I close my eyes, nodding as I try to extract my hands from his.
He holds them tighter, keeping me in place.
“I bought them for you.”
I shake my head. “You realize that wasn’t a part of thedream, right? I didn’t want it to be handed to me on a silver platter. I wanted to make the sunflower farm so successful that buying those cabins would be no big deal. That was always my gold medal, far down that line. And I get that I don’t have a monopoly on real estate around here, but youpromisedme.”
“I know. But Eve, can’t dreams evolve as you do? My dream is you. And I want to make yours come true.” He bites his lip. “Look, if you want me to unload them, I will. The entire development plan, too. But before you tell me to scram, can you give me five minutes of your time to prove to you that this version of your dream is better?”
“The version where I have to fightyoufor the cabins and suddenly everything I wantnowcomes at the price of everything I’ve worked so hard for?”
He shakes his head. “No fighting. I promise. It’s all up to you.” He hesitantly lets go of one of my hands, and nods in the direction I just came from. “Come on. Let me show you my idea.”
“Show me?”
He nods, tugging me along with him as he rounds the cabin to the grassy area that looks out over the sunflower fields. He stops when he gets to a large log.
“Stand up on here,” he says, holding one hand firmly so I can use him for leverage.
“A big log is your idea?”
He shakes his head, climbing up next to me. “No,” he says, giving me a quick grin before turning his gaze out over the sunflowers. “This is our view from the family room.”
I cock my head to the side. “I’m sorry?”
“This log marks the best view of the sunflower farm. So, I figure it’d be best for the family room to go right here. If you want an office here or something though, that’s fine too.I just figured we’d put the room we’re likely to hang out in most here.”
I turn to him, barely keeping my balance on the log. “This sounds likeyourhouse is going here.”
“Ourhouse. I’ll put you in contact with the architect and he’ll design something that’s everything you want. Both our names will be on it, but you’ll live in your bungalow and I’ll live in the city until you’re frothing at the mouth to move in with me.”
I watch his expression when I speak. “What happens if we don’t work out?”
He doesn’t hesitate. “I’ll be absolutely devastated.”
I give him a look. “Ryder.”
He shrugs. “You get everything.”
I purse my lips. “So it’s actually in my best interest for us to not work out.”
He’s quiet for a moment. “If that’s what you think your best interest is, then I suppose so.”
“It’s not,” I say, turning toward him. He reaches out to push my hair behind my shoulders, and the brush of his thumb against my skin sends a shiver down my spine. “I want this. Really bad. But I just feel like I’m going to get comfortable. Forget about what matters most. And one day when you decide you miss New York, I’m going to be left holding the bag and it’s all going to feel so much worse on the way back down to the bungalow.” I shake my head. “I mean, I see the dream that you’re making into a reality and all I can think about is that once you get sick of living here—of me—you’re going to go back to the city and I’m going to be left staring up at everything I had and lost. Or maybe I’ll go with you and abandon this place and it’ll all turn to dust and deteriorate. And I’m not sure which is worse.”
“Evie,” he says, taking a step toward me. “I wouldn’t askyou to abandon the sunflower farm. It’s your passion. New York isn’tthatfar away, and we both know how much you like an occasional fancy dress and a few glasses of champagne. We’ll do both. We’ll do it all. We’llhaveit all.”
“Yeah?”
He gathers my hands in his, kissing each one before holding them against his chest. “The world is yours, Evie Harper. Tell me what you want and I’ll make it happen.”
I pause, thinking for a moment. “I want to incorporate the original facade of the cabin.”
He nods. “I like it. I want one of those corny signs you sell in the shop that says ‘HOME’ with all the sunflowers winding through it.”
I huff. “They’re not corny, they’re cute!”
“They’re so fucking corny and I love them. What else?”
