It had been several weeks since Wellington, and my business was busier than ever since my third-place finish in the Grand Prix at WEF. Betsy held true to her word, and one of her clients was moving into my barn in a few months once her family moved to Texas. Several people that were connected through Eli and Lyle reached out wanting me to train their young horses, and Kent wanted me to fly out to ride a couple of his horses at this big show in New York this fall.
Dean and I picked up right where we left off and were in a great place. When we returned home from Wellington, he took me out to dinner and sweetly asked me to be his girlfriend again. He was so nervous, it was adorable. We spent almost every night together, since our days were pretty jam-packed with our schedules.
Tonight, he wanted a redo of him making me dinner at hisplace, since the last time we tried, we essentially broke up. It was April, and the weather was perfection. I wore a soft sage-green T-shirt dress, with my hair pulled up in a high ponytail, and a pair of white Nikes. I let myself into his house and was immediately greeted by Coal. Coal wiggled all around my legs, his tail wagging frantically. “Hey, buddy,” I cooed at him while rubbing his back. He plopped over onto the ground, showing me his belly for more rubs. I knelt, giving him all the attention, when I felt Dean approach.
“I swear that dog loves you more than me,” he grumped.
I chuckled. “He’s a smart guy.” I stood back up, taking in the man in front of me. He wore a fitted dark-gray T-shirt, his biceps and chest testing the seams, with a pair of navy joggers and his Austin Aviators baseball hat, which Walker had given him, worn backwards. What was it about a man in a backwards hat? I was ready to rip my dress off and let him do filthy things to me right there in the foyer. Instead, I acted like an adult who had self-control and pushed up on my toes to press a kiss against his lips. He wrapped his hand around the back of my head to keep my mouth on his as he brushed his tongue lightly against the seam of my lips for me to open so he could take the kiss deeper. He groaned before pulling away. “I don’t think I can ever get enough of you,” he whispered against my mouth. I couldn’t help but smile.
I followed Dean into the kitchen to see what he had cooking. “It smells incredible in here. What are we having, Adler?”
He threw a dish towel over his shoulder as he faced the stove to stir something cooking in the pan. “I have some steaks andbaked potatoes finishing in the oven, and I’m just sautéing some vegetables here on the stove.”
“Sounds amazing. Do you want me to open a bottle of wine?” He nodded as I made my way over to his wine fridge to select a bottle of red. I grabbed two wineglasses from his cabinet and poured each of us a glass.
We decided to eat outside, since it was so nice out, and it wouldn’t be long before the grueling hot days of summer arrived. The dinner was delicious, and the conversation was wonderful as always. My favorite stories that Dean told were of the weekly shenanigans of our fellow pet owners of Primrose Hill. Once we finished eating, I cleared our plates and met Dean at our favorite spot, on the couch by the fire with two fresh glasses of wine. We sat in silence, enjoying the fire for a moment before Dean cleared his throat. “So I wanted to ask you something?”
I turned toward him, laying my legs across his thighs as I tilted my head in curiosity. He seemed nervous all of a sudden. “Sure, what’s up?”
“We spend every night together, but I want to start spending every morning together too. We’re so busy during the day, and the best part of my day is coming home knowing I’ll see you. I want to wake up with you and fall asleep with you. I wasn’t sure how long you were planning on staying in Walker’s guesthouse, but I want you with me. Will you move in?” he asked with pleading, uncertain eyes as he gently ran his hand up and down my thigh.
My heart exploded as I heard him say those words. I lovedthis man and wanted to be in his orbit every single day. I leaned over, cupping his face in my hands, placing a quick kiss on his mouth before saying, “I would love to.”
A big, handsome smile spread across Dean’s face, taking my breath away. “Yeah?”
I chuckled, my own smile probably splitting my face in half. “Yes!” I pulled his mouth to mine again.
The whole James family was on deck as we moved my things into Dean’s house—well, our house. Dean gave me free rein to do whatever the hell I wanted to make the place homier, since it was a tad bachelor pad–ish with not a lot of personality.
Weston walked in carrying a large box. “Adds, how many boxes of fucking clothes do you have? This shit is heavy, and I’m pretty sure this is the fifth or sixth box.” He grunted, trying to readjust his grip.
“Sorry, big brother. I like clothes, what can I say?” I shrugged as he rolled his eyes and headed toward the master bedroom at the back of the house.
Walker and my dad walked through the front door carrying my desk. “Where do you want this?” Walker asked as my dad helped angle the desk to get it to slip through the doorway more easily.
“The upstairs guest room that has the desk chair in it already.” I pointed toward the stairs. Dean’s house had an office downstairs that he was already using, so we decided to turn oneof the three guest rooms into my office.
I walked over to the kitchen, where my mom and Ava were putting away some of my favorite coffee mugs that I’d brought with me. Ava lifted one out of the box. “I can’t believe you still have this.” It was a mug with the seal of her law school stamped across it.
“What? I was proud that my baby sister got into law school.” I shrugged.
As we were finishing up, Dean strode in from work. He was unable to help due to an emergency farm call that came in. He looked around his living room, his hands on his hips, noticing the new throw pillows and blankets covering his couch, the framed pictures of us on the end tables, and some faux plants strategically placed around the room to add color. “Damn, baby, you didn’t waste any time. It looks like the cover of a magazine in here.”
I laughed, walking up and wrapping my arms around his waist, leaning my head back for him to kiss me. “Does that mean you like it? Laurel is a wizard when it comes to interior design.”
“I love it.” He placed a quick kiss on my lips. “And I love that you live here now.” Dean looked over at my mom. “It looks great in here. Thanks, Mrs. Adler.”
My mom smiled. “What did I tell you about calling me that?”
Dean chuckled. “Sorry. Thank you, Laurel.”
Weston, Walker, and my dad joined the rest of us in the living room. “Well, I think we’re done. Anyone want to go grab a beer?” Walker asked the room.
My dad shook his head. “Can’t tonight. Your mom and I have dinner plans with Liz and Jackson, but can we take a rain check?”
Walker nodded. “That’s fine. Y'all have fun.”
“Dean and I are in. West? Ava? Y'all coming?” I asked as Dean wrapped his arm around my shoulder, pulling me close to his side. Both Weston and Ava said they were down to go too, and we all planned to meet up at Hops & Hills in the next hour.
