Isn't That Sweet? | Tayvis Stories

Betting On Us Two (3/6)

March 2024

It was already dark by the time he got back to the house, and the length of the day was slowly catching up to him. He had been filming for over ten hours, and he was drained. The moment he crossed the threshold of the front door, he was tempted to walk to the bedroom and call it a day, but then he heard Taylor's voice call out from the kitchen. "Trav, is that you?"

"Yeah, it's me." He walked into the kitchen, seeing Taylor standing by the stove.

"How was your day?" She faced him, holding her arms out, a silent request for a hug. He grabbed her in his arms, feeling his entire body relax as soon as they touched.

"A little long but good. How was yours? Did your rehearsal go well?" He stepped back and leaned against the counter while she turned back towards the pan on the stovetop.

"It was fine. We weren't able to go through as much as I hoped; I had to leave early for some meetings about the album release. We're starting promo in a couple weeks." She divulged some of the things her team had been planning, and he could see the excitement on her face.

"Sounds great, Tay. The fans will love it." He loved to listen to her talk about her career so passionately.

He watched as she moved around the kitchen, grabbing together ingredients, tossing them into the hot pan.

It reminded him of their early dating days, when he used to feel guilty that she would cook for him so often, telling her, "You don't have to cook for me."

She sighed and continued to cut up a carrot. "I know I don't have to, but I want to."

"Well, I want you to be able to relax." She was on a very short break in her tour then, and she was still flying out to see every game she could attend, while simultaneously going back and forth between Kansas and New York, where she was still working in the studio. He didn't want her to come to his home and do extra work when she should be using that time to chill out.

She stopped what she was doing and gave him a soft look. "This is relaxing for me. And I hate to tell you this babe, but you're a terrible chef." He felt his face get red, and she started to laugh, coming to where he was standing and wrapping her arms around his middle. "Don't worry, Trav. You may be shit in the kitchen, but you're amazing in the bedroom, which more than makes up for the fact that you can't cook." She stood on the tips of her toes to give him a slow kiss, while his cheeks flushed an even deeper red at her comment, and it was a miracle she was able to finish up what she was doing before he pulled her to bed.

That was months ago though, and now, Travis had found himself a role in the kitchen. "Is there anything I can start cleaning up for you?"

"Umm, yeah, I'm done with the cutting board if you want to wash that up really quick." She pointed in the direction of the dirty dish.

He went to scrub the cutting board she used, making sure it was fully disinfected before patting it with a dish towel and sitting it upright to continue drying. Once finished, he walked over to where Taylor was stirring up a combination of orzo and vegetables on the stove, giving her a quick kiss on the cheek.

She giggled softly, turning towards him and saying, "It's almost ready if you want to get some plates down."

He followed her instructions, grabbing two plates so she could spoon their dinner onto them. They sat down at the table, talking while they ate their dinner. They were there for a while, even after their plates had been cleared, because one thing he learned about them as a couple was that they loved to talk, especially to each other.

It sort of surprised him when they started seeing each other how much they had in common and how easily they were able to carry on a conversation. When she initially reached out to him, she sent a pleasant little message, stating that she was sorry she didn't get to meet him at the show and she thought the podcast was funny. He replied with the same energy, telling her he held no grudge and he would love the opportunity to meet her one day. It was open ended, giving her the space to either continue the conversation or leave it there.

Before he knew it, they were texting daily, which led into Facetime calls, which then prompted her to invite him out to New York so they could finally see each other in person. He kept calm before that first meeting, a resolve that quickly crumbled once he actually saw her and the nerves hit him full force. He expected it to be awkward, as so many first meetings are, but they simply picked up exactly where they left off on their last phone call. He discovered since then that most things between them came rather naturally.

Eventually, their conversation trailed off, and Taylor went to grab their dirty plates before Travis stopped her and offered to clean up while she got ready for bed. She happily took him up on the offer, skipping upstairs to shower while he cleared away their mess.

When he finally joined her upstairs, she was just coming out of the bathroom, her skin pink and damp from her shower. He noticed her walking funny. "You okay baby?"

"Yeah, my feet hurt a little bit, and the pain is catching up to me now. I rehearsed in my heels today, and it's not feeling great." She was pulling a t-shirt out of one of the drawers now designated as his, throwing it over her own body.

He patted her side of the bed. "Come lay down."

Once she had laid on her side of the bed, he sat at the end, pulled her feet into his lap, and started to massage one of them. She sighed in relief, before saying, "You're spoiling me."

"You deserve to be spoiled." And she did. She had been rehearsing, going to the studio, supporting him in everything he'd been doing. She had stuck around in Los Angeles with him while he was working. He was still in disbelief that the place she chose to be in, wanted to be in, was with him.

She told him as they headed into Los Angeles weeks before how excited she was for the time they would be spending together. "I'm going to be on tour for the rest of the year, and you will be busy once the season starts back up. I just want to spend as much time with you as I can right now." For that, she deserved to be pampered.

He felt as if he hadn't been giving her enough, like he hadn't been showing off his appreciation as loudly as he could. But he wouldn't dare say that to her, knowing she would adamantly refuse and tell him that he was a wonderful and supportive partner, that she always felt appreciated by him.

He was lost in thought, but snapped out of it when she smiled in his direction and said, "Such husbandly behavior."

It had become a recurring joke between them during their cohabitation period. Settling into domesticity came so easily to them that it felt like they'd been living together for years rather than some weeks. One night, Taylor said that it felt like a dream in some ways, like they were just playing house. He joked back that he would love to play the role of husband, and ever since, she had been poking fun at him.

Instead of being embarrassed by her comment, he responded, "I have to get my practice in before the real deal."

"I don't think you need any practice, you're a natural." She was lying back into the plush pillows, practically sinking between them. Her hair was still wet and her face was bare of makeup. She looked so angelic that, even though he was not a particularly religious man, he felt the need to get down on his knees and thank whatever higher power in the universe thought to send her to him.

She interrupted his musings again to tell him, "You're going to be the best husband."

He dropped her foot and leaned up to scatter kisses all over her face, whispering, "And you're going to be the most beautiful, amazing wife."