“Absolutely.” A smile slipped across his lips as he said, “We’ll pack up your stuff tomorrow and take it over to my place. Hell, for that matter, we could do it right now.”
“Tomorrow is fine.” I nestled back into the crook of his arms and said, “If we get going early enough, we can be done before we head over to Hawk and Delilah’s place for the game.”
“You sure you’re up for that?”
“Yes, I’m definitely up for it. Besides, with everything that’s been going on, we missed the last big game night, and from what I’ve heard, they had a great time.”
“Okay, if you really want to, then we’ll go.”
“Great.” I had to bite back my laughter as I teased him. “And who knows... maybe Tennessee will actually win this time.”
“Don’t start with me, woman.”
He dug his fingers into my ribs, tickling me, causing me to thrash from side to side as I laughed uncontrollably. I finally shouted, “I give! I give! I won’t say another word about Tennessee football!”
“I’m gonna hold you to that.” He released his hold on me, then tossed back the covers and grabbed his boxer briefs. As he slipped them on, he announced, “I’m going to finish making us something to eat.”
After I threw on a t-shirt, I followed him into the kitchen and helped fix dinner. Once we were done, we piled up in the living room and watched an old Western, then went to bed. The next morning, we got up early, very early, and Jared helped me pack up my things. I didn’t have much, so it didn’t take us long to get it all bagged and boxed up and put into my car. Once we’d cleaned up a bit, we locked up the apartment and headed over to Jared’s place. I should’ve been nervous about us taking such a big step so soon, but I wasn’t. I loved Jared, and I was excited about turning the page on my past and starting this new chapter of my life with him.
When we got over to his place, Jared helped me get my belongings out of the car, and we carried them inside. We usually stayed at my place, so it felt a little strange bringing my things to his house. I looked around at all the dark colors, the enormous TV mounted on the wall, and the computer in the corner and tried to imagine what I might add to make the place seem a little less like a bachelor’s pad. At the moment, I didn’t have anything, just my clothes, but a quick run to Marshalls, and we’d be set. Jared gave me a funny look when he said, “I see those wheels turning in your head. Change anything you want in here... the whole house. Whatever you wanna do. I just have one request.”
“Oh? And what’s that?”
“Don’t go and get a bunch of those girlie throw pillows for the bed.”
“But throw pillows make it look so pretty.”
“Yeah, but they’re just gonna end up on the floor, and then ya gotta put them back.”
“But they make it look pretty,” I pouted.
“Fine.” He came up behind me and slipped his arms around my waist. “You can get the damn pillows.”
“I’m just teasing, Jared.” I giggled. “I’m not a big fan of throw pillows either.”
“See! I knew there was something I liked about you.”
When he started trailing kisses along my neck, I shied away from him and said, “You keep doing that, and we’ll never make it to the cookout.”
“I’d be okay with that.”
“Jared.”
“Okay, okay.” He kissed me one last time, then walked over to his dresser and started making room for my things. I’d just grabbed one of my bags and had started unpacking when he turned to me and casually announced, “I think we should get a dog.”
“What?”
“Not one of those little yippie ones, you know, like those Taco Bell dogs... What are those?”
“A Chihuahua?”
“Yeah, definitely don’t want one of those Chihuahua type dogs. I’m thinking something more big and gruff, like a Great Dane or an Alaskan Malamute. Maybe even a Doberman Pincher.”
“A Doberman Pincher?” I gasped at the thought. “What’s with the sudden interest in getting a dog? You’ve never mentioned it before.”
“Well, there are times when I have to work late.” He took a big handful of clothes and shoved them into the bottom drawer. “Having a dog around would make me feel better about you being out here alone.”
“I’ll be fine. Besides,”—I motioned my hand around in a circle—“it’s like Fort Knox in here with all your security mumbo-jumbo.”
“Security mumbo-jumbo?” He brought his hand up to his chest. “Damn, woman. You really know how to hit a man where it hurts.”
“Oh, stop. You know what I meant,” I fussed. “I feel perfectly safe here, but if you want to get a dog, by all means, get a dog. Just be prepared to help with the potty training.”