Total pages in book: 15
Estimated words: 14079 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 70(@200wpm)___ 56(@250wpm)___ 47(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 14079 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 70(@200wpm)___ 56(@250wpm)___ 47(@300wpm)
“It’s a sin not to put this to use.” I glance around and notice the tall double door in the center of the long wall. “Is that a hidden pantry?” What can I say? I’m a Pinterest junky.
He smiles and nods his head. “The builder talked me into it. Want to check it out?”
“Heck yes.” I can’t wait to see a hidden pantry in person. He pulls the doors open, and I almost drool over what he reveals. The hidden room is nearly the same size as his kitchen. It has white cabinets and countertops. “This is a lot of storage.”
“You’re welcome to use any of my storage.” He takes my hand and brings it to his lips. “I have four bedrooms with large walk-in closets and a secret library hidden behind a bookcase.” Miles winks. “I’m not above using my house upgrades to win you over.”
His teasing attitude melts my heart, and I decide to play along. “I need to see all these upgrades before I make up my mind.”
“Come on then, and I’ll show you what I’m offering.” While his house is awesome, I’d rather own his heart.
“This is beautiful,” I tell him as we walk down the hallway. Each room he shows me is nicer than the next. “Why are you using the small bedroom instead of the master?” The smallest bedroom in the back of the house is the only one furnished.
“I’ve been waiting to find my soulmate. I wanted to let her decorate it.” He pauses. “You.” I’m done. The sincerity shining from his eyes seals the deal. “I want you to make the entire house your forever home. Do whatever you want with it.”
“This is a lot to take in.” It’s too late for me to walk back from this. My heart is already in it for the long run.
“I know. Since the first second I laid eyes on you, I’ve felt like a cartoon character who’s been hit in the head with a giant hammer,” Miles admits, and I laugh at the silly expression on his handsome face.
“Before I commit to anything, I need to see your impressive library.” I’m only teasing a little bit. I really do want to check out this library.
“Come this way.” He stops at a bookcase built in under the stairs and pulls a book out. “I couldn’t resist the secret book handle.” He laughs. “Even though I know it’s corny.”
“It’s not corny at all.” I step into the room and gasp. “I freaking love it. This is gorgeous.” With floor-to-ceiling bookshelves wrapping around the oval-shaped room and a large sitting area that consists of four large leather sofas, this room is heaven. I walk over and stare out the window that covers the entire back wall. The perfectly landscaped back yard has a rectangular pool with a waterfall on one end.
“Your home is perfect.” My mind is blown. “It’s like you designed my dream home.”
“It’s funny how that works.” He leads me through another door, and we end up in the pantry.
“Now that I’ve given you the grand tour, why don’t we have dinner? Then we can see where things go from there.”
“Sounds great.”
My mind whirls the entire time we eat, and I don’t taste a bite of his grandmother’s casserole. But the fact that he cooked the dish for me does warm my heart.
After dinner, he leads me to the living room and sits next to me on the large leather sofa. When he tells me about his younger sister, it finally hits me that I know her.
“Morgan comes into the bookstore quite a bit.” I hope she doesn’t mind me telling her brother that. “Well, she did before she married Grizz.” It’s only been a few weeks, but I miss seeing her every few days.
“I know.” He isn’t shocked at all. “My sister loves to read almost as much as me.”
“Grizz comes in every now and then, too.” The Silver Spoon Falls grapevine is always busy. When Grizz and Morgan found each other, the gossips all over town went wild. Miles places his arm across the back of my shoulders, and my body melts against him automatically. “I know Grizz through my brother,” I explain. “Fischer is a lawyer at Jude Despora’s law firm.”
“It seems like everyone in this town is related to everyone else somehow.”
“You are so right.” I laugh. “I’m from a small town in Colorado, and it’s the same way.”
“Is that why you moved here? It reminded you of home?”
“Actually, it’s a long story. Basically, I met Maddie in college. We both belonged to the “after dark” book club that met in secret where we discussed all the steamy reads we could find.” Miles runs his fingers over my knuckles, and I almost lose track of my story. “We hit it off immediately and became best friends. Maddie came up with the idea of us starting a bookstore together after graduation, but life happened and we ended up with jobs in different states after college. We might have gone our separate ways, but neither of us gave up on our dream to own a bookstore. We kept in touch through email and calls, and Maddie was the first person I contacted when I came across the old bookstore in town that was in foreclosure. She came to visit Silver Spoon Falls, and the rest is history. We opened Gatsby Books a few months later, and it’s been a huge success.”