Page 103 of 10 Things I Hate About Mistletoe

“I did most of the work myself watching videos on YouTube and hiring out for what I couldn’t do myself,” he said, following her as Delilah peeked into the bathroom.

“Anthony this—” She turned around in the doorway of his bathroom, a bright smile on her face. “This is beautiful. When you said that you lived in a trailer, I was expecting a messy bachelor pad at best or something out of a Wrong Turn movie at worst.”

“Hey,” he laughed, giving her hip a little pinch.

Delilah giggled. “I’m just saying, this is a lovely place on the inside. I can’t wait to see what you do with your next house.”

“I’ll show you my plans,” Anthony said, grabbing a book off the back of the couch, waving his hand toward the booth and table. “Have a seat.” She sat across from him as he slid into the booth, opening the book. Anthony removed the plans from inside, spreading them over the kitchen table. “This is the main floor where there will be the master and a guest room, with the master bath, guest bath, and half bath. Upstairs are two bedrooms with a Jack and Jill bathroom in between them and a loft slash playroom.”

“Playroom?” Delilah asked, her finger trailing over the upstairs floorplan, almost caressing it. “You mean for kids?”

“Yeah, of course I mean for kids. My playroom will be in the garage.”

Delilah laughed. “I’m just surprised they get a whole room dedicated to their toys.”

“Our playroom when I was growing up was in the basement,” he said, remembering the afternoons spent watching his brothers play video games together. “It kept us out of our parents hair.”

“Being an only child, our house was pretty quiet unless I had friends over.”

Delilah studied the rectangle on the plans and tapped one side with her fingertip. “You should put in built-in cubbies for toy storage.”

“That’s a great idea.”

Relief swept through him and he brought her hand up to his lips, kissing the back of it. Energized, he continued explaining the layout. “The kitchen has a smuggler’s pantry and a large island where I can prep food.”

“You cook?”

“I dabble,” he said, playing at modesty. He wanted her to be shocked and delighted the first time he cooked for her. “If I had a real kitchen, I could get better. Let’s see. The main living room will have a fireplace and this”—he indicated a square next to the large rectangle labeled living room—“will be an office.”

“Oh, yeah? You’re going to need a whole room to update your appointment books and spreadsheets?”

Delilah’s voice was light, a teasing smile on her face, but he needed her to know that this wasn’t just a passing notion. He’d been thinking about what his home would look like with her in it for a while now.

“I’ll use it, too, but I also thought you could use it to write. A quiet space where you could stare at the mountains and we could put a bed in the corner for Leia to sleep in.”

“You want to share your office with me?” she asked breathlessly.

“I want to share a lot of things with you.” Anthony used his other hand to cup her one hand between both of his. “My trailer, for starters. You and Leia are welcome anytime.”

Delilah climbed up on her knees and leaned across the table, brushing her lips over his. “We’d like that,” she said, settling back into the bench seat. “Although I’m a little concerned that I’ll take her out one morning and there will be a bear just waiting to go chomp.”

Anthony laughed. “I’ve never seen a bear anywhere near the trailer.”

“And yet, this is the mountains, where there are bears.”

“Then I’ll take her out for you, and I promise,” he said, taking back a hand to make a cross over his heart, “I will protect her with my life.”

“So you’re offering to get up at all hours and take my dog out to go potty? To wrestle bears to keep her safe?” Her brilliant smile made him feel like a superhero. “You’re doing a lot.”

“I’d do more than that to make you happy.”

Delilah pulled her hands free and got up, coming around to sit beside him on the other bench seat. She gently wrapped her arm around his waist and laid her head on his shoulder. “That is the nicest thing I’ve ever heard.”

“Well, then, I’m about to do you one better,” he said, turning a bit so he could face her. Anthony wanted her to see his face when he told her the truth, “because I’ve got more to say.”

“What’s that?” she asked, gazing up at him with those deep blue eyes and he drew in a breath. This was the moment and he rubbed his palms against his snow pants.

“I’m absolutely, beyond a doubt, in love with you.”