“I love the fireplace,” she said as if she read my thoughts earlier.
“Over here is my favorite spot,” I said, bringing her out onto the terrace. We stood against the railing, both of us looking out into the distance.
Jess closed her eyes and inhaled. “It smells like home.”
“Let’s check out the rest of the place,” I said.
We walked through the living room into the family room. The sizes of the rooms were a bit smaller than what I was used to, but I would trade that house any day for this one. We could have lived in a two bedroom shack, as long as we were on the ocean, I didn’t care. I’d never been a beach kind of guy, but with retirement came relaxation. And I loved spending time on the warm sand when I was on vacation. Now I couldn’t live without it.
We headed upstairs. The hallway split into two sides, one side leading to the master suite and the others to the other three bedrooms. Two of the bedrooms faced the street. It still had a fantastic view of the neighborhood. But the two rooms that were going to be mine and Gina’s faced the ocean.
I smiled, thinking of how amazing Gina’s life was going to be from here on out. She would have two parents and live in the most beautiful place.
Jess and I walked through all the rooms, leaving the master for last. We talked about what we were going to do with Gina’s room and the possibility of making one of the bedrooms into an office.
“You didn’t know there was a third floor?” I asked. I wanted this house to be the place where people from my life visited, not somewhere to squish everyone in. I wanted a proper home that could accommodate as many people as we wanted.
“No,” she said.
“It’s a smaller floor but perfect for an office for me. There’s another room up there as well for you to do what you want. Maybe a sewing room?”
Her eyes sparkled at the idea.
“I think of everything,” I said.
She chewed on her lower lip and took my hands in hers. “I want to see the bedroom.”
I walked into the room first, going to the balcony overlooking the ocean. “This view. You can’t beat it.”
I turned, but Jess wasn’t next to me. I walked inside, and she stood in the middle of the bedroom, but her eyes were locked on mine.
“Is everything okay? Do you like it? We can decorate it with whatever you want.”
“What I want to know is where the bed is going to be?”
I scanned the room. “Well, probably over here,” I said.
“Show me.”
Her voice was lower and her eyes danced. I cocked my head, not fully understanding what she wanted.
I stood at the spot where I thought the bed should go.
Jess slid her hands up my chest and clasped them behind my neck. “So, at night, we’d come in here and lie down together?”
“Yes,” I said, my breath hitching.
She lifted onto her toes and placed a kiss on my lips. Her tongue darted into my mouth, deepening the kiss.
“And then what?” she asked.
My hands fell to her waist. “How about I show you?”
Chapter Thirty-Four
Jess
I stared into the depths of Noah’s eyes, waiting for his reaction. Asking me to move in with him and Gina was a huge step. And I wanted nothing more than to show him how grateful I was for him to take the relationship further. It had been a whirlwind of emotions since we met, and I finally felt we were on the right path. If Noah wanted this place to be the location of his next home, I wanted to christen it properly.