Taking our bags, I go up the stairs that I didn’t notice before, and I spot the master bedroom that has a view of the lake. I dump the bags right next to the king-size bed and go back downstairs. She is cutting up fruit, so I help her by finding a cooler to carry everything in. We head down to the lake, the sound of the water hitting the rocks, and spot two Adirondack chairs on a dock. I wait for her to pick a seat and then sit next to her. I open the cooler, taking out a beer for me and one for her. “I can get used to this,” she says, taking a pull of her beer. “Would you be able to do this all year long?”

“Live up here?” I ask, taking a pull of the cold beer. “I mean, I’d love to vacation here, but I think I would need to be a little bit more in town.”

She nods, and for the rest of the afternoon, we make idle chitchat. Both of us are nervous about what tonight will bring. We head back up to the house when the sun goes down. “What were you thinking about eating for dinner?”

“We can throw a couple of steaks and potatoes on the grill,” I say. She takes the stuff out of the bag while I get the steak out.

She walks over to the wine rack and takes down a bottle. “Do you think Casey would mind if we opened a few bottles?”

I look over at her. “I don’t even think he knows what’s in that rack.” I laugh while she comes over, opening some of the drawers to search for a corkscrew. She pours herself some wine once she gets it open and takes a sip.

“This is really good,” she says. Walking over to the liquor rack, she comes back with a bottle of whiskey. I watch her while she pours some in a small glass and hands it to me. “Cheers.”

I wipe my hands and grab the glass. “Cheers.” I gently clink my glass to her, and we both take a sip.

“Okay, what can I do to help?” she says, walking next to me. “Do you want me to start on the salad?”

“Yeah,” I say, and she touches my hip when she walks by me. I watch her grab the things in my arms, and she puts them down right beside me.

“This is fun,” she says, taking another sip of wine and then looking at me. “Us preparing dinner together.”

I smile at her. “We’ve done this before.”

“Not while married.” She lifts her left hand, laughing and taking another sip of wine.

“No, not married.” I lift my own hand, wiggling my ring finger.