Page 58 of Sea Glass Serenade

“It’s… it’s empty,” Grayson said, looking around. His eyes traced the house with admiration. It was clearly well-constructed and had charming dormer windows and arched doorways.

“Mm,” she said. “You want to see the rest of it?”

“We do!”

Alexis’s siblings appeared in the doorway behind them.

“I’m dying to check it out,” Hazel said. “Is that okay with you, Alexis?”

“Oh, sure.” She grinned at her sister. “The more the merrier.”

The five of them took off across the house. While her siblings went tramping about the various empty rooms, uttering exclamations of delight, Alexis led Grayson more slowly around the house. They went through the kitchen, the downstairs bathroom, the dining room, and the living room. She took him down to the basement, and even though it was clear that the house had been built a long time ago, the basement was in good condition and had a new washer and dryer tucked into one corner.

“It would be nice to refurbish that room over there, don’t you think?” she asked, pointing to a little room just off the bottom of the stairs. “Maybe a guest bedroom or a movie room.”

“That would be nice,” he said slowly. “But, Alexis?—”

She held up a finger before he could finish. “Just hush and follow me.”

He chuckled, squeezing her hand. She could tell that he was excited and curious, and her feeling of anticipation swirled again.

They went back up to the kitchen, where Dean, Hazel, and Julia were gathered around the cupboards. As soon as Alexis and Grayson emerged from the basement, the three of them turned around hurriedly.

“Wow, what great cupboards!” Hazel hurried over to a cupboard next to the refrigerator that was already open. “I love this color, it’s so warm, isn’t it? And they’re lined with this cute pattern of paper.”

“They are nice,” Alexis said, smiling. She glanced over her shoulder at Dean and Julia, wondering if they were hiding something, but she didn’t see anything. Chuckling, she took Grayson’s hand again and led him toward the staircase by the front door.

“There’s an upstairs too, huh?” he said, teasing her. “This place feels like some giant doll’s house. A little too good to be true.”

She turned around and grinned at him. “That’s a cute comparison. I see what you’re saying—it is very charming. And it’s odd to see a big empty house like this.”

As they reached the top of the landing, she thought,But it isn’t too good to be true. It is true. Just look at this place.

She and Grayson began to walk down the upstairs hallway together. She felt almost gleeful as she showed him the two upstairs bedrooms, the bathroom, and the little balcony overlooking the backyard. She decided as they stood there together that the balcony was her favorite part of the whole house. She could just imagine sitting there in the dusk in summertime, watching the fireflies light up the yard.

“Well,” she said, taking a deep breath and smiling at him. “What do you think?”

“Of this house? It’s incredible,” he said, looking down at the flower garden and a row of pine trees. “I love it. But I don’t understand why we’re walking around through it. There’s no ‘for sale’ sign out front, and clearly no one lives here. But you said you know the people who do? Come on, Alexis, please tell me what is going on.”

“You want to know what’s going on, huh?” She laced her fingers with his and smiled up at him playfully.

“I do.” He took a deep breath, gazing down into her eyes. “I can’t—this whole time, I haven’t been able to stop picturing the two of us together here. I can’t stop wishing that we could have a house like this together someday.”

Joy rushed into her chest. “You like it? You wouldn’t miss our big mansion out in L.A.?”

He shook his head. “No, that house was way too big. Our relationship got lost in it. I want to live in a house where I canreach you easily. Where you’re usually with me, but if you’re not, you’re only a room or two away.”

Her heart thumped a few times, and she knew that now was the moment for her to tell him her secret, the reason why she’d brought him to see the house.

“Grayson, I have something to tell you. I’m not sure how you’re going to feel about it, or at least, I’m not sure how you’re going to feel about how sudden it is, or—well anyway.” She laughed breathlessly. “The people that I know who live here are us. I bought the house. I put in an offer on it and it was accepted.”

Grayson’s eyes widened and he stared at her, his face blank.

“You made a grand gesture by quitting your job and coming here to Rosewood Beach.” She squeezed his hands gently as she spoke, looking up into his eyes. “You’ve shown me through your actions that you’re committed to me and to our marriage. I know that you’re ready to give our relationship another try, especially now that you’ve gotten a job here in Rosewood Beach. Now it’s my turn to show you how committed I am. I wanted to buy us a house, and this one used to belong to a friend of my parents. When I saw that it was on the market, I reached out right away. I want this to be the place where we restart our marriage together.” She stammered a little as she watched his face. It was still blank, and he looked stunned. She started to wonder if she had somehow gone too far—maybe he wasn’t ready for this kind of step yet, or he wished that she’d consulted him first before buying the house. “I—I mean, do you like it? I can withdraw the offer if you want, it’s not too late.”

He immediately shook his head, looking into her eyes. “No, it’s perfect. I love it. I’m just so overwhelmed, Alexis. This has made me so incredibly happy.”

A grin spread across her face, and she felt relief and happiness wash over her. “I’m so happy you’re happy!”

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