After our conversation about futures and families, Chase had been more persistent about how we spent our time together. I loved being with him and I loved more than anything- how supportive he was of my dreams.
“Why don’t you just move in with me?” Chase asked, as he held me tightly around my waist.
Turning to face him, I raised my brows. “Seriously? Baby, we both live in the same hotel. Isn’t that practically living together now?” I inquired, as I wanted him to realize how ludicrous he was being.
“I don’t mean here at the hotel,” Chase said as his face grew serious. It was clear he wasn’t going to back down. “What if we found another place to live? Somewhere quiet and safe outside of this casino? Somewhere where we can be together without interruptions,” he asked with a smirk as his hands began to roam my body.
I watched his face closely for any sign he was joking. Instead, I found an intense glare and pleading eyes gazing back at me. Chase was serious. With his strong hands touching my sensitive skin, I couldn’t find any plausible reason to argue with him. Damn him. He knew exactly what he was doing to me. Chase was more than aware that his touch could render me helpless and I was now lost in his world.
“What about money? You know that I can’t afford to help pay rent right now,” I began to argue back, as Chase began to trail kisses down my neck. He was playing dirty now.
The logical side of my brain still tried to fire through my sensual side which was starting to take over. While living with Chase sounded wonderful, I didn’t want him to jump into something I couldn’t help with. I hated that I had to be like this. Placing my hands on his chest, I slowly pushed myself away from his lips. “Chase, I would love to live with you. Trust me nothing would make me happier. But, I have to save all of my money to pay for school so that I can get a good job and a nice place soon.”
“Do you love me?” Chase threw at me as he scooted closer to me.
Startled, I was almost rendered speechless. Was he serious? “Of course, I love you,” I cried out.
This wasn’t going well and I didn’t want to fight with him tonight.
“Then that’s all that matters,” Chase said, as he pulled me back and closer to him. As we stood together, I held onto his biceps for safety and warmth. “I can take care of the money. I know that is what you are really worried about. I love that you are independent and have worked hard to save for school, but you have me now and I have the financial means to take care of you. For once in your life, let someone take care of you. Everything you want in life can be yours. All you have to do is say yes,” Chase grinned at me with his award-winning smile, and my heart began to instantly melt. I maneuvered myself into his arms as his words drenched my heart.
“Chase, it’s not that simple. I know you have money; lots of it. But I can’t take your money. I can’t let you pay for me. I am a big girl and I need to figure this out on my own,” I stated, as I realized I wasn’t just fighting with Chase, but I was also fighting with myself, too.
“You are mine,” Chase growled, as he squeezed my hips to him. I could feel his hardness pressing up against my belly and I almost gasped from the touch. “I will take care of all of your expenses. I take care of what is mine. If you live with me, we can be together all of the time. I can watch out for you every minute of the day. And, you can save up for school. I will even help Avery out too if that makes you feel better. I’m not sure she needs us though, Avery and Jax have been hitting it off,” Chase finished, as he smiled at me.
As much as I wanted to continue arguing with him, I knew this was a losing battle. If I was with Chase, then I needed to remind myself that he wanted to protect me in every aspect. Even financially. As much as I wanted to do this on my own, maybe I should let him help take care of me for now. Just until I finish school. I could pay him back one day when I get a real job or keep the place we find clean for him and cook. Shit, that makes me sound so domesticated.
I stood there for a while, waiting for the right words to express to Chase how much I wanted his offer but at the same time didn’t want to forget my goals or the hard work I put into all of this up until this point.
“Come on, Lizzie, you are driving me crazy here. What will it be?” Chase asked. His eyes were glowing with need and I knew I couldn’t make him wait much longer for an answer.
“Yes, I will move in with you,” I said slowly.
Lifting me, Chase twirled me around as he began to yell into the air.
Laughing, I slapped his arms as he continued to twirl me around in front of everyone on the sidewalk. “Chase put me down,” I giggled.
Finally placing me back on the ground, Chase leaned in and kissed me hard. “Thank you,” he whispered into my lips.
It was moments like this that made dealing with his possessive and crazy side worth it all. Chase was a true romantic through it all and I loved him for all of his beautiful idiosyncrasies. “Just remember Chase, I will pay you back somehow for this. I don’t expect you to take care of me financially just because we are dating,” I reminded him, as he still held me tight in his arms.
Shaking his head, Chase just grinned down at me. “I don’t know why you want to argue with me about this. You are mine. We aren’t just dating, this is forever,” he said, as he kissed me again. “I will do whatever it takes to see that your dreams come true. You have never had someone take care of you the way you deserve or want to see you succeed the way that I do. Just enjoy this baby and all I want is for you to love me back,” he said gently.
Sighing, I shook my head as a wide smile spread across my face. “Spencer Chase, I think I just fell more in love with you,” I said, before I kissed him hard.
****
Hours later, Chase and I found ourselves laying on his bed as we searched for apartments just outside of Vegas. We both had agreed we needed to stay close enough to the city center for work and school, but needed some space to distance us from the crazy life that Vegas held.
“Why are you living in the casino hotel if you can afford such nice places,” I asked, as we looked at another luxury apartment that probably cost more than my college tuition.
Staring at the screen of his laptop, Chase didn’t turn my way to answer. Shrugging his shoulders he watched the apartments slide by in front of him. “I guess I just liked knowing I wasn’t completely alone. I never wanted to share my space with anyone before. A few years ago, I had a townhouse and I lived alone. It was fine, but everyone wanted to party at my place after fights. I guess having your own house makes people expect to have parties. Anyway, I decided to just get a room at the casino when I started working here. I didn’t need to leave since I work so much.”
“You have been taking a lot of time off lately,” I noted. The stories and gossip I had heard about Chase constantly being at work or alone instantly flooded my mind.
“I never wanted to have free time. I didn’t really like hanging out with people and to be honest, most people think I am a jackass,” Laughing, Chase thought his own comment was funny. “I guess I am though. Anyway, until you, I never needed a day off of work.”
I snuggled in closer to Chase and smiled to myself. I had come so far from a family that hated me to now having a man that loved me so much, he was changing his entire outlook on life. I wasn’t sure how I got here, but I didn’t care. I would soak in every minute of Chase I could while he wanted me. I was sure that one day he would wake up and realize he could have any other girl he wanted.