“And you’ve brought hope into mine,” Daniella replied, her voice barely above a whisper.
She stepped closer, closing the space between them. “I want you to know that I’ll always cherish this feeling between us.”
Harrison’s gaze dropped to her lips for a fleeting second before he met her eyes again. He reached out, his hand gently brushing a stray lock of hair behind her ear. “You’ve given me a reason to look forward, to see beyond the grief I felt. For that, I’m more grateful than you could possibly know.” Then, as if drawn by an unseen magnet, Harrison leaned down, his lips meeting Daniella’s in a sweet, tentative kiss.
Daniella wrapped her arms around him and held him close. She didn’t know what the future held, but at least they cared about each other. And that was a wonderful place to start.
CHAPTER15
Two weeks later, Daniella parked her car outside Jackie and Aidan’s house. They were remodeling a 1950s, two-story home, and she couldn’t wait to see what they’d done.
Aidan had bought the property a few weeks before he’d asked Jackie to marry him. Surrounded by ten acres of land, it gave them the best of both worlds—the semi-rural lifestyle Aidan wanted, but close enough to town for both of them to get to work easily.
Daniella stepped out of her truck and lifted her face to the sun. She loved the summer months, especially days like this when the heat from the sunshine melted your troubles away. She smiled when she heard the deep moo of some cows and the crow of a rooster.
Living here would be a lot different from waking up to her neighbor’s barking dog.
Jackie greeted her at the front door with a wide smile and a dust-covered hug. “I’m glad you could come and have a look at what we’re doing. Ignore the mess; it’s all a part of the process.”
Daniella was glad she’d worn her old sneakers as she carefully stepped through the maze of tools and construction materials. “I can’t believe this is the same house I saw after your engagement party.”
“I know,” Jackie said excitedly. “So much has happened. Each time I come home from the store, something’s been replaced or moved.”
As they walked through each room, Daniella admired the new layout and the fusion of modern and rustic décor. Each detail had been carefully thought through and looked incredible. “When will everything be finished?”
“We should have a fully functioning house by the beginning of September, but we’ll see. Penny and her sisters warned me that remodeling a house can take a lot longer than you think.”
Daniella looked around what would be a stunning kitchen. At the moment, the most you could say about the room was that the view through the windows was gorgeous. “I have complete confidence in you and your construction crew.”
Jackie took two stackable chairs from the kitchen and carried them outside. “Aidan can’t wait for the house to be finished. For a while, he was living in this construction site and then driving to another one at work. He was tired of hearing nail guns and circular saws all day.”
Aidan worked for BioTech Industries, the company that had built The Horseshoe Adventure Camp for children who wore prosthetics. They were in the process of remodeling a building in Sapphire Bay into a state-of-the-art research and development facility. It was a project everyone in the community was excited about—especially when half the staff from the Manhattan office were moving to Sapphire Bay.
Jackie hurried inside and came back carrying two cans of drink. “I haven’t seen you all week. How’s The Fairy Forest?”
“Busy,” Daniella replied. “Couples are already booking weddings for eighteen months’ time and I’m having to turn people away who want to celebrate their birthday with us. It’s crazy.”
“Crazy in an awesome way. The bank must be happy with how successful you are.”
“Very happy.” Daniella opened the can of lemonade and took a sip. “This is amazing. It’s so cold.”
“You can thank our builder for that. We had an issue with the electricity yesterday, but he found someone who could fix it for us.” Jackie leaned back in her chair. “What’s been happening with Harrison? I haven’t seen him at the cottages.”
“He’s been there, but only for some of the time. Penny’s asked him to look at another building she’s thinking of purchasing.”
Jackie’s eyes widened. “Does that mean he’s staying in Sapphire Bay?”
“Not yet. I met his parents last weekend,” Daniella said. “They’re lovely, and they seem to like me.”
“That’s great but you sound hesitant. What’s up?”
“Harrison applied for a counseling job at a college in Nashville. They did a phone interview with him yesterday. He should know in the next few days if he’s got the job.”
Jackie frowned. “Oh, Daniella, that’s tough. Have you talked to him about what that would mean?”
“I have. I also told him I might be falling in love with him.”
Jackie reached over, squeezing her hand. “And what did he say?”
