Page 39 of Sorry Season

She didn’t understand his enigmatic smile making his eyes crinkle into those adorable lines she’d kissed last night as the Ute crested the drive and the land plateaued to reveal a house.

Not just any house.

The most exquisite house she’d ever seen.

A house she knew intimately.

A house she’d envisioned so clearly many years before.

“I can’t believe it,” she breathed out on a sigh, gobsmacked by what she could see, her head computing it, her heart aching with the poignancy of what this meant.

Perched on an outcrop, her dream house—the one she’d imagined them living in one day and told him about when they’d first married—saluted the cloudless sky with its sharp triangular lines, classic two-storey design, and enough glass to compete with the Louvre.

Pale blues, dove greys, and pristine whites highlighted the light, breezy feel of it, instantly bringing to mind images of soft spring days, fluffy white clouds, and a man with incredible grey eyes.

He’d brought her to an exact replica of the house she’d wanted for the two of them.

“You built this?”

He nodded, pride tinged with a hint of bashful. “With a little help from the odd plumber, electrician, and carpenter or two. So, you like it, huh?”

“Like it? I love it.”

She opened the door and jumped down, landing with both feet squarely in a mound of muddy clay, grimacing as her new tan leather ankle boots sank into the mess.

“Guess I should’ve warned you that city shoes and country living don’t mix,” he said, the crinkles around his eyes a dead giveaway he was fighting a grin.

Sending him a mock glare, she picked one foot up at a time, the horrible slurping sound making her see the funny side, and with great alacrity she shook each foot off and headed for the house.

“Don’t forget I’m a country girl at heart. Are you coming?” she tossed over her shoulder, a flush of pleasure spreading through her when she caught him ogling her butt, her two hundred dollar boots forgotten.

“Yeah.” He fell into step beside her, taking hold of her hand and swinging it between them. “Want to take a look inside?”

“Will the owner mind?”

They stopped at the front door, an elaborate double door with frosted glass so she couldn’t see inside no matter how hard she tried.

“Why don’t you ask him?”

Realization dawned as he squeezed her hand, a tiny thrill of anticipation racing through her.

“This is yours?”

“Ours.” Pulling her flush against him, he slid his arms around her waist, anchoring her nice and tight. “I started building this the moment I located you. I wanted to prove how much you mean to me, how much I believe in our future together.”

Camryn’s heart thudded as tears filled her eyes and brimmed over. “So you did remember?”

“That this is your dream house for us? Yeah, I remember. How could I forget?” He brushed her tears away with his thumbs, following their trail with his lips. “How could I forget anything about you when you’re the only woman in the world for me? Always have been, always will be.”

“Stop.” She sobbed, burying her face in his chest, her heart overflowing with so much love for this incredible man she thought it would burst.

He pulled away, his slow, sensual kiss reaching all the way down to her soul. “Stop loving you? Never.”

“I love you too,” she said, sniffling and laughing and crying all at the same time, her lingering doubts fading under the intensity of his love and the lengths he’d gone to prove it.

With the triumphant grin of a guy who’d won the lottery, he slipped an arm around her waist, drew her close, and gestured at the soaring glass enclosed atrium entrance.

“Come on. Why don’t I show you around our place?”

---