Page 120 of Legally Yours
“When…why…why did you choose that one?” he asked quietly.
I shook my head. It was hard to explain, especially to someone who didn’t know music. “I don’t know. The minor key, maybe, and the alternation between a walking cadence and the arpeggios—”
“That’s the fast part?”
I nodded. “I think the combination of all of that, probably, is why I chose it. It just…came to mind, I guess.”
Brandon nodded, drifting one finger across the shiny surface of the keys, but not pressing any down. “It was intense,” he said quietly.
I nodded again. “Yes.”
“Intense,” he repeated. His eyes flickered down to my lips. “Is that what this is?”
“I thought you said it was love.” My own gaze dropped to his mouth as well.
“Love,” Brandon repeated again. He tipped his head to the side. “The word doesn’t seem enough,” he said just before he captured my lips with his. Then, just as he broke away again: “Move in with me.”
I gasped. That was the last thing I was expecting him to say after all this. “What, here?”
“Well, I don’t think I’m allowed to live at the law school, Red,” he said with a brief smile, but his expression quickly turned serious.
I stared at him, dumbfounded. “You’re serious. It’s only been, what, two months since we met?”
“Two months and sixteen days. And yeah, I’m completely serious. I’d probably ask for more if I thought I had a chance in hell you’d say yes.”
I didn’t even want to entertain what he meant by that.
“And before you say you don’t want all my money, that’s not what I’m proposing. This isn’t me buying you a condo, Red. It’s asking you to share my home.” He took my chin in hand and forced me to look directly at him. “I love you. You love me. Don’t overthink this.”
“But…we just met…and we barely know each other,” I sputtered. I pulled my chin away, but continued to look at him. “I do love you, but it’s a bit soon, don’t you think?”
Brandon shrugged. “I don’t really care about that. I only know that I wake up every day wishing you were here, and I go to sleep thinking about your face. I want to hear you play this piano each night, and listen to you grumble about your work, and be there when you finally soar, because I fuckin’ know you will.” He sighed. “The best times I have with you are when we’re just together. No fancy dinners, no fancy clothes. Just sitting on the couch, reading in our sweats. I don’t want to wait until Friday to do that.”
I ventured a small smile when he peeked back at me. “So basically, you want me to be an old married couple with you?”
“Well, minus the old,” Brandon said with a smirk before sneaking another kiss. He didn’t linger—he wanted an answer to his question.
I looked away, unwilling to call him on that bluff. “I’ll have to think about it. I’ve already paid for student housing through the end of the semester, so I’m not moving anywhere before then.”
“But you’ll have to move somewhere, right?”
I found him watching me with a raised brow and a knowing expression. I rolled my eyes.
“Yes,” I admitted. “I will.”
Despite our occasional hiccups—like the one tonight—I felt the same as him. I wanted to sit with him on a couch, watch our careers, our lives grow together. I felt loved with him, safe with him, not to mention completely turned on by him.
I wanted to play house too.
I pulled on the collar of his t-shirt nervously. He’d been making grand overtures since we met, and I’d been screwing them all up, too scared to take what he was offering. Maybe it was time for me to make one of my own.
“Okay then,” I said softly. “Okay. Let’s do it.”
Brandon didn’t breathe for a moment. “Really?” His face broke into a wide grin. “Really?”
I offered a small smile and leaned in. “Yes,” I said and kissed him.
Like the music, his kiss started out light and easy, but quickly slipped into something more torrid, our tongues warring and adoring at the same time. He managed to get one arm around my waist long enough to yank me onto his lap, causing the piano bench to creak loudly.