AllFreeNovel
Share Us
When they finally separate, Abel takes Damon’s hand and walks over to Red. “Allow me to introduce you to Red in person. He’s amazing.”
Damon reaches out tentatively to shake his hand, but Red gives him a quick hug. “I hug. It’s my thing.” Damon chuckles and wraps his arms around him.
Savage and Quin speak to Damon as well, then he walks over to me, tucking himself to my side. Bending to his ear, I whisper, “Welcome home, baby.”
The smile he gives me stops my heart then has it galloping in my chest.
After we collect Damon’s bags, we leave, Abel and Damon sitting in the back to talk and reconnect, laughing loudly about god knows what. Whatever it is, I’m just happy to hear the delight in Damon’s voice.
I was worried about him while he was in California by himself. Even though he told me he was okay after shooting Fallon, I didn’t like leaving him by himself. He promised me he was okay, even though he said he had flashbacks once or twice. I got the number to the therapist Abel sees. As soon as we get him settled, I’ll set him up with an appointment. He doesn’t have to feel bad about what he did, but I want to make sure he’s mentally sound.
Now that he’s here, there’s so much I want to do. So much I want to show him. I want us to build our lives together. And that may mean moving into our own place. I love rooming with Quin and Red. I love the thought of us all being under the same roof, but Damon just left a home full of people. He might want us to live alone. And that’s fine. There’s a new house being built a few doors down from ours, so we would still be in the same area if he wanted to move out.
When we get home, I shake away my nerves and grab Damon’s bags from the back. I walk him inside and pull him upstairs, putting his bags in my room. My room is the same size as Quin’s, with its own full bathroom off to the left. The only difference between Quin’s room and mine is that I had a balcony added to the floor plan. I like to wake up and stand outside for a few minutes, enjoying the sunrise.
Maybe Damon will enjoy it with me.
I move over to my walk-in closet, placing Damon’s bags there. I put his suitcases on what I made his side of the closet, beside the boxes of clothes we shipped from Nevada. When I step out, I see Damon standing at the door, looking around.
Trying to see my room through Damon’s eyes, I glance around too. My king sized bed is made neatly, my deep red blanket stretched tight over its surface. The black dresser is on the other side of the room, next to the balcony. I cleaned out some drawers there too, just in case he needed them. The black armoire where I keep my TV is right across from the bed, adding a more sophisticated touch to the room. Lastly, the faux fur rug between the bed and armoire was Abel’s idea, one that I’ve grown to really like. It feels good under my feet.
Damon steps in slowly, looking around as he makes his way over to me. “I love it. But …”
My stomach plummets. “But what? Do you want to move? Want to have our own place? Are things too cluttered? Do you—”
He chuckles and covers my mouth so I stop with my rambling questions. “No. I was saying, I love it, but do you think we can switch out the blanket? Conrad had this same exact set.”
Quickly, I snatch the blanket from the bed and toss it in the corner.
Damon laughs and shakes his head. “I don’t mean right now. We can always go shopping later. I’m a millionaire now.”
His laugh sounds forced. I see the sadness around his eyes and I figure he’s thinking abouthowhe became a millionaire.
“Yeah, you are. How does it feel?”
Damon shrugs, plopping on my bed. “I’m not sure. Good some days, sad others. My mom did right by me, but I wish she was alive to enjoy some of the wealth she built. I miss her.”
“I know baby.” I pull him on my lap and kiss his forehead, then run my hand over his ponytail. It’s not the big, curly one I fell in love with when we went out in Vegas. I think he put some product on it to tame it. I can’t wait to see him wear it in his big ponytail. It’s so soft and beautiful.
We sit like this for a moment, then I remember what I was supposed to give him when we had a moment alone. “I have something for you,” I murmur, extracting myself from his arms to go to my closet. When I come out, he smiles when he sees what’s in my hand.
I hand him the mask he wore the night we met. I was supposed to give it back to him when he came to my hotel a few days after the ball, but I was so struck by him that I forgot. Then I was supposed to give it to him in Vegas, but it wasn’t on my mind. When I finally got home, I pulled it out of my suitcase and promised I would return it. I’m sure he won’t need it in the future, but I want him to have it. So he remembers how all of this started.
Damon runs his fingers over the mask, touching it gently. “I wasn’t going to go, you know?” he tells me, head down while staring at the mask. “James”—he trips over the name, coughing slightly— “James told me no. He, Fallon, and Conradlaughedwhen I asked to go.” I tamp down the anger at the hurt in Damon’s tone. They’re dead. We put them in the ground. They can’t hurt Damon anymore.
I pull him close and Damon smiles up at me, his eyes soft. “James left the invitation on the counter. I wasn’t going to, but I told myself if he didn’t come back for it by the time I finished the dishes, I’d take it. It was invitation only.” I nod, though I got in because Quin has his ways. “When I got to the store to pick up their suits, there was a suit there. Perfect size. Didn’t need it tailored or anything. It was … perfect.”
“Think it was a sign from your mom?” I ask, knowing how he feels about those.
He nods. “Yeah, I do. Everything just fell into place. The suit, the invitation, seeing you. Wanna know what I think?”
“Always,” I answer honestly.
“I think my mother was giving me a shove to get out of the bad situation I was in. I think she left me signs that I needed to go. She wanted me to see you because she knew how much I would need you. She was letting me know that she didn’t abandon me just because she died. I think she gave me you.”
Taking his face in my hands, I kiss him, putting all my love into it. “I think so too. I needed you, Damon. And now that I have you, I don’t intend to let you go.”
“Good,” he answers with a smile. “I don’t want to go anywhere.”
