Always Sometimes Never: Sometimes Brooke Part 22

"Hold on tight," I tell her as we both hop on my bike. I'm glad when she follows instruction and grabs a hold of my waist.

It takes about thirty minutes to get to the area of Mesa where I grew up. But the weather is nice and it feels good to ride my motorcycle again.

When we finally stop we're in front of a dilapidated house that I'm surprised to see is still occupied. The neighborhood wasn't great when we lived here, but it's gone even further downhill. If I was a gambler I'd definitely put money on several of the houses in the neighborhood being drop houses for illegals or meth houses.

Even though we both get off the bike to stretch our legs I notice Brooke doesn't make a move away from me or the motorcycle. Not that I blame her. The neighborhood is scary as h.e.l.l. If it wasn't the middle of the day and I didn't know how to protect myself I'd be scared too.

"So this is it?" her voice is soft and unsure.

"This is it," I confirm.

There's pity in her eyes, and that's the last thing I wanted. So I tell her that I wouldn't be who I am today if I didn't grow up here. I know it sounds like one of my stupid cliche's but at least it's not mangled and it's the truth.

"Tell me what it was like?" she probes.

"It's weird because if you don't know any better you think your f.u.c.ked up life is normal. For a long time I didn't realize that most kids didn't live like we did. Then I started noticing things at school. Like other kids would have lunches that they said their mothers' packed. Or they'd at least bring lunch money so they could buy a school lunch. If we didn't steal candy bars from the little corner store on our way to school we wouldn't have anything to eat."

"If it's any consolation your story is making me feel good about my parents for the first time."

"I'm glad I could be of service."

"What were they like?"

I take in a deep breath. "You know I've never talked about this stuff with anyone."

When she smiles I realize that I would tell her anything, all of my deepest, darkest secrets, just to see that smile.

So I continue. "My mom was mentally ill. Bipolar. She had a hard time taking care of herself most of the time. She definitely wasn't able to take care of her kids. She didn't believe in counseling or doctors. She never really got any kind of treatment except when she was forced to. She self-medicated with booze or drugs. She eventually killed herself. My dad was in a rock band and travelled a lot. He overdosed. Rayne lived with us because his family was f.u.c.ked up too. The three of us raised ourselves. We're lucky we had music. Otherwise we probably would have been drug dealers and fit right into this ugly a.s.s neighborhood."

After Brooke gives me a quick kiss on the cheek she says, "Thanks for sharing that. I know it's not easy."

I shrug. "It is what it is. It's in the past. The only thing I'm concerned about now is our future together."

She gulps. And I can see the hesitation in her eyes. I'm hoping what I show her next will convince her that I'm serious about being with her.

"I have a surprise," I tell her.

Raising an eyebrow she asks, "Does it involve ice cream?"

I laugh. "You're obsessed with the stuff."

"Especially when it also includes whipped cream and a cherry."

"I hope what I'm going to show you is even better."

She frowns. "I didn't think there was anything better than ice cream."

"Please say that f.u.c.king me is better than ice cream."

She laughs. "Okay, you got me there."

As I get on my bike I say, "Hop on. We're heading back to Scottsdale."

"What are we doing here?" she asks.

I parked in front of a model home in a brand new development that was just completed. I decided to buy it on the spot when the real estate agent showed it to me because it came fully decorated and furnished. A few weeks after I put the deposit down I signed a bunch of papers, gave them a cas.h.i.+er's check for five hundred and fifty five thousand and was handed the keys to the place in return. I didn't realize buying a house was so easy.

"This place is gorgeous," Brooke's eyes are wide as she scans the front gardens.

I remove the keys from my front pocket and dangle them in front of her. "Want to go inside?"

She frowns. "Who lives here?"

I smile. "We do. As soon as we bring our stuff over."

Her jaw nearly drops to the ground. "How can we live here?"

I shrug. "I bought it."

Her face looks skeptical. "You bought this house? How did you do that?"

"I signed a bunch of papers and gave them a check."

"Didn't you have to get a mortgage? That takes time."

I shake my head. "I have no idea what that is. I just paid for it. They told me how much it cost and I gave them the money."

She starts blinking really fast and it's kind of making me nervous. "You just gave them the money for the house. All of it. You just paid for it. No mortgage."

"Yup."

"My parents have been paying a mortgage on their house for twenty years. And it's nowhere near as nice as this house. How in the world did you just pay for it?"

"We sold a lot of music."

She's still blinking really fast. Like her eyes are about to explode.

"This isn't really the reaction I was expecting," I tell her.

"I guess I'm just in shock. It's not every day someone just buys me a house to live in."

I grin. "I hope not. I don't want anyone but me buying you houses." I pull her close and kiss her. A long, hot kiss that makes my d.i.c.k twitch. I don't even know how long it's been since I've been inside of her. I lost count after the first thirty days.

"Forty two days," she announces.

I narrow my eyes at her. "What does that mean?"

