“I can’t believe you did this.” Her hand trembled a little as she reached out to touch a new window with deep moldings above and below. “It’s so much different in here than in the rest of the house.”

Gage’s home was a modern take on Western design, with natural stone and timber elements in a relentlessly masculine style. Here, the aesthetic was more formal and traditional, with architectural salvage pieces to give the place an older feel.

She glanced back at him, taking in his tuxedo shirt. His jacket was missing, and his bow tie remained undone, as if he’d dressed partway for the event and then reconsidered. He moved deeper into the room, his dress shoes lightly tapping the hardwood.

“I wanted it to look like a New York fashion house. Or a Paris artist’s garret. Something that would transport and inspire you to create.” He jammed his hands in his pockets, looking thoughtful. “I hired an interior decorator who’s a real fan of your blog. But he said we needed to consult you on the design before I did anything else since the style should reflect you.”

“You know me well, though. I couldn’t have described what I wanted any more perfectly than what you’ve done here.” She pointed to the inspiration board, where all the ideas were laid out with a range of design options for each.

“These are all your ideas, Elena,” he said cryptically, his dark eyes moving over the poster. “Six years ago, on that trip up the Pacific Coast Highway, I asked you to tell me what your dream office looked like.” He withdrew a hand from his pocket to gesture toward the style specs. “This is what you described.”

He couldn’t have surprised her more. Turning to face him, she tried to remember that talk. They’d shared so much about their dreams. The future they both wanted. They just hadn’t revealed much about their pasts.

“You kept all of those notes from that conversation?” she marveled.

“I made some notes that night in the hotel and tucked them in a file for one day down the road.” His lips curved at one corner. “Believe me, at the time, I didn’t think there’d be a six-year delay before I consulted them again.”

And yet, he’d kept them.

Her heart melted into a puddle of love for him, and she wondered how she’d ever recover from loving him so much.

Then again, what did it matter if he didn’t say the words that she wanted to hear when she had the proof of his feelings in front of her? All around her?

“I can’t believe you did all of this in such a short amount of time.” She blinked rapidly, daring to look at Gage with new eyes.

With hope.

Wasn’t her time with Gage better than any other period in her life?