Chapter Eighteen
We had survived Thanksgivingin Atlanta with Connor’s family. It was much more formal than I had expected. Connor seemed so laid back and easy going that I hadn’t expected a full five-course meal for Thanksgiving dinner complete with servers and more forks than I had really ever seen in one place setting. I had to fall back on lessons learned from Aunt Helen, and her words echoed in my mind.When in doubt start from the outside and work your way in. If that doesn’t work, look around carefully and see what everyone else is doing.I did what she had drilled into me and didn’t embarrass myself. I had been close when I reached for the spoon above my plate for the soup until I noticed everyone else using the soup spoon placed to the right of the plate and various knives. Maeve had been a hoot, and even if it had been a formal dinner, the chatter and love they had for each other made the whole evening a treat. Before we knew it, the trip to Atlanta was over, and we were back in Fairpoint ready to put the finishing touches on the pub. I had gone behind Connor’s back and given instructions to the painters for a little surprise to be finished on our return, and I was sick with nerves that I had overstepped.
Connor had been going crazy because he hadn’t found a name he liked for the pub yet. He’d had a few ideas but never been able to love one for more than a minute before he found something wrong with it. I thought I had found a solution, but I wasn’t sure if he would hate it, and me, for taking such liberties with his baby.
We weren’t back in town but a few hours before Connor wanted to ride over and see the progress. Everything was done now, except the final furniture placement and stocking of the bar and kitchen. I had texted some requests for Aunt Helen to take care of a few things for the big reveal. As we finally stepped up to the front doors, I couldn’t be sure if this would be a fantastic evening, or the last time Connor spoke to me. It seemed fifty-fifty at this point.
The huge double doors onto the street opened, and we walked into the entrance. This was one of the biggest changes we’d made to the space. We’d thought it would be a good idea to put a separate entrance area for the apartments so the residents wouldn’t have to walk through a pub to get to their homes. To that end, the huge grand entryway had been walled off partially, and a separate half glass security door was added with a keypad for residents to gain access to the staircase and entryway. Through the door, you could still see the gorgeous curved staircase and second-floor landing with its fully restored wrought iron rails and banisters, and the stunning chandelier we’d chosen to light the space. To the right was now the entryway to the pub, which we entered, and upon seeing the far wall for the first time, Connor stopped and stared.
The new bar had been installed to the left on the wall adjacent to the entryway with gorgeous dark woods and sparkling mirror backed glass shelves to showcase the top shelf liquors and whiskeys that Connor planned to offer. The bar stools were covered in a rich navy suede fabric that complimented the rich tones of the wood in the bar and the even darker tones of the plank tile floors. But the showstopper of the room was what held Connor motionless now.
Connor and I had talked multiple times about our love of the stars. One of our favorite things to do was sit outside on one of the lounge chairs on the dock and talk as we cuddled and watched the sunset and the stars come out over the still waters of the Bay. I’d even told Connor about my wish. As silly as I felt about the whole thing, I felt I knew what would be a perfect name for his pub. What had cemented it, was one of Remy’s metal sculptures I’d seen a few weeks ago. He’d shared a few of his works in progress with me, but one had held my attention. It was a big wall hanging, measuring about six feet across and five feet tall. The whole thing was made up of swirls of metal in silver, gold, copper and black tones, reminiscent of swirls of paint in aVan Goghnight sky. The swirls danced and moved making it feel like water flowing in the sky, but the centerpiece was a huge falling star cutting through the eddying stream of metallic colors, the body and tail of the star sweeping behind in bright brass and highlighted in navy blue. As soon as I had seen it, I knew it was perfect, so I’d asked Remy to sell it to me. He’d refused but had given it to me instead. He didn’t give me shit for it either, proving once again that Remy really did have a sweet side, even if it was hidden by his bullshit attitude most of the time.
Now, the sculpture was hanging on the rich navy blue wall of Connor’s pub looking like it had always been there in the elegant and inviting space. And evidently, it had rendered Connor speechless.
“Well, what do you think?” I couldn’t take the silence anymore as Connor just stared at the sculpture, studying every dip, roll, and wave in agonizingly slow detail.
“What is this, Ladd? I don’t remember ever talking about something like this when we went over the final details before we left town.”
I couldn’t read his reaction, his voice sounded unusually neutral, but I was getting more and more concerned. “Um, it’s a surprise. Ta Da!” I half-heartedly laughed, but he didn’t laugh with me, still studying the piece that I was afraid had been one step too far. Finally, he looked at me and still he was completely neutral.
“That’s one of Remy’s pieces isn’t it?”
