meant it in jest, but when she looked at him with an embarrassed flush, his heart started to thump.
“What’s next?” she asked a little too loudly, ending the moment.
She wasn’t thrilled with his decorating in the master suite, laughed at the sight of the half-filled bedrooms that he still hadn’t gotten to, and lingered in his favorite room.
“This is the man cave?” she asked, running her hands over the globe that served as a bar.
“That’s what my friends call it, but it’s actually a game room. Eventually it’ll be a playroom. For the kids.”
“Do any of your other friends plan their futures like this?” she asked, wandering through the space with her hands clasped behind her back.
“They don’t know the family part of why I bought this.” No one knew about that. “I just told them I wanted a nice house, and now I can afford it.”
“Ah.” She glanced out the window overlooking the front of the house. “When did you buy it?”
“Last year. I put a huge down payment on it, financed with very little interest, and a low monthly payment. I know this looks like splurging, but it’s a safety net. It’s already increased in value. And I know what bills I have for the future, which means I know what needs to be set aside in order to…” He gulped. He hadn’t talked about this to anyone but the guys and his immediate family, the latter of which didn’t approve. “To do my mini-golf play area.”
She glanced back at him. “Your dream?”
“Yes, my dream. I have a place all picked out for it. It’s just on the outskirts of town, and I can buy the land at cost from…a family friend. Here’s… I have…” He went to the computer and pulled up the CG model. While he had a dedicated office, he always found himself coming up here instead. “This is just a mock-up, but it’s what I’m going for. A past client did this up for me. She said she’ll help when I’m ready.”
Madison crossed the room, her hands still clasped behind her back, and bent to look at the computer. She let Colton take her through the mini-golf course, the arcade, the bumper cars, and the little car track. His palms were sweaty and his confidence slipped. While his friends’ disinterest and his family’s scoffing hadn’t put him off, he wanted her to believe in him. He wanted her to think he could, and would, pull it off.
“What do you think?” he asked, straightening.
She straightened too and looked around the room. “A few things. One is that this room is you. It’s got your vibe. It isn’t you trying to show off for your friends, like the living room. It isn’t you trying to be domestic, like your sitting room. I hate that weird collection of cows, by the way. What is that?”
Shaking her head to show she’d lost the thread, she continued, “It isn’t even you trying to outfit something you do well, like the kitchen. You’re a great cook, and clearly you know it. No, this is just you. No bullshit. And that”—she pointed at the computer—“needs to happen, or you’ll never be happy.
“The other thing is that you’re ready to get going on your dream, from the looks of things. You’re being smart about it. Most people would sink their money into their dream before going for the house, which would screw them over if it didn’t work out, but you have accounted for both your future and your present. I’m impressed. If you put as much effort into your dream as you have into everything else, I think you’re set.”
He couldn’t help the stupid smile, the overwhelming relief.
“The third thing…” Her voice turned severe and her business look hit him full blast. “You didn’t need a house this big for a family, and you didn’t need that car. I don’t know how much you’ve saved for your venture, but I bet it isn’t enough. Overkill will hurt you.”
He was struck dumb for a second. “Ouch.”
She shrugged. “I bought an expensive car, too. And paid more than I should’ve per month with the ex, plus kept my other apartment—I’m not one to talk. Which is why I am an excellent authority on overkill. Just so you know.”
He rubbed his chest. “True.”
“Next question: do we have time for a quickie? Because this room has strangely made me incredibly horny, and I want to jump you so hard I am literally shaking.”
Her lipstick was