Coming Home (32 page)

“Sure looks that way to me.”

“I almost called you.”

“When?”

“Before I bought it. I wanted your opinion so badly. That was the closest I came to reaching out to you.”

He groaned and hugged her even closer to him. “God, I so wish you had.”

“So do I. Would you have approved?”

“Absolutely. You didn’t need me to see the potential.”

“I really wanted your approval, though, and for you to tell me it was perfect.”

“Well, I can tell you now. It’s perfect—for you, for me, for us.”

Kate tipped her head back so she could see him. “You haven’t even seen the house yet,” she said with a smile.

“Do you live there?”

“Um, yeah. You know that.”

“That’s all I need, baby.”

Those words, that accent… Kate wondered if she’d ever get so accustomed to hearing his lyrical voice that she wouldn’t be moved by it anymore. She sure hoped not. “So you’d be okay living here?”

“I’d much rather live here than in the mausoleum my family called home. There’s nothing warm or inviting about that place. I only keep it for the airfield that Ashton still uses and for the stables.”

“I wonder if there’s something we could do with that house so it isn’t sitting there empty.”

“Like what?”

“Maybe it could be a place for women and children who’ve fallen on hard times to get back on their feet,” Kate said, thinking out loud. “We could hire counselors and help them with career stuff and housing advice and teach the kids to ride—”

“I love it. That’s absolutely brilliant.”

“Really? You think so?”

“I do. I enjoyed working on the affordable housing initiatives in St. Kitts. It’s very satisfying to know you’re helping people who’ve been less fortunate. I was born into a lot of money. I’ve never known any other life until I started getting down in the trenches with people in need. I liked the feeling that came with knowing I’d helped to make a difference for them. So yes, I love your idea. I’d need to run it past Ashton, but I’m sure he’d be all for it, too. He does a ton of pro bono work for needy causes in town.”

Kate was a little ashamed that she was truly surprised to hear that Ashton gave back to the community. She’d spent far too much time thinking poorly of him to entertain such a possibility. “I didn’t know that.”

“I’m hoping the two of you can get to know each other better and discover there’s a lot of good stuff you don’t know about each other.”

“I hope so, too. I appreciated his input today. What he said made a lot of sense to me.”

“Did it?”

She nodded. “I suppose I’d be a fool to walk away entirely, but I’m determined to cut way back. He made it sound like that’s totally doable. What do you think of summers on tour?”

“Sounds fun to me. Would we get to sleep in one of those narrow bus bunks that are made for one person?”

When she laughed, he took advantage of the opportunity to slide his cold hands under her sweater.
 

Not wanting to startle Thunder, she forced herself to stay still as the chill quickly turned to heat. “How about we go home and I show you the incredible bed I had custom built?”

“Now that I’d like to see.”

“Thought you might say that.” She directed Thunder to the stables, where she turned him over to Gordon for grooming. They fed him some carrots to thank him for the ride before they walked to the house.
 

“I swear you’d probably sleep with that horse if you could find a way to make it happen,” Reid said.

“You know it. It’s so not fair that dogs can live in the house but horses can’t.”

“Do you have dogs?”

She shook her head. “I’m away too much, but I want them. A whole bunch of them. The bed is big enough for all of us.”

“No way am I sharing you with anyone else in bed.”

“You’re showing your age.”

“Call me a fuddy-duddy, but I have my limits. No dogs in the bed.”

“All right. If you’re going to be that way about it.”

Reid’s cell phone rang. “I gotta take this. It’s Ashton. Hi, son.” As he listened to what Ashton was saying, he stopped walking and frowned. “I suppose that was to be expected.” He listened some more. “Thanks for letting me know. I’ll call you tomorrow.”
 

“What’s wrong?”

He hesitated, and Kate could tell that he was deciding whether or not he should tell her.

“Just say it. Whatever it is, we’ll deal with it.”

“Apparently, the media have figured out who I am, and they’re digging into my life. They’re making a big deal about the age difference between us. Ashton recommended we ignore it, which is good advice.”

Kate’s first thought was about her dad seeing the coverage and having it make things worse.
 

“It was inevitable that they’d figure out who was with you in the video,” Reid continued.
 

“I’m sorry. I hate that they’re dragging you through the mud, too.”

“Don’t be sorry. I knew what I was getting into, and I’ve gone into it fully aware of the possible fallout.” He put his arms around her and drew her in close to him.

Resting her head on his chest, Kate closed her eyes and took comfort from his embrace.

“No matter what happens, no matter what they say or how intrusive they may be, there’s nothing they could say or do that would make me not want you. That would make me not want this life we’re figuring out for ourselves. Got me?”

Kate nodded and held on to him, her anchor in the storm.
 

“The next few months are apt to be rough, darlin’. You’ve chosen an unconventional path by agreeing to marry a guy my age. People are gonna talk, and some of it will probably be vicious. I’m a big boy, and I can take it. There’s no way they’ll drive me away, so don’t spend one second worrying about that, okay?”

“Okay,” she whispered.

“Now how about you show me this incredible house we’re going to call home?”

“I’d love to.”

“What did your dad say about the media reports?” Jill asked as Ashton drove them to his place. She’d spent the afternoon at his office, making calls, arranging the interview and dealing with the firestorm surrounding Kate, Reid and the video.
 

“Not too much.”

“Hopefully, he’ll take your advice and not look.”

“I hope so.”

