“That’s not necessary,” I admit. “I can live off-campus.”
“I’ll need somewhere to stay when I come to visit. Just let me buy us an apartment. You can live there, okay?” He gives me one of his boyish smirks. “Problem solved. That kills two birds with one stone.”
“How are we going to handle this? Most relationships don’t make it long distance.”
“Good thing we’re not most people,” he growls. “I will do anything for you, Taylor, and I mean anything.” He sits up, his back pressed against the headboard as he pulls me with him. “So, you just tell me what you need, and it’s yours.”
“What if you get drafted by the Flyers? You’ll be in Philly, and I’ll be three thousand miles away.”
It’s not that I doubt our relationship is strong enough to make it work, but I am worried about the toll it will take on both of us. I don’t want him to lose his focus worrying about me.
“The NHL Draft isn’t for another two more months. You don’t have to be in California until August. Come stay with me for the summer.”
“At the White House?” I joke. His family’s estate is so insane, it’s hard to think of it as an actual house people live in.
He laughs, hugging me hard. “Yeah. We’ll have plenty of space. My mom can be a pain sometimes, but she won’t bother us. Promise. We won’t be there that much, anyway. After graduation, we’ll take a trip out to California to find a place to live.”
“Okay,” I say, my cheeks hurting from how much I’m smiling. “Thank you, Drake. I was so worried when your mom asked me earlier about our plans, but I’m glad you have it all figured out.”
“I knew I wasn’t letting you go the second I had you.”
I cock an eyebrow at him. “So, you’ve had this mapped out all along?”
He smirks. “When I want something, I don’t stop until I get it.” His lips trace over my jaw, and he tilts my head to the side, whispering against my neck. “And I always knew you were mine.”
Chapter Twenty
Drake
I lead Taylor through the house with my hand on her lower back, tempted to slide it to her ass. But the realtor is beside us, staring over at me every few seconds. She hasn’t stopped checking me out. Taylor hasn’t noticed yet. Thank God for that. She would have a fit if she saw the eye-fucking this chick is sending my way.
I ignore her, pulling Taylor close to my side and steer her into the master bedroom. “What do you think?”
She peeks up at me and flashes a set of white teeth, her smile so wide it reaches up to her blue eyes. “I like it. But it’s expensive… for the size.”
“I know you don’t have any issues with size,” I whisper against her ear, and she laughs. “Could you see yourself living here?”
She bobs her head. “Yes, I think so.”
“You think?”
“Drake,” she sighs. “You don’t have to spend this kind of money, so I have a place to stay while I’m at school. It’s too much.”
“This is for us,” I hedge. “Even if it’s only a temporary arrangement.”
“The resale value in this area is excellent,” Monica, our realtor, says with a bright smile. She flicks her blonde hair off her shoulder and strolls toward us. “You can easily recoup your money in a few years.”
“We’ll take it,” I tell her.
“Excellent.” She beams with delight, clapping her hands together. “Let’s head back to my office, and we’ll draw up the paperwork.”
Monica exits the bedroom, and we stay behind to check out the room once more. The house is vacant, the current owner now living on the other side of the country. While the house is too large for Taylor to live here alone most of the time, I want her to be comfortable. And compared to my parents’ house, this place is a shack.
Taylor checks out the walk-in closet which is large enough to fit a king-size bed, and I follow behind her.
“Thank you, Drake.” She wraps her arms around me and rests her head on my chest. “You didn’t have to do this. I don’t even know what else to say. I have no way of ever repaying you.”
“All I need is you,” I confess, planting a kiss on top of her head. She smells of the pear shampoo she likes, the scent filling my nostrils. “As long as you’re happy, so am I.”
She slides her hands to my waist and glances up at me, lips parted. “You never cease to amaze me, Drake Donovan. I wish everyone at school knew how wrong they were about you.”
“The only person whose opinion matters to me is yours. I couldn’t give a shit what anyone else thinks.”
I dip my head down to take her bottom lip into my mouth. She moans as I slip my tongue inside. Our kiss is soft yet passionate, though there’s an intense hunger that’s always present between us. Chasing after Taylor was the best decision I ever made. And now, we’re one step closer to starting our life together.