33. Bailey
CHAPTER 33
Bailey
C aleb’s soft little snores carry through the living room as we lie on the floor. I grab a blanket off the couch, draping it over us before reaching for my phone. I text Lily.
Bailey: Can Charlie stay with you? I think I’m going to stay here tonight. I don’t want to just up and leave him right now.
Lily: Of course, hun. You take care of what you need to. I’ve got her, just let me know when to drop her off.
Bailey: You’re the best ??
I settle back into Caleb’s side, resting my head on his chest and listening to the mixed sounds of his heartbeat and snoring. I should have known something was up with Caleb this morning. He always meets us downstairs and says goodbye, even if he’s not working that day or leaving after us. I guess I thought it was all a reaction to Charlie calling him dad. It could have been part of it, but he claimed her as his with his friends. My heart and mind are still a mess as I process everythin g.
C harlie, Lily, and I are about to settle in and watch some movies when I grab Caleb’s hoodie out of my bag and throw it on. Snuggling into it and inhaling Caleb’s scent, I put my hands inside the pocket and find something square and hard inside. Pulling out the box, I look down, and I swear my heart stops because I’m holding a ring box.
The velvet is soft under my fingers, and my mind races a mile a minute. I open the box, and my entire world freezes. Nestled inside is a gorgeous diamond ring. A white gold band with a small, round diamond sitting in the centre. It isn’t ostentatious; it’s perfect. Something I could see myself wearing.
“Ummmm, whatcha got there?” Lily’s voice pulls me out of my thoughts.
“I don’t know. It was in the pocket of Caleb’s hoodie.”
My eyes leave the ring, and I meet her gaze as a shit-eating grin spreads across her face.
“That, hun, looks like an engagement ring.” Her voice is full of excitement.
“We haven’t even been together that long,” I say, but I also really want it to be just that. The thought of marrying Caleb one day doesn’t scare me. It fills me with joy and excitement. I’m not ready for that step yet, but one day in the near future, I’d love to be engaged to him. To marry him.
“Go talk to him.”
I shake my head quickly. “No, tonight is our annual Christmas girls’ night.”
Lily shakes her head, her smile still on her face. “I know you. You’re going to spend the rest of the night with your head filled with questions about what that ring means. You won’t mentally be with us. So, take the ring and go talk to him. Charlie and I will hang out here.”
I worry my lip between my teeth, knowing she’s right. “Fine, but I’ll come back after.”
“Don’t worry about us,” Lily says as she pushes me towards the front door. “Charlie, come say bye to your mom.”
The sound of Charlie’s pounding footsteps carries through the house until she stops in front of me.
“Why are you leaving, Mom? We were going to watch a movie.” She’s more confused than sad.
“Mommy’s got to go talk to Caleb. I’ll be back as soon as I can.” I pull her into a hug and kiss the top of her head.
“Okay.” That seems to be enough for her, because as soon as I release her, she runs back into the living room.
“Don’t rush,” Lily says as she ushers me out the front door, handing me my purse and keys.
“I’ll text you when I’m on my way back,” I say as I step outside.
“Don’t worry about us.”
I hurry out of Lily’s place and head to my car, unlocking it and then making my way back to Caleb’s. As I drive through the neighbourhood, it hits me just how much I don’t want to move, but I really don’t want Charlie and I to overstay our welcome when Caleb was so nice to offer us a place to stay. I pulled up some house listings in my neighbourhood so I could get an idea of what I could list mine for. Charlie and I can move into an apartment while we wait for the sale to close, and then I’ll see what I can buy from the proceeds.
Pulling into Caleb’s driveway, I turn off the car and sit for a minute. Going inside and talking to Caleb has the possibility to change everything. Taking a deep breath, I open the door and make my way inside. As soon as I step inside, the sound of hea rt-wrenching sobs fills the air.
Oh, my poor Caleb.
Rounding the corner into the living room, I see the state of it and gasp. Caleb sits on the edge of the couch with his head in his hands as he cries. Papers are scattered over the floor in front of him, takeout containers litter the coffee table, and a partial bottle of Jack sits near him.
Caleb’s head flies up, and when our eyes meet, I see the absolute torment in his. I rush to his side, cupping his face and brushing his tears away the same way he’s done for me on so many occasions. He cries harder, and I move to straddle his lap and hold him as best as I can. When his arms come around me, he holds me so tightly it’s like he thinks if he holds me any looser, I’ll somehow disappear. This man doesn’t seem to know that I’m not going anywhere.
He has become my home.
He is the one place I always want to be.
He is the light in the darkness that had become my life, and I never want to give that up.
When his sobs subside and he pulls back, his words come out barely above a whisper. “What are you doing here?” His words are like a slap, but I still smile at him because if he truly didn’t want me here he wouldn’t have held me like I was his lifeline.
