Chase's POV:

After ending the call with Dale, I immediately opened up the laptop that had just come in for Callie since I'd broken the other one –thank god all her drafts were backed up on the cloud– and pulled up the search engine to find the listing for Sr's house. That was an hour ago and yet, here I am, still staring at the photos on the screen of the home that had once belonged to the man that I was just beginning to wrap my mind around was my father. With each minute that passed the nagging voice inside my head kept repeating 'buy it', and repeating how this place needed to stay in the family. As I looked at the photos, I tried to envision what holidays had looked like in the house. I tried to imagine Sr walking down the stairs on christmas morning as his children sat around the christmas tree anxiously waiting to tear into all their gifts. I tried to imagine him sitting at the table in the dining room leading the family in prayer as they prayed over thanksgiving dinner. In all, I tried to imagine so many things that my mind was having a hard time figuring out what was real and what was imagined.

"You should buy it."said Callie from behind me, pulling my wandering mind back to the present. The chair I was sitting in squeaked as I turned and looked over at her. When I didn't speak, Callie continued. "You've always wanted a place in North Carolina that was relatively close to your mama anyway so this would be perfect. Plus, even if you won't admit it, you are looking for something that will finally make you feel connected to the Earnhardt's. No, you won't be bombarded with memories like your siblings will be but being in that house will allow you to make your own. And personally, I think that would make Sr extremely proud."

The love I had for Callie grew tremendously in that moment –if that was even possible since I loved with with every fiber of my being as it was. Knowing that she knew what I was thinking, that she knew what I needed, only made me more aware of how blessed I was to get to spend the rest of my life with her. I was truly one of the luckiest men on earth to have a woman as loving, caring, and amazing as my wife.

"Come here." I said, patting my lap, wanting more than anything to have her in my arms. Without hesitation, Callie did as I said and settled into my lap, swinging her legs over mine and nestling her cheek into my chest. I placed a kiss atop her head and wrapped my arms around her. "How is it that you always know what to say or know what I'm thinking?"

"Because I know you, Chase." she said, lifting her head and looking into my eyes. "Family has always been important to you. I know how much your memories with Daniel have shaped you into the man that you are today. And I am more thankful for that than you know. I just wish that you had been given the chance to meet your real father. I wish that you had been given the chance to make memories with him just as you did with Daniel. But since we don't have a Delorean or know a scientist with crazy hair, time travel is impossible. So that leaves you buying the house. I think spending time there with your siblings, making new memories while they tell you all about the shenanigans that they experienced while there is the best way for you to truly get to know your father. I mean, I can't think of a better way to get to know someone than to walk in their footsteps or be in places that they once inhabited."

"You really want to take on buying a house right now with a baby due in a few weeks and me about to get back out on the road?" I asked.

"Chase, if I knew that letting someone else buy that house was what you truly wanted, then I wouldn't be encouraging you to buy it. Sure, Ainsley and Austin are going to keep me busy but as close at that place is to your mama, she would be more than willing to help out. She already says that she doesn't get to see them enough." said Callie, one of her hands cupping my stubbled cheek. She let her thumb graze over it as she continued.. "I think I did a pretty good job decorating and designing this place so it stands to reason that I can do it again. We can make the place suited for us but still honor the memory of your father as well. Plus, I always wanted a house on the lake"

"Then I guess your dream is about to come true. The asking price is no doubt jacked up because of who owned it but–"

"Baby, I don't care what the price is. This place is a piece of you and means a new beginning for everyone in the newly blended family. You can't put a dollar amount on that." Callie said, cutting me off.

My lips slammed against hers in an instant as I poured every emotion I was feeling into the kiss. Again, I couldn't help but thank the man upstairs for sending Callie my way, for creating the other half of my soul.

Breaking the kiss, I rested my forehead against hers. "So we're doing this?"

"Make the call, lover boy."

"You know I love you more than words, right?"

