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It had seemed that was never going to happen—until now. Victor had not only listened when I told him about my childhood and how important my family was to me, but he’d found a way to make them a part of the most important moment in my life so far. Coming out here to the lake flooded me with memories and made me feel happy and content, and now our proposal was a part of it.
This was so much more than I could have imagined. He wrapped his arms around my waist and cuddled me close while we watched the sun dip down beneath the edge of the water and suddenly it became even more.
"Come on," Victor said when the sun had fully set. "Let's go check out that cabin."
He took my hand, and we frolicked off to the cabin so I could show him around and tell him all about the time I'd spent here. I was stunned when we went inside and I found clothes, toiletries, and everything I would need for a few days of vacation there. I didn't need to even think about going back to Murdock or to a store to get anything. He'd thought of everything. All we needed to do was relax and enjoy making new lake memories together.
Part of me just wanted to burrow myself down in the cabin and stay there at the lake forever, but there was another part of me that was excited to get back to Murdock. There was something waiting there that I couldn't wait to show Victor.
After a few days of being blissful in our little love nest, hidden away from everyone and everything else, we packed up and called the car to take us back to Murdock. It brought us to his place, and Victor smiled as he walked around, noticing the tiny touches I'd added. I helped him unpack and do the laundry to wash all of our vacation clothes. When they came out of the dryer, I put mine away in the bedroom, smiling as I saw the beginning steps of our lives truly merging together.
When all of that was finished, I found him in the kitchen starting to make a pot of tea.
"Before you do that," I said, "there's something I want to show you."
He looked around curiously. "I thought you already showed me everything you did around here."
I shook my head, smiling as I took his hand and started gently tugging him out of the kitchen.
"It's not here. I have a surprise for you this time," I said.
One eyebrow lifted. "Oh, really?"
I nodded, and he let me take him out of the house and into my car. Brimming with excitement and doing everything I could not to blurt everything out so I could keep it a surprise, I drove us to the store. The shocked expression on his face was obvious even before we pulled all the way into the parking lot.
"It's changed a little bit since the last time you saw it," I said.
His mouth open, he nodded slowly a few times like he couldn't quite come up with the right words to say.
"You could definitely say that," he finally managed to get out. "How is this even possible?"
The crew had already gotten off for the day, so we drove right up to the building. We climbed out of the car and stood side by side overlooking the amazing progress. The last time he’d seen it, before he left to handle everything back in Baltimore, the store was still essentially rubble. Now the outer shell of the brand-new building was nearing completion.
"You chose a very good architect, and he has an amazing team," I said. "We started talking about plans for the building the day you left, and he hit the ground running just a couple of days later. This is what they've accomplished so far. Obviously, there are still a lot of things left to do. The inside still has to be finished. There are some electrical and plumbing things that need to be done. But it's more or less built. Just reading for the last touches and to get filled up and reopened."
Victor looked totally stunned at the progress, but also very happy with what he was seeing. He looked around, craning his neck a little to try to see more of it.
"Can we go inside?" he asked.
"Of course," I said. "It's ours."
He grinned at me, and I smiled back, taking his hand as it slid into mine and our fingers intertwined. As we walked toward the door, I pointed out some of the improvements being made to the outside of the building and the guest experience starting from the very moment they arrived.
I used the new key the crew gave me to open the building and usher Victor inside.
"It looks amazing in here," he said, gazing around as he walked slowly through the big open space.
"Well, there's still a lot that needs to get finished in here. There are some partitions that are going to go up, and the back rooms need to be closed off. Then we'll add in the freezers and refrigerators and all the shelving units and everything. But the floor is finished."
We looked down at the tile I'd chosen, and he chuckled.
"I think it is the absolutely perfect floor," he said, taking my hand and pulling me into his arms. "There's plenty of room for all kinds of things. Like dancing with my future wife."
That giant smile stretched across my face again. I knew then I was in for a lifetime of those smiles. There was no way I was ever going to get tired of being in Victor's arms and being called his future wife was just one more thing to put me over the moon.
We danced through the store for a little while, Victor humming as he held me close. I occasionally pointed out a new design or an idea, and he seemed to love all of them. I could see the excitement in his eyes and knew he was looking forward to the reopening just as much as I was.
But I wasn't finished yet.
