“Outside,” she says, pointing out the window to a small outbuilding on the side of the house. “They updated the house with plumbing and electricity over the years, but never brought the kitchen to the main house.”
We go upstairs, careful to avoid weak points in the tread. It’s not as disheveled as the downstairs, probably because trespassers over the years were afraid they’d fall through the boards. I’m surprised by how many elements are unchanged despite the passage of over a hundred years. The original tile and ironwork on the fireplaces are in excellent condition, and I recognize a stamp from a foundry that operated in Birmingham around the turn of the century.
We stop in one of the front bedrooms and I catch Micah looking out the window across the lawn. The moonlight catches her face and makes her skin glow like an angel. She looks like she belongs in this space, her old soul in a home that has witnessed more than a century of life. It just seems right.
“I always wished I could live here,” she says, turning to me. “I’d have each room decorated in a different color and throw fabulous parties.”
I imagine myself in that life with her. I couldn’t ask for a better future for myself, or for us.
“It’s a wonderful dream,” I say. “Thank you for bringing me here. It’s magical.”
“You’re welcome,” she says. “I wish we could go up to the top. You can see all the way down the river from there, but last time I was here there were too many broken stairs.”
“Who owns this place?”
“No clue. It’s been abandoned since before I was born.”
“That’s a shame.”
She looks heartbroken. “It really is. Places like this should be filled with love.”
I put an arm around her. She leans into me and puts her head against my cheek for a moment before walking back downstairs. I follow her, careful to only step in spots where her feet have been.
Once we get downstairs, she turns in the foyer and takes one last look around, but my eyes are glued to her. I step towards her, putting down my lantern and taking hers to rest it beside mine. I cup her face in my hands. Her big green eyes look up at me with a nervous intensity, and when our lips meet, I swear our feet come off the ground.
MICAH
My skin is on fire.
As soon as Rhodes’ lips touch mine, my entire being reacts. Time stops as we stand in the foyer of the old dilapidated house. His arms envelop my body and my heart is beating so hard I struggle to catch my breath. I never want this moment to end.
When he finally pulls away and looks at me, I lose it. I’m so completely overwhelmed with everything going on with Nana, with him, and with trying to figure out how to break things off with Garrett that the entire storm of emotions I’ve been trying to hold back all day bursts forth through my eyes.
Rhodes stands there and holds me, letting me lean all my weight onto him as I cry. I feel safe in his arms, and small, like he’s shouldering the weight I’ve been carrying for what feels like an age.
I can’t believe this is my life. I cannot believe a man like Rhodes is here, with me, in this house that has always been a refuge with the people I love. Despite Nana’s illness and my world being tilted on its axis, I’m so happy to share this with him. So happy to finally feel safe and secure with a man. It’s unreal. I’ve never had this.
He kisses me again, taking my face in his hands. Then he presses his lips to my forehead, my cheeks, the tip of my nose. I close my eyes and let the waves of desire pulse through me as I cling to him.
He steps back, looking at me through the shadows cast by our lanterns, which are both beginning to dimly flicker.
“We should go,” he says. “Though I could stay here forever.”
“Same,” I say. Part of me wants to grab him and continue kissing him until the sun comes up, but if I let this go any further, I’m going to end up taking all my clothes off here and now. And while I love this house, it is filthy and I am not up to date on my tetanus shots.
We pick up our lanterns and make our way back outside. Bats circle overhead, flying out of the broken windows of the belvedere and into the night sky. Rhodes has his hand on the small of my back, his head down as we navigate the weeds.
We climb back over the fence and he has an easier go of it this time. Once we’re back in the car, he leans over and kisses me again. It’s all I can do not to pull my pants off and drag him into the back seat.
We’re quiet on the drive home, but he reaches over the console and holds my hand. It’s nice. No one has ever done that with me before.
When we get home, he walks me to the door.
“Do you want to come in?” I ask. I don’t know if it’s a good idea, but my body is screaming for him.
He sighs, running his hands through his hair, and bites his bottom lip.
“I want to,” he said. “But I also want to make sure you’re in the right headspace before we go any further. I know what’ll happen if I go in. The last twenty-four hours has been a lot for you, and I don’t want to take advantage of you when you’re vulnerable.”
