CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT
Dreaming Out Loud
Monday morning arrived with the usual routine.
Coffee.
Breakfast.
A goodbye kiss at the front door.
Luke smiled at Emily.
“I’ll see you at five.”
“I’ll have dinner ready.”
“As long as it isn’t Brussels sprouts.”
Emily laughed.
“You survived them once.”
“I barely survived.”
She kissed his cheek.
“Go to work.”
? ? ?
That evening, after dinner, Emily carried her laptop into the living room.
Luke noticed immediately.
“What are you up to?”
Emily smiled mischievously.
“House shopping.”
Luke raised an eyebrow.
“We can’t afford a house yet.”
“I know.”
“I’m just looking.”
Luke sat beside her on the couch.
“Looking never hurt anyone.”
Within minutes, they were scrolling through listing after listing.
Some were too small.
Others needed far more work than either of them wanted to tackle.
One had bright purple kitchen cabinets.
Luke stared at the screen.
“Who wakes up and says, ‘You know what this kitchen needs? Purple.’”
Emily laughed so hard she snorted.
“I kind of like them.”
Luke looked at her in disbelief.
“You’re kidding.”
“I absolutely am.”
He sighed dramatically.
“For a second I thought I didn’t know you anymore.”
? ? ?
After nearly an hour, Emily stopped scrolling.
“Oh…”
Luke leaned closer.
“What?”
She pointed at the screen.
A white farmhouse sat on five peaceful acres.
There was a wraparound porch.
A weathered red barn.
White fencing.
Room for horses.
Mature shade trees.
Luke quietly smiled.
“That’s it.”
Emily nodded.
“That’s exactly it.”
The price, however, was well beyond what they could afford.
Emily slowly closed the laptop.
“Someday.”
Luke slipped an arm around her shoulders.
“Someday.”
? ? ?
Later that night they sat on the back porch watching the stars.
Emily leaned her head against Luke’s shoulder.
“What would be the first thing you’d do if we bought our dream place?”
Luke didn’t hesitate.
“I’d build a fence for the horses.”
Emily smiled.
“I knew you’d say that.”
“What about you?”
“I’d plant flowers.”
“Lots of flowers?”
“So many flowers that people driving by would slow down to look.”
Luke chuckled.
“I’d better start saving for mulch.”
Emily laughed.
“And after that…”
She looked up at the stars.
“I’d sit on the porch swing with you.”
Luke squeezed her hand.
“I think we’d spend a lot of evenings out there.”
“I know we would.”
? ? ?
Before heading inside, Luke looked around their little rental one more time.
It wasn’t the home they’d dreamed about.
But it had been the place where they laughed.
Planned their future.
Worked through hard times.
Celebrated new beginnings.
And fell even more deeply in love.
Every dream had a starting point.
For Luke and Emily…
This little house was where theirs began.
And somewhere out there, waiting for them, was the place they would someday call home.