Chapter 24 Kelcie
Kelcie
There are still some things we have to talk about, but for the moment, I just revel in how amazing and right it feels to be in Levi’s arms again.
His embrace gives me the comfort I’ve desperately needed the past three weeks. What he did was wrong, but he’s the only one who can repair the damage done to my heart.
Minutes pass before Levi pulls back enough to see my face. His gaze drifts lovingly over me, then he says, “You’ve lost weight.”
“Just a couple of pounds. I’ll gain them back soon enough.”
I can’t tear my eyes away from his. “You sold your house.”
He nods.
My heart clenches. “Are you moving back to Grand Rapids?”
“No. I’m selling that property as well.”
“Oh.” The word pops over my lips. “So where are you moving to?”
Levi glances at Lick when she yawns, then he clears his throat. “Currently, I’m staying at a motel in Paoli.”
The corner of my mouth lifts. “So are you going to look for a place in Paoli?”
At least that’s just ten minutes away from Verona.
When Levi shakes his head, I start to feel confused.
He looks at me again, then says, “I bought a farm.”
My eyes go wide as saucers. “You did what?”
“Well, technically, I bought the farm for you.” He gives me a lopsided grin that looks so cute, my heart melts. “I’ve been fixing up the house for the past couple of weeks, but the place still needs a lot of work.”
When I recover from the initial surprise, I gape at him. “You bought a farm? For me?”
He lowers his head, and his teeth tug at his bottom lip before he lifts his eyes to me again.
“If you ended things between us, I would’ve given it to you, but seeing as you’re giving me another chance, I’m kinda hoping it’s a project we can work on together.
” He gives me a hopeful look as he adds, “Maybe we can make the farm our home. When you’re ready, of course. ”
While I was trying to decide what to do, Levi bought us a farm, which tells me he never gave up. He made a big financial commitment to our future, not knowing whether we would even have one together.
He begins to look unsure, then says, “I needed to do something. I couldn’t sit still while I gave you the space you asked for.”
“So if I said things were over between us, you would’ve given me a farm? Why?”
“Because I want you to be happy, Kelcie. Even if it’s not with me.”
That right there is why I love him and couldn’t give up on us. Levi might have gone the wrong way about it, but at the end of the day, everything he’s done has been for me.
I dart forward and wrap my arms around his neck, and he doesn’t miss a beat as he returns the hug.
I inhale his cedarwood and citrus cologne, which is mixed with his natural scent, and press as close to him as I can get. Levi shifts on the couch, pulling me onto his lap, and I position my legs on either side of him.
His fingers grip my jaw, and he nudges my face up. When I see the love shining from his eyes, emotion wells in my heart until it feels like it might burst.
“I love you, Kelcie.” His gaze lowers to my mouth, and it makes anticipation spark to life in my abdomen. “I never want to be separated from you again. I won’t survive it a second time. Without you, there’s only darkness.”
We move at the same time, and our mouths collide with so much longing and heat, I gasp. Levi kisses me as if I’m his beginning and end, as if he’ll cease to exist without me.
I feel the same way. He’s rescued me from the claws of despair. He’s the glue that keeps the shattered pieces of me together. I’m only whole because of him.
Like I’ve said before, I learned a hard lesson to appreciate every single moment I have with a loved one because they can be ripped away from me in a heartbeat. I don’t want to waste a single second with Levi.
As we kiss, things feel right again.
When he nips at my mouth and pulls back to press his forehead to mine, I say, “Thank you for buying us a farm.”
A symbol that even when I walked away, he didn’t. He kept his promise to me that he would only leave if I asked him to.
“I think you’re going to love it so much. We even have a lake.”
I let out a chuckle. “Yeah?”
He nods and gives me another gentle kiss. “And there are no neighbors close to us.”
Laughter bursts from me. “Perfect.”
I lean back so I can see his face, and my smile fades as I ask, “How have you been? Have you heard from your mother again?”
He shakes his head. “Don’t call her that. She’s not my mother.”
I see the pain in his eyes, and my heart squeezes for him. “Did seeing her trigger you?”
Levi glances away and brushes his palms up and down my thighs. “She touched me.” His features draw tight. “I sat in a hot shower until the water ran cold, and it still didn’t remove the feel of her hand on me.”
“Where did she touch you?”
He holds up his right arm. “My wrist.”
I wrap my hands around his wrist and forearm, pressing a kiss to his palm.
The tension eases on his face, and he tilts his head while a smile tugs at the corner of his mouth. “All better. My miracle.”
Figuring we can both use something to drink, I move off his lap and climb to my feet. “I’m going to make us some hot chocolate.”
