Page 34 of Single-Minded
Once I was out in the hall and beyond the door to her bedroom, where I could breathe a little easier, I said, “I came up to tell you we’re done for the day. Do you need me to lock anything?”
“No need,” she said, following me to the stairs. “Thanks, West.”
“Night, Presley. See you tomorrow morning.”
As I jogged down the stairs, putting more space between us, I couldn’t help but wonder, now that I’d made my stance about us clear to her, whether I was the dumbest man on the planet.
Chapter Ten
Presley
“The silver sofa,” Chloe said.
I looked at Rowan for her opinion.
“Silver sofa, definitely,” she agreed.
“With the stain guard warranty at the highest level you can buy,” Chloe said.
“Silver sofa it is,” I said excitedly, in full agreement that it was the right choice for the shop.
A couple of days ago, I’d bought a patio dining set from Lake Life Outfitters, on the opposite corner of the square, and put it inside in the front corner of my shop for now so there’d be a place to sit while construction was going on—or when my girlfriends and I met to choose decor. I hoped to eventually get a permit for outdoor seating.
This afternoon, I was glad I’d bought it, since Rowan was close to seven months pregnant. She looked wonderful, but she admitted her back was happy she was sitting after I’d walked them around the wide-open space, explaining where walls, counters, the kitchen, and everything else would go. West had moved in some of the supplies already, even though we were waiting on the building permit.
“It’ll tie right in with the metal on the chairs and stools,” Rowan said. “I love the silver, blue, and white color scheme. I’m excited for you.”
“I’m excited for this town,” Chloe said.
“The last furniture decision for today is the blue easy chair,” I said. “Single-wide, double-wide, one-and-a-half width?”
I turned my laptop again to show them the differences.
“Not single,” Rowan said.
“Says the pregnant girl.” Chloe laughed, but it was empathetic instead of teasing. “I remember that third trimester feeling, like you’re huge and clumsy and need all the space—even though you absolutely are not huge.”
“I’m not quite to the third trimester, but I already feel that way.” Rowan rested a hand on her belly. “I think the one-and-a-half-width chair. You don’t want it to take up so much room that it crowds the door.”
“Agree,” I said, and added the extra-wide chair to my cart.
I’d spent the morning in Nashville at a furniture store with a helpful clerk. I didn’t believe in buying comfortable furniture without sitting my butt on it to test it. The light-colored wood tables and metal chairs, which I’d picked out from a restaurant supplier, were one thing. Comfort wasn’t the ultimate goal for them but rather frequent turnover of patrons.
The full-length sofa and easy chair for the lounging corner were a different story. I wanted them to be comfortable enough that people could curl up on them for hours to chat with a friend or hammer out work on a laptop.
I’d narrowed down my choices in person, then texted Chloe and Rowan, hoping they could come by after work and weigh in on the final decisions. They’d come through, as girlfriends did. They loved the plans West and I had laid out.
Since there was a three- to four-week delay to get the furniture, I was ordering today. As I pulled the laptop closer so I could check out, the rain outside picked up intensity. It was a cozy, insulating sound. I couldn’t wait for a rainy day once the shop was open. I imagined it as a refuge for people of all kinds regardless of what curveball Mother Nature dished out.
I hit the Place Order button with a whoop. “Thank you, girls. I love our choices,” I told them.
“I can’t wait to see it come together,” Rowan said.
“By the time she opens, you’ll be ready to pop that baby out,” Chloe said.
“Which is going to happen magically and instantly with zero pain,” Rowan said. “Denial is working for me at the moment.”
As I checked that my order had gone through, movement out the window caught my eye. A guy in a ball cap jogged through the rain, getting soaked. He looked to be heading toward my door.
