“There are six bedrooms upstairs,” Logan said, drawing their attention. When Aurora looked at him, he repeated the sentence in signs and added, “What do you say we go pick one out for you?”
Beaming, they joined hands and raced up the staircase.
“So, what do you think?” Logan asked, noticing me taking it all in.
“It’s beautiful. The girls are already in love. I think you might have a hard time prying them out of here when you find a permanent place.”
“Do you think thiscouldbe a good permanent home?”
“Are you thinking of buying it?”
“Actually, I already spoke to the owner and made a strong offer. He wasn’t planning to sell, but he was tempted. I told him we’d do a one-month rental first. I needed to see what my girls thought of it.”
The sound of little feet thundering across the ceiling was followed by squeals of delight. A moment later, Anna yelled, “Evy! Come see the window! There’s a huge pool in the back!”
Logan and I looked at each other and laughed. “I guess that’s your answer,” I said. “You can call the owner and close the deal.”
“They seem to approve. And I like it, too. Come see.”
He took my hand and led me through the modern kitchen to a locked patio door. He found the right key and unlocked it.
The backyard was simply breathtaking. A manicured garden burst with flowers of every color, leading to a huge lawn and the glistening pool the girls had spotted from above.
I walked down the porch steps onto the lush grass. I could almost see it—Aurora and Anna chasing each other across the lawn, learning to swim in the pool on hot summer days, building a snowman right there in the winter.
The vision filled me with a painful mix of joy and heartache. I was so happy knowing they would grow up in a place like this. But it was devastating to know I wouldn’t be here to see it.
There was less than a month left on our agreement. Soon, I would return to Los Angeles. I would be far away from them.
And from Logan.
“Evy?” His voice pulled me from my thoughts, and I realized he was now standing beside me. “Are you okay?”
I didn’t understand the question at first. Then I felt the hot tears streaming down my cheeks.
“I… I’m just overwhelmed. Thinking about how happy the girls will be, growing up here.”
“Well, I haven’t closed the deal yet.”
“What’s left to decide? You love the house, and your girls love it.”
“The thing is,” he said softly, “when I saidmy girls, I didn’t just mean them.”
His words surprised me, but also confused me. Was I reading too much into this? Before I could ask, we heard footsteps from inside. Anna and Aurora ran onto the porch and began spinning on the lawn.
“Hey, girls,” Logan called, waving to get Aurora’s attention.
They ran over and stopped in front of us. “So, what’s the final verdict?” Logan asked.
Aurora signed enthusiastically that it was the most beautiful house in the world. Anna agreed, bubbling with excitement. “We picked our room! You have to see it! It has one blue wall and one pink wall—it’s like it was made for us!”
“Wow, that’s perfect!” Logan exclaimed. I had to hide a smile, suspecting he’d probably had it painted that way himself.
“Are we going to live here forever?” Anna asked, her voice hushed with hope.
Both girls looked at him, their eyes wide with anticipation.
“I think so,” Logan said. “I really love it, too. Now we just need to know what Evy thinks.”
