Chapter Thirty-Seven
Milo – One Week Later
I hummed happily to myself as the coffee pot brewed at lightning speed. Things looked different now, the whole of Nevada was much brighter, and that was all because of the woman lying in the other room, sprawled across the bed like an angel.
Okay, so she hadn’t totally made her decision to live in Nevada permanently, but this felt good. It felt like a positive step in the right direction. We were only doing this as a test, to see whether or not Eliza could actually leave Florence, but at least we were finally moving forward.
And if she decided Sun Valley wasn’t for her, then maybe we could spend the majority of our time in Florence, instead. It would make my business dealings a little more difficult, but that was a sacrifice I would be more than willing to make. If that didn’t work, either, then maybe we could split our time between the two places… However we needed to do it, it’d be okay.
There were a lot of issues to get over before we made that final step. Eliza had her apartment, which she rented, so actually, she could easily give that up, and her grandmother’s cabin.
Plus, there was her hairdressing business. For the time being, Laynee was running it for her, which could be easily done due to the low number of customers that they currently had, but things would need to be made clearer in the future…
But I wasn’t worried about any of that. For now, I was just enjoying seeing where things were going to go. I had Eliza, she’d forgiven me for my awful behavior, and we were both working toward a future that involved each other.
“Morning,” she said as she joined me, an adorable grin plastered across her face. “How are you feeling?”
“Much better.” I pulled her in and kissed her on the top of her head. “It feels so weird to have you here. I feel like I’m combining both my lives and… Well, I’m just glad, that’s all.” I didn’t even know what I was talking about. I was trying to express myself in a terrible way.
“So, what do you have planned for us today?” She took the coffee from me and moved to sit on the couch, already looking like she felt very at home. That was good. I wanted her to feel at home, especially if she was going to live here. “What exciting adventures lie ahead of us today?”
I didn’t like the idea of having to go into work, but I needed to check in on the casinos. I’d been getting very regular updates from Bill but needed to put in much more of an appearance after everything that had happened. “Interested in going to the Las Vegas strip today? I could use a moment to check in at work… I don’t want you to be bored?”
“Ooh, I’d love to!” she gasped excitedly. “I’ve never been to Vegas. I wanna see the flashing lights. I want to play some of the games. I want to check out the shops!”
Oh, good, she isn’t bored of Vegas like me. “Sounds great; I’ll get you some chips for my place, and you can practice gambling there.”
“Oh, yay!” She skipped back into the bedroom, and I could hear her rifling through her suitcase. “Oh, I can’t wait; it’s going to be awesome.”
I grinned to myself, finding her enthusiasm infectious. As Veil bounded over to me, I pulled him in for a big, happy hug. “This is great, isn’t it?” I whispered into his ear. “Isn’t it much better having her here?”
From the way he barked excitedly and his tail wagged like crazy, it was obvious we were on the same wavelength. We needed Eliza in our lives, and somehow we would make that work.
***
“So, yes, as you can see, the new security company is amazing. They might cost a little more, but the technology they have at their disposal is worth it.” Bill was doing his best to keep my attention, telling me all about the changes he’d implemented into the casino, but I just couldn’t focus. Eliza was over on the other side of the room, screaming excitedly, having a whole load of fun gambling, and she made my heart melt.
It was a little strange seeing her looking so sweet and innocent, making friends with girls wearing barely any clothing to entice new customers in typical Vegas style, but somehow, she seemed to make it work. She was adaptable and could fit in anywhere, which made me wonder a whole lot of things…
Maybe she could reopen her salon here somewhere. There was a never-ending string of customers walking the strip, and it wouldn’t take too long for her to build up a solid reputation. Maybe I could even help her… not that I was getting carried away or anything.
“Yeah, looks good.” I nodded distractedly. “You’ve done well, Bill.”
“So,” he said awkwardly. “Is Eliza your new… girlfriend?” We didn’t discuss our personal lives very much, but he knew enough about me to realize that I didn’t have people around for very long. He’d even met Veronica, but we didn’t ever discuss that one!
“Yeah.” My face broke out into a massive, beaming smile. “Yeah, she is. I met her in Florence and… Well, it looks like she might be moving in with me soon.”
“Oh, that’s just wonderful news. I’m very happy for you.”
I patted Bill on the back and went to join Eliza. I’d shown my face now, I’d checked in, and everything looked wonderful. I certainly didn’t have any concerns. Yes, I was paying out more now, but at least the company I had was a very reputable one, and they were worth every penny. I didn’t mind spending more now that I knew was getting a good service.
