Page 46 of Just Breathe

“I’m glad I could help. Maybe you need to learn Spanish,” I teased him.

“I keep telling myself to buy one of those language systems, but I feel like I’m already overwhelmed with shit.” He took a bite out of his protein bar.

“Damn, were you guys going to let me know a snack was here?” Nathan walked into the kitchen winking at me, making me think the snack he was talking about was me.

I blushed, not used to this flirty side of quiet and reserved Nathan. I gave him a tea and a protein bar. “She needed to translate for me, since Javier didn’t show up.” Aiden looked back at the plans on the floor.

“That’s great. Aiden was trying to get the google translate on his phone, but Aiden and technology aren’t that great either.” Nathan chuckled, sipping his tea.

“No, thanks to you,” Aiden shot back.

“Hey, I was already working on the solar panels,” Nathan retorted.

“They came in!” I got excited because the ones I had ordered sounded so cool. “Can I see them?”

“Yeah, let me finish this and I can take you out back and show them to you.” Nathan took a bite of his protein bar.

“We also finished the master bathroom and one of the guest bathrooms.” Aiden looked up at me. “I want to show you those as well.”

“Wow! That’s amazing. How much longer do you think until the house is ready for me to get furniture moved in?” I had already started looking at furniture and picked a few things out.

“We will have all the rooms finished by next week. I’m shooting for all the utilities to be installed by the following week with the kitchen and the half bath.” He looked around like he was doing calculations. “So, I’m hoping we can have everything complete by next month.”

“Wow!” I did not expect him to say that. “So I can start decorating the rooms by next week?”

“Sure.” He nodded at me.

“Would I be able to live here when I come back after my brother's wedding next week?” I knew it might not happen but paying for the condo rental was getting expensive and I would love to pocket some of that money from my nursing job.

“If I can get the utilities working, then yes.” He looked a little unsure.

I squealed and jumped to hug him. He caught me effortlessly and chuckled.

“So, should we see the rest of the house? I need some approvals if we are going to finish in time.” Aiden let me go but left a hand lingering on the small of my back.

“Hell yeah, let’s do this.” I smiled at him, feeling like my world was finally putting itself together little by little and I could see myself living here full time.

* * *

I woke up on Sunday feeling good. I rolled over to check my phone, seeing nothing but news. It was just past noon, and I was excited to check out the Pint Festival. I got up to get ready, already thinking about the decor of the new house.

I spent the last two days looking at furniture online, catalogues, and I even went to Monroe to see some stores. I was excited to be decorating, even more excited because I didn’t have to compromise on my style. Work was thankfully easy on Friday. Michelle kept checking in on me, but the craziest thing we had was a couple were hiking and both had fallen. I even had time to look at furniture during my break.

I got ready quickly, eating some left-over dinner I’d gotten at a local restaurant last night. Food was a good idea before drinking early. I looked at myself in the full-length mirror, just realizing I hadn’t been drinking as much as I used to. I felt a whole lot better without being hungover so much and bloated.

I left the house in jeans and a tank top, bringing a sweater with me in case it got cold later. The festival was just down the main road, about a ten-minute walk away from me. It would be easier to come home walking instead of driving if I drank too much.

The weather was beautiful, as always. When I left the condo, my phone said it was seventy-two degrees. I knew once August rolled in, the cooler weather would start coming in and get ready for winter. I loved winter, but I swear no one else did or no one else that I knew.

I walked up to the festival, seeing it was larger than I expected, and I could hear AC/DC playing “Shook me all night long”. I bobbed my head to the rhythm as I walked up to buy my ticket. They checked my ID, gave me a bracelet and my free beer coupon. I walked into the festival to Aerosmith’s “Walk this way”.

I wondered if the guys came and relax for once. I hadn’t seen them since Thursday, but they all had texted checking in on me with in the last two days. They even asked if I wanted to hang out on Saturday, but I still felt slightly guilty about my breakdown, so I told them I was exhausted from work.

There were a ton of booths that I assumed were beers made in Colorado and I was not expecting to see signs like Shiner, Sam Adams, and Corona. I made a quick walk around and to see what else was here. I saw the coffee shop’s booth as I walked around and figured I would go say hi to Darcy.

They had a small line of people grabbing some snacks, coffee, and tea. I don’t know why, but I was super proud of them. I was already invested in this small coffee shop, but I swear Mary was a brilliant baker.

“Jane, you made it!” Darcy squealed, leaning over the counter and hugging me. She caught me off guard, but I enjoyed her enthusiasm. “Mary, this is the girl I was telling you about.”

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