Page 81 of A Little More Hope

“Our beach house.”

His face glowed with pleasure. “We spend most of the time at our beach house, with me working remotely here, and when needed, I commute to Manhattan. To be honest, living in the city doesn’t hold a lot of appeal for me anymore. The possibility of working at home was Ethan’s suggestion, but the others have agreed in principle though I’m not sure how or if the logistics will work. But if you want me to keep my job, we can try the arrangement for six months and see how it goes. As long as this works for you, and you have no reservations, that is?”

Excitement raced through me at his solution. We were really going to make this work.

“So, what do you say?” he asked.

“I say yes.” I kissed his cheek. “Yes.” I kissed the other cheek. “Yes, yes, yes.”

His deep, sexy laughter lost me to him all over again. “I’m gonna need an office,” he mused.

Oh, we were still talking.

“We can convert the basement,” I replied, coming out of my romantic haze. “There’s more than enough room down there for two desks.” His surprised expression made me blush. “I…um…well.” I dropped my gaze and fiddled with the sheet laying on his chest, embarrassed by the crazy suggestion running through my head.

His finger nudged my chin gently. “Two desks?”

I worked up some courage and told him about the plans percolating in my head. “I like doing house renovations though I don’t think I’m much good.”

“You are exceedingly good,” he swiftly answered.

I hadn't deliberately fished for compliments, but I’d more than take them, especially if they came from him, the man I loved. But to also hear them from Mason the businessman, knowing how successful he’d become doing the same job, renovating and flipping houses, was nearly too much to take.

I kissed him and continued. “I’m contemplating setting up my own house renovation company. Nothing big. Buy one unit with some of my inheritance, renovate and sell that, and go from there. But doing my own, I can appreciate how much paperwork the job entails, how much organization. So, I’d want some space to store all the files, plans and permits and any other documents I’ll need.”

Mason pulled me into his arms. “Sounds perfect,” he said, kissing me, tasting me. “And I’d love to share offices with you.”

“Yeah?”

“Oh, yeah.”

“I’ll probably need help.” I grimaced thinking how much I didn’t know and had to learn. “Likely, a lot of help.”

“I’m here,” he answered instantly. “Anytime you need me.” We stared into each other’s eyes, excitement bubbling between us. “So,” he drawled, “we’re moving in together?”

I bobbed my head rapidly, laughing like a loon. “Yes.”

Another long lingering kiss later, he said, “I’ll check with Gabe to see if he’ll let us stay at his for a while longer. At least until we can get our house habitable.”

“He won’t mind?”

He shook his head. “You wouldn’t think so to look at him, but Gabe is a sucker for romance. If he thinks he’s played any part in us getting together, trust me, he’ll let us stay.”

“Oh my God,” I whispered, “we’re really going to do this?”

Pulling me down onto his chest, Mason kissed me senseless. “Yes, we really are.”

Epilogue

Mason

Three Months Later

“Left a bit,” Ash commented, his brow furrowed in concentration. I dutifully moved the mirror to the left as requested, trying to center the frame on the hook above the fireplace mantle. “And some more.” I moved again. “Perfect.” Then he gave me a wide grin, making my heart thump harder and my knees go weak, because despite all the shit I put him through he still chose to stay, rather than dump my sorry ass.

Heading to his side I studied our handiwork, not that I was double-checking the mirror was level or anything, then let my eyes rove over the rest of the room. The big squishy white sectional delivered yesterday, in time for the arrival of our guests, sat facing the new set of custom panorama doors we’d installed to get the maximum view of the ocean beyond.

A large battered antique leather footstool sat in the middle of the floor, giving us a place to put our feet up as we snuggled together in the evenings under the thick woolen blankets Ash had bought for when the nights turned chilly.

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