Chapter 18 Remington
Remington
It’s been over a week since Lainey and I have become official.
Every day that I have not been working I go over to her apartment, but today is the first time that she is coming to my house, and I can’t wait.
I have been dreaming of having her here, in my space, for weeks.
The more time we spend together, I see Lainey’s walls slowly coming down.
I know there is more that she has to share, maybe things I won’t ever get to know, and that’s fine.
What I do know is that I have never been so happy and hopeful.
Today is a Friday and I don’t have to work tomorrow.
I am hoping I can talk my girl into a sleepover.
We spend a lot of time together, but since the time on her couch we haven’t taken it further.
I don’t want to push things. I just want the chance to wake up next to Lainey and make her breakfast.
My doorbell rings, and I open it to see her standing there with a bottle of wine, a plate of cookies, and the most stunning smile. “Hi,” she says a little nervously.
“Get in here,” I say, grinning and welcoming her into my home.
I give her a kiss that doesn’t last long enough and guide her into the open-plan kitchen and living room area.
I set down the wine and cookies, watching as her eyes scan over the space.
My house is not overly large; it’s a ranch that I have slowly updated on my own since I bought it a few years ago.
The kitchen is my favorite part, with warm butcher-block counters and mossy-green cabinets.
It gives the house a cozy, lived-in feeling.
The rest of the walls are a soft cream color that allow the kitchen to be the star of the open space.
I don’t have a lot of decorations or clutter.
I like to be clean and organized, but my house definitely lacks the warmth of a woman’s touch that I feel when I am at Lainey’s apartment.
“Your house is lovely.” Lainey turns to me with a smile. I stride over and wrap her in a hug, not able to stay away from her.
“Much more lovely now that you are here.” I kiss the top of her head, take her hand, and give her the very quick grand tour of the rest of the place.
The laundry room off the kitchen, two guest bedrooms (one that is my office), a guest bathroom that I am in the middle of remodeling, my bedroom with its finished en suite bathroom, and finally the basement complete with a small home gym and some storage.
“It’s not big or fancy,” I say, rubbing the back of my neck, “but it works for me.”
“I lived in big and fancy, Remington. It was cold and lifeless and felt like a prison. This is perfect. You have made this place a wonderful home, worked hard to get it how you want, and be able to welcome people here. You should feel nothing but pride when you show it to me, or anyone else.” She is looking right at me, smiling softly, and seeing so much more of me than I think she even realizes.
I want to be able to provide, have a family, and have the woman I choose to build a life with be proud to be with me.
Cora was never going to be that person. I have a feeling that I could have worked my fingers to the bone, done everything she asked, given up my own dreams, and it still would have never been enough for her .
. . because I was not enough for her. Lainey sees the effort that I put into the everyday things that I do and appreciates me.
She thanks me for the big things and the little things. She sees me.
“Thank you, that means a lot to me,” I tell her, kissing my way up her jaw and finally placing one on her lips. “I have been thinking about having you here, at my house, since I met you.”
“Oh yeah?” she asks with a playful grin.
“Oh yeah . . .” I quickly sweep her into a fireman’s carry, and she yelps and holds on to my back, laughing.
“Remington!” Lainey yells.
I gently deliver her safely to my brown, buttery-soft, worn leather couch, and drop down next to her.
Pointing at the coffee table, her blue eyes sparkle when she notices the small arrangement of flowers I had placed there earlier today.
When I went to my parents’ house this morning I asked my mom if I could take a couple cuttings from her hydrangeas, and she was happy to share.
The pinks of the tiny flowers pop against the dark wood stain of my table.
“These are wow! What are they?” Lainey asks, sliding closer to examine them.
“Hydrangeas. They can mean different things for the different shades they come in, like most flowers. Pink though, is harmony, romance, and true feelings,” I tell her.
“How on earth do you know so much about flowers, Remington? You are like an encyclopedia.” She looks back at me over her shoulder, distracting me with her long lashes and pouty lips.
Clearing my throat and sinking deeper into the couch, I explain, “My parents own a landscaping company. So, plants and flowers were a big part of life growing up. My mom loves to rattle off names, meanings, and flower facts. What I don’t remember from her I Google,” I admit and Lainey laughs.
“She runs the office side of the company, and my dad is the dreamer and designer. He runs the crews and all that.”
Lainey sinks back and snuggles close to me. I wrap my arm around her, breathing in her honey scent. “You didn’t want to be part of the family business?”
