He stood up and paced the room, the first light of the day glowing in his hair. Frankie watched him pace without missing a beat on the nylon bone he’d begun to chew.
“Did it help?” she asked finally. “Going there?”
“It did,” he said, taking a seat at the edge of the bed. “Kels, there are things I haven’t told you about my life before, things I may never be able to tell you. Friends, dogs that I didn’t or couldn’t protect. Choices I made. I’m too much like William for words to ever come easy—”
“It’s okay, they don’t have to.”
He held up a hand. “My grandmother used to say that nothing up to today matters unless you choose for it to matter. Sometimes that makes sense, and sometimes it feels impossible. But a part of me has to believe it, because rather than running, I came here. I saw you six weeks ago on that news story, and I made a choice to stop running, stop evading, and I let you in. I let this house in and these dogs. Hell, when the time comes that he goes up for adoption, I’m going to throw my name into the hat for Frankie, even if it means going down to a one-dog house for a while. As long as you agree.”
Kelsey blinked. As long as I agree to what?
Kurt lifted the forgotten bag off the bed and got up, walking around until he was directly at her side. He sank into a squat, resting on his heels.
“This isn’t a proposal, so you can stop looking like a deer in headlights.”
She bit her lip, unable to stop the smile from spreading across her face. “Thank God, because I’d be tempted to kiss you and I definitely have morning breath.”
“If it were, this would be a real kneel and I’d have had the sense to let you get dressed first. What am I saying? No, I wouldn’t. I love the way you look first thing in the morning in your pajamas with your hair all mussed, and when you’re asleep too.”
He smiled and passed her the bag. “It isn’t much, but it stands for something bigger. At least, I’m really hoping it does.”
Kelsey tucked back a strand of hair and sat straighter, folding her legs into a pretzel under the sheets. “Should I open it now?”
He nodded. Frankie had meandered over, and Kurt closed his hand over the top of his head, his nylon bone sticking out of his mouth like a cigar.
It was a plain paper bag stamped with the name of a store in Cannon Beach, Oregon. Kelsey sifted through tissue paper until her fingers closed over a small object. She pulled it out to find that it was a blown-glass Christmas ornament. It was a shiny dog figurine—a tan puppy wearing a Santa hat.
“It’s so cute. I love it.”
Kurt wrapped a hand over her wrist. “I asked her to keep it a surprise, but I spoke with Megan a few times on my way home. You know that things are moving in court. The first round of dogs, Zeus and a few of the others, might be able to head for the shelter in a month or less. Which means we could have a bit of space on the lower floor by Thanksgiving. Enough at least for a Christmas tree. A giant one. And I’m hoping this is the first of a lot of ornaments, Kels. I love you, and I want to make a home with you. This home, actually. I know you weren’t that crazy about it in the beginning, but I’m hoping you’ve changed your mind.”
She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. “I love this house. It took me awhile to realize it, but I do. I love it. I can’t imagine liking a house more than I do this one.”
“I was hoping you’d say that because I’d like to buy it. I’d like to live here, with you.”
“Kurt, I don’t know if that’s possible. For now it is, but the shelter will sell it at auction and probably not for years from now, and if you keep fixing it like you’ve been doing, it’ll go for a lot of money. I’m not sure we’d be able to afford it.”
He rose and pressed his lips against her forehead, then sat beside her. “What if I told you the attorneys reviewed the will and found a stipulation of sale that works in my—in our—favor?”
“What do you mean? I thought Mr. Longtail would have to be gone—”
“Not if Ida consents to an early sale, which she has.”
“How do you know this?”
“Because with a bit of sleep figured in, it’s a two-day drive between here and Cannon Beach. I had time to think. Time to make some calls. I wanted to tell you in person. The house is ours, if we want it. I know I do, and I’m hoping you do too.”
Kelsey sat speechless, taking it all in. “You want to live with me, here, now.”
“Here, yes, and forever. I love you, Kelsey. And I’m not afraid to tell you I want the whole package. I thought you might want to take it slower than a full proposal in less than six weeks, and honestly I wanted to plan it better—”
Kelsey silenced him with a kiss. There was a hint of salt on his lips. She wondered if it was from the ocean or something more recent, like a gas station snack.
She’d gone to the ocean once and found something that she’d been too afraid to admit until now proved she was the luckiest person on earth. She’d just been waiting all this time to let it in.
She ran her hands over the top of his strong shoulders, then his smooth neck, then his silky hair. She had the rest of her life to get used to being with him.
