One Timer: An Nashville Assassins Novel Read online

  “Great, now you’re on their side,” I grumble, and he laughs. “How’s the looking going?”

  He scrunches up his face. “Elli is driving me up the fucking wall. She has this list of shit she needs, and I’m trying really hard to respect it, but it’s like nothing is good enough for her. I’ve loved like eight houses, but they don’t have everything she needs.”

  “Why don’t you just build a house?”

  He gives me a look. “I offered that, and she said no. She wants a house with bones that have memories or something like that. Pretty sure she got it out of a country song.”

  I snort. “You’ll find it.”

  “Yeah,” he says slowly. “I think I’m gonna ask her to marry me.”

  “Do it,” I encourage. “Go see Harper’s sister, Piper. She set me up real nice.”

  His eyebrows shoot up. “You already bought a ring?”

  “Yeah,” I say happily. “I don’t know when I’m asking. I’m waiting for the right moment, but the ring, it’s perfection, totally Harper. Piper knows Elli. She’ll help you out.”

  “Where?”

  “Tiffany’s. Ask for Piper.” Shea nods before he laces up his skates while I make sure my elbow pad is in place. “Ready?”

  A grin takes over his face, which I’m thankful for. He’s been a bit down with the injury and the frustrations with Elli. “More than ready.”

  I stand, hopping on my skates. “Good. Let’s do this.”

  He stands beside me, and we bump fists. “Hell yeah.”

  I want to bash my head into the wall.

  Grace, Shea’s sister and our interior designer, stands before us by the bar in the kitchen with paint samples, textiles, and more home shit that I really don’t care about. Harper won’t move in until the house is done. I was cool with it before, but now, I just want to live in our house. I hate her apartment. It’s so small, and I want a dog. I’m just ready to keep the ball moving, and I feel like dealing with all the house stuff is stalling us. Our conversations are only about the house or work and maybe sometimes the baby if she’s puking her brains out. She’s been really sick lately, and I hate it for her because she won’t stop. She is headstrong and works her ass off, and then she comes to the house to make decisions.

  I swear, I’ll never love anyone more.

  “What do you think, Jakob?” Harper asks, and I shrug.

  “To be honest, I don’t care,” I say, and by the way she and Grace are looking at me, I’m realizing that’s not the answer they wanted. “I don’t even know why we’re replacing the stairs or the railing. I like them.”

  “I want it to go with the rest of the house,” Harper says, shooting me a pointed look. “You said I can do what I want.”

  “I know, but I want to move in,” I say, holding her gaze. “I want to live here with you, and no offense, Grace, but I want to paint and shit like that.”

  “When, Jakob? You’re gone all the time, and I’m working. This is the best thing for us.”

  She’s not wrong, but I still want to do it myself. This is a losing battle, and I’m over it. “Fine. Get what you want.”

  I walk off, heading into our grand living room. It’s got high ceilings and a massive fireplace that I plan on doing Harper in front of. We just have to move in first. I look over to the stairs, and they’re fine to me. I don’t know why she wants to replace them. I don’t realize Harper has come into the room until her hand slides up my back. I look down at her, turning and wrapping my arm around her waist. “I’m sorry. I’m just ready to make this our home.”

  “It’s okay,” she says, kissing my shoulder.

  “I know I’m a pain.”

  She shrugs. “I take your good days with your bad.”

  I glance down at her, kissing her forehead.

  “They’re gonna redo the stairs and paint the bedrooms except for the baby’s room. I want to do that with you.”

  My lips quirk. “I want that too.”

  “Hopefully blue,” she says softly. “A sweet little hockey room.”

  I shake my head. “No, a pink princess room. With glitter and all that shit. Something to drive you wild because she’ll be the opposite of you.”

  She beams up at me. “And hopefully everything like you.”

  Fuck, I love this woman. “As long as she has your eyes.”

  “No! Your eyes are so much better.”

  “Maybe a mix.”

  “A mix would be good,” she gushes, and then she kisses my shoulder. “We’re really doing this.”

  I mock. “Kiska, we’ve been doing this for a while.”

  She exhales lightly. “We can move in next week.”

  My heart skips a beat. “Really?”

  “Really,” she says softly, leaning into me. “I want to move in too. I hate my apartment.”

  I sigh dramatically. “Me too!”

  She laughs as she wraps her arms around me.

  “I’m ready to start our lives here.”

  “Agreed,” she says, and I lean my head to hers as we look out the windows into the huge backyard. We plan to put a massive swing set back there. When I was growing up, that was all I wanted. Somewhere to play. And now that I have the chance to give that to my child and play with them, I’m stoked. I kiss Harper’s temple as our future plays out in my head.

  I can’t wait.

  “Shea and Elli found a place.”

  “Good,” I say as my grin grows. “I know he was stressing.”

  “Yeah, she was too. Driving me nuts.”

  I chuckle softly. “You know he told me he’s thinking of asking her to marry him.”

  Harper’s eyes widen as she looks up at me. “No way!”

  “Yeah, I sent him to Piper.”

  She points to me. “Good looking out. My sister is broke. That’s going to be a great commission.”

  I laugh. “I think she’s doing just fine after the ring she sold me.”

  Gone is the grin, and soon, her eyes widen. “I’m sorry, what?”

  Her grin may be gone, but mine is just widening more. “She sold me a pretty badass ring. It’s huge.”

  Harper just blinks.

  “Wanna see it?”

  “For real?”

  I feel tears burning my eyes. I’ve been waiting for this moment, and to be honest, I didn’t realize this was it. I thought we’d be at a dinner or on a beach or something. I don’t know. Yet here we are. With emotion clogging in my throat, I say, “For real.”

  Harper watches as I reach into my pocket, pulling out my wallet. I open the change section and take out the ring I’ve been carrying around, waiting for the right time to pull it out and ask this woman to be mine for the rest of my life. Her eyes fill with tears at the sight of the 2.5-carat round diamond that sits exceptionally well on a diamond-studded gold band.

  She covers her mouth, but the sob still escapes. “Oh, Jakob.”

  I let her go, slowly lowering to the floor on one knee. “Harper,” I start, but then the emotion takes over. “I fucking love you. I love all of you, and I want to make a life with you. I want to raise kids with you, I want to make this house a home with you, I want to grow old with you, and then I want to die beside you. Marry me, Harper. Please make all those hopes and dreams reality.”

  She only nods before she throws herself into me, wrapping her arms around my neck. I fall back from the force of her embrace, holding her close as our lips meet. Her little bump presses into my gut, and love explodes inside me. We are doing it. We are living the life we are making.

  When she pulls back, her eyes sparkling with tears and adoration, I hold her tighter. “Tomorrow.”

  I furrow my brow. “Huh?”

  “Tomorrow. I wanna get married tomorrow.”

  I laugh. “For real?”

  She smiles, her eyes bright. “For real! Something small, just us and Shea and Elli. I don’t want a huge to-do. I just want us.”

  My body vibrates with excitement. “Yes. Fuck yes.”

&nb