has a sitting area, and the shower… it’s the biggest shower I’ve ever seen before in my life. Like, ten people would fit in there, comfortably, I might add, all at one time.
“Wow,” I murmur when we walk out on the back porch. It’s covered, and there is an outdoor kitchen, fireplace, and even a TV. The view of the woods behind the property is so private and serene.
“Good wow?” Cooper asks.
I glance up at him. “It’s breathtaking.”
“I really like this one, Reese. It’s big enough for kids, and we both have an office. There is room for our parents to come and stay when they visit. I really like the theatre room set up in the basement, and this outdoor area… it’s private, and I love that. We need that with my career.”
“I agree. What did you not like about it?” I ask. I’m hoping he says nothing.
“Nothing. I love it all, and that master bath….” He leans down and places his lips next to my ear. “The things I could do to you in there.”
I shiver. “Yeah,” I agree.
“What do you think, baby?” He moves to stand behind me, wrapping his arms around my waist. “Can you see us living here? Raising a family here?”
“Can you?” I ask him.
“I asked you first.”
“How far away is the stadium?”
“About twenty minutes.”
“Not too far of a drive.”
“No. In fact, I think a couple of my teammates live close to here.”
“So?”
He chuckles. The sound is soft and low, but I can feel the vibration of his chest against my back. “I can see us here.”
“Me too,” I say excitedly.
“Yeah?”
“Yes.”
“Good. Let’s go find April.” We locate her in the kitchen, leaning over the counter, typing furiously on her phone. “We’ll take it,” Cooper announces.
“Well, all right then. I’ll draw up the paperwork. Can you stick around to sign the offer?” she asks.
“Yes.”
“And the price?”
“Full asking. We’d like to move quickly.”
“Of course. Give me ten minutes to get this written up, you can sign, and I’ll send it over to the seller’s agent. Hopefully, we’ll hear from them later today.”
Fifteen minutes later, we’re in the truck headed home. “I can’t believe that just happened,” I say, scrolling through the picture I took of the house on my phone.
Cooper just grins and reaches over the console for my hand. The drive back to his condo is quiet but not uncomfortable. I can’t stop myself from imagining us living there. Excitement like nothing I’ve ever known races through my veins. It’s not the house, as much as it is the meaning of the house.
Our home.
Chapter 19
Cooper
Reese’s two-week notice ended up being eight days. She was already scheduled to be off Thursday and Friday of this week for Nixon and Tessa’s wedding. They honored that time off, thankfully. She was stressing out about missing the wedding. I tried to assure her it would all work out. I didn’t tell her she could just quit. I know Reese, and that’s not who she is.
“How was your last day?” I ask her as soon as she comes through the door. She maneuvers herself around the boxes that we’ve been packing the last two weeks.
“Good. Sad. I promised the kids we’d come back to visit,” she says sheepishly.
“Of course we will. Come here.” I pull her into a hug. “April just called.”
“And?”
“The closing is still on for tomorrow. I moved our flights to early Friday morning.”
“Did you tell Nix?”
“Not yet.”
She reaches for her phone, hits a few buttons, and it begins to ring. She has it on video, so she holds it out for me to see. “Hey.” Tessa smiles on the screen. “Oh, hi, Cooper,” she greets me as well.
“Hey, Tess. Where’s Nix?”
“Is that Cooper?” I hear Nix ask before his face appears on the screen. “Hey, you two. What’s up?”
“Oh, you know, just living the dream. And we bought a house,” I say nonchalantly.
“What? You bought a house?” Tessa grins.
“We did,” Reese confirms.
“You bought a house together?” Nixon asks.
My hand slides behind Reese’s neck as I pull her into a kiss. Just a soft peck on the lips, but Tessa’s gasp and Nixon’s “about fucking time” tells me it gets the reaction I was hoping for.
“You’ve been holding out on me.” Tessa smiles.
“Kind of. We just wanted to take it slow for a while.”
She wanted to take it slow, but I don’t correct her. “So we bought a house, and the closing is tomorrow.” I drop the bomb.
“No way, man. You are not missing my wedding.” Nixon crosses