The Reunion (Love Stories From a Small Town #5)

28. Your Dream House

Jason pulled out onto the road and turned up the stereo a bit to mask my slacks flicking against the door with every foot bounce.

Not a hundred yards from his driveway, though, he turned down the lane on the other side of the stream that parted the plot of land he lived on.

The printed-out email from a mortgage broker patient of mine who told me to call if I ever needed a favor burned a hole in my back pocket. So, I readjusted the vents to dry the sweat from my neck.

I was taking a gamble that Jason didn’t quite approve of, and he let me know it the second I signed the contract that morning without even asking Faith what she thought about it. But I was never so sure about anything in my life, despite the warnings my body was throwing out at me.

Set against the apple orchard and rolling blue mountains in the distance, the modern farmhouse Faith dreamed of made her whimper. As soon as we stopped at the edge of the garage, her door flung open as she giggled at herself. “Oh, that’s it. I’m in love.”

Puffing my cheeks at Jason as he pulled his keys from the ignition, I shrugged when Faith hopped out from the backseat before us. “Told you so. Didn’t I?”

Faith grabbed Carolyn’s arm when I passed them and pulled her across the yard. “Let me see what it looks like from back here.”

When he crouched to pick up a piece of trash his workers left behind, Jason peeked up at me, his eyes flipping to the girls. “I hope to hell you understand what you’re doing, man.”

Tossing it in the industrial trash can he hadn’t hauled away yet on his way to the front door, Jason motioned for us to follow him inside. “There used to be a breezeway between the garage and house, but I thought a mudroom and office would be a better selling point for the city crowd.”

Wrestling with the coded door latch, he shifted his chin back to her. “I gutted this one almost to the studs. So everything is pretty much new except for the bones.”

The front door popped open, and he held it back until we got inside. “If you wanted a modern farmhouse, I did this one by the book.”

The second Faith came through the doorway, I glimpsed the wide-eyed innocent girl I sat behind on the first day of school when she gasped. “Oh, Jase. I’ve never seen anything so beautiful before.” Shoving her fingers together in front of her mouth, she rolled her eyes over the open-concept living room and kitchen, lined in dark gray and brown hardwood. “This is some straight-out-of-a-home magazine stuff right here.”

An exposed, white brick wall framed the kitchen, and she rubbed her fingers over it as she stepped inside. “Is this original or...”

After he set the thermostat, Jason stretched his neck to find out what she was looking at. “Yes, ma’am.” He knocked his fist against the wall above her head as he moved through the room. “Since it’s in such great shape, I only had to scrub it down and white-wash it.”

Afraid she’d smudge the giant gas stove with the cast iron griddle in the middle, Faith’s fingers hovered over it, barely grazing the curves. “Is this stainless steel?”

Resting his chin on his fist, he leaned over the white kitchen island with the black marble top. “Black stainless steel. I picked it up at an auction a while ago and thought it might fit in here alright.” The side of his mouth twisted back at me as he motioned to her with a shrug. “But I can switch it out if you want.”

Smiling back at him because I knew it was just her style, I was already shaking my head before she poked him in the belly. “No, don’t you dare. It’s perfect.”

I’d been here a hundred times while Jason was rebuilding it, and I’d memorized every detail already. So I pulled at Faith’s elbow to come with me to the living room. “If you think that’s good, check this out.”

Faith’s eyes teared over when we came around the corner, and she found the matching brick fireplace that spanned half the wall. Shaking like a leaf, her hand came to her mouth. “Oh, babe. Do you see that?”

I was standing inside her head with her as she imagined herself putting up Christmas decorations, and that was the moment I knew no other home would ever measure up to this one. “I sure do.”

I sank back into the wall and gave Jason a thumbs up while she climbed up on the hearth step to sniff the mantle. “Is this cedar?”

Opening the basement door for Carolyn to leave us alone for a minute, Jason shot her with his finger gun. “Damn straight. I cut and sanded it from a tree that fell in the backyard.”

Their footsteps disappeared down the staircase, and Faith backed from the fireplace into my arms. “What do you think so far?”

She took a deep breath through her nose, shaking her head when I bent down to kiss her neck. “I’m not sure how to explain it, but it’s like I’ve been here before if that makes sense.”

Laughing at herself, she wiped the tear rolling down her cheek and sniffled. “Like I drew up the plans for it myself. It’s so...” Her shoulder bounced under my chin. “I can’t describe it.”

I hugged her a little tighter as I nodded my head against hers. “Comfortable. It feels comfortable.” From the moment I stepped into this place when Jason considered buying it, I had the same feeling. Standing there with her in my arms like that, I finally knew why. “It’s what home is supposed to be like. It’s not something you can define, but you know it when it surrounds you.”

She touched my cheek for a moment as her other hand pulled my fingers apart so she could turn around to face me. “Yeah. That’s what I’m trying to say.”

Her palms slid up my chest until her arms were around my neck. “It’s like I’ve lived here all my life and never want to leave it again.” Leaning sideways to peek behind me, she jerked her chin at the rest of the house. “It speaks to my heart. You know?”

Pushing my forehead into hers, I smiled and jerked my eyebrows at her. “I think you found your dream house, baby.”

Biting down on her lip to keep it from shaking, she squeaked back at me. And it was the most beautiful thing I ever heard. “This is my house.”

Locking my arms around her waist, I lifted her from the floor and nodded at her as I turned us around. “You have no idea how happy I am to hear you say that.”

Sucking up that dreamy look in her eyes that pulled me in every time, I walked her to the hallway as all that anxiety about the pile of cash I dropped a few hours ago vanished entirely. “Now, let’s go try out the bedroom.”