Page 34 of Surviving the Merge
“Yes, you did.” My cheeks burned.
“I’d definitely let him plow through my backdoor.”
“Sam!”
“I did it again, didn’t I? Am I still doing it? Can you hear me now?”
Blake looked amused, but I’d never been more embarrassed, and Sam still seemed drunk. I placed my mug down, deciding now was a good time to go to the bathroom. “It’s too early in the morning for this.”
“It’s actually noon,” Blake yelled after me. I heard him asking Sam how she liked her coffee as I closed the bathroom door.
Feeling more like myself after a hot shower, I made my way downstairs. Blake sat alone at the kitchen island reading the newspaper. “Where’s Sam?”
“She left. Said she had an apartment to show but that she would have the lease and wire instructions emailed over to you within the hour.” Lowering the paper, he said, “You decided to take the apartment.”
A statement of fact, but I answered anyway. “It’s all fuzzy, but yeah, I guess I did.”
Placing the paper to the side, he said, “We should celebrate.”
Smiling, I teased, “Who celebrates their husband moving out?”
“Oh, I’m sure a lot of husbands do, and wives too,” he chuckled and moved around the counter to embrace me.
“So, how should we celebrate?” I asked, running my hands up and down his strong back.
“How do you feel about being on theotherside of the pole for a change?”
“You want... you want to go to Elite?”
“No. Ash told me about a development in Seattle that one of his patients is part owner of. A huge indoor resort with a casino, shopping, dining, spas, all types of shows and more within. They have a pole dancing/burlesque show that’s getting rave reviews. There’s audience involvement, and on Saturday nights, it’s an all-male show that caters more to our type of crowd. I’ll book a room for the night. The show is sold out to the public, but he can get us tickets.”
“All the way to Seattle? Tonight?” I slipped out of his hold and paced away.
“It’s only a three-hour drive from here, and it’s still early. Julie wants us to stop by her office, but it’s in the direction of the freeway. We can pack a bag and be there in less than four hours.”
The mention of Julie piqued my interest. “Why does she want us to stop by? We aren’t scheduled to see her again until Monday. Which reminds me—you’re off the medication for the next two nights. Do you really want to be away from home right now?”
“Her receptionist said she has something for us. Something she’d like us to start working on right away?”
“Not more assignments?”
“—and we can’t constantly operate under fear and caution, love. This could be our life for a while. Forever. We’re not going to sit around and wait for the unexpected to happen. If we want Damon to stop feeling like an enemy, we’ve got to stop treating him like one.”
“I swear I can’t keep up with you sometimes, Blake. Is this what two nights of great sleep does for you? Where’s the guy with unknown hidden things behind his half-smiles as early as a few days ago?” I regretted saying it.Is Sam rubbing off on me?“I’m sorry, that wasn’t fair.”
“No, you’re right. My emotions have been all over the place. It’s highly likely that once Damon comes back, you’ll get him to agree to therapy. I’ll take the seproxetine Monday afternoon, and by the time evening rolls around and we’re on Julie’s couch, Damon will take his first steps toward integration. This could be my last weekend with you. I want to make the most of it. That’s all.”
No matter how many times I reassured Blake that he wasn’t going anywhere and that I wasn’t going anywhere, he wouldn’t believe it until he saw it for himself. So I didn’t bother repeating it. I would have to believe for the both of us.
Stepping in close to run my palms over his ass. “What are we waiting for? Let’s get packed.”
I e-signed the lease and wired the funds to secure the apartment before we left home. The landlord threw in the remaining few weeks of that month for free. If I wanted to get started on
the move-in, I could. My heart surged from a trot to a gallop at the thought of moving a second earlier than needed. Of spreading my wings before I had to take flight.Am I really doing this?
Retrieving my car from Cliff’s bar, I followed Blake to Julie’s office. To save time, Blake kept his car idling at the curb while I parked mine in the building’s commercial parking lot—where it would stay for the night—then went up to fetch whatever Julie had for us.
Julie’s assistant greeted me with a smile as soon as I stepped off the elevator. “You can go right in; Dr. Hayes is waiting for you.”
