I take her face in my hands and say, “This is love. We are made for each other. You deserve the world, and I want to be the one to give you everything for the rest of our lives.”
FORTY-FIVE
FAITH
We’ve fallen into a rhythm over the last few months, and waking up in Jude’s arms every morning is like a dream come true. His muscular arms cradle me as I stretch my body and groan. It’s morning already. The sun shines through the massive windows, illuminating the room with a brightness that’s nearly blinding. There are no curtains on the windows. They overlook Mirror Lake. It’s a spectacular view of the glistening water. The houses on the other side of the lake are nestled in between trees. I can’t wait to drink my coffee on the deck.
Jude reaches over to the nightstand and grabs the fireplace remote to turn it on. It’s not cold, but the mornings are still chilly. Watching the fire from bed is the best way to start the day.
“This is the life,” I say, tilting my head to see his handsome face, and I’m still in awe of my life.
While stroking my hair and rubbing my scalp, he says, “I want to wake up with you in my arms every day for the rest of my life.”
“Were you in my head? I was just thinking the same thing!” I giggle and kiss his chest.
Feeling content, I nestle myself further into his body and my fingers trace circles on his arms. They are one of my favoriteparts of his body. Then he drags his fingertips up and down my back, sending goosebumps all over my body and my back arches. I look up at him with a sly grin on his face. He knows what he does to me.
“Okay,” I say and point my finger at his chest.
He grabs my hand and intertwines his fingers with mine. “Okay,” he says, as he kisses the top of my head.
“Oh, yeah?”
“Yeah,” he says with love in his eyes and voice. “Let’s get some coffee. I want to show you something, but it’s downstairs.”
He’s being a little cryptic, but I’d love some coffee, which requires getting out of this warm bed and not being on top of Jude. He seems a little excited about whatever is downstairs. I slide out of bed, put my slippers and robe on, and Jude does the same.
My foot lands on the first step as I head to the kitchen, and the smell of coffee invades my nostrils. My feet lead me straight to the coffee pot. I take out two mugs from the cabinet and pour coffee. It’s like I’m in a fantasy of my own making—except it’s real life…my life.
Jude strolls in, and he comes up to me and presses a soft kiss on my lips. I hand him his coffee, already made to his liking.
“I love that you make me coffee every morning. It makes me feel special.” He reaches over with his free hand and encircles my waist to slide me closer to him. My back is against his as we sip our coffee.
“You’re easy to please,” I tease with a little elbow nudge to his stomach.
“No one except a barista has made me coffee in the morning.”
This man is special in every way. Compassionate, loving, and attentive, and I’m not letting him go again.
“I’m happy to make your coffee.”
“Let me make you breakfast, and I can show you something.”
“Can you show me before you make breakfast?”
He looks at me with an arched eyebrow. I’m not good at waiting for surprises. He stalks over to his laptop that sits on the island and opens it up. Curious, I take a few steps toward him. The laptop screen lights up, and he moves the mouse. After a few clicks, he turns the laptop toward me. What am I looking at? It’s a page with pictures of land, and at the top it saysWaterfront Property on Mirror Lake.
Confused, I look up at Jude and he has a huge smile on his face.
“I want to buy property on Mirror Lake and build our dream home.”
He’s talked about this, and with this rental, I knew it was something for the future, but now? I’m shocked. He saidour dream home.
Finally closing my mouth, I’m able to form a sentence. “You want to buy this?”
“Faith, living on Mirror Lake in a beautiful home with you is exactly what I want. I have been searching for a few months now, and nothing has come on the market until yesterday, when this property popped up on my search. What do you think?”
My fingers run along the white granite counter as I think. I’d love to have this countertop in our kitchen. Many features of this house appeal to me, and I would like them in our home as well.
