She lifted her brows. “Yes.”
He cleared his throat. “Well, I traded the cost of my labor for a year’s lease of the space. The studio is your very own, to use as you choose—for girls at the club, for other dancers to come take lessons, or having your c
heerleaders come there. Hell, you can teach pole-dancing fitness to Alzheimer’s patients if you want.”
That visual made Grace bust out laughing.
“And…” he said, “the payment the girls at Allure make to Dean for your house-mom services now will come straight to you without any cut for a middleman starting January first.”
Her mouth hung open. Her heart filled. Her narrow view of the future opened into a vast array of possibilities. “How did you get him to agree to that?”
“Baby, the man knows you’re bringing in clients and money for him hand over fist. Once I convinced him to let me do the renovation instead of giving the job to his alcoholic brother-in-law, the rest was cake.”
She stared down at the key. “My own studio?”
“Your very own.”
Her heart swelled with more joy than she knew what to do with, and she simply threw herself into his arms, wrapping her arms around his neck and clinging tight. Josh rocked back at the force of her hug and laughed.
“That’s the most perfect gift I’ve ever gotten in my whole life.” She pulled back, cupped his face, and kissed him. “I love you so much.”
“I love you more.” He’d stolen her line, and now they shared it. “Pick another one.”
Now, overwhelmed, she turned to the box again. This time she picked up the simple gold key on the left, turned it over and over between her fingers, took a breath, and held it up.
He licked his lips, cleared his throat again, and shifted on his feet. “Okay, so…remember when I found out you were living in that bad part of town, and I was angry that you didn’t call me for help? Well,” he went on without waiting for her to answer, “that was because I never sold my townhome near yours and Beck’s.”
“What?”
He shrugged. “The market was down last year, so I held on to it, and I’ve been renting it out. The couple who’d been living there moved out two months ago, and I’ve been meaning to get down here and do a few fixes, talk to someone about putting it on the market again, but work’s been pulling me in every direction, and I haven’t had the time.”
A shadow of unease pushed her hand toward him. “I can’t take that, and I can’t afford—”
He pressed his fingers to her lips. “I’m not giving it to you. At least, not just you.” He slid his fingers along her lips and leaned in to kiss her. “I want you to live there with me.”
She didn’t understand what he was saying. “But…you don’t live there.”
“I do now. There is no way in hell I’m going back to LA. I’m not going anywhere without you, and I know Carolyn belongs right where she is.”
“But your work—”
“Can be done anywhere. Yes, I will need to travel. Yes, I may be gone for a few days at a time, occasionally a week, but I’ve already decided I’m not leaving, Grace, and I want you with me.”
She curled her fingers around the key and pulled it to her chest. “Are you sure?”
“Absolutely.”
“You don’t want to just, I don’t know, date for a while and see how it goes first?”
He laughed, head thrown back. “Baby, I know everything I need to know. And I know I don’t want to be without you one minute longer than I have to.”
“Oh, wow…” she breathed, wide-eyed and choking on emotion. “I’ve never…I don’t…”
He cupped her face, and the nerves returned to his eyes. “I love you, Grace. Please say yes.”
He had a way of wiping out all her reservations. “Yes.”
He kissed her and wrapped her in his arms, whispering, “That’s the best present you could give me.”