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The idea was thrilling, but also really scary. Would people really want to stay here? This had been my dream for as long as I could remember, but my last relationship created a little voice in the back of my head that was never kind to me, to say the least. And it was that little voice that started telling me it wasn't actually ever going to happen. That it was too hard. Too big of a dream. Too much for me to handle.
That voice had faded when I reclaimed my life and found Ryan in it again. But I was still so shocked this was really happening and that it was next to impossible to keep that voice from trying to find its way back.
I thought about everything I'd gone through already and got a sense of determination and calm. I didn't want anyone or anything holding me back anymore. I could do that. I had already done so much. Ryan and I had already done so much. And he was still standing beside me, believing in me. With that belief, I felt strong enough to tackle any challenge.
I dropped my shoulders with a resolute sigh. "All right. Let's do it."
Hanging on to the sense of determination and calm that had come over me, I went into the settings for the website. Before I could hesitate any longer and talk myself out of leaving it resolved, I opened up the functionality for people to book reservations.
Once it was done, I let out a resolute breath. "Now we wait."
"Now we wait," Ryan said.
I would have been perfectly content to just spend the rest of the day sitting there in the office watching the website to see if there was any activity. But Ryan wasn't having any of it. He reached down to take my hand and pulled me up to my feet.
"I know you're just going to sit here and stare at the computer, so I'm taking you on a field trip."
"Field trip?" I asked. I looked down at my clothes. "Is what I'm wearing okay?"
Ryan chuckled. “Don't worry. It's not all that far. We don’t even need the car.”
We walked through the house, and he brought me to the back door. He walked me through the backyard slowly, pointing out everything he had been working on. The lawn looked gorgeous, and I could already see people enjoying it as one of the best spaces the bed and breakfast had to offer.
We went deeper into the grounds and turned a corner. I gasped when I saw the gazebo. He had fully rebuilt it and painted it to make it look just like it did in the pictures of the original home. It looked even better than I ever could have imagined. I was so excited I couldn't help but jump up and down like a little girl.
“It just needs one more coat of paint before it's done, but I hope you like it,” he said.
I turned to Ryan and stared at him like I couldn't believe he was there. Because I really couldn't. I had never been able to imagine someone as wonderful as he was. Not in my life.
I threw my arms around him for a kiss, and he scooped me up in his arms, spinning me around.
“This is absolutely amazing,” I said. “It's exactly how I envisioned it. It's everything I wanted. Thank you so much.”
He grinned and leaned down for a kiss. “Of course. I'm so glad it makes you happy. But there are other things to show you, too.”
With how beautiful the gazebo turned out, I couldn't wait to see everything else he had tackled in the backyard. Holding hands, we strolled leisurely through the yard, looking at the other projects he had been working on.
"Is that my vegetable garden?” I asked in surprise when I noticed a plot set off at the side. It had been demarcated from everything else with split logs along the edges and was protected by a tall structure made out of chicken wire. That would stop the deer and other wildlife from getting inside and eating my tender vegetables.
"It will be,” Ryan said. “Once we get everything planted it and it grows for a season. But it's been tilled, and extra nutrients added to the soil to help it be more fertile for next year's harvest.”
I was so excited I was walking on air as he showed me a fire pit where we hoped to gather our guests for old-fashioned sing-alongs, making s'mores, and hot dog roasts.
“And you see that area over there?” he asked, gesturing toward the back corner of the primary square lot behind the building.
“Yes,” I said.
“I was thinking it might be fun to a grow a small hedge maze there. It doesn't have to be one of the big and super complicated ones. Even if we just created a traditional labyrinth. Once all the hedges grow, they'll make really nice paths for people to roam through and just think.”
