Trinity thumbed her chin as she thought on it, then paced toward the closet to peek her head inside. “You don’t necessarily need a dresser unless you’d like to store some of your things in drawers. Socks and t-shirts and things like that. And a dresser is a nice anchor for a television, if you’re the sort that likes to watch TV in bed.”
“I do. Mostly just around the holidays,” he said in all seriousness. “The Christmas Countdown is my favorite. I typically watch a movie a night.”
Spencer sensed Trinity was trying to stifle a giggle because her hand went to her mouth and she looked down at the ground, something like mischief alight in her eyes. But then she quickly recovered and brought her gaze back up.
“Then I think a dresser would be a good idea. They make sets to match the nightstands. Sometimes even the bed, too. Do you know if you want something that comes with both a headboard and footboard?”
“Never thought about it.”
She did a full one-eighty, spinning to look at the room from every angle. “I think this bedroom is so grand that you’ll want substantially heavy furniture to balance it all out. You’ve got such a high ceiling, and that beam is amazing.” She looked up at the hand-hewn wooden beam at the pitch of the ceiling that extended the full length of the room. “If I were you, I’d pick out something that mimics the rustic vibe you’ve already got going here. It’s fantastic.”
“You don’t think it’s too masculine?”
She chuckled softly. “Well, you are a guy. And a cowboy at that. A bachelor, too. I think you can get away with it.”
“Not sure I want to be one for life, though.”
“A cowboy?” She swallowed. “Or a bachelor?”
“The cowboy part of me isn’t going anywhere,” he said, flashing his dimples. “But I hope someday my single status might. I’d love to share this place with someone. Have a family and create a home. I want to make sure I pick out furniture that’s conducive to that.”
“I, personally, love the rustic look,” she said. Panic suddenly shot through her eyes, and she shook her head. “Not that I’m going to be living here. Not trying to imply anything by saying that.”
“I know,” he said, not at all bothered by her slipup. “But it’s important to me that this house has a woman’s touch. It’s the whole reason I’ve asked you to help me. Left to my own devices, I’d have a mattress on box springs and milk crates for nightstands.”
“I said you’re a bachelor,” she teased. “Not a college student.”
“I’m going out on a limb to say that the decoration skills aren’t all that different despite the age gap.”
His own style hadn’t changed, at least. He’d lived in that fifth wheel on the cattle ranch from the moment he’d graduated high school, and other than a new pair of boots by the door or a hat on the hook, very little in the way of décor had been added over the years.
“Anything else I should think to purchase for this room before we move to the next?” he asked.
“Have you thought about bedding?”
“Nope. What do I need? A pillow and some blankets?”
She was patient with him, which he appreciated. He knew he was as close to a lost cause as possible.
“You’ll probably want to purchase a bedding set. Something that comes with a comforter and shams.”
“Shams?” An eyebrow lifted.
“They’re like fancy pillow cases.”
“Ah, gotcha.” He nodded. It was the first time he’d heard of such a thing.
“Unless you have a family quilt or something that holds meaning that you’d rather use instead of a store-bought comforter.”
“My sister and Nana have been working on some quilts, actually. Don’t know what their plans for them are. Maybe I should take a look and see if there’s anything I could use.”
“I think you should definitely do that. It’s always nice to use heirlooms wherever possible. At the very least, something that holds meaning.”
Spencer understood. Sometimes, he felt like the house and the things he planned to put in it belonged to someone else. There was no emotional attachment, no connection. But in a weird way, by having Trinity help him with the process, it brought just a little bit of heart into the equation. It was nice to have another person to bounce ideas off of.
“What do you think?” he asked. “Should we head to the living room next?”
She gave an enthusiastic nod. “Definitely. I’ve already been putting some thought into that space. If you can swing it, I think a big leather sectional would look best. They can be pricey, but leather only gets better with age. The scratches and the scarring—it just adds character.”