"And I love you." Callie said with a smile as she climbed out of my lap, the swell of her belly making the task harder than usual. "I'm going to go peep on Austin and see if he's still sleeping while you make your phone calls. Come find me when you're done and you can show me how much you love me."

"Yes ma'am." I said, already dialing the number listed on the website for the realtor.

I watched as Callie walked out of the room as I listened to the phone ringing in my ear. When the call connected, I didn't give the woman on the other end time for a greeting. "I'm calling about the lake house you just listed. I want it and I'm willing to pay whatever I have to to get it."

🏁🏁🏁🏁🏁

"Bianca is emailing all the paperwork over to Colt and then he will be over with them for us to sign." I said as I walked into the kitchen. Callie was standing at the stove stirring a big pot of homemade alfredo that we would have for dinner– something that Colt, my assistant and close friend, would be happy about since he swore that Callie's alfredo sauce was better than any he had ever tasted. Which was saying something since his sister was a world renowned chef and he's eaten at the most upscale and high-end places all around the world.

"I'm assuming Bianca is the realtor." she said, turning so that she was looking at me.

"Yeah. Bianca Mahoney. She's supposedly one of the many realtors in that area that caters to A-list celebrities so this is just another day in the office for her. She used to things working fast and having to go above and beyond for things to come together." I said, walking over to Callie and wrapping her in my arms. I grabbed the spoon she had been stirring the sauce with and took a lick, letting the cheesy, garlicky sauce flavor explode on my tongue. "I think this is better than the last time you made it."

"Brit brought over some fresh cream from her cows this morning while you were still sleeping. That makes a huge difference." she said, referring to the one and only Brittany Aldean. She and Jason had a home a few miles away and had recently taken to raising their own cows.

"Are you sure it's milk and not bull sperm?" I said, a smirk on my face.

"Chase Daniel!"

"What? You know just as well as I do that Brit will prank anyone that she can just to say that she did so. I wouldn't put it past her in the least!"

"Well, considering the sauce isn't sweet and salty like your sperm, I'm going to go out on a limb and say that it was the real stuff. But just wait until I tell her what you said. The woman may not have thought about it but she for sure will be now."

"Remind me not to drink any coffee next time we're over there." I smirked.

"Do I even want to know what the house ended up costing?" asked Callie, changing the subject.

"You'll be happy to know that I managed to get it for less than the asking price since I was making a cash offer." I said with a smirk. "Plus, when she found out who I was, she cut her commission almost in half just so that it could stay in the family."

"Wow, that's unheard of." said Callie, shock lacing her voice as she stepped out of my embrace to start making the salad to go with dinner..

Walking over to the counter, I sat down onto one of the bar stools and fiddled with the candle sitting in front of me. "Yeah, it is. But it seems she has a soft spot for family just like I do. Plus, she'd heard all about the bitch that Teresa has been towards her step children and wanted to make things right. She told me the least she could do is cut her commission so Sr's children got at least part of what they were entitled to after his passing. Said it was her way of sticking it to Teresa."

"If she didn't like her, why did she take the contract?" asked Callie.

"Same reason I did songs for years that were not really who I was or the type of songs I wanted to do. But because it was my chance to make a name for myself, I did what I had to do. I'm pretty sure she was just doing the same thing." I said.

"I can understand that." said Callie as she chopped onions.

The timer went off for the pasta so I stood from the bar stool and walked over to the massive pot of noodles that needed draining, grabbing it before Callie had the chance to. I dumped the majority of the pasta water down the drain but poured a little into a bowl sitting beside the sink. It had only taken one time of me dumping all the pasta water down the drain and Callie fussing me out for me to remember that we always needed to save some.

I'd just placed the noodle back into the pot and the pot onto the counter when the doorbell rang. Since only a handful of people knew the gate code and I wasn't expecting anyone but Colt, I knew immediately who it was. My heart began to pound as I looked over at Callie. She had a huge smile on her face.

"Well, are you going to leave Colt waiting all night or are you going to open the door so we can sign those papers and then have dinner?"