"How long it's been since you f.u.c.ked me..." When she looks at me seductively I hope to G.o.d she's thinking the same thing I am.

"Let's go inside." I grab her hand. "I'll show you around."

She squeals and squeezes my hand when we walk inside. "It's fully furnished. This is amazing!"

"Look around," I tell her.

She pulls me toward the back of the house. The real estate agent told me it's an open floorplan, which I a.s.sumed was a good thing when I saw that the kitchen, living room and dining area all had fantastic mountain views from the huge sliding gla.s.s doors.

"It's like a postcard," she exclaims as she stares out the gla.s.s door. "The landscaping is like a botanical garden. And that pool is so beautiful. I've never seen a pool with fountains like that."

"Even Rayne doesn't have a pool like that," I tell her. "The fountains are on a timer."

When she turns to face me she's blinking back tears. "I can't believe we're going to live here. It's like a fairytale."

"Not quite. It's not even half the size of Rayne and Harper's place. But I'm not a movie star like Rayne, so I don't have that kind of money."

She places her hand on my chest and I take in a sharp breath. When our eyes meet those familiar sparks start to fly between us. "I wouldn't want a place as big as Rayne and Harper's place. This is beyond anything I ever imagined."

"I was hoping you'd like it."

"Like it?" She laughs. "I absolutely love it!"

She grabs my hand and pulls me into the kitchen. "I'm not much of a cook, but this amazing kitchen inspires me to want to learn."

I watch as she runs her small hands over the brand new, state-of-the-art stainless steel appliances. The real estate agent insisted that the gourmet kitchen was a selling feature of the house and I guess she was right. Brooke seems very impressed with it.

"I'm lucky if I can boil water," I joke. "If you can do better than that you're way ahead of me."

She smiles. She's been doing it a lot lately and I can't get enough of it. Her smiles are like a drug to me.

"I can handle boiling water," she a.s.sures me. Then she closes the small distance between us and places a soft kiss on my lips.

I love her sweet taste. Another thing I can't seem to get enough of. When I grab her a.s.s and pull her close she lets out a little squeal. "I didn't hurt you, did I?"

"I'm fine. I'm not a porcelain doll. You're not going to break me."

I narrow my gaze at her. "After the accident, when I saw you broken, it scared the s.h.i.+t out of me. I never want to see you like that again."

"I'm fine now," she insists. "All put back together again. You don't need to worry about me."

I run my thumb down her soft, smooth cheek. "I always worry about you, Wild Child. Every minute of every day. That's what happens when you care about someone. It comes with the territory."

When she glances up at me I see a hint of mischief in her eyes. "Want to show me the master bedroom?"

"I would love to..." I grab her hand and pull her through the kitchen and down the short hallway to the master suite.

"What do you think?"

Her eyes are wide. I hope that's a good sign.

"This is beautiful, Leo. I mean, I know you didn't decorate it, but you bought it. You have great taste."

"This whole house reminded me of you, but especially this bedroom. It's bold and colorful, but still cla.s.sy. That's how you are."

Another one of her great smiles covers her face. "Do you really think so?"

"You know I don't say things that I don't mean."

"I think we should test out the bed." Her eyes are twinkling.

"You don't have to tell me twice." I pull her close and give her a kiss. I know I probably sound like a chick, but her lips always make mine tingle.

It only takes a few minutes of making out for my d.i.c.k to get rock hard. I want to be inside of her so bad it hurts.

"Do you have condoms with you?" she whispers into my ear.

I shake my head. "You know I haven't been with anyone else. I haven't left your side since the accident. And I definitely know you haven't."

She gulps. "I'm not on birth control anymore."

"Good," I tell her. "We have our own house now. We're not freeloading at Rayne and Harper's place. We've got plenty of kids' bedrooms if I knock you up."

"We're not even married," she protests although it sounds half-hearted at best.

"That's a problem that's easy to solve," I tell her. "The courthouse isn't far from here." I laugh. "And neither is Las Vegas."

She purses her lips. "Seriously? Las Vegas? And don't you think Nic will be furious if we get married before he gets Harper down the aisle?"

I nod. "Good point."

For a split second I have a vision of the two of us at an Elvis Wedding Chapel in Vegas and my Wild Child with a huge pregnant belly practically waddling down the aisle in her skin tight white wedding dress. It's got to be the s.e.xiest f.u.c.king thing I've ever imagined.

"Why are you grinning like that?" Her question knocks me out of my daydream.

"No reason." I hope my face doesn't look as guilty as I feel.

Her eyes narrow. She's clearly not buying it.

"Fine," I tell her. "I was imagining you pregnant."

"And that made you grin like a five-year-old getting his first bike?"

"My parents never bought me a bike, but that's definitely something I want to do for our kids."

"Kids? Plural?"

I laugh. "Oh, h.e.l.l yeah. If you're as s.e.xy pregnant as you were in my imagination I'll be knocking you up a few times."