“And you realized the dream was a nightmare.”
I looked at him, startled. “Well, no. I mean… it’s still a dream. But it’s gonna require a lot more work than I initially thought.” I huffed out a laugh. “Like, alot.”
“So, why not leave? Why not let the house sit here for a couple more centuries and go back to your old life?”
I frowned. “Just… give up? Wouldyoudo that?”
“Well, no, but…” He hesitated, then blew out a breath. “No. I wouldn’t.”
“Of course not. The house is mine now. Mine to take care of. Mine to complain about and sweat over and possibly fall off the roof of?—”
“Not funny,” he said gruffly. “It willneverbe funny.”
I smiled softly. We’d have to agree to disagree about that, because when the mortification wore off—assuming it ever wore off—I was going to spend long private minutes remembering the feeling of his hands on me out in the snow.
“Anyway, I try to stay positive?—”
He snorted. “Of course you do.”
“—and focus on all I’ve accomplished so far. Like the back porch stairs, and?—”
“And the barn for your sheep.”
“Exactly. Those sheep livewell,” I told him proudly. “Though I still have some work to do on the supposedly enclosed pastures. My sheep see them as a personal challenge to hurdle.”
Webb chuckled and gave me another friendly shoulder bump.
I was suddenly very aware that I was shirtless, and he was not, and he was really,reallywarm. I wanted to move much closer… which was why I scooted away and stuffed my mouth with more ice cream.
“And I’ll get the rest of the repairs sorted, too. It’d definitely be easier to take care of things if I could get a loan, but when they said the place is mine ‘in perpetuity,’ they weren’t kidding. I can’t mortgage or sell off any of it to raise funds since I don’t have a clear title on the place. And, according to my lawyer?—”
“Him.” It was pretty clear what Webb’s opinion of Stephen Fox was.
I snickered. “Yeah, him. He said it’d take months. And if he’s talking about land surveys or whatever, it’s gonna take even longer because I’m a man living on a teacher’s salary with three hungry Romeldales to support… and a premium ice cream habit.” I shook my empty carton at him.
“You might end up with more land after the surveys are done, though.”
I cocked my head. “Seriously, what part of this story suggests that I want more land, Webb? Besides, I told you I’d happily give you?—”
“Yeah, I know.” He cleared his throat. “I believe you.”
“Good.” It was pathetic how good those words made me feel.
“But you can’t keep trying to do the work yourself. It’s fucking stupid. You’re gonna get hurt, and?—”
“I can handle it.” I lifted my chin. “I’m looking into getting a personal loan. I haven’t given up. Pippin Hollow Credit Union said I haven’t lived here long enough to become a member, which sucks, and the other places I tried want me to put up collateral, but I don’t have any except the land, which I can’t use because?—”
“Because you can’t get a clear title, and round and round it goes.”
“Yeah. It’s complicated.”
“Which is why you need a friend to help you ‘uncomplicate’ it?” He lifted an eyebrow.
I laughed. “No. This is no one’s problem but mine, and I’ll uncomplicate it myself. But it is sometimes frustrating. Which is why last night I needed to blow off some steam.”
“And ended up blowing the Handfast Bugle instead.”
“If only your townspeople called it that,” I sighed. “You would have avoided it like the plague, Mr. Allergic to Relationships, and saved us all this trouble.”
