Page 41 of Falling for Love

Liam’s house was tucked back from the road. Towering evergreens lined the drive to a grand and modern cabin. Sleek lines and enormous windows reflected the surrounding woods like a mirror. The cedar siding and dark trim blended perfectly into the landscape, giving it a polished yet rustic charm.

“Wow,” I whispered, pulling into the gravel driveway. “This is… not what I expected.”

Apparently, owning the Honey Leaf Lodge with his family had done good things for him.

I parked, climbed out of my truck, and sighed nervously.

A part of me wondered if I should’ve called first, but then I remembered his text about being flat on his back. I grabbed the box and balanced it in my arms as I approached the front door.

The porch was wide and inviting. Two Adirondack chairs and a stack of firewood were neatly piled against the wall.

I knocked gently and waited.

After a few moments, I heard slow, shuffling footsteps, and then the door opened to the hottest, sickest guy I’d ever seen.

Wait.

Wrong.

I should not be worried about how incredible he looks when he’s sicker than a dog.

But he really did look amazing.

Liam stood there, his hair sticking up in every direction, a blue plaid blanket wrapped around his shoulders like a superhero cape. His eyes were bleary, but his expression was between surprise and amusement.

“Evie?” His voice was rough, but there was a spark of life in it.

I held up the box with a grin. “Delivery for the king of Germlandia.”

He blinked, then chuckled weakly. “You brought reinforcements?”

“I come bearing soup, cookies, and bad literature,” I said, stepping past him into the warmth of the house.

Liam closed the door behind me, shaking his head.

“You didn’t have to do all this.”

“I know,” I said, smiling. “But I wanted to. Plus, you were basically begging for help in your text. ‘Climbing Mount Everest’? Really?”

I glanced around his home and was taken aback. It made my little home feel very…little.

A large skylight above us in the foyer sprinkled lights across the room where a modern wood rocking chair had been placed by a table.

“Beautiful home.”

“It’s been a labor of love.” He grinned and glanced around. “It was basically a teardown when I bought it. Less than five hundred square feet.”

My eyes widened. “No way.”

“Yup.”

“How long has it taken?” I asked, glancing at the family photos he had mounted on the wall. I recognized Violet, Beck, Fifi, and his parents standing in front of their lodge.

“About ten years.”

“Seriously?”

“I’m a one-man show. I’ve built one room at a time.”

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