“Really,” I said.
They both squealed, then raced around the massive bedroom, through the bathroom, and into the next. It had started drizzling just after we’d arrived, but the storm was picking up now, droplets tapping softly against the windows.
I’d been hoping it would clear up so the girls could go to the pool, but it didn’t look like that was going to happen. Bear, Zach’s dog, had even come in from the yard. The huge German Shepherd sniffed at everything before he trotted over to the room where the girls had started some kind of game I couldn’t identify.
Zach turned to me, that dark blond hair as perfectly styled as always despite the fact that he’d just survived his first road trip with kids and juggled all our luggage by himself. He was dressedcasually today too, in jeans, a fitted black T-shirt that wasn’t doing me any favors, and his feet were suddenly bare.
“I can show you around,” he offered after just looking at me for an awkward beat. “They’ll be okay alone, right? I mean, they have Bear, but?—”
“They’ll be fine.” I smiled, nodding in response to his offer. “I’d love to see the place. It’s beautiful, Zach. Honestly.”
“Thanks.”
I fell into step beside him when he moved further down the hallway, pointing out more bathrooms and bedrooms than seemed reasonable. Still trying to take everything in, I looked around like my head was on a swivel, surprised by how tasteful, but comfortable the place was.
The girls raced past with Bear, who seemed to be having the time of his life herding two children away from anything his dog brain deemed to be a threat. The balcony overlooking a more formal living room, for example, seemed to be completely off limits to them.
Zach and I walked in silence for a while, but once we went up yet another flight of stairs, I finally turned to him again. “How long have you had this place?”
He paused for a moment, like he had to think about it before the answer finally came to him. “About five years. I was closing a deal in Milwaukee and the client had a family emergency to attend to, so I had a few days to myself.”
“You didn’t just go back to Illinois?”
He shook his head, sliding his hands into his pockets and suddenly looking pretty sheepish for some reason. “Nah. I thought about it, but I’d never spent much time in Wisconsin before, so I gave myself a tour.”
“And what, you just stumbled on a massive ranch and bought it?”
“Pretty much.” The corners of his lips curved into a crooked grin. “Don’t laugh at me for this, but the place spoke to me. It’s quiet out here, you know?”
A door slammed downstairs right on cue, happy laughter and barking ringing out a moment later. “It was quiet. We might ruin that for you on this trip.”
Strangely, his grin widened instead of fading. “You’re not ruining anything. I think it’s been quiet for long enough. This is nice, having some life in the place.”
I nodded slowly, then glanced into a couple rooms when Zach pointed them out as an office and storage space. “What else are you hiding? A hotel in Hawaii, maybe? An actual resort in Florida?”
He chuckled, and the sound sent a warm, fuzzy feeling through me. “No, this is it, actually. The only home I own.”
I arched an eyebrow at him. “Are you serious?”
He glanced back at me. “Why wouldn’t I be?”
“I don’t know,” I teased. “All this time, I thought you still lived at home in your dad’s basement, but here we are, in a house the size of an apartment complex, and you’re telling me you haven’t bought any others?”
He laughed, but it wasn’t the polite or surprised laugh I’d been getting used to from him over the past few weeks. This sounded more like the Zach I remembered and hearing it again coated my insides with heat instead of just warmth.
God, I love his laugh.
“I never really had a reason to let go of the bachelor life until now,” he said, almost absently. “Alex keeps harping on about investing in real estate, but it seemed pointless, buying up so many places just to own them when I hadn’t even moved out of the Manor.”
“Are you happy there?” I asked, genuinely curious. He and I hadn’t talked much since we’d signed the contract, and since heseemed a little more open to actually talking today instead of just switching into business mode, it was nice getting to know a little bit about his life now. “I always thought you and Theo would end up being the last ones there. Although I thought Charlotte would be with you, if I’m being honest.”
He let out another chuckle that did funny things to my insides. “Yeah, she was. Until she married Trent Shepard. Do you remember him?”
“Alex’s friend?” I frowned. “Sort of. He’s from Texas, right?”
“Yep.”
“I’m surprised Alex let him run off with your little sister,” I said, smiling. “I honestly never saw that coming.”
