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“Psh, do you know how expensive nursing homes are? I’d never.” Rosie runs over to me, and I pick her up, scratching her behind her ear. “Your dog is a hostage. Better follow us.”
Cooper nods at him. “We have something to show you.”
Pops follows us out to my car. Once we’re all inside, I hand him Rosie and pull out of the driveway. Curious eyes keep meeting mine in the rearview mirror and I can’t wipe the smile off my face. He deserves this so much.
“Maren,” he mumbles, when we pull onto our old street, his voice full of suspicion. “What did you do?”
His eyes stay focused on his house as I park on the street at the curb. He gets out of the car and stands just outside the gate.
“I’m tossing you out of my trailer,” I announce, holding out the set of keys to him. “Go home, old man.”
His eyes bulge, and he looks back and forth between me and Cooper. “You bought the house?”
“We did,” Cooper says. “But not for us.” He hands the deed and paperwork over to him.
I take his hand. “It’s yours, Pops. It always was.”
Tears fill his eyes, and he rubs a palm over his face. “I’m going to put a foot in each of your asses,” he says, gruffly, then grabs me in a hug. “I can’t believe you did this.”
Corbin comes down the front walkway. “It’s about damn time. We’ve been waiting for a month of Sundays. Come on.”
“You’re supposed to be at your grandkid’s.”
“I lied, Ronnie, try to keep up.”
Cooper and I glance at each other, chuckling as they start up the walkway and onto the porch. I was thrilled to see that nothing had changed when we first went in. No change in the flooring or paint colors. When Pops moved in with me, we got rid of a lot of stuff, but the furniture and things that Pops had for years were put in storage. Over the last few days, everything has been put back and arranged how he kept it.
Pop’s reaction is everything. Still fighting tears, he wanders through every room, touching his things and shaking his head in disbelief. When he and Corbin head upstairs to continue the tour, I pull Cooper’s mom, Hillary, aside.
“Thank you so much for everything you’ve done. I never could’ve done this without him finding out.”
She wraps me in a warm hug. “I was happy to. This is a beautiful house. You can feel the love in it. It must’ve been a wonderful place to grow up.”
“It was. I can’t wait to visit and see where Cooper grew up. Was he a handful as a kid?”
“He’s always been sweet, but he got into lots of mischief. Always had to be doing something. Sitting still wasn’t in his nature.”
“It still isn’t,” I point out as Cooper studies one of the doorways.
“This woodwork is a little loose. I should probably?—”
“Nope, we have a meeting to get to soon, remember?” I remind him, pulling him away. We take a few minutes to talk with Hillary, until Pops and Corbin come back downstairs.
Pops thanks me and Cooper, shaking Cooper’s hand. “Remind me to tell you later how I accidentally outbid Maren and almost ruined everything. You’ll get a kick out of it.”
Pops chuckles then walks me away from the others and lowers his voice a bit. “How would you feel if I asked Corbin to move in with me?”
“This is your house. You can move the whole crew of golden guys in if you want.”
“Lord no,” he laughs, scrubbing his hand across his face again.
“I’m happy for you. Cooper and I are looking for a house now. Something with a little land but close enough to keep an eye on Happy Haven.”
That’s our plan. To live nearby but hire some staff to cut our duties and hours so we can take trips and do the things we want to do as well. I was surprised by how much we agreed on when we discussed what was important to us. Neither of us has an urge to live in a lavish fashion.
Love, stability, and the freedom to enjoy my time, that’s my dream come true. We’re programmed to want nice houses full of stuff, new cars and nice clothes, but when it comes down to it, I don’t think it’s what makes most people happy. Solid friendships, healthy relationships, new experiences. That’s where happiness lies. At least for me.
“You chose a good one, honey,” Pops tells me.
