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I wondered if it was designer. “Things and places don’t equal love. You get that from the people in your life.”
“I don’t know about that,” I said, suspecting she was alone despite her mention of friends in California. “Where are you staying tonight?” As much as I wanted her to remember the good things, I didn’t want her to be sad.
“I can make up one of the rooms here.
“I’ve aired out the rooms and cleaned, but they’re far from ready to have anyone sleep here. Why don’t you stay at my house?”
She smiled at me, her lips painted a hot pink, and I wondered what I was thinking asking my biggest temptation to stay with me.
Seven
Marley
Staying overnight at Heath’s cabin was a bad idea. A very bad idea. The last time we were together, I ran as fast as I could back home to my beach house, where I hoped the sound of the waves would drown out the longing of my heart.
My last visit proved that nothing had changed. I still wanted Heath Monroe. He might have moved on, but I was still that hopeful seventeen-year-old who would have given him everything if he asked for it.
Instead, he’d broken things off. He was altruistic, needing to honor his promises to my brother. None of it mattered when Aiden wasn’t here.
The rational part of my brain knew that I was being unreasonable. That Heath made the right decision.
It was easy for him to ask me to stay with him because he’d gotten over me a long time ago. I could be a mature adult and spend a platonic night with my high school sweetheart. This time, I wouldn’t be upset about my grandmother, and I wouldn’t be open to anything happening between us.
I could pretend he didn’t affect me. That I’d moved on. That I hadn’t left a piece of myself behind the last time I was here.
“If you’re sure?” I asked him, giving him an out in case it was an impulsive invitation that he was already regretting.
“It’ll give me a chance to show you what Talon’s working on. They won’t be set up until November, so this is the only way to view it for now.”
“I’d like that.” I’d always been entranced with the Monroe Christmas Tree Farm, where it was Christmas all year long. If I wanted to see a Christmas tree, I snuck over to their fields and breathed in the evergreen scent.
Heath carried that same scent. It was familiar and comforting all at the same time.
I needed a distraction because finalizing the estate had this finality to it that I couldn’t escape. Once I’d reviewed the papers and walked out of my grandmother’s attorney’s office, it was signaling to the universe that she was gone. She wasn’t coming back.
I’d never see Gram in this house again. I sucked in a shaky breath as I waited for Heath to pack up his tools and close the doors to prevent dust from traveling through the house.
I appreciated his thoughtfulness. I wasn’t sure if all contractors took the same care. But I had a feeling it was him.
“The Morrisons didn’t mind that I requested you?” I asked him as we headed down the stairs.
“Nolan told me to use this as an opportunity to test my team. To find out if this was feasible.”
“I can’t believe he didn’t mind.”
“He wants me to go out on my own. He believes that’s what I should have been doing all along.”
“That’s kind of amazing. Most bosses wouldn’t appreciate the competition.”
“Nolan has always believed in me, even when I didn’t.”
“Why wouldn’t you believe in yourself? You’ve always been a confident guy.” When we were younger, that confidence bordered on cockiness.
“When my father died, it threw me off my game. I wanted to be there for my family, and I wasn’t in the right headspace to start a business.”
“That makes sense.”
“I worked for a few other construction companies, acting as a subcontractor, so I could take whatever jobs fit into my schedule. The farm always came first, especially around the holiday season. I just recently started working for the Morrisons in a more official capacity.”