“Hey, how’s it going?” I wrapped an arm slightly possessively around her, trying to detract any unwanted attention. “You having fun?”
“It’s so much fun,” she gushed, her eyes shiny with happiness. “I’m having a blast. Estelle is teaching me how to play blackjack much better.”
“Well, let me know when you’re ready to go for a walk. There’s still so much for you to see. We haven’t made it to any shops yet…”
“Oh yeah, and I want to see the Bellagio fountains! I’ve heard they’re amazing.”
I couldn’t help but laugh. I’d seen everything so many times, I did take it all for granted. It was nice to be reminded that maybe everything wasn’t quite as bleak as it seemed. “Okay, whenever you’re ready, we’ll go.”
She played off the rest of her chips, sometimes winning, sometimes losing, but the whole time smiling. Everyone who worked at the casino seemed to be drawn to her, sucked in by her positivity, and by the time we were actually ready to go, they all looked a whole lot happier. It was as if I’d hired some kind of motivational manager, and they’d done an amazing job.
“Okay, I’m in your hands,” she told me like an excitable bunny. “Show me Vegas – I want to see it all!”
***
“Oh, my goodness, I don’t even know what my favorite thing was; everything was so much fun!” She spun around on her heels, tearing through my front room like a child. “I absolutely loved it. It’s so different from Florence!”
“Of course, it is. That’s why I love it so much there. I enjoy the peace and quiet.”
That seemed to leave her very thoughtful. “So, you wanted to get away from here, and I wanted to get away from there. Maybe we will have to split our time between the two.”
That made my heart stop dead in my chest – she was considering this, which made it all the more real. This was no longer us playing house in Sun Valley, or in Florence, for that matter; this was about to be a real conversation. “So, you do want to work this out? Do you think that’s the best way?”
“I don’t know.” She shrugged a little hopelessly. “I mean, I don’t have anything holding me back in Florence. I don’t need my apartment there, I could continue to rent out the cabin and hire a cleaner, and I could also make Laynee the official manager of the salon… I could even give it to her completely. There’s nothing stopping me doing that.”
“Really? You would do that?”
She stepped closer to me and grabbed hold of my arm. “Of course, I would. It’ll be hard to say goodbye to my old life, but I want to make this work. It’s more nostalgia than anything else holding me back. You need to be here; your business is here. It just makes sense.”
“We would go back,” I told her very seriously. “We could go all the time, keep your grandma’s cabin free every so often and we’ll visit.”
“That sounds good.” She kissed me lightly, sending a fluttering through my body. I had to be the luckiest man alive. I had the most beautiful woman willing to move her whole life for me. What else could I ever want?
“Well, you don’t have to make a decision just yet. We’re back in Florence next week to see Landon anyway, so just see how you feel.” Things were progressing quickly with the investment now that I’d refocused my attention back where my priorities needed to be. “Maybe we can talk more then.”
As she stepped back, I felt a surge of emotion swelling through my chest. For some reason, I’d been holding back on how I truly felt, on the real depth of my feelings for Eliza, and I didn’t want to be that way anymore. I wanted her to know everything. If she was willing to sacrifice everything for me, then I could open up my heart and be vulnerable for her. It wasn’t too much to ask.
“I love you,” I announced for the very first time, causing her to turn back to stare at me in shock. “I just want you to know that. I love you very much.”
She rushed back to me and pulled me in for a deep and passionate kiss, losing herself in my lips. “I love you, too,” she panted against my mouth. “I’ve never loved anyone before, but I love you.”
I pressed my forehead up against hers and stared deeply into her eyes, conveying all kinds of unspoken emotions. She loved me, and I loved her. We’d made things far too complicated for ourselves for no reason at all; realistically, it was actually very simple. We just had to make things work.
Then I started to notice something darken and change in her eyes, a passion slowly taking over. I raised my eyebrow curiously at her, wondering if she was actually suggesting what I thought she was, and she gave me a cheeky smirk back. She wanted me just as badly as I did her, which made me feel incredible. We were perfect together, how could I ever have thought of giving this up for anything? Where had my priorities been? I could have lost it all!
“Come on,” she whispered huskily. “I’ve been waiting all day to get you alone.”
“Well, I certainly can’t refuse an offer like that!”
She dragged me through the room, causing excitement to tear through me. This was incredible, my life had gotten so much better than I’d ever expected it to, and I was happier than I’d ever been before. I wasn’t sure how things had managed to get so perfect, but I had absolutely no intention of ever screwing it up.