allowed to touch me again.
“What’s going on? Why are you here?”
His arm sweeps toward the living room. “Come in.”
What is he up to? I creep inside and scan the space. I gasp and drop my bag before rushing toward the corner of the room.
“What did you do?” I say as I run my hand along the bookshelves.
“I made you a reading nook.”
And some reading nook it is! I’ve always struggled to figure out how to utilize this area. The real estate agent claimed it was a formal dining room but the round shape doesn’t lend itself to a large dining table.
But now the walls are lined with bookshelves from floor to ceiling. There’s also a comfy chair and footstool where I can spend hours reading. The book I’m currently reading sits on a cute little table next to the chair and there’s a blanket folded on the footstool all ready for me to curl up under on a cold Winter’s day.
“How did you manage to…”
My words trail off when I notice a picture frame in the middle of the books. I step closer. It’s a picture of me from high school. I’m sitting in the library with a book open in front of me while smiling at the camera.
Caleb approaches until I can feel his warmth surrounding me. Until I can smell his earthy scent with its undertones of spice.
It’s only been a few days but I’ve missed his smell. I’ve missed his warmth. I’ve missed laying with him in bed at night. I’ve missed him. Period.
He reaches past me to pick up the picture. “It’s a little worn from use.”
“From use?”
He smiles at the picture. “I carried this with me every single day I was away.”
My heart stutters in my chest before my pulse quickens. “You did?”
“I thought I couldn’t have you but I couldn’t be without you either.” He sets the picture back on the bookshelf.
All these years he’s thought about me as much as I thought about him. I trace my bracelet with my finger. We both had mementos we couldn’t let go .
He grasps my shoulders and spins me around to face him. “Will you forgive me, Bunny?”
I want to forgive him. I want to jump into his arms and taste his lips and forget all about the past week. But I’m not going to be the weak heroine. Not anymore.
“You can’t just barge into my house and build me some bookshelves and expect me to forgive you.”
“Full disclosure. I also moved my shit in.”
My mouth drops open. He moved his stuff in? How dare he? I shove those thoughts away. One thing at a time.
“I know you were hurting, but the things you said to me...” I shake my head. “I deserve better.” Caleb smiles and my brow furrows. “What are you smiling about?”
“Proud of you, Bunny. Proud of you finally realizing you deserve better.”
I try to stop it but warmth fills me at his words. Nothing feels better than knowing the man you love is proud of you. I lean toward him but stop when I realize he hasn’t apologized yet. Asking for forgiveness is not the same thing.
I scowl at him. “You can’t say you’re proud of me and everything is forgiven and forgotten.”
“You’re right. I’m sorry. I was an asshole. I should not have taken my anger out on you. It was unfair and wrong. I shouldn’t have said the things I did.” He hands me a card.
“What’s this?”
He taps the card. “Read it.”
It’s the business card of a therapist. My mouth drops open. “You’re going to therapy? ”
“I still have a bumpy road ahead of me. I have a lot of guilt to deal with and I’m struggling with my time in the Army coming to an end before I was ready.”
I appreciate him being open with me, but I have questions. “Why guilt?”
He grunts. “My buddy lost his leg because of me.”
I don’t know the situation. I don’t know the buddy. But there’s one thing I know for sure. “There’s no way it’s your fault.”
He smiles at me and his eyes fill with wonder. “What did I do to deserve you?”
“Same, soldier boy.”
He flinches. “I’m not a soldier anymore. It’s official. I’ve been honorably discharged.”
I squeeze his bicep. “I’m sorry, Caleb. I know being a soldier is important to you. But I’m certain you can figure out your next step. You need time is all.”
“I already accepted a position with Hudson.”
I rear back. “What?”
“I’m the new head of his security.”
“Congratulations. You’re going to rock at it.”
He palms my cheeks. “Does this mean you forgive me?”
Of course, I forgive him. How could I not? The closed up hermit who initially refused to open his door to me admitted to his fears about the future and his guilt about the past. He’s even starting therapy. Forgiveness granted.
“Yes.” I smile up at him. “I forgive you.”
“Thank fuck,” he murmurs before his head descends .
I hold up a hand to stop his lips from meeting mine. My hand shakes, but I do it.
“We still haven’t discussed you moving into my house.”
Don’t get me wrong. I want to live with him. But him moving in should be a decision we make together.
“Better to ask forgiveness than permission.”
I stab him in the chest with my finger. “For future reference, this is not true.”
“I’m sorry, Maya. I wanted to show you how serious I am. How sorry I am.”
I bite my bottom lip. “But living in town? Will you be okay with having people around you all the time?”
“Smuggler’s Rest isn’t Kabul or Baghdad.”
I guess I don’t need to wonder what countries he’s been stationed in any longer.
“Thank the mermaids it isn’t.”
“I know you prefer to be in town close to the brewery and Bootlegger. ”
He raises an eyebrow and my cheeks warm.
“What did you hear? I didn’t wear a mermaid costume. That’s an outright lie.”
“But you did sing and declare Taylor Swift your queen and insist everyone in the bar bow down to her image on the screen?”
My cheeks are redder than the cranberries Buccaneer’s Distillery puts in their gin by now.
“It’s Chloe’s fault. She stole moonshine shots from a mermaid. ”
“And then she forced the liquor down your throat.”
“Yep. That’s exactly what happened.”
He chuckles. “I can’t believe I ever thought I needed to escape Smuggler’s Hideaway to find adventure.”
I roll my eyes. “Silly you. Smuggler’s Hideaway is the best. But don’t think you’re getting away with becoming a hermit on the island. I have places in the world I want to visit.”
Places I’ve waited to visit until I could go with him.
He nods to the fantasy section of my library. “You do realize those places don’t exist in the real world?”
“Really? Because they have maps and everything.”
He groans. “You’re going to force me to go on those trips where they recreate the book, aren’t you?”
Duh. I’ve always wanted to visit New Zealand. Visit New Zealand and tour where the Lord of the Rings trilogy was filmed? It’s a no brainer. It’s also happening.
“Don’t worry. You’ll have fun.”
He wraps his arms around me. “I’ll have fun because I’m with you. We could be in the remotest spot on the planet and I’d have fun with you.”
“Don’t get any ideas. I’m not going on some cruise in the Arctic Circle to observe polar bears.”
“You don’t want to observe polar bears?”
“If you want to observe wildlife, visit Sammy the seal.”
He chuckles and I enjoy the feel of his body moving against mine. This is where I belong. Not with my parents who don’t love me and do everything in their power to make me miserable. But with Caleb. In his arms. Forever .
“I love you, Caleb.”
“And I love you, Bunny.”
His gaze drops to my mouth and I bite my bottom lip. He moans before his lips meld to mine. I open on a sigh. He growls as he plunges his tongue into my mouth. I press closer to him and—
“Knock! Knock!” Sophia shouts as she pounds on the door.
Caleb wrenches his lips from mine with a snarl.
“Why is Sophia at the door?”
“Shit. I forgot.”
“Forgot what?”
“Your friends want to celebrate our relationship.”
“But I’ve never had make-up sex before,” I pout.
“You are not making this easy.”
“I’m not the one who planned a party at the most inconvenient time ever.”
“We better let them in before they barge inside.” Caleb retreats a step before adjusting his cock.
I giggle. He deserves to be hard and horny. He’s the one who planned the party.
He snatches my hand and leads me to the door. “You’ll pay for that giggle.”
“Promises. Promises,” I taunt as I open the door and my friends pour into the house.
My cheeks ache from how big my smile is. I did it. I got everything I’ve ever wanted.