Page 26 of Stolen Holidays
“You win. Gah, you’re such a punk.”
“I don’t know why you try.”
“Someday, I’m going to win.” She playfully taps my cheek with her palm.
Grabbing her wrist, I turn it over and kiss her wrist. “You’ve already won.”
She crunches her nose and asks, “Won what?”
“My heart.” I kiss her nose. “My soul.” Her cheek. “My future.” Her lips. “All of me.” She leans into my kiss, but I sit back. The urge to propose bubbles to the surface, and I bite my tongue to force the words back.
“You have all of me too,” she breathes out.
Hearing her say she’s mine will never get old. I fiddle with the diamond-encrusted bluebird dangling at her throat. I can’t wait to put my ring on her finger and call her my wife. But first… “I have a present for you.”
She tilts her head to the side in confusion. “You do? Did I forget we were exchanging presents early?”
“No, nothing like that, Princess. This is something…extra.”
“Okay.” She bites her bottom lip in that sexy way I like as she tries not to smile. “You know you don’t have to buy me presents, right?”
I roll my eyes. I don’t need to be reminded, even though I know for damn sure she secretly loves when I give her presents. “Yeah, I know. But this is more of an ‘us’ kind of present.”
“Well, that sounds interesting. Is it some kind of kinky toy for the bedroom?” She holds out her hand and wiggles her eyebrows at me with a cheeky grin.
I bark a laugh. “No, but let’s put a pin in this kinky toy conversation for later.” I reach into my pocket to pull out the ring of master keys the realtor gave me and place it in her hands.
“What are these for?” Callie fingers the chunks of metal in her palm, attempting to decipher their meaning.
“These keys belong to 6 Sweetwater Bluff Drive.”
Callie inhales sharply, her gaze jumping to mine, as unshed tears fill her dark eyes. “My childhood home. But how?”
“I saw the address in your father’s estate file. Made a few calls, and with the help of a realtor, I made an offer the owners couldn’t refuse.”
“Is this for real? You bought my parents’ house for me?”
“For us,” I amend. “We can live there, or we can stay at our place in Santa Monica. Or both. Whatever you want. It’s up to you. I just want to give you the choice you were robbed of before.”
My heart hammers in my chest as I wait for her answer. I can see a variety of thoughts and feelings flash across her face, and yet she gives nothing away.
I hope she wants to keep it. Callie’s childhood home is beautiful. There was just something about the place that called to me. I knew instantly we needed to have the house. I saw our entire future play out in my head the moment I laid eyes on it. I saw our children playing in the yard. I saw Callie singing in the yard overlooking the ocean. I saw us kissing in the kitchen. I saw us bringing her home back to life and creating new memories together.
Tears streaming down her cheeks, Callie climbs into my lap and straddles my hips. She cups my cheeks in the palms of her hands as I rub her tears away with my thumbs. It fucking kills me when she cries.
“You are amazing, Elijiah Miller. I love you so much. I-I’m…” Her voice cracks.
“You’re what?”
She shakes her head and shrugs. “So happy. Are you sure you want to live there?”
I pull the beanie off her head so I can run my fingers through her silky long hair. “Never been surer.”
Callie stands up and takes off her coat, dropping it to the floor.
“What are you doing?”
“Stripping.” She kicks off her sexy little booties.
