This is Effortless (Checkmate Duet 4)

“I’ve been doing some research, and apparently, our neighborhood celebrates every holiday. Easter, Fourth of July, Halloween, and Christmas. There’s an activity center really close that does things on the weekends for kids,” he adds at the end and I smile really big.

“Oh my goodness. Isn’t this the best already? I seriously can’t wait! Maybe we can bring Ginny and James down there one day?”

Drew grabs my hand and rubs his thumb across the top of mine. “We should.”

Once we pull up to the office, I realize I skipped lunch. “I’m so hungry.”

Drew perks up. “We should get you something to eat right now.”

I give him a look. “Well, I’m not hangry yet. We can grab something after this.”

He nods. “If you say so, but it’s not healthy to go too long between meals.”

I roll my eyes at him and we get out of the Jeep and walk inside. Kathy, our real estate agent, greets us with a huge smile and handshakes. She’s just as amped about this as I am. I turn and look at Drew and grab his hand and he’s so cool and calm while I can barely contain myself. It’s very typical.

Once the final papers are signed, we stand and are handed the keys. We’re told the previous owners have been moved out for over a month so we’re okay to start moving in now if we want. I cover my mouth with my hands to hold back the squeals because I almost can’t believe this is really happening. As soon as we’re in the hallway, Drew pulls me into his arms and kisses me. “God, I love you.”

“I love you, too,” I tell him and grab his hand, and he pulls me into his arms and swings me around. I let out a yelp and can’t stop smiling. “We’ve got the perfect house now. We’ll be able to make all of our dreams come true.”

The keys in my hand feel like a winning lottery ticket we’re about to cash in.

“I love seeing you like this.” Drew leans in and kisses me on the cheek. He takes the keys to the Jeep and suggests we take the top down. Once we’ve unzipped the windows and pushed the top down, we climb inside. He leans his head against the seat and searches my face. “It’s time to eat.”

“Oh, can we go to Cafe Salada? It’s right downtown and it’s supposed to be super cute. It’s a build your own salad place.”

“Anything you want, sweetheart.”

I give him directions and he parks on the street. We both have a pep to our step because it seems like everything is finally starting to fall in place as we move to the next level in our relationship. The sun is shining and we decide to sit outside at the tables under the umbrellas. Our salads arrive and I don’t realize how hungry I am until I see big fresh strawberries and almonds sprinkled on top. Once I take a bite, a small moan escapes my mouth.

“If you keep doing that…” he says lowly.

My eyes meet his as a smile creeps across my lips. “Then we’ll have to christen the house sooner rather than later?” I pull the key from my pocket and swing it around my finger.

Drew nibbles on the edge of his lip and it drives me absolutely insane.

“God, I love you,” I tell him and tuck the keys back into my pocket.

“I love you too, Court. More than you’ll ever know.”

“Aww, I know, babe. I loved you first, remember?”

He leans his head back and lets out a hearty laugh. “Don’t think so, sweetheart.”

Once we’re finished eating, we head back to the house. I go into hyperspeed with packing small things that I’ve procrastinated doing for the past week.

“Maybe we can have our first night in the new house tomorrow?” Boxes of all sizes are stacked neatly in the dining room and the thought of them gives me a slight panic. There’s still so much to do.

Drew takes a few steps and pulls my face into his hands. I stare at his mouth then look into his eyes and he kisses me. I fall into his touch, his lips on my mouth and neck, and I totally forget what I was saying until my phone buzzes. At first I ignore it and then it rings again and again. I somehow manage to pull away from Drew’s warm mouth and look down to see its Kayla so I answer, hoping it’s not an emergency.

“I knew you couldn’t ignore me.” She’s smiling.

“I was busy doing something!”

Drew looks at me and playfully shakes his head. “I’m going to take Buddy out.” Then he points at some boxes and toward the door and I nod. I move the phone from my mouth and whisper thank you and give him a seductive look.