We took Shyne’s advice and looked at several older houses. Most of them needed a lot of work, and it would take more time than we wanted. Our goal was to be in the house before the babies came, so we didn’t have a lot of time for renovations.
“Are you sure you’re not just saying that because Raine lives two houses down?”
“That helps, but that’s not why I like this one. The upgrades are recent, and it looks like they put a lot of thought and money into them. It’s a ranch-style home, has five bedrooms, three full bathrooms, and the basement is finished.”
“True, but the bedrooms are small, and the yard needs a lot of work. We also need to pull this carpet up and get hardwood floors.”
“The primary bedroom is perfect, but the other rooms could be bigger. I’m not sure if this is our forever house.”
“It doesn’t have to be, baby. We can buy another house if or when we outgrow this one, . . . if this is the one you want.”
She walked around the kitchen, rubbing the granite countertops as she looked around. When she made it to the patiodoors, she wrapped her arms around herself and looked out the window.
“We’ll need to add a fence, but the yard is big enough for a shed and a playset.”
“I agree.”
“This feels like home, Breeze. I want this one. What about you?”
“I want what you want. Let’s go tell the realtor.”
An hour later, we were at Luxor, having a redo of date night, although it was mid-afternoon.We told the realtor our offer, and it was accepted almost immediately, so we were celebrating that as well.
After the server took our orders, Melodie began talking about the babies. We had an appointment in a few days to find out the gender, and she was excited about it.
“Do you want boys or girls?” she asked.
“I don’t have a preference. I’d be happy with either.”
“Yeah, me too. The idea of giving birth to and raising two babies at once is unreal. I still can’t believe we’re having twins.”
She looked down and put her hand on her stomach, which seemed to be getting bigger by the day. I couldn’t resist snapping a picture of her. She’d been beautiful since the day I met her, although back then I didn’t see her as anything more than Raine’s friend. Pregnancy had given her a glow that lit up every room she entered.
“I love you.”
My declaration caused her to look up and smile. “I know you love me. You show me in every way possible. I love you too.”
“We should probably talk about the wedding.”
“Oh God. So much has happened since we got engaged.”
I squinted my eyes and looked at her suspiciously. “Have you changed your mind or something?”
“What? Changed my mind? Stop talking crazy.”
“I’m just checking.”
“I have changed what I want for our wedding, though.”
“How so?”
“I don’t think I want anything big. Our family, friends, and a select group of our favorite clients would be perfect. Hell, we can even go to the courthouse and just have a reception.”
I shook my head. “Nah, we ain’t going to no fuckin’ courthouse, but I’m cool with everything else. Do you think we can pull something together before the babies come?”
“My mother has been waiting for me to let her loose. She can have something planned for next weekend if that’s what I want. Let’s decide on a date, and when I call her, she’ll have something to work with.”
The server returned with our meals, and we resumed our conversation between bites of our food after she left.
