Chapter 13
Each day Gael gained more strength. The breathing tube had been removed the first day with great success. Dallas never left his side unless he forced her to head back to her apartment to shower and rest. Diego had been a godsend in riding roughshod over her and making her take breaks from this place.
The one continual dark cloud was her missing father. Clay had taken her to the morgue the first day, and she was able to rule out the victim as Frank. However as more time went on, she was convinced he’d fallen victim to Eddie. She scoured the town for a few hours each day, stopping at all of Frank’s standard haunts and drinking holes, all to no avail. She continually called the hospitals and morgues asking about any John Does being admitted.
The day Gael was scheduled to be released finally arrived, and he was grateful to be heading home. Dallas had been house hunting for herself, saying it was time she did the adult thing and purchased a home. He wondered where their relationship played into it.
He hated the idea of going back to living alone, but maybe she’d appreciate the quiet again. The coward in him refused to broach the subject for fear she’d want to end their brief relationship. She hadn’t signed up to care for him, and he hated putting her in the position of having to be caregiver while she was still dealing with a broken foot.
As a result their conversations had become a little more stilted and their words a little more guarded. Today, as they waited for Diego to show and chauffeur them home, Dallas broke the ice.
“If you don’t want to be with me, please tell me now. Let’s not drag it out.”
Hearing her fight to hold back her grief at the idea of their potential breakup had him breathing out a sigh of relief. She didn’t want what they’d built to end any more than he did. “Mi sol, I would be with you forever and a day if you wished it.”
She spun around to face him from where she’d been concentrating on the traffic four stories below. “Oh, thank God! I thought…” Dallas swallowed audibly, and hope shone bright in her eyes. “I thought maybe I brought along too much drama for you.”
“Come here, D.J.” Gael spread his arms wide as he perched on the edge of the bed. She hobbled her way to stand directly in front of him, and taking great care not to put pressure on his chest, wrapped his head in her arms and cradled him against her breasts. Not a bad place to be in his opinion. He wrapped his arms around her, tugging her closer still. “I’m sorry if you believed, for one instant, I’m not totally committed to you. To us. Because I am. I love you. Never doubt that.”
He could feel the warm moisture of her tears as they fell from her eyes and touched his scalp. But for the occasional sniffle, she remained silent.
“You kept discussing a new place to live. Kept saying you thought it was time for you to be a responsible adult and buy a house. But never once did you mention you wanted me to share your house. Inside, I was freaking out.” He kissed the skin exposed by the V of her shirt. “The thought of not having you sleeping by my side each and every night… God, D.J. I’m not going to lie. It hurt. I didn’t know how to say it. I worried you were ready to cast me aside.”
“I kept mentioning the house, hoping you’d give me your opinion on where you wanted to live. I don’t want to stay in my apartment one more day than necessary. It feels tainted now. Every day I walk in, I relive the shooting. For every minute I couldn’t be with you while you were here, fighting for your life, I died a little more inside. I don’t want to continually be reminded of my piss-poor choices.”
He pulled back to meet her gaze. “Stop. Right here, right now. Stop blaming yourself,” he ordered, voice stern. “You had no way of foreseeing this was going to happen. Yeah, I didn’t like old numb nuts, but it was because I was jealous as hell. I didn’t pick up on the psycho vibe either. As for piss-poor choices, well, that’s because none of your previous boyfriends were me.” He grinned to show her he truly believed what he was telling her.
Her smile nearly blinded him. “I love you, Gael. More than anything or anyone. I’m committed to us.”
“Well, it’s about damned time you two stopped pussy-footing around and had a real conversation for a change.”
Gael twisted to see Diego leaning against the doorframe, arms and ankles crossed as if he had all day to lounge there.
“‘Pussy-footing’? Who even uses terms like that anymore? Freak. You here to spring us from this place or what?”
