I flushed at everyone’s attention. “Not yet. We’ll give it a few months first.”
“A few months?” Sebastian grumbled. “You mean a few weeks.”
I raised my brows. “Didn’t you just say you didn’t want to rush me?”
“A few weeks is plenty of time to get used to the idea of living together,” he said, looking serious.
If I didn’t have two little humans to think about, I would jump at the chance to move in with him. But I had a responsibility to not rush this.
“Can we see the inside?” Stella asked, linking her arm with mine. “And I agree, a few weeks is plenty of time.”
I elbowed her, but she dodged me by contorting her body. “You’re supposed to be on my side.”
“I am. That’s why I’m telling you to give it a few weeks to think about it. You’re basically living together already anyway.”
We followed the guys inside and I stopped, thinking Sebastian couldn’t have chosen a more perfect house. The bottom floor housed the kitchen, living room, laundry, and a bathroom, with a big wooden staircase to the right of the door.
The living room and kitchen were one big room, taking up almost the entire bottom floor. Big windows looked out over the mountains on one side and the trees on the other. The kitchen had seen better days, but it was huge and had a rustic charm with its wooden cabinets.
“I’ll give you a hand to replace the kitchen if you want,” Mason said.
“I hope he means he’ll help once he’s finished his own house,” Stella whispered for only me to hear.
I chuckled, and we explored the rest of the house. The bedrooms were upstairs and all a decent size. The master bedroom had its own bathroom and a huge walk-in closet. The view was even more spectacular from up there.
“What do you think?” Sebastian asked, stopping next to me.
“I love it,” I said, beaming at him.
“Good,” he responded and walked to where Mason was inspecting the balcony railing, pointing at a few things.
“He didn’t bring his tools, did he?” I asked Stella.
“I wouldn’t let him. We’d never make it back home before it gets dark. And Porcahontas doesn’t like the dark and freaks out.”
“Who’s Porcahontas?”
“The pig who’s currently waiting in your yard for us to come back out. Or more specifically Mason, since he’s like the animal whisperer. She belongs to Brielle, my friend Kinsley’s sister, but she’s getting too big for their yard, so we’re looking after her.”
“Okay, I’ll take it. But what’s with the rooster?”
Neither one of the animals had been there last time I visited. I wondered how many they were up to by now.
“That’s Cluck Norris. We saved him three weeks ago, and he hasn’t left our side since. Thinks he’s a dog.”
We stayed for another thirty minutes, the guys inspecting every inch of the house while Stella and I hung out with the animals. Porcahontas tried pushing me over whenever I stopped petting her, so I was stuck until the guys came back out. But she was a gorgeous—if huge—pig, so I didn’t mind.
When we went back to the office, my heart was full and my head filled with decorating ideas. Maybe the kids could finally get a dog.
I had to thank Jim if I ever saw him again since his screwup led me to everything I now had.
Epilogue
“Pee, pee,” Lena sang, dancing into the kitchen.
She was wearing a pink dress but seemed to have lost the tights she’d been wearing not ten minutes ago.
“Do you want to go to the potty?” I asked, eyeing her. She’d started showing interest in going to the potty, and I tried to encourage her.
“I did,” she replied.
Oh no. Please don’t let there be another mystery pee somewhere in the house. “Where did you go?” I asked and held out my hand for her to lead me to this supposed pee she’d done. “Show me, gorgeous.”
We made our way past the moving boxes that were piled up everywhere and to the kids’ bedroom. Lena pointed at a suitcase I’d packed that morning.
I walked around the room, looking inside the suitcase, then studying the floor and sniffing the air. No wet spots and no smell was a good sign. But it also meant I had to search the house for a potential accident.
“Come on, let’s go on an expedition,” I said and led the way out of the room.
I was on my knees, looking under the coffee table, when Sebastian and Luca walked in. They’d been at the farmhouse, dropping off a load of boxes. Luca had become Sebastian’s shadow over the last three months, accepting him like he’d always been there.
And yes, that’s how long it took for me to agree to move in with him. I figured since we hadn’t been apart for even one night in all that time, we basically lived together already. The kids loved the farmhouse and Sebastian, so we might as well make it official.
“Well, now that’s a view I don’t mind coming back to,” Sebastian growled, and I shot up, hitting my head.
“Ouch,” I cried and backed out from under the table.
“Are you okay, baby?” Sebastian asked, helping me up. He studied my head and felt for a lump. When he was satisfied I would live, he whispered a kiss over my lips and released me.
“I’m fine,” I said and then looked at my son. “Did you like the color for your bedroom?”
We’d been painting the rooms and letting the kids pick out their colors. Luca had been unsure of what color he wanted, but in the end he settled on blue.
He nodded, his eyes shining. “It’s blue, like water. Seb said we can put sharks on the wall too.”
Something else he’d discovered over the last few months were sharks. He devoured every morsel of information he could find on them.
“Great choice,” I said, smiling at him.
Sebastian put his arms around me and pulled me into his side. “What were you doing
