Epilogue
Six months later…
"And check this out. This guide actually swivels so I can adjust the cut on the fly without having to reset the piece."
Claire grinned at Noah's enthusiasm for his latest purchase, a giant saw of some sort tucked nicely into the corner of his new garage workshop.
He'd found the house surprisingly quickly once he announced he was looking. It seemed everybody at Caprock knew somebody in real estate or had a friend who was selling. Randall was the one who suggested checking out the area southwest of downtown.
The neighborhood was established and swanky but Houston's no zoning laws allowed people flexibility with what they built.
Decades ago, a wealthy family had purchased three adjacent properties, torn down two of the original houses and replaced them with one giant house consuming both lots, then refurbished the third house as a rental property.
With their parents aging, the adult children put the third house up for sale and Noah's realtor had the inside track, allowing him to snatch up the property at a steal.
The craftsman-style house sat on a quiet street laced with spacious yards populated by giant oak trees.
The paved driveway was long enough to accommodate multiple cars and ended with a detached garage set far enough back that you didn't see it until you were in front of the house.
Noah loved the sage-green exterior and the bricked sidewalk leading to the heavy oak front door.
The older home had two bedrooms and, surprisingly, two bathrooms.
He'd brought his favorite furniture pieces over from England and sold the rest. They'd spent the summer attending craft fairs and finding other artisans who were as passionate as Noah and his brother.
And while the current kitchen was more than adequate, he'd already shared his plans for renovations.
Claire watched him take pictures of the saw to send to Tristan. Noah's brother was booked to visit in October. He'd wanted to come sooner, but they'd convinced him to wait until Houston's oppressive summer heat had faded a bit.
"You need a window unit in here," Claire said, lifting her hair off the back of her neck.
"Sorry, what?" Noah peered over his shoulder at her.
"An air conditioning unit that you install into the window. It's way too hot to work out here in the summer."
Noah frowned at the side window that the garage boasted. "Most garages I saw while house shopping didn't have windows, unless they were on the garage door. This window is one thing I love about this space." He looked back at Claire.
"Oh. Then maybe a portable A/C unit? Something that keeps you from melting when you work." Claire pulled her sticky shirt away from her skin to get some air flowing. August was too dang hot to be outdoors.
"Mm, I see your point." Noah closed up the saw's parts and steered her to the side door. "Let's go inside. I made lemonade earlier. It should be nice and cool by now."
A gravel path led from the detached garage to the house's backdoor, all safely ensconced behind an eight-foot privacy fence. Cold air blasted from the house when he pulled the kitchen door open and held it for Claire to enter.
"When did you say your guest bedroom set is arriving?" Claire asked as Noah pulled a pitcher from the refrigerator.
Noah glanced at the calendar on the wall and grimaced. "I'm hoping it will be here before long."
"Cutting it kind of close, aren't you?" Claire grinned at him. Rick and his family were coming for Labor Day weekend. She and Noah had flown to Canada for a visit back in June, but this would be the first time the team met the baby. And Noah had insisted they stay with him in his new house.
"Yeah, I'm just waiting for one thing. And we can look at bedding tomorrow on our weekly trip.
" It seemed they'd made a shopping trip every weekend since he moved in, picking up this or that at various home improvement and department stores.
Claire constantly teased Noah about figuring out exactly what they needed the minute they got home from one of these trips.
Noah made their drinks as Claire unpacked the boxes from their latest outing.
"So, uh… you staying with me this week, now that I have sufficient cooking supplies?
" he asked. They'd been spending time between their two places, but until this weekend, dinner at Noah's place had been mostly takeout since his kitchen wasn't fully stocked yet.
Their loot from today's shopping trip included a fancy new Crock-Pot, some basic cooking pots, a few bakeware pieces she'd envied, and a twenty-piece dinnerware set with additional serving bowls.
"I hadn't thought about it, but I guess I can.
I'll need to grab some stuff from my place.
" She mentally ran through what she had here and what she needed from her apartment.
"I should bring my bike over here. Your neighborhood's way better for biking than downtown.
" She stacked the plates on the counter and pulled over the next box.
"You should bring everything over here."
"What?" She turned to face him with a grin, the smile dying on her lips when she saw he wasn't joking.
"I mean it. I'd like you to move in with me.
" He moved closer and took the box from her.
He set it to the side and held both her hands in his.
"I bought this house with you in mind. It's not as convenient as downtown, but the Metro rail is only a few blocks over and it's the same stop Randall uses, so you wouldn't have to ride alone when I'm out of town on business.
And, of course, we can ride in together when I'm here. "
"B-but this is your house," she protested.
"I'd like it to be ours." He smiled. "Why do you think I asked your opinion on the changes I want to make to the kitchen? Or the bathroom updates?"
"I thought you were just running them by me for feedback." She gripped his hands.
"Your one-year work anniversary is coming up. I realized this week that also means your lease is up. Might be a good time to make the change before you commit to another year."
"H-how long have you been planning this?
" One year at Caprock. It had flown by so fast. She was now the lead developer and the VIG contractors reported to her.
She had two full-blown projects under her belt and was in charge of the dev team on the data warehouse project, which was proving to be an exciting challenge.
"A while now," Noah said. He was asking her to move in with him. He didn't pull his hands away, but the tension in his grip gave away his nervousness. "I've been working up the courage to ask."
"My lease is up this month." Her mouth went dry as she realized what that meant.
"Holy mackerel! This month ! That only gives us two weeks.
Two weeks! And we're hosting Rick and Peggy at the end of that.
The house will be a mess when they're here.
Oh my gosh, we've got so much planning to do.
I can't believe you've left this until the last minute. "
"So… that's a yes?" Noah bit his top lip, as if trying to hold back a laugh.
"What? Of course it's a yes! I just—" She squealed as Noah lifted her high and twirled her around, his arms firmly around her bottom.
"It's not as bad as you think. I've been taking inventory of your apartment and only buying things neither of us had." He looked up at her, all innocence.
She looked into his eyes as she mentally reviewed the past few months' purchases.
"Oh, I see. That's why you refused to buy silverware.
And that full bakeware set. And why you're still renting some of this furniture.
" She narrowed her eyes at him. "That's very sneaky of you, Mr. Raines. I thought you were just being picky."
"I was being picky, Miss Broussard. I'm filling my home with all the essentials, and that includes you." He lowered her until their lips were on the same level and stared into her eyes. "I love you. I want to spend my life with you."
She kissed him lightly. "I love you too. I'm happy to spend the rest of my life with you."
He kissed her back, slower this time. "I suppose at some point we should get married."
Her breath caught, and she smiled. "I suppose we should."
He kissed her again, this time more thoroughly, and she forgot about unpacking the dishes.
Thank you for reading Code Block . I hope you enjoyed Claire and Noah's story.