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Chapter Twenty-Seven
Jaime
Three months later
It’s funny how quickly the weather turns from warm and comfortable to brisk and cool. The mid-October air is chillier than normal, but that hasn’t stopped us from sitting on the deck of the new home Ryan and I purchased together. He insisted that both of our names be on everything from the mortgage to the utilities. We’re a team, he says repeatedly.
Tonight will be our first official night under our new roof. It didn’t take too long to find a house that we both agreed on, and our offer wasn’t countered by the Morgensons. Thirty days later, we were signing on the dotted lines (so many dotted lines), becoming homeowners for the first time.
We spent the last month fixing it up. Ryan put his master carpentry skills to work, designing and completing a beautiful new kitchen and bathrooms. The rest of the rooms in our two-story home just needed a little paint and TLC. We discovered beautiful hardwood floors beneath the brown shag carpet, and on his days off, my dad helped Ryan sand and refinish them. Josh has even been over here almost nightly to help in any way he can. They’ve become good friends through the whole home remodeling project.
The only thing this place is missing is a garage. Back up, it has a garage, but it’s a little one-car detached thing that you can barely manage to maneuver yourself around when the car is inside, it’s so tiny. But there’s enough yard space for a larger garage, so Ryan has ordered the lumber to erect a two and a half car garage with a workshop in back, plus a breezeway that’ll connect the garage to the side door.
The location is perfect for us, too. It’s closer to the edge of town, about two blocks off the Bay. It’s a double, corner lot with young families as neighbors. In fact, watching the three-year-old little boy throw a ball around in his backyard today has gotten my biological clock not only ticking, but thumping and bumping.
My entire family, as well as Mary and Mrs. Hanson, all helped pitch in to combine my belongings with Ryan’s household into our new home. We had sorted through most of the big things, tossing or donating what we didn’t want to keep, so the process of moving today was smooth and seamless.
To thank them all for their time and help, Ryan and I prepared burgers and brats on the grill, and picked up a few sides from the deli uptown. When the last box was unloaded and the final piece of furniture arranged, my grandma, Mary, and Mrs. Hanson set out to organize the kitchen and find what we needed for dinner. Dad and Ryan manned the grill, while Josh and my sisters brought around lawn chairs and the patio furniture, all with Grandpa supervising from the sidelines.
The sun set hours ago, but we’re still sitting on the small deck behind our house. Everyone but Mary and Mrs. Hanson are still here, huddled around the fire pit my dad gave us as a housewarming gift. Ryan stoked the fire warm and large, the yellow and orange glow lighting up a portion of the expansive backyard.
I’m huddled against Ryan, partly because I’m cold and the other part because it feels good to be snuggled up to him. He’s drinking a beer, but I stopped an hour ago. Exhaustion is starting to creep in, and I plan to be fully awake to enjoy our first official night together in our new house.
“Did you hear that Donny Casem and Shelisa Franklin broke up?” Meghan asks from her position atop Josh’s lap.
“Really? He was in your class, right, Payton?” AJ asks, sipping from her glass of wine.
“Yeah,” Payton replies nonchalantly.
“You should ask him out,” Lexi insists, her side empty since Chris had to work all day. Again.
“I don’t think so,” Payton mumbles.
“Why not?” Abby asks.
“Because he’s a goofball,” Grandma hollers from the opposite side of the fire. Grandpa chuckles and wraps his arm tightly around her slender shoulder.
“Truth,” I add.
“He’s not a goofball, Grandma. Why would you say that?” Abby asks.
“Any man who sits around playing video games all day long instead of working a job is a goofball. There are so many other more productive things he could be doing with his time like golf or having the sex.”
Collective groans erupt around us, but Ryan laughs. “I kinda like all the sex, too,” he whispers in my ear.
“Let’s not talk about sex right now, Grandma,” AJ pleads after guzzling the rest of her drink.
“Fine. I know! Why don’t we give Jaime and Ryan their housewarming gift?” Grandma turns to Grandpa with a big smile on her face. Without even being asked, Grandpa gets up, shuffles to the doorway, and retrieves a bag.
The bag isn’t too heavy, but makes a noise as it’s moved. Grandpa gently sets the bag in my lap before returning to his seat beside Grandma. Ryan’s brown eyes sparkle in the night as he nudges me to open it.
The first thing I pull out of the gift bag is a small crystal bottle with a clear liquid inside. There’s no markings or label indicating the contents. I glance over at Ryan as I hand him the bottle, then glance up at my grandparents with a questioning look.
“It’s something special just for you two. I picked it up at that herbal place by the Bay. Try it,” Grandma encourages with a smile.
“What is it?” I ask after Ryan pulls out the cork and takes a whiff, resulting in his nose wrinkling.
“Don’t do it,” Lexi mumbles, causing all of my sisters to giggle.
