Page 90 of Secret
CHAPTER THIRTY-FIVE
Noam carried one of the last boxes out of his house and put it in the back of Trenton's truck. "That should be it." He glanced over at Xander and Dyson, who were playing with Casper.
Trenton shut the tailgate on his truck. "That's not as much as I thought."
"I just needed my personal stuff. The rest can stay. Kasey has furniture and housewares already. We don't need double of everything. Besides, it will be put to good use." Noam smiled as Kasey stepped close, wrapping an arm around his waist.
He expected to feel a little more sadness at moving out of his house, but he was too excited to finally be living with Kasey full-time. They'd been spending nearly all their time together anyway, going back and forth between houses, this just seemed to be the smart step, and since Kasey's house was nicer and more secluded, he had no issue giving up his and moving.
It wasn't like he wasn't going to ever be at his house again. He'd still spend a ton of time there. It made sense to use his house as a base for the team. There was more than enough room once they cleared out some of the things. The house would stay in his name, further solidifying that he was the one in charge of the group and keeping Bryon's name or anyone else's off public records when it came to what he was doing.
It was all a bit overwhelming, but he was sure once things settled down, it was the right choice. The more he thought about things, the more he saw ways that he could make a difference and effectively use the team to help stop the perverts who were after the children.
"You need any of the stuff out back?" Carter asked.
"Nope, Kasey has everything already. The team can use everything here." Noam smiled at Kasey. "Seriously, guys, thank you for all the help. We're able to get it all in one trip."
"I want to see what's in that safe." Xander glanced at the large gun safe it had taken them nearly an hour to get into the back of Dyson's truck.
"I'll never tell," Noam teased. "One day we'll invite you over to look. Let us get settled first."
Kasey nodded. "Team day on the range."
"There's a great idea." Noam laughed before looking at Kasey. "Let me do a quick walk-through the house, but I think we have everything."
"I'll head home with Trenton and Dyson. You can follow us once you lock up." Kasey leaned in and kissed him.
"I'll be right behind you." Noam rushed into the house.
Alone finally, he took a deep breath, a bit overwhelmed by everything that was happening. His life had changed so much over the last few months. He didn't hate any of it. The changes were good ones, but he worried how well the stings would go once he got a team in place and started really working on cases.
He'd talked to the Captain at the police station earlier in the week, and he seemed supportive, and promised if he gave them enough notice, he would make sure that they sent an officer on each sting that Noam set up and gave him his full support in hiring officers to work part-time with him.
So far everything was looking good. He'd been surprised how much control Bryon gave him. He'd thought that Bryon would take a bigger part, but he got the impression Bryon was tired, slowly burning out. It didn't surprise him. This wasn't the kind of work you could do for years without it having some kind of effect on you. It was mentally and emotionally draining.
Kasey had hinted that there was something in Bryon's past that pushed him to keep going, but Noam hadn't heard what, and he wasn't going to ask. He'd found there were a lot of secrets in the team's past, and a lot of them were probably going to stay secret.
His house looked strange without all his personal things. The furniture still stood as always, but the little things were missing. His aftershave on the counter, his pocket change on the dresser, the cell phone charger was missing from the nightstand. It brought home the reality that he was really moving.
It was a good change. He'd been staying with Kasey for the last week, moving Casper and some of his things already. Casper took to Kasey's house like she'd been raised there, and that was really his only major worry about the whole move.
Things were happening fast, but it all felt like it was meant to be.
He ran his hand down over the kitchen table before turning and heading outside again. He locked the door, giving the house one last glance. It wasn't like he wouldn't be back, but it would be different. He made his way to his car, refusing to be sentimental. This was a new start, a change that was needed in his life.
He made the short drive to Kasey's, sighing when he saw they were just starting to unload the gun safe. He got out of his car and walked over to Dyson's truck. "Figures you waited for me to get the heaviest item."
Carter laughed. "We saved the best for last."
"We're just going to put it in the garage for now. Once we organize a bit more, we'll move it inside." Kasey came up behind Noam, wrapping his arms around him from behind.
Noam leaned back, realizing how just having Kasey's arms around him seemed to relax him. "Let's get it done, then I can feed you guys for helping."
Moving the safe wasn't easy, and by the time they were done, everyone was ready for a cold beer. Kasey led them into the house and pulled the beer out as everyone made their way into the large backyard.
"You need a fire pit like I have." Xander kicked back on one of the lounge chairs.
"You come build it for me." Kasey handed him a beer.