“So now you’re no longer hailing down the Jesus Bus and on your way back to good health, you’re going to get mouthy?” Diego asked, pushing off the frame and stepping farther into the room.
“Shut up, you damned ambulance chaser,” Gael retorted.
“Nice.” His cousin moved in and dropped a kiss on Dallas’s cheek, then ruffled Gael’s hair like an adult does to a small child. “I have good news if anyone cares to hear it.”
Two pairs of inquisitive eyes focused on Diego.
“I was able to get all charges dropped against Dallas. Eddie’s stabbing is being ruled as self-defense.”
Gael knew his cousin too well to believe he was finished. “And?”
“That isn’t good enough for you? Take, take, take. Nothing is—”
“Diego!”
“Fine.” He reached in and produced a key to dangle in Dallas’s vicinity. “I met with a realtor friend of mine. I think I found you the perfect house. I figured we can go take a look on our way back to your apartment.”
“Ohmygod! Thank you!” Dallas gushed grabbing the key and hugging Diego.
“And?” Gael said, tone dry.
“And, I may have found where your father has been all this time.”
“Frank? Is he…?”
“Alive? Yes. Alive and well. He checked himself into a rehab. Would you rather I take you to him first?”
“Rehab! I never thought to check.” Dallas’s wide gray eyes flew to Gael’s. He smiled and nodded, letting her know he was cool with her meeting with her dad.
“I’m sorry, Gael. I think I’m more in love with Diego right now.”
“It’s always the way.” A female voice interrupted their conversation. “Diego has charm to spare. No other man can hold a woman for long when he’s around.”
“Becca!” Diego rushed to his girlfriend and bent her back in a move that would do tango dancers everywhere proud. His mouth captured hers in a kiss that would make anyone hot just watching.
Dallas cleared her throat and found great interest in the key she was holding. “Are their PDAs always so… um, passionate?”
“He’s making it look good because he was caught flirting,” Gael laughed.
“Good to know. I’d hate to have to call Station 58 and get a firehose in here.”
Shifting her so Dallas could perch on his lap, Gael cuddled her close. “So you love my cousin more than me because he found your dad and the perfect house? I can see I have to work to meet the bar.”
“No. You are my one true love. No work needed. Being yourself is all I require,” she whispered in his ear, nipping the lobe. She turned serious and placed her palms on either side of his face. “Thank you for loving me, Gael. It’s the most precious gift of all.”
Finding it difficult to reply due to the lump in his throat, he nodded and pressed his forehead to hers.
* * *
Diego pulled up to the gates of the subdivision where they were to view the house for sale. Dallas recognized it as one of the more upscale neighborhoods. Right away, she knew the place was out of her price range, and the disappointment stung.
“Diego, this is well beyond my budget,” she said regretfully.
He smirked as he met Gael’s eyes in the rearview mirror, and she twisted to see what he found amusing. There sat Gael, eyes twinkling and a mischievous grin playing about his lips.
“What am I missing here?”
“Let’s see how you like the place, then we can discuss finances, mi sol.”
From his words alone, she knew he’d concocted a plan with his cousin. Those two were up to something, and the what remained to be discovered.
The exterior of the two-story house was charcoal gray with white trim and shutters. The front door was a bold red. The front porch was wide in the standard Southern style of most farmhouse types. But the wide expanse of the porch was where the quaint style of old ended. Everything else associated with the place was modern.
“How old is this place? It looks brand new,” she asked, positioning her crutches under her arms.
“It is new,” Diego assured her. He helped Gael ease from the car and hovered by his side all the way to the door of the home. His actions spoke volumes and told her exactly how much he cared for his cousin.
“Will you do the honors?” Gael asked with a wave toward the lock.
Nerves assailed her. Not the ugly “oh crap” kind of nervousness when things were about to go horribly wrong, but the “wonderful sensation” type when things were about to go very right.
Sticking the key into the lock, she opened the door and stepped into the foyer. Her breath was sucked from her chest. She flew from room to room as swiftly as her crutches could carry her. Squeals of delight bubbling up and out with each new room she viewed.
