They picked up the remnants of the decorations and put them away in the garage, then she followed him inside the house.

She’d been here twice already, though the first time had been when she’d dumped him inside the front door, so that didn’t really count. The second time she’d been nervous and had taken only a cursory glance—enough to note it was a nice house—but that had been about it.

Now, though, she was more relaxed, and she took the time to note his leather sofas, the dark wood floors, the recently renovated kitchen. The house wasn’t new, but the kitchen was. All new appliances, quartz counters, with a newly tiled back-splash as well. She liked the looks of his kitchen, with its roomy island and plenty of space to work.

“Did you renovate the kitchen yourself?”

He handed her a beer. “I did. More or less. My dad helped some, and I had some friends over to help out when I could wrangle them on weekends, but mostly I did it on my own.”

She pulled a seat up to the island. “You did a great job.”

He took a long swallow of beer, then smiled at her. “Thanks. The place was a fixer-upper when I bought it, which meant I got it for a bargain. It also meant a lot of work, so I’ve been . . . working on it here and there for the past couple of years.”

She swiveled around on her barstool, giving his place the once-over now that she knew he’d been renovating. “Tell me what you’ve done. What was it like when you moved in?”

He pushed off the counter, and took her by the hand. “Grab your beer. I’ll give you the grand tour. I warn you, though. I’m not finished yet, so you’re going to see old house mixed with new house.”

Her lips curved as she lifted her gaze to his. “That’s what makes it fun. I like a work in progress. If it’s all ‘after,’ I don’t get to see how much work you’ve done.”

He laughed. “Okay then.” He took her into the living room, which was large, filled with two leather sofas, a modern, sleek fireplace and a really good-sized flat-screen TV. He’d fashioned a quirky-looking coffee table out of some kind of metal, and there was a side table on one end of one of the sofas.

“This room used to be small. There was a dining room on the side, also closed off. And the kitchen had a wall separating it from the living room. I took that out to open the whole thing up.”

“I can see how this works now. It’s much more open. And you added those French doors. My guess is there used to be a slider instead.”

“Yeah. With the most God awful ugly curtains you can imagine.”

“Oh, I can imagine. Remember, I move a lot so I’ve lived in places with what you could call ‘unique’ décor.”

“Is that right?’

“Yes.” She gave the room a critical look. “This is great entertainment space now. It’s roomy, and with the island in the kitchen and extra seating there, you can fit in a lot of people.”

“That was the idea.” He led her down the hall. “The guest bathroom is off to the left. I haven’t started on it yet.”

Which meant she had to check it out. She opened the door to find blanched oak cabinetry, gold fixtures, a shower/tub combination. All very nineties-type décor. It was clean, though, so she gave him props for that.

She turned to Carter. “It’s workable, but boring and dated.”

“Yeah. It’s the next project on the list. The last rooms to get renovated will be the other three bedrooms. I wanted to do the kitchen and living room first, and I finished the master bedroom just a month or so ago.”

As soon as he opened the door to his bedroom, her eyes widened.

Now this was a retreat. Wide windows which surely let in a ton of light, making her wish it was daylight so she could see how the sun would spill into the oversized room. He had a king-sized bed and two nightstands, and there was still plenty of space for the two oversized stuffed chairs and table next to the windows. He’d continued the hardwood in this room, but put a comfortable-looking rug in between the bed and the sitting area. She walked in, admiring the furniture and the peaceful earth tone color of the paint in the room. Quietly, she made her way into the bathroom, but there, she gasped.

“Good Lord, Carter. Is this some kind of lure for women?”

He laughed, his warm breath tickling the back of her neck. “Maybe.”

The bathroom was an oasis, with a large soaking tub, two deep vessel sinks with plenty of cabinet space, a dressing table, and a shower with multiple jets. There was a pebbled floor in the shower, and she curled her toes inside her sneakers at the thought of how that floor would massage her bare feet.

“It’s decadent.”

“If you think this is awesome, you should see the closet.”

She pivoted to face him. “Don’t tease me.”

He stepped out of the bathroom, giving her space to open the door leading to the closet.

The light turned on automatically, and it was like she’d stepped into paradise. The closet was as big as some of the bedrooms she’d lived in, with racks and built-ins for shoes, and there was even a dresser in there.

“I love it.” She turned to him. “Are you sure there isn’t some woman in your life, and you built this for her?”

“No. Not yet, anyway. But I figured I probably wouldn’t live here alone forever. Besides, I like a lot of space. I hate feeling confined. You should have seen the closet before. I could barely get my clothes in there, and it’s not like I’m some big clothes guy. So I expanded the master a lot, added on to this room to make it larger.”

“It shows. You’ve done an amazing job, Carter. When did you find the time for all this, plus your job, plus committees?”

He shrugged. “I make time for the things that are important to me.”

It was then she realized that he’d set down roots in Hope, that this place meant something to him. Whereas she had run like hell and never once looked back. She’d let her pain drive her all these years. It had forced her away from her family, from everything she’d ever known.

But she wasn’t going to blame Carter for it. It had been her choice.

She couldn’t—wouldn’t—have regrets. She lived a full life, an adventurous one, and she’d learned a lot. She supposed Carter had as well. They’d just done things a lot differently.