Page 21 of Big Timber

Living together and planning a future with someone I barely know isa lot, no matter how right it all feels.

“I can split my time between there and the—”

“No,” I tell him, suddenly adamant. I don’t want to give him whiplash, but the thought of him bouncing back and forth doesn’t sit right with me. “Sorry. It’s a lot to take in. I’ve never lived with anyone before, other than family, I mean.”

“I’ve lived in plenty of clubhouses and other places, but never with a woman,” he tells me, getting out of the passenger seat and reaching up to hit the button to close the garage door behind us. “I was thinking about the bills. How does it sound if I cover your mortgage payment? I know Rick sends you something for his room, so how about you put that toward your utilities, and we’ll split everything else up?”

“I don’t need your money,” I reply, feeling weird about accepting money from him. Heck, my longest relationship up to this point was almost a year and we never talked about living together. Yet here I am with Tarak.

“And I don’t need yours,” he calmly says, reaching over to pull me into his chest. “I want to build our future together, to be your partner. I’m not asking you to put me on the deed for the house, but I am going to contribute toourmonthly bills.”

I nod against him, just now realizing how tired I am as he gently strokes my back.

“You’re making a pro and con list in your head, aren’t you?” he whispers in my ear, his breath giving me goosebumps as it passes over my ear.

“How do you know what my mortgage payment is?” I ask, suddenly pulling back from him.

“I looked up your house on one of those real estate sites and got an estimate,” he’s grinning and shaking his head at me as he responds. “I don’t have the first clue how much utilities are for a house, but I’m hoping we’d be about even.”

“That’s pretty risky, you know,” I tell him, trying to look worried, and he tilts his head in question. “Agreeing to pay that much every month without touring the property.”

“You’re right,” he nods his head, trying to look serious. “I need to know exactly what I’m getting myself into. Would you show me around the upstairs?”

Pretending to be a real estate agent, I square my shoulder as I turn to head toward the stairs. “It’s three bedrooms and three bathrooms, plus a den that could be used as a bedroom!”

“You don’t say?” he teases back, pinching my ass as he follows me up.

“Here are the two standard sized rooms. They have a bathroom joining them,” I tell him, turning on the lights in each room.

“They’re empty!”

“Yes.”

“Why are they empty?” he asks as he walks through one, then the bathroom before emerging in the other one.

“I haven’t decided what to do with them yet,” I answer, turning off the lights as I try to hurry the conversation along. Knowing I’m about to get roasted again.

“How long have you lived here?”

“Since January,” I reply, hoping that settles it. “Come on, check out the master bath!”

“January of what year?”

My sigh tells him he’s hit the nail on the head.

“Just think, we’ll be able to decide what to do with them together.” I try to spin this to my advantage as I turn on the light in what will now beourbathroom.

He lets out a grunt before looking around. “This is sweet.”

“My family and I gutted it after I moved in.” I’m grinning with pride as he appreciatively checks the shower and the tub, hiseyes widening when he realizes there’s even a built-in towel warmer. “And honestly, one of the bedrooms was a staging room for all the tiles and fixtures while the work in here was done.”

“What do you think about making them rooms for our kids?” he quietly asks me, reaching out for my hand.

“How many kids were you thinking?”

“Two,” Tarak immediately says. “They could share a room and use the other one as a playroom. At least until they get older.”

“Aren’t you glad I left the rooms a blank canvas for our kids?”

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