Never Far Away (The Never #2)(31)
Ella
Later that night, Ella found herself sifting through Porter’s closet searching for something comfortable to wear to bed. She found a pair of his boxers and a tee shirt and sighed in contentment, smelling his shirt, finding his scent soothing. She quickly shed her clothes and slipped into his. When she exited the closet, she found Porter sitting up in his bed reading a book. She smiled at the sight of him, doing something as normal as reading a book. She loved that she was here with him, able to see him just reading. She wanted this every night. She wanted to share a life with him. And she wanted to start now.
“Baby? Can we talk?” Porter closed his book and set it down on the table next to the bed.
“Of course.”
She walked to the bed and climbed up, then got under the covers and snuggled up next to his side. He kissed her temple and she smiled into his chest.
“Listen, Porter, I know that I’ve just gotten my memory back and we’ve just found each other again, but I am really serious about us being together. I don’t want us to be separated any more, in any way. I think we’ve been through enough and if we can make it through the last two months, we can make it through anything.”
“Ok, so let’s talk specifics. What is it that you want?” He brushed his fingers through her loose hair, waiting for her response. Ella took in a deep breath, readying herself to lay everything on the line. She was going to put everything out there and it would go one of two ways.
“Well,” she said, resting her head on his chest so she was looking right in his eyes, “I want to ask Megan to manage Poppy in Portland and to look into opening a new store in Salem. Even if Megan doesn’t want to do it, Brittany graduated and is looking for a job. I’m sure she’d take it if I offered. I want to move to Salem and I want you there with me.” She watched his face, hoping for any indication of what he was feeling or thinking. His brows furrowed a little, creating sexy wrinkled between them.
“So, you want us both to move to Salem? Where would we live?”
“Well, I don’t know. We could rent a house or an apartment. I hadn’t really thought too far into housing. It seems silly to think about it before we’ve decided what was happening.” She turned her head so her cheek was resting on his stomach, and she could feel it rising and falling with his breath. “If you don’t want to move to Salem, it’s fine. I am going to move there regardless. It’s time for me to branch out and expand; it makes sense for me. I understand if this is too soon for you, or if you’d rather just keep things the way they are, or the way we originally intended. Salem is a whole hour closer than Portland, so at least there’s that.” She rambled and she knew it. His silence unnerved her and she just wanted him to say something, one way or another.
“Hey, don’t try and talk me out of it,” he said, pulling her chin back to look at him. “Let’s just think it through a little. I don’t want this to be impulsive; I want it to be right, for both of us.”
“Ok,” she said quietly.
“So, you want us to move to Salem together. You will open another store there and I will commute to Lincoln City? What will I do with my house?”
“Well, I guess that’s up to you, but I wouldn’t want you to sell this house. I love this house. Do you mind the commute every day? That’s two hours in a car, every day. And you’d probably have to leave your boat here too.”
“I don’t want to sell and I don’t need to. We could still come here on the weekends. I think I would rather rent a house, an apartment would probably be too small. But eventually I’ll want to build us a house.” Her heart stopped as her eyes caught his. She felt the breath burning in her lungs trying to get out.
“You want to build us a house?” She whispered, a little unsure she’d heard him correctly.
“Of course I want to build us a house, Baby. I want to give you everything.” He rolled over her and pressed a kiss on her lips. “Don’t doubt us, Ella. I want us to be together more than anything, but I just wanted to make sure that we’re doing it right.” He gently flicked his nose against hers. “I’ve never lived with someone before. Aren’t you worried you’ll have to break me in?” He smiled at her.
“I’d love nothing more than to break you in,” she said with a sly grin. Then she realized what he’d said. “Wait, does this mean you’ll do it?”
“Of course I’ll do it; that was never a question, Ella. I’d move anywhere to be with you.”
“Well, you could have fooled me, I was really worried I was laying it all out there and that you were going to reject me,” she said, playfully slapping his chest.
“Being with you is all I’ve ever wanted,” he said suddenly serious.
“I know. I’m sorry it took a gunshot, a coma, and some amnesia to bring me around.”
“Yeah, no more of that,” he said.
“No problem.”
The next morning was Monday and Ella called Dr. Andrews’ office. Once she told the nurse her situation, she said the doctor would want to see her that day. To Ella’s delight, Porter called his second-in-command at his company and told him he wouldn’t be in that day. They both got ready to head to Portland to return to OHSU.
“Are you nervous about seeing the doctor?” Porter asked her as the Portland skyline came into view. They had already dropped her car off at her apartment and were in his truck. He casually had his hand on her thigh and every time his thumb grazed over her skin gently, she could feel the sensation shoot directly to her core causing goose bumps on the back of her neck.