Page 40 of Home Town Advantage
I shake my head. “The answer is wood burning. No self-respecting cowboy has a gas fireplace. Stop asking. My answer will never change. I don’t care what it means for the chimneys. I don’t care that it will cost me extra money. Wood fucking burning only.”
He chuckles. “Fine. Can’t blame a guy for asking. I’ll make it work.”
I nod as I point to the beautiful woman next to me. “This is my friend, Sulley.”
Collin’s grin widens. “Sulley O’Shea. The new sweetheart of Philly. I know who she is. I’m close with the Daultons. Carter and I have been friends since we were little kids. Reagan is my baby mama’s cousin.” He moves to shake Sulley’s hand. “I’m Collin Fitz.”
She shakes his hand. “Nice to meet you, though I’m not sure why I’m here.”
I motion my head toward the architectural prints he has scattered across the office desk. “Can you give Sulley and me a minute with these? Alone.”
Collin nods. “Sure thing, bud.” He commands the three other workers to leave, and he follows close behind them, shutting the trailer door as he goes.
Sulley turns to me with a confused look on her face. Folding her arms across her body, she asks, “Why do we need to be alone? Why did you bring me here, Vance?”
I point toward the drawings. “Have a look. Please.”
She walks over and begins studying them carefully. I see the moment it hits her. Her hand covers her mouth, and tears immediately fill her eyes. She whispers, “It’s his design.”
I pull out my wallet and remove the folded napkin I’ve carried in there for fifteen years. It’s the one with Finn’s initial sketch of my dream house. The one we planned on him designing for me. Like every sketch he drew, it’s signedFinn’s Fantastic Designs.
When the military sent home his belongings, they included preliminary architectural drawings for my house. He must have worked on them during his downtime. They weren’t detailed yet, but they were more than halfway done. Either he didn’t have time to finish them or he was waiting to learn how to do so in school. Either way, it was the best thing I’ve ever received in my life. A final gift from the grave.
Before the madness surrounding Maddie ensued, Finn’s mother sent me the drawings, knowing I’d want them. I’ve been waiting for the right architect to bring his vision to life. I must have sent the drawings to fifty different companies before one small shop truly understood what I wanted. It took a few years of me arguing with them back and forth, but they finally became perfect and exactly what I know Finn imagined. And once I met Collin and saw his enthusiasm and skill, I knew he was the right one to build it. I had already purchased the land, which also took me time to find, but when I found this previously wooded plot, I knew I was home.
“I always promised I’d be his first client.”
Tears now freefall from her eyes. It’s quiet for several minutes as she takes in this moment. At some point, her pained, glassy blue eyes look up at me. “Why, Vance? Why didyou do it? Why Maddie? You can have anyone you want.Anyone. You knew he loved her.”
I pull my eyes from hers as I shake my head. “We’re not here to talk about that. I can’t change the past. Leave it in the past where it belongs.”
“But you can explain it to me. Until the day I die, I’ll never understand it.”
I’m quiet. I have no words for her. None that I’m willing to give her right now.
She eventually turns her attention back to the drawings and quietly runs her fingers over the designs as if she’s touching a part of him. I feel the same when I see them. I can only imagine what it will feel like when the house is done.
She studies every aspect of them carefully, as if committing it all to memory. It truly is special in so many ways. He would have taken the architecture world by storm. I know it.
It’s not the modern monstrosity I live in now. I fucking hate my condo and all that it represents. My new house, Finn’s design, is an homage to our roots. At its core, it’s a cabin. It might be an eight-thousand-square-foot cabin that will look like it belongs in a luxury mountain magazine, but it’s a cabin, a ranch, and it’s exactly what I want. Finn knew. You can take a cowboy off the ranch, but even in a big city, he’s still a cowboy and wants to live like one.
I point to some of the open land out the window. “When I retire, I want to build a stable and get horses. It’s too hard with my travel schedule now, but in a few years, that’s what I want.”
She gives me a small smile. “You always loved to ride.”
“So did you.”
The O’Sheas didn’t have horses of their own. I think it was a combination of finances and the fact that Finn was highly allergic to them. I took Sulley out on our ranch several times. She loved it.
She cracks a small smile. “Is Hail Mary still alive?”
She was Sulley’s favorite horse.
I shake my head. “No, she’s gone. Her daughter, Snap Count, is still alive though. You should ride her next time you’re home. She handles like Hail Mary.”
Sulley presses her lips together, remaining silent at the offer.
I hold up the bag in my hand. “I have a few of Finn’s things. Will you help me put them in the foundation? I want to feel his presence in this house when it’s done.”
