He wasn’t perfectly chiseled, but solid; you could see how strong he was. I had to force myself to look away, but I didn’t do it in time because he caught me staring and gave a satisfied smile while my cheeks flamed.
Fall, I could use you right about now to cool me off,I thought. But Bryce said, “Come on, let’s get it home.”
I stared as we drove through the metal gate, revealing expansive acreage with grass just hanging on to its last bits of green. Trees dotted the property with gold, red, and brown leaves swaying, scattering in the wind.
At the end of the drive was a ranch-style home with a two-car garage and a separate shop building.
I stared at the place. This was definitely not what I was expecting. Were we making a detour somewhere?
But Bryce said, “Home sweet home.”
I stared at him for a moment before he got out and came around to my side.
When he opened the door, I asked, “This isn’t really your house, is it?”
He did a double take over his shoulder. “If it’s not, I have a lot of explaining to do. And maybe the owners do too for letting me squat here.”
I chuckled despite my confusion. This was a beautiful home, and I could see why Bryce chose it, but it was not the megamansion I expected the founder of a billion-dollar company to live in.
A nervous smile played on Bryce’s lips as he asked, “Let’s go inside?”
I nodded, following him to the front porch. It was pretty—the kind you could sit on in a rocking chair and watch the sunset. Bryce tapped a code into the keypad allowing him to slide the deadbolt open, and then we walked inside.
Again, it was not what I expected. Everything was clean, but instead of sleek and modern furnishings, there was a warmth to this home that came from all the pieces. These didn’t look like items you could buy from a furniture store—they all seemed hand-selected to fit the aesthetic of the home.
“Wow,” I breathed. “This isn’t exactly a bachelor pad.”
He chuckled as he shut the door behind me. “You like it so far?”
I nodded. “Are these all your projects?” I began to realize this was a lot more than an arts-and-crafts hobby to him.
“Some of them,” he said humbly. “Others I found along the way.”
His small smile was contagious. I found my own lips lifting as I watched him run his fingertips over a bookshelf. “Let me give you the tour before we start on our project.”
It would have been easy to wander about his house and examine all his furniture, but instead, I followed him through the space, seeing a primary bedroom, a guest bathroom, and something that looked like a top-secret tech office from a spy movie.
I stared at all the computer monitors. “These are all yours?”
“I borrowed some from my neighbor.”
I raised my eyebrows. “Really?”
“No.” Bryce chuckled. “They’re mine.”
I shook my head at him. Sometimes, I wished he wasn’t so endearing. It would make the secret I was keeping much easier.
In fact, as I watched him tell me about the last time his nieces and nephews stayed over for a movie night, I realized he didn’t give any signs warning me to stay back. Everything I learned about Bryce was a green light. His only red flag was the fact that he was about to marry me for the sake of his business. And yet, he’d been honest about his intentions.
I wondered how long I could manage to be dishonest about mine.
32.Bryce
This date was going even betterthan I had hoped. Part of me had worried that Jada would be bored or disinterested, but when we got to the workshop, she rubbed her hands together. “What’s next? Let’s put these overalls to use.”
Restoring furniture was enjoyable, but doing it with Jada? Downright fun.
“Safety first,” I told her. A phrase my brothers—well, all of them except Fletcher, the doctor—would give me shit for. I went to a drawer, pulling out a couple safety glasses for us. Folding out the arms of one set, I gently set them on the bridge of her nose.
