Page 103 of Knot in Bloom
“I vote for option two,” I say, making them all laugh.
“This could be your office.” Reid shows me a sunny room with built-in bookshelves and a window seat overlooking the garden. His hand rests on the small of my back, and I can feel his happiness at my obvious delight. “For business planning, client meetings, whatever you need. I noticed it has a separate entrance when we looked at the place.”
The thoughtfulness makes me turn to kiss him softly. “You thought of everything.”
“I thought of you,” he says simply. Through the bond I can feel how much joy my happiness gives him.
We move through more rooms—formal dining room, cozy living room, half-bath with designer fixtures. Each space is more beautiful than the last, and with each room my excitement grows.
This is really happening. This is really our life now.
When we reach what will clearly be our bedroom—a massive space with a king-size bed that could easily fit all four of us—I can’t contain my happiness anymore.
“Okay, but seriously,” I say, grinning at the enormous bed, “did you buy this thing from a hotel? It’s the size of my entire apartment upstairs.”
“California king,” Reid says proudly. “Custom mattress, organic cotton sheets, hypoallergenic everything.”
“It’s bigger than some people’s living rooms.”
“We needed space for all of us,” Caleb points out reasonably.
“Space for what, exactly? A small army? Are we planning to host sleepovers?”
Levi grins. “Well, when you put it that way...”
I shake my head, but I’m laughing. “You three are ridiculous. And I love you for it.”
“We love you too,” Reid says, pulling me into his arms. “More than you know.”
“I can feel exactly how much through the bonds,” I remind him with a smile. “And it’s incredible.”
“Good,” Caleb says, moving closer. “Because there’s something else we need to tell you about.”
“About what?” I ask, curious rather than worried.
“The debts,” Reid says, his voice carrying quiet satisfaction. “Your shop mortgage, your business loans, everything. I paid them off.” I blink at him, processing this information.
“All of them?”
“Every single one. You’re completely debt-free.” The magnitude of what he’s done hits me, and I step back slightly.
“No. Reid, no, you didn’t. You can’t just—that’s hundreds of thousands of dollars.”
“I can and I did,” he says calmly.
“But I didn’t ask you to do that. I was handling it myself.”
“You were drowning in payments, darling. I have the money, and?—”
“That’s not the point!” I run my hands through my hair, overwhelmed. “I’m supposed to be independent. I’m supposed to take care of my own business.”
“Thank you,” I whisper, meaning it completely. “I do appreciate it, even if it’s overwhelming.”
“You don’t need to thank us,” he says firmly, stepping closer. “That’s not why we did it. Taking care of you is our privilege.”
“Forever,” Caleb adds, and his contentment flows through our connection like warm honey.
“Pack,” Levi says simply, and the word carries every promise they made when they claimed me.
