Chapter Twenty-One
On the big reveal day at the sanctuary, Lacey wanted to start filming early in the morning. As Nick awoke, it seemed even earlier because he’d been up with Claire until the wee hours. However, he’d packed a bag and had stayed over for the night, so he wouldn’t have to drive back and forth.
The drive was starting to wear on him. Normally, he wasn’t the sort to get overly frustrated in traffic. Driving was simply a necessary factor in his career, and in his life.
But now? It was just less time he could spend with Claire.
He was already on borrowed time.
Of course, he now had his own set of drawers at Claire’s place, which would make things easier.
The sight of those two empty drawers had made him want to do a massive fist pump, but he’d refrained, knowing it was a huge moment for Claire.
The fact that she was willing to carve out some space for him in her home was a big step.
She’d changed in the past while, and the changes gave him such a rush. She’d begun their relationship wary, only wanting a pleasant distraction. But now, she smiled more, she laughed more, and she’d told him she was looking forward to the future.
Their future.
Of course, he’d never set out to change her as a person. He just wanted her to be happy. He happened to love who she was.
He loved who she was.
He loved her.
The realization caused every hair on his body to stand on end.
He loved Claire.
It just had to hit him on what was bound to be the busiest day in recent memory. They wouldn’t have a lot of quiet moments during the reveal, and certainly not once the open house got started.
When would he tell her?
Okay, breathe, dude. Tonight. You can talk to her tonight.
Nick already knew that if he confessed his feelings, she might not be ready to say the same three words. But that was all right. She’d already come so far and shared so much with him. Right now, he just needed to tell her, to let her know she was loved.
The rest would take care of itself.
Around seven in the morning, he walked with Claire across the field to Haven.
They held hands, and even swung them a little.
He couldn’t help himself from feeling so carefree.
The sun was shining, all the sanctuary volunteers would be gathering at Haven for the reveal and he had this incredible woman at his side.
As tempted as he was to tell her he loved her, he held back. They only had a couple of minutes and it wasn’t something he wanted to rush.
“You’re in a good mood,” she teased. “Of course, you should be after what I did to you last night.”
“My toes are still curled inside my work boots, beautiful. Although, to be fair, there is another major reason to be in a good mood. I’m excited to show you the new Haven today.”
“I’m excited too, Nick.” She stopped walking. “I know it was hard for me to accept all the changes at first, but I want you to know how much the renovation means to me. I’ve almost forgotten what it’s like to work in my office, surrounded by the smell of damp.”
“If I have anything to say about it, you won’t ever have to experience that again. I think it’s safe to say you have your very own handyman on retainer from now on.”
“Well, that is extremely appealing, but are your services very expensive? Because I am on a budget, you know.”
“For you?” He kissed the tip of her nose. “I’m willing to discuss a five percent discount. A bargain, really.”
“Five percent, huh? And if I continue to give you expert blow jobs, like the one I gave you last night?”
“Hmm. You make a good point. In that case, my services are yours, no charge. Now, let’s get to the sanctuary. We have a renovation to reveal, woman.” He squatted down so she could climb on his back. “Hop on.”
“You actually want me to jump on your back?”
“All aboard!”
Laughing, she climbed on. Nick carried her the rest of the way to Haven.
They were all waiting for them at the other end of the field.
David stood with the team of volunteers by the front door.
Adele was right there with them. Mia stood off to the side with a tall guy and a little boy—her husband and son, Nick figured.
And, of course, the entire Handymen team stood behind Michael, Eli and Lacey.
Louie and Rex manned the cameras, ready to capture Claire’s reaction.
Nick set Claire back on the ground. She took a deep breath and smoothed down her Cat lady T-shirt.
The first person to break formation was Claire’s nephew. The little guy broke away from his parents and raced toward her. “Auntie Claire!”
She scooped him up. “Lucas. Hey, buddy. I want you to meet my friend, Nick.”
Lucas slid out of her arms and tugged on Nick’s jeans. “I saw you give Auntie Claire a piggyback. Can I get one too? Please?”
Nick looked over at Mia, who nodded her permission. “Your mom said it’s okay, so up you go, little dude.” He crouched down and the kid scrambled on.
