Chapter Forty-nine

Chapter Forty-nine

Sam

Four months later…

I stomp snow off my shoes and enter my apartment building, chilled right down to the bone just from the short walk from my car to the building. It’s been a long day, and work and the snow and cold makes me even more eager to get inside my warm apartment.

“Good evening, Dr. Harris,” one of the attendants says.

“Good evening. Staying warm?” I pull my gloves off and stuff them in my pocket.

“I’m trying,” he replies with a chuckle, pushing the door closed behind me, wanting to seal off the cold air as fast as possible. I quickly grab my mail and then head up, squeezing in the elevator with a few other people.

I’m the last to get off and hurry down the hall to my apartment, unlocking the door with haste.

“Hey, babe,” I say and step inside, shutting the door behind me. “What are you doing in the dark?”

Chloe turns away from the living room window, mug of steaming coffee in her hand. She’s illuminated by the light coming in behind her, so beautiful it takes my breath away.

“I was watching the snow. It’s so pretty.”

“Drive in it and see how pretty you think it is.”

She laughs and puts her mug down, crossing the room. I step out of my shoes and unzip my coat and meet Chloe halfway, grabbing her around the waist and putting my lips to hers.

“Your hands are cold,” she says, and I of course have to slip one under her shirt. She shrieks and playfully pushes me away before pulling me into the living room. The fireplace is on and even I have to admit it looks pretty fucking perfect with the snow softly falling outside the window.

“How was your day?” I ask her as we settle onto the couch. I bring Chloe into my lap and cover us both up with a blanket.

“It was good. Productive, in a way. I wrote two chapters and then rode Spartan. He had fun running through the snow.”

“I’m glad he’s adjusting well to the change in weather.”

“Oh, we were only out for like ten minutes and then he happily let me put his winter blanket on him so he could go play with his friends in the pasture.”

“Are you up for giving me another riding lesson this weekend?”

Chloe’s eyes light up and then she tips her head. “Wait, which kind of riding are we talking about?”

Now I laugh. “I meant horseback riding, but if you’re talking about sex, I’m good for that too.”

“Oh, you are good.” She wiggles her eyebrows, and I can’t resist her any longer. In a swift movement, I lay us down, pinning her between my body and the couch. Chloe bends her knees, curling her legs around me. She rakes her fingers through my hair as I kiss her.

The oven timer goes off, and I rest my forehead against hers for a moment before sitting up.

“I made that cheesy spinach pasta you like,” she tells me but doesn’t unwrap her arms from around my neck. “And I chilled a bottle of wine to go with it. You can’t have pasta and not drink wine.”

“That is true.” I push her hair back, heart so fucking full. Chloe officially moved in with me right before the holidays—and right after she formally turned down working with that network on a TV show. She spent months going back and forth on it, and I was ready to support her in whatever direction she chose to go. But in the end, it didn’t sit well with her, and I admire her for sticking true to herself.

“Oh, and I broke the news to your mom that we won’t be driving up to Silver Ridge during this blizzard to see her.” Chloe smiles and rolls her eyes. “She was very disappointed and said you need to get rid of your BMW and get something that can handle snow better.”

I shake my head. “You know if I told her we were coming, she’d yell at me for driving in hazardous conditions. And my car handles the snow just fine.”

Chloe’s face lights up when she laughs. “She totally would yell at you. Mostly for endangering me.”

I look out the window, watching the snow come down harder. “I do like the idea of being snowed in with you.” I grudgingly get off the couch and hold out a hand for Chloe to take.

“I do too. We have the whole weekend to stay holed up in the apartment. Whatever shall we do to pass the time?” She blinks rapidly, giving me an innocent look, and then saunters into the kitchen to get the pasta out of the oven. It smells amazing, making my stomach grumble.

“Ohh, I have no idea. Do you, the romance author, know something we could do? We should probably do something that keeps us warm, ya know, in case the power goes out.”

Chloe bites her lip and takes my hand, moving it between her legs. “I might have written a certain scene today that should be acted out. To make sure it works logistically.”

“Rope me into your research,” I huff and roll my eyes.

Laughing, Chloe stands on her toes to kiss me before going to set the table and pour the wine.

“This is good,” I compliment.

“Thanks. Cooking is much more enjoyable when someone else enjoys the food with me.”

“True. I’m going to attempt my mom’s potato soup for us tomorrow. So, uh, make sure we save some leftover pasta.”

Chloe smiles, eyes sparkling in the dim light. Only the light above the oven is on now, and we both look through the kitchen and into the living room to watch the snow fall every once in a while as we finish dinner. We clean the kitchen together and then take the wine and go back into the living room, snuggling up on the couch.

Taking Chloe in my arms, it hits me all over again how right this feels. How after all these years, we’re finally here—together. And how we will always be that way. My contract at the trauma center is up next year, and I haven’t decided to renew it or go somewhere else yet. Both Chloe and I find we like the idea of moving back to Silver Ridge, or even to the small town of Eastwood where Rory lives. It sounds more and more appealing.

Especially because we want to start a family of our own in the near future.

But it doesn’t matter where we end up. Chicago. Los Angeles. Somewhere halfway across the world.

As long as we’re together, we’re home.