Shaking my head, I pushed away my moment of freak-out. I knew what it felt like to want to get away from something, or someone, controlling you.
“Yes, it’s safe, and I don’t really know the full reason. All I know is, the Shaw family owns a ton of land. They have a cattle ranch and raise horses as well. Their son lived in this house and doesn’t want it anymore. All his brother Ty told me was that there were memories the owner wanted to leave behind. So they broke the house and a small parcel of land around it off from their main ranch, and they’re selling it for him. He didn’t even want to be involved in the process.”
Kaylee’s arms folded over her chest. “When was this house built?”
I gave her a wide smile. “That’s the best part. It was built in 1887.”
“Oh Lord. Your kryptonite.”
“Kaylee, the fireplace alone in the house was the selling point for me.”
“The fireplace?” she asked, a look of disbelief on her face.
“Yes!” I replied with a chuckle. “It’s begging to be brought back to its original state. I can picture it now: sitting in front of a roaring fire, a book in one hand and a cup of tea in the other. The kitchen is pretty big for the age of the house. And don’t even get me started on the wood trim throughout the place. Or the floors.”
“I’m gonna have to stay just to help you fix the place up,” she stated, staring out the window.
That was my best friend’s way of saying she wanted to stay but needed an excuse. Even though she knew I would be fine doing it all on my own, and she barely knew the difference between a hammer and a screwdriver.
“You know, I’m being serious about you moving here, Kaylee. It might be the perfect place for you to start over as well. A fresh start in a new city. New state.”
She nodded. “Yeah. Maybe.”
My chest squeezed as I reached over and took her hand in mine.
Two years ago, Kaylee’s fiancé had killed himself. The hardest part for her was that he’d only left a note that said he was sorry. That was it. She fell into a pit of depression and refused to leave her apartment for months. The thought of seeing someplace John had loved to go caused her to nearly hyperventilate.
She had come such a long way, with help from her grief counselor. She’d finally started talking about the idea of dating again about six months ago.
“Look!” I cried out when I saw the sign that said HAMILTON: 30 MILES.
“Great, but your GPS says we’re still sixty miles from the house.”
We both laughed as I pushed a little harder on the gas pedal. Kaylee wasn’t the only one ready to get out of the car.
As we pulled down the dirt driveway, I saw the little white two-story house come into view. I gasped and felt my stomach flip. The front porch caught my attention first. Immediately my mind went to adding soft blue shutters to the windows, a swing on the left side of the porch, and wicker furniture with a pop of color on the right. Plants could line the wide steps on both sides and fill the air with the aroma of lavender and roses.
I lifted my eyes and took in the second story of the house. Two high windows looked out over the front yard. Even from here, I could tell it was the original glass from the ripples reflecting the sunlight. The house had been well maintained. Right down to the new silver metal roof.
I wanted to let out a girlish scream, I was so excited.
“Oh my gosh, is that it?” Kaylee exclaimed.
My heart thundered in my chest at the sight of the house. “Yes! Isn’t it precious?”
Bouncing in her seat like she was about to get a buttload of candy, Kaylee clapped her hands. “Lincoln, it’s perfect! It looks like they kept it up real nice too.”
I nodded. “Yep! I cannot wait to get inside.”
As my car got closer, Kaylee and I both leaned forward a little to look at the guy leaning against a post on the porch.
“Who is that?” Kaylee asked.
Shrugging, I replied, “I guess that’s Ty Shaw.”
Her head snapped over to look at me. “Ty? The son who owns it?”
“No, his name is Brock. Ty is the brother who’s been pretty much the go-between with Brock and the title company.”
She motioned with her hand to stop talking. “Shut up! Do you not see how hot that guy is? Like, look at him. His chest is huge!”
I giggled. This was the first guy since John who’d had Kaylee excited. The first guy she’d really looked twice at and the first guy who was apparently making her drool. When I saw her wipe her mouth, I couldn’t help but laugh.