“I live here.”
I ’m pulled from my thoughts as I feel Caleb’s hand run through my hair, and I smile up at him.
“What are you thinking about so intently?” he asks.
I shake my head. “Nothing.”
“We should talk. ” Those three words have my entire body on edge. We should talk are not words anyone wants to hear.
I hold the blanket to my chest as I sit up and lean against the couch, and Caleb follows suit.
“Okay. What do you want to talk about?”
“First, I want to talk about your place.”
My eyes search his face for any clues about what he’s going to say, but I can’t find anything.
“If you want to sell it, I support you. I don’t want you and Charlie to move out, though. I thought I was showing you that, but I guess I need to say it too. I want you and Charlie to move in permanently. What you do with your place is your choice. If you want to list it, I’ll help you find a realtor. If you want to rent it, I’ll help you find a property management company so you don’t have to be super hands on if you don’t want. If you want to renovate it, I’ll be there with you every day doing everything I can.” He reaches for my hand and squeezes it. “I want to go back and grab all of your things so you and Charlie are properly moved in.”
I move and straddle his lap, taking his face in both hands. I lean forward and kiss him softly. “Of course we’ll move in Caleb.”
His arms wrap around me.
“Second?” I ask.
Removing a hand from my waist, he tucks a piece of stray hair behind my ear. “How do you feel when Charlie calls me dad? This isn’t just about how I feel. You’re her mom and have a say in this. If you don’t want her to call me that, then I’ll sit down and have a talk with her, but I meant what I said earlier. I like it. I will always be there to love and protect her. If she wants to call me dad, then she’s more than welcome to. But if it makes you uncomfortable, then we’ll stop it.”
I run my hands through his hair, feeling the strands between my fingers before moving my hands down the sides of his face and across the hard muscles of his chest. He looks at me quizzically as I continue to move my hands, trying to confirm that this magnificent man in front of me is real. Leaving my left hand on his chest, I move my right to pinch myself. His brows furrow.
“Baby, what are you doing?” he asks as he takes my hand in his, kissing the top before holding it.
“Making sure you’re real and I’m awake because how in the world did I manage to get this lucky? I went from being in an abusive relationship I had to fight my way out of, to managing being on my own and a single mother, to finding you. A perfect supportive man who loves my daughter as fiercely as I do. You have brought us into your family and friend group, all of them accepting us.” I take a deep breath, hoping to hold back the tears that are fighting their way to the surface. “I fall in love with you more and more every day, Caleb Sutton. I don’t know how you’re still single.”
“Baby, we both have baggage. You are so unbelievably strong and resilient. You saved and protected yourself and your daughter. You then came into my life and saved me without even trying. Having you in my life is a privilege I will spend the rest of my life working to earn, and I’m not single. I’m very much taken by a stunning, strong, intelligent blonde woman who surprises me every day.”
He leans forward, his lips dusting over my cheek then my forehead. I close my eyes, savouring his gentle touch. His lips move over each eyelid, my nose, and other cheek before he pulls away. I open my eyes, meeting his. The look in them takes my breath away. If his words weren’t enough, which they were, the look in his eyes would be.
They’re full of love.
“You never answered my question,” he says with a small smirk.
“If that’s the relationship you want with her, I’m not going to stop it. Charlie has decided she wants that with you. You have done nothing but love and care for her since we bulldozed into your life. You are an amazing role model for her. I can’t think of a better person for her to call dad.”
I watch the tears gather behind his eyes. One slips free and makes its way down his cheek. I kiss it away and take a deep breath.
“Aren’t we just a mess?” I say on a laugh.
He smiles at me softly. “There’s no one in this world I’d rather be a mess with than you.”
He wraps his arms around me and pulls me into his chest, and I inhale the smell of him. I’m just about asleep wrapped in his arms when his chest moves as a light laugh escapes him.
“Baby, as much I love holding you like this, I need to get up. My ass is starting to fall asleep.”
I laugh and move to get off him, taking the blanket with me and exposing him. My eyes devour him, and he groans.
“I would really love to fuck you senseless again, but I really need a shower,” he says as he pushes off the floor, offering me a hand. I take it and he pulls me up until my body is flush with his. Heat radiates off him as he stares at me. After a few seconds, he takes a step back. Still holding my hand, he leads me upstairs and into the en-suite washroom, starting the shower. He tests the temperature with his hand before bringing me in with him. I allow the water to wash away the craziness of the day.
When we leave the washroom and head into the bedroom, Caleb asks, “Do you need to head back to Lily’s? I can give you a ride.”
I shake my head. “No, Lily offered to take Charlie for the rest of the night and she’ll drop her off tomorrow.”
“So you and me, curled up on the couch with dinner and a movie?”
I smile. “That sounds perfect.”