This Cat Has Claws

35: Four Years Later

"So what are your plans now that you've graduated?" Grams asked as she walked towards Landon and I.

The past four years had been great. After everything with Mack was settled with him being dead and all, there wasn't much else that threatened my life. I had a hunch that word might have gotten around the business about what happened to me and how it was handled so I think that might have something to do with it. I've been happier than ever, though. JayJay moved out of state two years ago to go to school. We were all a little surprised when he said he was seriously thinking about college and not just applying because he could. I know Dad was happy but sad when we helped him move in.

Landon and I have been together for the last four years. It was never my intention to find someone and then stay with them all through college, but the best things in life are never planned. There were a few months throughout college where we weren't able to be together because we both studied abroad. The way it worked out, we weren't able to see each other for about eight months. That was probably the hardest part of our relationship, but we stuck together.

Landon squeezed my hand and I glanced at him. He must have said something and for once in my life I was spacing out so much that I hadn't even heard him. "What?" I asked.

"I asked if you were going to come with us or go with your parents," Landon chuckled in response.

"Oh, I'll go with you guys. I'm pretty sure Mom and Dad already left to go pick up JayJay. They'll be awhile."

"Anyway, your plans Marley?" Grams asked again.

"Oh yeah, I have a job lined up not far from here, so I'll be staying close by for the time being," I answered. "Landon, you have a job in town, too, right?"

"Yup. I was going to tell them over dinner, but surprise surprise, you beat me to it," he teased.

We had thought a lot about what we were going to with our job offers. The both of us had a few to choose from and more than one of them was out of state. I would never choose an important aspect of my life based solely on a boy, but our relationship did play some part in my decision making. Those eight months we had spent apart had been difficult and that wasn't something I liked to think about happening again. I knew Landon felt the same way, not only because we talked about it explicitly, but because I could see it in his face when he first told me he had been offered the job.

Grams and Grandpa led the way to the car and we all piled in. We were going to get sushi per mine and Landon's request. I saw Grams roll her eyes at our predictability. After four years of eating out together, Grams knew the places that we liked to eat, and sushi was always our top choice, especially when we didn't have to pay.

"I'm happy to hear the both of you are staying in town," Grams said once we had been sat down at the restaurant. "Are you planning to move, Marley?"

"I was thinking about it. The girls I'm staying with all have places they're moving to and my house is basically for college kids, so it's about time I move on," I answered. Landon and I hadn't gotten to talk about living together, but I was pretty sure that was something that was going to happen.

"Marley and I need to start looking for a place together," Landon added.

I leaned over and kissed his cheek then rested my head on his shoulder. I don't know why we hadn't gotten around to talking about our living situations, but we hadn't yet. It's not like there was no opportunity to talk, it just felt so much more real to talk about. But when I thought about it, we chose jobs that would allow us to live close to each other, at the very least, so talking about living together shouldn't have been such a big deal.

Landon and I headed back to my place when we were done with our meal. I hugged Grams and Gramps goodbye and Landon waved before we walked the way from the sidewalk to my front door. None of my roommates were going to be around. I was pretty sure they were out partying and living it up now that we had all graduated. So that meant Landon and I had the place all to ourselves.

Once the door was closed Landon attacked my lips with his own and we fumbled our way to my room. I didn't even bother to worry about closing the door since I figured we'd be done or at least on a break by the time anyone came back, if they came back at all. Landon and I grabbed at each other's clothes to pull them off and get our own, private party started. I pushed Landon onto my bed and just about ripped my clothes off. Something about being a college graduate and a soon to be full-time working adult was really turning me on.

Landon and I exited the bathroom together after taking a shower. We were met with Taylor trying and failing to hide her smirky smile. All my roommates knew Landon and I were together, and I knew they brought people over every now and then, but we always made it a point to keep to ourselves in that aspect of life, so there was hardly a time when one roommate would catch the other in a compromising situation. If the door was closed, then you knew to leave it that way unless it was an emergency. But coming out of the bathroom together was a little more personal with my roomies than I wanted to be, no matter how much I liked Taylor.

"I see you've been having some fun here," Taylor stated.

"I party too, just not with so many people," I defended.

"And apparently with not so many clothes either."

Landon let out a laugh and I rolled my eyes. Taylor giggled and went to her room. I pushed Landon into my room and we both put some clothes on. We walked out of my room and landed on the couch to watch a movie before going to sleep. It was pretty late already, but neither of us were all that tired, even after all that fun and exercise we had just done.

When I woke up the next morning, I was in bed, though I had remembered falling asleep on the couch with Landon. And now I was in my room and Landon wasn't there. I got out of bed and headed for the kitchen. Landon was standing next to the sink ending a phone call. He turned to me and smiled. I returned his smile and got my own glass of water and sat down at the table.

There was something that I had been meaning to tell Landon, but I didn't know when the right time would be. It was one of those things, just like us living together, where I had a million chances to tell him and talk about it, but I just hadn't yet. For one, I wanted to make sure it was true and not a mistake, so I had waited some time so it could sink in to my own mind. I was about to bring it up when Landon beat me to talking.

"Want to go look for a place today?" He asked. "We'd better start looking now. You're lease is coming up right?"

"Sure, that sounds great. I'm glad we're doing this. I don't know what I would have done with myself if we never found the time to talk about it," I said.

"Yeah, I'm sorry I didn't bring it up either."

"So was that who you were on the phone with then? A real estate agent?"

"No that was actually your dad. Grams must have mentioned something about us planning to live together and he was making sure you'd be treated right."

"Oh, yeah Dad can be pretty protective sometimes."

With that, we both went back into my room and got dressed to go looking for a house.