“Really? David told me to be here like an hour ago. I got lost and drove around for a while before I finally found the place.”
David cleared his throat. “Well, I was going to make it a surprise, a meet-the-whole-family type thing, but you missed Malcolm’s parents literally by seconds.”
Audrey’s head snapped to look down the hall.
“Oh shit, is that why you were down there?”
I laughed and tugged her the rest of the way through the doorway, closing it behind her. “It’s so nice to meet you finally. When David said you were a spitfire, he wasn’t kidding.”
She turned a suspicious stare at her brother, her brow furrowed. “Spitfire? What else did he have to say about me? I bet you he told you about how much I’m a royal pain in his ass.”
Watching the two of them made my heart twist a little. I missed my brother every single day, but it was nice that they had each other and these moments where they could rib each other and enjoy one another’s presence. I only hoped they’d never take it for granted. Everything was so fleeting, and you could lose it all so quickly.
David led his sister through the apartment, showing her the different rooms. The kitchen, bathroom, living room, and even our bedroom. All I could think about was how I couldn’t wait for tonight and the opportunity to break it in. We hadn’t had the chance to stay in the new place yet, both wanting to wait until our official moving-in day. David had helped me buy out mylease back in the city so we could get this place because he swore he’d never take me away from my family. He’d already won me over. He didn’t have to keep trying so dang hard. Though he was so damn swoony while he was at it.
After the tour, David brought his sister back into the living room, and we sat down to order some food. We ended up ordering from the same pizza place we’d had over Thanksgiving at my parents’ place. The food was good, and Audrey had said she’d never had the true Chicago classics. Being the gracious host I was, I had to oblige.
“So, when did you get to Illinois?” I asked after the order was placed, and we’d settled in to wait.
Audrey slumped in her seat for a moment before she answered. “I know David has told you a little about how things are with our parents. Tying up loose ends in North Carolina wasn’t as easy as packing my bags and saying deuces, you know? The offices were just starting to get used to me being in charge, and I was already handing things off to someone else. Then there was making sure that Mom and Dad didn’t stick their noses where they didn’t belong. Had to get some legal things involved with that…”
“That’s not the question he asked, Aud.” David shoved his sister’s shoulder, and she rolled her eyes at him.
“This is what I meant by being a pain in his ass. I’m telling the whole story, and he just wants me to give the minor details. But I got here last week. I found myself a nice place in the city, and starting tomorrow, I’ll be looking for a place to open our offices here.”
That caught my attention.
“Your offices here?”
David chuckled. “I said this was permanent, didn’t I, gorgeous?”
Audrey beamed as she sat up a little straighter again. “That’s right. Thanks to your advertising campaign, our last launch was a huge success, and we’re able to open another office.”
And just like that, everything felt perfect. Complete. What started off as a wild night of fun with a stranger had turned into a promising future. Because if you thought that David and Audrey were using anyone else for advertising after that, you’d be severely mistaken. This was our forever.
