MITCHELL

It had been a couple of weeks since Sammy and I abruptly left Nash and Kennedy's place in a hurry. Something I hadn't lived down, by the way. Nash loved to tease me about it and even Kennedy had gotten in on the ribbing the first time she saw us.

"See," Nash had joked, or maybe hoped for it to be true, "he's worse than me."

"I'm not sure about that," Kennedy had responded while trying to hold a smile back, "but you might be a bad influence on him."

I had laughed, and Nash had scowled. Sammy had just rolled her eyes.

Things were good.

I hadn't proposed yet, although I picked up the ring from the jeweler. It was beautiful and just what I had imagined. They had exchanged the oval diamond for the round one I'd selected. A few small diamonds sat around the solitaire, and even smaller diamonds went down the sides of the band. It made the ring have a bit of a flower look I hoped she would love.

I was waiting for that special moment to come along, and maybe to figure out exactly what to say.

Sammy and I were lounging on the couch in my living room. It was in the middle of a Sunday afternoon and there was nothing we had to do. We'd just had lunch, and were relaxing inside to escape the heat. It was a true summer in the city kind of day. Sammy was looking through an interior design magazine, and I was reading a new mystery book Kennedy had recommended.

I was glad that Sammy was folding some of the corners over. She had given her notice to her landlord, so come middle of August she'd be moving into my place, and I was ready to make a home with her. Whatever changes she wanted to make was fine by me.

I had suggested we look for a new place together, which she hadn't seemed opposed to, but she'd been a bit hesitant when she realized the amount we needed to spend in order to get the space we wanted.

I'd found out from Kennedy that Sammy was worried about the money situation. The fact that she didn't really have any savings, and she rented an apartment, whereas I owned mine. For us to buy a place together, it would be my money we'd be spending, which I was completely okay with. Money meant little if you didn't have someone you loved to spend it with. And the whole reason I wanted to have a bigger place was so we could be there together and grow as a family.

I hoped she would worry less after I proposed.

I was also hoping that Maria would decide to come stay with us. I'd spoken to her a few times, and while she seemed fine, I wasn't sure which way she was leaning. She said Marshall was making changes, both with his hours at work, so he could be home more with Neil, and by getting the house into shape.

My phone rang. It was on the table next to Sammy, so she picked it up and handed it over to me. "It's Nash."

"Miss me already?" I asked as I answered.

Nash and Kennedy had left for Florida Friday afternoon. They were going to stay in his parents' house for a couple of weeks, while his parents were staying in Nash and Kennedy's place, waiting to close on their new apartment.

"Something like that... What are you up to?"

"Nothing." I stretched out my legs in front of me and put the book to the side. "Just chilling. What are you guys doing?"

"Hiding from the heat," Sammy said loudly next to me.

Nash chuckled. "It's hot here too."

"I believe it, but you got a pool down there."

"Yeah, Kennedy took Ethan in for a little while before."

"Did he like it?"

"Yeah, he did, but, man, it was a bit of a production. She had ordered this floating sun shade thing..." he chuckled. "I'll send you a picture."

"Okay." I smiled, imagining Nash over there, rubbing his hand over his face, overwhelmed at all the baby stuff he had to put together.

"How's the house hunting going?" I asked.

"It's not really house hunting. We've only seen two properties."

"But you're looking. That qualifies, right?"

Sammy giggled next to me. I flashed her a grin, and she jokingly batted her lashes back at me.

"I guess," Nash said.

"So, how's it going?"

"Ken said an absolute no to the first one. I kind of liked it, but she said it was too much work."

"Okay, what about the second one?"

"That one was actually promising. It's a couple of blocks from my parents, towards the outskirts of town. The houses are a little older, but the property sizes are nice. The beaches are smaller but also have fewer tourists."

"That sounds nice. Does Kennedy like it too?"

"She does. She says it has good bones, whatever that means."

Sammy laughed next to me, clearly still listening to my conversation. I rolled my eyes at her.

"It's a little run down," Nash continued, "but it's got enough space, and nothing we can't handle."

"Nothing your dad can't handle, you mean?" I teased him. Howard had been in the construction business, and while Nash was handy, his father actually knew what he was doing.

Nash laughed. "Yeah, that helps."

"Is he gonna have time to help you? Don't they want to do some work in the apartment?"

Nash's parents were just waiting for the closing. They had gotten their favorite apartment, and while it didn't need too much work, there were some things they wanted to change.

"Yeah, they do, but do you seriously think my mom can stay away from Ethan for too long?"

That made me chuckle. "Good point."

"Anyway," Nash said. "The reason I am calling is because we're really interested in this one. Like ready to make an offer interested..."

"Ohhh," Sammy perked up next to me. "Ask for pictures."

I chuckled but asked Nash to send me the listing.

"Yeah, no problem, but listen, awhile ago you had said you'd be interested in buying a house down here too. Is that still a go?"

That had me straightening upon the couch. "Yeah, for sure. Is there another one nearby?"

"Yeah, there is. There are actually neighboring properties. Kennedy is asking the realtor to send you all the info on it. The house is a little smaller than the one we are looking at, but it still has four bedrooms, two baths, and a decent size backyard. We haven't been inside it, but the location is awesome. These two houses are the last ones on the street, and there is a trail to the beach."

"Wow, really?"

"Yeah, you still interested?"

I looked over at Sammy, and she had the biggest smile on her face.

"Hell yeah... send me what you have and I'll talk to Sammy."

"Cool, let me know what you decide. Sooner than later... they are a good deal and the realtor does not expect them to stay on the market long."

"I will."

I had just hung up the phone when the realtor's email came through. I opened it up on the laptop, so we had a better view of the pictures. It was a two-story house with a small front porch and tall windows. The property looked to be about the same size as Nash's parents' place and while it didn't have a pool; it had the space for one.

"It's beautiful, Mitch," Sammy said as we went through the pictures. It looked dated and warn to me, but Sammy had a good eye for these things.

"You don't think it's more work than we can handle?"

She shook her head. "You don't have to do all the work at once. I'd start with the kitchen," she pointed to the picture with the small, dark kitchen. "I'd remove the wall and open it up into the living-room, and I think if you get white cabinets it will make it feel bigger. Oh, and add an island. One of those really big ones."

I nodded my head. It was a good idea, and I could see it. I'd also want to fence in the backyard and maybe make the front porch bigger.

"I think I want to see it in person."

She nodded, her face somber. "I think you should. Go for a couple of days."

"You won't mind?"

"No. Why would I mind?"

"Don't you want to come with me?"

"I'd love to see it, Mitch, but I can't go. I can't give Sylvia such short notice again."

"Do you want me to wait a few days to see if you can get off later in the week?"

She shook her head. "No, you heard what Nash was saying. You should go see it before someone else buys it."

I leaned over and pressed my lips to hers.

"I guess I better find a flight."

"How about I search for a flight for you and you go pack?"

"Kicking me out, sunshine?"

She laughed and took the laptop out of my hands. "Just go pack."

So I did.