Page 78 of Take You Home (Redwater Demons #3)

Decisively, Maggie steps away. “Maybe someday,” she says briskly, glancing up at the clock. “Almost closing time. I’m going to see if I can hit another few frames before Nack Bar George chases me out with his feather duster.”

Wincing, Obie lets the topic drop. “Let’s see if you can break our losing streak.”

“One can only hope.” Maggie raises her eyebrows at Chester as he jogs back towards them. “Twins are still waylaid?”

“Trevor is attempting to wingman for Sasha,” Chester confirms. “But it’s, ah, disproportionately clear that he doesn’t have any idea how to wingman. I couldn’t handle the secondhand embarrassment anymore.”

Obie snorts. “That’s Trevor for you,” he says, reaching out to take Chester’s hand. “You ready to head home, puppy? We just have one stop to make first.”

Chester tilts his head to one side, intrigued. “A stop to make? At ten p.m.?”

“Yep.” Obie turns back to Maggie, clapping her on the shoulder. “Hit some strikes for us, Mags. Make the alley proud.”

“I’ll do my best,” Maggie says, and she and Chester smile at each other before she strides away.

Obie and Chester make their rounds before heading out for the night, as they always do.

Little Timmy Thorne runs up to give Chester a goodbye hug, the McGuire brothers once again attempt to wheedle Chester into going hiking with them, Nack Bar George gives them some mozzarella sticks for the road with a wink??—

Because Chester isn’t just Obie’s boyfriend anymore. He’s part of the Redwater Bowl family now, one of many families Chester has gained over the past few weeks.

With a final wave at the front desk, where a bemused Harper is still talking with an overeager Trevor and a mortified Sasha, Obie tugs Chester out into the parking lot, the early October air crisp and cool around them.

“You ready?” Obie asks, snapping open a rift not ten feet away from where Chester first approached Obie with a pre-cast binding spell all those months ago.

“Always,” Chester confirms, squeezing Obie’s palm, and they step through side by side.

Obie releases Chester’s hand once they’re firmly on the hardwood floor, closing the rift behind them and clicking the lights on.

Chester surveys the room slowly, his eyebrows creeping up.

“Nice,” he says, wandering over to peek down the hallway.

“This is one of your apartments on the east side, right?”

Obie smiles. “You remembered.”

“Of course. I like seeing what you do with all your properties,” Chester says, furrowing his eyebrows at the couches and lamps already arranged in the living room. “But it looks like it’s already prepared for someone to move in.”

“Yeah.” Obie squares his shoulders, meeting Chester’s eyes. “You.”

Chester goes still. “What?”

Obie sweeps his arm around, encompassing the full two-bedroom apartment.

“The legality was a bit convoluted, but basically, I bought this apartment from myself and put your name on the deed, so there’s no rent.

Maintenance, utilities, and taxes are covered, just like in the rest of my apartments. This place belongs to you now.”

“But…” Chester takes a measured step backward, unease lining his face. “I don’t understand. Do you?—do you not want me living with you anymore?”

Obie’s eyes widen. “What? No,” he says, reaching out to grab Chester’s hands. “Chester, I want you living with me until the end of time, possibly longer. I’m not kicking you out.”

Chester’s shoulders relax minutely, but his eyebrows are still pulled together. “I’m… confused, then. Why are you giving me an apartment? ”

“Because…” Obie takes a deep breath. “Because you didn’t have much of a choice in leaving the Sanctum, and I’m very aware that you don’t really have any means or money outside of it. You’re relying on me for housing and basic survival right now, and I know that can be scary.”

Chester’s expression shifts. “Obie??—?”

“Personally, I hope you never want to live here,” Obie continues.

“But I want you to always have that option, okay? I don’t?—I don’t want you to ever feel trapped in a relationship with me because you’re afraid of what would happen to you if we broke up.

I don’t want you to ever feel like you’d have nowhere else to go or that you owe me anything.

” He gives Chester a small smile. “Congratulations, Chester. You’re a homeowner now. ”

“You…” Chester reaches out, framing Obie’s face between gentle hands. His eyes are soft. “Obadiah, you are so very, very sweet, and also so very, very stupid.”

Obie wrinkles his nose. “Could’ve done without the second part.”

“But it fits,” Chester says, leaning forward to press a kiss to Obie’s lips.

“Thank you. I truly appreciate this, but?—but I don’t think I’ll ever want to live here, either.

I love your house, Obie. I love living with you.

It’s my home now.” He grins. “Plus, the water pressure in the shower is amazing.”

“Told you,” Obie says smugly.

“And I love waking up next to you,” Chester adds.

“I love sleepy good-morning kisses and the way you fry your eggs with butter, not oil. I love your fluffy rugs and your ten thousand varieties of tea and all the books in your library. I love curling up next to you on the couch, and I love it when you teach me new things, and I love how we can talk for hours without ever getting bored.” He smiles.

“And I love falling asleep next to you. Rinse and repeat. I love you, Obie. ”

Obie’s heart feels warm. Lightly, he kisses Chester’s forehead. “I love you, too.”

Still smiling, Chester lets his gaze drift back to the couch. Unexpectedly, his eyes light up. “Huh.”

“Huh?” Obie repeats, squinting at him. “What do you mean, ‘huh’?”

“I…” A grin spreads across Chester’s face as he turns in a slow circle, like he’s seeing the apartment in a new light. “Actually, I think this place might be growing on me.”

Obie blinks back at him, bemused. “I’m glad. May I ask why?”

“Because now we have so much more furniture to have loud, raunchy sex on,” Chester says, pointing resolutely at the couch. “Starting right there.”

Obie bursts out laughing as Chester tangles his fingers in Obie’s shirt and starts herding him towards the couch in question. “You are…”

Chester lightly pushes on Obie’s chest. Obediently, Obie falls backwards onto the cushions, reaching out for Chester to climb on top of him. “Indecent?” Chester drawls, peppering kisses all over Obie’s face. “Incorrigible? Infuriating?”

Obie reaches up, cupping Chester’s cheek against his palm. “Perfect.”

Chester’s eyes crinkle in the corners when he smiles. It’s a special smile, one that Obie thinks is just for him. “Only with you,” he murmurs, and as he leans down to kiss Obie again, Obie knows that?—whatever the future holds?—he and Chester are going to face it together.