“Yeah, Gavin had a meeting at the label, and Tristan and Cole were just as eager.”
“Hmmm, something’s brewing with the guys.”
“Possibly. How’s your day?” he asks. Obviously, he is not as interested in the drama of his best friends’ lives as I am.
“Good.” I hesitate. “I just got a call from the management company about my apartment.”
“Oh, yeah? What did they have to say?”
“It’s ready. We can move back anytime we want.”
“I see. What’s Stacy think?”
“She’s actually considering moving back in with her parents. She’s not loving this new job, and if she quits, it will be hard to make ends meet until she finds a new position.”
“Good. Call them and tell them you’ll have your place cleaned out by the end of the week.”
My mouth drops open. “And where am I going to live?”
He stands from his seat across from me and places his hands on my desk. Leaning over, he captures my gaze with those ocean blue eyes. “With me, in our bed, in our room, in our house.”
I start to speak, but he raises a hand to stop me. “This place isn’t just mine anymore, Logan. There is not a room in this house that doesn’t hold a memory of you over the past several months. I want you here. You belong here, with me.”
“It’s soon,” I say half-heartedly. I say it because it feels like I’m supposed to, but it doesn’t feel soon. It feels like I’ve loved him forever.
“No it’s not. It’s forever! I finally have you, and I’m never letting you go.” His voice is soft as he leans in, his lips hovering over mine. “Say yes,” he breathes against my lips.
Following my heart, I say, “Yes.” His lips connect with mine in a slow sensual tangle of our tongues.
“Call them back. I’ll call the moving company.” He gives me another chaste kiss before turning and walking out the door.
He’s cocky and confident and sexy as hell. I can’t wait to take this next step with him.
I call Stacy and she’s relieved. She didn’t want to leave me with the rent. I tell her Kacen is scheduling a moving company and I’ll have her stuff delivered to her parents’ house. My next call is to the management company. They agree to let us out of our lease without keeping our deposit due to the inconvenience of being misplaced for so many weeks.
I spend the next couple of hours answering social media messages for the band. I confirm a photo shoot with Cassidy. The label is updating their website and wants new photos of all of their clients.
My stomach grumbles and I realize I’ve not eaten yet today. I log out of my computer and make my way into the kitchen. The guys are all there eating sandwiches. Kacen smiles and hands me a plate. “I was just coming to see you.”
“Sure you were,” I tease him.
“You wound me,” he says, placing his hand over his heart, laughing.
I take a seat at the table and the five of us enjoy our lunch. “So what do you guys have going on this weekend?” I ask.
“Cole claims to have a date, as does Gavin. Tristan says he plans on staying in, that a quiet night sounds perfect. I’m sure it has something to do with whomever he’s been texting lately.”
“Dates? Dish it, boys. I need to meet these women, make sure they’re worthy.”
The four of them erupt in laughter. “Not happening. Not yet anyway,” Gavin replies.
“I’m out,” Cole adds.
“Pfft, you all are no fun. I will find out, just you wait,” I warn them.
“What about you?” I ask Kacen.
“You mean, what about us? I thought we could get you unpacked. Get everything moved into our room,” he says, smiling.
“Our room,” I repeat.
“Yeah. I thought we could just enjoy the house to ourselves for your first official weekend of living here permanently.”
His statement is unmistakable. He wants this, with me.
“Sounds perfect,” I say. Nothing has sounded better, other than the words “I love you” falling from his lips, in a long time.
My cell rings interrupting us. I pull it out of my pocket and without looking at the screen, I answer. “Hello.”
“Logan, please don’t hang up,” Daniel says. I remain quiet on the other end of the line. “I’m sorry. I was hoping that we could meet for coffee so we could talk. I know you’re not coming back to me, but I just . . . please.”
I think about the time I spent with Daniel and how it ended. He’s going to keep calling until I give him this. Give him the closure that he obviously needs.
“Yeah, I can do that. When?” I ask. I feel Kacen stiffen beside me. He can hear our conversation. I need to do this.
“How about Starbucks, say in an hour?” he asks. I agree to meet him there and hang up the phone.
“You don’t owe him anything, Logan,” Kacen says.
“I know that. He needs closure, and in a way, I do too. He hurt me, used me and I would like to hear his reasoning. I wasn’t ready to hear it before, now I am. I have you and I’m moving on. Trust me,” I say as I kiss his lips.
“I trust you. It’s the ex-douche who I don’t trust.”
“I’m going to meet him for coffee and be back before you know it. Then we can spend the rest of the day in your bed, if that’s what you want,” I say, trying to lift his spirits.
“Our bed,” he whispers the words against my lips. “Can I go with you?”
“I don’t think that’s such a good idea. He’s not going to hurt me, Kacen.”
“I know, but I don’t want him to think that he can get you back. We’re us, remember?” I hear the concern in his voice.
“I’ll never forget. I’ll be back before you know it.”
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Walking into Starbucks, I spot Daniel right away. He’s sitting at a booth in the back corner. I make my way to him, he sees me and stands up. “Thank you for agreeing to meet with me.” He looks over my shoulder as he is expecting Kacen to be there.
“It’s just me,” I tell him. I can visibly see him relax.
“I ordered for you,” he says, pointing to a cup sitting in front of me as I take a seat.”
“Thank you.”
“Listen, Logan. I’m going to cut right to the chase. I know he’s waiting for you. I’m sorry. Looking back, I can see how I treated you. I now understand that I was looking for something that I already had. I’ve always been that way, looking for the next best thing. All too late I realized that I had the best all along. I’m sorry I hurt you. I never meant for it to turn out that way. I really did love you. I still do.”
“Daniel—” I say his name but he cuts me off.
“I know that you’re with him. I’ve seen the tabloids and read the interviews of how he says you’re it for him. I can see it when he looks at you and you him. It’s just hard to see.” He’s quiet for a few minutes. “You never looked at me like that. I didn’t want to accept that you had really moved on until I saw the pictures. I’m happy for you, Logan.”