Chapter 28

"Do you guys want to move in with me, or do you want me to move in with you guys?" Kelly asked on the drive home.

Parker bit her lip. She didn't want to move, but her place might not be big enough for the three of them. "How about you move in with us. It would be awkward for me and Philip to move in with you and Matt."

Kelly thought for a minute, then agreed. "I can do that."

He glanced over at Parker. She seemed deep in thought, and was making funny faces.

"Kelly?" she asked.

"Don't tell me you don't want me to move in."

"No, it's not that. It's not that at all. I was just thinking."

"Talk to me."

"Well, the market is good right now. Combined income wise, we do pretty well. Why don't we think about buying a house? We'd have enough room for all three of us-"

"-That's a great idea! You think Mary Alice would like to come live with us?"

"I don't know. She's stubborn and likes to be independent. I would love it though."

"So would I."

"So, why don't you use that Severide charm on her and ask her. She can't tell you no. Me, she can."

Kelly laughed. "No, she can't."

"She adores you."

"I adore her too. And if she moves in with us, she has an automatic ride to Bingo when I'm not on shift."

Parker laughed. "She loves her Bingo."

"So, where would you like to start looking for houses? Bucktown?"

She nodded. "I was raised here. It's home. And I don't want to uproot Grandma."

"We can start looking as soon as we get home."

"Thank you, Kelly. It means a lot that you'd do this for us."

"You're welcome. But I get a deal out of this too. I get you, Philip, and Mary Alice. It's a sweet deal."

"You're okay with living in Bucktown?"

"I can live anywhere as long as it's in the city limits."

She nodded. "Requirement for the job."

"Yep."

"Well, that part was easy. I just hope finding a house is just that easy."

"I'm not fussy. As long as it has 4 walls, a roof, and a fridge full of beer, I'm happy."

"And room for the guys to hang."

"Oh, yeah. A man cave."

"I don't think that's going to be too much of a problem. Finding 4 bedrooms might be."

"We'll find something," he soothed.

"Might be cheaper to build, but that means suburbia, and you can't be out of the city."

"Parker, relax. We will find a house. It might not be today or tomorrow, but we will find something. I know people who know people."

"That sounds kind of seedy."

Kelly laughed. "It does, doesn't it? No worries. I know a lot of people. Plus, Matt's second job is contracting. He probably knows of tons of houses for sale."

Parker leaned her head back against the headrest. "I'm sure between the two of you, you know the entire city of Chicago."

"Well, maybe not the entire city, but pretty close."