Oh, shit, I had fucked up. “Uh, yeah, it is, actually. I saw it a few weeks ago and thought it would be perfect for this wall.” I had taken this leap of faith, and no matter how bad the landing was looking right about now, I just needed to come clean about it all and see what happened. “I know you were struggling to come up with a name for the pub and when I saw this, I had an idea. I thought you could call it The Falling Star. After everything we shared with each other recently, I thought it sounded like a perfect fit.”
Silence.
Connor took me in with a serious gaze for a few moments and time seemed to drag on for hours. I hoped beyond hope I hadn’t made a huge mistake messing around with his greatest dream.
“Ladd, I don’t know what to say. I don’t think I can afford one of Remy’s pieces. Where did you get the money for it in the budget?”
I was scared, but I was also a little hurt at what seemed like a rejection. “Well, if you don’t like it, I can call him and tell him to come back and get it.” I reached for my phone in my pocket and walked back toward the front doors. “I commissioned him to make a sign for the front of the building, too. I’ll just call him and tell him the deal is off. I think he already had a buyer lined up for this piece before he gave it to us, so maybe he can get some money for it now instead of being out all of his time and effort.” I was trying so hard not to be wounded that my gesture had gone so wrong, but I should have known better than to do something this significant without the actual owner’s approval. It was a hard lesson to learn. I made it to the front door before Connor caught up to me and clasped a hand on my shoulder.
“Ladd, where are you going? Don’t leave. I didn’t say I don’t like it. I just wanted to know how much it was going to set me back.” I turned, and he was finally showing some emotion. He was grinning ear to ear and kept swiveling his head around from me to the wall like he was worried the sculpture would disappear if he didn’t keep an eye on it.
“You mean you like it? You’re not upset or hate it?” I prayed to all that was holy that he really didn’t mind.
“Babe, of course, I don’t hate it, it’s perfect. There’s no way I would have thought of that on my own. The work of art on that wall is beyond anything I could have ever imagined. And you did it. The name is perfect, too.” Connor pulled me in for a slow, soft kiss, then whispered to me as he held me close. “You’re perfect, and The Falling Star is going to be perfect because of you. Thank you, my Laddy, for helping me make my dream come true.” We stayed like that, quietly holding each other in the middle of the room until my stomach rumbled with hunger, making Connor chuckle his deep rumble of a laugh.
“All right, I can take a hint, let’s get you fed.”
We left the building and went back to the main house, which was really our temporary home now. Connor and I had talked about it when we had driven to Atlanta, and we had made our living arrangements official and permanent. We were committed to each other now, and I couldn’t be happier. As soon as the carriage house was finished, we would finally move in together and be our own family of two.
Our sex life had continued to be amazing, too. We had wild rough sex just as often as we enjoyed cuddling and sweet lovemaking. We really had the best of both worlds. There was one thing that we hadn’t done yet though, and I had plans for my big lover tonight that he wouldn’t forget. We made it back home, and once we got into the main house’s kitchen, we found a note from James. He had been called to the hospital for an emergency so we’d have the house to ourselves. It was perfect.
Connor found us some cold cuts in the fridge, so we worked together to make some sandwiches, and I found a new bag of chips in the pantry. Quick and yummy was just what I wanted tonight. After we had finished dinner, I left Connor to finish up in the kitchen, and I went to take a shower and get ready to seduce my man.
When I was ready and dressed, I sauntered into the kitchen. Connor was in for a surprise.
* * *
Connor
As I cleanedthe kitchen and put everything away, I thought about my business and my man. I was convinced I would never have been able to make the one a reality without the other. I owed Ladd so much, and I was thankful every day for having such a special man in my life. He was smart, funny and, to me, he was sexy as hell. I hadn’t been able to make love to him in Atlanta because our room had been right down the hall from Mom and Dean. I was hungry for him, and as soon as he finished his shower, all bets were off, especially since we finally had the house to ourselves.
I had just finished putting our plates in the dishwasher when I heard Ladd enter the kitchen behind me. “Hey, babe, did you leave any hot water in the shower? It’s been so cold today, and I need to warm up.” I turned around to face him, and my jaw dropped to my chest. Holy Fuck! I was suddenly nowhere near cold at the sight before me.
Ladd stood in the kitchen doorway shirtless and with no shoes on, but what he was wearing took my breath away. Ladd had somehow gotten a kilt in the McDaniel tartan of blues and yellows. It sat snugly on his narrow hips, the leather sporran slung low and swayed as he made his way over to stand in front of me. His skin glowed pristine and perfect against the brightly colored plaid wool, and I was instantly hard.