“Oh, Gael,” she breathed when he joined her in the kitchen. “You did this, didn’t you? I can’t believe you were listening to me! When I think about all those times I rambled on about my dream home… I just can’t believe you didn’t tune me out.”
“I made sure to write it all down. I have a notebook detailing every idea you’ve ever discussed.”
“How long has this been under construction? How can you afford it? What if we’d never gotten together? Ohmygod, my mind is spinning with endless questions!”
His laughter triggered hers. “So you love it?”
“God, yes! It’s amazing!” she exclaimed, grabbing his hand and squeezing when she really wanted to fling herself into his arms and rain kisses all over him. “But what about you? This is my dream home. What about what you want?”
“I have what I want. You. And maybe that houseplant in the dining room.”
Her delighted laughter echoed around the empty area.
“Diego!” Gael bellowed. As Diego cleared the entrance of the kitchen, Gael gestured to Dallas. “Do me a favor and lift my woman onto the counter and then disappear for a while, will you?”
“As much as I don’t want to cock block you, man, I think you’re going to need to take it easy for a while,” Diego told him regretfully.
Gael lifted his brows and stared the other man down.
“Okay, okay. Don’t say I didn’t warn you.” Diego lifted Dallas onto the counter with a wink. “I’ll be out in my car going over some briefs in case anyone needs me.”
After Diego left the room, Gael shifted to stand between her legs. He rested his hands on either side of her hips and leaned in to capture her lips. The kiss was slow and sweet as if he had all day to sit and taste her mouth.
Desire struck swift and hard, moistening her lady cave. His moan prompted one of her own. Gael angled his head and deepened the kiss, his tongue becoming bolder.
The little voice of sanity had her pulling back. She knew if she was breathing this heavy, he had to be pushing the limits of his lungs. “Gael,” she warned.
“I know. I have no intention of making love to you yet. We’ll wait until after we get settled in.”
“Deal.”
“Good, now one more taste of your gorgeous mouth and I’ll get ol’ whatshisname to help you down.” So saying, he dove back to sample her lips.
* * *
Later that night, as Dallas lay curled against Gael’s left side, she broached the subject of affording such a large home.
“You never told me how you intend to finance the place.”
“I didn’t?”
She snorted at his evasive maneuver. “You know you didn’t.”
“Hmm.”
“Fess up. What bank did you rob?”
“Should I be hurt you assume I’m terrible with my money?”
She perched on her elbow, looking down into his handsome face. His twinkling honey eyes assured her he wasn’t offended at all. “Couples are supposed to talk about the important things like budgets and bills.”
“When my father passed, he left money for me in a trust. The interest, compounded since I was eight-years-old, was a tidy sum. When I turned twenty-five, the money in the trust was released. I, in turn, handed it over to Rod to invest. Before he went off to play pirate, he was an investment broker.”
“What are you saying? You’re rich?”
“Maybe not rich, but I do have a healthy portfolio.”
“I don’t know what to say.”
He pulled her head down to his and tugged at her lower lip with his teeth. “How about ‘thank you’?”
In all honesty, Dallas didn’t know how to feel about him buying and building her dream home. He had to have had it started prior to their getting together. The type of craftsmanship found in the construction of their future home isn’t done overnight. Had he been so sure of her feelings?
“What if we’d never have gotten together?”
For once he didn’t dismiss her question with playfulness. He answered honestly. “Part of me believed one day we’d be together. I don’t think I could bear to imagine the long term without you.”
She nodded. His words made perfect sense. Since the day they’d met, he’d been her best friend and confidant. She couldn’t imagine a life without him in it. They’d developed into so much more in such a short time, but in many ways, it was so right, it was scary.
Dallas settled against him and inhaled his unique scent. No more words were needed, but she said them anyway. “I love you.”
“And I love you, mi sol.”