Page 65 of Craving You

“Ah. Got it.”

House number three had a bigger kitchen, the same number of beds and baths, but not as open of a floor plan. There wasn’t anything to dislike about it, overall, but there also wasn’t anything that wowed them. The space would work, but…

It wasn’t their house.

Which was fine with him, because the final house was the one that he had fallen in love with. Hailey hadn’t said which one she preferred, but he just had a strong feeling that this was going to be it.

“Oh, wow,” she said in awe when they pulled up. The property itself was very similar to his brother’s place—a large wooded lot, detached two-car garage, and the house itself had a massive wrap-around porch. “It looks so much bigger in person than it did online.”

Nodding, he followed her up to the porch. It had less square footage than the last two houses, but it somehow looked larger from the outside.

As soon as they stepped inside, Hailey gasped. “Look at those windows!”

The entire back wall of the living room was full of windows and French doors that led out to a massive deck. He slowly made his way behind her, taking it all in—the stacked stone fireplace, the built-in bookcases, the kitchen that was large enough to easily hold a dozen or more Donovans…

But it was the primary suite that blew them both away. It was more than big enough for a king-size bed, and it had a vaulted ceiling and two walk-in closets. Plus, the bathroom looked like it came right out of a luxury hotel.

“That bathtub looks positively decadent,” she said with an impish grin. “I don’t think I’ve ever lived anyplace with a tub that covered my knees and boobs.”

Laughing, he walked over and looked at the free-standing tub. It was definitely deep and looked like it could fit both of them at the same time. “I’d be more than happy to scrub your back when I join you in it.”

Another blush. “You’re more than welcome to, but you’ll have to deal with all kinds of bubbles and the scent of lavender.” Winking, she walked out of the room so they could continue the tour.

They walked through the house three times—each time finding something else they loved and making plans for different decorating ideas and the kind of furniture they’d need.

When they finally met their agent out on the back deck, he held up his phone. “I don’t even have to ask. I’ve already texted Patrick and told him he should start writing up the offer. Was I wrong?”

Max and Hailey shook their heads. “It’s kind of perfect,” Max said, and for the next several minutes, they talked numbers and what they hoped the timeline would be for them to close and move in.

“The seller is highly motivated. The husband got a job offer in Maryland, so I don’t think there’s going to be any issue with getting things done in thirty days. Possibly sooner. Patrick has all your pre-approval paperwork, right?”

“He does. And if there’s anything else he needs, tell him to call me.” Placing his arm around Hailey’s waist, he added, “Can we walk through one more time? I know it’s late and we still haven’t eaten dinner, but…”

“I totally want to walk through again!” she said excitedly.

So they did.

Afterwards, they picked up a pizza and went home to eat and celebrate. In Max’s mind, this was an almost perfect day. He’d been so freaked out about it taking so long to find a house, but now he was glad he’d waited.

Back at the house, he grabbed plates while Hailey got their drinks. “I wish we had some champagne to toast to your house!”

“Our house,” he carefully corrected.

“Our house,” she repeated. “Right. Either way, I wish we could toast with something other than iced tea and water.”

“It’s not a big deal. I’m just…I’m just so damn excited! I’ve owned a house before, but it was just a small bungalow. This house is…it’s bigger than anything I thought I’d buy, but it was just perfect.” They sat down and he served them each a slice. “Don’t you think?”

The conversation was one of pure happiness as they talked more about paint colors and furniture. Hailey’s laptop was still on the table, so they started researching what they wanted to buy, and he caught her hesitation more than once, but he basically did everything he could to put any of her fears to rest. It didn’t matter that he was buying most of the stuff; it was all going to be theirs. They each had stuff in storage, but Max already knew he would sell most of his so that everything in the house would be new for their fresh start.

They finished eating and cleaned up together, and he was surprised to see it was after ten. “Wow, we really lost track of the time, huh?” he teased.

Stretching, Hailey agreed. “We certainly did.” Then she yawned. “It’s been a long and exciting day, but I think I’m going to head up.”

“Oh. Okay.” This was where their nights typically ended. She went up to her guest room and at some point, Max would go up to his.

Separately and alone.

It had been bothering him, but considering everything that had transpired today, he knew he should be thankful for what he had and stop focusing on what he didn’t.

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