There are stairs adjacent to the dining room, but we pass those as he walks me into the living room. A huge, beautiful fireplace with more built-in shelves. His furniture in here looks to be the same from his old house, but it fits exceptionally well in this one. My eyes gravitate to the beautiful oil painting on the wall. The dark sky, bright stars, and the precise detail down to the long grass covering the wide-open field clogs my throat with emotion. It brings back memories of me and him that mean so much to me. Then, almost immediately, I notice the scribble of a signature in the bottom left-hand corner. Aston Walker.

Turning to face him, he’s watching me with nervous energy. “You had this painted?” I ask in a shaky voice.

With a nod, he says, “I did. I reached out to him a few months ago and had it shipped here.”

“I… I don’t know what to say. It’s beautiful, Stone. It looks exactly like the old field.”

He smirks. “Well, that’s the point.”

Despite tears stinging my eyes, a laugh bubbles out of me as I step up to him, wrapping my arms around his neck, and pulling him in for a kiss. I breathe him in, not putting an inch of space between us for a few beats. I’ve missed him more than I even realized. His presence calms me, makes me feel at ease. Finally, after we reluctantly pull apart, he shows me the kitchen. It’s open concept, with so much counter space, and a massive walk-in pantry.

I’m speechless. This is easily the prettiest house I’ve ever seen.

He sheepishly looks over at me with his intoxicating hazelnut eyes. “There’s something I want to show you upstairs.”

Something about that statement sends fire through my blood as I follow him up the stairs to whatever is waiting for us up there.

Chapter Forty-Five

Chapter Forty-Five

Stone Philips

Here goes nothing…

I’ve been meticulously planning—and quite frankly, obsessing—over this very moment for months. I don’t know how he’s going to take it, or what he’s going to say, but after his airport declaration, I feel slightly more confident it’ll go well.

When I decided to build this house, I had every intention of occupying it with Cash someday. It was a ballsy dream, considering we weren’t even together when I started the process. There are so many aspects of this house and the location that were decided with him in mind. When Cash first told me he was going to spend the summer in Europe, I was bummed, but it ended up working well in my favor, because I was able to ensure that every single detail I wanted this house to have, it would, without spoiling any of it for him.