Page 81 of Further To Fall

Austin’s face brightened, but he was still cautious. “Name your terms, Miss McCarthy.”

“One is that you let me donate the proceeds of selling my Prius to the youth program.” Austin’s jaw tightened, but he nodded. “Two, I get to drive to my house.”

He laughed. “You drive a hard bargain, but I accept.”

I threaded my arms around his neck. “Thank you. You are incredibly kind and generous. A little crazy, but mostly kind and generous.”

He brushed his lips against mine in a touch that sent a shiver down my spine. “Get your purse, and we can get on the road. I’ll grab the keys.”

I shot him a devilish smile and darted for the door, excited to take my new wheels for a spin. When I reached the kitchen, I paused. “Austin, what is Blue chewing on?”

Austin had stopped at my back and was now staring at Blue. “Motherfucker! That’s my heavyweight belt!” At Austin’s bellow, Blue’s head shot up. He dropped the belt and ran for the living room.

While Austin dashed to the belt, I stayed frozen, hands covering my mouth. “Austin, I am so, so sorry,” I said through my fingers.

He stood, belt in hand. “It’s okay,” he ground out. “He only got the end, it’s an easy fix.” Then he brought his eyes to mine, and they narrowed slightly. “Why doesn’t he ever destroy your stuff?”

I shot him my most angelic smile. “Maybe because you wanted to send him to guard dog school and tried to make him sleep on the cold, hard ground.”

“I bought him a three-hundred-dollar dog bed, and this is Southern California, not the arctic circle!”

“You sure you still want us to move in with you?”

Austin grabbed my wrist and hauled me against him. “Yes, even if you do come with a devil dog.”

I kissed him softly. “We should really think about getting him a sister. I’ve heard it can help if the dog has someone to play with.” Austin just groaned.

41

Carter

My new car drove like a dream. It was like driving a cloud. Seriously, it felt like I was floating along Mulholland. I could handle LA traffic in a Zen-like state as long as I was driving this car. As I unlocked the front door to my home for the last three years, I knew that Austin was gloating. He knew I loved the fancy-schmancy SUV and all its bells and whistles.

As soon as the lock clicked, Austin gently ushered me aside and pushed the door open. His eyes quickly traveled around the entry, living room, and kitchen. Apparently, overprotective Austin wasn’t taking a vacation anytime soon. I sighed and hefted up a handful of the boxes we’d stopped to get at an office supply store. “I got these, baby.”

Taking the boxes from my hands, he headed towards my bedroom. He paused at the door, taking in the carnage that had yet to be cleaned up. Cut-up clothes and other random items still littered the floor, and the red spray paint continued to cry out those awful words on the walls.

Blue whined at my side, and I shuddered at the memories assailing me. I knew that if I asked, Austin would handle all of this for me. I’d never have to see a torn scrap of clothing or angry red letter. But I refused to let myself cower in a corner. Joe was locked up. There was nothing to be scared of anymore.

I straightened my shoulders. “I need to find someone to repaint these walls and replace the mirror in the bathroom before Taylor gets back.” We’d spoken on the car ride over to the house via the high-tech speaker system in my new SUV that made it sound like she was sitting right next to me.

I could tell she was worn out from taking care of her mom, but she was overjoyed by the news that they had caught the stalker and that Austin had asked me to move in with him. Since he was in the car with me, she also took the time to threaten him with bodily harm if he ever hurt me. I loved my bestie and was flying to Texas to see her and provide a little TLC as soon as school was out. But first, I had to fix her house. I was not leavingwhorescrawled across the wall as a welcome-home present.

Austin turned to face me and squeezed my shoulder. “I don’t want to leave you with all this. Why don’t you let me deal with it? Or I can hire a crew to do it. You won’t have to lift a finger.”

This man was so very sweet. I leaned forward and touched my lips to his. Staying close, I said, “I can do this.” I wanted Austin to see me as a strong woman who could stand on her own two feet.

He pulled me even closer. “You’re not on your own, you know? You have me, and you always will.”

That hit me right between the breasts, my heart doing a little clench. “I know I do, and I’m so grateful for that. But there’s nothing for me to be scared of anymore. Plus, I’ll have Blue with me so I won’t be alone.”

Austin closed his eyes briefly like what he was about to say almost caused him physical pain. “Okay, but keep your phone close by. And promise that you’ll call if you change your mind or just get bored or hungry or…anything at all.”

A smile touched my lips, and I reached up on my tiptoes to give him another kiss, this one longer and hotter. “Thank you. I love you, A.”

“Love you too, Firecracker.” I followed him to the door, where he instructed, “Lock this behind me.”

“Will do. Now, get out of here.” I closed the door behind Austin and flipped the lock. Turning to Blue, I said, “Well, let’s get started.” I synced my phone with the Bluetooth speaker that had miraculously escaped being destroyed and blasted the country tunes Austin hated.

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