“I feel sort of sorry for them,” Jill said. “Here they’ve missed each other all these years and when they finally get back together, this happens. It’s not fair.”

“Well, they should’ve been a bit more circumspect in St. Kitts.”

“True, but they thought they were alone.”
 

Ashton reached for her hand. “Let’s forget about them for a while. What do you want to do tonight?”

“Is it okay to say not much? I’m so tired. Thinking about all of this is exhausting, and now there’s a wedding to be planned.”

“They’ve set a date?”

“Your dad didn’t tell you?”

“We never got around to talking about that.”

“You should probably let him tell you.”

“Come on,” Ashton said, laughing. “Just tell me.”

“December twenty-sixth.”

“On his birthday.”

“Oh, I didn’t realize that was his birthday.”

“Uh-huh.”

“How do you feel about that?” she asked.

He stared straight out the windshield. “Fine. I guess.”

“You don’t sound fine.”

“I’m sure he’ll ask me to be his best man.”

“You don’t want to do it?”

Ashton glanced over at her and then returned his attention to the road. “It’s hard to talk to you about this. My future
stepmother
is your sister.”

“She’s not exactly going to be your stepmother, Ashton. As funny as that would be.”

“I’m glad you think so.” He paused. “I don’t want to sound like a jerk, because I am happy for him—for both of them. Hell, I’ve lived long enough to know that what they seem to have doesn’t come along every day. It’s just that she’s younger than I am, you know?”

“It’s weird for you.”

“A bit. Yeah. See? I sound like a jerk.”

“No, you don’t. Maybe he could ask Buddy to stand up for him.”

“He could, but he won’t. He’ll ask me, and I’ll do it because it’s him asking.”

“But you won’t really want to.”

“No,” he said with a sigh. “I don’t want to.”

“Maybe you should tell him that before he asks you to spare you both the awkwardness of it.”

“I could never say that to him. It’s hard to explain what we’ve meant to each other over the years. My mom died such a long time ago. Our family was me and him, with the Longstreets thrown in there, too, of course. Since everything happened the first time with Kate, I’ve often wondered if I would’ve been pissed no matter who he ended up with.”

“Probably a little. You’d had him all to yourself for a long time.”

“Yeah.”

“Want to know what I think?”

“I really do.”

Jill smiled at his earnest tone. “You’ve already been very supportive of a relationship that once caused you a lot of pain. You wouldn’t be out of line to draw some boundaries if you need them.”

“I suppose you’re right.” He drove into a parking lot in the middle of a cluster of townhomes. “Here we are. Home sweet home. Stay there.” He got out of the car and came around to open her door.

“There’s a lot to be said for dating a Southern gentleman,” Jill said, charmed by his manners.

“Guys up north don’t open doors for their ladies?”

“Not with any level of reliability.”

“Then they weren’t raised right.”

“I’m beginning to think you’re right about that.”

“Kate used to live over there,” Ashton said, pointing to a building across the parking lot from his.
 

“I remember her saying you guys were neighbors.”

“Yeah, she moved out as soon as she could—probably because I was here. I like the place, so I stayed put.” He led her into a nicely decorated home that was clearly occupied by a guy, with leather and chrome and a gigantic flat-screen TV in the living room. “I have my needs,” he said when he caught her staring at the TV. “Football, baby. Lots and lots of football.”

Jill wrinkled her nose at the mention of a sport she’d always hated. “That might be a deal breaker.”

He seemed stricken. “No… You probably need a better understanding of the game so you can appreciate it.”

“I understand the game just fine, and I’ll never appreciate it.”

He honestly looked like he might cry. “I thought you were the absolute perfect woman for me, but now I’m not so sure.”

Jill bit her lip to keep from laughing. “If it’s too much for you,” she said, backing toward the door, “I could leave now before this goes any further.”

“Or,” he said, following her with intent in his eyes, “you could think of some way to make it up to me.”

“Make it up to you?”

“You are the only girl I’ve ever dated who doesn’t like football as much as I do.”

“Is that right?” By now she was backed up to the door and he had surrounded her with his arms propped over her head.

“Uh-huh.” He pressed his body against hers, and Jill had to restrain herself from pulling him even closer.

“So whatever will we do about this significant difference of opinion?”

“I suppose,” he said, dipping his head to kiss her neck, “we’ll have to come to some sort of compromise.”

Jill tilted her head to give him better access. “You don’t have to give up football for me. Really, I’d never ask that of you.” The next thing she knew, she was hanging over his shoulder as he ran up the stairs. She let out a squeak of surprise and protest. “Put me down!”

He dropped her with an ungraceful plop in the middle of his big bed.
 

“That was very undignified.”

“I like you this way—with your hair all messed up and ruffled.”
 

Jill started to fix her hair, but he required her full attention when he came down on top of her, propping himself on strong arms. “Did today feel very,
very
long to you?”

Jill nodded and raised her hands to grip bulging biceps. “Very long.”

He never broke eye contact as he brought his lips down to claim hers in a deep, sweeping kiss full of pent-up desire. “I was thinking,” he said when he came up for air, “since Kate is going to be cutting back, you might have some extra time on your hands. Maybe you could come to work with me.”

She stared at him, agog. “You can’t be serious.”

“I’m very serious. You’re extremely good at what you do, and I have other clients who’d benefit greatly from what you’ve learned running Kate’s career.”

“But you and me, working together?”