Page 112 of Sweet Somethings

"Wow, I'm very active in your thoughts," she said lightly.

He grinned. "Yes, you are. But my point is that I couldn't stop thinking about you. At first, when I walked onto the base, I thought this is where I belong. This is where I feel comfortable, where I know who I am, but at the end of the day, all I wanted to do was see you again. When I called you on the phone from the airport, and you didn't answer, I couldn't believe how disappointed I was. I had never felt like that before."

"I did call you back."

"And made me very happy."

"So what do we do? Wait and see what happens? As you know, I'm not very patient with inaction."

"My gut tells me that I'm not going to be cleared to go back to my old job. They need me operating at one hundred percent, and I still have limitations. That means a reassignment, or I might be able to terminate my contract early."

She drew in a breath at his words, not wanting to let herself believe he might actually stay. "You might still get to a hundred percent, Roman."

"Or I might find that being a contractor in a small coastal town is where I belong now."

"Do you think you'd like that?"

"Fairhope has grown on me. My grandfather is here. But the real lure is you. This is where you want to be—where you've found happiness. And I'm not talking about the past anymore. You're building a life for yourself."

"It has room for you in it."

"Good, because I'm falling in love with you. Since I met you, you have changed my life. You have pushed me to get involved, to care about strangers, to make up with my friends, to do better. And you've brought the light back. My only concern is that I'll bring you down."

"You won't do that. You push me, too, Roman. You make me think about things longer, and you call me out when I'm lying to myself."

"I'm glad you think that's a good thing."

"I've never felt like my real self with a man before. You see me—the real me—and that feels good."

"It goes both ways." He paused. "Before I start kissing you—which, by the way, is going to happen really soon—my grandfather asked me to give you something."

He walked over to his jacket, pulled out an envelope and brought it back to her.

"What's this?" she asked.

"He said I'd find out when you did."

She opened the envelope and pulled out two pieces of paper and stared at them in shock. "Oh, my goodness. It's a deed, Roman. It's a deed to my old house."

"Seriously?"

"And a note from your grandfather."

"What does he say?"

She read the note aloud: Juliette, I bought the house to feel connected to the woman I once loved, but you gave her back to me. And now I'm giving you back the house you love so much. I will transfer this deed into your name. I'll sell the house to you for what I bought it for. If you need a loan, I'll finance one for you. I'll finish the remodel, but you'll have full say over what you want done from here on out. Thank you again for bringing Cecelia back to me.

"I cannot believe he's going to give you the house and include the remodel in the same price he paid for it," Roman said.

"It's too generous."

"Well, it's what he wants to do. You're not going to try to give it back to him, I hope. Because he's a stubborn man."

"And I'm a stubborn woman."

"Don't I know it, but my grandfather will still be a tough fight."

She set the papers down on the counter. "The truth is, Roman, I don't want the house anymore."

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