Chapter 7 #2
“I have a lot of work to do, and I figured it might be nice if the house gets some use before I decide what to do with it.” I shrug like it’s no big deal, but in reality, I’m practically holding my breath waiting for her answer.
“That way I can be your official taste tester again.” It’s one of the many things I loved about having her at the clubhouse in those early days.
“So you’re really in it for the sweets?” she asks, her smile filled with humor.
“Obviously,” I answer with a teasing grin. “And the company.”
Her smile changes from a carefree one to a shy one as she plays with the end of her long braid. She wanders back over to the stove and glides her hand over the top again.
“How come none of the brothers come out to help and keep you company?” she asks.
I lean against the doorframe that separates the kitchen from the front hallway as Cece continues to peruse the stove, then she walks over to the huge double-door refrigerator and opens it, peering inside.
“This was Cooper’s and my project before he died.
I was planning to let him and his sister move in when we were finished and he was patched in, but…
” I don’t need to finish that sentence. We both know what happened.
“It never really felt right having someone else here. Honestly, I haven’t done any work on the place for far too long.
But it’s time for me to move on. Move forward. ”
Cece turns to me with understanding in her blue gaze. “I know the feeling.” She inhales a deep breath, then lets it out slowly and nods. “We should probably go get your truck.”
My head tilts to the side. “For what?”
“You said something about taking me to Ayre so we could get everything I’m going to need. I have the basics at home that I could bring over—”
“I want all new stuff in here,” I cut in. “Fresh starts, and all that.”
Cece looks surprised for a second, then a smile stretches from ear to ear as her eyes light up.
“Okay,” she says on a giggle, and I light up inside, feeling how excited she is. “Let’s get going then.”
Once again, I’m hit with how right this feels. Her. Here in this space. With me.
I hold out my hand. “Let’s go.”
I have the radio on low, playing some classic rock in my truck.
The drive to Ayre takes about thirty minutes, and Cece and I ride in a comfortable silence as she hums along to the songs playing.
When she used to use the clubhouse kitchen to bake, there were many mornings she would be humming along to some song in her head.
One day, I set up a wireless speaker, and when she got there, I was playing one of the old country bands I like doing mindless work to.
That’s when I discovered that Cece liked all kinds of different genres, but classic rock and old country are her favorites.
Well, until she found scream metal apparently, but I have yet to experience that.
I park in the lot at the huge home store, and we walk in. I immediately feel out of place, but Cece seems to know exactly where she’s going. She takes me to the kitchen section. There are so many different things on the shelf, and I have no idea what any of them do or what they’re used for.
“Maybe we need a cart,” she says as she looks over some standing mixers.
“I’ll go grab one,” I reply and head to the front of the store. When I get back to the aisle I left Cece on, she’s talking with a woman who is a bit shorter with long curly black hair.
“She’s doing okay. The surgery went well,” I hear the other woman tell Cece, who looks relieved to hear the news.
“Hi,” I say, walking up behind Cece. The woman looks at me with wide eyes, and Cece turns. She has a different expression on her face. It’s as though she’s been caught red-handed in something, but I don’t have the foggiest idea why.
“Cash…uh…this is my friend Leandra.”
“Hi, nice to meet you,” I say and hold out my hand. Leandra takes it and tentatively shakes it a few times before dropping it.
“Nice to meet you, too. I’ll let you guys get back to it. It was good seeing you, Cece.”
“You too. Please tell Thea I’ve been thinking of her.”
Leandra nods. “Will do,” she says before she offers Cece a warm smile and me a tight one, then turns to leave.
“She seems nice. Where do you know her from?” I ask Cece, who has turned her attention back to the mixer.
“Around,” she answers without sparing me a glance.
“Around where?”
Jude has often complained that Cece disappears and never says where she’s been. Now I’m wondering if it could have something to do with Leandra and some other woman named Thea.
Cece blows out a breath and turns to me. “I’ve been taking self-defense classes a few blocks from here. That’s where I met Leandra and Thea,” she answers in a low voice.
My eyes widen in surprise, and Cece shakes her head.
“Please don’t tell Lucy. It’s kind of my own thing, and I know Lucy would want to somehow involve herself or insist that I train with her.”
“That sounds about right,” I say with a laugh. “No worries, sweetheart. Your secret is safe with me.”
The relieved smile on Cece’s face breaks my heart a bit. It means she doesn’t feel like she can trust me to keep her confidence like she once did.
“I think it’s great that you signed up for a class like that.
You’re taking steps to be better prepared…
” I let the statement trail off. Better prepared for what exactly?
If someone tried to kidnap her again? I don’t want my mind to give that thought any life, considering the relaxing day we’ve had so far.
“I know what you mean,” she says with a small smile. “Now what’s our budget?” she asks, looking over the other items on the shelf.
A grin tips up the corner of my mouth. “Unlimited.”
It takes about thirty minutes for Cece to fill up the first cart—and then the second one I grabbed.
She protested a bit, saying she had a lot of this stuff at home, but I wouldn’t budge.
I want the kitchen to be completely hers.
We take the truck back to the house so I can unload everything and she can set it up how she wants.
She’s humming the song that was playing on the radio as I open box after box while she arranges things how she wants them.
After breaking down the boxes and throwing them into the giant dumpster I have for the construction waste, I walk back into the house.
“You ready to head back, sweetheart?”
I look at my phone to check the time. Ozzy and I have a meeting to go over some financials before he takes off for the day.
Cece readjusts the ponytail she threw her hair up in while we were working on the kitchen and smiles. “Yup, I think I’m all set here.”
That smile remains on her face the entire way back to her place.
When I park in front of the house, I reach into my pocket and pull out a set of keys.
I don’t know why the nerves in my stomach have flared to life all of a sudden.
Cece may not realize it, but having her in the space I’d only shared with Cooper up until today is a big deal for me.
This is a small step toward letting go of some of the grief that has been my constant companion for the last two years.
The grief that only seems to be muted when I’m around the girl sitting next to me.
“Here,” I say, handing the keys over. “Now you can head to the house whenever inspiration strikes, or when you just need some breathing room.”
That’s what Cece is for me, my breathing room.
She looks at the keys then back to me. “Are you sure? I don’t want to impose or…”
“Or what? It’s your kitchen. As long as you save me a few desserts, I have no problem with you being there whenever you want.” I shoot her a wink, and the pretty blush that runs up her exposed neck to her cheeks doesn’t go unnoticed.
“Alright, then,” she says with a small tilt of her lips. “I’ll go to the grocery store tomorrow and pick some stuff up. Any requests?”
“Do your magic. I can guarantee I’ll love anything you make.” There’s no doubt about that.
Cece bites her bottom lip, trying to contain her smile as she opens the truck door. “Okay. See you tomorrow.”
I nod, the corner of my mouth tipping up as she gets out of the truck. “Sounds good, sweetheart.”
The truck idles in front of the house as I wait for her to unlock the front door. Once she opens it, she turns and gives me a small wave before closing it behind her. I blow out a breath and head back to the clubhouse, feeling a little lighter than I have in a really long fucking time.