“Home.”
****
“Are you sure he’d be okay with this?” Kacey asked, once she dropped her bags in the living room of the 6000 square foot ranch house.
“Oh honey, why else would he give me a key?”
“He didn’t give you a key. You lifted ten rocks to find the hide-a-key.”
Grandma shrugged. “Same thing.”
“Right.” Kacey looked around the room and wanted to cry. Everything seemed so familiar, yet different. It felt like home, even if it was someone else’s house entirely. After Grandma had taken Kacey away from the airport, she had told her about Travis as a little boy.
How he had watched her, tried to protect her. She said he’d felt like it was his duty to make sure she was always safe. So when her parents had died, he’d tried to preserve everything, even going as far as to put her parents’ belongings in the shed when Kacey sold off the house. He’d only kept a few things he knew she would want one day.
Some of those things, like her dad’s favorite hunting trophies and stuffed animals were mounted on the wall of his living room.
She swallowed the giant lump in her throat when she walked to the east end of the room and saw a picture of Travis and her dad, shaking hands and laughing on one of their hunting trips.
Funny, how she had forgotten how close Travis and her father were until now. They’d been hunting buddies for as long as she could remember. Jake hated hunting. He said it was cruel to shoot animals, and actually had gone as far as to tell Kacey that her dad hated the furry things for doing that.
It hadn’t mattered that her father had always eaten everything he’d hunted.
Jake had always thought it a stupid sport.
It hadn’t been stupid to Travis, though. Her dad had come home after every hunting trip with funny stories about what Travis had done and how proud he’d been of him.
Her eyes fell to the planked-wood floor. The moon shone in through the French doors that led to the outside balcony. Travis had done a beautiful job building the house.
“Shall I leave you?” Grandma said from behind her.
“You don’t have to.” Kacey’s voice shook.
“I think he’d rather I left.” Grandma nodded towards the door and gave Kacey one more hug.
Kacey’s eyes fell on Travis.
She wanted to run to him.
To throw her arms around his neck and beg for him to never let her go again. But at the same time, what he’d done was still so raw and hurtful. Especially the way he’d reacted at the airport.
Grandma walked by her grandson and mumbled something that made Travis laugh. The door closed behind her and they were left alone.
“Kacey,” Travis began to speak then walked purposefully toward her, gaining speed the closer he got. “Kacey,” he mumbled again as he pulled her against his body and kissed her across the mouth. “I’m so damn sorry.”
Kacey melted in his arms.
“I need to explain.”
“You do.” Kacey tried to pull away, but his arms locked around her body.
“I was scared…”
“Why do I scare all men?” she interrupted, frustrated and hurt.
“Let me finish.” He smiled and she became even more irritated that her stomach flopped at the sight. “Holding you in my arms, kissing you, making love to you. It was everything I’ve ever wanted and then suddenly I felt like such an ass because I got lost in it all without saying the one thing I’ve been dying to say for my whole life.”
“What’s that?”