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James
“Which one do you like better?”
I held up two planks of wood for her to look at. I knew which one I liked better, but now that I was at the store with her, all I could think about was what would make her happy. I thought of that house as ours, no matter if we ever got to use it or not. My only goal was to finish this house for her. It would never be ours, but when it was finished, I would give it to her, and maybe it would bring her some happiness. She could come here and remember the time we spent together. Maybe she wouldn’t feel so lonely.
“Personally, I like this one,” she tapped on the medium wood color. I put the darker wood back. “But you should choose something you like.”
I leaned against the metal shelf and took her in. She was looking through a book of ideas. “I want to know what you like. I’m shit at decorating and picking out colors.”
Her lips pursed to the side as she closed her eyes. I could tell she was imagining the inside of the house right now. “You know that pop out in the kitchen?”
“Yeah.”
“I would put in a cream bench that sort of looks like a half octagon. That way you could have shelves in the corners of the bench. And I’d expand the windows, making it bigger for more light to come in.”
“What else?”
She opened her eyes and looked at me. “Where?”
I shrugged. “Anywhere. Start in the kitchen. What would the walls look like?”
She hesitated, but then looked at the shelving in front of us. “I would use wood planks on the walls. Vertical, not horizontal. This one,” she pointed to a very light colored wood. “Except on the wall leading into the breakfast nook. I would put in a light colored brick—no, cobblestone, and I would frame it with a wood the same color as the walls. And cream for the cabinets, something a little old-fashioned, but with a beach feel.”
I listened to her as she rattled off everything she’d put in the kitchen from the island down to the shelves and where she’d put them on the walls. I was fascinated. I could picture it all in my mind as she rattled off idea after idea. Everything about it was homey. There was nothing modern to the way she would decorate the inside, aside from the appliances. By the time she was done describing just the kitchen, I was already running a list of items needed in my head. I would have to go back to the house and do some measuring first, and after that, I would consult Shane. He would probably give me a more accurate estimate of everything he needed.
If I was going to get more ideas from her, I’d have to do it quickly. Time was running out on how long she’d stay here. And I wanted this to be perfect for her. After picking up food for Shane, I drove us back to the beach house and parked, getting out to help her out of the Jeep. I didn’t need a repeat of the other day.
“What can I do?”
“I have to see where I’m at with Shane.” I glanced down at her feet. “We forgot your shoes.”
She shrugged, not caring at all as we headed around the house. “I can pick some up. I’ll go wait down by the beach. Let me know when you’re ready to start.”
I watched her walk away, her hair blowing in the breeze as she made her way down to the water. I felt Shane walk up beside me and I handed him the food.
“You forgot her shoes.”
“Yep.”
“And you didn’t come back with anything.”
“I brought you food.”
“So, what exactly did you do?”
“I took her out to breakfast.”
He snorted. “I should have known you wouldn’t go to the store.”
I finally turned to him. “I went to the store.”
He crossed his arms over his chest, quirking an eyebrow at me. “You do realize that when you go to the store, you’re supposed to bring something back with you.”
“I know, asshole.”
He sighed, knowing I had something bigger planned. “What do you need from me?”
“She described what she would do with the house. I need you to plan it out for me. This is what you do. You know I’ll pay anything you ask.”