“No. I mean, I like flowers, but landscaping and everything my dad does is not what I’m passionate about. My parents named the company after our family, LeBlanc Landscape, just because it has a nice ring to it. They didn’t put any pressure on me or on Sutton to join them in the business.”
“They sound really great.” Lainey sighs.
“Sutton and I are lucky, they are really great parents. If we had wanted to be a part of it, they would have welcomed us with open arms. But ultimately, they truly wanted us to figure out what would make us happiest and pursue that. They have always supported us.” I know that talking about my parents could be a sore spot for Lainey, but I want her to know them.
I want her to understand that they are good people, and once they get to know her, they will love and support her the same ways they have and continue to for me and my sister.
Lainey deserves that kind of parental embrace more than anyone.
“What will happen to the company when they want to retire?” Lainey asks.
“My cousin, Felix, actually works with my dad. He has the green thumb of the family. My dad has one brother, and my mom has a sister and two brothers. Felix is her sister’s son.
My dad is going to hand over the whole thing to him but still be part owner.
But that won’t be for a long time. My mom will probably give up the books before my dad hands over the planning, dirt, and shovels.
Although, my mom’s gardens can rival anything my dad does.
She’s a master gardener,” I tell Lainey as I gently play with her hair.
“What does that mean? Master gardener?”
“She went through this like intense gardening education program and got a certification for it. So she knows a shit ton about plants and how to take care of them. What should and should be planted together, where they can be planted depending on climate and zones. Lots of stuff. She is way into it.” I try to explain the best I can.
Lainey smiles up at me. “It’s her passion.”
“Yeah, it is. I actually got those flowers from her garden this morning.” I point to the hydrangeas.
“Really? I guess I shouldn’t be surprised.” Lainey looks at them with an expression I can’t really place.
“I told her all about you when I was there.” This makes Lainey sit up straight and look at me.
“Y-you did?” she asks, nervously. She starts to fidget her hands. I notice that she does this when her anxiety starts to kick up, so I place my hand over hers and squeeze gently.
“Of course I did, Lainey. I wanted to tell her all about my amazing girlfriend. She can’t wait to meet you. I got scolded for keeping you all to myself for this long. And then scolded again when I told her that you know Sutton and have already hung out with her.” I laugh.
“I would love to meet her, Remington. Your dad, too.” She says it quietly and looks down.
“Hey, if you are not ready that’s okay. She can be overly excited . . .” Lainey cuts me off.
“No, it’s not that. I really do want to meet your parents, especially your mom.
They sound lovely. It’s just that, Remington, my family is not like your family, and when you eventually meet them I am scared to know what you will think of me.
” She looks at me as those tears that rip me apart and send rage racing along my nerves any time she talks about her family are welling back up in her deep-blue eyes.
I swipe a fallen tear off of the apple of her cheek, and tell her, “Your family dynamics do not change the woman that I am holding in my arms. The person you are today is resilient, kind, warm, and strong despite all the shit they did to you. You could have gone down a totally different road, but you chose to be this version of Lainey Quinn. You have a lot to be proud of. It doesn’t matter that we come from different backgrounds because we fit together perfectly. ”
A little sob chokes Lainey’s laugh as she buries her face in my neck, and she says, “You don’t know that yet.”
I growl. “Oh, she’s got jokes now.” I poke her side, and she squirms. “I do know. I think you know it, too.”
Lainey looks at me and wipes away a final tear. “We do. And it scares me.”
“I know.” I kiss her softly, hoping she can feel what I can’t put into words.
Pulling back she says, “I . . . we did a lot that one day at my place, well it was a lot for me, and it was amazing. But that’s not like me. I want every part of you, Remington, but I also don’t want to go too fast.” She bites her lip, obviously worried about my reaction.
“I’m okay with that, baby. We can take this as slow as you need.”
“Really?” Her disbelief is written across her face, and I want to punch every asshole that has made her feel uncomfortable or pushed her for more than she was ready to give in the past.
“There is no rush, I am not going anywhere.” I kiss her again softly.
“Thank you,” she says, a shimmer of tears starting to form again, the hurricane in her eyes swirling back to life.
“No more tears, I can’t take it. Let’s have dinner.” I link her hand in mine and lead her to the kitchen.
I grab out all of the ingredients I need to make blackened chicken with fettuccine Alfredo.
Lainey opens the delicious bottle of wine she brought.
We spend the rest of the night dancing in the kitchen while we are cooking, talking, laughing, kissing, and making my house finally feel like a true home.