The others came over to greet them.
Nick elbowed Michael. “You know, as a dad, you’re going to be giving a lot of piggyback rides. You ready for that, bro?”
Michael nodded. “I’m ready.”
“Not if Uncle Eli gets there first,” said Eli.
Lucas giggled as Nick bounced him around. “You can all give me piggyback rides today.”
Mia came over and collected her son. “Piggyback rides later, buddy. The guys are going to be really busy today helping Auntie Claire.”
With that, Lacey approached. “Claire, are you ready to see Haven?”
Claire took Nick’s hand. “Yes, I am.”
Nick glanced at their linked hands. He didn’t think he’d ever held anything so precious before.
Before the day was through, Claire would know exactly how he felt.
Claire wasn’t sure what kind of footage Lacey was getting as they toured the new-and-improved sanctuary, but she was fairly certain most of it consisted of Claire’s mouth hanging open.
She just couldn’t get over the changes. Even though she’d been onsite almost the entire time, and had seen many of the renovations happen, it was as if she were walking around a whole new building.
It had everything to do with the details, and clearly Nick and his colleagues had been working overtime to polish the facility to perfection. It shone like a jewel. The windows sparkled. The newly painted walls appeared fresh and untouched. Everything flowed and felt homey and comfortable.
Eli started them off by showing off the new landscaping in the front yard.
With the camera crew filming, he shared the details with Claire.
“From what you’ve told us, Claire, Haven has always been just that for the community of cat lovers.
Unfortunately, over time, it stopped being a haven for the staff.
After a few weeks of hard work, I think we’ve been able to change that. ”
“It looks beautiful out here, Eli,” said Claire.
“You have a new walkway, a new ramp into the facility for better accessibility and landscaping that will welcome visitors. I know no one on staff here has time to putter in a garden, so I’ve kept things simple and low maintenance.
We have some shrubs out front by the entrance, ones that will basically take care of themselves.
You’ll just need to do a little bit of pruning here and there.
And we’ve planted some perennial flowers that only need a little care as well.
Everything is bright and green and clean. ”
She couldn’t believe how lovely it all looked. Eli and his team had even tidied up the exterior of the building and had created a cute new sign for the walkway.
Claire gasped when she entered the reception area. Aside from helping with the paintjob and the purchase of some accessories, she hadn’t seen the finished product.
Michael took over the tour. “First impressions are always important in business, and even though we could all feel the love here at Haven, the reception area needed a bit of TLC.”
“You’re being very diplomatic,” said Claire. “It was old and tired, and I’d stopped seeing that.”
He waved his arm around the room. “There’s nothing old and tired about this place. A fresh coat of paint did wonders, and it makes a nice backdrop for the little pops of color in the accessories. Along with a new reception desk and windows, it’s a much more welcoming environment.”
“It’s perfect.”
Michael, continued, leading her into the new laundry room. “As you know, Claire, we were really hoping to give the Haven staff a laundry room that more than one person could stand in at a time. I know the way the room was set up before made that challenging.”
She laughed. “I’m not even sure one person could fit in the previous room.”
“That’s not an issue anymore.” Michael ran his hand along the new wall. “In opening up this space by demolishing the old interior wall, we were able to make room for this very sexy new washer and dryer combo. What do you think?”
“It’s the washer and dryer of my dreams, Michael.”
“I’m going to hand you over to Nick now,” he said. “I know he has some exciting things to show you too.”
Claire turned to face Nick, and her heart leapt into her throat. If she could have run to him, she would have, but she was conscious of the cameras.
Her handyman held out his hand, a beautiful smile gracing the face she’d come to love.
Good God.
She loved him.
She wasn’t even sure when it had happened. Not long ago, she’d been trying to convince herself that her attraction wouldn’t go anywhere, wasn’t meant to go anywhere.
And now she wanted to go wherever Nick went.
You’re fooling yourself if you think you can do that. Don’t forget. Pretty soon, that man will be on a plane, heading to the opposite coast.
Do you really believe you can just drop everything and follow him?
She ignored her inner voice and took his hand.