Total pages in book: 65
Estimated words: 59713 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 299(@200wpm)___ 239(@250wpm)___ 199(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 59713 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 299(@200wpm)___ 239(@250wpm)___ 199(@300wpm)
“Let me give you the tour.”
He had my bag in one hand, and he took my hand with the other as he guided me around. It wasn’t a huge house, but a nice size and well laid out. There was a definite man vibe about it that could use a little softening, but I was up to the challenge.
I stopped myself from thinking about that too much further. It felt a little like I was getting ahead of myself. After all, this was the first time he’d brought me to his house for the weekend. Maybe it wasn’t quite time yet for me to be thinking about how to spruce up the living room with new curtains or wondering if he had any dishes that matched.
He showed me the front of the house, then led me to the back and through a closed door into the bedroom. The huge bed was neatly made, and I had a feeling there were fresh sheets on it just for the occasion. To one side of the room, a door led into a massive walk-in closet. Alex brought my bag into there and set it down on the floor.
“There’s a lot of space in here,” he said. “I don’t exactly have the wardrobe to fill up this whole closet. I think it’s been waiting for someone else to add to it.”
He flashed me a grin, and I smiled back. “We’ll see what I can do about that.”
Leaving my bag where it was, he brought me out of the closet and to another door. It led to a huge bathroom decorated in sandy beige, bright white, and coastal blue for a peaceful, calming effect. I noticed a shelf on the wall piled high with fluffy towels and several bottles of bath products clustered together in the corner of the sunken tub.
“I picked up a few things for you,” he said. “Just in case you didn’t have a bag packed some time when you came here.”
He gestured toward the counter, and I noticed a brand-new toothbrush, hairbrush, and contact lens supplies sitting next to the sink. They were basic toiletry items, but that was what made my heart swell. Their simplicity was what made the gesture so meaningful. He thought about me not just in an abstract way or when it came to elaborate gestures. He thought about me being here in his home doing the basic day-to-day activities of living like brushing my teeth.
“Thank you.” I wrapped my arms around his waist and gave him a kiss.
“You’re welcome,” he said, hugging me back. “Are you hungry?”
“Starved,” I said, making him laugh.
“Well, we could go out if you want to.” He chuckled when I started shaking my head adamantly before he’d even finished the suggestion. “Or we could settle in for the evening with a very elegant pizza delivered from the amazing place just down the road.”
“I think pizza is just about my speed tonight.”
“Good.” He took my hand to guide me out of the bathroom and into the living room.
We spent the evening eating and talking. Every conversation felt like we were trying to peel away the layers of each other and learn everything we possibly could. I knew I wanted to know everything about him. I wanted every detail I could uncover. The big important things like his childhood and what he believed in, what was important to him, of course. But I was also after all the little things, the nitty-gritty bits that made him who he was.
I wanted to know his favorite ice cream flavor and the first movie he could remember seeing. I wanted to know what he dressed up as for Halloween when he was a little boy and his favorite candy to find in his Christmas stocking. I wanted to know the holidays he looked forward to the most and what traditions he had with his family. Every little thing mattered to me, and I was trying to uncover them all.
That mission continued on through the next day. He opened up about his grandparents and what it was like to lose his parents and then them. He told me about his brother losing his wife and how hard that was on the entire family, but how joyful they were when he was willing to find love again.
We talked about computers and what led both of us to our fascinations with the machines. And when he got up to make us a snack on Saturday afternoon, I looked over the titles of the books packed tightly on the shelves in his living room. I had always believed a lot could be learned about a person just from finding out what they read.
When it came to Doug, that meant pretty much nothing, so just having the collection felt like a step up.