“Actually, I’m in desperate need of a shower.” He gets up, and my heart sinks at having to say goodbye so quickly. He can no longer just go next door.
“You can shower here,” I suggest.
Levi shakes his head. “I need clean clothes.”
“Oh. Right.”
Feeling dejected, I begin to walk toward the front door. “Thanks for—”
“I was hoping you would consider coming back to the motel with me,” he interrupts me, and I stop dead in my tracks.
When I turn around to look at him, he adds, “No pressure. I want to spend more time with you, but I’ll understand if you’re not ready.”
I glance around the living room and the lone couch, then nod. “Let me just grab my bag.”
I walk to the stairs, and when Levi follows, I say, “Upstairs is pretty . . . empty. I never bought furniture.”
As we reach the landing and walk down the hallway, Levi glances around. He stops in the doorway of the main bedroom, and a frown forms on his forehead.
“You don’t have a bed,” he comments.
“I slept on the couch.” I grab my luggage, thankful I haven’t unpacked yet.
Moving closer, his eyebrows draw together as he lifts his hands to frame my face. “You never made this place home.”
I shrug. “Because it wasn’t. It was just meant to be a place where I could stay until I was ready to go home.”
“Your parents’ house?” Levi asks.
I nod.
He leans down and presses a tender kiss to my lips, then he takes the bag from me. “Let’s go, my muse.”
As we leave the room, he holds his other hand out to me, and I quickly link our fingers. His grip is firm as he leads me down the stairs and out of the house.
Noticing the truck again, I ask, “When did you get the new ride?”
“A couple of weeks ago. The road to the farm is too uneven for a sedan. I also needed something to transport all the materials when I started fixing up the house.”
“So you’ve been doing renovations?”
He nods and lets go of my hand to open the passenger door for me. “I’ll take you tomorrow so you can look around and tell me what you want done.”
Suddenly, Lick jumps up, and I smile as she makes space for me to sit beside her. I grab hold of the door and put my foot on the step, but then Levi’s hands settle on my hips, and I’m lifted into the cab.
He shuts the door, and I hear him place my luggage in the truck bed before he comes to get in behind the steering wheel.
I put on my seat belt, then give Lick a hug. “I missed you.”
“She missed you too,” Levi murmurs.
After starting the engine, he reverses into the road, and my eyes land on the Adamses’ house. I see Mrs. Adams peeking through the drapes, and it gives me the creeps.
“I’m going to cancel the lease for the rental,” I tell Levi. “I can’t live across from Colby’s family anymore.”
“You can stay with me at the motel.” He glances at me. “What do you think?”
“Or . . .” My tongue darts out to wet my lips. “We can go to my family home and stay there until the farmhouse is ready.”
Levi’s eyes widen. “Are you ready to take that step?”
Lick lies partially on my lap, and I begin to brush my hand over her soft fur. It gives me a moment to think about temporarily moving into my parents’ house.
“I won’t know until I try,” I answer honestly.
Levi reaches across Lick and gives my hand a squeeze before he pays attention to the road again.
“I hope to have the living room on the farm ready by the end of December.” A frown line appears between his eyes. “Unless we’re still going to Jordan’s for the holidays?”
“I forgot about that.” Then my eyes widen. “Oh my God. Christmas is in five days.”
“We can still drive through and spend a day or two there,” Levi suggests.
“I’ll give Jordan a call tomorrow and hear what he thinks,” I reply.
Levi
After I park the truck in my spot right in front of my room, I switch off the engine.
“Wait in the cab. I’ll unlock the door, then you and Lick can come. I don’t want you standing in the snow.”
Kelcie releases her seat belt while I get out of the truck. I’m hit with a blast of cold and quickly unlock the door to the motel room.
“Come, Lick,” I hear her say.
I glance at Kelcie, and when she jumps over a puddle of slush, she loses her footing.
I dart forward, and as she begins to fall backward, I grab hold of her arm and yank her against my body.
My other arm locks around her waist, and as her hands grip my shoulders, I lift her off her feet and carry her into the room before setting her down again.
“That was a close call,” she chuckles.
I quickly go back out to get her luggage, and when I shut the door behind me and look at her, the smile on her face is blindingly beautiful.
Kelcie is here with me.
We’re still together.
I get to feel her love and touch for the rest of my life.
The realization keeps hitting me upside the head every few minutes.
I want to kiss her until I forget my own name, but I’m in desperate need of a shower.
“I’ll be quick,” I say as I walk to the bathroom. I gesture at the bed and TV. “Make yourself comfortable.”