Colin shook his head, eyes brimming. “It’s perfect, Josh.” He bent and kissed him. “Thank you,mo chroí.” He blew out a breath and turned back to their house. “God, it really is bigger.”
“Almost threefeetwider, all the way back and up! So our bedroom is bigger too.”
“Jesus,” Colin breathed out. He stood in the middle of their yard, not moving, then he turned to Joshua. “God, Josh, I’m almost afraid to––”
“To go in? To see it?”
Colin nodded, and Joshua leaned against him, clutching his arm, his forehead against Colin’s shoulder. “One step at a time, my love.” He gestured ahead of them. “Look at the porch! It’s so much bigger now.”
Colin blew out a breath and took a tentative step forward.
“Darling, take your time,” Joshua whispered, and Colin nodded.
“I don’t know why I feel like this.”
“I do!”
“Well, hang out your shingle and tell me!”
“You’re afraid—just like I was—that it’s changed too much to be… well, to beoursanymore.” He leaned against Colin and kissed his cheek. “But I’ve been inside, myyedid. And I promise you, it’s still ours. It’s still us.”
Colin stopped at the bottom step, chest tightening until the air felt thin and sharp in his lungs. He stared at the porch a beat too long, then forced himself upward—one step, then another—his hand locking around Joshua’s. The grip was warm, damp with the faint sheen of sweat, and it tightened once, twice, in quick convulsions. Joshua glanced at him but held his tongue, letting Colin choose the pace, letting him decide how much to reveal.
When they reached the door, Joshua nudged his arm. “New door. Here’s your keys.”
Colin took the key ring from his hand. He opened the screen door and then paused to run his hand over the front door. “Nice!”
“It’s oak,” Joshua whispered, smiling. He laid his hand in the middle of Colin’s back, solid–-steady, a quiet anchor.
The door gleamed in welcome: a broad, arched panel rich with honeyed tones and subtle whorls as if the tree’s history had been captured in every grain. It shone faintly in the morning light, lovingly sanded and finished to a soft satin glow. A narrow vertical window had been inset off-center, framed in bronze, and filled with textured glass—just enough to catch the light without offering a clear view inside.
The handle was black wrought iron, curved like a question mark, solid in his grip when he tested it. A small carving had been worked into the bottom right corner of the door—just a simple pair of clasped hands, no bigger than his palm.
He drew in a quick breath and pointed to the carved image.
Joshua nodded, his own eyes glistening. “Graham.”
Colin blew out another breath, then fitted the key and unlocked the door.
Joshua reached for the doorknob, but Colin stopped him with a hand to his chest.
“Wait.”
“Wait for what?”
Colin gave him a crooked smile. “For once, I’m doing this properly.”
Before Joshua could protest, Colin opened the door, then slipped an arm behind Joshua’s knees and another around his back and lifted him in one fluid, determined motion. Behind him, he could hear Nate cheering and David’s soft laughter.
“Way to go, Colin!” Nate yelled.
“Colin!” Joshua blustered, laughing. “What thehell?—”
“Carrying you over the threshold, silly boy.”
“You’rekiddingme.”
“Romantic, aren’t I?” Colin murmured as he moved across the threshold, kissing Joshua tenderly.
