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Chapter Twelve
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“Ican’t believe youleave tomorrow.” I’m snuggled in Hudson’s lap on the deck of our new home.
We spent all week moving in, but because Hudson bought the house furnished and I did the designing, it was a pretty easy transition. There was nothing we had to do but move our clothes and some odds and ends.
My mom and dad came by our first day here. My mom looked almost as shocked as I did when Hudson told me he bought this house for us. My dad seemed rather impressed. It’s clear he’s taken quite a liking to Hudson. I can’t say I’m surprised. He’s an amazing man.
Starr and Mark came by the next day. I swear my sister falls in love with Hudson a little more every time she’s around him. I guess that makes two of us.
Emma stopped by this afternoon, smiling like a lunatic because apparently she had known it was Hudson who purchased the house all along. Once upon a time I thought my best friend was shit at keeping secrets, but that has since changed. She was able to keep a very big secret from me for weeks and never once hinted at what Hudson was up to.
“Me either,” Hudson answers after a brief moment. “I’m excited but at the same time I don’t want to leave either.”
“I get that. You should be excited. It’s exciting. You’re going to have an amazing time.”
“It would be so much better if you’d come with me,” he says, hinting at a conversation we’ve had a few times over the last week.
“I know. Trust me, I want to. But we’ve talked about this. I can’t give up my life to follow you around the country. It’s important to me that I maintain a level of my own independence.”
“I know. And I love that about you. I’m just going to miss the hell out of you.” He snuggles his face into my neck, both our gazes locked on the amazing view from our deck.
Ourdeck.Ourhome. God, it doesn’t seem real.
“I’m going to miss you too,” I say, emotion clogging thick in my throat. “What time do you have to be at the airport again?”
“Seven in the morning,” he says, adjusting below me.
“So we need to leave here by six to give us time to get there,” I say more to myself than to him.
“We’ll take the Chevy.” He smiles at me, knowing how much I love driving his car.
Hudson brought the car back from Nashville when we were there a few weeks ago. He’d stored it in a friend’s garage while he was on tour with Travis. The day we drove it to Florida was one of the best days. The weather was beautiful. We had the windows down the whole time, singing at the top of our lungs nearly the entire drive. Me not very successfully but Hudson didn’t seem to mind.
He’s leaving the car here for me to drive. Not because I need it, but because I freaking love it and he knows it. It’s a 1970 Chevelle that Hudson rebuilt himself. I didn’t even know he knew anything about cars until he told me how he spent years tinkering with it to get it to where it is today. He showed me the before pictures and he wasn’t lying. It was yellow, rusted, and looked like it belonged in a junk yard. Now it’s bright candy apple red with black racing stripes. I swear it’s the sweetest car on the road anywhere we go.
I can’t believe he trusts me with something he worked so hard on. The likelihood is it will stay in the garage while he’s gone, but if I get a wild hair I might take it out for a spin.
“You’re just trying to butter me up so I don’t have a complete meltdown when I leave you at the airport.”
“You’re not going to have a meltdown.” He gives me a smile that doesn’t quite reach his eyes. “You might have to force me onto that fucking plane, though. I still have no idea how I’m going to leave here without you.”
“God, don’t say that. Leave it up to me and you’ll never make it. I can’t be the one to blame for you tanking your career and costing your label millions of dollars in refunded concert tickets.”
“Promise you’ll come to a few shows.”
“I promise I’ll do everything I can to make the shows that are within driving distance. I can’t spend my life savings flying all over the country.”
“I can pay for you to.”
“Not happening, hot shot country star. You already bought us a house. I’m not letting you pay for anything else.”
“Why not? It’s not like I don’t have the ability to.”
“That’s not the point.”
“Then what is the point?”
